How to Build a Tic Tac Toe Game with React Hooks
Tic tac toe is a classic game that is fun and easy to play. But did you know that you can also build it with React Hooks, a new feature that lets you use state and other React features without writing a class component?
In this tutorial, you will learn how to build a tic tac toe game with React Hooks from scratch. You will also learn how to add a time travel feature that allows you to go back to any previous move in the game. By the end of this tutorial, you will have a fully functional tic tac toe game that you can play with your friends or online.
tic tac toe react
To follow this tutorial, you will need some basic knowledge of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and React. You will also need a code editor, a web browser, and Node.js installed on your computer.
Introduction
What is React Hooks and why use it for tic tac toe?
React Hooks are a new addition in React 16.8 that let you use state and other React features without writing a class component. They are functions that let you "hook into" React state and lifecycle features from function components.
Some of the benefits of using React Hooks are:
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They make your code more readable and maintainable by avoiding the complexity of class components.
They let you reuse stateful logic across different components without introducing higher-order components or render props.
They let you use more of React's features, such as context, reducers, custom hooks, etc.
For tic tac toe, using React Hooks will make our code simpler and cleaner. We will be able to manage the state of the game, such as the board, the player, and the winner, with just a few lines of code. We will also be able to add some extra features, such as time travel, with ease.
What you will learn in this tutorial
In this tutorial, you will learn how to:
Create a React app with create-react-app
Create functional components with JSX
Use useState hook to manage state
Use onClick handler to handle user actions
Use useEffect hook to store data in localStorage
Use map method to render lists
Use custom functions and logic to implement game rules
What you need to get started
To follow this tutorial, you will need the following tools and resources:
A code editor, such as Visual Studio Code, Atom, or Sublime Text
A web browser, such as Chrome, Firefox, or Safari
Node.js, a JavaScript runtime environment that lets you run JavaScript code outside of a browser. You can download it from
create-react-app, a tool that lets you create a React app with no configuration. You can install it with the command npm install -g create-react-app
A GitHub account, if you want to save and share your code online. You can sign up for free at
The logic of tic tac toe
How to represent the board and the squares
The first step in building our tic tac toe game is to decide how to represent the board and the squares. The board is a 3x3 grid of squares, where each square can be either empty, marked with an X, or marked with an O. We can use an array of nine elements to store the state of the board, where each element corresponds to a square. For example, the initial state of the board can be represented as:
[null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null]
We can use the index of the array to identify each square, starting from 0 to 8. For example, the top-left square has index 0, the top-middle square has index 1, and so on. We can also use a table element to display the board on the web page, where each table cell contains a button element that represents a square.
How to check for a winner or a draw
The next step is to decide how to check for a winner or a draw. A player wins if they mark three squares in a row, either horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. A draw occurs if all nine squares are marked and no player wins. We can use a function that takes the board array as an argument and returns either 'X', 'O', or null depending on the outcome of the game. For example:
function calculateWinner(board) // Define the winning combinations const lines = [ [0, 1, 2], // Top row [3, 4, 5], // Middle row [6, 7, 8], // Bottom row [0, 3, 6], // Left column [1, 4, 7], // Middle column [2, 5, 8], // Right column [0, 4, 8], // Top-left to bottom-right diagonal [2, 4, 6], // Top-right to bottom-left diagonal ]; // Loop through the lines and check for a winner for (let i = 0; i square !== null)) return 'Draw'; // Return 'Draw' if all squares are marked // Return null if no winner or draw return null;
How to switch between players
The final step in the logic of tic tac toe is to decide how to switch between players. We can use a variable to store the current player ('X' or 'O'), and toggle it after each move. We can also use another variable to store the history of moves, which will be useful for implementing the time travel feature later. For example:
// Initialize the state variables let board = [null, null, null, null, null, null, null,null,null]; // The current board state let player = 'X'; // The current player ('X' or 'O') let history = []; // The history of moves // Handle user actions function handleClick(i) board[i]) return; // Update the board state with the current player's mark board[i] = player; // Add the board state to the history array history.push(board.slice()); // Use slice to make a copy of the board // Switch the player player = player === 'X' ? 'O' : 'X';
Installation
How to create a React app with create-react-app
Now that we have the logic of tic tac toe, we can start building our React app. The easiest way to create a React app is to use create-react-app, a tool that sets up everything for us, such as the development server, the bundler, the transpiler, etc.
To use create-react-app, open your terminal and run the following command:
npx create-react-app tic-tac-toe-react
This will create a new folder called tic-tac-toe-react in your current directory, and install all the dependencies and files needed for your React app. It may take a few minutes to complete.
Once it is done, you can navigate to the tic-tac-toe-react folder and run the following command to start the development server:
cd tic-tac-toe-react npm start
This will open your web browser and display a default React page at . You can edit the files in the src folder and see the changes reflected in the browser automatically.
Scaffold the project
How to create the components and styles files
The next step is to scaffold our project by creating the components and styles files. We will use a simple file structure that consists of three components: Square, Board, and App. We will also use a separate file for the styles and another file for the game logic.
To create the components and styles files, open your code editor and navigate to the src folder. Then, create the following files:
Square.js: This file will contain the Square component, which will render a button element that represents a square on the board.
