MArcomage

Introduction

MArcomage (Multiplayer Arcomage) is an online version of the classic fantasy turn-based card game Arcomage, which appears as a minigame in the Might and Magic series of PC games. This card game simulates an epic battle between two empires including features such as constructing new buildings, training troops and decimating the enemy empire with standard attacks or sneaky tactics such as intrigue or spells.

The project is a PHP web-based application which features a deck builder, player challenging system, various means of communication, and most importantly the actual duel engine. Players may customize their profile and adjust the interface's appearance. The gameplay itself is turn-based, but contrary to the original it doesn't have to be played in real time.

Installation

checkout GIT repository from https://github.com/mfendek/marcomage.git
run composer install in project directory
run DB install script located in scripts/install_tables.sql
point your virtual host to project directory

Configuration

Base config file is located in src/config.php and is kept under version control. Production specific config is located in src/config_production.php. This file however is not part of the codebase. Base config file is merged with production config with the latter overriding the former. Configuration that is not present in the production config is inherited from base config file.

Database

This application uses MySQL database to store instance data (read and write data) and XML files to store definition data (read only). Low level database functionality is well separated from the rest of the code. This allows to switch to a completely different database system without too much trouble. For example MongoDB support is available. This also applies to XML files which could be for example replaced with JSON files.

Architecture

MVC with thin controller approach. Most of the business code is located in the services. Application uses top level container (dependency injection) which provides lazy load for all other objects via factory. Templates use XSLT as template engine and support two render modes: layout and fragment mode. Layout mode is the default one and is used for rendering pages. Fragment mode is used for rendering HTML fragments which is usually used for AJAX, but can be used for other purposes like RSS feeds.

Application uses single entry point system (index.php). Single entry point determines the correct Middleware based on request data. Middleware acts as a gateway to application, it serves as a wrap for controllers. Middleware typically provides common functionality for controllers like session validation and response formatting (HTML, JSON ...).

Features

game lobby (used for management of games)
deck builder
players ladder
player settings allows advanced customization like themes are other UI improvements
shop allows players to unlock additional game features like game slots
private messages system
discussion forum which is integrated with the rest of the site
website news and card updates
help and FAQ
game AI (it's possible to play against a computer opponent as well)
challenge AI (a much harder AI that uses it's own custom deck)
statistics provide useful information about cards and games
game replays database
complete card database
card suggestions section (this is where users can create their own cards)

Maintenance

Maintenance scripts are located in the Scripts controller and are accessed via the Scripts middleware. Here is an example of the maintenance url:

?m=scripts&name=<script_name>&password=<maintenance_access_password>

Development

Basic code sniffer can be setup via squizlabs/php_codesniffer library. It is also recommended to use the .editorconfig for basic IDE project setup.

Backend

Run composer install to update backend libraries. In case you want to update existing libraries run composer update. You need to commit composer.json and composer.lock files in case they were changed. Never run composer update on production.

Frontend

Run yarn install to update frontend libraries. Run yarn watch as a preprocessor watcher and yarn build if you want a one time build. Run yarn package before committing your changes. In case libraries were updated you need to commit both package.json and yarn.lock files.

Dependency management

Third party libraries should be included via Composer or Yarn. If a library is not available in such form it may be included manually. It's important to make sure that such library is separated from the rest of the code by keeping it in a separate directory for example.

Production deployment

run svn update
run composer install --no-dev
run maintenance scripts (optional)

Coding standards

PSR-1, PSR-2 (backend)
Air BnB, BEM (frontend)

OsiannCR/marcomage