Defeat the Beat

Calibrating armband
Close-up of Myo armband
Home screen
Game play
Game in action

Inspiration

We aspired to create a new form of rhythm game, something all members of my team love. Something that has a physical element.

What it does

We built a Java rhythm matching game. Users need to match gestures on the Myo Armband with the beats we detect from custom audio files.

How I built it

Defeat the Beat is a Java application that incorporates Slick2D for the 2D gaming platform and Myo Armband as the main source of input.

Challenges I ran into

We spent a large amount of time exploring different hardware and software options. This resulted us to have significantly less time to built and test our product. None of our teammates has had any experiences with motion detection hardware. We had difficulty properly calibrating the Myo, which was fixed with experience.

Accomplishments that I'm proud of

We integrated innovative technology resulting into a functional game that is sleek and fun in less than 16 hours.

What I learned

We learned how to build games with Slick 2D as well as incorporating a complex hardware, the Myo Armband, into our application. We also developed a basic understanding of various other techs, such as the Muse Headband, that we didn't end up incorporating into our final product.

What's next for Defeat the beat

We hope to add difficulty levels, decrease the delay between hand gesture and reaction, and building a more interactive UI. Pulling songs on demand from the web is also a goal.