JP2003190624A - Game device, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a game device which can delete sounds without spoiling the actually attending feeling by sound effects, and can reduce the load of a computer. <P>SOLUTION: Whether a moving element which moves on a virtual coordinate system during a game is as single unit sound moving element which emits sounds by a single unit sound, or a multiple unit sound moving element which emits sounds by a multiple unit sound is determined. As the single unit sound, individual sound effects for individual moving elements wherein one sound is set for one moving element can be adopted. Also, as the multiple unit sound, sound effects wherein one sound is set for a plurality of aggregates of a plurality of moving elements, and the plurality of moving bodies are collected can be adopted. Then, when it is determined that the moving element is the single unit sound moving element, sound effects are reproduce for one moving element each. Also, when it is determined that the moving elements is the multiple unit sound moving element, sound effects are collectively reproduced as the aggregate of the plurality of moving elements. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a game device and a program capable of reducing the load on a computer, for example, in a sound effect of a horse racing game without reducing the sense of presence.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a live condition of a race of a horse racing game, all sound effects of an object within a sound reproducing range are individually reproduced. Specifically, for a horse displayed on the screen, no matter how quiet the running sound of the horse was, the running sounds of the horse were all reproduced individually. That is, when there are 10 horses displayed on the screen, the sound effect reproduction process is performed by retaining 10 sounds regardless of the volume of the running sound. As another method, the running sounds of all horses are collected and reproduced as one running sound.

[0003]

However, to reproduce all the sound effects of the object (displayed on the screen) within the sound reproduction range requires a lot of sounds, and the Not efficient because the load increases. Further, as a result, there is a problem that the processing speed of the computer becomes slow.

On the other hand, if the sound effects of the objects within the sound reproduction range are collectively reproduced as one sound effect, the number of sounds can be reduced, but the sense of presence, which is the effect of the sound effects, is lost. Become.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and provides a game device and a program capable of reducing the number of sounds and the load on a computer without impairing the sense of presence of sound effects. The challenge is to provide.

[0006]

According to one aspect of the present invention, a game including a step in which a moving body moves on a virtual coordinate system is advanced, and an image is displayed on a screen of a display device according to the progress status. A single-sound pronunciation for displaying a sound in accordance with the progress status of the game, in which one sound is set for one moving body, and the sound effect of each moving body is individually pronounced. Means, a plurality of moving bodies that set one sound for a set of a plurality of moving bodies, and collectively generate the sound effects of the plurality of moving bodies, and each moving body that exists on a virtual coordinate system. Is determined as either a single-sound moving body that is sounded by the single-sound sounding means or a plural-sound moving body that is sounded by the multiple-sound sounding means, and the sounding-type determining hand. Controlling said single sound pronunciation means and the plurality body sound pronunciation means according to the determination result of, and a sound effect reproduction control means for reproducing the sound effect of the moving body from the music reproduction unit.

According to the game device configured as described above, first, is the moving body moving on the virtual coordinate system a single-sound moving body that produces a single sound?
Determines if it is a multiple-sound moving object that is sounded by multiple-sound. As a single sound, an individual sound effect of each moving body, in which one sound is set for one moving body, can be adopted. Further, as the plural-body sound, a sound effect in which a plurality of moving bodies are combined and one sound is set can be adopted.
Then, when it is determined that the moving body is a single sound moving body, the sound effect is reproduced for each moving body. Also, when it is decided that the moving body is a multi-sound moving body,
The sound effect is played back as a set of a plurality of moving objects.
In this way, the sound effects of the moving body are distributed according to the type of the moving body, and a single sound and a plurality of body sounds are played back in combination to reduce the sound without impairing the realism of the game, The load of can be reduced. In addition, this also allows faster computer processing.

In one mode of the above game device, an image of a moving body is displayed on the screen of the display device within the range of the visual field of a virtual camera installed at a fixed position on the virtual coordinate system. Display it.

According to this aspect, the range of the visual field of the virtual camera installed at the fixed position on the virtual coordinate system becomes the range displayed on the screen of the display device. Here, the display device is, for example, a receiver of a home television. Further, a plurality of virtual cameras are installed at fixed positions on the virtual coordinate system, and the display screen changes depending on the angle change of the virtual camera and the zoom function. Furthermore, since the display screen is usually displayed centering on a moving body that moves on a virtual coordinate system, the moving body can be moved among a plurality of virtual cameras installed at fixed positions according to the movement of the moving body. It switches to the most suitable virtual camera to display. This allows
It is possible to provide the player with a realistic image.

In another mode of the above-mentioned game device, there is further provided a sounding type determining range setting means for setting a sounding type determining range for determining a sounding type of the moving body within a range of a visual field of the virtual camera. , The pronunciation type determining means,
A moving body located within the sounding type determination range is determined to be a single sound moving body, and all moving bodies located outside the sounding type determination range are determined to be multiple sound moving bodies. This makes it possible to uniformly and easily extract, as a single-sound moving body, a moving body within a certain range close to the virtual camera, out of moving bodies located within the range of the field of view of the virtual camera. .

