Method and system for providing an event space associated with a primary virtual space

• US 9,773,254 B1
• Filed: 02/06/2017
• Issued: 09/26/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabam (Netmarble Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabam (Netmarble Corporation)
• Inventors: Schultz, Stephanie K., Caldarone, Michael C., Go, Ken
• Primary Examiner(s): Yen, Jason
• Application Number:
  US15/425,061
• Time in Patent Office: 232 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/35 Details of game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/75 Enforcing rules, e.g. detecting foul play or generating lists of cheating players
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/79 involving player-related data, e.g. identities, accounts, preferences or play histories
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/407 Data transfer via internet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/535 for monitoring, e.g. of user parameters, terminal parameters, application parameters, network parameters
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5573 player location
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/57 details of game services offered to the player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/575 for trading virtual items
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/60 Methods for processing data by generating or executing the game program
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6036 for offering a minigame in combination with a main game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/609 for unlocking hidden game elements, e.g. features, items, levels
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/807 Role playing or strategy games
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8094 Unusual game types, e.g. virtual cooking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0639 Performance analysis of employees; Performance analysis of enterprise or organisation operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0209 Incentive being awarded or redeemed in connection with the playing of a video game
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3244 Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/326 Game play aspects of gaming systems
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3262 Player actions which determine the course of the game, e.g. selecting a prize to be won, outcome to be achieved, game to be played

Abstract

An approach to facilitate providing an event space associated with a primary virtual space is provided. An event space is provided to users of a primary virtual space, wherein the event space comprises one or more event objectives. Users of the primary virtual space having primary user accounts have associated event space accounts indicating event user parameters, event game parameters, and event inventory information for the first user. The user may be provided with event virtual items for purchase wherein the event virtual items are used in the event space during the event period. In response to a determination of the progress of the user associated with one or more event objectives an event award is determined for distribution to the user, wherein the event award may be used within the primary virtual space.

Claims

1. A system for providing users with an event space associated with a primary virtual space, wherein the users include a first user, wherein the users are associated with client computing platforms, wherein the client computing platforms include a first client computing platform, wherein the client computing platforms are communicatively coupled to one or more networks, and wherein the first client computing platform is associated with the first user, the system comprising:

one or more processors configured to execute machine-readable instructions to;

execute an instance of a primary virtual space;

effectuating transmission of a first set of information over the one or more networks to the client computing platforms to facilitate a first interaction of the users with the primary virtual space and/or each other, wherein the first interaction is performed in response to receiving a first set of commands over the one or more networks from the client computing platforms;

manage accounts of the users that include a first primary user account associated with the first user, wherein the first primary user account includes inventory information that defines virtual items available to the first user in the primary virtual space;

execute an instance of an event space;

effectuating transmission of a second set of information over the one or more networks to the client computing platforms to facilitate a second interaction of the users with the event space and/or each other during an event period, wherein the second interaction is performed in response to receiving a second set of commands over the one or more networks from the client computing platforms, wherein the event space is associated with one or more event objectives;

manage accounts of the users that include a first event user account associated with the first user, wherein the first event user account includes event inventory information that defines event-specific virtual items available to the first user in the event space, wherein the first event user account is associated with the first primary user account, and wherein the event-specific virtual items are different than the virtual items available to the first user in the primary virtual space;

facilitate purchase of an event-specific virtual item that is usable in the event space such that responsive to purchase of the event-specific virtual item by the first user, the event inventory information reflects availability of the event-specific virtual item to the first user in the event space;

determine the progress of the users with respect to the one or more event objectives;

determine event rewards to be awarded to individual ones of the users based on individual progress with respect to the one or more event objectives, wherein the event rewards are usable in the primary virtual space, wherein the event rewards include a first event reward to be awarded to the first user; and

facilitate distribution of the first event reward to the first user such that the inventory information included in the first primary user account is updated to reflect availability of the first event reward to the first user in the primary virtual space; and

