Game system with interactive show control

• US 9,566,510 B2
• Filed: 04/24/2015
• Issued: 02/14/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Eddie's Social Club, LLC.
• Original Assignee: Eddie's Social Club, LLC.
• Inventors: Schlossberg, Edwin, Harris, Jeremiah
• Primary Examiner(s): McCulloch, Jr., William H
• Assistant Examiner(s): LEICHLITER, CHASE E
• Application Number:
  US14/695,538
• Publication Number:
  US 20150301715A1
• Time in Patent Office: 662 Days
• Field of Search: 446/175, 463/31
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/216 using geographical information, e.g. location of the game device or player using GPS
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/235 using a wireless connection, e.g. infrared or piconet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/25 Output arrangements for video game devices
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/27 characterised by a large display in a public venue, e.g. in a movie theatre, stadium or game arena
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/28 responding to control signals received from the game device for affecting ambient conditions, e.g. for vibrating players' seats, activating scent dispensers or affecting temperature or light controlling the output signals based on the game progress A63F13/50
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/33 using wide area network [WAN] connections
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/35 Details of game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/54 involving acoustic signals, e.g. for simulating revolutions per minute [RPM] dependent engine sounds in a driving game or reverberation against a virtual wall
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/65 automatically by game devices or servers from real world data, e.g. measurement in live racing competition
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/67 adaptively or by learning from player actions, e.g. skill level adjustment or by storing successful combat sequences for re-use
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/795 for finding other players; for building a team; for providing a buddy list
• 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 2300/8023 the game being played by multiple players at a common site, e.g. in an arena, theatre, shopping mall using a large public display
• CPC Class Codes: A63J 11/00 Labyrinths
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 23/0442 activated by means of a sensor, e.g. motion or photodetectors
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 23/045 the sensor receiving a signal from a remote controller
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 23/0471 the sensor detecting the proximity, the presence or the movement of an object or a person
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 23/0478 by means of an image recording device, e.g. a camera
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04812 Interaction techniques based on cursor appearance or behaviour, e.g. being affected by the presence of displayed objects
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures

Abstract

An interactive game system that stage lighting style cues as part of the game, where the stage lighting cues cause external stage lighting equipment to create effects that are based on outputs from the game. Steerable lights can be steered to the player and sounds can be created that are directed to the player. A simulation system can also simulate the actions that occur. The computer assigns teams.

Claims

1. A game system, comprising:

a game computer, running a game by communicating with multiple remote players playing the game by sending and receiving information from computers associated with the multiple remote players,

said game computer sending game events in a way that is guaranteed to be received in the order that the events were dispatched, said game computer preventing further operations related to the event until an acknowledgement of the event is received by the game computer,

and said game computer also sending states as a list of variables that are updated at intervals, and where the game computer does not receive acknowledgements of the states,

where said game events are information that is needed by the game to synchronize properly, and said states are values that change constantly and where a new value of a state replaces an old value of the state,

where a first event sent to a first controller is an initiation event that has information that adds said first controller to said game;

a lighting controller, which produces lighting outputs which control overhead lighting projectors to respectively illuminate different ones of the remote players based on actions programmed into the game computer; and

an audio controller, which controls producing of audio outputs, said audio outputs being programmed to produce audio to a location of a specific player based on actions of the specific player and based on actions that are programmed to occur in the game.

2. The system as in claim 1, wherein said where said initiation event includes a team parameter indicating which of a plurality of multi-player teams the remote player is on and also sends information about the team.

3. The system as in claim 2, wherein one of the events comprises a command to set different a first lighting color for all of first multiple players on a first team, and a second lighting color for all second multiple players on a second team.

4. The system as in claim 1, wherein said where said states are set using a state variable dictionary that is updated by both said game computer and by said first controller.

5. The system as in claim 1, wherein said multiple remote players are communicated with via wireless communications.

6. The system as in claim 1, wherein said intervals are set by a variable integer that represents how many times per second the state updates are synchronized and where said variable integer is changed to set a number of times per second that the state updates are synchronized.

7. The system as in claim 1, wherein said game computer stores locations of credential keys and analytics for the games.

8. The system as in claim 1, wherein one of the events comprises a command to cause the overhead lighting to illuminate an individual remote player for a specified duration of time and to stop illuminating the individual remote player after the specified duration of time.

9. The system as in claim 1, wherein one of the events comprises a command to move the position in which the lighting is pointing in a specified pattern, as part of the game.

10. A computer system for interfacing with a game system, comprising:

a computer, playing in the game by sending and receiving information from a main computer that is running the game;

said computer receiving game events in a way that is guaranteed to be received in the order that the events were dispatched, said computer preventing further operations related to the event until an acknowledgement of the event is received by the computer,

and said computer also receiving and updating states as a list of variables that are updated at intervals,

where said game events are information that is needed by the game to synchronize properly,

and where said states are values that change based on actions of the computer in the game,

where a first event received by said computer is an initiation event that has information that adds said computer to said game along with other computers and takes no action to add said computer to the game until receiving an acknowledgement,

and where said computer updates said states during playing of the game without receiving acknowledgement.

11. The system as in claim 10, wherein said initiation event includes a team parameter indicating on which of a plurality of multiple player teams the computer will play, and also includes information about the team.

12. The system as in claim 10, wherein said where said states are stored and sent using a state variable dictionary that is updated by both said computer and by said game system.

13. The system as in claim 10, further comprising communicating with the game system via wireless communications.

14. The system as in claim 10, wherein said intervals are set by a variable integer that represents how many times per second the state updates are synchronized.

15. The system as in claim 10, further comprising a lighting controller, which produces lighting outputs which control overhead lighting projectors to respectively illuminate different ones of the remote players based on actions programmed into the computer;

and

an audio controller, which controls producing of audio outputs, said audio outputs being programmed to produce audio to a location of a specific player based on actions of the specific player and based on actions that are programmed to occur in the computer.

16. A method of operating a game on a game computer, comprising:

running a game on the game computer, by communicating with multiple remote players playing the game by sending and receiving information from computers associated with the multiple remote players,

said running comprising sending game events in a way that is guaranteed to be received in the order that the events were dispatched, said running preventing further operations related to the event until an acknowledgement of the event is received,

and said running also comprising sending states as a list of variables that are updated at intervals, and where the game computer does not receive acknowledgements of the states,

where said game events are information that is needed by the game to synchronize properly, and said states are values that change constantly and a new value replaces an old value,

sending a first event to a first controller as an initiation event that has information that adds said first controller to said game;

produces lighting outputs which control overhead lighting projectors to respectively illuminate different ones of the remote players based on actions programmed into the game computer as part of the game; and

producing audio outputs to a location of a specific player based on actions of the specific player and based on actions that are programmed to occur in the game.

17. The method as in claim 16, wherein said where said initiation event includes a team parameter indicating which of a plurality of multi-player teams the remote player is on and also sends information about the team.

18. The method as in claim 17, wherein one of the events comprises a command to set a first lighting color for all of first multiple players on a first team, and a second lighting color for all second multiple players on a second team.

19. The method as in claim 16, wherein one of the events comprises a command to cause the overhead lighting to illuminate an individual remote player for a specified duration of time and to stop illuminating the individual remote player after the specified duration of time.

20. The method as in claim 16, wherein one of the events comprises a command to move position in which the lighting is pointing in a specified pattern, as part of the game.