In still another mode of the above-mentioned game device, the sounding type determination range is determined based on a reference point, and the coordinates of the reference point are one movement existing within the range of the visual field of the virtual camera. Matches the body coordinate data. Here, one moving body existing within the range of the visual field of the virtual camera is, for example, a moving body or the like which the player pays attention to during the game. According to this, since the moving body of interest always exists within the sounding type determination range, the moving body of interest can be a single-sound moving body and can always reproduce a sound effect with a realistic sensation.

In still another mode of the above-mentioned game device, the one moving body is a moving body located closest to the position of the virtual camera. According to this, since the moving body closest to the position of the virtual camera always exists within the sounding type determination range, the moving body closest to the position of the virtual camera is regarded as a single sound moving body. , You can always play a realistic sound effect.

In still another mode of the above-mentioned game device, the sounding type determination range is determined based on a reference point, and the coordinates of the reference point are one movement existing within the range of the visual field of the virtual camera. Determined based on body coordinate data. As a result, the sounding type determination range can be set with reference to a point other than the coordinates of the moving body.

In still another mode of the above-mentioned game device, the sounding type determining means determines only a predetermined number of moving objects belonging to the sounding type determining range as the single sound moving body, The remaining moving bodies are determined to be the plural sound moving bodies. According to this, for example, only four moving bodies among the moving bodies belonging to the sounding type determination range are determined as single sound moving bodies, and the remaining moving bodies are determined as plural sound moving bodies. Can be provided. Thereby, for example, even if there are 10 moving bodies that belong to the sounding type determination range, only 4 sound units can be used as a single sound, so that the sound can be saved. Furthermore, it is more efficient because it is possible to set the sounds in advance, for example, 4 sounds for a single sound and 1 sound for a multi-body sound.

In still another aspect of the above-mentioned game device, the sounding type determining means sets the predetermined number of moving bodies belonging to the sounding type determining range from a shorter distance from the position of the virtual camera. The moving body is determined to be the single sound moving body. According to this, since the single-sound moving body is determined based on the distance between the virtual camera and the moving body within the pronunciation type determination range, the determination process can be easily performed and the player can easily recognize it. A sound effect with a feeling can be reproduced.

In still another mode of the above-mentioned game device, the pronunciation type determining means calculates a distance between the virtual camera and a moving body based on coordinate data on a virtual coordinate system, and calculates the calculated distance. A predetermined number of moving bodies are determined to be the single sound moving bodies, and the remaining moving bodies are determined to be the plural sound moving bodies. According to this, the sound generation type determining means determines the single sound and the plural sounds based only on the distance between the virtual camera and the moving body, so that the single sound moving body can be easily determined. Further, since the sound can be set in advance, the load on the computer can be reduced, which is more efficient.

In still another mode of the above-mentioned game device, when the sound effect reproducing means produces the sound effect of the moving body by the single sound producing means, the distance between the virtual camera and the single sound moving body. Is calculated based on the coordinate data on the virtual coordinate system, and the volume of the sound effect of each single sound moving body is determined so as to correspond to the calculated distance. According to this, when the distance between the virtual camera and the single-sound moving body is short, the volume of the sound effect is increased, and when the distance is long, the volume of the sound effect is reduced, so that the game can be more realistic. You can adjust the sound effect volume.

In still another mode of the above-mentioned game device, when the sound effect reproducing means produces the sound effect of the moving body by the plural body sound producing means, the virtual camera and the plurality of plural body sound movements are performed. The distance to the body is individually calculated based on the coordinate data on the virtual coordinate system, and the volume of the sound effect of the multiple-sound moving body is determined so as to correspond to the average value of the calculated individual distances. According to this, since there are a plurality of multi-body sound moving bodies, the volume of the sound effect of the multi-body sound is determined so as to correspond to the average value of the distance between the virtual camera and each of the multi-body sound moving bodies. As a result, it is possible to adjust the volume of the sound effect so as to produce a realistic sensation in the game.

In still another mode of the above-mentioned game device, the sound effect reproducing means sets the sound volume of the sound effect of the plural sound moving body to a predetermined constant sound volume. According to this, the volume of the sound effect of the plural-body sound can be set in advance, so that the load on the computer can be reduced and the processing speed can be increased.

In still another mode of the above-mentioned game device, a left channel speaker and a right channel speaker are provided, and when the sound effect reproduction control means produces a sound effect of a moving body by a single sound producing means, Assuming a center line in the center of the field of view of the virtual camera on a conventional coordinate system, and calculating on the basis of the coordinate data of the mobile body whether the mobile body is located on the left or right with respect to the center line, The sound effect is reproduced from the left channel speaker for the single sound moving body located on the left side of the center line, and the sound effect is reproduced from the right channel speaker for the single sound moving body located on the right side of the center line. . Accordingly, the sound effect of the moving body is reproduced from the speaker corresponding to the position of the moving body on the display screen, so that the player can be provided with a more realistic feeling.

