JP2002085705A - Game machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a game machine such as a pachinko machine or a pachinko slot machine wherein 'the previous notice expression for a pattern stop having a possibility for the transfer to an advantageous state for a game player' is made more complicated and hard to get tired by the game player by making a proper character from among a plurality of characters having different expectation degrees for the previous notice appear on a normal screen, and at the same time, a room for studying the previous notice of the game machine by the game player is imparted. SOLUTION: During one cycle comprising a pattern variation and a pattern stop, a situation, wherein the possibility for the transfer to the advantageous game state for the game player becomes higher, is previously notified by the combination of characters which appear on the normal screen, and backgrounds or the like.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a pachinko machine and a pachinko machine capable of changing to a state advantageous to a player on the condition that a symbol stop and a symbol stop are repeated, and the symbol stop is a predetermined stop result. It relates to a gaming machine such as a pachislot.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in this type of gaming machine, based on a winning in a starting winning opening or a winning memory thereof,
The variable display game is configured to be played on a display screen of display means (generally, liquid crystal is mainly used) provided on the game board.

[0005] The variable display game includes a symbol variation portion in which a symbol variation and a symbol stop are regarded as one cycle, and a symbol variation portion in which the cycle is sequentially repeated and an effect expression portion in which an effect expression is performed using a background or a character. Is displayed at least, and the game can be changed to a state advantageous to the player on condition that the stop result of the symbol becomes a predetermined stop result.

[0004] In such a game, a notice expression of a symbol stop that shifts to an advantageous state for the player, that is, a specific example of the notice expression is "big hit".
Various proposals have been made regarding reach expression as a notice and "reach" notice. Such a proposal, for example,
JP-A-8-155106, JP-A-3-247373
And JP-A-9-122318 are known.

[0005] Such a conventional "preliminary expression of the symbol stop which may shift to a state advantageous to the player".
As the "big hit" notice and the "reach" notice, in one cycle of symbol fluctuation and symbol stop,
The notice is made by appropriately displaying a character from among a plurality of prepared characters on the display screen in accordance with the expectation (accuracy) of the notice.

[0006]

However, in the conventional notice expression described above, the "big hit" effect screen or the "reach"
Although the player can recognize the expected degree of the notice according to the type of the character appearing on the normal screen excluding the production screen, the player only looks closely at the type of the character appearing on the normal screen. Therefore, there is a problem that the player of the gaming machine easily gets bored.

In the present invention, by displaying characters as appropriate from a plurality of characters having different degrees of notice expectation on the normal screen, "the notice expression of the symbol stop which may shift to a state advantageous to the player" Is made more complicated so that the player does not get tired of the game machine, and a game machine such as a pachinko machine or a pachislot machine which allows the player to study a notice of the game machine is provided.

[0008]

In order to solve the above problems, in the present invention, a plurality of characters are prepared in advance, and a plurality of characters appearing on the normal screen during the one cycle are set. In this manner, the degree of expectation of the notice is changed according to the combination of characters appearing on the normal screen.

That is, for example, when two characters are set to appear (appear) on the normal screen, even if the expectation of the advance notice of one character is low, the expectation of the advance notice of the other character is extremely high. For example, it is possible to notify the player of the expectation of the advance notice that the expectation becomes higher as a whole.

Also, for example, four types of characters A to D are prepared in advance, and the degree of expectation in the case of a combination of A and D is 1
For example, if the combination of A and C is incompatible with each other, the expectation is set to 5%. For example, the expectation for each character is not added as described above. It is also possible to set separately in advance.

[0011] More specifically, "a display means is provided in which the symbol change and the symbol stop are defined as one cycle, and the cycle is sequentially and repeatedly represented, and the display effect of the display means brings the player into an advantageous state. A gaming machine for notifying a player of a possibility of transition or a notice expression to be transferred to the player, wherein the notice expression is provided by a combination of display appearances of a plurality of characters prepared in advance on the display means during the one cycle. And the accuracy of the notice expression is changed by a combination of the plurality of characters. "

[0012]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The notice display expression of a game machine according to the present invention is applicable to a pachinko or pachislot game in a pachinko machine, a home game machine or a business game machine. A case where the present invention is applied to a pachinko machine will be described.

