Storage medium having game program stored therein and game apparatus

• US 7,585,224 B2
• Filed: 05/06/2005
• Issued: 09/08/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: Dyke-Wells, Tancred
• Primary Examiner(s): Vo; Peter DungBa
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hall; Arthur O.
• Application Number:
  US11/123,227
• Publication Number:
  US 20060246968A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,586 Days
• Field of Search: 463 1- 5, 463 7- 8, 463/16, 463/23, 463 30- 34, 463 36- 39, 463 40- 43, 463 46- 57, 273/108.1, 273/148.B, 273/150, 273/262, 273/317.1, 273/359, 273329-330, 273406-408, 273441-442, 273460-461, 273/127.R, 273/148.R, 273/309, 273/340, 273/348, 273361-367, 345156-158, 345/167, 345473-475, 345/664, 345/679, 345 11- 34, 345/419, 345618-619, 345/629, 715/856, 715/706, 715/738, 715/757, 715762-764, 348/37, 348141-142, 348/240.99
• US Class Current: 463/31
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/10 Control of the course of the game, e.g. start, progess, end
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/45 Controlling the progress of the video game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5258 by dynamically adapting the position of the virtual camera to keep a game object or game character in its viewing frustum, e.g. for tracking a character or a ball
• 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 13/837 Shooting of targets
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/306 for displaying a marker associated to an object or location in the game field
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/308 Details of the user interface
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6684 by dynamically adapting its position to keep a game object in its viewing frustrum, e.g. for tracking a character or a ball

Abstract

A game apparatus selects one of a plurality of characters as a selected character. The game apparatus also sets a position of a virtual camera in accordance with the position of the selected character and thus causes a display apparatus to display an image of a game space, and also causes the display apparatus to display a cursor for designating a predetermined position in the game space. When a predetermined operation by the player is performed in the state where one of the non-selected characters is designated by the cursor, the game apparatus sets the non-selected character designated by the cursor as a newly selected character. When the selected character is changed in a first change step, the position of the virtual camera is moved in accordance with the position of the newly selected character.

Claims

1. A computer-readable storage medium having a game program stored therein to be executed by a computer of a game apparatus for causing a display apparatus to display an image of a three-dimensional game space, said game apparatus including a controller device for operating a plurality of player-controllable characters which appear on the display apparatus as seen from a virtual camera positioned within the game space, any one of which player-controllable characters can be designated as an operation target selected character in response to an operation of the controller device by a player, said game program causing the computer to perform operations of:

designating one of the plurality of player-controllable characters as an operation target selected character at a start of a game;

causing the player-controllable operation target selected character to perform a motion in accordance with a motion operation as indicated by the player by operating said controller device, and causing non-selected player-controllable characters, which are player-controllable characters other than the player-controllable operation target selected character, to autonomously perform a motion based on a predetermined motion rule;

setting a position of the virtual camera in accordance with a position and orientation of the operation target selected character wherein the display apparatus displays an image of a partial area of the three-dimensional game space as seen by the virtual camera, and wherein a displayed view of the game space changes in accordance with a motion of the operation target selected character;

displaying an aiming cursor at a center position within the displayed image of the partial area of the three-dimensional game space as seen by the virtual camera;

in response to a predetermined operation of the controller device made by a player after the aiming cursor is made to coincide with a position of one of the non-selected player-controllable characters displayed on the display, changing a designation of a player-controllable character from an operation target selected character to a non-selected player-controllable character and setting the non-selected player-controllable character as a new operation target selected character; and

switching the position of the virtual camera to a new position and orientation associated with the new operation target selected character in response to setting said non-selected player-controllable character as the new player-controllable selected character, thus causing the display apparatus to display a view of a partial area of the three-dimensional game space as seen by the virtual camera from a new position and orientation.

2. A computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein:

when changing a designation of a player-controllable operation target selected character, a non-selected player-controllable character which is first intersected by a line-of-sight within the displayed image of the partial area is determined as the non-selected player-controllable character designated by the cursor.

3. A computer-readable storage medium according to claim 2, wherein:

when causing a player-controllable operation target selected character to perform a motion, an orientation and position of the operation target selected character is controlled in accordance with an operation performed by the player through use of the controller device; and

an attack target is designated by making the displayed cursor position within the image of the partial area coincide with a displayed object.

4. A computer-readable storage medium according to claim 2, wherein when setting a position and orientation of the virtual camera, when there is a non-selected player-controllable character intersected by the line-of-sight, an image representing the non-selected player-controllable character which is intersected against by the line-of-sight is displayed.

