Game device and method for implementing a screen-displayed card game

• US 6,398,651 B1
• Filed: 03/17/2000
• Issued: 06/04/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Konami Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Konami Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Yamada, Nobuhiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Sager, Mark
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ashburn, Steven
• Application Number:
  US09/528,104
• Time in Patent Office: 809 Days
• Field of Search: 463/7-11, 463/1, 463/40-44, 273/298, 273/304-308
• US Class Current: 463/43
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/00 Card games aspects of games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions showing representations related to the game A63F13/00; card games played on a gaming machine G07F17/32
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/12 involving interaction between a plurality of game devices, e.g. transmisison or distribution systems protocols for networked virtual reality, networked games H04L29/06034
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/30 Interconnection arrangements between game servers and game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/822 Strategy games; Role-playing games A63F13/825, A63F13/828 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/92 Video game devices specially adapted to be hand-held while playing
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/95 Storage media specially adapted for storing game information, e.g. video game cartridges
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2001/008 adapted for being playable on a screen
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/201 Playing authorisation given at platform level
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/204 the platform being a handheld device
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/206 Game information storage, e.g. cartridges, CD ROM's, DVD's, smart cards
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/65 for computing the condition of a game character
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/807 Role playing or strategy games

Abstract

In a storage medium storing a program, a storage device and a game device, a card game having rich variety can be implemented by determining win or loss on the basis of various judgement criteria. The cards used in the card game are divided into a plurality of groups which have continuous, cyclical strength differential relationships between the respective groups. The card game does not depend solely on the capability index of each card. Moreover, a variation of the card game can be increased by preparing trap cards which impart various functions and actions on the opponent'"'"'s cards. Moreover, by including field card representing competition environments and causing the capability indices creature cards to vary according to the competition environment, a more interesting card game can be enjoyed by the game device.

Claims

1. A game device for use in executing a card game between a player and an opponent on a screen by placing cards with predetermined capabilities, the game device executing the card game by displaying a state wherein the cards of the player and the opponent are arranged face downwards on the same screen, by confirming only the cards of the player by turning them face upwards in the state without being recognized by the opponent, and by setting mutually different competition environments;

the cards being given, as environment capability index data, capability indices representing a capability which changes according to said competition environments and being divided into a plurality of groups having mutual strength differential relationships;

the game device comprising;

means for storing said environment capability index data of the cards together with the groups of the cards;

judgement means for judging the strength differential relationship between the groups and judging win or loss between cards on the basis of said environment capability indices, when the win or the loss can not be judged from the strength differential relationship between groups;

executing means for executing said card game on the basis of the judgements made by said judgement means;

display means for displaying said card game;

input means for inputting instructions required for said card game; and

communicating means for sending and receiving information related to said cards, so as to exchange said cards through said communicating means;

wherein predetermined conditions to the conduct of an activity are satisfied when the combination of a plurality of cards supplied via said communication means is coincident with a prescribed combination.

2. The game device according to claim 1, wherein said environment capability indices of each card are varied on an attach side and a defense side and said judgement means judges win or loss between cards on the basis of these varying capability indices.

3. The game device according to claim 1, wherein said executing means sets, on said attack side and said defense side, a competition environment selected from said mutually different competition environments and executes said card game under the competition environment thus set.

4. The game device according to claim 1, wherein the strength differential relationships between said plurality of groups are determined in such a manner that either one of the groups has superiority over one of the other groups and has inferiority to another one of the groups.

5. The game device according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of cards are divided into a plurality of families, each family respectively containing a plurality of groups, and no strength differential relationships exist between the plurality of groups belonging to each of said families.

6. The game device according to claim 1, further comprising a storage medium which is attached to said game device, wherein said storage medium comprises storing means for storing information relating to said cards, and said storing means comprises a region for storing cards used normally and a special card region for storing special cards, the special cards in said special card region only being readable when predetermined conditions are satisfied.

7. The game device according to claim 6, wherein said predetermined conditions are satified by supplying prescribed codes provided from a source outside the game device.

8. The game device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of cards is placed on the screen at each turn.

9. A computer-readable storage medium readable by a computer which stores a program for executing a card game between a player and an opponent by placing cards with respectively designated capabilities onto a screen, said program comprising the steps of:

arranging the cards face downwards on the same screen, with the cards of the player alone which are turned face upwards, without being recognized by the opponent;

determining mutually different competition environments, along with capability indices which are assigned as environment capability index data to each of said cards and which represent capabilities variable according to said competition environments;

storing said environment capability index data with said cards divided into a plurality of groups which have mutual strength differential relationships;

judging the strength differential relationships between groups to decide win or loss of the cards; and

judging win or loss between cards on the basis of said environment capability indices, when win or loss can not be decided by the strength differential relationship between groups;

executing said card game on the basis of the judgements made by said judgement means;

wherein said environment capability indices of the cards are varied on using the cards as an attack side and a defense side; and

at said judgement step, win or loss between cards is judged on the basis of these varying capability indices together with the strength differential relationships between groups;

wherein said storage medium comprises a region for storing cards which are used normally and a special card region for storing special cards, and

wherein said program is composed in such a manner that it is able to access said special card region in response to prescribed combinations of said cards.

