Murder mystery sudoku — the daily cases for 1 August 2026

Every detective in the world got these same crime scenes on 2026-08-01 — each difficulty published twice, once untimed and once as time attack. Each case is procedurally generated and then proved to have exactly one logical solution before it is published, including the cases where somebody is lying. You place every suspect back on the map using only their testimony: exactly one person per row, never two in a column. Whoever is left alone with the victim did it.

Beginner — The Old Observatory

A 5×5 grid across 4 rooms: Lounge, Garden, Terrace, Office. Six statements, five squares nobody could stand on, and no assumption anywhere: elimination alone closes it.

Cracked by 6 detectives so far.

How this case was cracked — the full solution to this board, step by step

Every step below is the solver’s own — the same one that proved this board has exactly one answer. The counts are real: you can check them against the grid.

The testimony

What each person said, and how much of the board it rules out.

Ines was in the top row. leaves 3 of 22 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Ines: 3 of 22.
Enzo was in the office. leaves 6 of 22 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Enzo: 6 of 22.
Alistair was in the lounge. leaves 6 of 22 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Alistair: 6 of 22.
Alistair was in column 3. leaves 1 of 22 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Alistair: 1 of 22.
Vivienne was in the garden. leaves 6 of 22 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Vivienne: 6 of 22.
Vivienne was in row 4. leaves 2 of 22 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Vivienne: 2 of 22.

Show the squares Vivienne had left

The squares still open to Vivienne once their own statements are taken into account — 2 of 22.

What the testimony settles on its own

Nobody shares a row or a column, so each placement narrows everyone else. Before a single guess:

Sol can only be in Lounge (row 2, column 5) — down from 22 possible squares.
Ines can only be in Terrace (row 1, column 4) — down from 3 possible squares.
Enzo can only be in Office (row 3, column 2) — down from 6 possible squares.
Vivienne can only be in Garden (row 4, column 1) — down from 2 possible squares.

The answer

That leaves one arrangement, and one person who could have done it: Alistair, in Lounge (row 5, column 3).

Show the solved board

The only arrangement the testimony allows. Alistair is ringed in red.

Easy — The Golf Course

A 6×6 grid across 5 rooms: Tee Box, Fairway, Pro Shop, Water Hazard, Rough. Seven statements, six squares nobody could stand on, and no assumption anywhere: elimination alone closes it.

Cracked by 5 detectives so far.

How this case was cracked — the full solution to this board, step by step

Every step below is the solver’s own — the same one that proved this board has exactly one answer. The counts are real: you can check them against the grid.

The testimony

What each person said, and how much of the board it rules out.

Wren was beside the golf tee. leaves 1 of 32 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Wren: 1 of 32.
Dorian was in the rough. leaves 8 of 32 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Dorian: 8 of 32.
Vivienne was in column 3. leaves 5 of 32 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Vivienne: 5 of 32.
Vivienne was beside the flower bush. leaves 1 of 32 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Vivienne: 1 of 32.
Beatrix was in the water hazard or in the rough. leaves 15 of 32 squares
Beatrix was in column 5. leaves 2 of 32 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Beatrix: 2 of 32.
Celeste was beside the flower bush. leaves 3 of 32 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Celeste: 3 of 32.

Show the squares Beatrix had left

The squares still open to Beatrix once their own statements are taken into account — 2 of 32.

What the testimony settles on its own

Nobody shares a row or a column, so each placement narrows everyone else. Before a single guess:

Redmond can only be in Water Hazard (row 1, column 6) — down from 32 possible squares.
Dorian can only be in Rough (row 6, column 1) — down from 8 possible squares.
Beatrix can only be in Water Hazard (row 3, column 5) — down from 2 possible squares.
Celeste can only be in Rough (row 5, column 2) — down from 3 possible squares.

The answer

That leaves one arrangement, and one person who could have done it: Beatrix, in Water Hazard (row 3, column 5).

Show the solved board

The only arrangement the testimony allows. Beatrix is ringed in red.

