Companion gaming experience supporting near-real-time gameplay data

• US 9,597,599 B2
• Filed: 06/19/2012
• Issued: 03/21/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/19/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Saretto, Cesare J., Hebenthal, Douglas C., Castaneda, Humberto, Pontier, Kyle A., Harrison, Justin M., Woods, Andrew Everett
• Primary Examiner(s): LIM, SENG HENG
• Application Number:
  US13/527,187
• Publication Number:
  US 20130337916A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,736 Days
• Field of Search: 463/32
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/2145 the surface being also a display device, e.g. touch screens
• 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 13/31 Communication aspects specific to video games, e.g. between several handheld game devices at close range
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/335 using Internet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5378 for displaying an additional top view, e.g. radar screens or maps using two or more virtual cameras concurrently A63F13/5252
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/69 by enabling or updating specific game elements, e.g. unlocking hidden features, items, levels or versions
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/77 involving data related to game devices or game servers, e.g. configuration data, software version or amount of memory
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/847 Cooperative playing, e.g. requiring coordinated actions from several players to achieve a common goal
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/92 Video game devices specially adapted to be hand-held while playing
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/204 the platform being a handheld device
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/301 using an additional display connected to the game console, e.g. on the controller
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5533 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 2300/6036 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

Abstract

A companion gaming experience is associated with a particular game title, but a user interface for the companion gaming experience is generated by a separate program from the associated game title and is presented on a device separate from the device on which the game user interface itself is presented. When an associated game of the video game title is not running, the companion gaming experience presents guide information and/or statistics data for the game title. However, when an associated game of the game title is running, the companion gaming experience presents gameplay data for the game in near-real-time.

Claims

1. A first device comprising:

one or more processors; and

one or more computer-readable storage media having stored thereon multiple instructions of a first program that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to;

present, at the first device when a game is currently being played by running a second program on a second device separate from the first device, the second program being separate from the first program, a first user interface for displaying a companion gaming experience, the first user interface including gameplay data for the game currently being played in near-real-time, the gameplay data including locations of in-game objects or in-game items on a map; and

present, at the first device when the game is not currently being played on the second device, a second user interface for displaying the companion gaming experience, the second user interface including non-gameplay data for the game.

2. A first device as recited in claim 1, the non-gameplay data including statistics information for a user'"'"'s previous playing of the game.

3. A first device as recited in claim 1, the second device comprising a game console, and the first device comprising a tablet computer or wireless phone.

4. A first device as recited in claim 1, the map obtained by translating a 3D game space of the game to a 2D map, the 2D map being a map of one of multiple levels of the game space.

5. A first device as recited in claim 1, the locations of in-game objects or in-game items comprising a 3D game space location of the in-game objects or in-game items being translated to 2D map coordinates using a linear matrix transform.

6. A first device as recited in claim 1, the gameplay data including a location of a user playing the game on the map in which the game is played.

7. A first device as recited in claim 1, the gameplay data including a location of other users on the map in which the game is played.

8. A first device as recited in claim 1, the gameplay data including game status data for the game.

9. A first device as recited in claim 1, the gameplay data including strategy information suggesting how to play the game.

10. A first device as recited in claim 1, the multiple instructions further causing the one or more processors to:

receive, via the first user interface for the companion gaming experience, user input; and

provide, based on the user input, data to the second device to affect the game.

11. A first device as recited in claim 1, the gameplay data being received from an online gaming service and having been filtered, prior to being received by the first device, to remove data that is not to be presented as part of the first user interface for the companion gaming experience.

20. A first device as recited in claim 1, the map obtained by translating the 3D game space of the game comprising a map obtained by capturing overhead images of the 3D game space of the game and using a photo stitching technique to generate the 2D map.

12. A method of providing a companion gaming experience, the method comprising:

presenting via a first program of a first of two devices, a companion gaming experience user interface for a game currently being played via a gaming user interface of a second of the two devices, the companion gaming experience user interface being generated by the first program separate from and communicatively coupled with a second program that generates the gaming user interface;

obtaining, based on near-real-time gameplay data from the game currently being played, the companion gaming experience user interface updated to reflect the near-real-time gameplay data including an updated indication of a location of one or more items in the game; and

presenting, via the first program at the first device, the updated companion gaming experience user interface.

13. A method as recited in claim 12, further comprising receiving user input and providing, based on the user input, data to the second device to affect the game.

14. A method as recited in claim 13, the user input being received from a user playing the game on the second device.

15. A method as recited in claim 12, the gameplay data being received from an online gaming service and having been filtered, prior to being received by the first device, to remove data that is not to be presented as part of the companion gaming experience user interface.

16. A method as recited in claim 12, the obtaining the updated companion gaming experience user interface comprising generating the updated companion gaming experience user interface.

17. A method as recited in claim 12, the companion gaming experience user interface including a portion of a map streamed to the first device, the map obtained by translating a 3D game space of the game to a 2D map.

18. A method as recited in claim 12, the near-real-time gameplay data including:

locations of in-game objects or items on a map in which the game is played;

a location of a user playing the game on the map;

a location of other users on the map; and

game status data for the game.

19. A method of providing a companion gaming experience at a first device, the method comprising:

presenting by a first program, at the first device when a game is currently being played by running a second program on a second device, the first and second devices being separate computing devices and the first and second programs being separate programs, a first user interface for the companion gaming experience, the first user interface including gameplay data for the game currently being played in near-real-time, the gameplay data including both a location of a user playing the game on a map in which the game is played and locations of in-game objects on the map; and

presenting, at the first device when the game is not currently being played on the second device and the second device is powered off, a second user interface for the companion gaming experience, the second user interface including guide information or statistics data for the game, the statistics data including statistics information for the user'"'"'s previous playing of the game.