10. The storage medium according to claim 9, wherein the strength differential relationships between said groups are determined in a continuous and cyclical fashion.

11. The storage medium according to claim 9, wherein said program divides said cards into a plurality of families, in such a manner that each family contains a plurality of the groups, arid said program does not judge strength differential relationships between said plurality of families.

12. The storage medium according to claim 9, wherein said program judges cards transmitted by communication and accesses said special card region if a combination of said cards is identical with the prescribed combination.

13. A game device for use in executing a card game between a player and an opponent on a screen by placing cards with predetermined capabilities, the game device executing the card game by displaying a state wherein the cards of the player and the opponent are arranged face downwards on the same screen, by confirming only the cards of the player by turning them face upwards in the state without being recognized by the opponent, and by setting mutually different competition environments;

the cards being given, as environment capability index data, capability indices representing a capability which changes according to said competition environments and being divided into a plurality of groups having mutual strength differential relationships;

the game device comprising;

means for storing said environment capability index data of the cards together with the groups of the cards;

judgement means for judging the strength differential relationship between the groups and judging win or loss between cards on the basis of said environment capability indices, when the win or the loss can not be judged from the strength differential relationship between groups;

executing means for executing said card game on the basis of the judgements made by said judgement means;

display means for displaying said card game;

input means for inputting instructions required for said card game; and

communicating means for sending and receiving information related to said cards, so as to exchange said cards through said communicating means;

the game device further comprising;

a storage means for storing special cards which are readable only when a combination of a plurality of cards received through the communicating means is coincident with a prescribed combination determined as predetermined conditions.

14. The game device according to claim 13, wherein said environment capability indices of each card are varied on an attach side and a defense side and said judgement means judges win or loss between cards on the basis of these varying capability indices.

15. The game device according to claim 13, wherein said executing means sets, on said attack side and said defense side, a competition environment selected from said mutually different competition environments and executes said card game under the competition environment thus set.

16. The game device according to claim 13, wherein the strength differential relationships between said plurality of groups are determined in such a manner that either one of the groups has superiority over one of the other groups and has inferiority to another one of the groups.

17. The game device according to claim 13, wherein said plurality of cards are divided into a plurality of families, each family respectively containing a plurality of groups, and no strength differential relationships exist between the plurality of groups belonging to each of said families.

18. The game device according to claim 13, wherein said storage means comprises a storage medium which is attached to said game device, wherein said storage medium comprises a region for storing cards used normally and a special card region for storing special cards, the special cards in said special card region only being readable when predetermined conditions are satisfied.

19. The game device according to claim 18, wherein said predetermined conditions are satisfied by supplying prescribed codes provided from a source outside the game device.

20. A game device for use in executing a card game between a player and an opponent on a screen by placing cards with predetermined capabilities, comprising:

a display for displaying the card game;

a storage unit operative to store the cards together with the predetermined capabilities assigned to the cards;

a communication section operative to send and receive information related to said cards, so as to externally exchange the cards at least between a player and a source outside the game device;

a detector operative to detect whether or not a combination of a plurality of cards received through the communication section is coincident with a prescribed combination determined as predetermined conditions; and

a special card memory operative to store special cards which are readable only when coincidence is detected between a current combination of the plurality of the cards and a prescribed combination.

21. The game device according to claim 20, wherein said plurality of cards are divided into a plurality of families, each family respectively containing a plurality of groups, and no strength differential relationships exist between the plurality of groups belonging to each of said families.

22. The game device according to claim 20, wherein said storage unit comprises a storage medium which is attached to said game device, wherein said storage medium comprises a region for storing cards used normally and a special card region for storing special cards, the special cards in said special card region only being readable when predetermined conditions are satisfied.

23. The game device according to claim 22, wherein said predetermined conditions are satisfied by supplying prescribed codes provided from a source outside the game device.

24. A computer readable storage medium readable by a computer which stores a program for executing a card game between a player and an opponent by placing cards with respectively designated capabilities onto a screen, said program comprising the steps of:

communicating information related to said cards so as to exchange cards;

storing special cards in a special card region and normal cards in a normal card region; and

accessing said special card region in response to prescribed combinations of said cards received in said communication step.

25. A computer readable storage medium according to claim 24, wherein said accessing is permitted when a combination of said cards is identical to a prescribed combination.