[0021] In still another mode of the above-mentioned game device, the sound effect reproduction control means, based on the center line, coordinate data of the moving body, and coordinate data of the virtual camera,
Using the virtual camera as a reference, the left and right distances of each single-sound moving body from the center line are calculated, and the volume of the sound effect of the moving body is calculated according to the left and right distances of the left channel speaker and the right channel. Allocate to the channel speaker and play the sound effect of the moving body. As a result, the volume-adjusted sound effect is reproduced from both the left and right speakers in accordance with the position of the moving body on the display screen, so that the realism of the game can be further enhanced.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a game including a step of moving a moving body on a virtual coordinate system is advanced, and an image is displayed on the screen of a display device according to the progress of the game. A program executed by a computer that reproduces music according to the progress of the game,
One sound is set for one moving body, a single sound producing means for individually producing the sound effect of each moving body, and one sound is set for a group of a plurality of moving bodies, and a plurality of moving bodies are set. A multiple-sound sound producing means for collectively producing body sound effects, and a single-sound moving body and the multiple-sound producing means for producing each moving body existing on a virtual coordinate system by the single-sound producing means. A sounding type deciding means for deciding one of the plural sound moving bodies to be sounded, and controlling the single-sound sounding means and the plural body sounding means according to the decision result by the sounding type deciding means, The computer is caused to function as a sound effect reproduction control unit for reproducing the sound effect from the music reproducing unit.

According to the program of the present invention, by causing the computer to read and execute the program, the computer can be caused to function as a control device in the game device of the present invention. Further, in the above program, by adopting the same mode as that described above for the game device, it is possible to achieve the same operational effect as the game device.

[0024]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[Structure of Game Device] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a control system of a home horse racing game device to which the present invention is applied. Home horse racing game device is a DVD as a storage medium
A predetermined game is executed in accordance with the game program recorded in the ROM 15.

This game device has a monitor 9 and a speaker 1.
0a and 10b, controller 12, auxiliary storage device 1
3, a DVD-ROM 15, and a game console body 16. The monitor 9 has a home-use television receiver and the speaker 1
The built-in speaker of the television receiver is generally used for 0a and 10b. The speaker has two channels, a right channel speaker 10a and a left channel speaker 10b. The controller 12 functions as an input device, and an operation member that receives an operation by the player is provided therein.

The auxiliary storage device 13 is a storage medium for storing data relating to the progress of the game, and can use, for example, a semiconductor memory. DVD
-The ROM 15 stores programs and data necessary for executing the game, and details thereof will be described later. Instead of the DVD-ROM 15, a CD-R
Various storage media such as OM and semiconductor memory may be used.

On the other hand, the game machine main body 16 includes a CPU 1 mainly composed of a microprocessor and its CPU.
ROM2 and RAM3 as main memory for 1
It has a graphics processing unit (GPU) 4 and a sound processing unit (SPU) 6 for image processing and audio processing, buffers 5 and 7 for these units, and a DVD-ROM reader 8. An operating system as a program necessary for controlling the operation of a plurality of game machines is written in the ROM 2. The RAM 3 has a DVD as a storage medium
The game program and data read from the ROM 15 are written as necessary.

The GPU 4 receives the image data from the CPU 1, draws a game screen on the frame buffer 5, converts the drawn image data into a predetermined video reproduction signal, and outputs it to the monitor 9 at a predetermined timing. . The SPU 6 reproduces data such as voice and tone data and sound source data read from the DVD-ROM 15 and recorded in the sound buffer 7, and outputs them from the speaker.

The DVD-ROM reading device 8 reads a program or data recorded on the DVD-ROM 15 according to an instruction from the CPU 1 and outputs a signal corresponding to the read content.

A communication control device 11 is connected to the CPU 1 via a bus 14, and a controller 12 and an auxiliary storage device 13 are detachably connected to the device 11. The communication control device 11 has a fixed cycle (for example, 1
/ 60 seconds), the operating state of the operating member of the controller 12 is scanned, and a signal corresponding to the scanning result is output to the CPU 1. The CPU 1 controls the controller 12 based on the signal.
Determine the operation state of. A plurality of controllers 12 and auxiliary storage devices 13 can be connected to the communication control device 11 in parallel.

[Horse Racing Game] Next, an example in which the present invention is applied to a horse racing game will be described. The horse racing game is roughly divided into an owner mode, a stable mode, and a race mode. During the game progress, the player operates the controller 12 to select one of the above three modes,
Advance the game. Among the above-mentioned three modes, the race mode is a mode in which a racehorse runs in an actual race, and the actual race is performed by displaying a paddock on the day of the race and entry into the main racecourse. When the race is over,
The results will be announced for each race, and the results of all horses participating in the race that belong to the stables will be acquired. The present invention particularly relates to reproduction of sound effects in a live condition of a race in a race mode.

[Horse Position Determination] Next, horse position determination will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6. The position of the horse is
It is decided based on the speed of each horse and the traveling route on a predetermined course. Note that this determination process is performed by the CPU 1 described above.
Is performed by executing a predetermined arithmetic program. As shown in FIGS. 5 (a) and 5 (b), the standard time and standard speed of a horse in a predetermined course are shown in FIG.
It is stored in the ROM 15. A standard speed diagram calculated based on the standard time and standard speed is shown in FIG. The standard speed diagram shows the distance on the vertical axis and the time on the horizontal axis, showing how many seconds and how many meters the horse has advanced after the start.

