break statement in "if else" - java

Question

I keep getting an error, if without else.

I tried else if as well

for (;;){
        System.out.println("---> Your choice: ");
        choice = input.nextInt();
        if (choice==1)
            playGame();
        if (choice==2)
            loadGame();
        if (choice==3)
            options();
        if (choice==4)
            credits();
        if (choice==5)
            System.out.println("End of Game\n Thank you for playing with us!");
            break;
        else
            System.out.println("Not a valid choice!\n Please try again...\n");=[;'mm
    }

also if you have a better idea on how to present this code please do not hesitate :)

Answer 1

Because your else isn't attached to anything. The if without braces only encompasses the single statement that immediately follows it.

if (choice==5)
{
    System.out.println("End of Game\n Thank you for playing with us!");
    break;
}
else
{
   System.out.println("Not a valid choice!\n Please try again...\n");
}

Not using braces is generally viewed as a bad practice because it can lead to the exact problems you encountered.

In addition, using a switch here would make more sense.

int choice;
boolean keepGoing = true;
while(keepGoing)
{
    System.out.println("---> Your choice: ");
    choice = input.nextInt();
    switch(choice)
    {
        case 1: 
            playGame();
            break;
        case 2: 
            loadGame();
            break;
        // your other cases
        // ...
        case 5: 
            System.out.println("End of Game\n Thank you for playing with us!");
            keepGoing = false;
            break;
        default:
            System.out.println("Not a valid choice!\n Please try again...\n");
     }
 }         

Note that instead of an infinite for loop I used a while(boolean), making it easy to exit the loop. Another approach would be using break with labels.