Chapter 021 - 1999.02.11
To the right is the earliest image I could find for this old game called:
Four Eyes
Chapter date = file date.
Four Eyes is a game -
something like Chess,
but very different.
It's simpler and faster.
Someone who does NOT understand the game can immediately play -
against an expert -
and might win.
The drawing above is very crude early concept drawing.
To the right is a next step working analog prototype.
This prototype really worked,
but it was very cumbersome to play test -
because:
1) the mirror pieces had to be perfectly plumbed
2) you had to lean down and look thru view holes in the board
to see the actual results.
Note: not necessary though - once you understood how the reflections work.
The next prototype was software I created:
And though it is still basic Four Eyes -
I changed the name for the software:
Mirror aMAZEr
The software fixed most of the problems the analog version presented the players:
No need for game pieces plumbing perfection
No need to bend down to look thru eyes
Automatic scoring
When relearning what I had created for software -
I did notice some a couple random occuring bugs:
Total board score would sometimes be wrong.
Some places on the board would not allow me to position mirrors there.
Easily fixable -
if I had the Visual Basic coding tools on my Win10 laptop.
Not even sure if it would be compatible now?
I'll use the generic name Four Eyes -
to describe the game.
It's a game for one (1) to four (4) players.
Any age really -
because it is so simple to begin to learn -
and there are no real wrong moves.
If a play piece fits than it is a legal move.
But there is strategy required -
once the objectives are clearly understood.
The simple game objective is to score the most points.
The way you score points is by:
1) what eye color a particular eye sees
2) how many mirror reflections are involved in what that particular eye sees.
If no mirror reflections are involved -
then eye will score zero (0) points.
Otherwise the eye scores a point for each reflection.
But that is not all -
the color match or color combination -
establishes a multiplier for the number of reflections.
If a match is made -
then the multiplier is three (3.)
If a complementary color match is made -
then it is two (2.)
Otherwise either of the other two colors -
yields a multiplier of one (1.)
Complementary colors are:
red for green
green for red
blue for yellow
yellow for blue.
So if a green eye sees a red eye -
and 4 mirror reflections are involved -
then that eye will score 8 points.
If a blue eye sees a blue eye off 7 reflects -
then it will score 21 points.
If a yellow eye sees a green eye off 2 reflections -
then it will score 2 points.
If a red eye sees a red eye straight across the board with no reflections -
then it scores 0 points.
Here's another snapshot of a game board.
See if you can figure out the scores of each of the 16 eyes.
The outermost eyes represent the color the player on that side of the board is after.
The inner eye color is what sits on the opposite side of the eye panel.
Image yourself looking thru the pupil of the eye -
from the outside position of the board.
The pupil is actually a viewport hole,
that when you look through reveals the iris color of an eye -
somewhere positioned at the 16 positions.
In the software below -
The pupil color represents the color seen.
The gray color of the inner side eyes -
represents a eye that is not looked thru.
Black slots of the board indicate -
no mirror exists there yet.
There are 32 45 degree positions in the middle of the board -
and 16 squared positions forming a squared perimeter around the 32.
45 degree mirrors reflect at 90 degrees.
Squared mirrors reflect straight back.
That blue eye that has a score of 39 points -
is actually seeing the eye that is -
at the same position on the opposite side of the panel.
The Four Eyes board design is somewhat amazing -
because no matter how many mirror are placed on the board -
or where they are positioned -
each of the 16 eyes reveals only one of the other inside 16 eyes.
This phenomenon creates a board -
that delivers an ultra-simple game play -
where players cannot make a positioning mistake.
If the mirror fits -
then it's a legal move.
There's many different ways to create different solitaire and multiplayer challenges and competitions.
I actually just thought of a new way while reviewing this two-decades old game.
Instead of just checking all the scores after all mirrors are placed -
score just after each mirror is placed -
just for that player that turn.
And because turn order is so important -
in the software version of the game -
have players place their mirrors at the same time -
and indicate the eye they will score on.
Of course players could position mirrors in the same place -
so the game would indicate this -
and alert players that a change is required.
Once all players are in different allowable positions -
then the round gets scored.
For solitaire play issues like this are not a worry,
and there are many different types of challenges:
most points at end
most points accumulated
with 4 mirrors only
with 8 mirrors only
with 12 mirrors
with all 16 mirrors
Scoring can be alerted too -
imagine a difference between reflections off your mirrors -
versus the mirrors placed by others.
Four Eyes is the type of game where game enthusiasts -
will discover alternative ways to play and score.