Guided: C# 14 Logic and Control Flow

Table of Contents

1. Challenge

   Introduction

   Welcome to the C# 14 Logic and Control Flow Lab!

   In this lab, you'll build a complete, interactive console game from the ground up. You'll start with a minimal C# application that uses a feature called "top-level statements," which allows you to write code directly in the Program.cs file without needing to define an explicit Program class or Main method. This is great for keeping things simple as you learn.

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   As you progress throughout the lab, you can check your implementation at any time by comparing it to the corresponding solutions in the solution directory. Keep in mind that you do not need to have the same exact solution as long as you are passing the tasks and your implementation is functionally the same.

   You can also run the application with dotnet run --project MathChallenge in the Terminal.

   This lab experience was developed by the Pluralsight team using Forge, an internally developed AI tool utilizing Gemini technology. All sections were verified by human experts for accuracy prior to publication. For issue reporting, please contact us.

2. Challenge

   Step 1: Setting up the Game Structure

   The first step in this application is to create the main game loop. This loop will contain the logic for a single round of the game and will control whether the game continues or ends.

3. Challenge

   Step 2: Creating the Challenge

   A good game needs to be dynamic. Hardcoding the math problems wouldn't be great for obvious reasons. You'll use C#'s built-in Random class to generate a new problem for the user in every round. You'll also randomly select an arithmetic operation (+, -, *, /) to keep the challenge varied. Once you have the numbers and operation, you'll calculate the correct answer and present the question to the user via the console.

4. Challenge

   Step 3: Handling User Input and Logic

   Now for the interactive part. You need to get the user's answer, but this comes with a challenge: console input is always text. You can't do math with the string "12". You must convert it to a number. This process is called parsing.

   Since the game includes division, answers can be decimals. You will use double.TryParse(), a safe and efficient C# method for converting strings to numbers. It prevents your application from crashing if the user enters non-numeric text. Based on whether the parsing is successful and if the answer is correct, you'll use if-else statements to provide the user with immediate feedback.

5. Challenge

   Step 4: Refactoring and Replay

   Your application is now fully functional, but as programs grow, it's important to keep the code organized. The process of restructuring code without changing its behavior is called refactoring. You'll refactor the game logic into its own dedicated method called PlayRound.

   Finally, you'll complete the game by implementing the replay feature, allowing the user to decide when they're done playing. This will replace the placeholder loopcount logic you set up in the first step with a real user-driven replay prompt.

6. Challenge

   Step 5: Input Validation and Score Tracking

   Your game works, but it could be more robust and engaging. Right now, if a user enters invalid input for their answer, the round is skipped entirely. And if they type something other than 'y' or 'n' at the replay prompt, the game just exits. You can fix both of those issues using while loops, and then add a score tracker to give the player a sense of progress.

   You'll also change PlayRound to return a bool so the main loop can track whether each round was answered correctly. If you've made it this far, then great job! You've completed this lab. Don't forget to try out your application with dotnet run --project MathChallenge in the Terminal to observe the gameplay logic you implemented.