Play the web version: https://eliaslopezgt.github.io/shortcutsy/
A retro 80s Missile Command-style game that helps players memorize Visual Studio keyboard shortcuts through gameplay.
Shortcutsy is a educational game where spaceships descend toward the player, each displaying a Visual Studio keyboard shortcut. The player must press the correct key combination to destroy the spaceship before it reaches the player's position.
- Start: Press Enter on the title screen, or press L to select a level
- Level Select: Choose which level to play (1-10) - each level shows its high score
- Gameplay: Spaceships appear with shortcuts; press the correct keys to destroy them
- Progression: Each level has 5 shortcuts. Master all 5 (3 correct hits each) to advance
- Level Transition: When a level is complete, an explosion animation plays, stars go into hyperdrive, and the next level begins
- Game Over: Lose all 3 lives and the game ends, showing your score
- New Record: If you beat the high score for a level, a special medal screen appears!
- Levels 1-2: Simple 2-key shortcuts (Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V, etc.)
- Level 3: Introduces 3-key shortcuts (Ctrl+Shift+B)
- Levels 4-10: Gradually introduces function keys, debug commands, and multi-key combinations
The project follows a clean architecture with separate namespaces:
Shortcutsy/
├── Data/ # Data layer
│ ├── ShortcutItem.cs # Shortcut model
│ ├── ShortcutDatabase.cs # Loads/manages shortcuts from JSON
│ └── HighScoreManager.cs # Persists high scores per level
├── Entities/ # Game entities
│ ├── Asteroid.cs # Enemy spaceship
│ ├── Missile.cs # Player projectile
│ ├── Explosion.cs # Explosion effect + particles
│ └── Star.cs # Background star
├── States/ # Game states
│ └── GameState.cs # Enum: Title, LevelSelect, Playing, Paused, GameOver, LevelTransition, NewRecord
├── Rendering/ # Rendering utilities
│ └── TextRenderer.cs # Text rendering using System.Drawing
├── Game1.cs # Main game class
├── Program.cs # Entry point
└── shortcuts.json # Keyboard shortcuts configuration
- Game1: Main game loop, handles input, updates game state, renders all objects
- ShortcutDatabase: Loads shortcuts from
shortcuts.json, provides shortcuts by level - HighScoreManager: Tracks best score per level (not overall top 10)
- Asteroid: Represents an enemy spaceship with a specific shortcut to destroy
- Missile: Projectile fired from player launcher toward target
- Explosion: Visual effect with particles when a spaceship is destroyed
- TextRenderer: Creates cached textures from System.Drawing fonts for crisp text rendering
Shortcuts are loaded from shortcuts.json:
[
{ "Action": "Save", "Keys": ["Ctrl+S"], "Level": 1 },
{ "Action": "Find", "Keys": ["Ctrl+F"], "Level": 1 },
...
]Each shortcut has:
- Action: Human-readable name (e.g., "Save")
- Keys: Array of key combinations (e.g., ["Ctrl", "S"] or ["Ctrl+S"])
- Level: Difficulty level (1-10)
dotnet builddotnet runOr run the compiled executable from bin/Debug/net9.0-windows/Shortcutsy.exe
To create an MSI installer release:
-
Create a tag with version number:
git tag v1.0.0 git push --tags
-
The GitHub workflow will automatically:
- Build the project in Release mode
- Create an MSI installer
- Upload it as a draft release
-
Go to your GitHub repository's Releases page to publish the draft release
- Enter: Start game / Restart after game over
- L: Open level select screen
- Left/Right Arrows: Navigate levels in level select
- 1-0 Keys: Type level number directly in level select
- ESC: Pause/Resume game, or return to title from game over
- M: Mute/Unmute music
- Key Combinations: Press the shortcut keys shown on spaceships to destroy them
High scores are tracked per level - each level (1-10) keeps its own best score. The level select screen displays the high score below each level number in gold. Breaking a level's record shows a special "NEW RECORD!" screen with a gold medal!
- Built with MonoGame
- Procedural sound effects
- Retro synthwave aesthetic