Hey everyone, just to let you know I've been working on a new game with some top people: Art - Ewa Chrusciel Music and sound design - Nic Nell Sudoku Sweeper is a mash up of (you guessed it!) sudoku and Minesweeper, which launches on April 27th. ($2.99 iOS and Android, no ads, no in-app purchases) Basic concept is pretty simple: You get a grid where every row, column and zone has a single bomb in it. You need to tap the numbers, and avoid the bombs. Of course, as with the inspiration games, just those simple rules lead to what can be a fiendishly difficult puzzle game. I originally came up with the idea a few years ago, when I was thinking about sudoku and minesweeper independently, as well as a bunch of other grid based games, and trying to work out how to improve the UX for mobile. Sudoku as found in the newspaper doesn't make a very good mobile game - the cells are too small in the grid, you need to keep flipping between inserting notes and the actual numbers, and it's difficult to play one handed, as well as super boring looking. I realised the game got a lot more fun when you limited the grid to 7x7, made the zones irregular shapes, and got rid of the whole notes vs. answers thing by just making players avoid a bomb (you just switch out the highest number for a bomb and it has similar behaviour). We started out thinking the game would have this funky disco vibe to it that was all neon colours and flashing lights on a black background, but the more I played the game, the more I realised it's about zoning out and relaxing, letting your mind focus on the logic and not on whatever else in life is stressing you out. So we doubled down on that, which shows in the art and the sound. The art became just like paper cards being flipped over, and the music had this eastern feel to it, which together with a background of raindrops to gives you the sensation of meditating. So... that's pretty much the whole story. If you are keen to try it out, I've got 5 iOS and 5 Android promo codes to give away if you promise to post honest feedback in this thread... just PM me ;-)
Yes, still plenty of promo codes left I'll send them out in batches... some at lunchtime and some at the end of the day
Hey @Misguided, there isn't landscape at the moment... I deliberately turned this off because I wanted the game to be playable one handed (e.g. if you are on a bus/train and also need to hold onto something as well). I guess we could add landscape back, but it would be quite a bit of work... could you give a bit more detail why this is important to you? Thanks,
It's pretty much a deal-breaker for me, actually. I use a stand for my iPad that works better with landscape and avoid the vast majority of games that are portrait only. I have made exceptions on rare occasion (e.g. fire Emblem). Even before I used the stand, I was using a Smart Cover and avoided portrait for the same reason. I completely understand that resources are limited as an indie developer, though. Thanks for answering the question.
It's something I'm thinking a lot more about at the moment actually. My dad is in hospital and has limited mobility in his hands (should recover eventually), but Sudoku Sweeper is one of the few games he can play at the moment, and landscape mode would make it even easier as he could use a stand as well. Not something we can do overnight, but I'll continue to think about / look into it. Thanks for your feedback!
Looking forward to this one. I really dislike having to scroll a lot in mobile Minesweeper games, but you can't have challenging Minesweeper without a bigger board. I enjoy Sudoku, but I got a little tired of the same ol', same ol'. This looks like it'll solve both problems, and looks slick to boot! ------- WOW!!! I've played now, and this is fantastic! It's fairly easy through the first board sizes, but the challenge is just right at the large board size. Feels more like Sudoku than Minesweeper (not a bad thing). My only gripe, which is super small, is that square face you use for a new board. I feel like it's a little out of place, maybe? Something that matches the X in the top right but on the top left might look better? Really great work. I don't keep a lot on my phone, but this is a keeper!
This is my review of Sudoku Sweeper. iOS version played on iPhone 6S+. First of all I really like the colors, they really pop during game play. I played quite a few games with the sound off because I didn't want to disturb the people around em on the bus. But when I was able to turn the sound back on I really enjoyed the soothing music. The soft sounds when picking a box that turns out to be a number are the perfect reflection of the sounds when finding a bomb on accident. I also really enjoyed the animations, be it the turning of tiles to numbers/bombs, or the flipping of the tiles at the setup of a puzzle. Combined with the colors it really does look minimalist and easy to focus on the game. My only real complaint is not knowing what clicking on the paper face does. (I went back through the tutorial a second time to see if I missed an explanation) I don't know how many games I played prior to clicking on the face, but I was in the 6 bombs per puzzle quite a few times. I like that it resets the puzzle and moves everything around. So if I run into a difficult one that I can't advance, I can click the face and try a new one. On that note, I don't know that it needs to be explained, just wanted to bring it up. I really enjoy both Sudoku and Minesweeper.(I originally typed Minecraft, which doesn't make the sentence any less true) I find it a great fit together. Combine the sounds and visuals with the easy to see pieces and it is a very enjoyable game. Thank you.
Still playing and enjoying this. Two things to add: 1) On my Nexus 5X, the game froze and had to be force quit after I won three rounds of 7 bombs in a row. It retained my progress when I reopened the app, but just an FYI. 2) Would you consider adding an 8x8 or 9x9 board, maybe with just smaller squares? Not that I haven't lost on the 7x7 board more than once, but I think I would love additional difficulty levels. Good work!
