JP2007075611A - Action charging in turn-based video game - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method and system for affecting the power level of action performed by a character in a video game. <P>SOLUTION: In the turn-based video game, a player-character can determine whether to instantly perform the action with a default power level, or to delay the action until after another character's turn but with an increased or charged power level. A turn sequence can be displayed as part of the graphical user interface of the video game. The video game may increment an action meter across the turn sequence based on the received user input, thereby providing the player indication of how much delay the increased or charged power level will cause. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  Computer games and video games have evolved from things like “Pong” to epic adventures with vivid storyline development, photo-realistic graphics, and complex interactive systems. This has led players to immerse themselves in the alternative reality emulated by video games. In this specification, a video game can include any game played on a data processing device, but is not limited thereto. Examples of video games include computer games, game console games (eg, games that can be played on Xbox (registered trademark), PlayStation (registered trademark), and / or Nintendo (registered trademark) game machines) , Coin-operated or token-operated arcade games, portable game console games (eg, games that can be played on Nokia N-Gage®, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo DS, mobile phones, etc.), or Other software-driven games can be included.

  Video games are offered in various genre formats such as First-Person Shooter (FPS), Role-Playing Game (RPG), simulation, sports, strategy, and driving. . Each video game is not necessarily limited to one genre, and can actually include a plurality of genres. RPG generally refers to a game in which each participant plays the role of a character in the game (for example, an adventurer, a monster, or other player character). These characters can interact with each other within the virtual world of the game. The character controlled by the player / user is called a player character (PC: Player-Character). A character controlled by a computer is called a non-player character (NPC).

  Most, if not all, RPGs use a fighting system, and PCs and NPCs perform simulated fighting and / or combat through the fighting system. In this specification, this is called character engagement. In this specification, the system used by RPG to simulate a fight is called a battle system. Combat systems are usually implemented as video game software modules. One well-known battle system is a real-time battle system whereby a player character takes action as soon as input is received from a player without waiting for another character to take action. Another known battle system can be broadly referred to as a turn-based battle system. In the turn-based battle system, each character performs actions in a predetermined order. This predetermined order is, for example, the sequential order of all player characters and non-player characters involved in the character battle until the character battle is settled, for example, until one character or team wins.

  One known variation of the turn-based battle system is to change the sequential order based on the quickness attribute associated with each character in the character battle. That is, a character having a high quickness value is more likely to attack more frequently than a character having a low quickness value. Each character then performs some action in the changed order. PC actions are based on user input provided by a player (ie, a video game user), whereas NPC actions are controlled by video game logic.

  In order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the present invention, the following provides a brief summary of the invention. This summary is not an extensive overview of the invention. It is not intended to identify key or critical elements of the invention or to delineate the scope of the invention. The following summary merely provides some concepts of the invention in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description provided below.

  Aspects of the invention relate to influencing the power level of a character's action (e.g., applying magic, defending against an attack, recovering an injury, etc.) in a turn-based video game. A video game can display a turn sequence as part of its graphic user interface. The turn sequence indicates the current turn order of characters (player character and non-player character) in the video game. When the player enters his or her turn, whether to perform the desired action immediately at the default (normal) power level, or to delay the action for a while but perform the action at the increased power level Can be determined.

  During the user's turn, if the user decides to delay the action to charge his power level, the user decides how much action to charge based on the amount of delay the player is willing to take can do. The user can control the action meter that is displayed with the turn sequence. Here, the action meter increases along the turn sequence under the control of the user. When the user indicates that the desired charge or delay is sufficient by stopping giving user input or otherwise instructing to stop the action meter, the video game Based on the last position, the turn sequence is reordered. For example, when the action meter is between the character X and the character Y in the turn sequence, the turn sequence occurs before the character Y, although the turn of the player character is after the character X. The resulting power level charge is also based on the delay experienced by the user.

  The various features and advantages of the present invention may be more fully understood with reference to the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: In the drawings, like reference numerals indicate like functions.

  In the following description of various embodiments, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof. The drawings illustrate various forms in which the invention may be practiced. It should be understood that embodiments other than those described below can be used, and structural and functional changes can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

  FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a suitable gaming system environment 100 capable of playing a video game incorporating one or more aspects of the present invention. The game system environment 100 is only one example of a suitable computer environment and does not limit the scope of use or functionality of the present invention. Neither should the gaming system environment 100 be interpreted as having any dependency or requirement relating to any one or combination of components illustrated in the exemplary gaming system environment 100.

  Numerous other general purpose or special purpose computer system environments or configurations may implement various aspects of the invention. Examples of well-known computer systems, computer environments, and / or computer configurations suitable for use with various aspects of the present invention include personal computers, server computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs) or tablet PCs. Or a portable handheld device including a laptop PC, multiprocessor system, microprocessor-based system, set-top box, programmable consumer electronics, network PC, minicomputer, mainframe computer, electronic game console, any of the above Examples include, but are not limited to, distributed computing environments including systems or devices.

  Various functions can be described in the general context of computer-executable instructions, such as program modules executed by a computer. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. Various functions can also be implemented in a distributed computing environment where tasks are executed by remote processing devices connected via a communication network. In a distributed computing environment, program modules can be located in both local and remote computer storage media including memory storage devices.

  FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary game system 100. The game system 100 can include a game machine 102 and up to four controllers. The controller is indicated by 104 (1) and 104 (2). The game machine 102 includes a built-in hard disk drive and a portable media drive 106 that supports various forms of portable storage media, such as an optical storage disk 108. Examples of suitable portable storage media include DVDs, CD-ROMs, game disks, and the like.

  The game machine 102 has four slots 110 supporting up to four controllers on the front surface thereof, but the number and arrangement of slots may be changed. A power button 112 and an eject button 114 are also arranged on the front surface of the game machine 102. The power button 112 can be used to switch the power of the game machine on and off, and the eject button 114 can alternately open and close the tray of the portable media drive 106 to insert and remove the storage disk 108.

  The game machine 102 can be connected to a television or other display (not shown) via the A / V interface cable 120. In this specification, a display (not shown) refers to a video game display device. Power is supplied to the game machine through the power cable 122. Further, the game machine 102 can incorporate a broadband network function represented by a cable or a modem connector 124 that facilitates access to a network such as the Internet.

  Each controller 104 can be connected to the game machine 102 via a wired or wireless interface. In the illustrated embodiment, the controller is compatible with USB (Universal Serial Bus) and is connected to the game machine 102 via the USB cable 130. The controller 104 can include a wide variety of arbitrary user interaction mechanisms. As shown in FIG. 1, each controller 104 has two thumbsticks 132 (1) and 132 (2), a directional pad 134, and buttons 136 (eg, “A”, “B”, “X”). , “Y”) and two triggers 138. These mechanisms are merely representative, and other well-known game mechanisms can be substituted or added to the mechanism shown in FIG.

