13. Mini-games & Tools

13.1 Managing Mini-games

The project ships with numerous mini-games and idea notebooks. Browse the samples in the games directory when adding your own creations—they serve as templates for structure and assets.

Detailed specs, difficulty settings, and entry points for each bundled module are listed in Chapter 20: MiniExp Module Catalog.

13.2 The Tools Tab

The Tools tab provides utilities useful during development, such as block-data editors. Some tools are still in progress, so check the changelog to follow updates.

To customise domain hazards and status badges on the dungeon overlay, see Section 19.5 for the relevant hooks.

13.3 Integration Tips

• Create a shared data-management module if you want mini-game results to influence the main game.
• Provide common CSS classes to keep UI styling consistent.

13.4 Mini-game & Tool Directory

Every mini-game and utility listed below runs entirely in the browser. Use this section as a quick reference for controls and best practices.

Electro Instrument

• Goal: Play notes on a virtual keyboard.
• Controls: Use the mouse or keyboard keys to trigger pitches.
• Tip: Ideal for chord checks and testing sound effects during development.

Spreadsheet Exceller

• Goal: Organise and calculate values in a lightweight spreadsheet.
• Controls: Click cells to enter data or formulas.
• Tip: Record dungeon-balance adjustments so you can track your changes.

Falling Shooter

• Goal: Shoot descending enemies to earn points.
• Controls: Move with the arrow keys and fire with Space.
• Tip: Observe the descent speed and weave movement with attacks.

Flappy-style Flight

• Goal: Fly through pipe gaps to extend your distance.
• Controls: Tap Space or click to flap.
• Tip: Use short taps instead of holding the key to fine-tune altitude.

Gamble Hall

• Goal: A collection of simple wagering games that increase your points.
• Controls: Choose bet amounts and outcomes via mouse clicks.
• Tip: Start with small wagers to avoid running out of points.

Go Lite

• Goal: Capture territory in a streamlined version of Go.
• Controls: Click intersections to place stones.
• Tip: Watch for liberties and surround opposing stones.

Invader-style Shooter

• Goal: Defeat each wave of descending aliens.
• Controls: Move left/right with the arrow keys and fire with Space.
• Tip: Hide behind barriers and clear columns one at a time.

Math Lab

• Goal: Solve arithmetic drills to build fundamentals.
• Controls: Enter answers and submit them for grading.
• Tip: Combine mental math with quick notes when a timer is active.

Match-3 Puzzle

• Goal: Align three or more identical icons to clear them and reach the target score.
• Controls: Swap adjacent tiles by dragging or clicking.
• Tip: Prioritise moves that can cascade into combos.

Minesweeper

• Goal: Reveal all safe tiles without triggering mines.
• Controls: Left-click to open, right-click to flag.
• Tip: Use the numbers to deduce where mines are located.

Music Player

• Goal: Preview BGM and sound effects.
• Controls: Choose a track from the playlist and scrub with the seek bar.
• Tip: Loop tracks while fine-tuning volume levels.

Notepad Utility

• Goal: Save quick text notes.
• Controls: Type in the editor area and click Save to store locally.
• Tip: Keep it open to jot down tasks or test results instantly.

Othello

• Goal: Flip discs by enclosing your opponent and finish with the majority.
• Controls: Click a square to place a disc.
• Tip: Prioritise corner control to stabilise the board.

Weakest Othello

• Goal: A misère take on Othello: win by ending with fewer discs while higher difficulties force the AI into worse moves.
• Controls: Place discs with a click, just like the classic rules.
• Tip: Avoid sweeping flips until the end—bait the AI into taking corners so you can shed discs.

Pac-Man Homage

• Goal: Eat every dot in the maze while evading ghosts.
• Controls: Move with the arrow keys.
• Tip: Grab power pellets at the right time to reverse the chase.

Paint Tool

• Goal: Draw quick pixel art or diagrams.
• Controls: Drag on the canvas and pick colours or brush sizes.
• Tip: Save frequently—layers are not available.

Physics Sandbox

• Goal: Experiment with physics simulations.
• Controls: Spawn objects and tweak gravity or collision settings.
• Tip: Prototype gameplay ideas and record the values that feel best.

