Contents

The following Help Topics are available:

About Codebreaker

Object Of The Game

To Begin

How To Play

For Help on Help, Press F1


About Codebreaker

Codebreaker began as a self-imposed programming exercise that was scheduled to take a only a couple of days.  A month and many a late-night-and-missed-lunch later it was completed.  Codebreaker is based on the game MasterMind created by the Pressman Toy Corp.  It is not intended for resale but is solely for private enjoyment.


Object Of The Game

The object of the game is to win!

All kidding aside, the object of Codebreaker is to guess a secret code consisting of a series of four colors.  Each guess results in feedback narrowing down the remaining possibilities.  There are 1,296 possible permutations of the 6 colors and only ten guesses in which to determine the correct one.


How To Play

The game defaults at startup with the computer being the Codemaker and you being the Codebreaker.  To switch sides, select Switch Sides from the Game Menu.

How To Play As The Codebreaker

How To Play As The Codemaker


To Begin

Decide whether you are going to be the Codemaker or the Codebreaker.  The game defaults at startup with the computer being the Codemaker and you being the Codebreaker.  To switch sides, select Switch Sides from the Game Menu.


How To Play As The Codebreaker

The Codebreaker is the player that attempts to duplicate the exact colors and positions of the Codemakers secret color code.

1) The computer, playing as the Codemaker, selects a secret combination using the six available colors.  The code can use any of the six colors more than once if desired.  The computers code is hidden under the four panels located in the upper left hand corner of the game.  Clicking on the Hint button will reveal the code, one color at a time, from left to right.

2) You as the Codebreaker make a guess by selecting a four color combination from the Color Selection Area  Press the Enter button to enter your guess.  You can edit your guess, at any time before pressing Enter.  There are two ways to edit your guess:

a) You can re-enter four different colors by the same method as above, that is, by

    using the Color Selection Area only.

b) An alternate, and more efficient way, is to use the 4 panels above the Color Selection

    Area.  Click on the panel containing the color you wish to change and it will reset to

    gray.  You can now select the desired color from the Color Selection Area.

3) The computer will evaluate your guess and respond to you using a combination of the colors black, white, and gray. Your guess will be displayed and the response will appear to the right of it.  An English translation of the response will also appear in the large panel on the left side of the game.

black = correct color and position

white = correct color, wrong position

gray = a wrong color that does not appear in the code

4) Use this response to help you determine what a logical next guess should be.

5) If you will only be making minor changes to your last guess, you might want to use the Recall Last Guess button.  This will redisplay your prior guess in the four panels above the Color Selection Area.

6) If you do not determine the correct code in 10 guesses you lose the game.

A sample game in progress:


How To Play As The Codemaker

The Codemaker is the player that secretly selects the four color code that the Codebreaker tries to determine. The Codemaker responds to the Codebreakers guesses by using black, white, or gray colors.

1) The first thing that the Codemaker must do is input his secret four color code.  The secret code can use any of the six colors any number of times.  The secret code can be edited at any time prior to pressing the Enter button.  There are two ways to edit the secret code:

a) You can re-enter four different colors by the same method as above, that is, by

    using the Color Selection Area only.

b) An alternate, and more efficient way, is to use the 4 panels above the Color Selection

    Area.  Click on the panel containing the color you wish to change and it will reset to

    gray.  You can now select the desired color from the Color Selection Area.

2) After pressing the Enter button the secret code will displayed in the four panels in the upper left corner of the game, and the Color Selection Area will change to black and white to enable you to respond to the computers guess.

3) The computers guess will be displayed and you will be prompted by the computer to respond to its guess.  You must use a combination of black, white, and gray colors to notify the computer  of how many of its colors guessed were correct and how many were in the correct position.  You can edit your response, before pressing Enter, in the ways mentioned at the end of step 1, above.

black = correct color and position

white = correct color, wrong position

gray = a wrong color that does not appear in the code

Since it is impossible for the computer to break your code if you put in incorrect responses, several aids and safeguards have been implemented to assist  you.  Firstly, as you select black or white from the Color Selection Area, the large panel on the left of the game will translate your response for you into English.  Secondly, If you do input an incorrect guess the computer will notify you and then automatically input the correct one.  How does the computer know if your response is correct?  It compares your response to your code.  What??  The computer knows my secret code??  Yes.  A part of the game is instructed to peek at your code but only to help you input the correct response.  I promise that it doesnt give this information to the other part of the game that is trying to figure out the code.

4) The computer will then evaluate your response and make another guess based on it, and all preceding guesses.

5) The computer must guess your secret code within ten guesses or else it loses.

A sample game in progress.


Codemaker

The Codemaker is the player that secretly selects the four color code that the Codebreaker tries to determine. The Codemaker responds to the Codebreakers guesses by using black, white, or gray colors.


Codebreaker

The Codebreaker is the player that attempts to duplicate the exact colors and positions of the Codemakers secret color code.


Color Selection Area