PLAY OF THE GAME

• US 20180161675A1
• Filed: 12/09/2016
• Published: 06/14/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/09/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Blizzard Entertainment Incorporated (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Blizzard Entertainment Incorporated (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: MIRON, KEITH, GOODMAN, GEOFF
• Granted Patent: US 10,456,680 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/35 Details of game servers
• 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 13/497 Partially or entirely replaying previous game actions
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/79 involving player-related data, e.g. identities, accounts, preferences or play histories
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/822 Strategy games; Role-playing games A63F13/825, A63F13/828 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/837 Shooting of targets
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/847 Cooperative playing, e.g. requiring coordinated actions from several players to achieve a common goal
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/86 Watching games played by other players

Abstract

In an approach, a game server records events that occur within a match of a video game played using a plurality of game clients. After the match has concluded, the game server scores the events according to a plurality of criteria corresponding a plurality of play of the game categories. A sliding window is passed over the events in a number of increments. During each increment, the score for each event that falls within the sliding window is aggregated for each of the categories. The game server then selects a play of the game category and determines the top aggregated score for that category. Once determined, the game server sends one or more instructions to the game clients which causes the game clients to display a replay of the events that occurred during the time window increment corresponding to the top aggregated score for the selected category.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving data representing a plurality of events that took place during a match of a game, wherein each event of the plurality of events is tagged with a respective timestamp representing when that event took place during the match, wherein the match includes a start time and an end time;

for each event of the plurality of events, generating a plurality of scores for the event, wherein each score of the plurality of scores is related to a respective play category of a plurality of play categories and is generated using a respective set of criteria associated with the respective play category;

selecting, as a play of the game, a video clip of the match based on scores generated for events that occur in a time window covered by the video clip;

providing a mechanism by which the video clip selected as the play of the game may be played after the end time of the match;

wherein the method is performed by one or more computing devices.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein selecting the video clip comprises:

selecting a particular play category from the plurality of play categories based on a top aggregated score for each play category of the one or more play categories; and

selecting the video clip of the match based on a time increment associated with the top aggregated score for the particular play category.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

passing a sliding window from the start time of the match to the end time of the match in one or more time increments, and for each time increment of the one or more time increments;

identifying one or more events of the plurality of events where the respective timestamp falls within the sliding window, and

for each play category of the plurality of play categories, aggregating the score associated with the play category for each event of the one or more events into one or more aggregated scores associated with the play category and the time increment;

determining, for each play category of the one or more play categories, a top aggregated score from the one or more aggregated scores for the play category across the one or more time increments.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of play categories includes a play category whose respective set of criteria bases a score for an event based on one or more of:

healing caused by the event,

damage caused by the event,

whether one or more characters involved with the event is airborne,

whether a player is saved from death by the event, or

whether an enemy team was prevented from capturing the objective by the event.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein selecting the particular play category from the plurality of play categories is performed by:

determining that the top aggregated score for a first play category of the plurality of play categories is below a threshold score;

in response to determining that the top aggregated score for the first play category of the plurality of play categories is below the threshold score, selecting a second play category of the plurality of play categories that has a highest top aggregated score among a remaining set of play categories of the plurality of play categories.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein:

each event of the plurality of events is tagged with a particular player who caused the event of a plurality of players that participated in the match,

for each time increment of the one or more time increments and each play category of the one or more play categories, the one or more aggregated scores associated with the play category and the time increment correspond to the plurality of players and each aggregated score of the one or more aggregated scores associated with the play category and the time increment are based on one or more particular events of the one or more events where the respective timestamp falls within the sliding window that were caused by a respective player of the plurality of players, and

the video clip is produced from a perspective of a player of the plurality of players that caused the one or more particular events used to aggregate the top aggregated score of the particular play category.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein:

each event of the plurality of events is tagged with a particular player who caused the event of a plurality of players that participated in the match,

for each time increment of the one or more time increments and each play category of the one or more play categories, each aggregated score of the one or more aggregated scores associated with the play category and the time increment are based on one or more particular events of the one or more events where the respective timestamp falls within the sliding window that were caused by at least one of two or more respective players of the plurality of players, and

