For my final project, I am creating a physically interactive maze game that uses both Arduino and P5.js. So I decided to pick minnie mouse and mickey mouse as my two characters. The idea is to guide minnie mouse through a maze using two physical potentiometers instead of a keyboard or mouse. The player’s goal is to move minnie mouse from the start of the maze to the end, where mickey mouse is waiting.
The interaction works in a simple cycle of listening, thinking, and responding. The Arduino will be the “listener” because it reads the positions of the two potentiometers. One knob controls left andright movement, and the other controls up and down movement. When the player turns the knobs, Arduino senses the changes and sends those values to P5.js. P5. will be the “thinker,” because it takes those values and turns them into movement on the screen. The game then responds by moving the character in real time and showing whether the player is controlling minnie mouse in staying inside the maze or hitting the walls.
The maze itself will be drawn in P5 using simple shapes or a custom layout. I will have a start screen and instructions screen. The character will move smoothly through the pathways, and basic collision detection will prevent it from passing through walls. When the player reaches the goal area, the game will display a small celebration animation or visual cue to show that the objective has been completed. The experience is meant to feel playful, fun and slightly challenging, since the player must learn how to control movement using physical knobs instead of controlling it with the laptop. I will probably take photos of minnie mouse and mickey mouse of the internet and use them as my characters.
