System and method for displaying a game using a primary display and communicating alliance information among alliance members using a secondary display

• US 9,555,327 B1
• Filed: 01/07/2016
• Issued: 01/31/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/14/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Electronic Arts Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Kabam (Netmarble Corporation)
• Inventors: Harrington, Clifford J., Wakeford, Kent
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuff, Michael
• Application Number:
  US14/990,688
• Time in Patent Office: 390 Days
• Field of Search: 463/42, 700/94
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/26 having at least one additional display device, e.g. on the game controller or outside a game booth
• 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 13/795 for finding other players; for building a team; for providing a buddy list
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/301 using an additional display connected to the game console, e.g. on the controller
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/408 Peer to peer connection
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5533 using program state or machine event data, e.g. server keeps track of the state of multiple players on in a multiple player game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/556 Player lists, e.g. online players, buddy list, black list
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6045 for mapping control signals received from the input arrangement into game commands
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3218 wherein at least part of the system is portable
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/323 wherein the player is informed, e.g. advertisements, odds, instructions
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3274 wherein the players cooperate, e.g. team-play
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3281 wherein game attributes are transferred between players, e.g. points, weapons, avatars

Abstract

The disclosure relates to systems and methods for communicating a primary display comprising information that facilitates visual presentation of a view of a game space to a primary client device and facilitating communication of alliance information among members of an alliance through a secondary client device such as a user'"'"'s smartphone. The system may include a game device that allows a user to play a video game or otherwise interact with a virtual environment, and send or receive alliance information using the primary client device and send or receive alliance information using a secondary client device while playing the video game using the primary client device. The primary client device or the secondary client device may also be used to control actions taken by the alliance. Thus, alliance control may be facilitated using either or both of the primary client device and the secondary client device.

Claims

1. A multi-user game computing system that communicates alliance information during the game to mobile devices associated with alliance members, the system comprising:

one or more physical computer processors configured by machine-readable instructions to;

determine and effectuate presentation of a view of a game space on a primary client device, the view forming a multi-user graphical user interface through which multiple users present at the primary client device input game commands for concomitant gameplay by the multiple users of a multi-user game within the game space;

obtain alliance information that describes an alliance having multiple alliance members;

identify respective mobile devices of the alliance members participating in gameplay through the multi-user graphical user interface presented on the primary client device;

communicate the alliance information to the respective mobile devices of the alliance members for presentation to the alliance members on the respective mobile devices; and

classify alliance information such that at least some of the alliance information is accessible by only a subset of the alliance members.

2. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured by machine-readable instructions to form the alliance based on identifications of respective users that are to form the alliance and assign different ones of the alliance members with respective roles in the alliance.

3. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured by machine-readable instructions to classify alliance information into one or more categories individually associated with a level of security such that at least some categories of alliance information are accessible by only a subset of the alliance members.

4. The computing system of claim 3, wherein the one or more processors are configured by machine-readable instructions to:

form the alliance based on identifications of respective users that form the alliance and assign different ones of the alliance members with respective roles in the alliance, wherein an individual role is used to identify at least one category of alliance information for which the role has access.

5. The computing system of claim 4, wherein the obtained alliance information comprises a general communication and a specific communication, wherein the general communication is directed to all of the alliance members and is communicated to respective mobile devices of all of the alliance members.

6. The computing system of claim 4, wherein the obtained alliance information is accessible by only the subset of the alliance members, wherein appropriate ones of alliance members includes only the subset of the alliance members, wherein the the obtained alliance information is communicated to respective mobile devices of the subset of the alliance members.

7. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured by machine-readable instructions such that at least some of the alliance information is included on at least a portion of the multi-user graphical user interface presented on the primary client device.

8. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured by machine-readable instructions to provide user-specific information along with the alliance information to the respective mobile devices of the alliance members for presentation to the alliance members on the respective mobile devices.

9. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the alliance information comprises a general communication and a specific communication, wherein the general communication is directed to all of the alliance members and is communicated to the respective mobile devices of all of the alliance members.

10. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the specific communication is directed to only the subset of the alliance members, and is communicated to the respective mobile devices of only the subset of the plurality of alliance members.

11. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured by machine-readable instructions to receive one or more game control commands from the secondary client devices and cause actions within the game corresponding to the received one or more game control commands.

12. A computer-implemented method for communicating alliance information during a game to mobile devices associated with alliance members, the method being implemented in a computer that includes one or more processors configured by machine-readable instructions, the method comprising:

determining and effectuating, by the one or more processors, presentation of a view of a game space on a primary client device, the view forming a multi-user graphical user interface through which multiple users present at the primary client device input game commands for concomitant gameplay by the multiple users of a multi-user game within the game space;

obtaining, by the one or more processors, alliance information that describes an alliance having multiple alliance members;

identifying, by the one or more processors, respective mobile devices of the alliance members participating in gameplay through the multi-user graphical user interface presented on the primary client device; and

communicating, by the one or more processors, the alliance information to the respective mobile devices of the alliance members for presentation to the alliance members; and

classifying, by the one or more processors, alliance information such that at least some of the alliance information is accessible by only a subset of the alliance members.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 12, the method further comprising:

forming, by the one or more processors, the alliance based on identifications of respective users that are to form the alliance and assigning, by the one or more processors, different ones of the alliance members with respective roles in the alliance.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 12, the method further comprising:

classifying, by the one or more processors, alliance information into one or more categories individually associated with a level of security such that at least some categories of alliance information are accessible by only a subset of the alliance members.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, the method further comprising:

forming, by the one or more processors, the alliance based on identifications of respective users that form the alliance and assigning, by the one or more processors, different ones of the plurality of alliance members with respective roles in the alliance, wherein an individual role is used to identify at least one category of alliance information for which the role has access.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the obtained alliance information comprises a general communication and a specific communication, wherein the general communication is directed to all of the alliance members and is communicated to respective mobile devices of all of the alliance members.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the obtained alliance information is accessible by only the subset of the alliance members, wherein appropriate ones of the alliance members includes only the subset of the alliance members, wherein communicating the obtained alliance information comprises communicating the obtained alliance information to the respective mobile devices of the subset of the alliance members.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 12, wherein at least some of the alliance information is included on at least a portion of the multi-user graphical user interface presented on the primary client device.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 12, the method further comprising:

providing, by the one or more processors, user-specific information along with the alliance information to the respective mobile devices of the alliance members for presentation on the respective mobile devices of the appropriate ones of the alliance members.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 12, wherein the alliance information comprises a general communication and a specific communication, wherein the general communication is directed to all of the alliance members, wherein communicating the alliance information further comprises:

communicating, by the one or more processors, the general communication to the respective mobile devices of all of the plurality of alliance members.

21. The computer-implemented method of claim 12, wherein the specific communication is directed to only the subset of the alliance members, where communicating the alliance information further comprises:

communicating, by the one or more processors, the specific communication to the respective mobile devices of only the subset of the alliance members.

22. The computer-implemented method of claim 12, the method further comprising:

receiving, by the one or more processors, one or more game control commands from the secondary client devices; and

causing, by, actions within the game corresponding to the received one or more game control commands.