The individual horse speed diagram is obtained by correcting the standard speed diagram with the position determination supplemental parameters set for each horse.
As illustrated in FIG. 6A, the horse position determination supplemental parameter includes a horse stamina value, a horse speed value, a horse tone, and the like. Specifically, a horse with a high stamina value will increase in speed near the goal, and a horse with a low stamina value will decrease in speed over time. The position determination supplemental parameter holds detailed information corresponding to each horse as described above, and corrects the standard speed diagram based on the position determination supplemental parameter while adding some randomness as needed. This creates a speed diagram specific to each horse.

Further, the speed diagram peculiar to each horse is applied to the standard running route of a predetermined course to determine the position of the horse. In FIG. 6B, the standard travel route 50 shown by the dotted line is preset for all the courses stored in the DVD-ROM 15 shown in FIG. The position of each horse at a specific time after the start is calculated based on the standard travel route 50 of the predetermined course and the speed diagram peculiar to each horse. The determined position of the horse is always managed as coordinate data. Thus, the game device always holds the coordinate data of the position of each horse at each time after the start of the race. Since these position calculation methods are already known, further detailed description will be omitted. The above horse position calculation method is an example, and the present invention is also applicable to a game device that calculates a horse position by a method different from the above.

[Functional Block] FIG. 2 shows a functional block diagram of the game of the present invention. Each function shown is a DVD-RO
It is realized by the CPU 1 executing the program recorded in M15 and controlling the components such as the SPU 6 as necessary.

In FIG. 2, a unit sound producing means 51.
Sets one sound for one moving body such as a running horse in a horse racing game, and the plural-body sound producing means 52 sets one sound for a set of a plurality of moving bodies. The pronunciation type determining means 54 determines whether the sound effects of a plurality of moving bodies are to be produced by the single sound producing means or the multiple body producing means. The pronunciation type determining means 54 can determine whether to pronounce by the single sound producing means or the plural body sound producing means, based on the pronunciation type determining range set by the pronunciation type determining range setting means 55. . It should be noted that, out of the plurality of moving bodies which are the targets for producing the sound effect, all the moving bodies other than the moving body which is produced by the single sound producing means are produced by the multiple body producing means.

Then, the result of the decision made by the sound type determination means 54 is sent to the sound effect reproduction control means 53. The sound effect reproduction control means 53 controls the single-sound sound generating means 51 and the plural-body sound sounding means 52 according to the determination result received from the sound generation type determining means 54, and causes the speakers 10a and 10b to sound effect sound.

[Sound Effect Reproducing Method] FIG. 3 shows an example of a display image of a real scene of a race in the horse racing game apparatus to which the present invention is applied. In addition, the game program is already shown in FIG.
It is assumed that it has been read from the DVD-ROM 15 shown in FIG.

The horse racing game device stores several types of courses for racing. Each course is set on a virtual coordinate system. Further, several virtual cameras are fixedly installed at predetermined positions on the course, and the positions of the virtual cameras are stored as coordinate data in the coordinate system. FIG. 3 is displayed based on the field of view of a virtual camera, and the display screen changes depending on the angle of the virtual camera and the zoom function. Furthermore, since the display screen is usually displayed centering on the horse during the race, the virtual camera that is the most suitable for displaying the horse among the several virtual cameras installed on the course according to the movement of the horse. It is designed to switch. Further, each horse holds a horse number (NO.) As its identification information.

On the other hand, the running sound of the horse during the race is louder as the horse is closer to the displayed virtual camera, and is smaller as the distance is farther from the displayed virtual camera. FIG. 4 shows a horse number and a graph 100 of the running sound of the horse. Figure 3
103a is a horse with horse number 3, and the distance to the virtual camera is the shortest, so that the volume of the running sound is the largest as shown by the running sound 103b on the graph 100 in FIG. Horse 101a with horse number 1 and horse 102 with horse number 2
Similarly, a horse 104a of horse number 10 has a graph 1 of FIG.
00, running sounds 101b, 102b, 104b are set, and the volume of the running sound is determined so as to be inversely proportional to the distance between the virtual camera and the horse. On the other hand, the broken line 1 in FIG.
The group of horses with horse numbers 4 to 9 is indicated by 05a, and the distance to the virtual camera is long to some extent. Like the horses with horse numbers 4 to 9, the running sounds of horses that are some distance away from the virtual camera are combined into one sound as many other horses. That is, as shown by the traveling sound 105b on the graph 100 of FIG. 4, the sound is emitted as one sound, and the volume thereof becomes extremely small depending on the distance. Here, the sound when the volume of the running sound calculated based on the distance between the virtual camera and the horse is pronounced for each horse is called a single sound. In addition, the sound when a certain volume is collectively pronounced as many horses is called plural sound. In this way, by producing the running sounds of a plurality of horses by combining a single sound and a plurality of body sounds, it is possible to reduce the sound without impairing the realism of the race. Further, the load on the computer can be reduced.

