Day: January 4, 2025

DCL Highlights: Week of 12/30

Remember that this is not an attempt to pick the “best” puzzles, and we won’t be commenting as critics. Our approach is best described as “puzzles we solved that we don’t think you should miss.” Kind of like staff recommendations at a local bookstore.

Did we miss your favorites? Add them in the comments!

Defector: ($) Out of Office (12/30) by Evan Mulvihill. It’s a themeless. It’s a good one. Evan is one of my favorite new constructors in the last year or so. – Matt

New York Times: Extremely Online in 2024 (1/1) by Paolo Pasco. Blue clues? In the Gray Lady? Inconceivable. -Norah 

Science News: Twisting Words (1/2) by Shannon Rapp. There’s a straightforward way and an extra-level way to do this theme, and I was pleasantly surprised to find the latter when I reached the second themer. But the real star of this puzzle is the vibrant cluing angles for so much of the fill. -Matt

Half-Baked Puzzles: Color Theory (1/1) by Will Eisenberg. Another one where the theme could have stopped and been a fine puzzle, but went to another level. -Matt

Fireball: ($) Turn It Down! (1/1) by Gus Bloxham. Two years in a row where the first Fireball puzzle is a banger. Maybe you’ve heard this before, but I like it when a theme gets taken to the next level. – Matt 

Newsday: Box Lunch (1/3) by Stanley Newman. Full of satisfying breakthroughs in both the fill and the theme. – Matt

Los Angeles Times: (1/4) by Rafael Musa. Full of spicy, in-the-language fill and engaging clues. A great place to spend your weekend. – Matt 

Saturday, January 4, 2025

Black Crossword: Mini by Juliana Pache. .pdf, online.
Club 72: Freestyle 975 by Tim Croce, club72.wordpress.com. .puz, .pdf.
Crossword Club: Daily Crossword by Will Nediger. .pdf, online.
Haymarket’s Squares: Haymarket Mini #77 by Ariel Haymarket. .puz, .pdf, online.
Matt Gaffney’s Weekly Crossword Contest: ($) “First-Quarter Action” (Meta) by Matt Gaffney. Subscribe at Patreon.
Princeton Alumni Weekly: No Accompaniment Needed by Stella Zawistowski. .pdf, online.
Puzzmo: *shrug* by rafa. Online.
Reason: Peanut in Chief by Stella Zawistowski. .pdf, online.
Spyscape: Paint by Number by Bryant White. .pdf, online.

Apple News: ($) Freestyle by Darby Ratliff. News+ Subscription Required
Apple News Mini: ($) Daily Mini by Erik Agard. News+ Subscription Required
Crosshare Community: Daily Mini and Featured Puzzles.
Crossword Flow: ($) Daisy, Daisy by Will Eisenberg. iPad-exclusive app.
Crosswordr Community: Community Puzzle Platform.
Crosswords with Friends: Smartypants Saturday by Fred Piscop. App Store | Google Play
Crosswords with Friends: Midi Puzzle by Zhouqin Burnikel. App Store | Google Play
Crosswords with Friends: Mini Puzzle by Doug Peterson. App Store | Google Play
Daily POP Crosswords: by Mark McClain. App Store | Google Play, online.
Frank Virzi: Mini #93 (5×5) by Frank Virzi. Online at Crosswordr.
India Mini Crossword: Daily Mini .pdf, online.
Mangesh Ghogre’s Indian Mini Crosswords: Daily Mini by Mangesh Ghogre. .pdf, online.
Merriam Webster: The Missing Letter by Matt Gaffney .pdf, online.
Vox: Ringing In ’25 by Andrew J. Ries. .pdf, online.
The Walrus: Nobody Left Behind by Jess Shulman. .pdf, online.

The Boston Globe: Mini Crossword by Sowmya Ramkumar. .pdf, online.
CNN: Daily Puzzle by Patrick Blindauer. Online.
Los Angeles Times: by Rafael Musa. Online, pdf. Free Cruciverb account for .puz.
Los Angeles Times Mini: by Elizabeth Gorski. Online.
New York Magazine: The Element of Surprise by Matt Gaffney. .pdf, online.
New York Sun: ($) Themeless by Patrick Berry. Reissues from 2006.
New York Times: ($) by Sam Ezersky. Online, .pdf, app.
New York Times Mini: by Tracy Bennett. Online, app.
Newsday: Saturday Stumper by Lester Ruff. Online .pdf
PlayFour: ($) Daily Puzzle. Online
Squared Away: ($) Daily Puzzle. Online.
The Telegraph: Cross Atlantic by Ali Gascoigne. Online.
Universal: ($) Universal Freestyle 155 by Quiara Vasquez. Online, pdf. .puz.
USA Today: Ahead of Time by Beth Rubin. Online, .pdf, app.
The Wall Street Journal: Falling Into Place by Joe Gangi. Online, .pdf. .puz.
Washington Post Daily Mini Meta: by Frank Longo. Online, .pdf.

Tortoiseshell Studio: ($) Snowflake by Nathan Curtis. Patreon subscription.

Financial Times: FT Crossword .pdf.
Financial Times: FT Crossword: Polymath .pdf.
Financial Times: FT Weekend Magazine Crossword .pdf.
The Globe and Mail: The Daily Cryptic Crossword. .pdf, online.
The Hindu Cryptic: Daily Cryptic .pdf, online.
The Independent: Cryptic Crossword .pdf, online.
WSJ Variety: Rows Garden by Patrick Berry. .pdf.

Support Daily Crossword Links

Check out the DCL’s staff recommendations from last week’s puzzles

Other American-style links:

Reviews and Discussion at Diary of a Crossword Fiend | Boatload Puzzles/AARP | “Crosscord” Discord | Crucidrama (en español) | Cruciverbalista (en español) | Easy Crossword (Newsday Archives) | FreeDailyCrosswords | Medium Crossword (Newsday Archives) | Hard Crossword (Newsday Archives) | r/crossword | USA Today Reviews and Discussion at Off the Grid | Squares.io | XWord-Muggles Meta Calendar

Other Cryptic/Variety links:

A Frame Games | cf.kmbweb.de Links Library | CoxRathvon.com | Harper’s ($) | Lovatts | Magpie ($) | Mokelfish Links Library | MyCrossword | NPL | Panda Magazine ($) | Private Eye | PuzzleCrypt archives | Puzzling StackExchange | r/crosswords | Sydney Morning Herald ($) | The Telegraph | The Times (UK) ($), includes The Listener