  A memory unit (MU) 140 can be inserted into the controller 104 to provide additional portable storage. Using a portable memory unit, a user can store game parameters and user accounts and transfer the data for play on other gaming machines. In the described embodiment, each controller is configured to have two memory units 140 inserted, but in other embodiments, more than two or less than two memory units can be used. A headphone 142 with a microphone can be connected to the controller 104 or the game machine 102 to provide a voice communication function. The microphone-equipped headphones 142 can include an audio input microphone and one or more audio output speakers.

  In the game system 100, for example, games, music, and videos can be played. Despite storage capacity differences, titles can be played from a hard disk drive, portable media 108 in drive 106, online sources, or memory unit 140. In some embodiments, executable code can only be executed from portable media 108 for security purposes. Examples of what can be played on the gaming system 100 include game titles that can be played from CD and DVD discs, hard disk drives, or online sources, CDs in the portable media drive 106, files on the hard disk drive (eg, WMA (Windows Media Audio)). (Registered trademark format), or digital music that can be played from an online streaming source and DVD audio in the portable media drive 106, files on a hard disk drive (eg, active streaming format), or digital audio / Video.

  FIG. 2 shows the functional components of the game system 100 in more detail. The game machine 102 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 200 and a memory controller 202. Memory controller 202 makes it easier for the processor to access various types of memory. These memories include a flash ROM (Read Only Memory) 204, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 206, a hard disk drive 208, and a portable media drive 106. The CPU 200 is provided with a level 1 cache 210 and a level 2 cache 212, which temporarily store data, thereby reducing the number of memory access cycles, thereby improving processing speed and processing capability. .

  The CPU 200, the memory controller 202, and various memory devices are connected to each other via one or a plurality of buses. These buses include serial buses, parallel buses, peripheral buses, memory buses, and processor or local buses that use any of a variety of bus architectures. Examples of such bus architectures are also known as ISA (Industry Standard Architecture) bus, MCA (Micro Channel Architecture) bus, EISA (Enhanced ISA) bus, VESA (Video Electronics Standards Association) local bus, and mezzanine bus. PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) bus.

  As a preferred embodiment, the CPU 200, memory controller 202, ROM 204, and RAM 206 are integrated into a unified module 214. In this embodiment, the ROM 204 is configured as a flash ROM connected to the memory controller 202 and a ROM bus (not shown). The RAM 206 is configured as a plurality of DDR SDRAMs (Double Data Rate Synchronous Dynamic RAM), and these DDR SDRAMs are individually controlled by the memory controller 202 via separate buses (not shown). The hard disk drive 208 and the portable media drive 106 are connected to the memory controller via a PCI bus and an ATA (AT Attachment) bus 216.

  The 3D graphics processing device 220 and the video encoder 222 form a video processing pipeline for high speed and high resolution graphics processing. Data is transmitted from the graphics processor 220 to the video encoder 222 via a digital video bus (not shown). Audio processor 224 and audio codec (coder / decoder) 226 form a corresponding audio processing pipeline for high quality stereo processing. Audio data is transmitted between the audio processing unit 224 and the audio codec 226 via a communication link (not shown). The video and audio processing pipelines output data to an A / V (audio / video) port 228 for transmission to a television or other display. In the illustrated embodiment, video processing components and audio processing components 220-228 are incorporated into module 214.

  A USB host controller 230 and a network interface 232 are also incorporated in the module 214. The USB host controller 230 is connected to the CPU 200 and the memory controller 202 via a bus (for example, a PCI bus), and functions as a host for the peripheral controllers 104 (1) to 104 (4). The network interface 232 provides access to a network (eg, the Internet, home network, etc.) and includes a wide variety of arbitrary, including Ethernet cards, modems, Bluetooth modules, cable modems, etc. It can be a wired or wireless interface component.

  The gaming machine 102 includes two dual controller port subassemblies 240 (1) and 240 (2), each subassembly supporting two game controllers 104 (1) -104 (4). In addition to the power button 112 and the eject button 114, the front panel I / O subassembly 242 supports functions of an arbitrary LED (Light Emitting Diode) and other indicators that are visible on the outer surface of the game machine. Subassemblies 240 (1), 240 (2), and 242 are connected to module 214 via one or more cable assemblies 244.

  Eight memory units 140 (1) -140 (8) are shown as being connectable to four controllers 104 (1) -104 (4). That is, two memory units can be connected to each controller. Each memory unit 140 provides additional storage, and each memory unit 140 can store games, game parameters, and other data. When the memory unit 140 is inserted into the controller, the memory controller 202 can access the memory unit 140.

  The system power supply module 250 supplies power to the components of the game system 100. The fan 252 cools the circuit inside the game machine 102.

  The game machine 102 incorporates a unified media portal model. This media portal model provides a consistent user interface and navigation hierarchy to move users to various entertainment areas. Regardless of the type of media that is inserted into the portable media drive 106, the portal model provides an easy-to-use way to access content from a wide variety of media (game data, audio data, and video data).

  In order to incorporate a unified media portal model, a console user interface (UI) application 260 is stored on the hard disk drive 208. When the game console is turned on, various portions of the console application 260 are loaded into the RAM 206 and / or the caches 210 and 212 and executed on the CPU 200. The console application 260 provides a graphical user interface that provides a consistent user experience when navigating to various media available on the gaming console.

  The game system 100 can also operate as a stand-alone system simply by connecting to a television or other display device. In the stand-alone mode, in the game system 100, one or more players can play a game, watch a movie, or listen to music. However, once integration with a broadband connection is enabled via the network interface 232, the gaming system 100 can further operate as a participant in a larger network gaming community. This network game environment will be described next.

  FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary network game environment 300 that interconnects a plurality of game systems 100 (1)-100 (g) via a network 302. Network 302 represents a wide variety of arbitrary data communication networks. The network 302 may include a public part (eg, the Internet), a private part (eg, a residential local area network (LAN)), and a combination of public and private parts. it can. Network 302 may be implemented using one or more of a wide variety of conventional communication media, including both wired and wireless media. A wide variety of arbitrary communication protocols, including both public and proprietary protocols, can be used to communicate data over the network 302. Examples of such protocols include TCP / IP, IPX / SPX, NetBEUI and the like.

  In addition to the gaming system 100, one or more online services 304 (1) -304 (s) may be accessed via the network 302. These online services provide participants with various services such as hosting online games, providing downloadable music and video files, hosting game competitions, and providing audio / video streaming files. The network game environment 300 can further include a key distribution center 306. The key distribution center 306 serves to authenticate not only the online service 304 but also individual players and / or the game system 100. The distribution center 306 distributes keys and service tickets to valid participants, and the valid participants use the keys and service tickets to form a game among a plurality of players or from the online service 304. Or purchase services.

