I want to implement the replay function while making the maze game

Question

RED SQUARE : PlayerPictureBox;

BLUE SQUARE : End Point;

BLACK SQUARE : WALL;

I have a maze organized in a PictureBox.

If the player arrives at the arrival point,

I want to implement a replay function that shows the path they found again, what should I do?

  public void CreateNewMaze()
    {
        mazeTiles = new PictureBox[XTILES, YTILES];
        for (int i = 0; i < XTILES; i++)
        {
            for (int j = 0; j < YTILES; j++)
            {
                mazeTiles[i, j] = new PictureBox();
                int xPosition = (i * TILESIZE) + 25;
                int yPosition = (j * TILESIZE) + 10;
                mazeTiles[i, j].SetBounds(xPosition, yPosition, TILESIZE, TILESIZE);

                this.Controls.Add(mazeTiles[i, j]);
            }
        }
    }


 protected override bool ProcessCmdKey(ref Message msg, Keys keyData)
    {
        int directionX = 0;
        int directionY = 0;
        switch (keyData)
        {
            case Keys.Left: directionX = -1;
                EndGame();
                break;

            case Keys.Right: directionX = 1;
                EndGame();
                break;

            case Keys.Up: directionY = -1;
                EndGame();
                break;

            case Keys.Down: directionY = 1;
                EndGame();
                break;

            default: return base.ProcessCmdKey(ref msg, keyData);
        }

        int x = directionX + (PlayerPictureBox.Left - 25) / TILESIZE;
        int y = directionY + (PlayerPictureBox.Top - 10) / TILESIZE;

        bool isRoad = mazeTiles[x, y].BackColor != Color.Black;
        if (isRoad)
        {
            PlayerPictureBox.Left += directionX * TILESIZE;
            PlayerPictureBox.Top += directionY * TILESIZE;
        }
        return true;
  
    }

The easiest way is to do it like Doom did, save every key input in a long queue, and then if you want to see a replay of the game, instead of taking player input, just dequeue the inputs one after another and apply them instead — MindSwipe, Oct 18 '22 at 06:36
I don't understand you telling me "save every key input in a long queue" If you don't mind, could you give me an example? — toe ko, Oct 18 '22 at 06:44
Basically, in your `ProcessCmdKey` method, before doing anything, push the `keyData` to a [queue](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/api/system.collections.generic.queue-1?view=net-6.0) like `_previouslyInputKeys.Push(keyData)` — MindSwipe, Oct 18 '22 at 07:29
Difficult to implement previouslyInputKeys.Push method Can you give me an example? — toe ko, Oct 18 '22 at 08:18

Jiri Volejnik · Accepted Answer · 2022-10-19T11:58:53.057

Add each step (or move) to a list of steps.
Add Replay method that takes each step from this list, performs it and then waits for a while.
Clear the 'steps' list before each game (in CreateNewMaze for example).
Start playback when pressing Space, for example.

So, add this code to you Form:

    class Step
    {
        public int dx;
        public int dy;
    }

    List<Step> steps = new List<Step>();

    async void Replay(int delay = 50)
    {
        int firstX = 1; // Initial player position, maybe you'll have to change it
        int firstY = 1; 

        PlayerPictureBox.Left = 25 + firstX * TILESIZE;
        PlayerPictureBox.Top = 10 + firstY * TILESIZE;

        var copy = steps.ToArray(); // Let's make a copy of steps array, to avoid possible conflicts with working array.
        foreach (var step in copy)
        {
            PlayerPictureBox.Left += step.dx * TILESIZE;
            PlayerPictureBox.Top += step.dy * TILESIZE;

            await Task.Delay(delay);
        }
    }

Modify CreateNewMaze like this:

    public void CreateNewMaze()
    {
        // Add the following line
        steps.Clear();

        maze = new bool[XTILES, YTILES];
        //...

Modify ProcessCmdKey like this:

    protected override bool ProcessCmdKey(ref Message msg, Keys keyData)
    {
        int directionX = 0;
        int directionY = 0;
        switch (keyData)
        {
            // Add the following:
            case Keys.Space:
                Replay();
                return true;
            // ...

and below like this:

        // ...
        if (isRoad)
        {
            // Add the following line
            steps.Add(new Step { dx = directionX, dy = directionY });

            PlayerPictureBox.Left += directionX * TILESIZE;
            PlayerPictureBox.Top += directionY * TILESIZE;
        }

I would recommend using a different PictureBox instance for playing back the steps, so that the user can continue playing while playback is running. But I'll leave it for you.

Thank you very much. Thanks to you, I'm growing today. – toe ko Oct 18 '22 at 23:31 — toe ko, Oct 18 '22 at 23:31

I want to implement the replay function while making the maze game

1 Answers1