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for the addict

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: August 12, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Really fun and encourages addiction.

pros - more sudoku games than you can shake a DS at.
the mini games are fun, too.

cons - no option to turn off the coach.
pencil marking is very tiny and hard to read and edit.
Only tracks a single player.
auto-save is weird, you have to go out to the main menu before the "Saving" message is displayed.

Okay

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: August 05, 2008
Author: Amazon User

This game if fun, the only thing that I really didn't like was when I tried to write a number in the game had problems telling witch number I was writing.

If you love sudoku you'll love this

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: July 10, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I recentlly got hooked on Sudoku and had to have this for my DS. This game is great. Not only does it have sudoku but some other challenges which are also fun. I love the fact that it has help tips for those puzzles which are a little more advanced than I can handle. I would recomend this to all sudoku lovers.

SUDOKU

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: July 05, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I THOUGHT THE SUDOKU GAME MIGHT BE LIKE THE BRAIN 2 DS LITE GAME, BUT NOT EXACTLY WHAT I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE.

Excellent!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: June 14, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Great game for the DS. I like how you can pencil in possible numbers and also like that it gives you the number combo possibilities for kakuro (I wouldn't play kakuro otherwise). Because of this game I now like kakuro. I wish this was available for the pc also.

Very close second.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: May 15, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I am in agreement with many of the reviewers here--that Platinum Sudoku is very good but comes in second to the sudoku provided in brain age.

The interface is somewhat annoying--it seems like a lot of tapping in order to get the possible numbers entered. And I agree that the default font is somewhat hard to read. I appreciate that there is a left-handed set up for the number pad.

Overall, I think I have already gotten my money out of this game, and I've only had it for around a week.

Endless puzzles

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: April 10, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I really like this game. Sure, we could do without the "coach", but I just ignore them. I mainly play the sudoku puzzles. Even when you finish the levels, there is another section with endless amounts of puzzles from each level. I don't think I will ever finish them all! So, I will never get tired of this game.

I also have both Brain Ages, but I don't like writing the numbers. And I don't like the zooming in and out on Brain Age. This game, you can use buttons instead of writing. I find it is faster because it doesn't know what I am trying to write half the time. There are also options like all the possible numbers for each square automatically, but I think that is only for the Easy level. You can also do newspaper mode and turn all the hints and extras off. I think even without newspaper mode you have the option to turn hints off.

There is also a solver area where you can put in numbers and it will give you a solution. I've been tempted to use it with one of the game's own puzzles, but haven't yet. You can also make your own grid, but I am not sure how that works.

There are also mini games, but I don't really play those as much. I think the kakuro options are the same as the sudoku ones, but I don't really play that game either.

There is also a tips section, but you have to unlock those. That seems kind of backwards to me.

I recommend if this game if you just want a ton of sudoku puzzles and are not picky about the extras. You do have to finish the Easy level to get to medium and so forth. I think there are 5 levels. I forget the ones after Hard.

ETA: After the Hard level there is Pro (you have 3 lives and lose a life with every wrong answer) and Sudoku-X. I have never tried Sudoku-X and would like to, but I have to pass the Pro level (already passed Easy-Hard). That is the only thing I do not like about this game. You have to unlock the levels. It would make more sense to unlock everything at least after finishing Hard.

QUICKER TO PLAY

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: April 03, 2008
Author: Amazon User

A couple of features make this game handy to play, and quicker to solve.

However, the "auto-fill in" is handy but it makes the game too simple. A person just starting to learn to play Sudoku might think it is helpful, but it will keep them from learning to play it without that feature.

I recommend this game to experienced players.

Overall the best Sudoku package

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: March 20, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Many reviewers give top nods to Brain Age sudoku, with this package coming in second. I'd have to disagree. This offers many features that I think bring it far above Brain Age.

1) Holding game unit like normal. I find the position change for Brain Age to be annoying. Especially when you could work on an advanced Sudoku Puzzle for a protracted amount of time.

2) "number pad" available for entry. You can write in (like BA) or select from a number pad. I find the number pad faster, so I really like this option. Also, it's much easier to do 'pencil' marks than in Brain Age. In BA you have to write small. And if you don't write small enough, you do it over.

3) Lots of display options. For someone who plays a lot of Sudoku it's nice to be able to customize the environment so it's easy on the eyes and has the level of 'hints' you want. For instance you can operate in newspaper mode, which shows you nothing. On easy level, you can have it show all possible solutions, which cell is easiest to solve and so on. The default for all levels is to show the number in purple if your answer is possible and red if your number isn't possible with the current entries. There're also various number fonts available, which is nice so you can find one that's easy for you to read.