  Network gaming environment 300 incorporates online storage, which is another memory source that can be used by individual gaming systems 100. In addition to portable storage media 108, hard disk drive 208, and memory unit (s) 140, gaming system 100 (1) is illustrated by remote storage 308 in online service 304 (s) via network 302. You can also access data files available at remote storage locations.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram of another exemplary online gaming environment 400, for example, Microsoft Corporation's XBOX® LIVE based in Redmond, WA. A plurality of game machines 402 (1) to 402 (n) are connected to the security gateway 404 via the network 406. Each game machine 402 may be, for example, the game machine 102 in FIG. 1 or FIG. Network 406 represents one or more of various various conventional data communication networks. Network 406 typically includes a packet switched network, but may also include a circuit switched network. Network 406 can include wired and / or wireless portions. In one exemplary embodiment, the network 406 includes the Internet, and optionally includes one or more local area networks (LANs) and / or wide area networks (WANs). Good. At least a portion of the network 406 is a public network that refers to a publicly accessible network. Virtually anyone can access the public network.

  Depending on the circumstances, the network 406 includes a LAN (eg, home network) with a routing device installed between the game console 402 and the security gateway 404. This routing device performs network address translation (NAT) to allow multiple devices on the LAN to share the same IP address on the Internet, and is malicious or illegal over the Internet. It is also possible to operate as a firewall that protects a device (group) on a LAN from access by a simple user.

  Security gateway 404 operates as a gateway between public network 406 and private network 408. Private network 408 can be any of a wide variety of conventional networks, such as a local area network. Similar to the apparatus described in more detail below, private network 408 resides within data center 410 that operates as a secure zone. The data center 410 is composed of a reliable device that performs communication via reliable communication. Thus, encryption and authentication are not required within secure zone 410. The private nature of the network 408 refers to the limited possibility of access to the network 408. That is, access to the network 408 is restricted to a specific person (for example, restricted by the owner or operator of the data center 410).

  Security gateway 404 is a cluster of one or more security gateway computer devices. These security gateway computer devices collectively implement a security gateway 404. The security gateway 404 can optionally include one or more conventional load balancers. The load balancer operates to allocate requests processed by the security gateway computer device to the appropriate one of those computer devices. This allocation and load distribution are performed by a method that balances the loads on the various security gateway computer devices so as to be almost equal (or according to some other standard).

  Further, the following exists in the data center 410. One or more monitoring servers 412; one or more presence and notification front doors 414, one or more presence servers 416, one or more notification servers 418, and a profile store 428 (the four together. , Implement presence and notification service, or presence and notification system 430); one or more matching front doors 420 and one or more matching servers 422 (the two together to implement the matching service) ); One or more statistics front doors 424 and one or more statistics servers 426 (the two together to implement a statistics service). Servers 416, 418, 422, and 426 provide services to game machine 402 and can be referred to as service devices. Other service devices may be included in addition to and / or instead of one or more of the servers 416, 418, 422 and 426. Furthermore, in FIG. 4, only one data center is shown, but there may alternatively be a plurality of data centers that can communicate with the game machine 402. These data centers may operate individually, or may operate together (for example, so that the game consoles 102, 402 can use one large data center).

  The game machine 402 is arranged at a location far from the data center 410 and accesses the data center 410 via the network 406. A gaming device 402 that wishes to communicate with one or more devices in the data center logs into the data center and establishes a secure communication channel between the gaming device 402 and the security gateway 404. The game machine 402 and the security gateway 404 encrypt and authenticate exchanged data packets so that the data packets between them are not known by any other device that can capture or copy without decrypting the encryption. Can be transmitted safely. Data can be embedded in each data packet transmitted from the game machine 402 to the security gateway 404 or from the security gateway 404 to the game machine 402. This embedded data is referred to as packet content or data content. Additional information can also be uniquely included in the packet, depending on the type of packet (eg, heartbeat packet).

  The secure communication channel between game machine 402 and security gateway 404 is based on a security ticket. The game machine 402 authenticates the key distribution center 428 and the user (e.g.) who is currently using the key distribution center 428, and acquires a security ticket from the key distribution center 428. The game machine 402 then uses this security ticket to establish a secure communication channel with the security gateway 404. When establishing a secure communication channel with a security gateway, the game machine 402 and the security gateway 404 authenticate each other and build a session security key that is known only to that particular game machine 402 and the security gateway 404 To do. Using this session security key, data transmitted between the game machine 402 and the security gateway cluster 404 is encrypted. For this reason, other devices (including other game machines 402) cannot read data. The session security key is also used to authenticate the data packet from the security gateway 404 or the game machine 402 that is assumed to be the transmission source of the data packet. Therefore, by using such a session security key, a secure communication channel can be established between the security gateway 404 and various game machines 402.

  When a secure communication channel is established between the game machine 402 and the security gateway 404, an encrypted data packet can be securely transmitted between the two parties. When the game machine 402 desires to transmit data to a specific service device present in the data center 410, the game machine 402 encrypts the data and the specific service device (group) to which the data packet is transmitted. And request that the data be transferred to the security gateway 404. After receiving the data packet and authenticating and decrypting the data packet, the security gateway 404 includes the data content of the packet in another message and sends it over the private network 408 to the appropriate service. The security gateway 404 determines an appropriate service according to the message based on the requested service (s) that is the destination of the data packet.

  Similarly, when a service device in the data center 410 desires to send data to the game machine 402, the data center sends a message to the security gateway 404 via the private network 408. In addition to the data content to be transmitted to the game machine 402, this message includes designation information of the specific game machine 402 that is the data content transmission destination. The security gateway 404 embeds the data content in the data packet and then encrypts the data packet. For this reason, only that specific game machine 402 can decrypt the data packet. The particular gaming device 402 also authenticates the data packet as having been transmitted from the security gateway 404.

  Although the present specification has mainly described encrypted data packets as being communicated between the security gateway 404 and the game console 402, in other methods, the data packets are only partially encrypted. Not (some data packets are encrypted, others are not encrypted). Which part of the data packet is encrypted and which part is not encrypted may vary depending on the intention of the designer of the data center 410 and / or the game machine 402. For example, the designer can select voice data to be communicated between game machines 402 so that users of game machines 402 can interact with each other. The designer can further choose to be able to encrypt all data except the voice data in the packet but not encrypt the voice data. Furthermore, in yet another method, there may be no encrypted portion of the data packet (ie, the data packet is not encrypted at all). Note that all data packets can still be authenticated, even if the data packets are unencrypted or only partially encrypted.

  Each security gateway device in security gateway 404 is typically responsible for a secure communication channel with one or more gaming machines 402. Therefore, each security gateway device can be regarded as responsible for managing or processing one or more game machines. Various security gateway devices can communicate with each other and transmit messages to each other. For example, a security gateway device that needs to transmit a data packet to a game machine that is not responsible for management may send a message including data to be transmitted to the game machine to all security gateway devices other than the game machine. it can. This message is received by the security gateway device in charge of management of the game machine, and the security gateway apparatus transmits appropriate data to the game machine. Alternatively, the security gateway device may recognize which security gateway device is in charge of which game machine. This may be explicit such that each security gateway device holds a table of game machines that are handled by a security gateway device other than its own, or any one of them based on the identifier of the game machine. It may be implicit such as determining whether the security gateway device is in charge of a specific game machine.