FIG. 1 is a schematic front view of a pachinko machine to which the present invention is applied.

The pachinko machine includes a main body frame 40, a game board 41 incorporated in the main body frame 40, a window frame 42 of the main body frame 40 on the front side of the game board 41,
2, an upper plate 44 and a lower plate 45 are sequentially provided on the front side of the main body frame 40 below the glass window 42 and the lower side of the lower plate 45. On the right side, a firing handle 46 is arranged.

Although not shown, a plurality of obstacle nails (not shown) are driven into the front of the play board 41, not shown.
These days, such nails are not driven,
The gaming board 41 is made of a resin material, and there is also a game board 41 made of a resin material in which a metal rod is planted toward the front side, and a pachinko machine (pachicon machine) having such a configuration is also available. The present invention is also applicable. In this specification, a pachinko machine is a concept that includes the above-mentioned pachicon machine.

The firing handle 46 is provided so that a player can hold the firing handle 46 and can rotate the main body frame 40.
A firing motor 47 is mounted on the back side of 6. Then, when the firing handle 46 is rotated clockwise by the player, power is supplied to the firing motor 47, and the pachinko balls stored in the upper plate 44 are repeatedly fired.

The pachinko balls that have been struck out of the game board 4
It is guided by the rail 41A provided on 1 and moves to the upper part of the game board 41, and thereafter falls toward the lower part of the game board 41 while hitting the plurality of obstacle nails.

A display screen 54, a 7-segment display section 56, a holding lamp 58, a decorative lamp 59, and a shutter 48 serving as a winning port for pachinko balls are provided on the front of the game board 41.

The winning opening 48 is a shutter 48B (big winning opening) which is opened when a big hit state occurs, as described above, and the three-row design displayed on the display screen 54 is changed to a fluctuating state. A winning port 48A provided with a ball detecting means 60 that triggers the game is provided.

When a pachinko ball wins in the winning opening 48, a predetermined number of pachinko balls are paid out to the lower plate 44.

(Description of Function) Next, the function of the pachinko machine according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to a functional block diagram shown in FIG.

This pachinko machine is provided with a ROM as a storage unit 51 storing a control program of the pachinko machine, a RAM as a temporary storage unit 52, and a CPU as a control unit 53 for executing the control program. ing.

The storage unit 51 includes a control program for controlling the flow of the entire game of the pachinko machine, a character image of a plurality of characters displayed on a display screen 54 of a display means using a liquid crystal, a background image, and a variation symbol. Image data, sound data used in a game, or initial data for executing a control program. In a memory area 51A of the storage unit 51, a control program storing a plurality of blinking operation patterns of a plurality of decorative lamps as the light source is stored.

The design data relating to the design described above includes image data of a variable design as shown in FIG. 3, and the character image described above appears on a normal screen displayed on the display screen 54 described later. Main character 4A (see FIG. 4A) and main character 4B
(See FIG. 4B) and image data of passers A to D (not shown).

In this embodiment, the character 4 appearing on the normal screen is two images of the character 4A and the character 4B. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and more characters 4 are stored in advance as the image design data. The information may be stored in the unit 51 and appropriately displayed on the normal screen. Further, the character 4 can also be used as data of a character image to be displayed on a reach effect screen other than the normal screen or a jackpot screen.

In the pachinko machine, the control program has two modes: a high probability mode (first mode) and a low probability mode (second mode) having a lower probability than the high probability mode. In the state of the first mode, the possibility of shifting to a gaming state advantageous to the player as compared with the state of the second mode is set with a high probability,
The control unit 53 switches the two modes as appropriate and proceeds with the game.

