COMPUTER-READABLE STORAGE MEDIUM HAVING STORED THEREIN GAME PROGRAM, GAME APPARATUS, GAME SYSTEM, AND GAME PROCESSING METHOD

• US 20120309512A1
• Filed: 02/02/2012
• Published: 12/06/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: ABE, Goro
• Granted Patent: US 9,101,839 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/30
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/211 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/2145 the surface being also a display device, e.g. touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/26 having at least one additional display device, e.g. on the game controller or outside a game booth
• 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 13/44 involving timing of operations, e.g. performing an action within a time slot
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5252 using two or more virtual cameras concurrently or sequentially, e.g. automatically switching between fixed virtual cameras when a character changes room or displaying a rear-mirror view in a car-driving game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5255 according to dedicated instructions from a player, e.g. using a secondary joystick to rotate the camera around a player's character
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5372 for tagging characters, objects or locations in the game scene, e.g. displaying a circle under the character controlled by the player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/814 Musical performances, e.g. by evaluating the player's ability to follow a notation
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/837 Shooting of targets
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/92 Video game devices specially adapted to be hand-held while playing
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6653 for altering the visibility of an object, e.g. preventing the occlusion of an object, partially hiding an object

Abstract

The game apparatus displays on a television a scene in which a pirate shoots an arrow at a first timing. Next, the game apparatus determines, at a second timing which is a timing after a predetermined time period has elapsed from the first timing, whether the attitude of a terminal device is an attitude in accordance with an instruction issued by the pirate when the pirate shot the arrow at the first timing. When the attitude of the terminal device is the attitude in accordance with the instruction issued by the pirate, the game apparatus displays a scene in which the arrow has reached the screen of the terminal device.

Claims

1. A computer-readable storage medium having stored therein a game program performed by a computer of a game apparatus that causes a first display device to display an image, the program causing the computer to perform:

issuing a predetermined instruction to a user in the first display device at a first timing;

receiving an input by the user outputted from an input device;

performing a predetermined game process, based on one of a state of an input to the input device at a second timing which is a timing after a predetermined time period has elapsed from the first timing, and a difference between a timing of an input to the input device and the second timing; and

presenting a result of the game process on a second display device.

2. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 1, wherein

the predetermined game process is performed, based on the state of the input at the second timing.

3. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 1, wherein

the second display device is a portable display device integrated with the input device.

4. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 3, wherein

the input device outputs attitude data in accordance with its own attitude,

an attitude of the portable display device is received based on the attitude data, and

the predetermined game process is performed, based on the attitude of the portable display device at the second timing.

5. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 4, wherein

the computer is further caused to perform determining whether the attitude of the portable display device is an attitude in accordance with the predetermined instruction, and

a game process in accordance with a result of the determination at the second timing is performed.

6. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 4, wherein

an attitude of a virtual camera in a virtual space is set in accordance with the attitude of the portable display device, and an image of the virtual space is taken by the virtual camera, and thereby a second image in accordance with the attitude of the portable display device is displayed on the portable display device.

7. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 1, wherein

the computer is further caused to perform reproducing predetermined music, and

the first timing and the second timing are set, synchronized with the rhythm of the predetermined music.

8. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 7, wherein

the first timing and the second timing are set at timings when the predetermined music is reproduced.

9. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 1, wherein

a predetermined sound is outputted at the first timing from a sound outputting unit provided in the first display device, and

a predetermined sound is outputted at the second timing from a sound outputting unit provided in the second display device.

10. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 5, wherein

notification in accordance with a result of the determination obtained during a time period from the first timing to the second timing is performed on the portable display device.

11. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 5, wherein

the computer is further caused to perform an evaluation of the input by the user, in accordance with a result of the determination at the second timing.

12. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 4, wherein

the computer is further caused to perform determining whether the portable display device is moving at the second timing, and

a result of a game process performed in accordance with a result of the determination whether the portable display device is moving is presented on the portable display device at the second timing.

13. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 1, wherein

a scene in which a predetermined object is started to be moved as the predetermined instruction is presented on the first display device, and

a scene in which the predetermined object has reached the second display device as the result of the game process is displayed on the second display device.

14. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 3, wherein

image data indicating the result of the game process is outputted to the portable display device,

the portable display device includes:

an image data obtaining unit that obtains the image data outputted from the game apparatus; and

a display unit that displays the result of the game process indicated by the image data obtained by the image data obtaining unit.

15. The computer-readable storage medium having stored therein the game program according to claim 14, wherein

the computer is further caused to perform generating compressed image data which is obtained by compressing the image data,

the compressed image data is outputted to the portable display device,

the portable display device further includes an image decompression unit that decompresses the compressed image data and obtains the image data, and

the display unit displays the result of the game process indicated by the image data decompressed by the image decompression unit.

16. A game apparatus that causes a first display device to display an image, comprising:

a first presentation unit that issues a predetermined instruction to a user in the first display device at a first timing;

an input reception unit that receives an input by the user outputted from an input device;

a game process performing unit that performs a predetermined game process, based on one of a state of an input to the input device at a second timing which is a timing after a predetermined time period has elapsed from the first timing, and a difference between a timing of an input to the input device and the second timing; and

a second presentation unit that presents a result of the game process on a second display device.

17. A game system that causes a first display device to display an image, the system comprising:

a first presentation unit that issues a predetermined instruction to a user in the first display device at a first timing;

an input reception unit that receives an input by the user outputted from an input device;

a game process performing unit that performs a predetermined game process, based on one of a state of an input to the input device at a second timing which is a timing after a predetermined time period has elapsed from the first timing, and a difference between a timing of an input to the input device and the second timing, and

a second presentation unit that presents a result of the game process on a second display device.

18. A game processing method performed by a game apparatus that causes a first display device to display an image, the method comprising the steps of:

issuing a predetermined instruction to a user in the first display device at a first timing;

receiving an input by the user outputted from an input device;

performing a predetermined game process, based on one of a state of an input to the input device at a second timing which is a timing after a predetermined time period has elapsed from the first timing, and a difference between a timing of an input to the input device and the second timing; and

presenting a result of the game process on a second display device.