  The monitoring server (s) 412 notifies the devices in the data center 410 of the unusable game machine 402 or the unusable security gateway device of the security gateway 404. The game machine 402 may become unusable for various reasons. Reasons for this include hardware or software malfunctions, turning off the game machine without logging out of the data center 410, the network connection cable to the game machine 402 being disconnected from the game machine 402, and other network connections. (For example, a malfunction of the LAN to which the game machine 402 is connected). Similarly, the security gateway device of the security gateway 404 may become unusable for various reasons. The reasons include hardware or software malfunctions, the device being turned off, the network connection cable to the device being disconnected from the device, and other network problems.

  Each security gateway device in the security gateway 404 is monitored by one or more monitoring servers 412, and the monitoring server 412 detects when one of the security gateway devices becomes unavailable. If the security gateway device becomes unavailable, the monitoring server 412 sends a message to the other devices (server, front door, etc.) in the data center 410 that the security gateway device can no longer be used. . Each of the other devices can take appropriate action based on this information (for example, each of the other devices can no longer communicate with the data center 410 by the specific game machine managed by the security gateway device). Assuming that it is not possible, various cleanup operations can be performed accordingly). Alternatively, only certain device groups (eg, device groups that are affected by the availability of security gateway devices) may receive such messages from the monitoring server 412.

  The security gateway 404 monitors individual game machines 402 and detects when one of the game machines 402 becomes unavailable. If the security gateway 404 detects that the game machine can no longer be used, the security gateway 404 sends a message identifying the unavailable game machine to the monitoring server 412. In response, the monitoring server 412 sends a message to the other devices in the data center 410 (or only the selected device group) that the game machine is no longer usable. The other devices can then take appropriate actions based on this information.

  The presence server (group) 416 holds and processes data regarding the status and presence of a predetermined user who is logged into the data center 410 to play an online game. The notification server (group) 418 holds a plurality of notification queues for messages transmitted to players who are logged in to the data center 410. Presence and notification front door 414 is one or more server devices that act as a relay between security gateway 404 and servers 416 and 418. Presence and notification front door 414 can include one or more load balancers (not shown) that balance the load among multiple server devices operating as front door 414. Take. The security gateway 404 transmits a message for the servers 416 and 418 to the front door 414. The front door 414 identifies which server, the specific server 416 or the specific server 418, should transmit the message. By using the front door 414, the actual implementation of the servers 416 and 418 is extracted from the security gateway 404, such as which server is responsible for managing which user data. The security gateway 404 simply forwards the message for the presence and notification service to the presence and notification front door 414, the message for the appropriate one of the server (s) 416 and the server (s) 418. Routing can be delegated to the front door 414.

  The matching server (group) 422 holds and processes data relating to matching between online players. The online user can publish the playable game as well as various characteristics of the game (eg, where the football game is played, whether it is played during the day or night, the user's skill level, etc.) . These various characteristics can then be used as a basis to match up various online users and play the game together. The matching front door 420 includes one or more server devices (and optionally a load balancer (s)) and operates to extract the matching server (s) 422 from the security gateway 404. This is done in a manner similar to how the front door 414 extracts the server (s) 416 and server (s) 418.

  The statistics server (group) 426 holds and processes data related to various statistics of the online game. The specific statistics used may vary based on the intentions of the game designer (e.g., top 10 score or time, world ranking of all online game players, users with the most acquired items or the longest playing time) List). The statistics front door 424 includes one or more server devices (and optionally load balancer (s)) and operates to extract the statistics server (s) 426 from the security gateway 404. This is done in a manner similar to how the front door 414 extracts the server (s) 416 and server (s) 418.

  In this way, it can be verified that the security gateway operates to protect devices residing in the secure zone within the data center 410 from the untrusted public network 406. Since all devices present in the data center 410 are reliable, communications within the secure zone of the data center 410 need not be encrypted. However, all the information transmitted from the devices existing in the data center 410 to the game machine 402 is passed through the security gateway cluster 404, and the security gateway cluster 404 is the game machine that is the transmission destination of the information. The information is encrypted in such a way that only 402 can be decrypted.

  One or more of the present invention may be executed by computer-executable instructions (ie, software) stored in RAM memory 206, non-volatile memory 108, 208, 308, or any other memory residing on game console 102. Can incorporate the side. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. that perform specific tasks or implement specific abstract data types when executed by a processor in a computer or other device. Is included. Computer-executable instructions may be stored on computer-readable media such as hard disk 208, removable storage medium 108, solid state memory, RAM 206, and the like. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the functionality of the software modules can be combined or distributed as desired in various embodiments. In addition, for example, all or part of firmware and hardware equivalents such as application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) are provided with their functions. Can be incorporated.

  Alternatively, as generally shown in FIG. 5, one or more aspects of the present invention can be incorporated into a general purpose computer or other data processing device. With reference to FIG. 5, an exemplary system for implementing various functions includes a computer device, such as computer device 500. In its most basic configuration, computer device 500 typically includes at least one processing device 502 and memory 504. Depending on the exact configuration and type of computing device, memory 504 may be volatile memory (eg, RAM), non-volatile memory (eg, ROM, flash memory, etc.), or some combination of both. This most basic configuration is illustrated by the dotted line 506 in FIG. In addition, the device 500 may have additional features / functions. For example, the device 500 may include additional storage (removable and / or non-removable). This storage includes, but is not limited to, magnetic disks, optical disks, or tapes. Such additional storage is illustrated in FIG. 5 by removable storage 508 and non-removable storage 510. Computer storage media includes volatile and non-volatile media, removable and non-removable media. These media are any method for storage of information, such as computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data, that directs the device to operate as described herein. Or implemented by technology. Memory 504, removable storage 508, and non-removable storage 510 are all examples of computer storage media. Computer storage media includes RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disk (DVD) or other optical storage, magnetic cassette, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage Alternatively, other magnetic storage devices, or any other media that can be accessed by computer device 500 and used to store the desired information are included, but are not limited to these. All such computer storage media can be part of computer device 500.

  The device 500 can also include a communication connection (s) 512 that allows communication with other devices. Communication connection (group) 512 is an example of communication media. Communication media typically represents a computer-readable instruction, data structure, program module, or other data represented as a modulated data signal, such as a carrier wave or other transmission mechanism. Includes media. The term “modulated data signal” means a signal that has one or more of its characteristics set or changed in such a manner as to encode information in the signal. For example, the communication media include, but are not limited to, wired media such as a wired network and direct wiring connection, and wireless media such as acoustic, RF, infrared, and other wireless media. As used herein, the term computer readable medium includes both storage media and communication media.

