Combining Path and Clue Approaches
I wanted to keep going with some Nurikabe design because there’s something so interesting about them. I feel like there’s a natural progression from designing labyrinth puzzles that Nurikabes really lend themselves to. Not only do you have to look after the clues but the path as well. I found this out on my first attempts at Nurikabe puzzles but the more I do the more that lens is sharpened of being able to visualise both clue and path at the same time.
For those unfamiliar, here’s a quick rulset:
Numbered clues indicate islands. The number in the clue showcases the amount of cells that belong to that island. These cells must not be filled in. The islands contain the numbered clue as well.
A cell in an island must not be orthogonally adjacent to the cell from another island as they would then join islands and invalidate the clues.
Between islands a continuous black line must be drawn by the player which is unbroken across the puzzle. This black line must not occupy a 2x2 block of cells.
For the above puzzle I wanted to experiment with island clues which are diagonally adjacent. It restricts their placement quite a bit and particularly so if they’re near a wall. So what you get in the above puzzle is a really nice first clue for beginners getting used to this type of puzzle. It helps guide the first half of the puzzle design so going forward I was mindful of the path and space that certain clues would need.
It resulted in a really nice, quick puzzle with a unique solution. Having lots of clues in a small grid makes for an easier puzzle. There are less island permutations for the player to visualise as they logically sort the path and clues.
For that reason I spent a small amount of time trying to come up with a more difficult Nurikabe puzzle that used less clues and bigger numbers so the player really had to think about the space and what might close off what.
I almost got there! Unfortunately there’s not a unique solution with wildly different variations on the 4 clues. I did the same thing as I did with the pair of corner 2 clues up above. But because the 4s are both so malleable the player is really able to shape the space around them.
I think the next step with Nurikabes is to use more 4 clues and to constrain them a bit more so I understand the shapes they can take. Essentially more practice needed!
