Find the Cat #281: 10x10 Grid Puzzle (Hard)

hard

Tap a square: ✕ (ruled out) → 🐱 (cat) → clear

0 / 10 cats · 0:00
Red (13)Orange (8)Yellow (7)Green (9)Teal (1)Blue (8)Purple (19)Pink (9)Brown (12)Grey (14)

Every row, every column and every color region needs exactly one cat -- but no two cats may touch, not even diagonally. This puzzle is a 10x10 grid with 10 colored regions.

  • One cat in every row and every column.
  • One cat in every color region.
  • Cats can’t touch — not even diagonally.

Step-by-step solution

Squares are written as R<row>C<column>, counting from the top-left. Cross out the squares listed, and place a cat wherever a step says so.

  1. The Teal region has only one open square left: R1C7. Put a cat there.
  2. Wherever the cat in the Orange region ends up, it rules out R2C4 and R3C4. Cross those squares out.
  3. Wherever the cat in the Yellow region ends up, it rules out R6C9. Cross that square out.
  4. Wherever the cat in the Green region ends up, it rules out R3C9. Cross that square out.
  5. The Red, Yellow, Green and Grey regions can only use columns 6, 8, 9 and 10, so columns 6, 8, 9 and 10 are already spoken for. Cross out R4C6, R5C6, R6C6, R7C6 and R10C6.
  6. Wherever the cat in the Blue region ends up, it rules out R5C4. Cross that square out.
  7. The Orange, Green, Blue and Brown regions can only use rows 2, 3, 4 and 5, so rows 2, 3, 4 and 5 are already spoken for. Cross out R3C6, R3C8, R4C8, R5C1, R5C8 and R5C10.
  8. The Red region has only one open square left: R6C8. Put a cat there.
  9. The Yellow region has only one open square left: R7C10. Put a cat there.
  10. Wherever the cat in the Green region ends up, it rules out R9C9 and R10C9. Cross those squares out.
  11. Wherever the cat in the Pink region ends up, it rules out R9C2. Cross that square out.
  12. Wherever the cat in the Grey region ends up, it rules out R8C5 and R9C5. Cross those squares out.
  13. Wherever the cat in row 5 ends up, it rules out R4C3. Cross that square out.
  14. Wherever the cat in the Blue region ends up, it rules out R3C5. Cross that square out.
  15. Wherever the cat in the Orange region ends up, it rules out R2C1, R2C2 and R2C9. Cross those squares out.
  16. The Green region has only one open square left: R4C9. Put a cat there.
  17. The Blue region has only one open square left: R5C5. Put a cat there.
  18. The Orange region has only one open square left: R2C3. Put a cat there.
  19. The Brown region has only one open square left: R3C1. Put a cat there.
  20. The Pink region has only one open square left: R8C2. Put a cat there.
  21. The Grey region has only one open square left: R9C6. Put a cat there.
  22. The Purple region has only one open square left: R10C4. Put a cat there.

About this puzzle

Where to start: the Teal region is a single square, so its cat is already decided. Its 10 color regions range from 1 square (Teal) to 19 squares. It can be solved in 22 deduction steps using grouped row/column/region deductions.

Look for a color that sits entirely inside one row or one column. Its cat must be in that line, so every other square in that line can be crossed out.

When you fill the last cat, press Check Answer -- the grid is verified against the stored solution and any broken rule is named so you know where to look.

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