Latest news with #MiniSudoku
Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
LinkedIn adds Mini Sudoku to keep users engaged beyond professional networking
LinkedIn has found a unique way to boost daily engagement and strengthen user retention by adding a quick, brain-teasing puzzle to its platform. The professional networking site has introduced Mini Sudoku, its sixth in-app game, to keep users coming back to the app. The introduction of Mini Sudoku is a testament to LinkedIn's innovative approach to user engagement.(REUTERS) The new puzzle is a scaled-down version of the classic Sudoku, developed in collaboration with Japanese puzzle publisher Nikoli and three-time World Sudoku Champion Thomas Snyder. Instead of the standard 9x9 grid, Mini Sudoku uses a 6x6 format that can be completed in just two to three minutes. This shorter format is aimed at busy professionals looking for a brief mental break without getting distracted from work. Lakshman Somasundaram, Senior Director of Product at LinkedIn, emphasised the strategic intent behind the game's design, stating, "We don't want to have a puzzle on LinkedIn that takes 20 minutes to solve. We're not games for games' sake." The introduction of Mini Sudoku is part of LinkedIn's broader strategy to foster user engagement and interaction through casual gaming, providing a balance between productivity and recreation. Mini Sudoku puzzles get progressively harder through the week, and each day comes with a short video from Snyder himself, sharing tips and demonstrating how to solve them. Known as 'Dr. Sudoku' and founder of Grandmaster Puzzles, Snyder has also contributed to LinkedIn's hint feature, making the game accessible for both beginners and experienced players. User engagement and retention Since the introduction of in-app games, LinkedIn has observed significant user engagement. A spokesperson reported that millions of users play LinkedIn games daily, with peak activity at 7 a.m. ET. Notably, 86% of users return the following day, and 82% continue playing a week later. The games have become a tool for sparking conversations and fostering connections among users, particularly within professional networks. A growing part of LinkedIn's strategy Launched in 2003 and acquired by Microsoft in 2016, LinkedIn continues to expand its offerings beyond job listings and recruitment tools. Alongside a personalised video feed and other social features, the gaming initiative reflects a shift toward keeping users active on the platform for more reasons than just work. The launch of Mini Sudoku reinforces LinkedIn's approach of blending professional networking with moments of light entertainment, keeping users engaged, connected, and coming back for more.
Time of India
18 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
LinkedIn launches new casual game for its users; company executive says: ‘We don't want to have…'
LinkedIn has launched a new, casual game, Mini Sudoku, for its 1.2 billion users. The Microsoft-owned professional networking site's latest addition is a scaled-down version of the classic puzzle, designed to be completed in just two or three minutes. This is the sixth game to be introduced on the platform. The new Mini Sudoku aims to spark friendly competition among colleagues and friends, with puzzles getting progressively more difficult throughout the week. What the company said about the new Mini Sudoku game In an interview with CNBC, Lakshman Somasundaram , a senior director of product at the company said: 'We don't want to have a puzzle on LinkedIn that takes 20 minutes to solve, right? We're not games for games' sake.' LinkedIn's creation of the game stemmed from a meeting with Japanese publisher Nikoli , known for popularising Sudoku. Last year, Somasundaram and a group of LinkedIn associate product managers visited Nikoli's Tokyo headquarters, where they discussed puzzles with the publisher's employees through a translator. This meeting led to weeks of collaboration between LinkedIn, Nikoli, and Thomas Snyder , a three-time World Sudoku Championship winner who has been advising LinkedIn on its gaming strategy. The team aimed to make Sudoku more approachable, experimenting with several prototypes before deciding on a board featuring six rows and six columns. 'It's very easy to just make a Sudoku grid. It's very hard to make art in the form of Sudoku. And that's what both Nikoli and we do. I think it's got the potential to be the largest of the games, just because it's going to have a lot of brand awareness from moment one,' Snyder noted. Snyder, who is the founder and CEO of Grandmaster Puzzles, a publisher of Sudoku books, holds a PhD in chemistry and is known as Dr Sudoku. He has worked on the hint feature for LinkedIn's Mini Sudoku and created some of the puzzles. Each day's puzzle will be accompanied by a video of Snyder demonstrating his solving process. However, this is not the first game LinkedIn has introduced. The platform added games last year to bring a sense of fun and offer users fresh ways to engage with each other. According to a company spokesperson, millions of people play LinkedIn's games daily, with peak activity at 7 AM ET (4.30 PM IST) and Gen Z make up the largest share of players. Among the ones who play on a given day, 86% return the next day, and 82% are still playing a week later. UBON SP-85: Portable Party Speaker On A Budget AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
