🎡 Lucky Wheel – Multiplayer Word Puzzle Game

Lucky Wheel is a networked multiplayer word puzzle game inspired by the classic TV show "Wheel of Fortune" (Vietnamese version "Chiếc nón kỳ diệu"). The game allows up to 3 players to compete in guessing letters to solve word puzzles across multiple rounds, with a spinning wheel that adds an element of chance to their score. This project was developed in C# as a basic network programming assignment, demonstrating socket programming and a simple client-server architecture.

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📖 Overview

In this game, players take turns spinning a lucky wheel to receive a random score or effect (such as losing a turn) and then guess a letter in a hidden phrase. Correct guesses reveal the letter in the puzzle and award points to the player; incorrect guesses or unlucky spins pass the turn to the next player. After a set number of rounds, the player with the highest total score wins. The game is implemented with a server coordinating the game logic and multiple client applications for each player, communicating via TCP sockets.

✨ Features

• 🚪 Create and Join Game Rooms: One player can host a game (creating a room) for others to join. The room supports up to 3 players. Other players can join by entering the host’s IP address.

• 🖥️ User-Friendly GUI: The game provides intuitive Windows Forms interfaces for:

  • Login: Enter player name and server IP, with options to create or join a room.
  • Lobby: Displays the list of connected players while waiting for the game to start.
  • Game Play: Main screen showing the puzzle, hint, scores, and interactive alphabet buttons.
  • Wheel Spin: A popup window with a spinning wheel graphic.
  • Results: Screens to announce round completion and the final winner.

• 🎮 Multiplayer Game Logic:

  • Turn-based letter guessing with a spinning wheel mechanic.
  • Three rounds of play by default, with puzzles loaded from a JSON file.
  • Scoring system based on the wheel’s value.
  • Automated turn management. If a guess is correct, the same player continues their turn.
  • The round ends when the puzzle is solved. The player with the highest total score wins.

• 🌐 Real-time Network Communication:

  • Utilizes TCP socket networking to synchronize game state.
  • The server broadcasts game updates (current turn, puzzle info, scores, etc.) to all players.
  • Clients send player actions (joining, spinning, guessing) to the server.
  • A defined message protocol ensures consistent data handling.

• 🧵 Robust Design with Threads:

  • The server handles multiple clients simultaneously using multi-threading.
  • The client application uses a background thread to listen for server messages, ensuring the GUI remains responsive.

🛠️ Technologies Used

• C# & .NET Framework: The core language and platform for both client and server applications.
• WinForms (Windows Forms): Used for building the graphical user interface.
• Socket Programming (System.Net.Sockets): Enables TCP communication between the server and clients.
• Multi-threading: To handle multiple connections and maintain a responsive UI.
• JSON: For storing and loading questions and answers.
• Visual Studio 2022: The integrated development environment for the project.

🚀 Getting Started

Prerequisites

• .NET Framework (or .NET 5+) and a Windows OS.
• Visual Studio (2019 or later) to view/modify and build the project from source.

Installation

1. Clone or download this repository to your local machine.

   git clone [https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/YOUR_REPOSITORY.git](https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/YOUR_REPOSITORY.git)

2. Open the solution file (.sln) in Visual Studio.
3. Build the solution to restore any required packages and compile the code.

How to Run

1. Running the Server (as Host):

• Launch the client application and choose "Create Room". This starts the server in the background.
• The server UI window will open, prompting you to load the question file (JSON).

2. Joining as a Player:

• Launch the client application.
• Enter your player name and the host’s IP address.
• Click "Join Room". You will enter the lobby if successful.
• Wait for the host to start the game.

Gameplay

1. When it’s your turn, click the "Spin" button.
2. If you get a score, guess a letter by clicking one of the alphabet buttons.
3. Correct Guess: The letter is revealed, you earn points, and you continue your turn.
4. Incorrect Guess / "Lose a Turn": Your turn ends, and play passes to the next player.
5. The game ends after the final round, and a winner screen displays the player with the highest score.

📸 Screenshots

Login Screen	Game Lobby	Gameplay Screen
Wheel Spin Popup	Winner Announcement

👨‍💻 Authors / Credits

This game was developed as a networking course project by Team 17, UIT:

• Trần Phước Đại – Developer (Socket integration, system design, UI logic, UI design)
• Lê Ngọc Kiều Anh – Developer (UI design, game logic)
• Đồng Tài Đức – Developer (Socket functions support)

Special thanks to the instructor Đặng Lê Bảo Chương for guidance and to the original "Chiếc nón kỳ diệu" game show for the inspiration.

📝 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE file for details.