This is a JavaScript implementation of a Connect 4 Algorithm based on the original work of Keith Pomakis in C. This project was a way for me to do some exploring that I've wanted to do for sometime now. First, I wanted to learn more about game development (zero-sum, minimax, alpha-beta pruning). Second, I wanted to explore Web Workers and see how the modern browsers handle a game AI like Connect 4 written entirely in JavaScript.
There are 3 main files that make up the game.
- Connect4.js - This is the primary file that you would include in your HTML and provides the public API.
- Connect4Game.js - This is the game AI/logic and is only used via the Web Worker.
- Connect4Worker.js - This is the definition of the Web Worker and it imports the Connect4Game.js file.
The game.html and game.js provide an example of how to use the Connect4.js game. Just open game.html in a modern browser that supports Web Workers and open the console. The compute will play against itself. Just reload to restart the game. I also have the demo up and running on my own site here: http://brandonaaron.net/code/connect4js/demos
The API is super simple and uses a pubsub strategy to deal with the asynchronous behavior of Web Workers. Although the documentation isn't great there is inline documentation in the JSDoc-Toolkit format.
This work is Copyright 2010 Brandon Aaron and licensed under the MIT license (LICENSE.txt).
I've very happy that Keith Pomakis put his work out in Public Domain for others to learn and build upon. I've included his original C implementation and released my port under MIT with his permission. You can find the original work that I used in the folder named 'originalAlgorithm'.