The character 4 is displayed on the display screen 54 in the first mode and the second mode.
Both characters A and 4B are used.

Further, when the controller 51 shifts to a reach, a jackpot, or a high probability mode later based on a random number or the like prepared in advance, the control unit 51 assigns a predetermined number assigned to the reach, the jackpot, or the high probability mode. Is read from the memory area 51A, and the plurality of illumination lights 59... 59 are caused to blink according to the control program.

The temporary storage unit 52 temporarily stores new input data and the result of operation by the control unit 53, and stores the display screen 54 by using sensors such as the ball detection means 60.
Are displayed in a scroll manner in the direction of arrow N.

Then, the variable symbol group as shown in FIG. 3 is scrolled on the three columns 1, 2 and 3 and the variable symbol group is scrolled (symbol variation) in the direction of arrow N as shown in FIG. 7,
In any one of 8, the symbols in the three rows 1, 2, and 3 are changed and the symbols are matched to each other as a result of the symbol stop, so that a big hit is achieved. Also, the scrolling variable symbol group is controlled by the control unit 53 so as to stop the symbol with a time difference for each of the columns, and the 6, 7 and
In any one of the rows 8, two variable symbols in three columns 1, 2, and 3 match, and the symbol in the remaining one column has not been stopped yet and the symbol has been determined. The absence state is the reach state.

As described above, a screen in which the changing symbols in the three columns 1, 2, and 3 are scrolled from left to right on the display screen 54 (in the direction of arrow N in FIG. 5), and sequentially stopped after a predetermined time has elapsed. And screen.

The trigger for changing the changing symbol in each of the rows 6, 7, and 8 is that the ball detecting means 60 detects the winning of the pachinko ball into the winning opening 48A (the changing starting opening), and The number of pachinko balls won in the mouth 48A is accumulated and stored under the control of the control unit 53, up to the number of holding lamps 58 described later. Then, the accumulated number of stored balls is notified to the player by the number of lighting of the holding lamp 58. The number of wins to the winning opening 48A is counted by a counter of the control unit 53 and is accumulated and stored in the temporary storage unit 52.

The scroll expression of the moving symbol in the arrow direction N is stopped by a control program prepared in advance under the control of the control unit 53. Then, if the number of remaining storages notified by the holding lamp 58 is present, the next variation (the scroll expression) is started, and if the number of storages is zero, the next pachinko machine is sent to the winning port 48A. After the ball wins and the prize is detected by the ball detecting means 60, the next scroll expression (design change) is started.

In this embodiment, six symbols "9", "5", "1", "11", "7", and "3" shown in FIG. 3 are set as probability variation symbols. When the six symbols match (big hit) in any one of the three rows 1, 2, and 3, in a state where the game is played in the second mode, the control unit 53 sets the The mode is changed from the mode 2 to the first mode. Then, in a state where the game is being played in the first mode, when the determined symbol in the case of the big hit is the probability variation symbol, the first mode is further continued. , The confirmed symbols are normal symbols other than the probability variation symbol “10”, “6”, “2”, “12”, “8”,
If the value is “4”, the control unit 53 controls the setting so as to change the setting from the first mode to the low probability mode of the second mode.

In this embodiment, only two modes are switched. However, a pachinko machine having three or more modes and switching in three or more modes according to a symbol to be determined is provided. Can also.

The control section 53 also functions as a display control section for various image data on the display screen 54, and particularly functions as a control section for symbol display, symbol variation, symbol stop, and symbol combination. In addition, the control unit 53 performs control to appropriately reproduce the sound data in the storage unit 51 as music or voice using a speaker as the sound reproducing unit 55.

The pachinko machine has, besides the above functions, a 7-segment display 56 using LEDs, and a solenoid 5 for driving an openable and closable shutter (to be described later) for winning spheres.
7, a hold lamp 58 indicating the number of effective symbol rotations, and a decoration lamp 59 which blinks or lights up at the time of a big hit or a reach are controlled by the control unit 53.