Board.js: This file will contain the Board component, which will render a table element that contains nine Square components.
App.js: This file will contain the App component, which will render the Board component and some other elements, such as the status message and the reset button.
styles.css: This file will contain the styles for our app, such as colors, fonts, margins, etc.
logic.js: This file will contain the game logic functions, such as calculateWinner and jumpTo.
How to import and export the components
After creating the files, we need to import and export the components so that we can use them in other files. To do this, we need to use the import and export statements at the top and bottom of each file.
For example, in Square.js, we need to import React from 'react' and export Square as a default export:
// Import React from 'react' import React from 'react'; // Define the Square component function Square(props) // Return JSX for a button element return (
props.value
); // Export Square as a default export export default Square;
Similarly, in Board.js, we need to import React from 'react', import Square from './Square', and export Board as a default export:
// Import React from 'react' import React from 'react'; // Import Square from './Square' import Square from './Square'; // Define the Board component function Board(props) // Return JSX for a table element return (
props.onClick(0) />
props.onClick(1) />
props.onClick(2) />
props.onClick(3) />
props.onClick(4) />
props.onClick(5) />
props.onClick(6) />
props.onClick(7) />
props.onClick(8) />
); // Export Board as a default export export default Board;
And in App.js, we need to import React from 'react', import useState and useEffect from 'react', import Board from './Board', import calculateWinner and jumpTo from './logic', and import './styles.css' for the styles:
// Import React from 'react' import React from 'react'; // Import useState and useEffect from 'react' import useState, useEffect from 'react'; // Import Board from './Board' import Board from './Board'; // Import calculateWinner and jumpTo from './logic' import calculateWinner, jumpTo from './logic'; // Import './styles.css' for the styles import './styles.css'; // Define the App component function App() winner === 'O') status = `Winner: $winner`; else if (winner === 'Draw') status = `It's a draw!`; else status = `Next player: $player`; // Return JSX for the app element return (
Tic Tac Toe with React Hooks
status
Reset
history.map((board, move) => (
jumpTo(board, setBoard, setPlayer)>
Go to move #move + 1
))
); // Export App as a default export export default App; Conclusion
Congratulations! You have successfully built a tic tac toe game with React Hooks. You have learned how to use useState and useEffect hooks to manage state and side effects, how to create functional components with JSX, how to handle user actions with onClick handler, how to implement game logic with custom functions, and how to add a time travel feature with localStorage and map method.
This is just a basic example of what you can do with React Hooks. There are many more features and possibilities that you can explore and experiment with. For example, you can:
Make the game responsive or mobile-friendly by using media queries or CSS frameworks
Add animations or sound effects to the game by using CSS transitions or libraries
Make the game more challenging or add different modes by changing the board size or the rules
Use other React hooks, such as useContext, useReducer, or custom hooks, to enhance your app
We hope you enjoyed this tutorial and learned something new. If you have any questions or feedback, feel free to leave a comment below. Happy coding!
FAQs
What are some benefits of using React Hooks?
Some of the benefits of using React Hooks are:
They make your code more readable and maintainable by avoiding the complexity of class components.
They let you reuse stateful logic across different components without introducing higher-order components or render props.
They let you use more of React's features, such as context, reducers, custom hooks, etc.
How can I make the game responsive or mobile-friendly?
You can make the game responsive or mobile-friendly by using media queries or CSS frameworks. Media queries are a feature of CSS that let you apply different styles based on the screen size or device orientation. For example, you can use media queries to adjust the font size, the margin, or the layout of your app depending on the width of the screen. CSS frameworks are libraries that provide ready-made components and styles for building responsive web pages. For example, you can use Bootstrap, Material UI, or Tailwind CSS to create a grid system, a navbar, a button, etc. for your app.
How can I add animations or sound effects to the game?
You can add animations or sound effects to the game by using CSS transitions or libraries. CSS transitions are a feature of CSS that let you create smooth changes from one state to another. For example, you can use CSS transitions to change the color, the opacity, or the transform of your elements when they are clicked or hovered over. Libraries are external resources that provide additional functionality for your app. For example, you can use React Transition Group, React Spring, or Anime.js to create complex animations for your elements. You can also use Howler.js, Tone.js, or Pizzicato.js to play sound effects for your app.
How can I make the game more challenging or add different modes?
You can make the game more challenging or add different modes by changing the board size or the rules. For example, you can increase the board size from 3x3 to 4x4 or 5x5 and require four or five marks in a row to win. You can also change the rules from tic tac toe to gomoku, connect four, or ultimate tic tac toe. These are variations of tic tac toe that have different board sizes, shapes, or layers.
Where can I learn more about React Hooks or tic tac toe?
You can learn more about React Hooks or tic tac toe from the following resources:
: This is the official documentation of React Hooks that explains what they are and how to use them.
: This is the official reference of React Hooks that provides detailed information and examples for each hook.
: This is a collection of frequently asked questions and answers about React Hooks.
: This is an encyclopedia article that gives an overview of tic tac toe and its history, variants, and strategies.
: This is a website that lets you play different variations of tic tac toe with different board sizes, shapes, or layers.
I hope you found these resources helpful and interesting. If you have any other questions or suggestions, feel free to leave a comment below. 44f88ac181