JP2008229171A - Game apparatus, game control method and game control program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a game control technology with high convenience. <P>SOLUTION: A game apparatus 10 includes: an input receiving part 30 for receiving an operation input from a player; a control part 40 for controlling a game, where a player's character plays golf, according to the timing of the operation input; a route acquisition part 52 for acquiring a route for the hole-out player's character to move to a teeing ground of a next hole; and a movement state display part 53, after the player's character holes out, for displaying the state of the player's character moving along the route. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a game control technique, and more particularly to a game device, a game control method, and a game control program for controlling a golf game.

  Games that play golf by manipulating characters are gaining popularity. Even in the real world, golf is a sport that boasts an unfair popularity, with a large number of players over a wide range of age groups.

  There are many golf games on the market, but because the competition style is simple from the beginning, it is difficult to put out the features and many of them do not change much. It is desired to develop a unique golf game that can be enjoyed with fresh fun.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a game control technique with higher entertainment.

  One embodiment of the present invention relates to a game control program. The game control program includes a function for receiving an operation input from a player, a function for controlling a game in which a player's character plays golf in response to the operation input, and a player's character that has holed out, And a function of displaying a state of moving along the path after the player's character has holed out.

  It should be noted that any combination of the above-described constituent elements and a representation of the present invention converted between a method, an apparatus, a system, etc. are also effective as an aspect of the present invention.

  According to the present invention, a more entertaining game control technique can be provided.

  The game device according to the embodiment realizes a game in which a player's character operated by a player performs a ball game of hitting a ball. In this embodiment, golf will be particularly described as an example.

  FIG. 1 shows a configuration of a game apparatus 10 according to the embodiment. The game apparatus 10 includes a controller 20, an input receiving unit 30, a control unit 40, a parameter holding unit 60, buffer memories 62a and 62b, a screen generation unit 66, a VRAM 67, a display device 68, a storage medium 70, and a speaker 72. In terms of hardware components, these configurations are realized by a CPU of a computer, a memory, a program loaded in the memory, and the like, but here, functional blocks realized by their cooperation are illustrated. Accordingly, those skilled in the art will understand that these functional blocks can be realized in various forms by hardware only, software only, or a combination thereof.

  The input receiving unit 30 receives a control signal input from the controller 20 operated by the player. The control unit 40 reads and executes the program from the storage medium 70 in which the program of the golf game is stored, and based on the operation input from the player received by the input receiving unit 30, a player character that functions as a golf player in the game world The golf game is advanced while controlling the movement of the game. The parameter holding unit 60 holds parameters necessary for the progress of the golf game. The screen generation unit 66 generates a game screen controlled by the control unit 40 and displays the game screen on the display device 68 via the VRAM 67. The speaker 72 outputs the sound of the game controlled by the control unit 40.

  The shot control unit 41 controls a shot by a player's character. The shot control unit 41 includes a camera control unit 42, a lie display unit 43, a power determination unit 44, and an impact determination unit 45.

  FIG. 2 shows an example of the game screen when the player's character makes a shot. On the screen 100, an image in which the topography of the hole being played is rendered, an image of the player's character viewed from behind, and an area 102 indicating the lie state are displayed. On this screen, the player operates the controller 20 to determine the power and impact of the shot, and causes the player's character to perform the shot.

  The camera control unit 42 controls the viewpoint position and line-of-sight direction of the camera when the screen generation unit 66 generates a game screen. When generating a game screen when the player's character performs a shot, the camera control unit 42 sets the viewpoint position behind the player's character and sets the gaze direction in the direction of viewing the player's character as an initial setting. The player can change the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction by operating the controller 20 in order to check the topography of the hole and to determine the shot direction and distance. As will be described later, the camera control unit 42 changes the viewpoint position and line-of-sight direction of the camera according to an operation input from the player, and notifies the screen generation unit 66 of the change.

  The lie display unit 43 displays the state of the ground where the ball is in contact with the ground when the player's character shots the ball. At this time, the lie display unit 43 displays the state of the inclination of the ground by displaying the movement of the object from the higher side of the ground toward the lower side. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the lie display unit 43 displays a perspective view in which the ground 104 at the position where the ball is in contact with the ground is cut into a quadrangle and viewed from obliquely above, and the particles 106 move on each side of the quadrangle. You may display a state to do. At this time, the speed of the particle 106 is set so as to increase as the inclination of the ground 104 increases and decrease as the inclination decreases. The speed of the particles 106 may be varied to reflect the state of the lie where the ball is in contact with the ground. For example, the speed of the particles 106 may be varied on a fairway, rough, bunker, cart path, or the like. In addition, on the green, the speed of the particles 106 may be determined in consideration of the lawn grass and the state of the lawn. In addition, when the player changes the viewpoint position or line-of-sight direction of the camera so that the player can determine the aim of the shot or putt, the point of arrival or the vicinity of the ball is displayed. A grid may be displayed in a predetermined area, and a screen in which particles flow along the grid may be displayed. Also in this case, the velocity of the particles may be determined according to the topography of the region, the state of the lie, the green grass, and the like. If the speed of the particles 106 is too fast or too slow, it will be difficult for the player to visually recognize. For example, even if the speed of making one round in 0.5 seconds is the upper limit, Good. Thereby, not only the horizontal inclination of the screen but also the inclination in the depth direction can be expressed in an easy-to-understand manner, so that the player can accurately grasp the state of the lie and reflect it in the shot. As will be described later, in the golf game of the present embodiment, the trajectory of the shot ball is calculated by physics calculation considering the inclination angle of the ball's ground contact surface. It is especially important to display easily.

