Creating a maze game

[solitary....@gmail.com]

I would like to create a game for some grandsons: Something that would include typical maze elements (walls, barriers, traps, jumping platforms, etc) and would allow them to enter in "code" to create or modify some of the elements.

It would be hosted on a Windows 7+ platform (platform-agnostic would be better for me) and would be coded in a lisp-family language (CL, Scheme, Racket, Arc, Logo, etc) and/or JavaScript. I have been learning CL and Scheme, know a bit of Arc and Logo and a bit more of JavaScript.

While I have been a medical information systems programmer for most of my career, it has been focused on CRUD (create/retrieve/update/delete) applications and interfacing (HL7 and proprietary). I have virtually no experience with GUI and audio applications.

Here are some questions that have occurred to me:
1. Which languages would be best?
2. Which toolkits would help? OpenGL?
3. Can this be done on a browser?
4. How does one control scrolling in different directions? Do you create the screen in memory and then instruct the system to scroll in the direction of the newly created portion?
5. Could you interface with one of the available free game engines?

Regarding Logo, would it be possible during game play, to accept typed in code and evaluate it?

Obviously this would not have to be world-class. Just something a 10 and 12 year old might like and perhaps from which they could learn how to do some elementary coding.

I would appreciate your input.


Thanks, Steve

[ther...@gmail.com]

I teach 8th graders LOGO, but only for a short 2 week span so my skills are rudimentary at best.

I have found this before thought and it amazes me what he was able to create.

http://spacemandan.net/software/Asteroid_Miner/Asteroid_Miner.html

I do not have any of the skills to make this happen, but at least now you can see how far it can go.

Good luck.
Mike

[solitary....@gmail.com]

Thanks, Mike.

I used Logo to create a rudimentary program for prototyping furniture layout. It was a hoot.


Steve

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