Medium — A Walk in the Park

A 7×7 grid across 6 rooms: Boathouse, Kiosk, Rose garden, Duck pond, Lawn, Bandstand. Seven statements, eleven squares nobody could stand on, almost as many rooms as suspects, so a room claim nearly names a square, and one round of assume-and-test after elimination ran dry.

Cracked by 6 detectives so far.

How this case was cracked — the full solution to this board, step by step

Every step below is the solver’s own — the same one that proved this board has exactly one answer. The counts are real: you can check them against the grid.

Lettered squares are objects. Most take the square out of play — which is why the counts above are of free squares, not of all of them — but the ones marked below do not: their square is still in play. BE — bench · BO — boulder · CA — carpet (square stays free) · CR — crate · FL — floor lamp · FO — flower bush · FU — fountain · T — tree · W — window (square stays free)

The testimony

What each person said, and how much of the board it rules out.

Sol was beside the crate. leaves 2 of 42 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Sol: 2 of 42.
Wren was in the same room as Enzo.
Dorian was beside the carpet. leaves 4 of 42 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Dorian: 4 of 42.
Redmond was beside the floor lamp. leaves 2 of 42 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Redmond: 2 of 42.
Alistair was in the same column as a window. leaves 19 of 42 squares
Alistair was in the same row as the flower bush. leaves 3 of 42 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Alistair: 3 of 42.
Enzo was in the same row as the bench. leaves 5 of 42 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Enzo: 5 of 42.

Show the squares Sol had left

The squares still open to Sol once their own statements are taken into account — 2 of 42.

The squares that had to be tested

The rest does not fall out on its own. It takes 17 eliminations of the same move: put someone on a square, follow the consequences, and watch the board contradict itself.

Had Sol stood in Kiosk (row 5, column 5), Dorian would have had nowhere left to stand. So not there.
Put Wren in Lawn (row 3, column 1) and the testimony cannot be satisfied at all. So not there.
Put Dorian in Boathouse (row 5, column 6) and the testimony cannot be satisfied at all. So not there.
Put Redmond in Boathouse (row 7, column 3) and the testimony cannot be satisfied at all. So not there.

Show what goes wrong

Suppose Sol stood on the dashed square. Dorian then has nowhere left to stand: every square still open to them is shaded out.

Another 13 squares fell the same way.

The answer

That leaves one arrangement, and one person who could have done it: Alistair, in Duck pond (row 1, column 7).

Show the solved board

The only arrangement the testimony allows. Alistair is ringed in red.

Hard — The Theatre Royal

An 8×8 grid across 6 rooms: Bar, Stage, Wings, Balcony, Pit, Foyer. Twelve statements, eleven squares nobody could stand on, and one round of assume-and-test after elimination ran dry.

Cracked by 4 detectives so far.

How this case was cracked — the full solution to this board, step by step

Every step below is the solver’s own — the same one that proved this board has exactly one answer. The counts are real: you can check them against the grid.

Lettered squares are objects. Most take the square out of play — which is why the counts above are of free squares, not of all of them — but the ones marked below do not: their square is still in play. A — armchair (square stays free) · CA — carpet (square stays free) · CH — chest · CR — crate · F — floor lamp · G — grandfather clock · H — harp · PA — painting (square stays free) · PI — piano · S — sofa (square stays free) · W — window (square stays free)

The testimony

What each person said, and how much of the board it rules out.

Margot was in the same room as Sol.
Redmond was in the southern half of the scene. leaves 29 of 58 squares
Redmond was in column 3. leaves 4 of 58 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Redmond: 4 of 58.
Alistair was exactly 7 columns east of Wren.
Alistair was in the same room as Sol.
Sol was exactly 1 row north of Alistair.
Wren was all alone in a room.
Ines was exactly 4 columns west of Alistair.
Ines was all alone in a room.
Ines was somewhere south of Hugo.
Hugo was somewhere north of Wren.
Hugo was in the same column as the carpet. leaves 16 of 58 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Hugo: 16 of 58.

Show the squares Redmond had left

The squares still open to Redmond once their own statements are taken into account — 4 of 58.

