Method and system for providing an event space associated with a primary virtual space

• US 10,565,606 B2
• Filed: 05/07/2019
• Issued: 02/18/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabam (Netmarble Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabam (Netmarble Corporation)
• Inventors: Schultz, Stephanie K., Caldarone, Michael C., Go, Ken
• Primary Examiner(s): Yen, Jason T
• Application Number:
  US16/405,541
• Publication Number:
  US 20190266628A1
• Time in Patent Office: 287 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/35 Details of game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/75 Enforcing rules, e.g. detecting foul play or generating lists of cheating players
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/79 involving player-related data, e.g. identities, accounts, preferences or play histories
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/407 Data transfer via internet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/535 for monitoring, e.g. of user parameters, terminal parameters, application parameters, network parameters
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5573 player location
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/57 details of game services offered to the player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/575 for trading virtual items
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/60 Methods for processing data by generating or executing the game program
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6036 for offering a minigame in combination with a main game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/609 for unlocking hidden game elements, e.g. features, items, levels
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/807 Role playing or strategy games
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8094 Unusual game types, e.g. virtual cooking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0639 Performance analysis of employees; Performance analysis of enterprise or organisation operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0209 Incentive being awarded or redeemed in connection with the playing of a video game
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3244 Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/326 Game play aspects of gaming systems
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3262 Player actions which determine the course of the game, e.g. selecting a prize to be won, outcome to be achieved, game to be played

Abstract

An approach to facilitate providing an event space associated with a primary virtual space is provided. An event space is provided to users of a primary virtual space, wherein the event space comprises one or more event objectives. Users of the primary virtual space having primary user accounts have associated event space accounts indicating event user parameters, event game parameters, and event inventory information for the first user. The user may be provided with event virtual items for purchase wherein the event virtual items are used in the event space during the event period. In response to a determination of the progress of the user associated with one or more event objectives an event award is determined for distribution to the user, wherein the event award may be used within the primary virtual space.

Claims

1. A system for providing users with a primary virtual space, virtual items available for use within the primary virtual space, and event-specific virtual items available during an event and not available for use upon expiration of an event period of the event, wherein the users include a first user, wherein the users are associated with client computing platforms, wherein the client computing platforms include a first client computing platform, and wherein the first client computing platform is associated with the first user, the system comprising:

one or more processors configured to execute machine-readable instructions to;

execute an instance of the primary virtual space;

facilitate a first interaction of the first user with the primary virtual space and/or other users of the primary virtual space;

manage accounts of the users, wherein the accounts include a first primary user account associated with the first user, wherein the first primary user account includes inventory information that defines virtual items usable by the first user within the primary virtual space;

facilitate a second interaction of the first user with the other users during the event period of the event, wherein the event is associated with one or more event objectives;

manage event inventory information that defines event-specific virtual items usable by the first user during the event, wherein the event-specific virtual items are different than the virtual items usable by the first user in the primary virtual space, wherein the event-specific virtual items include an event-specific virtual item that is usable during the event and not available to the first user upon expiration of the event period;

determine progress of the first user with respect to the one or more event objectives;

determine a first event reward to be awarded to the first user based on the progress with respect to the one or more event objectives, wherein the first event reward is usable in the primary virtual space;

facilitate distribution of the first event reward to the first user such that the inventory information included in the first primary user account is updated to reflect availability of the first event reward to the first user in the primary virtual space; and

facilitate a presentation of reward information to the first user, wherein the presentation indicates availability of the first event reward to the first user in the primary virtual space.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the virtual items available to the first user in the primary virtual space are unavailable to the first user during the event.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the first event reward is unavailable to the first user during the event.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the event inventory information reflects removal of the event-specific virtual item upon expiration of the event period.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to modify the inventory information for the first user to indicate the availability of the first event reward for use by the first user in the primary virtual space, subsequent to expiration of the event period.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to facilitate entry and/or selection by an administrator of one or more objectives, one or more event-specific virtual items available to the first user during the event, and one or more event rewards available for awarding to the individual users based on progress of the individual users with respect to the one or more objectives.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to facilitate selection and/or entry by the administrator of an amount of real-world currency required to be spent on event-specific virtual items before the first user is eligible to receive the one or more event rewards.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to facilitate the second interaction responsive to an indication that the first user has reached a specified level in the primary virtual space.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to determine a user cost to the first user for individual ones of the event-specific virtual items based upon a purchase history of the first user as indicated in the primary user account for the first user.

10. A method for providing users a primary virtual space, virtual items available for use within the primary virtual space, and event-specific virtual items available during an event and not available for use upon expiration of an event period of the event, wherein the users include a first user, wherein the users are associated with client computing platforms, wherein the client computing platforms include a first client computing platform, and wherein the first client computing platform is associated with the first user, the method being implemented on a computer system that includes one or more physical processors, the method comprising:

executing an instance of the primary virtual space;

facilitating a first interaction of the first user with the primary virtual space and/or other users of the primary virtual space;

managing accounts of the users, wherein the accounts include a first primary user account associated with the first user, wherein the first primary user account includes inventory information that defines virtual items usable by the first user within the primary virtual space;

facilitating a second interactions of the first user with the other users during the event period of the event, wherein the event is associated with one or more event objectives;

managing event inventory information that defines event-specific virtual items usable by the first user during the event, wherein the event-specific virtual items are different than the virtual items usable by the first user in the primary virtual space, wherein the event-specific virtual items include an event-specific virtual item that is usable during the event and not available to the first upon expiration of the event period;

determining progress of the first user with respect to the one or more event objectives;

determining a first event reward to be awarded to the first user based on the progress with respect to the one or more event objectives, wherein the first event reward is usable in the primary virtual space;

facilitating distribution of the first event reward to the first user such that the inventory information included in the first primary account is updated to reflect availability of the first event reward to the first user in the primary virtual space; and

facilitating a presentation of reward information to the first user, wherein the presentation indicates availability of the first event reward to the first user in the primary virtual space.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the virtual items available to the first user in the primary virtual space are unavailable to the first user during the event.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the first event reward is unavailable to the first user during the event.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the event inventory information reflects removal of the event-specific virtual item upon expiration of the event period.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising modifying the inventory information for the first user to indicate the availability of the first event reward for use by the first user in the primary virtual space, subsequent to expiration of the event period.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising facilitating entry and/or selection by an administrator of one or more objectives, one or more event-specific virtual items available to the first user during the event, and one or more event rewards available for awarding to the individual users based on progress of the individual users with respect to one or more objectives.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising facilitating selection and/or entry by the administrator of an amount of real-world currency required to be spent on event-specific items before the first user is eligible to receive the one or more event rewards.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein facilitating the second interaction occurs responsive to an indication that the first user has reached a specified level in the primary virtual space.

18. The method of claim 10, further comprising determining a user cost to the first user for individual ones of the event-specific virtual items based upon a purchase history of the first user as indicated in the primary user account for the first user.