effectuate transmission of a third set of information over the one or more networks to the first client computing platform, wherein the third set of information facilitates a presentation of reward information through the first client computing platform to the first user, wherein the presentation indicates availability of the first event reward to the first user in the primary virtual space.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the virtual items available to the first user in the primary virtual space are unavailable to the first user in the event space.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the event-specific virtual items available to the first user in the event space are unavailable to the first user in the primary virtual space.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the event inventory information for the first user reflects removal of the event-specific virtual item in the event space to the first user upon expiration of the event period.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to modify the inventory information for the first user to indicate the availability of the first event reward for use by the first user in the primary virtual space, in response to expiration of the event period.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the event rewards are unavailable for use by the users in the event space.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to facilitate entry and/or selection by an administrator of one or more objectives, one or more event-specific virtual items available to the first user in the event space, and one or more event rewards available for awarding to the individual users based on progress of the individual users with respect to the one or more objectives.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to facilitate selection and/or entry by the administrator of an amount of real-world currency required to be spent on event-specific virtual items before the first user is eligible to receive the one or more event rewards.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to implement the instance of the event space upon an indication that the first user has reached a specified level in the primary virtual space.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to determine a user cost to the first user for individual ones of the event-specific virtual items based upon a purchase history of the first user as indicated in the primary user account for the first user.

11. A method for providing users with an event space associated with a primary virtual space, wherein the users include a first user, wherein the users are associated with client computing platforms, wherein the client computing platforms include a first client computing platform, wherein the client computing platforms are communicatively coupled to one or more networks, and wherein the first client computing platform is associated with the first user, the method being implemented on a computer system that includes one or more physical processors, the method comprising:

executing an instance of a primary virtual space;

effectuating transmission of a first set of information over the one or more networks to the client computing platforms to facilitate a first interaction of the users with the primary virtual space and/or each other, wherein the first interaction is performed in response to receiving a first set of commands over the one or more networks from the client computing platforms;

managing accounts of the users that include a first primary user account associated with the first user, wherein the first primary user account includes inventory information that defines virtual items available to the first user in the primary virtual space;

executing an instance of an event space;

effectuating transmission of a second set of information over the one or more networks to the client computing platforms to facilitate a second interactions of the users with the event space and/or each other during an event period, wherein the second interaction is performed in response to receiving a second set of commands over the one or more networks from the client computing platforms, wherein the event space is associated with one or more event objectives;

managing accounts of the users that includes a first event user account associated with the first user, wherein the first event user account includes event inventory information that defines event-specific virtual items available to the first user in the event space, wherein the first event user account is associated with the first primary user account, and wherein the event-specific virtual items are different than the virtual items available to the first user in the primary virtual space;

facilitating purchase of an event-specific virtual item that is usable in the event space such that responsive to purchase of the event-specific virtual item by the first user, the event inventory information reflects availability of the event-specific virtual item to the first user in the event space;

determining the progress of the users with respect to the one or more event objectives;

determining event rewards to be awarded to individual ones of the users based on individual progress with respect to the one or more event objectives, wherein the event rewards are usable in the primary virtual space, where in the event rewards includes a first event rewards to be awarded to the first user;

facilitating distribution of the first event reward to the first user such that the inventory information included in the first primary account is updated to reflect availability of the first event reward to the first user in the primary virtual space; and

effectuating transmission of a third set of information over the one or more networks to the first client computing platform, wherein the third set of information facilitates a presentation of reward information through the first client computing platform to the first user, wherein the presentation indicates availability of the first event reward to the first user in the primary virtual space.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the virtual items available to the first user in the primary virtual space are unavailable to the first user in the event space.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the event-specific virtual items available to the first user in the event space are unavailable to the first user in the primary virtual space.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the event inventory information for the first user reflects removal of the event-specific virtual item in the event space to the first user upon expiration of the event period.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising modifying the inventory information for the first user to indicate the availability of the first event reward for use by the first user in the primary virtual space, in response to expiration of the event period.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the event rewards are unavailable for use by the users in the event space.

17. The method of claim 11, further comprising facilitating entry and/or selection by an administrator of one or more objectives, one or more event-specific virtual items available to the first user in the event space, and one or more event rewards available for awarding to the individual users based on progress of the individual users with respect to one or more objectives.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising facilitating selection and/or entry by the administrator of an amount of real-world currency required to be spent on event-specific virtual items before the first user is eligible to receive the one or more event rewards.

19. The method of claim 11, further comprising implementing the instance of the event space upon an indication that the first user has reached a specified level in the primary virtual space.

20. The method of claim 11, further comprising determining a user cost to the first user for individual ones of the event-specific virtual items based upon a purchase history of the first user as indicated in the primary user account for the first user.