  The device 500 may also include an input device (s) 514 such as a keyboard, mouse, pen, voice input device, touch input device. An output device (s) 516 such as a display, speakers, printer, etc. can also be included. All these devices are well known in the art and need not be described at length here.

Exemplary Embodiments—Action Charge System A turn-based RPG is referred to as an Action Charge System (ACS) in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention described herein. An improved combat system can be incorporated. ACS RPG can hold a turn sequence that determines the turn order of each character. Each turn can represent a specific time period in the game. For example, each turn can be 10 seconds in the virtual world represented by the game.

  Using ACS, the player either immediately takes action at the default power level on the next turn of the player character, or delays the player character's action for a while, but at an increased power level. Can be determined dynamically. That is, the player “charges” a predetermined action (eg, attack, defense, recovery, etc.) for a while from the timing of the turn originally assigned to the player, thereby generating power (as a result of the action) Effect) can be controlled arbitrarily. If the player decides to charge the action, the execution of the action is delayed, but when it is finally executed, the power of the action increases. Therefore, the longer the player “charges” the action, that is, the more delayed the action (thus delaying the player ’s turn), the resulting turn will result in a turn. The power of action will be further increased. This requires the player to decide whether to perform the action immediately at a weaker power level or to delay the action for a while and execute the action at a stronger power level. , Given a strategic choice. When the player delays the action and charges the action, the player needs to determine the length of time (the magnitude of power) to charge the action. It should be noted that the player should not be too late so that the player can no longer be involved in the battle as a result.

  Referring to FIG. 6A, in the exemplary turn-based RPG battle system, character A 603, character B 604, character C 605, character D 606, character E 607, and character E based on a time line 601 including a time increment 610. A turn sequence 600 for F608 can be defined. When the turn order of the character matches the current game 602, the character performs an action. As shown in FIG. 6A, since the character A is shown at the current time 602, the character A 603 can select either to execute the action immediately or to charge the power level of the action. it can. Power level charging will be described in detail below. The turn order of the character B 604 is scheduled after the time increase amount of 10 squares of the character A 603. Character C 605 is after the time increase of 11 squares of character B 604, character D 606 is after the time increase of 14 squares of character C 605, character E 607 is after the time increase of 9 squares of character D 606, character F 608 is the character After the time increase of 11 squares of E607. Use any amount of time increase as desired, such as using a time increment of 1 square per turn (thus resulting in equally spaced turns), or using multiple time increments per turn. Can do. The turn sequence 600 can be displayed on a television or other display connected to the gaming device 102 via the A / V port 228 as part of a video game graphic user interface. Therefore, it is possible to visually notify the player of the current turn order.

  When the character makes his turn, the ACS performs the requested action and changes the turn order according to the amount of turn delay associated with the character that performed the action. For example, FIG. 6B shows a turn sequence 600 after character A 603 immediately performs an action at a default power level. In FIG. 6B, the turn delay amount associated with the character A 603 is a time increase amount of 66 squares. The player character can execute an action immediately by inputting a corresponding command, for example, by pressing a predetermined button 136 on the game controller 104 and releasing it immediately. The command need not depend on the length of time the button is pressed, and any other command can be used to indicate an immediate action as desired. The amount of turn delay associated with the character can be based on various factors. These factors include the default delay amount that is changed by zero or more modifiers. Examples of change factors include speed (usually a constant change factor based on the quickness of the character), fatigue level (which can vary depending on how the character is not resting), and enhanced change factors (eg, speeding up the character) Or a temporary change factor based on magic, potions, or other temporary enhancements, such as a magical or a character upgrading his leg to a cyborg.

  FIG. 7A shows the same turn sequence 600 as FIG. 6A, but FIG. 7A shows that the player who controls the character A 603 (that is, the player character A 603) does not immediately perform an action, and the power level at the time of executing the action. To decide to charge the action to increase The player character can charge the action by inputting a corresponding command, for example, by long pressing a predetermined button 136 on the game controller 104. As this predetermined button, the same button as that used for the immediate action may be used, or another button may be used. When the player holds down the predetermined button 136, the action meter or action gauge 701 starts to increase on the turn sequence 600. This turn sequence 600 is displayed on a display or television connected to the A / V port 228 as part of the graphic user interface of the video game. The longer the time that a predetermined button is pressed, the longer the resulting action is charged. In other words, the more charges, the greater the power of action, such as more powerful attacks, better defense, and more effective recovery. Again, like an immediate action command, the command need not depend on how long the button is pressed, but any other command can be used to direct the immediate action as desired. it can.

  During the charging of the action, feedback regarding the accumulated charge amount can be provided to the player. For example, FIG. 7A shows an action meter 701 that extends to the right while the action is charged. The exemplary action meter 701 in FIG. 7A is a short time after the player has started to hold down a predetermined button, in addition to the fact that the player character A 603 is not so much charged. It also shows that you can perform actions charged to that point without delaying your turn. The meter can start at least from a level where character A is forced to delay his turn until it exceeds the scheduled turn of the next character (character B in FIG. 7A). Alternatively, the charging effect may not occur unless the meter reaches a predetermined minimum charge amount. For example, the selected action being charged in FIG. 7A can be set so that the charging effect only occurs when the meter exceeds the scheduled turn of the next character. In some aspects, the player can be notified in advance of the amount of charge required for the action being charged, so that the player can decide whether to use the charged version of the action. Therefore, if the necessary charge amount is displayed at the moment when the player presses a predetermined button, the player releases the button and immediately executes an action at the default power level, Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 7B, it has time to determine whether to charge the action by advancing the meter until the next character's scheduled turn is exceeded.

  FIG. 7B shows the action meter 701 as a result of the player holding down a predetermined button for a time long enough for the meter to exceed the scheduled turn of the next character. Yes. If the player continues to hold down the predetermined button, the meter will continue to charge as shown in FIG. 7C. FIG. 7C shows the action meter 701 in the resulting state as a result of the player holding down a predetermined button for a time long enough for the meter to exceed the scheduled turn of the next two characters. Show. When the player releases a predetermined button when the meter is in the state shown in FIG. 7C, the action of the player character A603 is, for example, an action meter such as a time increment of 28 squares after the character C605. It is executed with a charge change factor based on Thus, the action can be modified using a delay based power modifier function, eg, cpl = f (AM). Here, cpl represents the charged power level, and AM represents the value of the action meter (28 in this example). Any power change function can be used to reach the charged power level. Examples of this power modification function include cpl = AM / 10 (2.8 in this example), cpl = AM, or cpl = AMx (where x is any modification factor or combination thereof) Is mentioned. The power change function may vary depending on the amount of time increase used, the average time between turns, the character change factor, and the like. Alternatively, the charged version of the function may simply be chosen to take precedence over the immediate (ie, uncharged) version.