Pong

• Goal: Rally the ball into your opponent’s goal.
• Controls: Move the paddle with the arrow keys or W/S.
• Tip: Aim for different paddle positions to vary the rebound angle.

Pomodoro Timer

• Goal: Maintain focus with 25-minute work sessions and 5-minute breaks.
• Controls: Start the timer and follow the alerts.
• Tip: Great for scheduling reading or implementation sprints.

Puyo-style Puzzle

• Goal: Connect four blobs of the same colour to clear them and chain combos.
• Controls: Move and rotate with the arrow keys; press Down to drop faster.
• Tip: Practise staircase or key stacking to build reliable chains.

River Crossing Puzzle

• Goal: Ferry everyone across safely while respecting restrictions.
• Controls: Choose passengers and press the move button.
• Tip: Double-check forbidden combinations before each trip.

SameGame

• Goal: Clear connected groups of the same colour for high scores.
• Controls: Click a group to remove it.
• Tip: Wait for large clusters and finish with chain reactions.

Sliding Puzzle

• Goal: Arrange shuffled tiles into the correct order.
• Controls: Click tiles adjacent to the blank space.
• Tip: Solve rows and columns sequentially, leaving the final 2×2 for last.

Snake

• Goal: Eat food, extend your body, and avoid collisions.
• Controls: Change direction with the arrow keys.
• Tip: Plan wide turns and weave to create safe corridors as you grow.

Steady Wire

• Goal: Guide the cursor along a wire without touching the edges.
• Controls: Move the mouse carefully along the path.
• Tip: Lower mouse sensitivity for finer control.

Stone Board Game Pack

• Goal: Samples of stone-based board games such as Go and Gomoku.
• Controls: Click squares according to each rule set.
• Tip: Keep the rule notes open to avoid mixing up mechanics.

Stopwatch

• Goal: Measure elapsed time.
• Controls: Use the start, stop, and reset buttons.
• Tip: Track speedrun attempts to spot improvement opportunities.

Sudoku

• Goal: Fill a 9×9 grid with digits 1–9 without repetition.
• Controls: Click a cell and enter a number.
• Tip: Pencil in candidates per row, column, and box to find certainties.

Ten-Ten Puzzle

• Goal: Combine numbers to make 10 and tidy the board.
• Controls: Place numbered blocks; completed lines vanish.
• Tip: Check block shapes beforehand to avoid stray remainders.

Tester Tool

• Goal: Rapidly verify mini-game behaviour.
• Controls: Choose a test case and run it.
• Tip: Execute these checks after adding new features to catch regressions early.

Tetris-style

• Goal: Prevent the stack from reaching the top by clearing lines.
• Controls: Move/rotate with the arrows, press Down to soft drop, Space to hard drop.
• Tip: Decide when to use Hold and practise techniques such as T-Spins.

Timer

• Goal: Run a simple countdown.
• Controls: Set minutes and seconds, then start.
• Tip: Useful for tracking breaks or event countdowns.

To-do List

• Goal: Organise tasks and progress.
• Controls: Enter tasks, add them, and tick them off when done.
• Tip: Break large goals into smaller tasks for more frequent wins.

Triomino Columns

• Goal: Drop triomino blocks to complete columns.
• Controls: Move and rotate with the arrow keys.
• Tip: Reorder colours mid-air to set up monochrome columns.

Card Game Collection

• Goal: Play assorted card games such as solitaire.
• Controls: Drag and drop cards according to each rule set.
• Tip: Read the in-game help to memorise each mode’s sequence.

Ultimate Tic-Tac-Toe

• Goal: Win on a large board made of nine mini tic-tac-toe grids.
• Controls: Place a mark in the instructed sub-board.
• Tip: Anticipate the opponent’s destination and prioritise lines on the main board.

Video Player

• Goal: Review tutorial or reference videos.
• Controls: Select a video and use playback controls.
• Tip: Speed up playback to learn more efficiently.

Whack-a-Mole

• Goal: Hit moles as they pop out to score points.
• Controls: Click moles the moment they appear.
• Tip: Learn spawn patterns and limit unnecessary eye movement.

Wording Tool

• Goal: Assist with phrasing and vocabulary gathering.
• Controls: Enter text to receive suggestions or replacements.
• Tip: Use it while drafting descriptions or event dialogue.