BREAKING NEWS

Maki Kaji, the "Godfather of Sudoku" who turned the numbers game into one of the world's most popular logic puzzles, died at 69.

Tuesday, August 17, 2021 5:50 AM EST

Mr. Kaji, a university dropout, started a company that became one of the most prolific publishers of puzzle magazines and books. He took a little-known game, renamed it Sudoku, and helped catapult it into the mainstream in the mid-2000s.

Mr. Kaji died of bile duct cancer on Aug. 10, his company said in a statement on Tuesday.

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