  Although FIG. 7A, FIG. 7B, and FIG. 7C show an action meter 701 at a predetermined point in time, the action meter 701 can be animated to increase over time. That is, the action meter 701 increases by a sufficient number of steps to allow the player to have sufficient time to determine when to stop charging the action power level. The turn sequence shown in FIGS. 6 to 8 is merely a diagrammatic display example of the turn sequence 600 including the timeline 602 and the character icons 603 to 608, and alternative designs and arrangements may be used.

  FIG. 8 shows a turn sequence 600 after player character A 603 releases a predetermined button and thereby charges an action for his turn. The turn sequence 600 of FIG. 8 shows a state in which the player character A603 has sufficiently charged his / her power level and the current turn of the character A603 is between the character C605 and the character D606.

  FIG. 8 also shows optional indicators 801, 802. Optional indicator 801 (in this example, the shadow of the character icon) indicates that character A has charged a power level for the next action, but does not indicate how much is charged. . All that can be seen from the optional indicator 801 is that the resulting character A's turn position is after character C and before character D. The optional indicator may be any visible mark, such as a shadow, a character icon, or an asterisk attached to the character name. The option indicator 802 shows the same information as the option indicator 801, but also provides an amount indicating how much action character A has charged for the next turn. Optional indicator 802 can be a displayed number, shade gradient or color (but one or more shade gradients or colors are used), or any other that provides a charged power level amount A graphic indicator is mentioned.

  An optional indicator is, for example, that even though the first character performs an action at the default power level, the turn of the first character causes the first character to turn to the end of the sequence of turn sequences. Useful if not. That is, for example, due to various speed change factors, the turn delay of the first character may be much greater than the turn delay of the second character. When the first character finishes the action at the default power level, the ACS can adjust the turn sequence based on the time increase of 50 squares, which is the turn delay amount of the first character. When the second character finishes the action at the default power level after the time increase of 5 squares, the ACS determines the turn sequence based on the time increase of 40 squares which is the turn delay amount of the second character. Can be adjusted. The net result is that although both the first and second characters have performed the action at the default power level, the second character takes 5 squares more time than the first character in the turn sequence. It will be placed before the increase amount. Therefore, a character not turning to the end of the turn sequence does not guarantee that the character has charged his turn action level. That is, the fact that the character did not turn to the end of the turn sequence after the turn does not necessarily mean that the character has executed the action charge. Accordingly, the optional indicators 801, 802 are useful for clearly indicating that the character has executed the action charge, and the player can respond accordingly.

  FIG. 9 shows an exemplary flowchart of a method for charging a power level. After starting, in step 901, the ACS advances the timeline 601 to the next character turn. In step 903, whether the player character (or NPC using artificial intelligence) performs the action immediately at the default power level or charges the action for a while, ie, to the desired power level. To decide. If the character decides to perform the action immediately, then in step 905, the ACS performs the action at the default power level. The default power level can be different for various characters based on, for example, character-specific attributes (eg, strength, quickness, constitution, special abilities, magic, etc.). After performing the action at the character's default power level, at step 907, the ACS advances the character's turn and adjusts the turn sequence accordingly. The method then returns to step 901.

  If in step 903 the character decides to charge the action power level, then in step 909, the method causes the action meter to move in one step (e.g., a time increment of 1 square, or other predetermined amount). Increase). In step 911, if the character is still charging the power level, for example, by continuing to hold down the predetermined button 136, the method returns to step 909. If the character stops charging, for example by releasing a predetermined button, in step 913, the ACS uses the power change function to calculate the charged power level. In step 915, the ACS delays the character's turn based on the action meter, the charged power level, or other predetermined value corresponding to the charged power level. The ACS then returns to step 901 to advance the turn order to the next character turn. The steps shown in FIG. 9 may be executed in a different order from this example, and one or more steps shown in FIG. 9 may be optional steps.

  Using one or more aspects of the present invention, the video game provides a higher level of strategy as the player character thinks. Non-player characters with appropriate artificial intelligence can also take advantage of the higher level of strategy provided by the functions described herein. For example, referring to FIG. 8, the character B 604 and the character C 605 know that the character A 603 has been charged with the action power level by displaying the optional indicators 801 and / or 802. Thus, whether character B 604 determines whether the action of character A 603 is directed to PC B and immediately executes the action at the default power level (eg, defense against an expected attack of character A). Or you have to decide strategically whether to charge the power level of your attack. Alternatively, in the hope that the character A will be defeated before the next turn of the character A, the character B and the character C will both May decide to attack. In addition, for example, since character B and character A are the same team, character B, who is known to be highly likely to attack character C, may attack character C.

  Introducing one or more aspects of the action charge system provides players with several levels of strategy to consider when deciding what action to take when a character turns. PCs and NPCs can decide to perform an action immediately at the default power level or to delay their turn but charge (increase) the action power level. If the character decides to charge an action power level, the character must also decide how much action power level to charge (up to any level or to a specific level based on the player's strategy) .

  As described above, the turn sequence (eg, similar to turn sequence 600) is displayed as part of the video game graphic user interface on a television or other display on which the video game is displayed. Can do. Thereby, not only the current turn sequence but also the resulting turn sequence based on the action charge can be informed to the player character. For example, the player knows whether to perform an action or charge during his / her turn by looking at the display of his / her character at the current time 602 in the turn sequence 600. The player also knows the current turn order of all or some characters (based on the size of the display space in which the turn sequence is displayed).

  By using one or more aspects of the present invention, a player performs actions such as melee attacks, range attacks, magic attacks, defensive postures, recovery events, etc. at a dynamic charge level. As a result, the player's turn will be delayed, so the player will consciously consider the effects of that decision before making the decision. That is, the player needs to select whether to perform the default level action immediately, or wait for a while and execute the action at the charged (increased) power level.

  Various changes and diversifications are possible from the above description. For example, the ACS can set an upper limit for an allowable charge amount or charge time. The upper limit can be arbitrarily changed during the game play based on the growth of the character in the game, for example, so that the motivation of the player who grows the character can be increased. The upper limit can also be changed as the level increases and / or by functional algorithms.

  In another variation, the video game may provide a permanent or temporary special ability, power, or enhancement that affects the maximum charge amount. Such enhancements, referred to as rewards and penalties, can include magic, potions, tokens, or other gameplay elements. Since the reward may increase permanent or temporary charge efficiency or charge ability, for example, when an attribute of “charge power × 2” is given to the character, the character is doubled or 2 It is possible to charge at twice the speed (thus resulting in less turn delay based on charge). Other rewards such as “Charge Power × 3” can also be used instead. The penalty decreases charge efficiency and charge capability, such as “charge power × 1/2”, “charge power × 1/3”, and the like. Both rewards and penalties may be used by the player for his character, may be used as magic for another character, or the use of the reward / penalty will be determined by another method. May be.

  In yet another alternative embodiment, action meter 701 may only provide an indication of turn order and may not provide a charge amount (however, charge is likely based on time). In yet another alternative embodiment, the amount of time increase may be one square time increment per turn (ie, one turn per square time increment), and all characters are Regardless of the character's specific turn delay value, it is turned to the end of the line after the action (regardless of whether or not it is charged). In such an embodiment, the amount of time increase is irrelevant and the action charge is based on the turn delay amount of the character.

