TicTac4 is an implimentation of a four-dimensional game of tic-tac-toe. The game board actually represents a 4x4x4x4 tic-tac-toe grid.
How do I Play?
First, it helps if you have a partner, since the computer can't play against you (yet). The first player, "X", clicks on any square on the board. Then "O" clicks on a square, then "X" again, and so forth. The game ends when either "X" or "O" gets four in a row.
How Do I Win?
Good question. Since the board is actually a representation of a 4-dimensional playing surface (supersurface?), it can be a little hard at times to decide when a player gets four in a row. The board below has several winning combinations:
Cases "A" and "B" are relatively simple. Since all pieces are played on a single "supersquare", the conditions for four in a row are the same as the would be in a simple 2-D 4x4 game. Case "C" is somewhat more complicated, but may seem familiar to players of the 3-D game Qubic™. The 4 C's are can be thought of as being 4 in a row "vertically". Case "D" is the same, except that the pieces can be thought of as being along a "vertical" diagonal. Cases like "E" are the most complicated. They can be thought best by stacking the "supersquares" that contain the E's and then tracing positions along a 3-D diagonal.
Probably the best thing to do is just jump in and try a few games against yourself. The computer will tell you when someone has won. Don't feel bad if most of this isn't too intuitive right now. Human beings have enough trouble accurately visualizing 3 dimensions, let alone 4!
Where do I Send Bug Reports/Comments
The author can be reached at America Online "JBrewer" or on the Internet at "JBrewer@wri.com". You can also snail-mail me at the address below. (Hint: suggestions from people who pay their shareware fee get highest priority.)