[Sound Reproduction] Next, determination of a horse as a single sound will be described with reference to FIG. Figure 7
Is a view of the course viewed from above during the race, and the black dots in the drawing show the position of the running horse. Note that FIG.
Can be obtained by plotting a predetermined virtual camera position and the position of each horse on the coordinate system in which the course is set. Each horse is proceeding in the traveling direction indicated by arrow 20 in the figure. The virtual camera 21 is fixed to predetermined coordinates, and here, the race is displayed by focusing on the horse 103a. Further, the virtual camera 21 can change the angle and zoom, and the field of view 23 of the virtual camera 21 also changes with the change and the angle. The range of the visual field 23 of the virtual camera 21 is the display range of the screen. In addition, since the virtual camera 21 focuses on the horse 103 a, the horse 103 a
The angle of the virtual camera 21 is changed according to the movement of a, and the display range of the screen is adjusted so that the horse 103a is always displayed.

The horse to be a single sound is determined based on the sounding type determination range 22. Pronunciation type determination range 22
Is a circle centered on the X mark 24 in FIG. 7. The radius of the circle defining the pronunciation type determination range 22 is preset to a predetermined value for each virtual camera.
Is set to match the position coordinates of the horse 103a that the virtual camera 21 is paying attention to. According to this, the horse 103a
The center 24 of the circle moves in accordance with the movement of, and therefore the pronunciation type determination range 22 also moves. In addition, as another method, the center 24 of the circle is determined by moving the position coordinates of the horse 103a focused on by the virtual camera 21 in the X-axis direction as indicated by an arrow 40, and determining the position closer to the virtual camera. Various methods can be used, such as the coordinates of the point 41 intersecting the edge 25 of the course (corresponding to the position of the fence inside the course).

When the pronunciation type determination range 22 is determined based on the center 24 of the circle and the preset radius, each horse located within the pronunciation type determination range 22 is set as a single sound, and the pronunciation type determination range 22 is set. All horses located outside are collectively determined as a multi-body sound. In particular,
Since the horse 103a is located within the pronunciation type determination range 22, the horse 103a is pronounced as a single sound, and the plurality of horses 105a are located outside the pronunciation type determination range 22.
It is decided that all other horses located outside will be pronounced as a plural sound together. In this way, it is determined that the horses belonging to the pronunciation type determination range 22 are to be pronounced as single sounds, and all the remaining horses are to be pronounced as multiple sounds.

Further, the method of determining a horse as a single sound may be further limited to a maximum of four horses within the sounding type determination range 22 and in the order of the distance between the virtual camera and the horse. . By doing this, the pronunciation type determination range 2
Even if 10 horses are located within 2, the sound can be saved because only 4 horses make a single sound. As another method, the pronunciation type determination range 22
Regardless, the four horses can be pronounced as a single sound in the order in which the distance between the virtual camera and the horse is short, and the remaining horses can be collectively pronounced as a multiple sound. According to these methods, it is more efficient because it is possible to preset the sounds of four single-tone sounds and one multi-body sound.

Next, the running sound of the horse, which is a single sound, is set to 2
Which of the speakers 10a and 10b having a channel is used for reproduction will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 8, a center line 30 is set at the center of the visual field 23 of the virtual camera 21. When the field of view 23 changes due to a change in the angle of the virtual camera 21 or the like, the centerline 30 also changes so as to always be the centerline of the field of view 23. Then, with respect to the center line 30, the horse located in the range on the right side of the center line 30 is from the right channel speaker 10a, and the horse located in the range to the left side of the center line 30 is the left channel speaker 10b.
It is decided to generate the running sound of the horse from. Specifically, since the horse 104a is located in the range on the right side with respect to the center line 30, the running sound is emitted from the right channel speaker 10a. As a result, the running sound of the horse is reproduced from the speaker corresponding to the position of the horse on the display screen, so that the game player watching the race on the display screen can feel more realistic.

It should be noted that the running sound of the horse is not generated from only one of the sound channels, but the left-right distance ratio is calculated from the center line, the position of the virtual camera, and the position of the horse to calculate the running sound of the horse. Volume is the calculated distance-wise ratio,
The right channel speaker 10a and the left channel speaker 10b can also be assigned and sounded. That is,
The running sound of the horse 103a located on the center line 30 is reproduced at the same level from the left and right channel speakers, and the running sound of the horse 104a located slightly to the right of the center line 30 is reproduced slightly louder than the left channel speaker from the right channel speaker. To be done. According to this, it is possible to produce a more realistic sensation according to the scene.

[Sound Effect Processing] Next, the sound effect processing in the actual condition of the race will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. 9 and 10. FIG. 9 is a main routine of sound effect processing, and FIG. 10 is a subroutine of sound determination processing in FIG. The process described below is read from the DVD-ROM 15 shown in FIG.
It is executed by the CPU 1 based on the game program loaded in.

Referring to FIG. 9, first, the CPU 1 determines the position of each horse participating in the race (step S).
1). This is because the CPU 1 calculates the position of each horse based on the standard speed diagram preloaded in the RAM 3, the position determination supplemental parameter for each predetermined horse, and the standard running route 50 of the predetermined course. Do it. The CPU 1 temporarily stores the determined position of each horse in the RAM 3 as coordinate data.

