CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1  BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Ludo (latin word “ludus” -"I play") is a board game for two to four players, in which the players race their four tokens from start to finish according to die rolls. Like other cross and circle games, Ludo is derived from the Indian game Pachisi , but simpler. The game and its variants are popular in many countries and under various names.

Pachisi originated in India by the 6th century. The earliest evidence of this game in India is the depiction of boards on the caves of Ajanta. This game was played by the Mughal emperors of India; a notable example is the great Mughal emperor Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar, who used to play live Pachisi by using his harem girls.

In England, the game was published as early as 11th April 1862 (19th century). Pachisi was modified, using six-sided dice, and patented as Ludo, in 1896, patent number 14636.

In North America, the game is sold under the brand name Parcheesi. Numerous variations of the game are sold under the brand names Sorry! , Aggravation, and Trouble.

Different variations of this game are available under different local names in Germany as well as in the Dutch, Bulgarian, Czech, Serbo Croatian and Slovak territories.

The game is popular by the name of “Fia” in Sweden. However, in countries like Norway and Denmark, the game is popularly known as Ludo.

Ludo is a game well known to most people, particularly those of advancing years. A simple game played by up to four players on a colourful board. But once the Royal Navy got hold of the game, it changed not only its name but also the way the game was played.

Two, three, or four may play. At the beginning of the game, each player's tokens are out of play and staged in one of the large corner areas of the board in the player's colour (called the player's yard). When able to, the players will enter their tokens one per time on their respective starting squares, and proceed to race them clockwise around the board along the game track (the path of squares not part of any player's home column). When reaching the square below his home column, a player continues by racing tokens up the column to the finishing square. The rolls of a cube die control the swiftness of the tokens, and entry to the finishing square requires a precise roll from the player. The first to bring all their tokens to the finish wins the game. The others often continue play to determine second-, third-, and fourth-place finishers.

Initially, during the early days of computing only what you tell the computer to do is what it does, but nowadays, the computer can think and even act as human using Artificial Intelligence (AI). With the aid of AI, the computer can act pretty smart. Computers in a single second can perform a function faster than human beings that have programmed them to do these things. It is assumed that only experts are good enough to beat the computer in a game.

It is generally agreed that in all games, there is an element of chance, skill, enjoyment and strategy. Games range according to the degree to which these elements are present, but the most important factors is the strategy and enjoyment involved. For skills, it might not be of great importance.

1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

As the world is moving towards Information Technology, there was a need for an improvement on our local (manual) ludo game.

The following are the problems observed from the local ludo game:

1. Local ludo game cannot be played by just one person, that is, it must involve two to four persons.

2. Sometime there is no accuracy in counting the pieces. For example, counting 8 moves instead of 7 moves.

3. Either player can cheat on the other by taking a piece HOME without passing through the normal route.

1.3AIMS OF THE STUDY

The main aim of this study is to design and implement a computerized game which case study is a ludo game.

1.4 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

In a society like ours, there is a need to calm nerves, streamline focus, sharpening intelligence and decision making skills after our rigorous and demanding social life. This brought about the initiation of the development of the computer ludo game.

The objectives of the proposed design include:

1. To help in reasoning faster and better.

2. To bring fun into people’s homes and offices.

3. To act as a good form of relaxation.

4. To be able to create a real life feature.

5. Relate computer games in various spheres of life e.g. business, art, engineering, science etc.

1.5 SCOPE OF STUDY

The scope of the project will cover the development of the ludo game, software designed to be played by one to four persons.

1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

Since we are in the 21st century known as the Jet-Age, it is also expected that we introduce a modern approach in all things which also includes our games.

The inaccuracy in the manual ludo game and the limitation in the number of people that can play the game are worked on in this study. This computer ludo game has a human to computer mode, human to human mode and computer to computer mode (two to four players or one to four players).

In line with the objectives of this study, the computer ludo game helps in the sharpening of the players’ intelligence and improving their ability to think analytically. Its simplicity (i.e. no complicated rules or interface) makes it playable by young children. Unlike most computer games, there is no requirement for registration or login details, and it has a minimal memory and storage requirement.

It is easy to play, no understanding is needed. Whereby, anyone can play which helps in numeracy. It improves counting skills for children, encourages competitiveness among them, all-in-all it brings about fantastic family fun.

1.7 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

As every study has its limitation, the limitations of this study are time constraints, insufficient skill and the limited access to materials on the subject on ground.

1.8 DEFINITION OF TERMS

3D (Computer) Graphics: are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data (often Cartesian) that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images.

Heuristic: is any approach to problem solving, learning, or discovery that employs a practical method not guaranteed to be optimal or perfect but sufficient for the immediate goals.

AI (Artificial Intelligence): is the intelligence exhibited by machines or software. It is the name of the academic field of study which studies how to create computers and computer software that are capable of intelligent behavior.

UI (User Interface): in the industrial design field of human machine interaction, is the space where interactions between humans and machines occur.

PLATO System: Programmed Logic for Automatic Teaching Operations was the first generalized computer assisted instruction system.

PDP-11: is a series of 16-bit minicomputers sold by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) from 1970 into the 1990s, one of a succession of product in the PDP series.

DirectX: is a collection of application programming interfaces (APIs) for handling tasks related to multimedia, especially game programming and video.

OpenGL: Open Graphics Library is a cross-language, cross-platform application programming interface (API) for rendering 2D and 3D vector graphics.

Searching: using a computer to find an item with specified properties (E.g. specified text) among a collection of items using a search algorithm.

Algorithms: is a self contained step-by-step set of operations to be performed. Algorithms exist that perform calculation, data processing, and automated reasoning.

Graphic User Interface (GUI): is a type of interface that allows users to interact with electronic devices through graphical icons and visual indicators such as secondary notation, as opposed to text-based interfaces, typed command labels or text navigation.

ATI Rage: is a series of graphics chipsets offering GUI 2D acceleration, video acceleration, and 3D acceleration.

Matrox Mystique: the Mystique220 and Mystique are 2D, 3D and video accelerator cards for personal computers designed by Matrox, using the VGA connector.

S3 ViRGE: the S3 Virtual Reality Graphics Engine (ViRGE) graphics chipset was one of the first 2D/3D accelerators designed for the mass market.

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