Quartz is a game where the user finds a Latin square satisfying a given symmetry property (an autotopism).
From this perspective, a Latin square is equivalent to a quasigroup, hence "Quartz", approximately short for quasigroup automorphisms.
When you click a cell, it changes its symbol to the next symbol that doesn't violate the necessary conditions (the LCM conditions) for a Latin square to have an autotopism.
At the moment, the game is in development, so don't expect too much.
Function modifications needed:
- Selectable dimension size n.
- Random puzzle of size n.
- Identify if solution is known.
- User can "give up" and access a known solution.
- Automatic upload when a solution is found.
- User can enter their name for attribution of their solution.
- Keep track of the "best known" solution.
Appearance modifications:
- Row and column separations to indicate the row and column permutations in the autotopism.
- Leading symbols are always highlighted; different leading symbols with different colors.
- When hovering over a cell, the orbit it belongs to is highlighted.
- Change the cells from HTML buttons to something that looks nice.
- Improve error counting.
To make the game more fun:
- Keep a statistics table (no. clicks, time spent on puzzle, etc.).
- Add some "achievements".
- Add sounds for hover, click, etc., background music.
Rebecca J. Stones