Pac-Man Finite State Machine

Overview

Developed a Finite State Machine (FSM) implementation to model and control the behavior of ghosts in a Pac-Man game. This project demonstrates the application of FSM concepts to game AI, creating more realistic and dynamic enemy behaviors.

Key Features

• State-based Ghost Behavior: Implemented multiple states for ghost AI including chase, scatter, frightened, and idle
• Transition Logic: Created conditional transitions between states based on game events
• Object-oriented Design: Utilized inheritance and polymorphism for extensible ghost behavior
• Visualization: Included visualization of the state machine for debugging and demonstration
• Event-driven Architecture: Designed a system that responds to game events like power pellet consumption

Technical Implementation

• Created a modular FSM framework that can be extended for other game characters
• Implemented state persistence and history tracking
• Developed a clean separation between state logic and rendering
• Integrated collision detection with state transitions
• Documented the architecture using UML diagrams

Technologies Used

• Java
• Object-oriented Programming
• FSM Design Patterns
• Game Development Principles

GitHub Repository

View the source code and documentation on GitHub.

Project Timeline

November 2021

Applications

This project demonstrates how FSMs can be applied to:

• Game AI development
• Character behavior modeling
• Event-driven systems
• Complex logic management in interactive applications

Learning Outcomes

• Practical application of FSM theory
• State management in interactive systems
• Event-driven programming techniques
• Game AI development principles

Contact

For more information about this project or to discuss FSM applications, please contact me.