Feedback
A right call should land — a green border flash, a bright tone, and a coloured 'Correct!' that clears before the next deal. Polish the moment the game rewards you.
The game plays, but a correct guess passes almost unnoticed — the next card just appears. A
hit should feel like a hit. With tools you already have — BORDER, BEEP, INK, PAUSE —
you can mark the win with a flash of colour, a bright note, and a beat before play moves on.
10 BORDER 0: PAPER 0: INK 7: CLS
20 DATA 0,102,255,255,255,126,60,24
30 DATA 24,60,126,255,126,60,24,0
40 DATA 24,60,24,126,255,126,24,60
50 DATA 24,60,126,255,255,24,60,0
60 FOR u = 0 TO 3: FOR j = 0 TO 7: READ b: POKE USR CHR$ (144 + u) + j, b: NEXT j: NEXT u
70 LET f$ = "A234567890JQK"
80 RANDOMIZE
180 LET a = INT (RND * 13) + 1
190 LET sa = INT (RND * 4) + 1
200 LET streak = 0
210 CLS
220 INVERSE 1: PRINT AT 0, 0; " *** HI-LO *** S:"; streak; " ": INVERSE 0
230 LET v = a: LET s = sa: LET cx = 5: LET cy = 4: GO SUB 800
240 LET cx = 18: GO SUB 910
250 PRINT AT 17, 4;
260 INPUT "Higher or lower (H/L)? "; g$
270 LET b = INT (RND * 13) + 1
280 LET sb = INT (RND * 4) + 1
290 LET v = b: LET s = sb: LET cx = 18: LET cy = 4: GO SUB 800
300 LET ok = 0
310 IF g$ = "H" AND b > a THEN LET ok = 1
320 IF g$ = "L" AND b < a THEN LET ok = 1
330 IF b = a THEN LET ok = 1
340 IF ok = 0 THEN PRINT AT 15, 8; "Wrong!": STOP
350 LET streak = streak + 1
360 BORDER 4: BEEP 0.1, 10
370 PRINT AT 15, 8; INK 4; "Correct!"
380 PAUSE 30
390 BORDER 0
400 PRINT AT 15, 8; " "
410 LET a = b: LET sa = sb
420 GO TO 210
800 REM Draw card at cx, cy with value v and suit s
810 PAPER 7: INK 0
820 FOR i = 0 TO 6: PRINT AT cy + i, cx; " ": NEXT i
830 LET e$ = f$(v TO v)
840 IF v = 10 THEN LET e$ = "10"
850 PRINT AT cy, cx + 1; e$
860 PRINT AT cy + 6, cx + 7 - LEN e$; e$
870 IF s <= 2 THEN INK 2
880 PRINT AT cy + 3, cx + 4; CHR$ (143 + s)
890 PAPER 0: INK 7
900 RETURN
910 REM Draw face-down card at cx, cy
920 PAPER 1: INK 5
930 FOR i = 0 TO 6: PRINT AT cy + i, cx; " ": NEXT i
940 PRINT AT cy + 3, cx + 4; "?"
950 PAPER 0: INK 7
960 RETURN
Marking the win
The new lines all hang off a correct guess. Line 360 flashes the border green and sounds a
bright BEEP 0.1, 10; line 370 prints "Correct!" in INK 4 (green) so the word matches the
flash. Line 380's PAUSE 30 holds that celebration for about half a second — long enough to
register — before line 390 puts the border back to black and line 400 wipes the "Correct!" so it
does not linger over the next round.
That little sequence — flash, sound, pause, clear — is the same shape you used for the telegraph signal in Reflex and the panel flash in Bright Spark. A moment made deliberately different, then tidied away. It costs four lines and turns a silent tick into a reward.
Why feedback matters
A game that reacts feels alive; one that does not feels broken, even when it works. The flash and beep tell the player "yes — that counted", and the half-second pause gives the win room to breathe before the pressure of the next deal. Sound and colour are not decoration here; they are how the game talks back.
Next: the other side of the coin — a proper game-over, with a best score to chase.