Game device, computer control method, and computer-readable information storage medium

• US 7,597,622 B2
• Filed: 03/24/2005
• Issued: 10/06/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Konami Digital Entertainment Company Limited (Konami Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Konami Digital Entertainment Company Limited (Konami Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Takase, Yasumi
• Primary Examiner(s): Hotaling; John M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hylinski; Steven J.
• Application Number:
  US11/087,580
• Publication Number:
  US 20050221892A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,657 Days
• Field of Search: 463/1, 463 4- 8, 463 30- 33, 463/40, 463/42, 345/619, 345/629, 345/630, 345/632, 345/634, 345/646
• US Class Current: 463/33
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/10 Control of the course of the game, e.g. start, progess, end
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/213 comprising photodetecting means, e.g. cameras, photodiodes or infrared cells A63F13/219, A63F13/655 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/45 Controlling the progress of the video game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/655 by importing photos, e.g. of the player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1012 involving biosensors worn by the player, e.g. for measuring heart beat, limb activity
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1093 using visible light
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/695 Imported photos, e.g. of the player

Abstract

A game device including a player image acquisition section 50 for receiving an image of a player from image capture means in charge of image capturing of the player, a game processing section 54 for executing various types of games, and in each of the games, outputting and displaying a game image as a combination result of the image of the player captured by the image capture means and a basic game image corresponding to the game, and a reference image generation section 58 for generating a plurality of reference game images by combining the image of the player captured by the image capture means and each of a plurality of reference basic game images corresponding to at least a part of the games, and outputting and displaying a reference image including the reference game images. With such a game device, the player is helped to understand play requirements relating to image capturing by the image capture means on a game basis.

Claims

1. A game device, comprising:

image capture means for capturing images of a player in real time at predetermined intervals;

reference game image generation means for generating a plurality of reference game images for each of various available games by combining, at the predetermined real time intervals, the captured images of the player with reference basic game images which correspond to at least a part of each of the various available games;

reference image output means for outputting and displaying a reference image comprising a simultaneous display of a specified number of the plurality of reference game images, each reference game image corresponding to one of the various available games, as a preview image to aid in game selection;

specification means for specifying one of the plurality of reference game images included in the reference image; and

game execution means for executing the various available games, and for each of the various available games, outputting and displaying a game image as a combination of the captured image of the player and a basic game image corresponding to the game,

wherein the game execution means executes one of the various available games corresponding to the specified reference game image,

the reference basic game image is generated based on a basic game image, and

the reference game image generation means includes reference basic game image storage means for storing the generated reference basic game images, and combines the captured image of the player and the reference basic game images stored in the reference basic game image storage means.

2. The game device according to claim 1, wherein

the game execution means includes means for sequentially generating the basic game image by two-dimensional or three-dimensional image processing, and

in the reference basic game image storage means, at least one of the basic game images to be sequentially generated by the generation means is generated in advance, and stored as the reference basic game image.

3. The game device according to any one of claim 1, wherein the image capture means captures moving images of the player.

4. A computer control method, comprising:

capturing an images of a player in real time at predetermined intervals;

generating a plurality of reference game images for each of various available games by combining, at the predetermined real time intervals, the captured images of the player with reference basic game images which correspond to at least a part of each of the various available games;

outputting and displaying a reference image comprising a simultaneous display of a specified number of the plurality of reference game images, each reference game image corresponding to one of the various available games, as a preview image to aid in game selection;

specifying one of the plurality of reference game images included in the reference image; and

executing a game selected from the various available games, and for each of the various available games, outputting and displaying a game image as a combination of the captured image of the player and a basic game image corresponding to the game,

wherein one of the various available games corresponding to the specified reference game image is executed,

the reference basic game image is generated based on a basic game image,

the generated reference basic game images are stored, and

the captured image of the player is combined with the stored reference basic game images.

5. A computer-readable information storage medium storing a program for activating a computer, the program operating as:

reference game image generation means for generating a plurality of reference game images for each of various available games by combining, in real time at predetermined intervals, images of a player captured at the predetermined real time intervals by image capture means with reference basic game images which correspond to at least a part of each of the various available games;

reference image output means for outputting and displaying a reference image comprising a simultaneous display of a specified number of the plurality of reference game images, each reference game image corresponding to one of the various available games, as a preview image to aid in game selection;

specification means for specifying one of the plurality of reference game images included in the reference image; and

game execution means for executing the various available games, and for each of the various available games, outputting and displaying a game image as a combination of the captured image of the player and a basic game image corresponding to the game;

wherein the game execution means executes one of the various available games corresponding to the specified reference game image,

the reference basic game image is generated based on a basic game image, and

the reference game image generation means includes reference basic game image storage means for storing the generated reference basic game images, and combines the captured image of the player and the reference basic game images stored in the reference basic game image storage means.