  The power determination unit 44 determines the shot power of the player's character. When the power determination unit 44 receives an operation input assigned with an instruction to start a shot from the controller 20, the power determination unit 44 causes the screen generation unit 66 to generate a screen in which the player's character is performing a takeback action to shot the ball. And displayed on the display device 68. The player uses the controller 20 to perform an operation input to which an instruction for determining power is assigned, using the degree of progress of the take-back action of the player's character as an index. The power determination unit 44 determines the power of the shot according to the degree of progress of the action of the player's character to perform the shot at the time when the operation input for determining the power is received. The power determination unit 44 notifies the trajectory calculation unit 50 of the determined power.

  The power determination unit 44 is based on the ratio of the time required for the take-back operation at the time of full swing and the time from the start of the take-back until the operation input for determining power is received or the number of frames on the display screen. Determine the power of the shot. For example, assuming that the power at the time of starting takeback is 0% and the power at the time of top swing is 100%, the power at the time of accepting the operation input may be determined by internal division. If the time required for a full swing is 2 seconds and an operation input is received 1.6 seconds after the start of takeback, the power may be 80%. Further, when the number of frames when displaying a full swing motion is 100 frames and an operation input is received 70 frames after the start of takeback, the power may be set to 70%. As an index for the player to measure timing, the power determination unit 44 displays that when the power reaches a predetermined value, for example, 50% or 100%, or changes the display mode of the club head. May be.

  FIGS. 3A and 3B show examples of the game screen when the player's character is performing an action of taking back. FIG. 3A shows a state in which half the time required for a full swing has elapsed since the player's character started takeback. If an operation input is received from the player at this time, the power determination unit 44 determines the shot power to be 50%. FIG. 3B shows a state in which the player's character has reached the top of swing. When an operation input is received from the player at this time, the power determination unit 44 determines the shot power to be 100%.

  When the power determination unit 44 receives an operation input during takeback, the power determination unit 44 may end the takeback and shift to the downswing at that time, or may continue the takeback after the power is determined and perform a full swing. You may display a state to do. The power determination unit 44 may not perform a shot because it is a swing when it reaches the top swing without accepting an operation input during takeback, or the power drops during the downswing. The operation may be continuously received, and the power may be determined according to the time from the start of the downswing until the operation input is received.

  Depending on the state of the lie, the terrain of the bunker in the bunker shot, the stance of the player's character, etc., the power determination unit 44 may not be able to achieve 100% power even with a full swing. Further, in the case of an approach shot or the like, the player's character may be allowed to perform only a half swing without performing a full swing. Even in such a case, by providing a function for swinging the player's character as described above, the player first checks the relationship between the swing and power by swinging the player's character, and then makes a shot. It can be carried out.

  Conventionally, when determining the power of a shot in a golf game, there are many examples in which a player's character remains stationary and a gauge or the like indicating the power state is displayed as an index. In the present embodiment, a user interface using the shot motion as an index is realized by generating a motion of the player's character to shot at a high speed and a high frame rate. Thereby, a more realistic golf game can be realized. A technique for generating and displaying a shot operation at a high speed and a high frame rate will be described in detail later.

  The power determination unit 44 outputs a sound indicating that to the speaker 72 when the degree of progress of the takeback operation when the player's character shots reaches a predetermined value. The power determination unit 44 may set a plurality of predetermined values and output different sounds. For example, when the power reaches 20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, and 100%, the sounds of the scales of De, Les, Mi, Fa, and So may be output, respectively.

  FIG. 4 shows an example of the game screen when the player's character is performing an action of taking back. When the player's character performs putting, it is difficult to know in advance how much takeback is to be taken, so it is difficult to measure the timing at which the player performs an operation input for determining power. Therefore, the power determination unit 44 outputs the sound of the scales of Do, Les, Mi, Fa, and So to the speaker 72 when the power reaches 20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, and 100%, respectively. . Thereby, the player can measure the timing of the operation input for determining the power of the shot in accordance with the rhythm of the sound generated from the speaker 72, so that a user interface with good operability can be realized. .

  The camera control unit 42 displays the game screen when the player's character performs a shot, and changes the viewpoint position or line-of-sight direction when generating the screen according to an instruction input from the player. The generation unit 66 is instructed. Depending on the terrain and obstacles around the ball, the take-back action of the player's character may be difficult to see. At this time, since it becomes difficult to measure the timing at which the player performs an operation input for determining the power, the camera control unit 42 changes the viewpoint position or line-of-sight direction of the camera so that the take-back operation of the player's character is easy to see. .

