Automatic movement of a game character in a protected state

• US 9,364,758 B2
• Filed: 03/10/2014
• Issued: 06/14/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: Miyama, Satoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Rowland, Steve
• Application Number:
  US14/202,515
• Publication Number:
  US 20150099581A1
• Time in Patent Office: 827 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/56 Computing the motion of game characters with respect to other game characters, game objects or elements of the game scene, e.g. for simulating the behaviour of a group of virtual soldiers or for path finding
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/58 by computing conditions of game characters, e.g. stamina, strength, motivation or energy level

Abstract

An information processing device is configured to execute: setting a protective state for protecting a character from a danger in a game; setting a moving direction of the character in the protective state to a predetermined direction; detecting that the character in the protective state is overlapping with an obstacle in a virtual world; and correcting the moving direction that has been set by the action setting when the obstacle is detected.

Claims

1. A computer-readable non-transitory medium storing a game program for causing a computer of a game machine that includes a memory device to execute:

responsive to reception of an electrical signal generated by a sensor in an input device controlled by a user, performing game processing including movement of one or a plurality of characters in a virtual world;

setting a protective state for protecting at least one character from a danger in a game when predetermined conditions stored in the memory device are satisfied;

setting a moving direction of the character in the protective state to a predetermined direction;

programmatically comparing the position of the character in the protective state against the position of objects stored in the memory device which obstruct the movement of the character in the protective state;

in response to detecting that the character in the protective state is overlapping with an object which obstructs the movement in the virtual world, triggering correcting the moving direction which has been set by the moving direction setting when the detecting detects in response to detecting that the character in the protective state is overlapping with an object which obstructs the movement in the virtual world, triggering correcting the moving direction which has been set by the moving direction setting when the detecting detects an obstacle state, wherein

when the obstacle state is detected, the correcting corrects the moving direction, which has been set by the moving direction setting, on the basis of a direction to cancel the detected overlapping with an obstacle-object, and wherein

when the obstacle state is detected, the correcting corrects the moving direction, which has been set by the moving direction setting, on the basis of a normal line direction of a boundary surface of the detected obstacle-object.

2. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the game program according to claim 1, wherein

the correcting involves correcting the moving direction, which has been set by the moving direction setting, on the basis of a direction in which the overlapping with the obstacle-object can be cancelled in the shortest time.

3. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the game program according to claim 1, wherein

the correcting involves correcting the moving direction, which has been set by the moving direction setting, on the basis of a direction toward a position closest to a current position of the character in the protective state, out of positions where the overlapping with the obstacle-object is cancelled.

4. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the game program according to claim 1, wherein

the game processing includes movement of a plurality of characters, and

the moving direction setting involves setting the moving direction of the character in the protective state to a direction based on a position of any one of the plurality of characters other than the character in the protective state.

5. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the game program according to claim 1, wherein

the computer further executes notifying a player that the character is in the protective state, and the content of the notifying is different between when the obstacle detecting is executing detection and when the obstacle detecting is not executing detection.

6. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the game program according to claim 5, wherein

the notifying involves notifying the player of the protective state by attaching a predetermined effect to the display of the character, such that an effect which makes it difficult to visually recognize the character is attached while the obstacle detecting is executing detection, and an effect which makes it easy to visually recognize the character is attached while the obstacle detecting is not executing detection.

7. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the game program according to claim 6, wherein

the notifying involves notifying the player of the protective state by attaching a predetermined effect to the display of the character, such that an effect which makes the character less transparent is attached while the obstacle detecting is executing detection, and an effect which makes the character more transparent is attached while the obstacle detecting is not executing detection.

8. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the game program according to claim 7, wherein

the notifying involves notifying the player of the protective state by attaching, to the display of the characters, an effect of mutually different colors set in advance for the respective characters.

9. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the game program according to claim 1, wherein

the computer is caused to further execute:

cancelling the protective state; and

limiting cancellation of the protective state by the cancelling while the obstacle detecting is executing detection.

10. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the game program according to claim 9, wherein

the cancelling involves cancelling the protective state when a cancellation operation by a player is detected.

11. The computer-readable non-transitory medium storing the game program according to claim 1, wherein

the protective state setting involves setting the protective state for the character when a protective operation by a player is detected.

12. A game system, comprising a memory device and at least one processor, the processor is configured to execute:

responsive to reception of an electrical signal generated by a sensor in an input device controlled by a user, performing game processing including movement of one or a plurality of characters in a virtual world;

setting a protective state for protecting at least one character from a danger in a game when predetermined conditions stored in the memory device are satisfied;

setting a moving direction of the character in the protective state to a predetermined direction;

programmatically comparing the position of the character in the protective state against the position of objects stored in the memory device which obstruct the movement of the character in the protective state;

in response to detecting that the character in the protective state is overlapping with an object which obstructs the movement in the virtual world, triggering correcting the moving direction which has been set by the moving direction setting when the detecting detects an obstacle state, wherein

when the obstacle state is detected, the correcting corrects the set moving direction, on the basis of a direction to cancel the detected overlapping with an obstacle-object, and wherein

when the obstacle state is detected, the correcting corrects the set moving direction, on the basis of a normal line direction of a boundary surface of the detected obstacle-object.

13. A game processing method for a computer of a game machine that includes a memory device to execute:

responsive to reception of an electrical signal generated by a sensor in an input device controlled by a user, performing game processing including movement of one or a plurality of characters in a virtual world;

setting a protective state for protecting at least one character from a danger in a game when predetermined conditions stored in the memory device are satisfied;

setting a moving direction of the character in the protective state to a predetermined direction;

programmatically comparing the position of the character in the protective state against the position of objects stored in the memory device which obstruct the movement of the character in the protective state;

in response to detecting that the character in the protective state is overlapping with an object which obstructs the movement in the virtual world, triggering correcting the moving direction which has been set in the moving direction setting when an obstacle state is detected in the detecting, wherein

when the obstacle state is detected, the correcting corrects the set moving direction, on the basis of a direction to cancel the detected overlapping with an obstacle-object, and wherein

when the obstacle state is detected, the correcting corrects the set moving direction, on the basis of a normal line direction of a boundary surface of the detected obstacle-object.

14. A game machine that includes a memory device and a computer, configured to execute:

responsive to reception of an electrical signal generated by a sensor in an input device controlled by a user, performing game processing including movement of one or a plurality of characters in a virtual world;

setting a protective state for protecting at least one character from a danger in a game when predetermined conditions stored in the memory device are satisfied;

setting a moving direction of the character in the protective state to a predetermined direction;

programmatically comparing the position of the character in the protective state against the position of objects stored in the memory device which obstruct the movement of the character in the protective state;

in response to detecting that the character in the protective state is overlapping with an object which obstructs the movement in the virtual world, triggering correcting the moving direction which has been set by the moving direction setting when the detecting detects an obstacle state, wherein

when the obstacle state is detected, the correcting corrects the set moving direction, on the basis of a direction to cancel the detected overlapping with an obstacle-object, and wherein

when the obstacle state is detected, the correcting corrects the set moving direction, on the basis of a normal line direction of a boundary surface of the detected obstacle-object.