Exemplary Embodiments—Variable Action Gauge System (VAGS)
In accordance with another exemplary aspect of the present invention, the player can select a desired charge amount, and the combat system automatically determines the time required to charge the action power level to that desired amount. Can be determined. In this specification, this type of battle system is referred to as a variable action gauge system (VAGS). That is, using the ACS battle system, the player selects the amount of time to charge the power level, and the resulting amount of charge is based on that amount of time. Using the VAGS battle system, the player can select a desired charge amount, and the VAGS battle system determines the amount of time it takes to charge the desired charge amount.

  With reference to FIGS. 10 and 11, an exemplary method for influencing power levels using the VAGS battle system will now be described. FIG. 10 shows a graphical display 1001 that displays output from a video game to a video game display device. The graphic display 1001 shows one player character 1003 and two non-player characters 1005 and 1007. FIG. 11 shows a flowchart of a turn cycle method performed by a VAGS in accordance with one or more aspects of the present invention.

  In step 1101, the VAGS advances the game timeline to the turn of the player character. In step 1103, for example, as a result of the VAGS requesting that the player character perform an action (eg, attack × 2) charged during the previous turn, the player character (as described herein) Determine if a charge is currently in progress. If charging is not in progress, then, in step 1105, the player controlling the player character 1003 immediately performs an action (eg, attack, magic, recovery) at the default power level when the player character turns, Alternatively, it is possible to determine whether to execute an action (for example, attack × 2, magic × 4, recovery × 3, etc.) with some power level charged. Other options are possible, but the description is omitted here. A player who controls a player character can input using, for example, the controller 104 and the input control buttons 132, 134, 136, etc., which are well known in the art, and can determine which action to take (input). The mechanism is well known in the art and need not be described in detail herein). If the player decides to perform the action immediately, then in step 1107, the VAGS performs the action at the default power level. In step 1109, the VAGS advances to the turn of the other character, eg, one or more other player characters or non-player characters. In this example, in step 1109, VAGS advances to the turn corresponding to the non-player characters 1005, 1007.

  In step 1105, if the player character chooses to perform the charged action, then the VAGS is then associated with the information associated with the charged action, eg, the type of action, the action level desired by the user. The amount of charge, the object of the action or the target person is stored. In step 1115, the VAGS increases the charge meter 1009 corresponding to the player character 1003. VAGS can increase the charge meter by a predetermined amount per turn. The predetermined amount per turn may always be uniform for all characters or may vary based on one or more criteria. Further, the predetermined amount may be changed for each character based on the attribute of each character, for example. Examples of attributes that can affect the predetermined amount by which VAGS increases the charge meter per turn include strength (eg, if the action being charged is a sword attack), magic ability (eg, The charged action is magic), the physique (eg, the charged action is a recovery action), the character level, and the like. These attributes are exemplary only and one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the predetermined amount can be calculated for each player in various ways using the same or different values. . VAGS advances from step 1115 to step 1109 and performs the turn of the other character.

  If, in step 1103, the VAGS determines that the action being charged is in progress, i.e. the player has selected to perform the action to be charged in step 1105 of the previous turn cycle, in step 1111, The VAGS determines whether or not the charging is finished. The VAGS is full when the charge meter visually represented as a graphically displayed charge meter 1009 is full (ie, the accumulated charge added at step 1115 of each turn cycle is described below. It is determined whether or not the charging is completed by checking whether or not the charging amount is greater than or equal to the action level desired by the user. If the charging has been completed, then in step 1113, the VAGS executes the charged action according to the charge amount, the action target, etc., and proceeds to step 1109. If charging has not ended in step 1111, then VAGS proceeds to step 1109 without executing step 1113. One skilled in the art will appreciate that the steps shown in FIG. 11 can be performed in a different order than the order described, and one or more of the steps shown in FIG. 11 can be optional.

  Using the method described above, the player may choose to perform a charged action such as “attack × 3” in step 1105. 12A-12C show action meter 1009 after finishing the second, third, and fourth turns, respectively, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 13, on the fifth turn, the action meter 1009 becomes full, so that the character performs a charged action 1301 such as “attack × 3”, for example. If it is desired to execute a charged action with greater power, the charge time or charge amount is further increased as compared with an action with less charge. For example, a given player character may take three turns to charge to double the action, but may take five turns to charge to triple the same action.

  According to one variant of the invention, even if a player requests to perform an action at a default power level, the charge time associated with the action, if not as much as the charge time required to charge the action. May be required. For example, the default action may require a charge for one turn. In addition, for various types of actions, the charge multiplier can be the same, but the amount of time required for charging can be different. Therefore, the “attack × 2” action can take a longer charge time than the “defense × 2” action. Further, depending on the desired effect, the allowable charge multiplier may be limited or may not be limited.

  In accordance with another variation of the present invention, similar to the ACS combat system, the video game can provide rewards and / or penalties that affect the amount of charge or time of charge. Since the reward may increase permanent or temporary charge efficiency or charge ability, for example, when an attribute of “charge power × 2” is given to the character, the character is doubled or 2 It is possible to charge at twice the speed (thus resulting in fewer turns to fully charge the action). Other rewards such as “Charge Power × 3” can also be used instead. The penalty decreases charge efficiency and charge capability, such as “charge power × 1/2”, “charge power × 1/3”, and the like. Both rewards and penalties may be used by the player for his character, may be used as magic for another character, or the use of the reward / penalty will be determined by another method. May be.

  According to yet another variation of the present invention, an action by a character (PC and / or NPC) other than the player character can affect the charging time of the player character. For example, if the player character is damaged as a result of an enemy attack while the player character is charging an action, the charge meter 1009 may be decreased by some amount based on the enemy action. it can. Some actions can have a different magnitude of effect on the charge meter than other actions. As another example, if the enemy character applies the magic of “Charge × 1/2” to the player character while the player character is charging, it does not actually decrease the charge meter. During the magic duration, you can halve the charge increase per turn. As yet another example, while a player character is charging an action, an ally character can defend the player character. The ally character can apply defensive magic to the player character, and can block any enemy character that is trying to interfere with the action charge of the player character from the player character.

  FIG. 14 shows a timeline according to an example use of a VAGS battle system in a turn-based video game. Here, it is assumed that each turn is 10 seconds in the virtual world expressed in the video game, and each character can perform one action per turn. At the beginning of each turn where no action is pending (charged), the character is given the opportunity to specify one action.