CNBC
a day ago
- Business
- CNBC
LinkedIn launches Mini Sudoku, pushing deeper into casual games that keep users coming back
LinkedIn on Tuesday released a new game for the professional social networking app's 1.2 billion users. It's a miniature version of Sudoku, an old game with a rich history. The new Mini Sudoku is LinkedIn's sixth game. It's scaled down from the traditional 9-by-9 grid and meant to be completed in two or three minutes. "We don't want to have a puzzle on LinkedIn that takes 20 minutes to solve, right?" said Lakshman Somasundaram, a senior director of product at the Microsoft subsidiary, in an interview with CNBC. "We're not games for games' sake." The introduction has the potential to strike a nostalgic chord and spark competition with colleagues, friends and family members for how fast the puzzle can be solved. As with other puzzles in the app, Mini Sudoku gets harder as the days progress through the week. LinkedIn added games last year to increase the fun and give users something new to talk about with one another. Millions of people play LinkedIn's games every day, a spokesperson said. The most popular time is 7 a.m. ET, and Gen Z is the top demographic. Of those who play today, 86% will return tomorrow, and 82% will be playing next week, the spokesperson said. Launched in 2003 and acquired by Microsoft for $27 billion in 2016, LinkedIn remains in growth mode. Revenue increased about 9% to $4.6 billion in the latest quarter and membership reached 1.2 billion. Meta's social networks are more popular, with a combined 3.5 billion daily users and 22% revenue growth. Unlike Meta, LinkedIn gives recruiters tools for finding candidates, and job seekers can apply for openings listed on the site. LinkedIn also now promotes a personalized feed of videos, similar to Google's YouTube, TikTok and Meta's own Facebook and Instagram. LinkedIn's development of the game resulted from an encounter with Japanese publisher Nikoli, which popularized Sudoku. Somasundaram and a band of LinkedIn associate product managers visited Nikoli's Tokyo headquarters late last year and spoke through a translator about puzzles with the publisher's employees. That led to weeks of meetings involving LinkedIn, Nikoli and Thomas Snyder, a three-time World Sudoku Championship winner who has helped LinkedIn with its gaming strategy. The group hoped to make Sudoku more accessible, building several prototypes before landing on the board with six rows and six columns of squares. "It's very easy to just make a Sudoku grid," Snyder said. "It's very hard to make art in the form of Sudoku. And that's what both Nikoli and we do." Snyder is founder and CEO of Grandmaster Puzzles, a publisher of Sudoku books. With a Ph.D. in chemistry, he goes by the nickname Dr. Sudoku and has contributed to the hint feature in LinkedIn's Mini Sudoku and constructed some of the puzzles. With each day's puzzle, there will be a video showing how Snyder solves it. "I think it's got the potential to be the largest of the games, just because it's going to have a lot of brand awareness from moment one," he said. Howard Garns, an architect from Indiana, came up with a game called "Number Place" that required people to fill in a grid with numbers from one to nine. No number can be repeated in a row or column, and all nine numbers must appear just once in each of the nine 3-by-3 grids that make up the puzzle. Number Place debuted in the magazine Dell Pencil Puzzles & Word Games in 1979. It only took off after Nikoli included a spin on the puzzle in the October 1984 issue of Puzzle Communication Nikoli under the name "Suji wa dokushin ni kagiru," which means "The numbers must be single," a Nikoli spokesperson told CNBC in an email. Readers abbreviated the puzzle's name, calling it Sudoku. At first, the publisher employed both the long name and the shorter Sudoku title in Puzzle Communication Nikoli. In 1992 Nikoli started using only the Sudoku name, the spokesperson said. U.S. and European newspapers began publishing Sudoku puzzles in the mid-2000s. Sudoku joined The New York Times' NYT Games app, which boasts 10 million daily users, in 2023. More than 100 media companies have licensed Nikoli's Sudoku puzzles, the spokesperson said. "The daily puzzles will only be available on LinkedIn each day, but we are looking forward to republishing selected puzzles from those in our magazine," the spokesperson wrote.
The Verge
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The Verge
LinkedIn's next game is a new take on sudoku.
All the news about daily puzzle games See all Stories Posted Aug 12, 2025 at 1:00 PM UTC LinkedIn's next game is a new take on sudoku. Mini Sudoku , which uses six numbers instead of nine, is made with the Japanese publisher Nikoli, which helped popularize the game, and Thomas Snyder, a sudoku world champion. Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates. Jay Peters Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All by Jay Peters Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All Entertainment Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All Gaming Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All News
