Method for providing location information of game character by operating with messenger server and systems thereof

• US 8,043,159 B2
• Filed: 05/06/2005
• Issued: 10/25/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/06/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NHN Entertainment Corporation
• Original Assignee: NHN Corporation
• Inventors: Bae, Soo Na, Kim, Hyo Joon
• Primary Examiner(s): Vo; Peter DungBa
• Assistant Examiner(s): Rowland; Steve
• Application Number:
  US11/568,341
• Publication Number:
  US 20070226307A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,363 Days
• Field of Search: 463 30- 40, 463/42
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3223 Architectural aspects of a gaming system, e.g. internal configuration, master/slave, wireless communication

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method and an online game system for providing position information of a game character in an online game, and more particularly, to a method and an online game system for providing position information of a game character in an online game by interworking with a predetermined messenger server.

Claims

1. A method using a processor, the method comprising:

receiving a request for position information of a plurality of game characters corresponding to one or more game players using a game server comprising the processor via a network, the game players comprising a first player corresponding to a first client messenger of a first user terminal and a second payer corresponding to a second client messenger of a second user terminal, the request requested by the first user terminal with respect to a position information of the game characters corresponding to the second user, wherein a memory of a server, coupled to the processor, is configured to store the position information;

transmitting the request to the second client messenger, wherein the first client messenger and the second client messenger are coupled to an instant messenger server via the network;

receiving the position information of the characters corresponding to the second user via the second client messenger the position information comprising at least one of text data, map data, or text data and map data; and

determining whether the received position information is text data or graphical data, wherein the position information is outputted according to the determination.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether the second user accesses the instant messaging server via a messenger client; and

transmitting the request for the position information of the characters corresponding to the second user to a messenger client of the second user according to the determination.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the instant messaging server and the game server are coupled to a map database which stores static data associated with a multi-player game, and the instant messaging server fetches dynamic data associated with the multi-player game from the game server in order to synchronize data of the instant messaging server with data of the game server.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

determining whether a search permit flag for the position information of the characters corresponding to second user is set up with reference to a database of the instant messaging server; and

transmitting a search impossibility message in response to detection of the search permit flag not being set up.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting the request from a messenger client of the second user to a game module of the second user;

searching for the position information; and

transmitting the position information searched from the game module of the second user.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether a response corresponding to the request is a text form or a graphic user interface form;

searching whether a predetermined map data being stored in a memory of the first user terminal in receipt of the position information of the map data associated with a graphic user interface form, wherein a request for the map data is transmitted to a messenger client and

the position information of the map data transmitted from the messenger client of the first user is outputted according to the determination.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the step of determining further comprises whether the response corresponding to the request is a text form or a map data form which is associated with the graphic user interface form, the text form or the map data form being outputted by the game module of the first user according to a selection by the first user.

14. The method of claim 2, wherein the messenger client of the second user receives the position information of the character corresponding to the second user from a game module of the second user.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

controlling the position information of the second user by a messenger client of the first user.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein outputting further comprises

determining, by the processor, whether the user terminal is capable of displaying map data, wherein one of the text data, the map data or the text data and the map data is outputted to the user terminal via the instant messaging according to the determination.

8. A method using a processor for providing position information of a character on a virtual multi-player game space, the method comprising:

providing a game module coupled to the processor to execute an online multi-player game and providing

a messenger client to communicate among users comprising a first user and a second user;

transmitting from the first user a signal requesting position information of a character corresponding to the second user;

receiving a response corresponding to the request from a messenger client of the second user, the response comprising position information of the character corresponding to the second user, the position information comprising at least one of text data, map data, or text data and map data; and

determining, by the processor, whether a terminal of the first user is capable of displaying map data, wherein one of the position information of the character corresponding to the second user is selectively outputted to a terminal of the first user according to the determination.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

searching base point coordinate information with respect to at least one zone area, radius information of the base point, or topographical information comprising name information of the zone area, wherein the position information of the character comprises position coordinate information of the character corresponding to the second user;

transmitting a request for the topography information to the messenger client in response to detection of the topography information not being stored;

receiving the topography information from the messenger client;

measuring a distance between the position coordinate information and the base point coordinate information;