Next, the CPU 1 performs a distance calculation process between the virtual camera and the horse (step S2). Since the virtual camera is fixedly installed at a predetermined position, the position of the virtual camera is stored in the RAM 3 as fixed coordinate data. The distance between the virtual camera and the horse is calculated by the CPU 1 based on the virtual camera coordinate data and the horse coordinate data stored in the RAM 3, and is temporarily stored in the RAM 3.

Next, the CPU 1 carries out a sound determination process (step 3). The sound determination process is a process of determining the pronunciation type, volume, sound image localization, etc. of the running sound of the horse, and the details thereof will be described with reference to FIG. Here, the pronunciation type refers to whether the horse running sound is produced by a single sound or a plural body sound. Further, the sound image localization refers to which of the speakers 10a and 10b having two channels on the left and right produces the running sound of the horse as a single sound.

First, the CPU 1 starts the sound determination process for the horse with horse number 1 (horse 101a in FIGS. 3 and 7) (step S10), and functions as a sounding type determining means so that the horse with horse number 1 Then, it is determined whether or not it is located within the pronunciation type determination range 22 shown in FIG. 7 (step S11). Note that the pronunciation type determination range is CPU1
Is set by functioning as a pronunciation type determination range setting means.

When the horse with horse number 1 is located outside the pronunciation type determination range 22, the CPU 1 as the pronunciation type determination means
Determines that the horse with horse number 1 is a large number of horses other than the horse, and sounds with a plurality of sounds (step S17). On the other hand, when the horse with the horse number 1 is located within the pronunciation type determination range 22, the CPU 1 retrieves the distance between the position of the horse with the horse number 1 calculated in step S2 and the position of the virtual camera from the RAM 3, and calculates the distance. The volume of the running sound of the horse with horse number 1 is calculated so as to be inversely proportional to (step S12). Then, the calculated volume of the running sound of the horse with horse number 1 is temporarily stored in the RAM 3.

Further, CP as a sound effect reproduction control means
U1 determines whether the horse with horse number 1 is located on the right side of the visual field 23 of the virtual camera 21 with reference to the center line 30 shown in FIG. 8 (step S13). When the horse with the horse number 1 (horse 101a in FIG. 8) is located on the right side with respect to the center line 30, it is determined that the running sound of the horse with the horse number 1 is generated from the right channel speaker 10a (step S14). ). Also, the horse with horse number 1 is the center line 30.
When it is located on the left side with reference to, the running sound of the horse with horse number 1 is determined to be generated from the left channel speaker 10b (step S18). In the example of FIGS. 3 and 8, the horse with horse number 1 is located on the left side of the visual field 23 of the virtual camera 21, and therefore the running sound is reproduced from the left channel speaker 10b.

In this way, for the horse with horse number 1, when the pronunciation type, volume and sound image localization of the running sound of the horse are determined, CP
U1 determines whether or not all horses on the display screen have been determined (step S15). If all horses have not been determined, the horse number is incremented (step S16).
Then, the CPU 1 causes the horse with the horse number 2 (see FIGS. 3, 7, and 8).
Similarly, the processing of determining the sounding type, the volume, and the sound image localization of the running sound of the horse is continued for the horse 102a). When all the horses on the display screen are determined in this way, the sound determination process ends.

When the sound determination process is completed in this way,
At the end of the sound determination process, the pronunciation type of each horse,
The information on the sound volume and the sound image localization is stored in the RAM 3. Therefore, the processing returns to the main routine shown in FIG. 9, and the CPU 1 as the sound effect reproduction control means performs the reproduction processing (step S4). In the case of a single sound, the reproduction processing is a CPU that functions as a single sound producing means.
Under the control of 1, the SPU 6 reproduces the sound source data and the like read from the DVD-ROM 15 and stored in the sound buffer 7 on the basis of the information on the sound type, volume, and sound image localization of each horse determined by the sound determination process. However, this is the process of outputting from the speaker. In the case of plural body sounds, the SPU 6 always reproduces the sound source data and the like read from the DVD-ROM 15 and stored in the sound buffer 7 under the control of the CPU 1 which functions as a plural body sound producing means. Note that the volume of the multi-body sound may be always reproduced at a constant volume during the race as a predetermined value, or the predetermined value may be changed depending on the distance of the horse group from the virtual camera. The level may be adjusted for playback.

As described above, in the horse racing game according to the present invention, two types of sounds, that is, a single sound and a plurality of sounds, are combined as the pronunciation types of the running sound of the horse. According to this, it is possible to combine the individual running sounds of a high-volume horse with the running sounds of a large number of low-volume horses, and to make them sound as if all the footsteps of all horses are heard. That is, it is possible to reduce the sound without impairing the sense of presence and reduce the load on the computer.

The above embodiment is the case where the present invention is applied to the sound effect in the live condition of the race of the horse racing game.
The application of the present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to various other games. For example, the sound effects of a plurality of fighters displayed on one screen in a shooting game and the sound effects of a plurality of enemies displayed on one screen in an adventure game are combined with the single sound and the multiple sound of the present invention. It is possible to apply other methods.

