Hive is a board game with a difference. There is no board! The pieces are added to the playing area thus creating the board. As more and more pieces are added the game becomes a fight to see who can be the first to capture the opposing Queen Bee.
The soldier ants battle to keep control of the outside of the hive, whilst the Beetles climb up to dominate the top. Spiders moving into holding positions as the Grass Hoppers jump in for the kill. Keeping one eye on the hive and the other on your opponents reserves, the tension builds as one wrong move will see your Queen Bee quickly engulfed; .... game over!
Read more: http://www.gen42.com/hive
I've recently started learning Ruby and thought it would be a fun challenge to model one of my absolute favorite games with it. Eventually I'd like to build a sophisticated genetic-algorithm-based AI opponent that could kick my ass! There are a few researchers using Hive to develop new approaches for solving problems that require computationally-intensive tree searches (Barbara Ulrike Konz, (2012). Applying Monte Carlo Tree Search to the Strategic Game Hive. Technische Universität Berlin)