selecting a distance shorter than the radius information corresponding to the base point coordinate information, of at least one of the measured distances; and

displaying the name information of the zone area corresponding to the selected distance of the terminal of the first user.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising a computer executable program, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the following steps:

receiving a request of position information of a plurality of game characters corresponding to one or more game players using a game server via a network, the game players comprising a first player corresponding to a first user terminal and a second payer corresponding to a second user terminal, the request requested by the first user terminal with respect to a position information of the characters corresponding to the second user, wherein a memory of a server is configured to store the position information;

transmitting the request to the second user terminal using an instant messenger server associated with an instant messaging system via the network;

receiving the position information of the game characters corresponding to the second user via the instant messaging, the position information comprising at least one of text data, map data or text data and map data of the characters corresponding to the second user; and

determining, by the processor, whether the first user terminal is capable of displaying map data, wherein one of the text data, the map data, or the text data and the map data is outputted to the second user terminal according to the determination.

11. A game system for providing position information of a character associated with game space, the system comprising:

a messenger server configured to receive a request for position information of a character corresponding to one or more users, the users comprising a first user and a second user, wherein the request is requested by the second user from a messenger client of the first user via a network and the messenger server is further configured to transmit a response received from a messenger client of the second user to a messenger client of the first user, the response comprising position information of the character corresponding to the second user, wherein the first user and the second user play a multi-player game;

a map database configured to store static data for providing the online game service; and

a game server configured to control the multi-player game via the network and to transmit dynamic data to the messenger server to synchronize the dynamic data,

wherein the messenger client of the first user is configured to control the character position information received from the messenger server and to display the character position information corresponding to the second user, the character position information comprising at least one of text data, map data, or text data and map data,

wherein it is determined whether the character information is text data or graphical data,

and wherein the character position information is displayed according to a determination of whether the character information is the text data or graphical data.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein

the game server comprises a login server configured to manage the access of the user and a zone server configured to maintain information of a zone;

and

the login server transmits an access information to the messenger server, and the messenger server transmits access information with respect to the accessing user to the messenger client of the second user.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein

the messenger server further comprises a database in which identifier information with respect to the user and a search permit flag set up by the user is recorded;

and

if the request for position information of the character corresponding to the second user is received from the messenger client of the first user, the messenger server searches the search acceptance flag set up by the second user with reference to the database, and if the search acceptance flag is not set up or the second user does not access the game server, the messenger server transmits a search impossibility message to the messenger client of the first user.

16. A method using a processor for providing position information of a character of a virtual multi-player game space corresponding to a plurality of users comprising a first user and a second user, the method comprising:

receiving, via a network, from a messenger client of the first user a request for position information of a character corresponding to the second user, wherein a memory of a game server is configured to store position information of the game space corresponding to the respective users;

transmitting a query for the request to a messenger client of the second user using an instant messaging system via the network; and

outputting, caused by the processor, a response corresponding to the query from the messenger client of the second user, the response comprising position information of the character comprising at least one of text data, map data, or text data and map data corresponding to the second user,

the outputting comprising;

determining whether the position information is text data or graphical data; and

outputting the position information according to a determination of whether the position information is the text data or graphical data.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the messenger client of the second user receives the position information of the character corresponding to the second user transmitted from a game module of the second user.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the messenger client of the first user controls the position information transmitted from the messenger client of the second user.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein transmitting further comprises

determining whether the messenger client of the second user accesses the instant messaging server via a messenger client, and

transmitting the query for the request to the messenger client of the second user in response to detection of the second user to access the game server.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein

the messenger client of the second user transmits the query to a game module of the second user, and

the game module of the second user searches position information with reference to a terminal storage of the second user and transmits the position information corresponding to the query.

21. A system, comprising:

a server comprising a processor configured to provide an online game via a network, wherein

at least two nodes within the network are provided, each node comprising a messenger client, caused by the processor, configured to send instant messages and position information of a game character corresponding to one or more users, the position information comprising at least one of text data, map data or text data and map data, and wherein the processor is configured to route instant messages and the position information via the messenger client between the two nodes, wherein the server determines whether one of the nodes is capable of displaying map data, wherein one of the text data, the map data, or the text data and the map data is outputted to the node via the messenger client according to the determination.