  FIGS. 5A and 5B show examples of the game screen when the player's character is performing an action of taking back. As shown in FIG. 5A, an obstacle such as a tree may get in the way, and it may be difficult to see the takeback action on the screen when the player's character is viewed from behind. At this time, the player uses the direction key of the controller 20 or the like to perform an operation input for switching the camera viewpoint position or line-of-sight direction. In response to an operation input from the player, the camera control unit 42 changes the viewpoint position or line-of-sight direction of the camera so that the take-back operation of the player's character is easy to see as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5B, by setting the viewpoint position to the side of the player's character, the degree of progress of the take-back action of the player's character becomes easier to understand, and a user interface with good operability can be realized. it can.

  The camera control unit 42 may automatically move the viewpoint position of the camera to a position where the take-back action of the player's character is easy to see. In particular, when the player's character performs putting, the takeback motion is small, and it is difficult to understand the movement of the putter even when viewed from the rear of the player's character. Therefore, as shown in FIG. You may switch the viewpoint position of the camera.

  When receiving an operation input for determining the power when the player's character shots the ball, the power determination unit 44 may display the trajectory or the arrival position of the ball when shot with the power at that time. . As mentioned above, especially when putting, it is difficult to adjust the timing using the takeback action as an index, and even a short putt may increase the difficulty of the ball. By displaying the position, it is easy to measure the timing when the player performs an operation input for determining the power.

  FIG. 6 shows an example of the game screen when the player's character is taking back. When the distance from the current position of the ball to the cup is shorter than a predetermined value, for example, 5 meters, the power determination unit 44 displays a circle 110 indicating the arrival position of the ball when putting with the current power. May be. However, it is also possible to display the arrival position when the ball putted with the power at that time rolls linearly on the flat ground without taking into consideration the green topography and turf. Thereby, the operation input at the time of putting can be assisted to the extent that the difficulty level does not become too low. A long distance pad has a high degree of difficulty even in the real world. For example, a pad having a length of 5 meters or more is set to a high degree of difficulty by not providing assistance. The power determination unit 44 may display the circle 110 in a lighter color as the distance from the current position of the ball to the arrival position becomes longer. The power determination unit 44 may display the circle 110 when the distance from the current position of the ball to the arrival position is shorter than a predetermined value, for example, 2.5 meters. For a pad of less than 5 meters, the difficulty is not reduced too much by displaying the circle 110 so that the color gradually fades and fades out until the reach is 2.5 meters. To assist. If the remaining distance is less than 2.5 meters, if there is no terrain or turf effect, the putting can be performed so that the ball enters the cup if the operation input is performed at the moment when the circle 110 overlaps the cup. The player can fine-tune the timing in consideration of the terrain from the ball to the cup and the turf. Thereby, it can set to a realistic difficulty level and can improve the entertainment property of a game.

  The impact determination unit 45 determines the shot impact of the player's character. After the power determining unit 44 determines the shot power, the impact determining unit 45 causes the screen generating unit 66 to generate a screen on which the player's character is performing a downswing, and causes the display device 68 to display the screen. The player uses the controller 20 to perform an operation input to which an instruction for determining the impact is assigned in accordance with the timing at which the player's character swings down and hits the ball. The impact determination unit 45 determines the impact of the shot according to the time difference between the time when the player's character swings down and hits the ball and the time when the operation input for determining the impact is received. The impact determination unit 45 notifies the trajectory calculation unit 50 of the determined impact. At this time, if the operation input is received faster than the moment when the impact becomes 100%, a negative sign may be added, and if the input is late, a positive sign may be added to express whether the timing is fast or late.

  The impact determination unit 45 contracts the screen generation unit 66 over time as an aid to an index for taking timing, and can make a shot with the highest impact when the player's character hits the ball, that is, the highest impact. A screen including a graphic that is minimized at the time is generated and displayed on the display device 68. The player can perform an operation input for determining the impact using the contracting graphic as an index. The impact determination unit 45 may display a graphic with the position of the ball as the center or the center of gravity, and may contract the image so that it converges to the position of the ball. Thereby, the player can perform an operation while visually recognizing both the state in which the player's character is swinging down and the state in which the figure contracts, and a user interface with better operability can be realized.

  For example, when the player character hits the ball, that is, when the time difference is zero, the impact determination unit 45 sets the impact when the time difference is zero as 100% and the impact when the time difference becomes a predetermined upper limit as a predetermined lower limit. The impact at the time when the operation input is received may be determined by internal division. As will be described later, the trajectory calculation unit 50 corrects the flight distance, the direction, and the like so that the lower the impact value determined by the impact determination unit 45, the greater the deviation from the target landing point. After the player's character's downswing has passed the ball, the impact determination unit 45 does not accept the operation input, and if the time difference exceeds a predetermined upper limit value, the impact determination unit 45 may not perform a shot because it is a swing. Alternatively, the shot may be performed with the impact automatically set to a predetermined lower limit value.