4) You CAN do one-touch write entries. Other reviewers stated you can't just touch a cell and write. That is inaccurate, but there's a specific way it has to be done. If you touch a cell and lift the stylus, you can then either touch it again for a blow-up of the cell to write (like BA), or you can enter with the number pad. However, if when you first touch the cell, you start to write your number, it will automatically pop up the cell just like in BA. In BA you touch a cell to get the enlarged cell, then you write. In Platinum Sudoku, touch the cell and immediately begin writing and the cell will enlarge.

5) The lessons are great. One downside is you'll have to play a certain number of puzzles before you unlock the really good lessons.

6) Kakuro included is nice. The easy Kakuro are insanely easy, so good for a beginner

7) Bonus games. There are some bonus games that are quite enjoyable. There's a mini minesweeper game, an old-fashioned shuffle puzzle, pair match logic problem and so on. A fun diversion when the puzzles are getting tedious. There's a game called subtract that can be a serious mind bender. Unfortunately, most of the games are 'unlocked' after you play enough of the sample puzzles.

The down sides, and the reason why I didn't give it 5 stars:

1) As others have mentioned, the coaches are annoying and you can't get rid of them.

2) Character recognition is not as good as BA. I had to change the way I write my 4's & 7s to get them to register correctly. Having to be more precise in the writing is why I find the number pad entry faster.

3) Time clock disappears when you complete the game. That really irritates me. When I complete a puzzle, the first thing I want to know is how long it took me. But the minute you put in the last number the 'coach' covers the screen telling you how wonderful you did. You can find the final time by clicking on the puzzle from the menu, but I think not showing the time when you complete the puzzle is a design flaw.

4) The whole game is driven on unlockables. It gets annoying. It talks about 20 million puzzles, but you have to complete all 100+ sample easy puzzles to unlock the 5 million possible easy puzzles, and so on with medium, hard and pro. You can't even play Pro until you complete all the hard sample puzzles (around 100).

One of the things I wanted this game for was Sudoku X, which you can't get until you play the 100 Pro puzzles, which you can't get until you complete the 100 easy, 100 medium and 100 hard. That really upset me. I paid for the game and shouldn't have to complete more than 500 puzzles to play one of the advertised 'features'.

5) There are a few things about the game that are not intuitive and you have to consult the booklet. For instance, how to do the one-touch write-in method I mentioned above. Or how to save your game. Little things that are annoying as you play.

6) Puzzle ratings are sometimes way off. Some of the 'easy' puzzles are brain bendingly hard, while there are some 'hard' puzzles that you can complete in under 5 minutes.

7) Pro level is designed BADLY. Once you get to pro level, you're given 3 lives to complete the puzzle. The idea is you make a mistake, you lose a life and try again. 3 mistakes, game over. The problem comes with what qualifies as a 'mistake.' It's not whether or not your solution is correct, it's whether or not you make one contradictory entry. Not even a wrong entry. Just doesn't fit with the puzzle. For instance, if you accidentally put in a 2 instead of a 5 and don't notice, then in another grid you put in a 2 that is correct for the puzzle, but doesn't fit with your erroneous 2 from before, you lose a life. The answer you put in may be right, but since it contradicts your current solution, you're down a life. This happens to me all the time when I accidentally tap the wrong number or it recognizes the wrong written number. I mean to tap the 7 and hit the 4 and lose a life. I write in a 7 and it recognizes a 2 and I lose a life. It's so badly designed I'd almost take another star off for it.

Overall, if you're a serious sudoku player, this is a much better choice than brain age. More puzzles, better playing environment, nice tutorials, etc. It's offset like any game with some annoyances, but overall is the best package out there.

However, if you're only interested in seriously advanced puzzles, the poor design in the Pro level may make you consider another product.

Frustrating and Too Fluffy

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 4 / 7
Date: March 18, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I have been a Sudoku fan for about 3 years now. I do well at solving the "difficult" and "fiendish" puzzles in the New York Post Sudoku books (in my opinion are the best Sudoku books out there). I thought I'd divert from these puzzles and try a shot at Platinum Sudoku after reading some of the reviews.

So far I've spent about 3-4 hours playing and have only solved 10 puzzles. The puzzles are frustrating and challenging. The "Easy" mode is not that easy, and I've barely scratched the surface on "Medium" mode. The numbers in "draft" mode (for guessing numbers)is so small that you have to get out your reading glasses to see what you've marked. Also, the default font is incredibly hard to read and to get used to. Unless you unlock some new fonts by completing several puzzles, there's really not a good font to select. That alone makes the puzzles difficult to complete. One of the things I have to agree with many other reviewers is the stupid girl and guy that supposedly pumps you up and makes you feel like you've accomplished something after completing a puzzle. Give me a break! It would have been nice to have the option to turn this feature off, similar to the music option.

The graphics are okay, but that's not what a good Sudoku puzzle is all about.

All in all, this game will be on my "used games to sell" list. My friend has "Ultimate Puzzle Games-Sudoku Edition" and this beats out Platinum Sudoku by far. I'm also sticking to the old school version of paper and pencil with a real eraser!!

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