Skyscrapers (BrainBashers)

About Skyscrapers (BrainBashers)

Skyscrapers turns a Latin square into a city skyline. In a 6x6 puzzle every row and column holds the heights 1 to 6 once each. The numbers around the border are lookouts: each tells you how many buildings you can see looking along that row or column from that side. A tall building hides every shorter one behind it, so a clue of 1 means the tallest building stands right at the edge, and a clue equal to the grid size means the heights rise one by one.

BrainBashers, Kevin Stone's puzzle site, posts a 4x4 grid at Easy/Medium and Hard each day, then 5x5, 6x6, 7x7 and 8x8 grids at Easy, Medium and Hard, with a 9x9 weekly special. Some grids give a digit or two to start. Each puzzle has its own dated page with check, pencil marks, answer, print and restart buttons, an option to show mistakes when checking and an optional clock. The help page has a walkthrough.

Puzzles change at midnight GMT or at your chosen time zone, and earlier days stay in the date list for a few weeks. No adverts, no account.

It suits sudoku players who want clues that need a little spatial thinking, and the small grids make a quick start.

How to play Skyscrapers (BrainBashers)

1. Open the Daily Skyscrapers page and choose today's size and level.
2. Fill each row and column with heights 1 to the grid size, each once.
3. Check every edge clue: it is the number of buildings visible from that side, with taller ones hiding shorter ones behind them.
4. Use pencil marks for the possible heights and press check when the grid is full.
5. Show the answer if needed; a new set appears after midnight GMT.

Tips

• A clue of 1 puts the tallest building in the square next to it.
• A clue equal to the grid size fixes the whole line in rising order.
• Opposite clues that add up to one more than the grid size often pin the tallest building's position.
• The tallest building can never sit closer to an edge than the clue minus one squares.

Questions