Today I'm going to do something totally crazy and combine two of my favorite topics: board games and teaching computer science. One of the principles we teach in an Introduction to Computer Science class is how to think like a computer so that we can more easily tell a computer what to do. Instructing a computer can be done by creating a series of logical and clear steps for the computer to follow. How does this relate to boardgames you ask...well let me introduce you to Robo Rally!
When the workday is over in their local factory, the factory robots come out to play in exciting laser and trapped filled races while trying to use the environment to their advantage. I've been playing this game for over 20 years now and it is like candy for my programmer's brain. In 2016 they released a new version which maintains the same core play but changes how they deal with distributing the programming cards. The new updates seem interesting, but probably not worth the cost of buying a new version of a game I already own. The programming cards consist of movement (back and forward 1, 2 or 3 spaces) and turning cards (right, left and turn around). Each round the players have to plan out a path using five of their cards to write a program. They have to consider all the natural features of the factory floor like conveyor belts and rotators, while also worrying about the other players. If a bot runs into another bot, they will push the bot, most likely completely messing up the plan of either bot. Bots can also be damaged by the field or other robots, which starts to limit the options for their program. The winner is the first bot to touch all the goal flags in order.
Robo Rally forces players to think logically to plan our their actions. While, like Lightbot, these commands are relatively simple, the combination of the cards forms a more complex program. New computer science learners are not going to be writing the next hit video game after playing this board game, but they'll start to understand the thought process behind programming computers.
So go ahead and challenge your friends or students to a little robot mayhem. Check out this review for a more information or feel free to ask questions in the comments.
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