Electronic book game apparatus

• US 9,700,797 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2012
• Issued: 07/11/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Square Enix Co., Ltd. (Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Square Enix Co., Ltd. (Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Itahana, Toshiyuki, Toriyama, Motomu
• Primary Examiner(s): McClellan, James S
• Assistant Examiner(s): Weatherford, Syvila
• Application Number:
  US13/420,990
• Publication Number:
  US 20120244938A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,944 Days
• Field of Search: 434317
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/47 involving branching, e.g. choosing one of several possible scenarios at a given point in time
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/537 using indicators, e.g. showing the condition of a game character on screen
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/60 Generating or modifying game content before or while executing the game program, e.g. authoring tools specially adapted for game development or game-integrated level editor
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/63 by the player, e.g. authoring using a level editor
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/88 Mini-games executed independently while main games are being loaded
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/92 Video game devices specially adapted to be hand-held while playing
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6009 for importing or creating game content, e.g. authoring tools during game development, adapting content to different platforms, use of a scripting language to create content
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6036 for offering a minigame in combination with a main game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/632 by branching, e.g. choosing one of several possible story developments at a given point in time
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/0291 for reading, e.g. e-books constructional details of portable computers G06F1/1613

Abstract

An electronic book apparatus displays an event invitation icon along with the contents of a book wherein the event invitation icon represents an event data that includes text files and/or game data files that relate to the contents of a specified part of the contents of the book. When a player selects the event invitation icon while reading the contents of the book, the apparatus presents the text as shown in the text files or executes a game from the game data files.

Claims

1. An electronic book game apparatus, comprising:

a processor;

a memory that stores book contents as contents data; and

a display having a screen configured to display the contents data and also function as a touch panel,

wherein the book contents are formed by electronically converting contents of one or more paper medium books having at least one of plural frame images and text data,

the contents data includes original contents data that represents the contents of the one or more paper medium books,

the original contents data is obtained by electronically changing the contents of the one or more paper medium books into a format configured to be displayed on the display, so that the contents of the one or more paper medium books are displayed as is,

the contents data further includes;

event data that is comprised of at least one of text files and game data files that relate to one or more events corresponding to contents of one or more specified parts of the original contents data, the one or more events being one of a text presentation event and a game event, the event data not being part of the original contents data; and

an event schedule table that comprises a list of the one or more specified parts and a list of the one or more events corresponding to the one or more specified parts,

the display displays the original contents data in a sequence on the screen according to the book contents, based upon page switching signals that are inputted from the touch panel allowing a player to read the book contents as presented by the original contents data,

the processor determines whether the one or more specified parts listed in the event schedule table is displayed on the screen,

the display displays an event invitation icon on the screen together with an image of the one or more specified parts when the processor determines that the one or more specified parts listed in the event schedule table is displayed on the screen, thus informing the player that there is an event of the one or more events that is selectable by the player, the event invitation icon being displayed to not alter the original contents data, the original contents data being readable on the screen while the event invitation icon is displayed,

the processor, when the event invitation icon is selected, causes at least one of presentation of a text file and execution of a game data file corresponding to the selected event invitation icon,

the one or more paper medium books includes a comic book that is comprised of the plural frame images, the original contents data including the plural frame images and frame numbers assigned to each of the plural frame images as identification data, the one of the text file and the game data file corresponding to the selected event invitation icon being associated with a corresponding frame number in the event schedule table, a procedure for at least one of presenting the text file and executing the game data file corresponding to the selected event invitation icon being set on the corresponding frame number in the event schedule table.

2. The electronic book game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when the selected event invitation icon corresponds to the game data file, the processor interrupts displaying of a frame image displayed on the display and executes the game data file.

3. The electronic book game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more events is one of one or more text presentation events corresponding to the text files and one or more game events corresponding to the game data files.

4. The electronic book game apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the display is configured to display an icon allowing the player to select between a page display mode and a frame image display mode, and

the page display mode displays a book one page at a time and the frame image display mode displays a book one frame image at a time.

5. The electronic book game apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the original contents data has a page image that is a page unit image of the comic book, the page image having one or more of the plural frame images.

6. The electronic book game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display is configured to differently display the event invitation icon depending on whether the event is the text file or the game data file.

7. The electronic book game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the original contents data has a page image that is a page unit image of the comic book, the page image having one or more of the plural frame images.

8. The electronic book game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display displays a next frame image from among two or more of the plural frame images in the sequence according to a play result of the event corresponding to the selected event invitation icon.