GAME SYSTEM AND GAME INFORMATION STORAGE MEDIUM USED FOR SAME

• US 20120004032A1
• Filed: 09/14/2011
• Published: 01/05/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: Masuyama, Iwao, Suzuki, Toshiaki, Tahara, Akira
• Granted Patent: US 9,205,332 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/31
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/211 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/216 using geographical information, e.g. location of the game device or player using GPS
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/327 using wireless networks, e.g. Wi-Fi® or piconet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/428 involving motion or position input signals, e.g. signals representing the rotation of an input controller or a player's arm motions sensed by accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/65 automatically by game devices or servers from real world data, e.g. measurement in live racing competition
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/92 Video game devices specially adapted to be hand-held while playing
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1006 having additional degrees of freedom
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/105 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers, gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/204 the platform being a handheld device
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/205 for detecting the geographical location of the game platform
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/405 being a wireless ad hoc network, e.g. Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Pico net
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5573 player location
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6045 for mapping control signals received from the input arrangement into game commands
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/69 Involving elements of the real world in the game world, e.g. measurement in live races, real video

Abstract

A game system includes a housing to be held by a player. The housing incorporates an XY-axis acceleration sensor to detect an acceleration in an X-axis and Y-axis direction and a Z-axis contact switch to detect an acceleration in an Z-axis direction. These sensor and switch detect at least one of an amount (e.g., tilt amount, movement amount, impact amount or the like) and a direction (e.g., tilt direction, movement direction, impact direction or the like) of a change applied to the housing. A simulation program provides simulation such that a state of a game space is changed related to at least one of the amount and direction of the change applied to the housing.

Claims

1. A game system in which a display displaying an image based on a processed result by a processor is provided in relation to a game apparatus that includes a game program storage storing a game program and the processor executing the game program, comprising:

a housing held by a player; and

a state detector which is provided in relation to said housing and detects at least one of a magnitude and a direction of an inclination applied to the housing, wherein

said program storage stores game space data including image data for displaying a game space capable of playing a game, and character data for displaying a first character and a second character both existing in the game space, and further stores the game program which causes said processor to function as

display controlling means which displays the game space on said display based on said game space data and said first character and said second character based on said character data, and

character controlling means which simultaneously moves, based on an output of said state detector, said first character and said second character in association with at least one of said magnitude and said direction of said inclination applied to said housing.

6. A game system according to claim 1, wherein

said character controlling means which simultaneously moves said first character and said second character in the same direction in the game space based on an output of said state detector.

7. A game system according to claim 1, wherein

said game program storage further stores a program to cause said processor to function as a memory controlling means which stores moving velocity data as to each of said first character and said second character, and

said character controlling means controls said first character and said second character in movement based on said moving velocity data, and updates, by equal amounts, said moving velocity data as to said first character and said moving velocity data as to said second character based on an output of said state detector.

8. A game system according to claim 1, wherein

said character controlling means controls said first character to perform a first motion predetermined by the program and does not move said second character when said magnitude is not detected in a case that said state detector detects at least said magnitude, and said character controlling means moves said first character and said second character in association with said magnitude, or when said direction is not detected in a case that said state detector detects at least said direction, and said character controlling means moves said first character and said second character in association with said direction.

9. A game system according to claim 8, wherein

said character controlling means controls said first character to perform a second motion based on an output of said state detector in addition to the first motion when said magnitude is detected in a case that said state detector detects at least said magnitude, and said character controlling means moves said first character and said second character in association with said magnitude, or when said direction is detected in a case that said state detector detects at least said direction, and said character controlling means moves said first character and said second character in association with said direction.

10. A game system according to claim 1, wherein

said state detector detects at least said magnitude applied to said housing, and

said character controlling means moves, based on an output of said state detector, said second character without moving said first character when said magnitude detected by said state detector is equal to or less than a predetermined value.

11. A game system according to claim 1, wherein

said character controlling means does not move said second character based on an output of the state detector in a state that said second character is in a predetermined state.

12. A game system according to claim 1, wherein

said game space data includes space data for displaying the game space larger than a display area being displayable by said display,

said display controlling means is to display a part of the game space within a range of display area in the game space on said display, and

said character controlling means moves only a character existing in said display area based on an output from said state detector.

13. A game system according to claim 1, wherein

said housing is a housing of said game apparatus, and

said game apparatus is a portable game apparatus integrally provided with said display on one main surface of said housing.

14. A game system according to claim 1, wherein

said game program storage is accommodated in a cartridge, and is detachably attached to said housing of said portable game apparatus, and

said state detector is accommodated in said cartridge, and detects at least one of said magnitude and said direction applied to said housing of said portable game apparatus when said cartridge is attached to said housing of said portable game apparatus.

15. A game system according to claim 1, wherein said housing is a housing of a controller to be connected to said game apparatus.

