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Purpose
This project has primarily been initiated to demonstrate the following key Flex skills:
- General Flex aptitude
- Flex Data Services
- Messaging
- PureMVC Framework
- OO competence
- Skinning
- Rich Media
- Video (if technically viable and appropriate)
The motivation and choice for this project comes from extensive play of the original Power Grid board game by Friedemann Friese. My aim is to improve upon the original German implementation of the online version which I found unplayable.
Components
The solution is broken into three main parts.
Intro Screen
The intro is purely for demonstrating animation and creativity. As the majority of Flex/Flash adopters are media companies, it is essential for me that this skill is demonstrated effectively.
Animation Description
At the start of the animation there is a long shot of a power station with a blue sky and the sound of birds singing. The scene then zooms in and the sound changes to that of fuel burning and smoke starts to emerge from the chimneys. The camera follows the smoke upwards as the sky turns darker, then pans downwards back to the power station. During the pan, the whole scene turns to black and white with a dark blue tint. The Power Grid logo then stamps onto the screen in full colour and pauses.
Game Lobby
There needs to be an area for people to meet up and set up individual games. This site isn’t being designed to be the next MSN gamin zone, so only a simple screen is required at present.
Login Dialog
If an unauthenticated visitor enters the site, they need to provide a name for themself so they can be recognised. A dialog box appears requesting that the person enter a unique username.
User List
Along the right hand side is a box with a list of users.
Game Set Up
A window showing games open/in progress.
Main Chat Window
IRC style chat. Individual chat windows do not seem necessary at this point as users could use other messaging tools such as Jabber instead.
Game Board
The main gaming area, once a game has been initiated from the lobby.
Markets
A thin vertical border on the left hand side with coloured numbered squares. Each square represents a power station card in the “actual market”. When the user hovers the mouse over the border, the full market is displayed.
Map
The map displays the game board itself and contains cities that can be interacted with. By using the mouse or a set of buttons, the user can pan the map and zoom in/out using the scroll wheel. Clicking on a city may result in a marker being placed on it at certain points in the game.
Player Status
Along the right hand side of the screen a minimised status of all players is displayed. They are listed in player order (as a result of stage 1). Hovering or clicking on a players stats results in a larger window appearing with more detail.
Raw Materials
At the bottom of the screen a horizontal border will be displayed with a summary indicator of each raw material. Hovering on the border results in the full display of currently available materials.
Chat Area
An IRC style area displaying any chat messages from players/observers.
Game Mechanics
The rules of the game are clearly defined in the Power Grid rule book (available with the physical board game).