  FIGS. 7A and 7B show examples of the game screen when the player's character is performing a downswing motion. FIG. 7A shows a state when the player's character starts a downswing. The impact determination unit 45 displays a circle 120 as an auxiliary indicator for measuring timing. In addition, a graphic 122 indicating the diameter of the circle 120 when the impact becomes the lower limit value and a graphic 124 indicating the diameter of the circle 120 when the impact becomes the upper limit value, for example, 100%, are displayed. When the operation input is received when the diameter of the circle 120 is larger than the diameter indicated by the graphic 122, the impact determination unit 45 may set the impact to a predetermined lower limit value. In this case, as will be described later, the trajectory calculation unit 50 may treat this shot as a miss shot. When the operation input is received when the diameter of the circle 120 is smaller than the diameter indicated by the graphic 124, the impact determination unit 45 may set the impact to a predetermined upper limit value, for example, 100%. When the operation input is received when the diameter of the circle 120 is smaller than the diameter indicated by the graphic 122 and larger than the diameter indicated by the graphic 124, the impact determination unit 45 determines a predetermined upper limit according to the timing when the operation input is received. A value between the value and the lower limit value may be set. FIG. 7B shows a state immediately before the player's character hits the ball. The impact determination unit 45 contracts the circle 120 so that it becomes the minimum at the moment when the player's character hits the ball. If the impact determination unit 45 does not accept an operation input until the moment when the player character hits the ball, the impact determination unit 45 may inflate the circle 120 thereafter. Also in this case, the impact may be the upper limit while the diameter of the circle 120 is smaller than the diameter indicated by the graphic 124, and the impact may be the lower limit when the diameter becomes larger than the diameter indicated by the graphic 122. When the operation input is not accepted even when the circle 120 becomes larger than the diameter indicated by the graphic 122, the impact may be automatically set to the lower limit value and the shot may be performed. As another example, the impact determining unit 45 sets the impact as a lower limit when the diameter of the circle 120 is larger than the diameter indicated by the graphic 122, and increases the impact as the diameter decreases, and is the same as the diameter indicated by the graphic 124. Sometimes the impact may be the upper limit. After that, the impact may be gradually reduced as the diameter of the circle 120 becomes smaller than the diameter indicated by the graphic 124.

  As yet another example, the impact determination unit 45 displays a gauge indicating a figure that moves left and right, up and down, or on an arbitrary straight line or curve as time passes, and a position of the figure that has the maximum impact. It is also possible to use it as an index for taking the timing when the player makes an operation input. Further, the impact determination unit 45 may determine the impact and power of the shot according to the angle, speed, pressure, and the like for depressing the analog stick of the controller 20.

  The trajectory calculation unit 50 calculates the trajectory of the shot ball by physical calculation based on the shot power and impact determined by the shot control unit 41 and external factors such as the lie, wind, and terrain of the ball.

  The trajectory calculation unit 50 reads from the parameter holding unit 60 the initial velocity and loft angle set in advance according to the club used for the shot. The trajectory calculation unit 50 uses the read initial speed as an attribute value such as the power determined by the power determination unit 44, the impact determined by the impact determination unit 45, the physical strength set for each player character, the lie of the ball, etc. Adjust the initial speed or loft angle accordingly. For example, the initial speed may be multiplied by a% value of power or impact so that the higher the power or impact, the faster the initial speed. Further, the direction and speed of the ball may be adjusted so that the smaller the impact value is, the more the target landing point deviates. For example, when an operation input is received faster than the moment when the impact becomes 100%, the trajectory of the ball may be bent to the right to be a slice ball, and when it is late, the ball may be bent to the left to be a hook ball. Further, when the impact is equal to or less than a predetermined lower limit value, it may be handled as a miss shot, and the trajectory may be calculated with an extremely low initial velocity. In the case of rough or bunker, the initial speed may be lower than the fairway. Further, the initial velocity may be lowered if the inclination of the ground contact surface of the ball is large. When the player performs an operation input for changing the initial speed and the loft angle at the time of a shot, the initial speed and the loft angle may be adjusted in consideration of the influence.

  When determining the initial velocity and the loft angle, the trajectory calculation unit 50 calculates the position of the ball for each frame while adjusting the velocity according to the force acting on the ball. The trajectory calculation unit 50 adds the velocity in units of frames to the coordinates of the current position of the ball, and calculates the coordinates of the position of the ball in the next frame. Gravity, lift, wind power, and air resistance are added to the speed of the ball for each frame. Regarding gravity, in accordance with the laws of physics, the downward direction is 9.8 meters per second. The lift is upward and proportional to the speed. The wind force may have a constant speed in a certain direction at all locations of the hall, or may be changed according to the location. The air resistance is a value proportional to the speed in the direction opposite to the traveling direction. In this way, by calculating the ball trajectory in consideration of the direction and speed of the wind, it is possible to produce the difficulty of performing a shot while considering the influence of the wind, as in real golf. A golf game can be realized.

