Black Box for the Newton is a game based on the old Parker Brothers board game by the same name. It's one of my all-time favorite strategy games, and I've implemented it on several other platforms. The rules take a little time to learn, but once you get them down, it's a pretty simple game. Be sure to look at the help sheet enclosed for a good set of samples.
The premise:
There are a number of balls hidden on an 8x8 grid. You must try to find them by firing rays into the grid and observing if and where the ray exits the grid. The balls cause the ray to either stop if it hits one, or to bounce ninety degrees if the ray passes to the side of a ball. By examining the results, you must try to determine the locations of the balls in the least time and fewest nuber of shots possible.
To start:
Select the number of balls to be hidden on the grid. You may choose between 2 and 8. The original board game used 4. Six or more becomes fairly difficult, and can result in arangements which are unsolveable without some amount of guesswork. Press the new game button when ready to begin. Note: the number of balls cannot be changed during a game.
To Play:
There are 32 squares surrounding the grid (8 per edge) called the edge squares. To fire a ray into the grid, tap (a quick tap...) the edge square. A marker will be placed in the edge square (and possibly in another as well) to indicate the results of firing the ray. There are three possible outcomes - 1) the ray hits a ball head on - it is absorbed, and a gray marker is placed on the edge square. 2) The ray comes out at another square on the edge. A pair of white markers with unique markings is placed in the entry and exit edge square 3) the ray exits the board in the same edge square from which it was fired - it is reflected, and a light gray marker with a U-turn shape is placed in the edge square from which the ray was fired.
While in the grid, the ray's path is affected by the balls hidden in the grid. If the ray encounters a ball directly in its path, the ray gets absorbed and stops. If the ray encounters a ball diagonally to the right or left of its path of travel, the ray will bounce 90 degrees away from the ball. A ray may bounce multiple times before it exits the grid or gets absorbed. If a ray bounces before it gets into the grid, it is considered to be reflected (this happens when a ball is hidden on the outermost edge of the grid).
As you gather information, you can mark where you think the balls are by touching the grid to toggle a ball on and off. You may only place as many balls as are hidden - if you have placed all of the balls, you must remove one before placing it elsewhere. When you think you have placed all of the balls correctly, press the guess button. Your guess will be evaluated and scored. If you placed a ball incorrectly, an X will be draw through it, and a ball with a spot on it will be drawn in the correct position. Note: There is a noticeable pause after you hit the guess button while the newton evaluates your guess - I am trying to find a way to speed this up. Your score is based on the number of balls hidden, the amount of time taken, how many ball you guessed correctly, and how many shots (of the number possible - it changes depending on the board because exit rays cover two edge squares) you took. If you guess all of the balls correctly, the game will display the paths of the rays in the background until you quit or start a new game.
You can test your theories before guessing by touching and holding down in an edge square - this will draw the path that a ray would take according to the way you have placed the balls on the grid. The end point of the ray will be drawn as a circle. Remember: This shows the path according to the balls you have placed, NOT according to the balls hidden in the grid!!! This is a good way to learn how the rays interact with the balls - try just setting some up & playing with different combos.
Don't get confused by all the different shapes on the white makers - they are only there so you can tell which pairs go together.
This game is free. Pass it around, but try to always include both teach-text documents with it,as it is fairly useless without them unless you already know the game. If you like it, send me a note on Applelink, or if you have more motivation than that send me a postcard for my collection. Any comments, good or bad, would be greatly appreciated.