(Regarding Image Effects by Display Screen 54) The effect of the normal screen in the "traffic control" effect FIG. 5 shows the normal screen in the "traffic control" effect, and in FIG.
, Symbol 2 indicates a second symbol column, and symbol 3 indicates a third symbol column. Reference numeral 4A is a guardman character as the main character 4. In FIG. 5, a male main character 4A is employed as the main character 4, and as another main character 4, a female main character 4B may appear on the normal screen.

In the first symbol row 1, the second symbol row 2, and the third symbol row 3, the respective variable symbols shown in FIG. 3 are arranged in the direction of arrow N in FIG. 3 is used for independent scrolling. That is, in this embodiment, as is clear from FIG. 3, the main one of the symbols is a motif of a vehicle body running on a road, and in FIG. 5, the changing symbol group shown in FIG. The effect is as if the vehicle is running on the road displayed as the background in the direction of the arrow N.

The control unit 53 extracts an image from the storage unit 51 as needed, and the background image 5 representing the streets and roads in FIG. 4, the first to third symbol rows 1, 2, 2,
3 are combined under the control of the control unit 53, the combined image is temporarily stored in the temporary storage unit 52, the combined image data once stored is transferred to the display screen 54, and the combined image is It is displayed on the display screen 54.

Such a synthesizing operation is performed at 1/50 or 1/50.
The first to third symbol columns, which are performed every 60 seconds and are displayed and displayed on the display screen 54, constitute 12
Will be visually recognized by the player of the pachinko machine as if the vehicle were traveling on the road of the background 5. The reason for using the temporary storage unit 52 (so-called VRAM) is to complete the composite image by overwriting the temporary storage unit 52 in pixel units in order from the background surface. The composite image can also be directly displayed on the display screen 54 which is a liquid crystal display without using the temporary storage means 52 by using.

In the above-described "traffic control" effect, as shown in FIG. 5, the guard character 4A has been described as an example of the main character 4, but the guard woman character 4B can be appropriately replaced as the main character. It is.

(Effect of Change of Symbol from Change of Symbol to Stop of Symbol) A display effect of one cycle from change of symbol to stop of symbol on the normal screen will be described with reference to FIG. In the display effects described below, only one cycle (symbol variation to symbol stop) will be described. However, in an actual use state, it goes without saying that the one cycle is sequentially repeated until a big hit occurs. When a jackpot occurs, a jackpot effect image prepared in advance to perform a jackpot effect when the jackpot occurs is produced on the display screen 54.
Moreover, during a display effect of a plurality of cycles up to the jackpot, when a special reach state such as super reach is reached, a reach effect prepared in advance to be displayed on the display screen 54 in the special reach state. Is interrupted in the display effects of the plurality of cycles and displayed on the display screen 54.

In the display effect while the symbol is stopped after the symbol change in one cycle, the normal screen with the main character 4A appearing is changed to the display state of the display screen 54 (FIG. 6).
From (A)), as shown in FIG. 5, a display effect is produced in which the symbol group is scrolled in each row in the direction of arrow N.

FIG. 6B shows a state in which the variable symbols in the columns 1, 2 and 3 are stopped. First, one variable symbol in the variable symbol group scrolled in the column 1 is the stationary action of the character 4A. The effect of stopping the scrolling is performed in accordance with, and subsequently, the effect of stopping the symbols in columns 3 and 2 is performed in a similar effect. The symbol stop effect of FIG. 6B is a diagram showing a state in which the symbol stop of column 3 is effected.

FIG. 5C shows a failure in which the symbol in the row 1 is stopped, and after the symbol in the row 3 is stopped, the symbol does not stop in the state of the normal reach state but in the jackpot state. This shows a state in which a long production is performed. In this figure, the main character 4A produces an effect of being hit by a character imitating a car performing scrolling, thereby producing an effect that the jackpot determination has failed.

