DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF TETRIS GAME

ABSTRACT

 

Tetris is a very popular game that has served as an inspiration for many puzzle-style, tilematching video games we have. It is a classic. The fan base is growing every year because there are many variations of the game each with its own adjustments and different ways of gameplay. Each of these variations have concepts such as, speed increase, special effects, music and theme differences, colours, world environments, game boards and number of tetrominoes/shapes possible to clear rows, new bonus awards other than getting a Tetris in the game, for example DodecaTetris and OctoTetris.

Recently, the Tetris industry provided another variation called Tetris effect that heavily focuses on effects and somewhat time manipulation which has helped the Tetris community experience another addition of the game.

This project seeks to provide a new variation of the Tetris game, a harder and more compelling version. Previous variations kept the hold and next feature which just makes the game too easy, especially for the Experts. This Tetris project will remove them and may only make them available by earning scores and levels for a temporary time. This project will also include an augmented reality integration to give its final edge.

The current literature on this Tetris game variation is examined in order to clearly describe what has been done, what has worked, and the challenges that have arisen in this context. To achieve the intended goal, a methodology and design approach were established based on the literature research.

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

 

1.1      Overview

 

Tetris is a tile matching, line clearing, fun puzzle video game, it has different variations but all follow the major rules of players completing lines or rows by moving and rotating different shapes called tetrominoes which fall from the sky, the game board that shows the grid at which everything is cleared. The players advance to the next levels by completing different number of lines, these lines vanish and give the player a specific number of points. If a player can complete four (4) lines at once they have been granted a super point called a Tetris. A variation of the game has a higher value called hexa-Tetris, octa-Tetris and some more. It is a game over when the board is filled up. Tetris has stood the test of time since 1980 till now, different variations and game modes have been made and its popularity is unmatched as it is still one of the most sold game till date, numbering at three (3) on the list (Electronic Arts, 2018). The purpose of this project is to make a different variation of Tetris with reductions and additions to gameplay, progression and augmented reality and take its place among great Tetris games.

 

1.2      Background and Motivation

 

Tetris is a video game designed to be fun and tasking, it is designed to make people happy. Since the dawn of the first version till date different variations of the game has been made and played. Tetris has stood the test of time and that makes it a classic. The motivation for this project was the fact I had played so many variations of Tetris, from the black and white Gameboy advance version, to the latest ones such as Tetris effect which I found enjoyable and the fan base agrees. There was a time when Tetris was number one on the best-selling video game list and truly it deserved the spot even now which is currently third on the list according to Electronic Arts and steam statistics, surely the numbers don’t lie and proves it’s a very fun game and worth it. Because of this I have decided to make my own variation of the game and make it my own by removing, twisting and adding new features. There are major components of the game that makes it what it is and there are some that can be removed such as the hold, and next extras which make the game even easier, so to make it more challenging and rewarding they were removed, and or made a bonus feature where players reach certain scores to earn them. The addition of augmented reality hasn’t been published across platforms yet but adding these features makes it stand out from the older variations of the game.

 

 

1.3      Statement of the Problem

 

This variation of the Tetris game hasn’t been done yet, tile matching games like Tetris, or any other game becomes easily adaptable for players which is a great thing, after some point when the players level up what feasibly is next? The features to be removed should make it more tasking for expert players and new commers that have leveled up in the game. The hold features to be removed made it more fun and rewarding, this feature allows a player to hold a shape for some time until he or she finds the next best time to release the shape to play making it easier. The next feature to be removed makes it easy for the players to know a next shape to be spawned beforehand, removing this would make the players think more and not make bold moves so easily. It is possible to keep these features but only if it is a bonus method where the players have to expend points or in-game currency to use them at some given point in time this can be achieved as a downloadable content or a future update. The augmented reality feature gave Tetris a push in this time just like Pokémon go did when it first came out. This version of Tetris will inculcate AR and can be played on any area in our modern-day homes and relaxation points which will increase its popularity the more.

 

1.4      Aim and Objectives

The aim of this project is to design an enhanced version of Tetris game by making it competitive, rewarding and adding new experiences to the game. To give experienced players more and to give new players ready to join the Tetris family something to look forward to by adding and removing features that can make this feasible.

▪ To increase player experience by addition of AR

▪ To make the game more challenging

▪ Removing the hold feature

▪ Removing the next feature

▪ Making bonus features derived from the removal of the hold and next features ▪ Addition of Augmented reality to the game

 

 

1.5      Significance of the Project

 

The implementation of this project has potential to increase gameplay and challenges, reduce UI robustness and to bring more players to the Tetris community. This research and implementation further more experience to the puzzle gaming community by bringing in tasking challenges that were not made available before in previous variations of the game. Furthermore, a detailed report on each phase of the implementation of the project and room for better enhancements and updates such as augmented reality will be available. A new Tetris game variation made for more made for new experiences will draw in more players who want more in their gaming experience.

 

With a new and more rewarding Tetris variation, the Tetris fans and new players play a better and more breath-taking game. This variation of Tetris does enough to make it so, it creates a fun and real-life experience with the help of AR, more challenging experience with the reduction and addition of components and features such as the hold and next, with more updates to come as research and implementations continue, thereby bringing another push to the puzzle genre experience on some platforms, windows and smartphones. This project will aid in increasing the number of gamers in the gaming community as a whole.

 

The current and previous variations of published Tetris games all have the same features that will be removed or updated as a new feature in this project, with the addition of AR as an update to match a real-life experience for players ready to have a new and challenging experience in Tetris.

 

1.6      Project Risks Assessment

 

RISKS

Table 1.1: Project Risks Assessment

Inability to carry out research due to loss of hardware/software resources	Be aware of and observe school IT security procedures Secure Android mobile phone when not in use.
Loss of work due to equipment failure /loss	Weekly data backup to Hard drive and cloud
Software                   availability (Unavailability of API’s)	Alternative API’s will be checked for.  Software requirements will be identified in good time for possible contentious software
Inadequate supervision	Report to higher authority such as assigned course lecturer or the HOD
Health related issues	Report to the supervisors and medical attendants
Late delivery of hardware component	Hardware requirements will be identified in good time to be able to order them in good time

 

 

 

1.7      Scope/Project Organization

 

The scope of this project is concerned with creating a successful variation of Tetris that functions almost the same way as other variations of Tetris but with the new reductions and additions that make it different from the rest. The Chapter 1 is the Introduction where there is Overview, Background and Motivation, Current System, Statement of the problem, Proposed system, Aim and Objective, Significance of the project, project Risk Assessment and Scope. The Chapter 2 contains Literature Review which includes Historical Overview, Current Findings and studies, Summary. This provides readers with knowledge and information about the Tetris gameplay and how it differs from other games. In the Chapter 3, the Requirements, Analysis and Design are involved which contains the Overview, Requirements Specifications, Design Overview, Detailed or low-level design, Summary. This provides a software development life cycle, also known as SDLC, which is used to develop the proposed system and provides the merits and benefits of using the selected methodology for the system. The methodology chosen is fully explained by its stages or phases, the strengths, and weaknesses of the software development life cycle. It would explain the method used to gather the data used in developing the proposed system. Here, a questionnaire and interview were chosen to do the main research. The Chapter 4 is the Implementation whereby the Overview, Development Environment, Implementation Stages, Database Setup, Major technical problems, overcoming technical problems and Testing are involved. And the final chapter which is Chapter 5 has the Evaluation, Conclusion and Recommendation: -Overview, Achievements, challenges, Future enhancements, Recommendations, Summary. There is also the References and Appendices page available.

DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF TETRIS GAME

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