  When the ball collides with something, the horizontal and vertical velocities are adjusted according to the friction coefficient and the restitution coefficient set in advance according to the attribute of the colliding surface. The friction coefficient and the coefficient of restitution may be set to different values depending on the fairway, rough, bunker, and the like. The trajectory calculation unit 50 may further give a special operation unrelated to the physical law to the trajectory as a production effect. Thereby, the golf game can be changed, and the entertainment of the game can be improved.

  The screen generation unit 66 sets the viewpoint position and line-of-sight direction of the camera so that the ball enters the screen according to the position of the ball calculated by the trajectory calculation unit 50, and generates a screen showing how the ball flies. Is displayed on the display device 68. When the ball stops, it moves to the next shot.

  The wind flow control unit 47 controls the movement of the object that moves under the influence of the wind. The wind flow control unit 47 includes a plane that is included in the game screen, such as a leaf falling down while being blown by the wind, a lawn that flutters after being shot in the rough, and a lawn that is rolled up to see the state of the wind at the teeing ground. When an object (hereinafter collectively referred to as “wind current”) is drawn, its behavior is calculated by physical calculation based on the direction and speed of the wind and the direction of the surface of the wind flow. Thereby, since the influence of wind and air resistance can be expressed, the behavior close to reality can be simulated.

The airflow control unit 47 performs the physical calculation assuming that the airflow is a plate-like object. Assume that the flat surface of the plate faces the Z-axis direction, and each variable is defined as follows.
Plate rotation angle: x, y, z
Board position vector: pos
Plate speed vector: v
Downward speed generated per frame (constant): vg
Speed generated by wind for each frame: vw
Surface resistance (0.0 to 1.0, 0.0 is no resistance): r

The calculation method is as follows.
1. First, a matrix M is generated by applying random rotation to the rotation angles x, y, z of the plate. At this time, the value may be adjusted in order to make it appear that the wind current is rotating within a realistic range.
x + = random ();
y + = random ();
z + = random ();
M = Matrix4 :: rotationZYX (Vector3 (x, y, z));
2. Add vw and vg to v.
v + = vw + vg;
3. v is separated into two vectors vh (parallel) and vv (vertical), a component parallel to Mz (the Z component of M) and a component perpendicular thereto.
vh = dot (Mz, v) * Mz;
vv = v-vh;
4). After vh is multiplied by the resistance value, vv is added and stored in v. Since vh is a velocity component perpendicular to the plate, the surface resistance is expressed by multiplying the resistance value.
v = vh * r + vv;
5. Add v to pos.
pos + = v;
By repeating the steps 1 to 5 described above, it is possible to realistically reproduce the appearance of a planar object falling in the wind.

  As described above, in the golf game according to the present embodiment, the trajectory calculation unit 50 calculates the ball trajectory by physical calculation in consideration of the influence of the wind, and therefore grasps the direction and speed of the wind prior to the shot. It is important to. When drawing a planar object that dances in the wind, the direction and speed of the wind can be expressed more accurately by simulating the behavior of the object by physical calculation considering the direction and speed of the wind. As a result, the player can grasp the direction and speed of the wind by observing how the leaves, turf, and the like dance as in the case of actual golf, so that a more realistic golf game can be realized.

  The audience control unit 46, when the viewpoint position or the line-of-sight direction is changed by the camera control unit 42, when the audience character viewing the play of the player's character is within a predetermined distance from the viewpoint position, or When it is within a predetermined angle range from the line-of-sight direction, the audience character is moved out of the predetermined range. At this time, the spectator control unit 46 acquires data indicating the terrain of the hole in which the player's character is playing, and determines the direction in which the spectator character is moved based on the terrain.

  FIGS. 8A and 8B show examples of screens on which spectator characters are displayed. The spectator control unit 46 acquires the viewing position of the spectator character and the polygon data of the character, and causes the screen generation unit 66 to generate a screen including the spectator character 130. As shown in FIG. 8A, when the spectator character 130 is displayed near the edge of the screen, the spectator control unit 46 may not move the spectator character 130. As shown in FIG. 8B, when the viewpoint position or the line-of-sight direction is changed so that the audience character 130 is displayed within a predetermined angle and distance range near the center of the screen, the audience control unit 46 The spectator character 130 is moved out of the predetermined range. In this way, by creating a situation where the audience notices that the camera is shooting his direction or that the player's character is aiming for his direction and escapes quickly, Unprecedented fun can be provided. The spectator control unit 46 may display a state in which the spectator character 130 notices the camera and displays a surprise, and then displays a state of escaping. The spectator control unit 46 may control the spectator character 130 so as not to enter the fairway with reference to data indicating the terrain of the hall. In the example shown in FIG. 8B, if the spectator character 130 is moved to the left, it enters the fairway, so it is moved to the right.

  The score management unit 51 manages the score of the player's character. When the player's character is holed out, the score management unit 51 records the score of the hole in the parameter holding unit 60. In addition, the score management unit 51 displays a scoreboard until the player's character performs a tee shot for the next hole after the hole out.

