ITSE 1411.7426 ActionScript Web Programming, Summer 2007

Semester Project - Space Invaders

by Sharon Huston

This is a multi-week project which will be due the last day of the semester, Thursday, August 9 th 2007.  Projects 1 through 4 and the textbook exercises will help you lean the skills you need to successfully complete this project.  But DO NOT wait until you have completed all the other projects to begin working on your semester project.   

Part One

  1. Read historic information on the Space Invaders game. (Just in case you missed it in the 80s!)
  2. Play Space Invaders. There are several other Space Invaders games on the Net, you may wish to play others for comparison purposes.
  3. Create a new file and save it as invaders1.swf.
  4. In your library make a canon and an alien (or two) as movie clip symbols. They do not have to look exactly like the original game's creatures. If you like use the movie clips to animate your aliens or the canon.
  5. Place the canon on the stage.
  6. Program the canon so it moves when the user presses the right or left arrow keys on the keyboard.
  7. Constrain the movement so the canon does not drift off the screen.
  8. Make a large grouping of aliens. Best advise is to make a "row" movie clip composed of several aliens, and then make a "swarm" movie clip composed of several rows.
  9. Make the aliens move across the screen, and descend as needed.
  10. You should make heavy use of FUNCTIONS in this game! You also may need listeners as described in Ch. 2 of TFTS.

Part Two

  1. Make the aliens descend faster as they progress towards the canon.
  2. Make an 'alien ship' movie clip.
  3. Have the alien ship movie clip move across the screen at unexpected intervals.
  4. Create bullet movie clips for the alien and the canon.
  5. Using the duplicateMovieClip() method, make the canon duplicate a bullet and "fire" it whenever the space bar is pressed.

Part Three

  1. Modify your alien movie clip so it includes an explosion, which will be triggered if the canon hits the alien.
  2. Use hitTest() to determine if an alien is hit by a bullet. If the collision occurs, have the alien explode and disappear off screen using removeMovieClip().
  3. Modify the canon to include an explosion.
  4. Have aliens randomly (or not so randomly) release bullets.
  5. If the bullets hit the canon have the canon explode.

Part Four

  1. Set up a score-keeping system.
  2. Introduce the shields. I'm still struggling with this myself -- my best advice is to make the shields out of little one-pixel movie clips, and as the bullets hit the pieces they disappear.
  3. Celebrate!


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