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Embedded Systems Design Project

August 2021

Project main screenshot
Figure 1. MSP430 with breadboard, buttons, lights, and a buzzer to play the guitar hero game.

Overview

This project involved developing an embedded music game, inspired by "Guitar Hero," using an MSP430 microcontroller. The game was built on a breadboard, incorporating a buzzer, external buttons (P6.0-6.3), and LEDs (P1.4, 1.5, 2.4, 2.5) for interactive gameplay.

A state machine with 11 distinct cases was developed to manage game flow, encompassing "easy" (Guitar Hero), "hard" (catch up), and "listen song" modes. The game also featured a percentage-based scoring system, displayed on an LCD screen. Through this project, a deeper understanding of enum, TimerA2, ISR, and the practical application of struct in embedded systems was gained. It also enhanced knowledge of hardware configuration and software-hardware interaction. The game was designed to be intuitive, with on-screen instructions to guide new players, even if they were unfamiliar with traditional "Guitar Hero" rules.

system flow chart
Figure 2. Flow chart of the Guitar Hero game with three game modes.

Key Features

  • Feature 1: Embedded music game development
  • Feature 2: Dual game modes & adaptive difficulty
  • Feature 3: Precise timing and control
  • Feature 4: Interactive user interface