Next, the core part of the present invention will be described in that "the possibility of transition to a state advantageous to the player or the notice expression of the symbol stop to transition to is displayed on a normal screen".

FIG. 7 shows a normal screen excluding the reach effect screen and the jackpot effect screen, which is based on a combination of characters appearing on the display screen 54 during one cycle until the symbol change and the symbol stop. It is a figure explaining change of expectation of a notice expression.

That is, when the main character 4A appears, the expected degree of the character 4 is 15%, and when the main character 4B appears, the expected degree of the character 4 is 30%.

Then, during the one cycle, a passer-by appears from the character image of the character prepared beforehand as a passer-by when the passer-A appears 20%, and when the passer-B appears, the expectation is 20%. The degree of expectation is 20%, the degree of expectation is 40% when passer C appears, and the degree of expectation is 40% when passer D appears.

The design stop effect shown in FIG. 6B includes a design stop effect A as a model stop shown in FIG. 6B, a design stop effect A, a design stop effect B, and a design stop effect. C are prepared as video data in the storage unit 51 in advance, and the expectation degree of the symbol stop effect A is 20%, the expectation degree of the symbol stop effect B is 30%, and the expectation degree of the symbol stop effect C is 10%. %.

As described above, by adding up the expectations of the main character, the passerby, and the symbol stop effect which are normally displayed on the screen during one cycle, the player can obtain the symbol at the end of the one cycle. It is possible to predict the degree of expectation as to whether or not the stop will be a “big hit” which is an advantageous state for the player.

For example, during one cycle, the main character 4A (expected degree / 15%) and the passerby C (expected degree / 4)
0%), the jackpot expectation of 55% is reached, and the player's attention is drawn to the display screen 54, and the player's expectation is gathered as to what the next symbol stop effect will be. When the symbol stop effect is the symbol stop effect B, the degree of expectation is 85%.

As described above, the effect of appearance of a character is performed with a time lag during one cycle, so that the degree of expectation of the jackpot changes sequentially, so that it is possible to provide a playability that is difficult for the player to get tired of. it can.

In this embodiment, as the passer-by, in the present embodiment, an elderly character and a passer-
Is an OL character, a passer C is a fighter character, and a passer D is a female fighter. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and any character can be used.

Further, in this embodiment, the degree of expectation is set in advance for each of the main character group and the passerby character group, and a final "big hit" or the like is obtained by adding up the set degrees of expectation. Although the player is informed that the player will transition to a state that is advantageous or likely to transition to the player, it is not necessary to set the degree of expectation for each character, for example, a role such as playing cards poker etc. Of course, like the role of Hanafuda, the degree of expectation can be set for a combination of a plurality of appearing characters themselves. The degree of expectation changes depending on the combination with

[0057]

According to the present invention described above, it is announced in a new manner that the possibility of transition to a gaming state advantageous to a player is increased by a combination of a plurality of appearance characters appearing on a normal screen. Thus, it is possible to provide a gaming machine with more fun by attracting the player's attention to the display means.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic front view of a pachinko machine to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a hardware block diagram of the pachinko machine of FIG.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a variable symbol group.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a main character used on a normal screen.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of a normal screen.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating symbol change to symbol stop on a normal screen.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a change in the degree of expectation according to an appearing character or the like;

[Explanation of symbols]

4 ・ ・ ・ Main character, 5 ・ ・ ・ Background image, 54 ・
.. It is a display screen.

Claims (1)

[Claims] The present invention has a display means in which a symbol change and a symbol stop are regarded as one cycle, and the cycle is sequentially and repeatedly expressed. The display effect of the display means may shift to a state advantageous to a player or A gaming machine for notifying a player of a transitional notice expression, wherein the notice expression is formed by a combination of display appearances of a plurality of characters prepared in advance on the display means during the one cycle. A gaming machine, wherein the accuracy of the notice expression is changed by a combination of the plurality of characters.