Game device having improved slide-operation-driven user interface

• US 10,391,398 B2
• Filed: 09/25/2017
• Issued: 08/27/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GREE Inc.
• Original Assignee: GREE Inc.
• Inventors: Yamanokuchi, Junko, Nozaki, Masato
• Primary Examiner(s): Rowland, Steve
• Application Number:
  US15/714,103
• Publication Number:
  US 20180093180A1
• Time in Patent Office: 701 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/2145 the surface being also a display device, e.g. touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/25 Output arrangements for video game devices
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/40 Processing input control signals of video game devices, e.g. signals generated by the player or derived from the environment
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/426 involving on-screen location information, e.g. screen coordinates of an area at which the player is aiming with a light gun
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/52 involving aspects of the displayed game scene
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/533 for prompting the player, e.g. by displaying a game menu
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/822 Strategy games; Role-playing games A63F13/825, A63F13/828 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/575 for trading virtual items
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04895 Guidance during keyboard input operation, e.g. prompting

Abstract

Provided are a program, a control method, and an information processing apparatus which may provide an improved user interface on which a user may easily and efficiently execute various processes on a game content. The information processing apparatus may be caused to execute a game content specifying step of specifying a selected game content on the basis of first input operation data from an operation unit, a step of retrieving information from a storage unit, a step of specifying a direction from a start point to an end point of a second input operation on the basis of second input operation data from an operation unit, and an execution step of executing one process associated with the direction from the start point to the end point of the second input operation in the information from the storage unit on the selected game content.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising program code that, when executed, causes an information processing apparatus including:

a display unit configured to display a game content;

an operation unit configured to receive a first input operation of a user, the first input operation of the user comprising a selection of a game content, the operation unit being further configured to receive a second input operation of the user, the second input operation of the user comprising an instruction to perform a process on the game content selected by the first input operation, the operation unit being further configured to output first input operation data comprising coordinate information associated with the first input operation and second input operation data comprising coordinate information associated with the second input operation; and

a storage unit configured to store information comprising an association of a process executable on the game content and a particular direction;

to execute steps of;

game content specifying, in a game content specifying step, with the information processing apparatus, the selected game content based on the first input operation data;

retrieving, on the information processing apparatus, the information from the storage unit, the information retrieved from the storage unit comprising the process executable on the game content and the particular direction associated with the process;

receiving a start point of the second input operation based on the second input operation data, and, when the start point of the second input operation is specified and the end point is not specified, displaying, in a prediction display step, on the display unit, a prediction, wherein the prediction is displayed at the time that a process associated with a direction from the start point to a specific intermediate point of the second input operation is executed;

determining a direction, from the start point to an end point, of the second input operation, based on the second input operation data; and

executing, in an execution step, with the information processing apparatus, on the game content, a process associated with the direction of the second input operation game content, based on the information retrieved from the storage unit.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 1,

wherein the operation unit is configured to receive a third input operation different from the first input operation and the second input operation, and wherein the operation unit is configured to output third input operation data comprising coordinate information associated with the third input operation, and

wherein the non-transitory computer-readable medium causes the information processing apparatus to execute a help display step of displaying help information, the help information comprising at least one of an image and a sentence explaining correspondence between processes on the game content and directions on the display unit, based on the third input operation data.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 2,

wherein, in the help display step,

when a time from a start to an end of the third input operation exceeds a predetermined time and a distance between a coordinate of a start point and a coordinate of an end point is equal to or smaller than a predetermined distance, displaying the help information on the display unit.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 1,

wherein, in the execution step,

when a distance from a start point to an end point of the second input operation exceeds a threshold value, the process executable on the game content is executed on the selected game content.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 1,

wherein, in the execution step,

in a case where a speed from a start point to an end point of the second input operation exceeds a threshold value, the process executable on the game content is executed on the selected game content.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 4,

wherein, in the execution step,

the distance is compared against a plurality of threshold values, and each of the plurality of threshold values is used to determine whether one of a plurality of different processes should be executed.

7. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 5,

wherein, in the execution step,

the speed is compared against a plurality of threshold values, and each of the plurality of threshold values is used to determine whether one of a plurality of different processes should be executed.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 1,

wherein the display unit is configured to display a full-select button, and

wherein, in the game content specifying step,

when it is determined, based on the first input operation data, that the user has pushed the full-select button, selecting all the game content displayed on the display unit.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim 1,

wherein, in the execution step,

when the direction from the start point to the end point of the second input operation is substantially the same as the direction from the start point to the specific intermediate point of the second input operation in the prediction display step, the program causes the information processing apparatus to execute the process executable on the game content on the selected game content.

9. A control method for a game configured to be executed by an information processing apparatus including:

a display unit configured to display a game content;

an operation unit configured to receive a first input operation of a user, the first input operation of the user comprising a selection of a game content, the operation unit being further configured to receive a second input operation of the user, the second input operation of the user comprising an instruction to perform a process on the game content selected by the first input operation, the operation unit being further configured to output first input operation data comprising coordinate information associated with the first input operation and second input operation data comprising coordinate information associated with the second input operation; and

a storage unit configured to store information comprising an association of a process executable on the game content and a particular direction;

wherein the control method comprises;

specifying, with the information processing apparatus, the selected game content based on the first input operation data;

retrieving, on the information processing apparatus, the information from the storage unit, the information retrieved from the storage unit comprising the process executable on the game content and the particular direction associated with the process;

receiving, on the information processing apparatus, a start point of the second input operation based on the second input operation data, and, when the start point of the second input operation is specified and the end point is not specified, displaying, in a prediction display step, on the display unit, a prediction, wherein the prediction is displayed at the time that a process associated with a direction from the start point to a specific intermediate point of the second input operation is executed;

determining a direction, from the start point to an end point, of the second input operation, based on the second input operation data; and

executing, with the information processing apparatus, on the game content, a process associated with the direction of the second input operation game content, based on the information retrieved from the storage unit.

10. An information processing apparatus, comprising:

a display unit configured to display a game content;

an operation unit configured to receive a first input operation of a user, the first input operation of the user comprising a selection of a game content, the operation unit being further configured to receive a second input operation of the user, the second input operation of the user comprising an instruction to perform a process on the game content selected by the first input operation, the operation unit being further configured to output first input operation data comprising coordinate information associated with the first input operation and second input operation data comprising coordinate information associated with the second input operation;

a storage unit configured to store information comprising an association of a process executable on the game content and a particular direction; and

a control unit,

wherein the control unit is configured to perform the steps of;

specifying the selected game content based on the first input operation data;

retrieving the information from the storage unit, the information retrieved from the storage unit comprising the process executable on the game content and the particular direction associated with the process;

receiving a start point of the second input operation based on the second input operation data, and, when the start point of the second input operation is specified and the end point is not specified, displaying, in a prediction display step, on the display unit, a prediction, wherein the prediction is displayed at the time that a process associated with a direction from the start point to a specific intermediate point of the second input operation is executed;

determining a direction, from the start point to an end point, of the second input operation, based on the second input operation data, and

executing, on the game content, a process associated with the direction of the second input operation game content, based on the information retrieved from the storage unit.