Dodeku: daily logic game

Dodeku is a daily number-logic puzzle that asks you to fill a 4x4 grid so every row and column adds up to a target sum. You place the numbers 1 to 12 into the open cells, using each number once, until all the totals line up. A fresh puzzle appears each day, and past ones stay available in an archive.

What is Dodeku?

At its core, Dodeku hands you a 4x4 grid with target sums printed along the edges: one number for each row and one for each column. A few cells are blacked out and a few are already filled with given numbers, which leaves nine open cells to complete. Your job is to place the remaining numbers so that each row totals its target and each column totals its target at the same time. The full set of numbers 1 to 12 is used, each exactly once, which means a placement that fixes one row can break a column, and part of the puzzle is finding the single arrangement where everything agrees.

You build the grid by putting numbered tiles into the open cells and rearranging them as you test ideas. The given numbers stay put as fixed clues, and the buttons on the page let you recall your tiles or unlock them so you can start a section over. Rather than a fixed number of guesses, the game keeps a move counter that starts at "Moves made: 0" and climbs as you place and shuffle tiles. That is what sets it apart from Wordle-style games: there is no daily limit of tries and no lose condition tied to running out of attempts. You solve the grid, and the move count is a record of how you got there.

Dodeku was made by Lukas Stanley under Fox Point Games. The same creator also published a print collection titled "Dodeku: 300 Number Puzzles with Answers Included," so the online daily is a browser version of an existing pencil-and-paper format. The game is free to play, with an optional membership of around two dollars a month offered to support the developer, who states a goal of keeping the games free and without ads. You can also opt into an email reminder that lets you know when the new puzzle is ready.

It is worth separating Dodeku from Sudoku, since the names sound alike and both are number grids. Sudoku fills 1 through 9 by uniqueness rules, where no digit repeats in a row, column, or box. Dodeku instead uses target sums: the constraint is arithmetic, and you are matching totals rather than avoiding duplicates. After you finish, the game tracks statistics and offers a share button, and the running move counter gives you feedback while you are still working.

How to play Dodeku

Open Dodeku at dodeku.com to load today's puzzle.
Read the target sums printed along the edges, one for each row and one for each column.
Place a numbered tile into an open cell in the grid, leaving the given numbers where they are.
Keep placing tiles so that each row and each column adds up to its labeled target, using the numbers 1 to 12 each once.
Use the recall and unlock buttons to pull back or reset tiles when you want to try a section again.
Rework placements until every row and column matches its target and the grid is solved.

Tips and strategy

Start with the row or column that has the most extreme target, either the smallest or the largest sum, since it has the fewest number combinations that can reach it.
Work out which numbers can even sum to a given target before placing anything, so you are choosing from a short list rather than guessing.
Lean on the given numbers already in the grid, since each one narrows down what the rest of its row and column can be.
Remember each number is used once: if a value is forced into one line, cross it off your options for every other line.
When a row and a column share a cell, solve for that overlap first, because that tile has to satisfy two targets at once.
Because there is no guess limit, treat early placements as experiments and rearrange freely; the move counter records the path but does not penalize you.

Good to know

Category: Math and logic number puzzle
Grid: 4x4, numbers 1 to 12 each used once
Resets: Daily, one new puzzle each day
Cost: Free, with an optional membership around $2 a month
Guesses: No fixed limit; tracks a move counter
Modes: Today's daily puzzle plus an archive of past puzzles
Creator: Lukas Stanley, Fox Point Games
Feedback: Move counter, end-of-puzzle statistics and share

Dodeku FAQ

Is Dodeku free?

Yes. Dodeku is free to play. There is an optional membership of about two dollars a month that supports the developer, but it is not required to play the daily puzzle.

How do you play Dodeku?

You are given a 4x4 grid with target sums along the edges for each row and column. Some cells are already filled or blacked out. Place the numbers 1 to 12 into the open cells so that every row and column adds up to its target, using each number exactly once.

When does Dodeku reset, and is there an archive?

A new puzzle is released each day. Past puzzles remain available in an archive, so you can go back and play ones you missed. You can also opt into an email reminder for when the daily is ready.

Is Dodeku like Wordle?

Not really. Wordle gives you a limited number of guesses to find a hidden answer. Dodeku has no guess limit; it tracks a move counter as you place and rearrange tiles until the grid is solved, so it plays as a logic puzzle rather than a limited-guess game.

Who made Dodeku?

Dodeku was created by Lukas Stanley under Fox Point Games. The same creator also published a print book, "Dodeku: 300 Number Puzzles with Answers Included."