Introducing the Lunar Lander

The sample game for this chapter re-creates one of the all-time classic arcade games, the Lunar Lander game. In this game, the user tries to pilot a spacecraft near the surface of the moon. The pilot must land his or her craft on a small platform with limited fuel. Figure 7.1 demonstrates the Lunar Lander game in action.

The player controls the ship with thrusters controlled by the arrow keys. However, each blast of a thruster burns precious fuel. If the player is going too fast when he or she touches the landing pad, it is a crash, and he or she loses a ship. A safe landing is rewarded with more fuel and a new, randomly chosen landing assignment. The game continues until the user loses three ships.