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My best time is 1:30. I consistently place around 1:45. I obviously haven't figured how to make it in 1:10-1:20. Smarter pencil marking? Perhaps using the eraser while marking? Otherwise these guys are just plain quicker than me. Which I can live with.
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In answer to ElricE: Did you see that YouTube video of the new Rubik's cube world record? Definitely nerds! My PB with Rubik's was about 3 times that world record time. I really kept going at it back then. Now my PB in Genina sudoku extreme is 1:30. I'm not the fastest, but getting a time below 1:45 is always satisfying. I don't think any of those quicker guys are cheating, definitely not the regulars. (I admit, I wasn't so sure earlier.) I am still trying to improve.
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I suggest removing the "eraser"-button and the "cell/digit-first"-button from the board altogether. I never use them but I often hit them by mistake. I would much rather have two "pencil"-buttons, one on each side (in portrait view). Less frustrated attempts would follow.
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There are no invalid puzzles. I have never seen one. But many invalid attempts at solving them. I blame it on my thick thumbs.
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OK. Here goes. You can solve more than 90% of the extreme puzzles here without anything more than basic techniques. You have to practice your pencilling systematically and pick up the easy numbers along the way. Not much to it but quick thumbs!
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I just got a 1:43 in Extreme. I was lucky and I was quick. I could not have done it without "autopencil: erase", "highlight: both", digit first entry mode and buttons entry style. Even I think the top of the list in the Extreme competition is a laugh. I thought before that they were timer-exploiting, stupid me. Now I guess maybe they use Google Goggles? One of the signs that give them away is that in the weeks between competitions, these guys are abscent from the highscore list. That's when the rest of us use dozens of attempts trying to improve. I may be a prude, but I think THEY are cheaters, not me.
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I have improved my game lately. My best time for Extreme is 1:50. I go below 2 mins every other day. I see those guys with a one-off beating me by 20 secs. I'm on to them and frankly I don't give a damn.
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I think it would be a good idea to refuse paused games in the published lists of top times. Some days there is an awful lot of noise in the top. Presumably most of these are the result of cheating with a paused game. Since #50 in Extreme is usually around 3:30, I should not think you would annoy too many honest players. You could still let it register in each individual high score list as valid if you choose.
It's just a game - but still.
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My best time for Extreme is 2:12, just a little below the absolute top tier. But I'm still improving, working on my algorithm. The only "cheats" that are of any use to me are the "auto pencil: erase" and the "highlight: both" features. Also the digit first entry mode and the buttons entry style if you consider those "cheats" as well. Pencil marking takes me 1:10-1:20 if all is going ok. Then the main problem solving should take no more than 30-40 seconds, but of course can take much longer if the board is hard and the mind lags. The mopping up is all about quick fingers again, usually takes about 20 seconds. Practice makes for better concistency. It's just a game....
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