[0059]

As described above, according to the present invention,
For example, in a live race of a horse racing game, the running sounds of horses are a combination of the individual running sounds of high-volume horses and the running sounds of many low-volume horses. Can be heard like. In other words, it is possible to reduce the sound and reduce the load on the computer without impairing the realism. Further, this can also speed up the processing of the computer.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a control system of a horse racing game device to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of functions realized by the program of the present invention.

3 is a diagram showing a display image example of a live scene of a race in the horse racing game of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a graph showing a relationship between a horse number and a running sound of the horse.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a standard time, a standard speed, and a standard speed diagram required for horse position determination processing.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing horse position determination supplemental parameters and a standard travel route required for horse position determination processing.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a course, a field of view of a virtual camera, and a sounding type determination range in a race.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a field of view of a virtual camera and a center line of the field of view of the virtual camera, which are necessary for sound determination processing.

9 is a flowchart showing sound effect processing in the horse racing game of FIG. 1. FIG.

10 is a flowchart showing a sound determination process included in the sound effect process of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 CPU 2 ROM 3 RAM 4 GPU 5 frame buffer 6 SPU 7 sound buffer 8 DVD-ROM reader 9 monitors 10a right channel speaker 10b Left channel speaker 11 Communication control device 12 Controller 13 Auxiliary storage device 14 bus 15 DVD-ROM 16 Game console body

Claims (28)

