Tristan's Random and Almost-Unbeatable Tic-Tac-Toe
Info: The computer makes one or two set moves, otherwise, it randomly selects a position from some 'unlosable' positions.
Hint: To defeat the computer - after your first two moves in certain positions, you have a 1 in 4 times 2 in 4 chance of winning (due to the computer's random position picking).
Well, I've finally "webified" my tictactoe program. After reading the JavaScript manuals from developer.netscape.com for a few days, and processing and applying this knowledge for the rest of the week to the existing code written in C, and also testing it for bugs, Tristan's (Almost) Unbeatable Tic-Tac-Toe is on the web in JavaScript format!
Yippee, you can play the javascripted version here and now! ("Why did this sad person bother to spend so much time doing this?", you wonder. Well, I say that this long winter university holiday has warped my mind... (yeah, I know it's a sad excuse to learn another programming language!!))
Now, in this mid-semester break, I have added random position picking for the computer's move, making it extremely easy to defeat the computer. It's more of a challenge trying to lose in random mode! Because of the added function, you can cheat by changing modes in the middle of a game, if you are really desperate to win...
Anyway, use the buttons on the right to place your move and the option menu to select a mode. You may restart at any time. And enjoy trying to defeat the computer at it's own game :)
Want to play another javascript game? Well, there is this game called Hard Block, aka Paddle Ball or Bricks. If I remember correctly, I think someone on the JRAHS webring programmed this game (needs Netscape4 - contains layers).
Reminiscing: I can remember back in the 80s that on one weekend, my dad took me to his workplace at the former State Bank. To keep me busy in the people-less building for a while, he let me play on one of the terminals. And yes, it had the state-of-the-art computer game called Bricks, with its 8 glorious colours and funky 'bleepy' sounds! I think I got up to about level 3 on that game... Anyway, the 'Hard Block' game above is similar to Bricks. Its just that in Bricks, you get more points for hitting the higher bricks, whereas in Hard Block, you just hit them several times to make them disappear (and there is no scoring). Anyway, enjoy the Hard Block time-waster.