GAME DEVICE, GAME PROCESSING METHOD, INFORMATION RECORDING MEDIUM, AND PROGRAM

• US 20110300948A1
• Filed: 12/10/2009
• Published: 12/08/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Konami Digital Entertainment Company Limited (Konami Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Konami Digital Entertainment Company Limited (Konami Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Takehiro, Masashi
• Application Number:
  US13/139,939
• Publication Number:
  US 20110300948A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/43
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/44 involving timing of operations, e.g. performing an action within a time slot
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/46 Computing the game score
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/493 Resuming a game, e.g. after pausing, malfunction or power failure
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/533 for prompting the player, e.g. by displaying a game menu
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5375 for graphically or textually suggesting an action, e.g. by displaying an arrow indicating a turn in a driving game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/54 involving acoustic signals, e.g. for simulating revolutions per minute [RPM] dependent engine sounds in a driving game or reverberation against a virtual wall
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/814 Musical performances, e.g. by evaluating the player's ability to follow a notation
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/305 for providing a graphical or textual hint to the player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/308 Details of the user interface
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6081 generating an output signal, e.g. under timing constraints, for spatialization
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/61 Score computation
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/636 involving process of starting or resuming a game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/638 according to the timing of operation or a time limit
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8047 Music games

Abstract

A state storage unit (201) stores a current game state. A history storage unit (202) stores a history of the game state. An operation reception unit (203) receives a command input from a player. An update unit (204) changes the game state according to the received command input and updates the current game state. A display unit (205) displays a state image (251) based on the current game state and a history image (252) based on the game state history. When an instruction to resume a game is received after an interruption of the game, the resumption control unit (206) resumes the game at a time preceding the interrupted in-game time by a predetermined period. The resumption control unit (206) compares the game state history to the game state after being resumed and evaluates the player in accordance with the history of the better game state.

Claims

1. A game device (200) being able to interrupt and resume a game, the game device (200) comprising:

a state storage unit (201) to store a current state of the game;

a history storage unit (202) to store a history of the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) while the game is not interrupted;

an operation reception unit (203) to receive an operation instruction from a player while the game is not interrupted;

an update unit (204) to update the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) on the basis of the received operation instruction; and

a resumption control unit (206) to resume the game from prior to a predetermined period before interruption of the game if the game is resumed after the interruption, wherein

after resumption of the game followed by the predetermined period, if it is determined that the game state based on the operation instruction received during the predetermined period is better than the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) on the basis of a predetermined evaluation criterion, the resumption control unit (206) updates the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) with the game state based on the operation instruction received during the predetermined period.

2. The game device (200) according to claim 1, further comprising

a display unit (205) to display a state image based on the game state stored in the state storage unit (201).

3. The game device (200) according to claim 2, wherein if the game is resumed after interruption, the display unit (205) obtains a history of a game state contained within the predetermined period, of histories of a game state stored in the history storage unit (202), and then displays history images based on a game state contained in the obtained history of a game state in series.

4. The game device (200) according to claim 3, wherein

the display unit (205) displays the state image and the history image such that the state image is more relatively highlighted than the history image.

5. The game device (200) according to claim 1, wherein

the game state is indicated by a numerical parameter that changes according to the received operation instruction, and

the predetermined evaluation criterion is defined using:

the numerical parameter when the predetermined period has passed since resumption of the game; and

the numerical parameter when the game was interrupted.

6. The game device (200) according to claim 1, wherein

the game state is indicated by a numerical parameter that changes according to the received operation instruction, and

the predetermined evaluation criterion is defined using:

a history of the numerical parameter for the predetermined period after resumption of the game; and

a history of the numerical parameter for the predetermined period before interruption.

7. A game processing method performed by the game device (200), the game device (200) being able to interrupt and resume a game and having the state storage unit (201) that stores a current state of the game and the history storage unit (202) that stores a history of the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) while the game is not interrupted, the method comprising:

an operation reception step to receive an operation instruction from a player while the game is not interrupted;

an update step to update the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) on the basis of the received operation instruction; and

a resumption control step to resume the game from prior to a predetermined period before interruption of the game if the game is resumed after the interruption, wherein in the resumption control step, after resumption of the game followed by the predetermined period, if it is determined that the game state based on the operation instruction received during the predetermined period is better than the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) on the basis of a predetermined evaluation criterion, the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) is updated with the game state based on the operation instruction received during the predetermined period.

8. A computer-readable information recording medium configured to store a program that allows a computer that is able to interrupt and resume a game to function as:

a state storage unit (201) to store a current state of the game;

a history storage unit (202) to store a history of the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) while the game is not interrupted;

an operation reception unit (203) to receive an operation instruction from a player while the game is not interrupted;

an update unit (204) to update a game state stored in the state storage unit (201) on the basis of the received operation instruction; and

a resumption control unit (206) to resume the game from prior to a predetermined period before interruption of the game if the game is resumed after the interruption of the game, wherein

after resumption of the game followed by the predetermined period, if it is determined that the game state based on the operation instruction received during the predetermined period is better than the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) on the basis of a predetermined evaluation criterion, the resumption control unit (206) updates the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) with the game state based on the operation instruction received during the predetermined period.

9. A program that allows a computer that is able to interrupt and resume a game progress to function as:

a state storage unit (201) to store a current state of the game;

a history storage unit (202) to store a history of the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) while the game is not interrupted;

an operation reception unit (203) to receive an operation instruction from a player while the game is not interrupted;

an update unit (204) to update a game state stored in the state storage unit (201) on the basis of the received operation instruction; and

a resumption control unit (206) to resume the game from prior to a predetermined period before interruption of the game if the game is resumed after the interruption of the game;

wherein

after resumption of the game followed by the predetermined period, if it is determined that the game state based on the operation instruction received during the predetermined period is better than the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) on the basis of a predetermined evaluation criterion, the resumption control unit (206) updates the game state stored in the state storage unit (201) with the game state based on the operation instruction received during the predetermined period.