Game system

• US 10,272,333 B2
• Filed: 03/17/2008
• Issued: 04/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Kataoka, Yumi, Tanaka, Shinichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Obeid, Mamon
• Application Number:
  US12/595,298
• Publication Number:
  US 20100137046A1
• Time in Patent Office: 4,061 Days
• Field of Search: 463 43
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/12 involving interaction between a plurality of game devices, e.g. transmisison or distribution systems protocols for networked virtual reality, networked games H04L29/06034
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/30 Interconnection arrangements between game servers and game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/323 between game devices with different hardware characteristics, e.g. hand-held game devices connectable to game consoles or arcade machines
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/327 using wireless networks, e.g. Wi-Fi® or piconet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/493 Resuming a game, e.g. after pausing, malfunction or power failure
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/208 for storing personal settings or data of the player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/403 Connection between platform and handheld device
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/636 involving process of starting or resuming a game
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/46 Multiprogramming arrangements

Abstract

A mobile game device and a game console share an image file relating to a game; the mobile game device and the game console are connected so as to be able to transmit data with each other via a wire or wirelessly, and the game console is connected to an image-file-providing server retaining an image file via a network; the game console acquires an image file from the image-file-providing server and the mobile game device acquires an image file from the game console, by which the image file is shared between the game instruments.

Claims

1. A game system, comprising:

a game console; and

a mobile game device, wherein

the game console and the mobile game device share an image file of a game program, and each includes a respective emulator program for reading and facilitating the execution of the image file of the game program,

at least one of the game console and the mobile game device are of a type not having a memory card interface for an external memory storage medium,

the game program is written in such a way that save data of a game is to be stored in the external memory storage medium,

the image file of the game program includes code that generates a virtual external memory storage medium that appears to the game program as if to be the external memory storage medium, and

the game console and the mobile game device are connected via a wire or wirelessly so as to be able to replicate the save data of the game program from one of the game console and the mobile game device to the other of the game console and the mobile game device.

2. The game system according to claim 1, wherein:

the game console and the mobile game device are connected so as to be able to transmit data with each other via a wire or wirelessly, and the game console is connected to an image-file-providing server retaining an image file via a network, and

the game console acquires an image file from the image-file-providing server, and the mobile game device acquires the image file from the game console so that the image file is shared between the game console and the mobile game device.

3. The game system according to claim 1, wherein one of the game console and the mobile game device retaining save data converts the save data into a format that can be decrypted or executed by the other of the game console and the mobile game device and transmits the converted save data to the other of the game console and the mobile game device, in accordance with a request from the other of the game console and the mobile game device.

4. The game system according to claim 1, wherein one of the game console and the mobile game device provides a function for referring to save data or a folder that stores the save data retained by the other of the game console and the mobile game device, and this reference function allows to refer only to save data of a game program that can be executed by the one of the game console and the mobile game device or to a folder storing the save data.

5. The game system according to claim 1, wherein in case the game console and the mobile game device retain save data of a same game, the older save data is overwritten by the newer save data.

6. The game system according to claim 1, wherein when data such as an image file or like is transmitted from one of the game console and the mobile game device, the one of the game console and the mobile game device identifies the other of the game console and the mobile game device to which the data is to be transmitted and transmits the data after encrypting the data in a manner so that the other of the game console and the mobile game device can decrypt and read the data.