5. A computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein:

when setting a position and orientation of the virtual camera, a list of corresponding images respectively corresponding to the non-selected player-controllable characters including a non-selected player-controllable character outside the partial area is further displayed regardless of the setting of the virtual camera; and

the game program further causes the computer to perform operations of;

designating one of the corresponding images sequentially in accordance with a predetermined order, when a second operation by the player is performed; and

changing the current selected player-controllable character to a non-selected player-controllable character, when the first operation by the player is performed in the state where any one of the corresponding images is designated, and changing the non-selected player-controllable character represented by the designated corresponding image to a newly selected player-controllable character.

6. A computer-readable storage medium according to claim 5, wherein the designated corresponding image is displayed over the image of the game space.

7. A computer-readable storage medium according to claim 5, wherein in the setting a position of the virtual camera, a state image indicating the state of the non-selected player-controllable character represented by the designated corresponding image is displayed together with the designated corresponding image.

8. A computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein:

when causing the operation target selected character to perform a motion, the motion of non-selected player-controllable characters are controlled based on one of a plurality of predetermined motion rules; and

the game program further causes the computer to change the motion rule for a particular non-selected player-controllable character to a predetermined motion rule, when the aiming cursor is made to coincide with the particular non-selected player-controllable character and the player performs a predetermined operation using the controller device.

9. A computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein:

when setting a position of the virtual camera, a list of corresponding images respectively corresponding to the non-selected player-controllable characters including a non-selected player-controllable character outside the partial area is further displayed regardless of the setting of the virtual camera; and

the game program further causes the computer to perform operations of;

designating one of the corresponding images sequentially in accordance with a predetermined order, when a second operation by the player is performed; and

changing a motion rule for a non-selected player-controllable character represented by the designated corresponding image to the predetermined motion rule, when a third operation by the player is performed in the state where any one of the corresponding images is designated.

10. A computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein:

the game program further causes the computer to cause the operation target selected character to perform a predetermined motion in accordance with a motion instruction operation by the player;

the motion instruction operation is identical to an operation performed in changing a designation of a player-controllable character as a selected character to a non-selected player-controllable character; and

when causing a player-controllable operation target selected character to perform a predetermined motion, the selected character performs a predetermined motion under a condition that none of the non-selected player-controllable characters is designated by making a cursor position on the display coincide with the position of the selected character.

11. A computer-readable storage medium having the game program according to claim 1,

wherein the display apparatus displays a cursor within the image of the partial area displayed by the virtual camera and a position of the cursor is moved in response to an operation of the controller device by a player, and

wherein the selection of the player-controllable selected character is received in response to an operation of the controller device by a player which results in making the cursor position on the display coincide with the position of the player-controllable selected character displayed on the display.

12. A game apparatus having a computer and being connected to a display apparatus to display an image of a three-dimensional game space, said game apparatus including a controller device for operating a plurality of player-controllable characters, any one of which can be designated as selected character by a player, and which appear on the display apparatus as seen from a virtual camera positioned within the game space, said game apparatus comprising:

selected character designating programmed logic circuitry configured to automatically designate one of the plurality of player-controllable characters as a player-controllable selected character at a start of a game;

motion control programmed logic circuitry configured to cause a player-controllable selected character to perform a motion in accordance with a motion operation as indicated by the player by operating said controller device, and to cause non-selected player-controllable characters, which are player-controllable characters other than the designated one player-controllable selected character, to autonomously perform a motion based on a predetermined motion rule;

first display control programmed logic circuitry configured to set a position of the virtual camera within the game space in accordance with a position and orientation of the player-controllable selected character and causing the display apparatus to display an image of a partial area of the three-dimensional game space as seen by the virtual camera, and further causing the display apparatus to display a changing view of the game space in accordance with a motion of the player-controllable selected character;

cursor display programmed logic circuitry configured to display an aiming cursor at a center position within the image of the partial area of the three-dimensional game space as seen by the virtual camera;

attack target designation programmed logic circuitry configured to designate a displayed enemy object as an attack target in response to a predetermined operation of the controller device once the aiming cursor position on the display is made to coincide with a position of the displayed enemy object on the display;

player-controllable character designation-change programmed logic circuitry configured to change a designation of a player-controllable character from a player-controllable selected character to a non-selected player-controllable character, and to set a non-selected player-controllable character as a new player-controllable selected character in response to a predetermined operation of the controller device by a player once the aiming cursor position is made to coincide with a position of a non-selected player-controllable character on the display; and

second display control programmed logic circuitry configured to switch the position and orientation of the virtual camera to a new position and orientation associated with the new player-controllable selected character in response to setting said non-selected player-controllable character as the new player-controllable character and thus causing the display apparatus to display a view of a partial area of the three-dimensional game space as seen by the virtual camera from the new position and orientation.