  The route acquisition unit 52 acquires a route through which the player character who has holed out moves to the teeing ground of the next hole and a route through which the spectator character moves to the viewing position of the next hole. The movement status display unit 53 displays how the player's character and the spectator character move along the route acquired by the route acquisition unit after the player's character has holed out.

  The route acquisition unit 52 may acquire a preset route stored in the storage medium 70, or may acquire data indicating the topography of the hall from the storage medium 70 and automatically determine the route. Also good. For example, the route acquisition unit 52 may acquire data indicating the green position of the hole holed out by the player's character and the teeing ground position of the next hole, and determine the route of the player's character based on these data. Alternatively, the route acquisition unit 52 may acquire data indicating the current position of the spectator character and the viewing position of the next hall, and determine the route of the spectator character based on the data.

  The route acquisition unit 52 acquires data indicating the terrain between the halls and the halls, determines the ease of passing based on the terrain, avoids a place that is difficult to pass, and preferentially selects a place that is easy to pass A route may be determined. For example, obstacles such as steps above a predetermined height, inclined surfaces over a predetermined angle, ponds, rivers, bunker, trees, etc. are difficult to pass, and cart paths, flat surfaces, etc. are determined to be easy to pass. May be. A plurality of waypoint candidates may be set between the holes according to a predetermined rule, and the route that passes most easily among the routes that pass through these points may be selected. For example, a route may be determined by generating a directed graph including the current position, waypoints, and destination, giving a score indicating the ease of passing through each side, and solving the optimal route problem.

  The route acquisition unit 52 may determine a route by grouping a plurality of characters at close positions. As a result, even when a large number of spectator characters are arranged, it is possible to reduce the load when calculating the route. Also, even in the real world, a spectator at a close position often moves to the next hall through the same route, so that the spectator can be displayed in a more natural manner.

  The route acquisition unit 52 may determine the route according to different determination criteria according to the character attributes. For example, the player's character may pass through the fairway, but the spectator character may be prohibited from passing through the fairway. The route acquisition unit 52 may assign different scores according to the attributes of the character when determining the ease of passing.

  The movement status display unit 53 displays a state in which the player's character moves along the route in the background where the score management unit 51 displays the score of the player's character on the screen after the player's character has holed out. The movement status display unit 53 sets the viewpoint position and line-of-sight direction of the camera, and causes the screen generation unit 66 to generate an image viewed in the line-of-sight direction from the set viewpoint position. The movement status display unit 53 may change the viewpoint position or the line-of-sight direction. For example, following the moving character, the viewpoint position or the line-of-sight direction may be changed so that the character is included in the screen. Accordingly, it is possible to provide fresh enjoyment with a novel effect such as following a specific character and displaying movement between holes.

  FIG. 9 shows the layout of holes in the golf course. In the present embodiment, not only data indicating the topography of each hole but also data indicating the positional relationship between the holes is prepared and stored in the storage medium 70. The route acquisition unit 52 acquires data indicating the layout of the hole from the storage medium 70 and determines the movement route of the player's character or the spectator character.

  FIG. 10 shows an example of the movement route determined by the route acquisition unit 52. The route acquisition unit 52 acquires data indicating the holes and the topography between the holes from the storage medium 70, avoids a place where a character is difficult to pass, and determines a route by giving priority to a place where the character easily passes.

  FIG. 11 shows an example of a screen on which the situation where the character is moving is displayed by the movement status display unit 53. In the background where the score board is displayed by the score management unit 51, the movement state display unit 53 displays a state where the player's character and the caddy are walking along the route. At this time, a state in which the player's character and the caddy are talking may be displayed. Alternatively, after the hole has been holed out, it may be displayed that the player's character, caddy, spectator character, and the like are walking toward the exclusive green for the award event.

  Next, a technique for generating a screen in which an area drawn at a high frame rate and an area drawn at a low frame rate are mixed will be described. As described above, a moving image that is displayed as an index for measuring the timing of operation input at the time of power determination or impact determination, for example, a player's character motion or a contracting figure is displayed at a higher frame rate than other areas. The

  The finer the time interval for detecting the operation input, the more accurate the power and impact can be determined. At this time, the moving image serving as an index for timing is also updated at the same rate. Is desirable. For example, when detecting whether or not the input accepting unit 30 has accepted an operation input by interrupt processing of the CPU, if the CPU interrupt processing is performed at a rate of 60 times per second, the moving image serving as an index is the same. Preferably, it is updated at a rate of 60 frames per second.

  However, if the entire screen is updated at a rate of 60 frames per second, the amount of rendering of the three-dimensional polygon data in the screen generation unit 66 increases, which places a heavy burden on the CPU and may not be able to follow. Therefore, in the present embodiment, by generating an image serving as an index for measuring timing at a rate as high as the timing of detecting an operation input, other regions are generated at a lower rate. Realize a highly accurate user interface while reducing the amount of rendering.

  Here, an example will be described in which an image showing the topography of a hole, an image of a player's character, etc. is drawn at 30 frames per second, and a moving image serving as a timing index is drawn at 60 frames per second. The screen generation unit 66 first acquires and renders three-dimensional data such as the topography of the hole and the player's character, and then generates a screen by additionally drawing a moving image serving as a timing index. The area drawn with “1” is called “low rate area”, and the area drawn with 60 frames per second is called “high rate area”. The low rate area is updated once every two frames of the high rate area.