[Claims] 1. A game including a step of moving a moving body on a virtual coordinate system is advanced, an image is displayed on a screen of a display device according to the progress of the game, and the progress of the game is changed according to the progress of the game. A game device that reproduces music by setting one sound for one moving body, and using a single sound producing means for individually producing a sound effect of each moving body and a group of a plurality of moving bodies. Set one sound for
A multiple-sound sound producing means for collectively producing sound effects of a plurality of moving bodies, and a single-sound moving body and the multiple-body sound for producing each moving body existing on a virtual coordinate system by the single-sound producing means. A sounding type determining means for determining one of a plurality of sound moving bodies to be sounded by the sounding means, and controlling the single-sound sounding means and the multiple body sounding means according to the result of the sounding type determining means, And a sound effect reproduction control means for reproducing the sound effect of the moving body. 2. An image of a moving body is displayed on a screen of the display device within a field of view of a virtual camera installed at a fixed position on the virtual coordinate system. The game device according to claim 1. 3. A sounding type deciding range setting means for setting a sounding type deciding range for deciding a sounding type of the moving body within a range of the field of view of the virtual camera, wherein the sounding type deciding means is provided. It is characterized in that a moving body located within the sounding type determination range is determined as a single sound moving body, and all of the moving bodies located outside the sounding type determination range are determined as a multiple sound moving body. Claim 2
The game device according to 1. 4. The pronunciation type determination range is determined based on a reference point, and the coordinates of the reference point match the coordinate data of one moving body existing within the range of the visual field of the virtual camera. The game device according to claim 3. 5. The game device according to claim 4, wherein the one moving body is a moving body located closest to the position of the virtual camera. 6. The sound generation type determination range is determined based on a reference point, and the coordinates of the reference point are determined based on coordinate data of one moving body existing within the range of the visual field of the virtual camera. The game device according to claim 3, wherein: 7. The sounding type determining means determines only a predetermined number of moving bodies among the moving bodies belonging to the sounding type determining range as the single sound moving body, and moves the remaining moving bodies to the plural body sound moving. The game device according to claim 3, wherein the game device is determined as a body. 8. The sound type determination unit determines the predetermined number of mobile bodies as the single-sound mobile body from the mobile bodies belonging to the sound type determination range that are closer to the position of the virtual camera. The game apparatus according to claim 7, wherein: 9. The sound generation type determining means calculates a distance between the virtual camera and a moving body based on coordinate data on a virtual coordinate system, and selects a predetermined number of moving bodies from the shorter calculated distance. The game device according to claim 2, wherein the single sound moving body is determined, and the remaining moving bodies are determined as the plural sound moving bodies. 10. The sound effect reproducing means, when the sound effect of the moving body is produced by the single sound producing means, the distance between the virtual camera and the single sound moving body is coordinate data on a virtual coordinate system. 10. The game device according to claim 2, wherein the volume of the sound effect of each single sound moving body is determined so as to correspond to the calculated distance. 11. The sound effect reproducing means, when a sound effect of a moving body is sounded by a plural-body sound producing means, a distance between the virtual camera and the plurality of plural-sound moving bodies is virtual coordinate system. 11. The volume of the sound effect of the multi-body sound moving body is individually calculated based on the above coordinate data, and the volume of the sound effect of the plural-body sound moving body is determined so as to correspond to the calculated average value of the individual distances. The game device according to any one of claims. 12. The sound effect reproducing means sets the sound effect sound volume of a plurality of sound moving bodies to a predetermined fixed sound volume. Game device. 13. A left-channel speaker and a right-channel speaker are provided, and the sound effect reproduction control means, when the sound effect of the moving body is sounded by a single sound sounding means, the sound effect of the virtual camera of the virtual camera. Assuming a center line at the center of the field of view, calculate whether the moving body is located on the left or right with reference to the center line based on the coordinate data of the moving body, and a single unit located on the left side of the center line 13. A sound moving body reproduces a sound effect from a left channel speaker, and a single sound moving body located on the right side of the center line reproduces a sound effect from a right channel speaker. The game device according to any one of 1. 14. The sound effect reproduction control means, based on the center line, the coordinate data of the moving body, and the coordinate data of the virtual camera, from the center line of each single-sound moving body based on the virtual camera. Calculate the distance to the left and right of
14. The game according to claim 13, wherein the volume of the sound effect of the moving body is allocated to the left channel speaker and the right channel speaker according to the distance to the left and right to reproduce the sound effect of the moving body. apparatus. 15. A game including a step of moving a moving body on a virtual coordinate system is advanced, an image is displayed on a screen of a display device according to the progress, and the game is advanced according to the progress of the game. A program that is executed by a computer that reproduces music by setting one sound for one moving body and individually producing sound effects of each moving body, and a plurality of moving sounds. Set one sound for the body set,
A multiple-sound sound producing means for collectively producing sound effects of a plurality of moving bodies, and a single-sound moving body and the multiple-body sound for producing each moving body existing on a virtual coordinate system by the single-sound producing means. A sounding type determining means for determining one of a plurality of sound moving bodies to be sounded by the sounding means, and controlling the single-sound sounding means and the multiple body sounding means according to the result of the sounding type determining means, A program for causing a computer to function as a sound effect reproduction control means for reproducing a sound effect of a moving body. 16. An image of a moving body is displayed on a screen of the display device within a field of view of a virtual camera installed at a fixed position on the virtual coordinate system. The program according to claim 15. 17. A sounding type deciding range setting means for setting a sounding type deciding range for deciding a sounding type of the moving body within a range of a visual field of the virtual camera, wherein the sounding type deciding means is provided. It is characterized in that a moving body located within the sounding type determination range is determined as a single sound moving body, and all of the moving bodies located outside the sounding type determination range are determined as a multiple sound moving body. Claim 1
6. The program according to 6. 18. The sound generation type determination range is determined based on a reference point, and the coordinates of the reference point match the coordinate data of one moving object existing within the range of the visual field of the virtual camera. The program according to claim 17. 19. The program according to claim 18, wherein the one moving body is a moving body located closest to a position of the virtual camera. 20. The pronunciation type determination range is determined based on a reference point, and the coordinates of the reference point are determined based on coordinate data of one moving object existing within the range of the visual field of the virtual camera. The program according to claim 17, characterized by: 21. The sound generation type deciding means decides only a predetermined number of mobile objects among the mobile objects belonging to the sound type classification determination range as the single sound mobile object, and moves the remaining mobile objects to the plural sound sounds. 21. The program according to claim 17, wherein the program is determined as a body. 22. The sound generation type determination means determines the predetermined number of mobile bodies as the single sound mobile bodies from the mobile bodies belonging to the sound production type determination range that have a shorter distance from the position of the virtual camera. 3. The method according to claim 2, wherein
The program according to 1. 23. The sound generation type determining means calculates a distance between the virtual camera and a moving body based on coordinate data on a virtual coordinate system, and selects a predetermined number of moving bodies from the shorter calculated distance. The program according to claim 16, wherein the single sound moving body is determined, and the remaining moving bodies are determined as the plural sound moving bodies. 24. When the sound effect reproducing means produces a sound effect of a moving body by means of a single sound producing means, the distance between the virtual camera and the single sound moving body is coordinate data on a virtual coordinate system. 24. The program according to claim 16, wherein the volume of the sound effect of each single sound moving body is determined so as to correspond to the calculated distance. 25. When the sound effect reproducing means produces a sound effect of a moving body by a plural body sound producing means, a distance between the virtual camera and a plurality of the plural body sound moving bodies is set in a virtual coordinate system. 24. The volume of the sound effect of the plural-body sound moving body is individually calculated based on the above coordinate data, and the volume of the sound effect of the plural-body sound moving body is determined so as to correspond to the average value of the calculated individual distances. The program according to any one of items. 26. The sound effect reproducing means sets the sound effect sound volume of a plurality of sound moving bodies to a predetermined fixed sound volume. Program of. 27. A left-channel speaker and a right-channel speaker are provided, wherein when the sound effect reproduction control means produces a sound effect of a moving body by a single sound producing means, the sound effect reproduction control means of the virtual camera is arranged on a virtual coordinate system. Assuming a center line at the center of the field of view, calculate whether the moving body is located on the left or right with reference to the center line based on the coordinate data of the moving body, and a single unit located on the left side of the center line 27. A sound moving body reproduces a sound effect from a left channel speaker, and a single sound moving body located on the right side of the center line reproduces a sound effect from a right channel speaker. The program according to any one of. 28. The sound effect reproduction control means, based on the center line, the coordinate data of the moving body, and the coordinate data of the virtual camera, from the center line of each single-sound moving body with reference to the virtual camera. Calculate the distance to the left and right of
28. The program according to claim 27, wherein the volume of the sound effect of the moving body is allocated to the left channel speaker and the right channel speaker according to the distance to the left and right to reproduce the sound effect of the moving body. .