╘HIS IS ╨ARKER ┬ROS GAME OF ┬LACK ┬OX, A KIND OF 2 DIMENSIONAL ═ASTER ═IND. ╧NE PLAYER (THE COMPUTER) MAKES A CODE AND HIDES 4 CIRCLES WITHIN AN 8 BY 8 GRID. ┘OUR JOB IS TO DETERMINE THE LOCATION OF THE CIRCLES WITHIN THE GRID. ┘OU CAN ACCOMPLISH THIS BY SENDING INVISIBLE RAYS INTO THE BOX FROM THE OUTSIDE EDGES. ╥AYS ENTER AND EXIT ACCORDING TO A PREDEFINED SET OF RULES. ╥AYS MAY BE ABSORBED, REFLECTED OR BENT DEPENDING ON HOW CLOSE THEY COME NEAR THE HIDDEN CIRCLES. ╘HE RULES ARE GIVEN IN A TEXT FILE WHICH ACCOMPANIES THE PROGRAM, AND IS APPENDED TO THIS FILE.
╘HIS IS A GREAT GAME FOR TEENAGERS AND UP, TO DEVELOP LOGIC-THINKING SKILLS.
╨ARKER ┬ROS ┬LACK ┬OX ╔NSTRUCTIONS
┬LACK ┬OX IS A GAME OF "HIDE AND SEEK" THAT IS USUALLY PLAYED BETWEEN TWO PLAYERS. ╘HE FIRST DOES THE HIDING, OR CODE MAKING, AND THE SECOND DOES THE SEEKING, OR CODE BREAKING. ╔F YOU HAVE PLAYED ═ASTER ═IND, THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE NO TROUBLE UNDERSTANDING THAT ┬LACK ┬OX IS SIMILAR, BUT IS PLAYED IN TWO DIMENSIONS. ╔N THIS VERSION OF THE GAME, THE COMPUTER WILL ALWAYS PLAY THE CODE MAKER, AND THE USER WILL NATURALLY PLAY THE CODE BREAKER.
╘HE GAME IS PLAYED ON AN 8 BY 8 BOARD, (VERY MUCH LIKE A CHECKER BOARD, BUT WITHOUT COLORS). ╘HE CODE MAKER CHOOSES FOUR OF THE SQUARES (ANY FOUR AT ALL) AND PLACES MARKERS IN THEM. ╘HESE MARKERS ARE NOT VISIBLE TO THE CODE BREAKER. ╘HE CODE BREAKER DETERMINES WHERE THESE FOUR MARKERS ARE LOCATED ON THE BOARD BY SHOOTING "RAYS" INTO THE BOARD FROM ONE OF THE 32 NUMBERED EDGES SURROUNDING THE BOARD AND OBSERVING THE EFFECTS OF THESE "RAYS".
╘HERE MAY BE ONE OF THREE RESULTS:
1. ┴ "HIT". ╘HIS IS SHOWN BY A ╥┼─ MARK NEAR THE POINT OF ENTRY. ╘HIS INDICATES THAT THE "RAY" STRUCK ONE OF THE HIDDEN MARKERS ─╔╥┼├╘╠┘ SOMEWHERE ALONG ITS PATH.
2. ┴ "REFLECTION". ╘HIS IS SHOWN BY A YELLOW MARK NEAR THE POINT OF ENTRY. ╘HIS INDICATES THE THE RAY WAS TURNED AROUND ALONG ITS PATH AND EXITED THE BOARD AT THE SAME POINT THAT IT ENTERED, OR THAT THE RAY WAS NOT ALLOWED TO ENTER THE BOARD AT ALL.
3. ┴ "DETOUR". ╘HIS IS SHOWN BY A MATCHING ╨┴╔╥ OF ORANGE MARKERS. ╘HESE TWO MATCHING MARKERS SHOW WHERE THE RAY ENTERED AND EXITED THE BOARD. ┴S YOU PLAY THE GAME, YOU WILL NOTICE THAT IT DOES NOT MATTER WHICH OF THE POINTS WAS THE ORIGINAL ENTRY, EITHER ONE WOULD HAVE PRODUCED THE SAME RESULTS.