  FIG. 12 shows an example of a screen in which an area drawn at a high frame rate and an area drawn at a low frame rate are mixed. FIG. 12 shows a state where the player character is performing a shot and an index for determining the power or impact as a user interface for the power determining unit 44 or the impact determining unit 45 to determine the power or impact of the shot. The example which displayed the gauge 140 is shown. On this screen, the shot operation is drawn at 30 frames per second, and the gauge 140 is drawn at 60 frames per second. Conventionally, a user interface that displays a moving image in which a character takes a shot after power and impact have been determined is generally used while the power and impact are determined. According to the technique of this form, when determining the power and impact, it is possible to display the manner in which the player's character performs a shot together with the gauge 140, and to provide both as indices. Further, by drawing the gauge 140 at a higher frame rate, it is possible to provide a highly accurate user interface while suppressing an increase in rendering processing load. The player can use either or both of the character's shot movement and the gauge 140 movement as an index, as necessary. For example, if a more accurate index is desired, the movement of the gauge 140 may be used as the index.

  Each of the buffer memories 62a and 62b has a capacity capable of storing one frame of screen data. First, the screen generation unit 66 stores the data for generating the screen of the low rate area in any one of the plurality of buffer memories 62a and 62b, and duplicates the data in another buffer memory. Thereafter, the screen generation unit 66 generates a screen in which the high-rate region and the low-rate region are mixed by sequentially adding the data that generated the screen of the high-rate region to the respective buffer memories 62a and 62b.

  FIG. 13 is a timing chart for explaining a procedure in which the screen generation unit 66 generates and displays a screen. The screen generation unit 66 draws the screen “1” in the low rate area in the buffer memory 62a, copies it to the buffer memory 62b, and additionally draws the screen “A” in the first frame in the high rate area in the buffer memory 62a. The screen “1A” of the first frame is completed and transferred to the VRAM 67. Then, while the screen “1A” of the first frame stored in the buffer memory 62a is displayed on the display device 68, the screen “B” of the second frame in the high rate area is additionally drawn in the buffer memory 62b. . When the display of the screen “1A” of the first frame is completed, the screen “1B” of the second frame stored in the buffer memory 62 b is transferred to the VRAM 67 and displayed on the display device 68. While the screen “1B” of the second frame is displayed, the screen “2” of the next low-rate area is drawn in the buffer memory 62a in which the data of the first frame that has already been displayed is stored. . When the data of the screen “1B” of the second frame is transferred from the buffer memory 62b to the VRAM 67, the screen “2” of the next low rate area drawn in the buffer memory 62a is copied to the buffer memory 62b. Until the display of the screen “1B” of the second frame is completed, the screen “A” of the next first frame of the high rate area is additionally drawn in the buffer memory 62a, and the screen “1B” of the second frame is drawn. When the display is completed, the screen “2A” of the next first frame stored in the buffer memory 62 a is transferred to the VRAM 67. By repeating such processing, a screen in which a low rate area and a high rate area are mixed can be generated and displayed.

  If it takes a relatively long time to generate the high-rate area, another buffer memory may be provided. In this case, the screen generating unit 66 renders the screen of the low rate area in the first buffer memory and copies it to the second buffer memory. Thereafter, the high-rate area of the first frame is additionally drawn in the first buffer memory, and the high-rate area of the second frame is additionally drawn in the second buffer memory, and sequentially displayed. While the screens of the first frame and the second frame are displayed, the next low-rate area is rendered in the third buffer memory. When the display of the first frame is completed, the data of the next low rate area is copied from the third buffer memory to the first buffer memory, and the high rate area of the next first frame is copied to the third buffer memory. Draw additional. As a result, the additional drawing of the next high rate area can be started without waiting for the transfer of all the data of the screen of the second frame to the VRAM 67, so that it takes time to generate the high rate area. Even if it exists, a screen can be generated at high speed.

  When 3 frames or more of the high rate area are generated for one frame of the low rate area, that is, when the frame rate of the high rate area is more than three times the frame rate of the low rate area, the screen of the low rate area A buffer memory that holds the data of the above and two buffer memories for duplicating and further drawing the screen of the higher rate area are provided, and the two buffer memories are alternately used to reduce the rate. After duplicating the screen of the area, the screen of the high rate area may be additionally drawn, and the screen may be completed and displayed. For a frame in a certain low-rate area, after transferring a frame in which the second highest-rate area from the end is additionally drawn to the VRAM 67, the buffer memory may be used to draw a screen in the next low-rate area. .