the video clip is produced from a combination of at least a perspective of a first player of the two or more respective players that caused a first portion of the one or more particular events used to aggregate the top aggregated score of the particular play category and a second player of the two or more respective players that caused a second portion of the one or more particular events used to aggregate the top aggregated score of the particular play category.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising prior to displaying the video clip, modifying the video clip to add one or more special effects including one or more of:

highlighting one or more objects, players, or objectives, speeding up or slowing down a rate at which the video clip is played, applying one or more filters to the video clip, inserting an intro reel to the video clip, or adding one or more textual or graphical overlays to the video clip.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the game is a video game and the video clip is displayed using a game client that is also used to play the video game.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the video clip uses a third person perspective positioned to view an area where a portion of events of the play of the game took place.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing one or more instructions which, when executed on one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform steps comprising:

receiving data representing a plurality of events that took place during a match of a game, wherein each event of the plurality of events is tagged with a respective timestamp representing when that event took place during the match, wherein the match includes a start time and an end time;

for each event of the plurality of events, generating a plurality of scores for the event, wherein each score of the plurality of scores is related to a respective play category of a plurality of play categories and is generated using a respective set of criteria associated with the respective play category;

selecting, as a play of the game, a video clip of the match based on scores generated for events that occur in a time window covered by the video clip;

providing a mechanism by which the video clip selected as the play of the game may be played after the end time of the match;

wherein the method is performed by one or more computing devices.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein selecting the video clip comprises:

selecting a particular play category from the plurality of play categories based on a top aggregated score for each play category of the one or more play categories; and

selecting the video clip of the match based on a time increment associated with the top aggregated score for the particular play category.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein the steps further comprise:

passing a sliding window from the start time of the match to the end time of the match in one or more time increments, and for each time increment of the one or more time increments;

identifying one or more events of the plurality of events where the respective timestamp falls within the sliding window, and

for each play category of the plurality of play categories, aggregating the score associated with the play category for each event of the one or more events into one or more aggregated scores associated with the play category and the time increment;

determining, for each play category of the one or more play categories, a top aggregated score from the one or more aggregated scores for the play category across the one or more time increments.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the plurality of play categories includes a play category whose respective set of criteria bases a score for an event based on one or more of:

healing caused by the event,

damage caused by the event,

whether one or more characters involved with the event is airborne,

whether a player is saved from death by the event, or

whether an enemy team was prevented from capturing the objective by the event.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein selecting the particular play category from the plurality of play categories is performed by:

determining that the top aggregated score for a first play category of the plurality of play categories is below a threshold score;

in response to determining that the top aggregated score for the first play category of the plurality of play categories is below the threshold score, selecting a second play category of the plurality of play categories that has a highest top aggregated score among a remaining set of play categories of the plurality of play categories.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein:

each event of the plurality of events is tagged with a particular player who caused the event of a plurality of players that participated in the match,

for each time increment of the one or more time increments and each play category of the one or more play categories, the one or more aggregated scores associated with the play category and the time increment correspond to the plurality of players and each aggregated score of the one or more aggregated scores associated with the play category and the time increment are based on one or more particular events of the one or more events where the respective timestamp falls within the sliding window that were caused by a respective player of the plurality of players, and

the video clip is produced from a perspective of a player of the plurality of players that caused the one or more particular events used to aggregate the top aggregated score of the particular play category.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein:

each event of the plurality of events is tagged with a particular player who caused the event of a plurality of players that participated in the match,

for each time increment of the one or more time increments and each play category of the one or more play categories, each aggregated score of the one or more aggregated scores associated with the play category and the time increment are based on one or more particular events of the one or more events where the respective timestamp falls within the sliding window that were caused by at least one of two or more respective players of the plurality of players, and

the video clip is produced from a combination of at least a perspective of a first player of the two or more respective players that caused a first portion of the one or more particular events used to aggregate the top aggregated score of the particular play category and a second player of the two or more respective players that caused a second portion of the one or more particular events used to aggregate the top aggregated score of the particular play category.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the steps further comprise:

prior to displaying the video clip, modifying the video clip to add one or more special effects including one or more of;

highlighting one or more objects, players, or objectives, speeding up or slowing down a rate at which the video clip is played, applying one or more filters to the video clip, inserting an intro reel to the video clip, or adding one or more textual or graphical overlays to the video clip.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the game is a video game and the video clip is displayed using a game client that is also used to play the video game.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the video clip uses a third person perspective positioned to view an area where a portion of events of the play of the game took place.