New games for the Clueless

Fabulous news for all Shendoku fans, and of course those who are still playing Sudoku, all alone, in some dark corner. Now there's a new puzzle format to stretch those "little grey cells". Under the umbrella of Clueless Games, the new range launches this week with Strip Doku, Strip Word, and Strip Search.

As you may have guessed, these puzzles, and their derivative games, are based on the three most popular published puzzle formats - Sudoku, CrossWords and Word Search. However, there's a new twist. Instead of providing clues, these puzzles are derived from completed grids, sectioned and mixed, leaving the puzzler to reassemble - like a cerebral jigsaw - until the solution is achieved.

We already have a manufacturer licensing the rights to the Indian and SE Asian markets, and if you can't wait for a European or American manufacturer to sign up, puzzles can be ordered from them NOW. Simply go to www.Sanbros.in for more information or if you're not sure what you want, contact us on clueless.games@gmail.com.

Those of you waiting for Shendoku to hit the streets in board game form will be relieved to know that a well known European game and puzzle company has this in hand. Likewise we are now in development with a digital manufacturer for both a PC and On Line game, and to follow, a single player mobile challenge.

So, if you're a manufacturer looking to license something new for Europe or the Americas, then please get in touch. If you're a distributor looking to add something new for the Christmas range, in magnetic or other form, please contact us, or Sanbros, to discuss options. If you're a puzzler looking for a new fix - sorry, you'll have to wait a little longer, but please help by nagging your local "supplier" until they see sense and start stocking something new.

Thanks for dropping by
Shen

Shendoku leaps from the page to the board

SHENDOKU is about to take on a whole new life, in 3D

The success of the game in book form has led to a demand for Board Games and other formats. The original game, and its associated games - FY9, 5of9 etc. are to be launched in various formats as Board games, Wooden board games, and Card games during 2007.

The board games involve multiple player options, for both Shendoku and FY9, and contain ways to improve tactics, game play and other elements.

The wooden games are being developed as high quality long life games that will lead to a possible series of competitions in countries where the take up is high enough.

The card games involve a unique set of 81 cards, in 9 suits, and in both Asian and European versions to suit all tastes. The development of the cards has led to further games being devised including entirely new games of solitaire (patience) that enhance sudoku and numeric skills.

Educators versions of the games will now be developed in board format in order to provide the same options to users of the "Griducate" range of book products.

Enquiries are welcome from distributors, retailers and even manufacturers who would like to produce new products.

Send enquiries to boardgames@shendoku.com

Don't just Educate - GRIDUCATE

GRIDUCATION is the new buzzword in the Shendoku offices. After studying the latest research and historical evidence concerning the educational and other benefits of logic games and puzzles the team have decided that GRIDUCATION is the answer.

First product to emerge from this project is the FindYour9 Griducators Edition. Designed with educators, whether home or school based, in mind, the FY9 GRIDUCATE program is designed to promote the benefits of playing FY9 as an introduction to Sudoku and equally importantly to SHENDOKU, our own multi player game that utilised recycled Sudoku grids.

To support the first book of games, which is available to educators at www.cafepress.com/griducate - there will also be a series of posters that can be used to promote the game as a school or group activity and provide a chart for recording the progress of the winners through an FY9 league.

Feedback from educators is welcomed, as are suggestions for further developments of this format and of the material used. We would like the GRIDUCATE project to be a fully interactive one and so are targetting schools and home education groups to offer the products directly.

Look out for the SHENDOKU GRIDUCATORS EDITION after Xmas!
Shen

Update for Monday October 2nd - "Find Your 9™"

A new range of 9 books has been launched - this time aimed squarely at the kids.

FindYour9™ is an introduction to Sudoku grids and the placement of Sudoku numbers or characters, but at the same time is a fun, simple, challenging game for up to nine players and one gridmaster. The game takes minutes to learn, but is always fresh as it relies on the full complement of 300 billion possible Sudoku grids as its playing field. This makes FY9™ impossible to cheat at, and so fair to all players, whatever their age.

FY9™ also helps to develop logic skills, deductive reasoning, and of course has the same health benefits as playing regular Sudoku puzzles in that it fosters creativity, generates healthy synaptic pathways in the brain and can even prevent the onset of Alzheimers, something which the medical world is seriously researching as we go to press.

One educational expert is already expounding her view that games based on Sudoku would benefit younger children whose brain development may be hindered by the early switch from play to school based learning, in some countries as young as 4 yo. This difference is apparent in the children from countries who don't subscribe to this concept, such as the Nordic countries where starting school at 7yo is normal, and those parents who choose to Home Educate their children and so ensure that play, especially play involving brain skills and co-ordination, continues well into the childs development.

Well that's enough serious stuff, it's a fun game and I invite you to give it a try, if not now, then over Christmas when there are enough family members to make it really fun.

Shen

Save a Sudoku Today!

Looking for something new for your Sudoku obsessed partner this Christmas? Why not offer them the ultimate Sudoku book - one that contains 52 sudoku puzzles, but has space for 366 more to be added. The Sudoku Saver is a day minder, or desk diary, that contains monthly calendar and notes pages, followed by double spreads of Sudoku grids, one with a puzzle, just in case the paper is late on Monday morning, and seven empty grids. These have multiple uses for the sudophile:-

1) Saving favourite daily Sudoku puzzles from newspapers.

2) Restarting Sudoku puzzles after unavoidable coffee spillages on the aforementioned newspaper.

3) Copying additional Sudoku puzzles from friends/fellow passengers/the boss's newspapers.

4) Saving favourite Sudoku puzzles to become play grids for SHENDOKU

5) Recycling favourite Sudoku puzzles for play at a later date when you will have forgotten the solution.

The book is square format and fits easily into a laptop case or briefcase, and looks smart enough to pretend that you're busy planning the next sales conference instead of indulging in sudokistic pleasures.

Go on, make your partners year - or guarantee 12 months of peace for yourself - whichever is more appealing!

Shen

New Book, New Format, New Game

Shendoku.com have today launched a new book for Shendoku and Sudoku afficionados. The Christmas Sudoku & Shendoku Games book is in a larger format than usual, and contains 50 Sudoku puzzles, 50 Shendoku games and the option to play up to 100 games of "FindYour9" a completely new game format for 3-10 people to play, and ideal for Christmas.
A direct link to the new book on lulu.com is at http://www.lulu.com/content/437296 but there is a second version also on sale today through SuShop at Cafe Press, www.cafepress.com/su_shop and this is available in a coil bound version for easier removal of pages for play.

Shendoku.com recommend the Lulu.com version for anyonw in Europe as these are printed locally and so arrive faster. Otherwise there is little to choose between them.

Shen

Update for Monday 18th September

Monday sees the launch of a press release outlining the new range of
Sudoku and Shendoku greetings cards, gifts and accessories being
launched throughout September. It's early days, but a visit to the Xmas
section of www.cafepress.com/Su_Shop will show you the first of a range
of cards that were commissioned from the famous Portuguese artist
Fernando Martins. There are blank cards, comical cards, and four colours
to choose from in this first series.

Further designs from Fernando are in the pipeline, as are a series of
humorous grid designs. We are also in talks with one of our design
partners, GRID, and will shortly be announcing a further range of
products, some more adult oriented, which wil be on grids own shop in
Cafe Press - www.cafepress.com/grid1. Further shops are planned using
Spreadshirt and Make my Megastore. More news of these to follow.

That's all for Monday, but I thinks it's enough!
Shen