  In the above, this invention was demonstrated based on the Example. This embodiment is an exemplification, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications can be made to each component and combination of processing processes, and such modifications are within the scope of the present invention.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the game device which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the game screen when a player's character performs a shot. FIGS. 3A and 3B are diagrams showing examples of the game screen when the player's character is performing an action of taking back. It is a figure which shows the example of a game screen when the player's character is performing the action which takes back. FIGS. 5A and 5B are diagrams showing examples of the game screen when the player's character is performing an action of taking back. It is a figure which shows the example of a game screen when the player's character is performing the action which takes back. FIGS. 7A and 7B are diagrams illustrating an example of a game screen when the player's character is performing an action of downswinging. FIGS. 8A and 8B are diagrams showing examples of screens on which spectator characters are displayed. It is a figure which shows the layout of the hole in a golf course. It is a figure which shows the example of the movement path | route determined by the path | route acquisition part. It is a figure which shows the example of the screen as which the condition where the character is moving is displayed by the movement condition display part. It is a figure which shows the example of the screen where the area | region drawn with a high frame rate and the area | region drawn with a low frame rate were mixed. It is a timing chart for demonstrating the procedure which a screen production | generation part produces | generates and displays a screen.

Explanation of symbols

  10 game devices, 20 controllers, 30 input reception units, 40 control units, 41 shot control units, 42 camera control units, 43 lie display units, 44 power determination units, 45 impact determination units, 46 spectator control units, 47 wind current control Unit, 50 trajectory calculation unit, 51 score management unit, 52 route acquisition unit, 53 movement status display unit, 60 parameter holding unit, 62a, 62b buffer memory, 66 screen generation unit, 67 VRAM, 68 display device, 70 storage medium, 72 Speaker.

Claims (16)

A function to accept operation input from the player;
A function for controlling a game in which a player's character plays golf in response to the operation input;
A function for obtaining a path for the player character that has holed out to move to the teeing ground of the next hole;
A function for displaying the movement of the player character along the route after the player has holed out;
A game control program characterized by realizing the above.   The function of acquiring the route is characterized in that the player's character acquires data indicating a green position of a hole holed out by the player character and a teeing ground position of the next hole, and determines the route based on the data. Item 4. A game control program according to Item 1. The computer further realizes a function of displaying the character of the spectator who watches the golf,
The function of acquiring the route further acquires a route through which the spectator character moves to the viewing position of the next hall,
The game control program according to claim 1, wherein the display function further displays a state in which the spectator character moves along the route after the player's character has holed out.   4. The game according to claim 3, wherein the function of acquiring the route acquires data indicating a current position of the spectator character and a viewing position of the next hall, and determines the route based on the acquired data. Control program.   The function of acquiring the route is to acquire data indicating the terrain between the holes and the hole, determine the ease of passing based on the terrain, and determine the route by avoiding a place that is difficult to pass. The game control program according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that   The game control program according to claim 5, wherein the function of acquiring the route determines the route by preferentially selecting a place through which the route easily passes.   The game control program according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the function of acquiring the path determines the path by grouping a plurality of characters in close positions.   The game control program according to any one of claims 5 to 7, wherein the function of acquiring the path determines the path based on different determination criteria according to an attribute of the character.   The function of displaying includes a function of setting a viewpoint position and a line-of-sight direction of a camera, generating an image viewed from the set viewpoint position in the line-of-sight direction, and a function of changing the viewpoint position or the line-of-sight direction. The game control program according to any one of claims 1 to 8,   The game control program according to claim 9, wherein the changing function changes the viewpoint position or the line-of-sight direction so that the character is included in the screen following the moving character.   The display function is characterized in that after the player's character has holed out, the player's character's score is displayed on the screen and the player's character moves along the route in the background. The game control program according to any one of claims 1 to 10. A function of generating a game screen by setting a viewpoint position and a line-of-sight direction when the player's character is playing golf;
A function of changing the viewpoint position or line-of-sight direction in response to an operation input from the player;
When the viewpoint position or the line-of-sight direction is changed, a spectator character viewing the play of the player's character is within a predetermined distance from the viewpoint position, or a predetermined angle from the line-of-sight direction A function for controlling the spectator character to move so that the spectator character deviates from the predetermined range,
The game control program according to claim 1, further comprising: a computer.   The function of controlling the spectator character acquires data indicating the terrain of the hole where the player's character is playing, and determines a direction in which the spectator character is moved based on the terrain. Item 13. A game control program according to Item 12. An input receiving unit for receiving operation input from the player;
A game execution unit for controlling a game in which the player's character plays golf in response to the operation input;
A path acquisition unit for acquiring a path for the player character that has holed out to move to the teeing ground of the next hole;
After the player's character has holed out, a movement status display unit that displays a state of moving along the route;
A game apparatus comprising: Accepting operation input from the player;
Controlling a game in which a player's character plays golf in response to the operation input;
Obtaining a path for the player character that has holed out to move to the teeing ground of the next hole;
After the player's character has holed out, displaying a state of moving along the route;
A game control method comprising: A function to accept operation input from the player;
A function for controlling a game in which a player's character plays golf in response to the operation input;
A function for obtaining a path for the player character that has holed out to move to the teeing ground of the next hole;
A function for displaying the movement of the player character along the route after the player has holed out;
A computer-readable recording medium on which a game control program is recorded.

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