2. A game system in which a display displaying an image based on a processed result by a processor is provided in relation to a game apparatus that includes a game program storage storing a game program and the processor executing the game program, comprising:

a housing held by a player; and

a state detector which is provided in relation to said housing and detects at least one of a magnitude and a direction of an acceleration applied to the housing, wherein

said program storage stores game space data including image data for displaying a game space capable of playing a game, and character data for displaying a first character and a second character both existing in the game space, and further stores the game program which causes said processor as to function as

display controlling means which displays the game space on said display based on said game space data and said first character and said second character based on said character data, and

character controlling means which simultaneously moves, based on an output of said state detector, said first character and said second character in association with at least one of said magnitude and said direction of said acceleration applied to said housing.

5. A game system according to claim 2, wherein

said state detector detects at least the magnitude of the acceleration applied to said housing, and

said character controlling means performs different processing depending on whether or not said magnitude detected by said state detector is equal to or more than a predetermined value.

3. A game system in which a display displaying an image based on a processed result by a processor is provided in relation to a game apparatus that includes a game program storage storing a game program and the processor executing the game program, comprising:

a housing held by a player; and

a state detector which is provided in relation to said housing and detects at least one of a magnitude and a direction of a motion applied to the housing, wherein

said program storage stores game space data including image data for displaying a game space capable of playing a game, and character data for displaying a first character and a second character both existing in the game space, and further stores the game program which causes said processor to function as

display controlling means which displays the game space on said display based on said game space data and said first character and said second character based on said character data, and

character controlling means which simultaneously moves, based on an output of said state detector, said first character and said second character in association with at least one of said magnitude and said direction of said motion applied to said housing.

4. A game system in which a display displaying an image based on a processed result by a processor is provided in relation to a game apparatus that includes a game program storage storing a game program and the processor executing the game program, comprising:

a housing held by a player; and

a state detector which is provided in relation to said housing and detects at least one of a magnitude and a direction of an impact applied to the housing, wherein

said program storage stores game space data including image data for displaying a game space capable of playing a game, and character data for displaying a first character and a second character both existing in the game space, and further stores the game program which causes said processor to function as

display controlling means which displays the game space on said display based on said game space data and said first character and said second character based on said character data, and

character controlling means which simultaneously moves, based on an output of said state detector, said first character and said second character in association with at least one of said magnitude and said direction of said impact applied to said housing.

16. A game information storage medium storing a game program which is detachably attached to a game system, in which a displayer is associatively provided, comprising a housing which is held by a player, a state detector which is provided in relation to said housing and detects at least one of a magnitude and a direction an inclination applied to the housing, a processor which displays an image obtained through processing of the program on said display, said game information storage medium stores game space data including image data for displaying a game space capable of playing a game, and character data for displaying a first character and a second character both existing in the game space, and further stores the game program which causes said processor to function as:

display controlling means which displays the game space and a character on said display based on said game space data and said character data, and

character controlling means which simultaneously moves, based on an output of said state detector, said first character and said second character in association with at least one of said magnitude and said direction of said inclination applied to said housing.

17. A game information storage medium storing a game program which is detachably attached to a game system, in which a displayer is associatively provided, comprising a housing which is held by a player, a state detector which is provided in relation to said housing and detects at least one of a magnitude and a direction of an acceleration applied to the housing, a processor which displays an image obtained through processing of the program on said display, said game information storage medium stores game space data including image data for displaying a game space capable of playing a game, and character data for displaying a first character and a second character both existing in the game space, and further stores the game program which causes said processor to function as:

display controlling means which displays the game space and a character on said display based on said game space data and said character data, and

character controlling means which simultaneously moves, based on an output of said state detector, said first character and said second character in association with at least one of said magnitude and said direction of said acceleration applied to said housing.

18. A game information storage medium storing a game program which is detachably attached to a game system, in which a displayer is associatively provided, comprising a housing which is held by a player, a state detector which is provided in relation to said housing and detects at least one of a magnitude and a direction of a motion applied to the housing, a processor which displays an image obtained through processing of the program on said display, said game information storage medium stores game space data including image data for displaying a game space capable of playing a game, and character data for displaying a first character and a second character both existing in the game space, and further stores the game program which causes said processor to function as:

display controlling means which displays the game space and a character on said display based on said game space data and said character data, and

character controlling means which simultaneously moves, based on an output of said state detector, said first character and said second character in association with at least one of said magnitude and said direction of said motion applied to said housing.

19. A game information storage medium storing a game program which is detachably attached to a game system, in which a displayer is associatively provided, comprising a housing which is held by a player, a state detector which is provided in relation to said housing and detects at least one of a magnitude and a direction of an impact applied to the housing, a processor which displays an image obtained through processing of the program on said display, said game information storage medium stores game space data including image data for displaying a game space capable of playing a game, and character data for displaying a first character and a second character both existing in the game space, and further stores the game program which causes said processor to function as:

display controlling means which displays the game space and a character on said display based on said game space data and said character data, and

character controlling means which simultaneously moves, based on an output of said state detector, said first character and said second character in association with at least one of said magnitude and said direction of said impact applied to said housing.