In my free time I like to read books and attend social events, but my favorite hobby since childhood has always been video games. This semester however has been overwhelmingly stressful, and in this time even video games have started to feel like a chore and less of a way to relieve stress. In that time, I have reignited my love for sudoku. I even downloaded a free app on my phone so that I can take my little puzzles with me on the go. It is ad free and doesn’t use very much of my iPhone 7’s ancient battery.

I think there is a misconception about the difficulty of sudoku. This may have something to do with seeing numbers and mistaking the game for math homework, but I assure you that if you are able to count to 9, you are ready to play sudoku.

The objective of a sudoku puzzle is to fill a 9×9 box with numbers 1-9. The puzzle being: the numbers cannot repeat horizontally or vertically. Additionally, the 9×9 box is made up of nine 3×3 boxes, and within those boxes of nine squares the numbers also may not repeat.

I find the best way to solve these puzzles is to start with the 1’s and fill in any that you can immediately figure out as the correct placement. Then continue on to the 2’s and then 3’s until you have counted to 9. Then start over. You may find new easy numbers to fill in now that there are a few more wrong answers eliminated. Any time that I am stuck in a puzzle, I start this process fresh.

A second tip is to work in rows first. If you notice that a row contains only 3 blank spaces, you will have less trouble deducing which number is which. Count to 9 in the row, and note which numbers are missing. For instance, you may notice that a row is missing 2, 5, and 9. Try and see if you can place 2, 5, or 9 in each of the blank spaces, and rule out which places where they don’t fit.

Some people like to make notes in the spaces, and I think you should determine for yourself if that is your ideal playstyle. Ultimately however the key to completing a sudoku puzzle is determination and keeping track of the details.

Every so often, if someone catches me doing the Times sudoku and will say something like “I heard that makes you smart.” I disagree. I don’t think that sudoku increases intelligence in any meaningful way, and I don’t particularly see intelligence as a helpful or objective measurement anyway. Everyone brings a different perspective and way of solving problems. But I do think that sudoku is a lovely way to keep your brain active and improve your memory while having a nice time.