PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools)

Theme: Just One

Author/Opus: This is the 144th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Cross the Streams rules.

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each of the black segments from top to bottom for the marked columns, going in order from A to B to C to D and separating each entry with a comma.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 3:30, Master = 6:15, Expert = 12:30.

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other Cross the Streams. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Cross the Streams to get started on.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to alternate between ship placement and shading modes. In ship placement mode, right click gives sea, left click gives circle/square, left click and drag for rounded ships.)

Theme: Just One

Author/Opus: This is the 262nd puzzle from Thomas Snyder, aka Dr. Sudoku.

Rules: Standard Battleships rules. Use the indicated fleet.

Answer String: For each row from top to bottom, enter the number of the first column from the left where a ship segment appears (enter just the last digit for any two-digit number). If the row is empty, enter 0. Enter these numbers as a single string with no separators.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 2:45, Master = 3:30, Expert = 7:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for other classic Battleships. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Battleships to get started on. More Battleships puzzles can be found in The Art of Puzzles collection.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools in linex mode where left click+drag draws lines and right click marks X’s)

Theme: Just One

Author/Opus: This is the 143rd puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Castle Wall rules.

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of the horizontal loop segments from left to right in the marked rows, starting at the top. If the loop only has vertical segments in the marked row, enter 0. Separate each row’s entry with a comma.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 2:30, Master = 3:15, Expert = 6:30

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for more Castle Wall puzzles. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Castle Wall puzzles to get started on.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use the tab key to alternate between shading and number entry modes)

Theme: Just One

Author/Opus: This is the 227th puzzle from our contributing puzzlemaster Grant Fikes.

Rules: Standard Nanro rules.

Answer String: Enter the length in cells of each of the segments labeled with numbers from left to right for the marked rows, starting at the top. Separate each row’s entry from the next with a comma.

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:15, Master = 2:15, Expert = 4:30

Solution: PDF

Note: Click here for other Nanro puzzles. If you are new to this puzzle type, please first try out the example on the Rules and Info page as well as this easy Nanro post.

We’re starting January with Just One week of puzzles. How often will we publish on the web in 2017? Only time will tell.

Monday: Nanro by Grant Fikes
Tuesday: Castle Wall by Serkan Yürekli
Wednesday: Battleships by Thomas Snyder
Thursday: Cross the Streams by Serkan Yürekli
Friday: Pata by Serkan Yürekli
Saturday: Pentominous by Carl Worth

Our supporters will also be receiving a bonus Cave by Murat Can Tonta, access to puzzle solutions, and a video walkthrough of the Saturday puzzle. If you’d like to receive some of these special rewards, please click here for more info.

All of the puzzles selected by our solvers as the “Best of 2016” are gathered in this PDF. You can read more about them in our other “Best of” posts.

Here are our best Shading puzzles of 2016, now our second most frequent category behind Loop/Path with 50 posts this past year.

Leading off this list was an Easy as LITS variation from Serkan that had a super high FAVE/solve ratio as a patron bonus puzzle. [Note: this is one of two supporter bonuses to win a Best Of award this year, but they’ll stay blurred on this site for non-patrons.]

Prasanna was our shading puzzle master this year, including this surprise of a Nurikabe variation prepared as practice for the WPC with a clean logical theme.

Prasanna also created a new Nanro variation “by accident” this year, which we call Nanro (Signpost). This early Spiral-themed example was well reviewed.

But the two best shading puzzles of this year were a kind of call and response from Prasanna and our audience, based around a “Windows” variation Prasanna experimented with. This Tapa in particular got high scores from the Windows week.

And then inspired guest contributor Jack Lance to make another version, this time with overlapping windows.

Basically tied in votes and clearly connected in origin, these Tapa (Windows) together are the best Shading Puzzle of 2016.

Here are our best Region Division puzzles of 2016, selected from the 39 web posts in this category.

While we didn’t have as many guest contributions in 2016 as in earlier years with the site, there were still some stand-out puzzles from our guests including this magnificent Cave by Bryce Herdt with Fibonacci Spiral theme.

Another Cave, this time a Diagonal variation from Prasanna Seshadri, also got top marks from many solvers.

Carl Worth demonstrated the quality that earned him a contributing puzzlemaster position this year with a tough Fillomino puzzle with a dominoes theme.

The best Region Division puzzle this year though went to this combination of Pentominous and Star Battle by Grant Fikes that gave solvers a unique kind of logical challenge.

Here are our best Loop/Path puzzles of 2016, a style which gained in overall representation last year and had 56 posts, the most of any genre.

The first best “Loop” puzzle was a classic Masyu from Murat Can Tonta that appeared in early January with a Knight Steps theme.

One of our patrons requested a “Roller Coaster” puzzle, an arithmetic loop variation that debuted in the MIT Mystery Hunt. Serkan’s take on a Roller Coaster — with a 1 to 9 ride of clues — was recognized by our solvers as a top puzzle.

Prasanna Seshadri had a couple of our best Loop puzzles this year including this transparent Yajilin that made the most of the variation’s new rule that clue cells could be shaded in.

Grant Fikes gave us a very clever twist on a Slitherlink puzzle with a cipher inspired by LITS.

But the best loop puzzle of the year was a “giant” loop creation from Prasanna, specifically this birthday puzzle Castle Wall (with Towers). Solvers who persevered to the end of this challenging puzzle had something to celebrate.

(view directly for a larger image)

Here are our best Object Placement puzzles of 2016, selected from the 23 posts over the year.

The last year (+ one week) saw two new puzzlemasters join the team. Murat Can Tonta proved a master of clever puzzles, including this all black Statue Park puzzle.

Our other new puzzlemaster, Carl Worth, while still a “guest” of the site, contributed this Pentopia puzzle that a lot of solvers liked.

(view directly for a larger image)

Another Pentopia, this time a “Transparent” variation, from Prasanna Seshadri also got high marks.

The best object placement puzzle of 2016 though was this challenging Star Battle puzzle from Thomas Snyder, posted here from the US round to the Puzzle Grand Prix. Amusingly, it narrowly edged out in votes this other Star Battle from Thomas that was voted the best by the coordinators of the Grand Prix. Reviewing the votes across the board, our GMPuzzles voters do seem to prefer the super tough, unique challenges, and that is something the “Cornered” Star Battle certainly embodies.