The squares that had to be tested

The rest does not fall out on its own. It takes 71 eliminations of the same move: put someone on a square, follow the consequences, and watch the board contradict itself.

Had Margot stood in Stage (row 1, column 8), Alistair would have had nowhere left to stand. So not there.
Had Redmond stood in Bar (row 8, column 3), Ines would have had nowhere left to stand. So not there.
Had Alistair stood in Stage (row 2, column 8), Margot would have had nowhere left to stand. So not there.
Had Sol stood in Stage (row 1, column 5), Margot would have had nowhere left to stand. So not there.

Show what goes wrong

Suppose Margot stood on the dashed square. Alistair then has nowhere left to stand: every square still open to them is shaded out.

Another 67 squares fell the same way.

Margot can only be in Stage (row 1, column 5) — down from 2 possible squares.

The answer

That leaves one arrangement, and one person who could have done it: Redmond, in Foyer (row 5, column 3).

Show the solved board

The only arrangement the testimony allows. Redmond is ringed in red.

Expert — A Walk in the Park

A 9×9 grid across 8 rooms: Path, Picnic area, Lawn, Kiosk, Duck pond, Bandstand, Rose garden, Playground. Twelve statements, sixteen squares nobody could stand on, almost as many rooms as suspects, so a room claim nearly names a square, and two rounds of assume-and-test after elimination ran dry.

Cracked by 2 detectives so far.

How this case was cracked — the full solution to this board, step by step

Every step below is the solver’s own — the same one that proved this board has exactly one answer. The counts are real: you can check them against the grid.

The testimony

What each person said, and how much of the board it rules out.

Hugo was exactly 2 rows north of Celeste.
Beatrix was somewhere north of Enzo.
Ines was exactly 2 columns east of Margot.
Vivienne was in the same column as a crate. leaves 13 of 69 squares
Show it on the board
The squares this one statement leaves Vivienne: 13 of 69.
Vivienne was exactly 3 rows south of Enzo.
Enzo was all alone in a room.
Dorian was exactly 1 column east of Enzo.
Dorian was exactly 6 rows south of Ines.
Margot was all alone in a room.
Celeste was exactly 7 columns east of Enzo.
Exactly 3 people were in the kiosk.
Exactly 2 people were in the path.

Show the squares Vivienne had left

The squares still open to Vivienne once their own statements are taken into account — 13 of 69.

The squares that had to be tested

The rest does not fall out on its own. It takes 203 eliminations across 2 rounds of the same move: put someone on a square, follow the consequences, and watch the board contradict itself.

Had Hugo stood in Playground (row 1, column 1), Enzo would have had nowhere left to stand. So not there.
Had Beatrix stood in Playground (row 1, column 2), Enzo would have had nowhere left to stand. So not there.
Had Ines stood in Playground (row 1, column 3), Enzo would have had nowhere left to stand. So not there.
Had Enzo stood in Duck pond (row 2, column 1), Beatrix would have had nowhere left to stand. So not there.

Show what goes wrong

Suppose Hugo stood on the dashed square. Enzo then has nowhere left to stand: every square still open to them is shaded out.

Another 199 squares fell the same way.

Hugo can only be in Kiosk (row 4, column 4) — down from 5 possible squares.
Beatrix can only be in Kiosk (row 2, column 6) — down from 5 possible squares.

The answer

That leaves one arrangement, and one person who could have done it: Vivienne, in Path (row 8, column 7).

Show the solved board

The only arrangement the testimony allows. Vivienne is ringed in red.

How to read a case above

The grid size is the size of the crime scene, so a 10×9 expert case is a far larger search than a 5×5 beginner one — but the difficulty is really carried by the clues, not the square count. A beginner case tells you almost directly where somebody stood. An expert case tells you where somebody was not, three times, and expects you to do the rest — and on half of them one of those statements is a lie told to protect the killer. If a case lists a motive, naming the right person is not enough on its own; you have to prove why.

How to play · Solving cases with a liar · Techniques

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