Tic-Tac-What?
It's tic-tac-toe, but full of surprises. Play with four different shapes, customize your board and beat your opponents!
This project started with a homework assignment for C++ classes. I also wanted to try making a multiplayer game for some time now, so I figured I might give a shot at extending the classical tic-tac-toe game.
The WebGL version should work on mobile devices with some limitations, but I’m currently developing a dedicated mobile app.
The gameplay mechanics are pretty straightforward. Just left-click on a shape that you want to place and press left-click again on the board to make a move. You can also right-click to cancel the selected shape to pick something different.
Note that a triangle can be rotated with the scroll wheel.
Here are the set of rules of the game:
Rule #0
A player can win by either placing shapes horizontally, vertically, or on any of the diagonals on the board.
Rule #1
Players are determined by colors, as opposed to classical tic-tac-toe where they are determined by either circle or cross shapes.
Rule #2
Your opponent attacks after you place a shape.
Rule #3
A circle has two lives. Use it for defensive strategies.
Rule #4
A cross attacks diagonally.
Rule #5
A square attacks vertically and horizontally.
Rule #6
A triangle attacks forward and rotates clockwise. It can be placed in any starting direction.
Game created by me - Joachim Wielewski a.k.a. BlueEagle421.
All the sounds are from freesound.org.
The font in-game used is hey comic.
Development log
- 1.0.1 UpdateJul 18, 2024
- First ReleaseJul 14, 2024
Comments
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Tic Tac What Gameplay
Great! ;)
The game appears to occasionally glitch, allowing the client to take 3 turns in a row. Great, smooth implementation, though, otherwise. I would also say it would be nice if the Local - Host - Join options were clearer in a drop-down list to immediately find "Join" because "Host" is otherwise visually in the way which makes it a bit odd to find.
The instructions also don't say that a triangle can hit two enemy targets in a row, nor do they say that it can shoot over an allied piece. Lastly, the turning mechanism is also problematic for users on a laptop with a touchpad who don't have access to a scroll wheel.
Really great game!!
You can softlock if you place circles everywhere :)
Thanks for telling me! Will add a draw mechanic ;)
need cpu option
What do you mean?
to play against an ai
I’m planning to add a bot ;)
nice
규칙을 몰라도 아무거나 누르면서 규칙을 점차 알게 되네요!
저도 이런 게임을 한번쯤 만들어 보고 싶네요!
Cool!
add computer player
Im planning to add it ;)
In 3X3 is player one meant to always win?
No, but there is a winning strategy on 3x3 for the first player
In fact, yes, player 2 can make 1 free first move, after that it's all forced moves until player 1 wins.
Tic-Tac-What? Gameplay
Nice!
I played it at first without playing the tutorial, and... you can see from the video. Nice graphics and audio!
I like how you made there be the circles and board in the tutorial. It was easy to follow.
I played a round with my brother, but he had to stop playing after a round. I only got one round in.
I like how you added 4x4 and 5x5 modes!! 5x5 mode isn't as hard as it looks!
https://c.mail.com/@1216832772761461393/4eFBWKRXTIW-uvefUDz6Ng
Very cool! Thanks for playing
Good job on the project!
Interesting concept. I think the game is best played in 3x3, but with alternate rule that player 1 must start with circle and player 2 should be able to use any shape from the start.
For 4x4, when played defensively, neither player can win.
EDIT:
By defensive I mean attempting to remove opponent's pieces.
I just played several more rounds. When played correctly, Player 1 is guaranteed to win on 3x3 even when all pieces are allowed from the start for player 2. Player 2 simply cannot "defend" against a center circle or a corner circle.
Thanks! I played a lot with my friends on a 4x4 board and I never encountered a situation when no one could win. I know it's possible, but it seems like it's quite rare
Edit: I was thinking of adding something similar to 50 move rule in chess to counter it
By defensive, I mean always trying to block the opponent from winning - by attacking opponent pieces every turn. Each placement we can remove up to 4 "hp", but only add 1-2 "hp". So if both sides focus on removing opponent pieces, we will easily end up with stalemate due to having only 1 piece on board.
Another balancing idea is that we can give +1 hp to all pieces, and have all the attacks evaluated at once after player 2's move. This way player 2 gets more freedom to move "right next" to player 1, and do kamikaze attacks when needed.
Great game, really nicely made!
I've seen in the comments you talking about the issue of this being a solved game. Like you said, that's not terrible (as it isn't true for all modes), but I would humbly suggest that 3X3 + turn start isn't a great default setting, since it can be beaten by player 1 with classic tic-tac-toe play. That kind takes the special out of this game.
It might make more sense for the default to give player 2 some advantage, like letting player 2 pick all pieces or all except triangle.
Good idea!
(bug report) I think I found a winning strategy for the first player in the 3x3 round-based variant.
First, the player starts at the corner with a circle, and after the opponent moves, put a square near the marked circle orthogonally, in a row/column which doesn't have the opponent's circle. This prepares for a win while simultaneously attacking any blocking piece. After that, there are multiple scenarios:
Assuming this strategy is valid, I suggest attacking first before checking the winning condition.
Yes, this is a valid strategy indeed. I don't consider it to be a bug. 3x3 plays are very short/predictable and my personal favorite are 4x4 plays where things get more complicated. 4x4 feels like a sweet spot, because 5x5 can take a lot of time for someone to win.
This strategy can also be partially countered by enabling all shapes at the start.
Thanks for playing!
Thanks!
This is amazing, and extremely underrated. It's sooo much more complex and difficult than it seems!
Thanks! I’m glad you like it ;)