Most sudoku apps use "levels" to mean a difficulty menu. If you want sudoku with real levels, where you clear one stop to open the next and finish each chapter knowing a technique you did not know before, that is what Journey in Sudoku Royale is. It is a map of 88 levels in 10 chapters, and it takes you from finishing nearly complete boards to spotting XY-Wings. This guide explains how it works and how to get through it.
What Journey is
Journey sits on the Play tab as a card that shows where you are, for example "Level 12 of 88." Tap it and you get a mountain climb drawn as a map. Each stop on the map is one level. Clear a level and the next one opens. Chapters group the levels that train one idea, and each chapter after the first opens with a warm-up board called Onward that recaps what came before.
There are four kinds of stop:
- Lessons introduce a technique with a worked example. Nine of the 88 levels are lessons.
- Puzzles are full sudoku boards picked so that the chapter's technique comes up. Most allow three mistakes, and a few allow two. Go over the limit and you retry the level. There are 51 puzzle levels.
- Drills are 60-second sprints: spot the technique in a run of quick positions and get a set number right before time runs out, usually four at first and five or six later. There are 18.
- Gates close each chapter. A gate is one puzzle that tests the chapter, and there are ten of them.
The 10 chapters
The chapters follow the order most solvers learn sudoku in, with each new technique resting on the ones before.
| Chapter | What it teaches |
|---|---|
| 1. First Steps | Finish what is almost finished: boards with only a few gaps |
| 2. Three Sightlines | The naked single: one cell, one candidate |
| 3. The Scan | Scanning a digit across boxes: every digit has one home |
| 4. Pointing | A digit trapped in one line of a box |
| 5. Claiming | A line that owns its digit inside one box |
| 6. Naked Pair | Two cells, two digits, nobody else |
| 7. Hidden Pair | Two digits with only two homes |
| 8. Naked Triple | Three cells that only want three digits |
| 9. Simple Colouring | Following a chain of one digit |
| 10. XY-Wing | Three cells, one inevitable answer, ending at the Summit Gate |
If some of those names are new to you, that is the point. The written guides to hidden singles, pointing pairs, and naked pairs cover the same ground if you like to read ahead.
Skipping ahead with gates
You do not have to grind through material you already know. Gates can be attempted before you reach them. Pass a gate early and every level before it is marked as cleared. An experienced solver can take the Foundation Gate at the end of chapter one, then the Sightline Gate, and be in the Pointing chapter within a few minutes. If a gate beats you, you have not lost anything, and the levels before it are still there to work through.
Try Sudoku Royale
The classic sudoku you know, without the ads, the pop-ups, or the clutter. A fresh Daily Challenge, unlimited practice with no timer, and technique drills. When you want a rush, race 2 to 18 players on one shared grid.
Download Sudoku Royale: Free on iOSThe Meijin title
Journey has an optional hard mode called Meijin, a Japanese title for a master. You take the title by clearing a puzzle fast and clean: at most one mistake and a time under the level's target. The target is 7 seconds for every empty cell on the board, plus a 5-second grace, so a board with 50 empty cells gives you 5 minutes and 55 seconds. For reference, only about the fastest quarter of real solves in the app beat that pace.
While you hold Meijin, every level you clear inside its target earns double shurikens. Miss a target and you lose the title, but never the level: the clear still counts and you move on. You can win the title back on the next puzzle.
How Journey fits with the rest of the app
Journey is the teaching path, and the other modes are where you use what it teaches. The Classic levels from Easy to Extreme line up with the chapters: once you finish Pointing and Claiming you are ready for Hard, and after the pair chapters Expert puzzles make sense. The Daily Challenge only ever needs singles, so the first three chapters cover everything it asks. Every Journey clear also earns shurikens toward your weekly belt. The overview of everything in Sudoku Royale shows how the pieces connect.
Tips for getting through Journey
- Try the gate first. If you already solve Medium puzzles comfortably, attempt each early gate before playing its chapter.
- Do not skip the lessons once the names get unfamiliar. From chapter four onward each lesson is short, and the drills after it assume you have seen it.
- Treat drills as pattern practice. They are timed because the goal is to see the pattern at a glance. If you fail one, retry it right away while the shape is fresh.
- Mind the mistake budget. Levels named No Slips and Trust the Scan allow only two mistakes. Slow down on those.
- Save Meijin for later. Clear a chapter first, then chase the title on the puzzles you already know how to solve.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a sudoku app with levels?
Yes. Sudoku Royale's Journey is a map of 88 levels in 10 chapters. Each level is a puzzle, a lesson, a 60-second drill, or a gate, and clearing one opens the next. It teaches techniques from naked singles to XY-Wing.
How many levels does Sudoku Royale's Journey have?
88 levels across 10 chapters: 51 puzzles, 18 drills, 10 gates, and 9 lessons.
Can I skip levels I find too easy?
Yes. Gates can be attempted early, and passing a gate marks every level before it as cleared.
What happens if I make too many mistakes?
Most puzzle levels allow three mistakes and a few allow two. Go over the limit and you simply retry the level.
What is Meijin in Sudoku Royale?
Meijin is an optional title in Journey. You take it by clearing a puzzle with at most one mistake inside a target of 7 seconds per empty cell plus 5 seconds. While you hold it, qualifying clears earn double shurikens. Missing a target loses the title but never the level.
Is Journey free?
Yes. Journey is part of the free Sudoku Royale app, with no ads and no in-app purchases.