Interface-based game-space contest generation

• US 8,831,758 B1
• Filed: 03/20/2013
• Issued: 09/09/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabam (Netmarble Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabam (Netmarble Corporation)
• Inventors: Henrick, Clive, Smalley, Kellen Christopher, Caldarone, Michael C., Chu, Yuexin, Genco, Alex, Curtis, Matthew, Lee, Jason
• Primary Examiner(s): McCulloch, Jr., William H
• Application Number:
  US13/847,981
• Time in Patent Office: 538 Days
• Field of Search: 463/25, 463/31, 463/9, 700 91- 92
• US Class Current: 700/91
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/335 using Internet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/70 Game security or game management aspects
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/79 involving player-related data, e.g. identities, accounts, preferences or play histories
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/798 for assessing skills or for ranking players, e.g. for generating a hall of fame computing the game score A63F13/46
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/85 Providing additional services to players
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/55 Details of game data or player data management
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5546 using player registration data, e.g. identification, account, preferences, game history
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/558 by assessing the players' skills or ranking
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3276 wherein the players compete, e.g. tournament

Abstract

An approach to facilitating interface-based game-space contest generation is provided. A user interface may be provided to an administrator. The user interface may be configured to receive user inputs from the administrator that include one or more performance criteria to be associated with a contest to be provided in a game space, one or more awards to be distributed in association with the contest, and one or more qualifications to participate in the contest. A notification that relates to the contest may be provided, based on the user inputs, in the game space. Performance scores of users that participated in the contest may be determined based on the performance criteria and activities that are performed in the game space by the participating users. Automated distribution of the awards to individual ones of the participating users may be facilitated in accordance with the performance scores of the individual participating users.

Claims

1. A system for facilitating interface-based game-space contest generation, the system comprising:

one or more processors configured to execute computer program modules, the computer program modules comprising;

a template interface module configured to provide a user interface for presentation to an administrator, wherein the user interface is configured to receive user inputs from the administrator that include one or more performance criteria to be associated with a contest to be provided in a realm-building game space, one or more awards to be distributed in association with the contest, wherein the one or more awards include virtual items usable in the game space, and one or more qualifications to participate in the contest, and wherein the realm-building game space is configured to facilitate interaction of users with the realm-building game space and/or each other by performing operations in the game space to achieve one or more realm-building game objectives in response to commands received from the users;

a contest implementation module configured to provide, based on the user inputs, a notification in the game space that relates to the contest;

a performance determination module configured to determine, based on the performance criteria and activities that are performed in the realm-building game space by the users that participated in the contest, performance scores of the participating users, wherein the performance criteria and activities that are performed in the realm-building game space, that contribute to the determination of the performance scores of the participating users in the contest, are the same performance criteria and activities performed by the users when performing operations in the game space to achieve one or more realm-building game objectives; and

an award distribution module configured to automatically distribute the virtual items usable in the game space to individual ones of the participating users in accordance with the performance scores of the individual participating users.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the performance criteria relate to success with respect to the contest.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the success-related performance criteria relate to one or more of resource collection, building possession, combat, rescues, or level progress.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the qualifications include merit-based qualifications associated with the game space earned separately from the contest and prior to the contest period.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the merit-based qualifications relate to one or more of possessed buildings, collected resources, combat history, rescue history, or levels associated with the game space.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the contest implementation module is configured such that the notification indicates one or more of the users that are qualified to participate in the contest based on the qualifications.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the template interface module is configured to store a template that indicates the user inputs, and wherein the contest implementation module is configured to execute the contest in the game space based on the stored template.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the award distribution module is configured such that at least one of the awards is distributed to at least one of the participating users in response to the performance scores of the at least one participating user satisfying one or more performance thresholds.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the award distribution module is configured such that the awards are distributed to the individual participating users based on one or more predetermined intervals of the contest.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the award distribution module is configured such that a first award of the awards is distributed during a first predetermined interval of the predetermined intervals to a first participating user of the participating users in response to the performance scores of the first participating user satisfying a first performance threshold during the first predetermined interval, and such that a second award of the awards is distributed during a second predetermined interval of the predetermined intervals to the first participating user in response to the performance scores of the first participating user satisfying a second performance threshold during the second predetermined interval.

11. A computer-implemented method of facilitating interface-based game-space contest generation, the method being implemented on a computer system that includes one or more physical processors, the method comprising:

Providing a user interface for presentation to an administrator, wherein the user interface is configured to receive user inputs from the administrator that include one or more performance criteria to be associated with a contest to be provided in a realm-building game space executed on a server, one or more awards to be distributed in association with the contest, wherein the one or more awards include virtual items usable in the realm-building game space, and one or more qualifications to participate in the contest, and wherein the realm-building game space is configured to facilitate interaction of users with the realm-building game space and/or each other by performing operations in the realm-building game space to achieve one or more realm-building game objectives in response to commands received from the users;

providing, based on the user inputs, a notification in the game space, executed on one or more client computing platforms, that relates to the contest;

determining, based on the performance criteria and activities that are performed in the realm-building game space by the users that participated in the contest, performance scores of the participating users, wherein the performance criteria and activities that are performed in the realm-building game space, that contribute to the determination of the performance scores of the participating users in the contest, are the same performance criteria and activities performed by the users when performing operations in the game space to achieve one or more realm-building game objectives; and

automatically distributing the virtual items usable in the game space to individual ones of the participating users in accordance with the performance scores of the individual participating users.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the performance criteria relate to success with respect to the contest.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the success-related performance criteria relate to one or more of resource collection, building possession, combat, rescues, or level progress.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the qualifications include merit-based qualifications associated with the game space earned separately from the contest and prior to the contest period.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the merit-based qualifications relate to one or more of possessed buildings, collected resources, combat history, rescue history, or levels associated with the game space.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the notification indicates one or more of the users that are qualified to participate in the contest based on the qualifications.

17. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

storing a template that indicates the user inputs; and

executing the contest in the game space based on the stored template.

18. The method of claim 11, further comprising automatically distributing at least one of the awards to at least one of the participating users in response to the performance scores of the at least one participating user satisfying one or more performance thresholds.

19. The method of claim 11, further comprising, based on one or more predetermined intervals of the contest, automatically distributing the awards to the individual participating users.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

automatically distributing a first award of the awards during a first predetermined interval of the predetermined intervals to a first participating user of the participating users in response to the performance scores of the first participating user satisfying a first performance threshold during the first predetermined interval; and

automatically distributing a second award of the awards during a second predetermined interval of the predetermined intervals to the first participating user in response to the performance scores of the first participating user satisfying a second performance threshold during the second predetermined interval.