Snake

A basic implementation of Snake in Java.

Why Write It?

I wrote this around July of 2023 while preparing to apply/transfer to a developer position at the company I was currently working for at the time. I've dabbled with simple games learning how to program back in middle school, but I figured this was a good project to review Java, as I was extensively working with JavaScript writing Mirth Connect channels in my current position at the time. Working on this project gave me a decent opportunity to play around with Java's Stream API, and examine its functional programming capabilities.

The Challenge (for Myself)

For this particular implementation, I challenged myself to not use for loops if an alternative existed within the Stream API. This also forced me to get really comfortable with lambda expressions and functional interfaces.

Requirements

1. JDK 8 or higher.

   • I personally recommend Eclipse Temurin to keep things simple.
   • If you are worried about conflicting JDK versions, I would recommend employing a strategy that allows you to have multiple JDKs coexist on the same machine:
     • *nix
       • Use jenv and/or SDKMAN! to install your JDKs.
     • Windows
       • You could install your JDKs by version to different directories, and symlink C:\Java to the current installation you wish to use.
       • Use Java exclusively in an environment like MSYS2 with native symlinks enabled, and then use jenv and/or SDKMAN! to install your JDKs in your MSYS2 environment.
         • This technique still allows usage of Java from Windows directly, but is out of the scope of this document.

2. Apache Maven.

   • If you use SDKMAN!, you can use it to install Maven.

How to Build

Assuming the requirements above are met:

1. Clone this repository, and change into that directory if you haven't done so already:

   # Cloning to ./snake isn't mandatory, but it makes things easier
   git clone https://github.com/thepeoplescoder/java--snake snake
   cd snake

2. Use Maven to compile everything:

   mvn package

3. Afterwards, you should have an executable .jar located at ./target/snake-1.0-SNAPSHOT.jar.

How to Run

After building, you can run the app:

• via the .jar directly:

  java -jar target/snake-1.0-SNAPSHOT.jar

  • The .jar is completely self-contained and can be moved anywhere.

• via Maven:

  mvn exec:java
  

Controls

• Use the arrow keys to move around.
• P pauses/unpauses the game.
• Q/Escape quits the game.
• On game over, press Enter to restart.

Current Features

• Things you would expect from your standard Snake game:
  • If you eat an apple, the snake grows
  • If you crash into a wall, game over
  • If you crash into yourself, game over
  • Snake is randomly positioned initially
    • This is done such that the snake doesn't start:
      • in an invalid position
      • crashing into an obstacle immediately
• On game over, the messages range from dry humor to lightly taunting
  • When I was working on this game, I was playing a lot of Risk of Rain 2 at the time. Their game over messages do the same, so I drew inspiration from it.
• Body is deliberately slightly darker than head so direction of travel is clear
• Internally, the game is structured such that the game logic is separate from how it is displayed to the user.
  • Currently, only a Swing implementation exists.

Current Limitations

• The game deliberately crashes upon eating 999 apples.
  • This can be changed by modifying the value of com.thepeoplescoder.snake.Shared.Settings.Game.applesPerLevel.

Project Roadmap

• Show number of apples collected
• Implement multiple lives
• Implement multiple levels
• Implement a cross-platform version that works on the terminal, using text to emulate pixel graphics