  At the start of turn 1, character A causes an action such as a melee attack with a sword to be executed at a default power level. In this example, it takes 6 seconds to charge such an attack. As a result, VAGS performs the action of character A during the turn 1 period. Further, at the start of turn 1, the character B performs an action such as, for example, applying fireball magic at a charged power level, for example, “fireball × 2”. In this example, it takes 16 seconds to charge such an attack. As a result, the player who is controlling the character B can expect the magic of “fireball × 2” to be applied during the turn 2 period. However, if the attack of character A succeeds against character B, the charge meter of character B decreases as a result of the attack of character A (in addition to or instead of being damaged by character B) Can do. As a result, some time (for example, 5 seconds) is added to the charge time required for the character B to apply the magic of “fire ball × 2”. As a result, during the turn 2 period, the character B cannot apply the magic until the turn 3 is reached. On the other hand, character A completes his previous action during the turn 1 period, so that another action can be executed during the turn 2 period. In this example, character A expects that character B's attack will be performed during turn 3, and during turn 2 performs another action, such as shielding (defense) magic, by default. Can be run at power level. At the beginning of turn 3, character A, for example, performs a charged action (third action in a number of turns) such as “lightning bolt × 3”. , Character B's original action has just been executed. If the fireball magic of character B is successful, the charge time of character A can be negatively affected in exactly the same way that character A's sword attack has affected character B. The VAGS continues to turn 4 in a similar manner. Therefore, as can be clearly seen from this example, another character can negatively affect the charging time of the player character, and as a result, the action of the player character may be carried over to the subsequent turn.

  Since the player must consider not only whether or not to charge the attack, but also how much to charge the attack, VAGS offers a higher level of strategy for use by the player. For example, after turn 1 in the above example, character A can determine (from the displayed charge meter corresponding to character B) that character B would not be able to perform the action charged until turn 3. Thereby, the character A comes to execute shield magic in the next turn. In the various embodiments described above, the player must take into account that other character actions can negatively affect the charge time required for the player character action. Those skilled in the art will appreciate the higher level of strategy offered by VAGS.

  In accordance with various exemplary aspects of the present invention, ACS and / or VAGS can be included in either a single player or multiplayer turn-based role playing game. One skilled in the art will appreciate that various inputs and mechanisms can be used to perform an immediate action, an ACS action charge, or a VAGS action charge. The present invention includes all novel features or combinations thereof explicitly disclosed herein or generalized therefrom. Although the present invention has been described with reference to specific examples, including preferred embodiments of the present invention, at which the present invention can be practiced, those skilled in the art will recognize that the systems and techniques described above may vary and Many substitutions are possible. Accordingly, the spirit and scope of the invention should be construed broadly as set forth in the appended claims.

1 illustrates a usable gaming system in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the game system shown in FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a network game system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. FIG. 6 is another block diagram illustrating an online gaming environment, according to an illustrative embodiment of the invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a general purpose data processing device that can be used in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. FIG. 6 illustrates a turn sequence during an uncharged action in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. FIG. 6 illustrates a turn sequence during an uncharged action in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. FIG. 4 illustrates a turn sequence during a charged action in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. FIG. 4 illustrates a turn sequence during a charged action in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. FIG. 4 illustrates a turn sequence during a charged action in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. FIG. 8 illustrates a resulting turn sequence after the end of the action charge of FIGS. 7A-7C in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. 6 is a flow chart for performing an action charge method in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. FIG. 5 illustrates a turn-based video game screen display in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. 6 is a flow chart for performing a variable action gauge method in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. FIG. 5 illustrates a screen display during successive turns in a video game in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. FIG. 5 illustrates a screen display during successive turns in a video game in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. FIG. 5 illustrates a screen display during successive turns in a video game in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. FIG. 6 illustrates a screen display when a charge meter is full, in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention. FIG. 4 illustrates a video game turn timeline in accordance with one or more exemplary aspects of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

100 game system environment 102, 402 game machine 106 portable media drive 108 portable media 140 memory unit 208 hard disk drive 302, 406 network 306, 428 key distribution center 308 remote storage 600 turn sequence 601 timeline 602 current 603, 604, 605, 606 , 607, 608 Character 610 Time increment 701 Action meter 801, 802 Optional indicator 1003 Player character 1005, 1007 Non-player character 1009 Charge meter 1301 Charged action

Claims (20)

In a turn-based video game, one or more computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions for performing methods that affect the power level of character actions,
The computer executable instructions are:
Determining an initial turn sequence of a plurality of characters in the turn-based video game;
Displaying a graphic representation of the turn sequence on a video game display device;
Receiving user input corresponding to the first character during the turn of the first character;
While receiving the user input, an action meter is displayed on the video game display device along with the turn sequence to increase the action meter, and when the user input ends, the first Providing an indication of the delay associated with the character's turn;
Determining a charged action power level based on the received user input;
Rearranging the turn sequence based on the received user input. The computer-readable medium.   The increasing the action meter includes increasing the action meter by a predetermined amount for a predetermined time while receiving the user input. Item 12. A computer-readable medium according to Item 1. Receiving a predetermined second input corresponding to the first character for a second turn;
The computer-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising instructions for performing a step of determining a default action power level based on the predetermined second input.   The computer-readable computer of claim 1, further comprising: an instruction to reduce the determined action power level to the maximum action power level if the determined action power level exceeds a maximum action power level. Possible media.   The computer-readable medium of claim 4, wherein the maximum action power level is based on one or more attributes of the first character.   The computer-readable medium of claim 5, wherein the one or more attributes include a level of the first character.   The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the turn sequence is based on a predetermined amount of time increase.   The computer-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising displaying the rearranged turn sequence on the video game display device.   The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the rearranged turn sequence includes a graphic indicator indicating that the first character has performed an action charge.   The computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the graphic indicator further indicates the amount of the action charge.   The method further includes instructions for associating a temporary action charge change factor with the first character, wherein the determined charged action power level is further based on the temporary action charge change factor. A computer readable medium according to claim 1.   The computer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein the temporary action charge modification factor includes a reward that results in an increase in action charge capability.   The computer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein the temporary action charge modification factor includes a penalty resulting in a decrease in action charge capability.   The computer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein the temporary action charge change factor results from an interaction between magic applied in the video game and the first character.   The computer-readable medium according to claim 1, wherein the action includes magic applied by the first character in the video game. In a turn-based video game, a method of affecting the power level of actions performed by a player character,
Providing a graphic display of a turn sequence of a plurality of players including the player character in the turn-based video game;
Receiving a user input from a player controlling the player character at a current time of a game that matches the turn of the player character, the user input at a default power level at the current time of the game Receiving, comprising selecting one of performing the action and performing the action at a charged power level after the turn of the next character in the turn sequence. Feature method.   While receiving the user input, further comprising dynamically increasing an action meter along the turn sequence, the size of the action meter being based on the amount of time the user input is received The method according to claim 16.   The method of claim 16, wherein the plurality of player characters further includes a second player character.   The method according to claim 16, wherein the plurality of player characters include only non-player characters in addition to the player characters.   The method of claim 17, further comprising rearranging the turn sequence based on the position of the action meter at the end of the user input.

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