─URING THE PLAY OF THE GAME, YOU MAY MOVE THE 4 MARKERS ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE SCREEN ONTO THE BOARD WHERE YOU FEEL THAT THEY MAY BE HIDDEN. ┘OU MAY ALSO MOVE THEM AROUND AFTER THAT. ╧NLY WHEN YOU PUT YOUR CURSOR ON THE GREEN DOTS WILL THE COMPUTER CALCULATE YOUR FINAL SCORE. ╘HE FINAL SCORE WILL BE 1 FOR EACH RED, YELLOW OR ORANGE MARK AROUND THE OUTSIDE OF THE BOARD, AND 5 FOR EACH MISPLACED MARKER ON THE BOARD.
╫HEN YOU SHOOT A RAY INTO THE BOARD LOOKING FOR THE HIDDEN MARKERS, IT TENDS TO WANT TO GO IN A STRAIGHT LINE. ╙O, IF YOU FIRED A RAY IN AT POINT 1 AND THERE WERE NO HIDDEN MARKERS AROUND, IT WOULD EXIT AT POINT 24;
32 31 30 29 28 27 26 25
01>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>24
02 23
╚OWEVER IF THERE IS A HIDDEN MARKER IN THE PATH, THERE WOULD BE A "HIT";
32 31 30 29 28 27 26 25
01>>>>>>>>>>>>@@ 24
02 23
╔F THERE WERE A HIDDEN MARKER IN AN ADJACENT ROW, THERE WOULD BE A DETOUR, AND IN THE EXAMPLE, THE EXIT POINT WOULD BE 30 (ENTRY IS 2);
32 31 30 29 28 27 26 25
01 ┴┴ 24
02>>>>>>┴┴ 23
03 @@ 22
04 21
╘HE RAY SHOT IN AT 2, IS DEFLECTED BY THE HIDDEN MARKER, AND EXITS AT 30.
┴ REFLECTION CAN TAKE PLACE IN TWO WAYS. ╔N THE FOLLOWING EXAMPLE, SHOTS 26, 28 AND 2 ARE ALL REFLECTIONS.
32 31 30 29 28 27 26 25
01 @@ 24
02<<<<<<<>>>>>>>> 23
03 @@ 22
04 21
╘HE SHOT FROM 2 CANNOT BEND UP OR DOWN AND CANNOT CONTINUE STRAIGHT, SO IT EXITS WHERE IT ENTERED (AT 2) AND IS MARKED AS A REFLECTION. ╙HOTS 26 AND 28 ARE REFLECTIONS BECAUSE OF THE MARKER IN FRONT OF 27, IT PREVENTS THE SHOTS FROM EVEN ENTERING THE BOARD, SO THEY ARE MARKED AS REFLECTIONS TOO.
╬OTICE THAT ONCE A RAY HAS BEEN DEFLECTED, IT CAN STILL BECOME A HIT OR A REFLECTION, IF FARTHER ALONG ITS PATH IT ENCOUNTERS ANOTHER HIDDEN MARKER;
32 31 30 29 28 27 26 25
01 @@ 24
02>>>>>>>>>╓╓ ╓╓<<<<<<23
03 ╓╓ ╓╓ 22
04 >>>>>>╪╪>>>>>>21
05 @@ ╓╓ 20
06 ╓╓ 19
07 @@ 18
08 17
09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
╬OTICE HOW IT THE ABOVE EXAMPLE, SHOT 2 EXITS AT 21? ╔T IS BENT TWICE, BY HIDDEN MARKERS. ┴LSO NOTICE HOW SHOT 23 IS A HIT, EVEN AFTER BEING DEFLECTD BY THE HIDDEN MARKER IN FRONT OF ENTRY 28.
╟OOD LUCK WITH THE GAME, AND IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, LEAVE ┼-MAIL FOR THE AUTHOR, ─AVID ┌ECHIEL ON THE ─IAMOND ┬AR ┬ULLETIN ┬OARD, (714) 861 7268.
