JP2010005186A - Game machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a game machine which can easily decide and obtain the kind of informing performance and, at the same time, can properly execute the continuous performance over a plurality of times of the informing performance. <P>SOLUTION: When the winning of game balls in the special symbol start electric accessory device is detected, the category determination random numbers which are the random numbers to decide the category of the informing performance are obtained as well as the jackpot random numbers which are those to decide whether to give out the jackpot game or not. After the informing performance category is decided based on the number of reserved game balls at the starting time of the informing performance and the values of the category determination random numbers, the informing performance is controlled in accordance with the one of the variable patterns which belongs to the decided category. Also, when another game ball wins the special symbol start electric accessory device while the informing performance is under way, whether to perform the specific performance showing that the degree of materialization of the forthcoming jackpot is higher than usual is decided based on the newly acquired category determination random numbers and the values of the jackpot random numbers. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a gaming machine, and more particularly, to a gaming machine that notifies a player of a result of determination as to whether or not to execute a winning game that is advantageous to the player, using an effect on a display screen or the like.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is known a gaming machine that performs a hit determination that is a determination as to whether or not to execute a hit game that is advantageous to a player, when a game ball passes through a specific starting port. In this gaming machine, a random number is acquired when the game ball passes through the start port provided on the gaming board, and by determining whether or not the random number is a predetermined random number determined to be “winning” in advance, It is determined whether or not a winning game is executed. Such gaming machines are provided with presentation means such as display means for displaying an image and a speaker for generating sound, and effect means for informing various effects (notification effects) for notifying the player of the result of the hit determination. By executing by, the game is enhanced. And many patterns (henceforth "effect pattern") for determining contents, such as production time of information production, are memorized beforehand, and by applying a random number to the table for determining production pattern, The content of the notification effect to be actually executed is determined.

  In such a gaming machine, when the game ball passes through the starting port during the execution of the notification effect, the acquired random number is stored as a holding ball, and the result of the hit determination for the stored holding ball is sequentially notified to the player. Is done. Here, there is an upper limit to the maximum value of the stored balls that can be stored, and when the upper limit is reached, a new random number cannot be stored. Therefore, when there are many stored balls, if the notification effect is not executed in a shorter time than when there are few held balls, there is a possibility that the chance of performing the hit determination may be reduced. Therefore, the processing for shortening the time of the notification effect as the number of stored balls is increased is executed in many gaming machines. As described above, it is widely performed to change the time or the like of the notification effect according to the game situation.

In addition, a gaming machine that performs continuous notice over a plurality of notification effects has also been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In this gaming machine, there is provided a predicting means for predicting whether or not a winning game will be executed thereafter by using a random number acquired at the time of winning a game ball at the starting port, and the predicting means If it is predicted to be executed, continuous notice can be executed. As a result, the player's expectation that the winning game will be executed is realized over a plurality of notification effects.
JP 2003-334366 A

  However, in such a conventional gaming machine, when the execution ratio of a predetermined notification effect is changed according to the situation, a plurality of tables for determining the effect pattern must be provided in advance according to each situation. There wasn't. Therefore, there is a problem that the creation of the table becomes complicated and it is difficult to reduce the processing load of the gaming machine. Further, in such a gaming machine, a large number of effect patterns are stored in order to diversify the effects. Therefore, there is also a problem that it is difficult to grasp what type (category) of the notification effect is executed thereafter and to control the effect based on the grasped contents.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problem, and can easily determine and grasp the type of notification effect and appropriately execute continuous effects over a plurality of notification effects. An object is to provide a game machine that can be used.

  In order to achieve the above object, a gaming machine according to claim 1 is a game ball detecting means for detecting passage of a game ball to a starting port provided on the game board, and a game ball by the game ball detecting means. The winning random number obtaining means for obtaining a winning random number for determining whether or not to execute a winning game advantageous to the player due to the fact that the winning is detected, and the winning random number obtaining means obtained by the winning random number obtaining means. About the hit determination means for determining whether or not the random number is a predetermined random number determined in advance and the notification effect which is an effect indicating the determination result of the hit determination means, the contents of the effect including the effect time The effect pattern storage means for storing the plurality of effect patterns to be determined divided into a plurality of categories having different degrees of expectation that the determination result by the hit determination means is a hit, and Due to the detection of the game ball by the game ball detection means, the category determination random number acquisition means for acquiring a category determination random number that is a random number for determining the category, and the category determination random number acquisition means Determined by the category determination random number, category determination means for determining one of the categories of the notification effect indicating the determination result by the hit determination means, effect execution means for executing various effects, and the category determination means Effect execution control means for causing the effect execution means to execute the notification effect according to the effect pattern within the category, and the winning random number acquisition means while the notification effect is being executed in the effect execution means; If a new random number is acquired by the category determination random number acquisition means, Specific effect execution determining means for determining whether or not the notification effect is to be a specific effect that is an effect of a specific aspect, based on a hit random number and the category determination random number, and the effect execution control means is configured to execute the specific effect When it is determined that the specific effect is determined by the determining means, at least one of the notification effects until the determination result for the winning random number that has been used as the trigger for the specific effect is indicated as the specific effect. It is characterized by causing the effect execution means to execute.

  Further, the gaming machine according to claim 2 of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the invention according to claim 1, a hit random number storage means for sequentially storing the hit random numbers acquired by the hit random number acquisition means, Tables for associating the category of the notification effect and the value of the category determination random number according to the number of reserved balls, which is the number of winning random numbers stored in the winning random number storage means, and the determination result of the winning determination means, respectively. Category determination table storage means for storing, the category determination means refers to the table according to the number of reserved balls stored in the winning random number storage means when starting the notification effect, the category determination means One of these is determined.

  In addition to the configuration of the invention according to claim 2, the gaming machine according to claim 3 of the present invention has the winning random number obtaining means and the category while the notification effect is being executed by the effect executing means. When a random number is newly acquired by the determined random number acquisition means, a minimum expectation level determination is performed to determine whether or not the category equal to or higher than a predetermined expected level is determined by the acquired category determination random number regardless of the number of reserved balls Means for determining whether or not the notification effect is set as the specific effect according to a determination result by the minimum expectation level determination unit.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the invention according to the second or third aspect, the winning random number obtaining means and the winning random number obtaining means while the notice effect is being executed by the effect executing means. When a random number is newly acquired by the category determination random number acquisition unit, a determination category determination unit that determines whether the predetermined category is determined regardless of the number of reserved balls by the acquired category determination random number The specific effect execution determining means determines whether or not to make the notification effect as the specific effect according to the determination result by the determined category determining means.

  A gaming machine according to claim 5 of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 4, is responsible for main control of the game and transmits a signal corresponding to the control, A sub-control that includes a main control board including a hit random number acquisition means and the category determination random number acquisition means, and at least the effect execution control means, and controls execution of the effect by the effect execution means by a signal received from the main control board And a substrate.

  According to the gaming machine of claim 1, when the passing of the game ball to the starting port is detected, the category of the notification effect is determined together with the hit random number for determining whether or not to execute the winning game. The category determination random number is acquired. In addition, a plurality of effect patterns for determining the contents of the notification effect are stored separately for each category. Then, after determining the category using the category determination random number, the notification effect can be executed according to one of the effect patterns belonging to the determined category. Furthermore, when the hit determination random number and the category determination random number are newly acquired during the execution of the notification effect, it is possible to determine whether or not the notification effect is set as the specific effect according to these random numbers. Therefore, the category of the notification effect can be easily determined using the category determination random number. In addition, it is easily grasped at an earlier stage which notification effect of which category is executed thereafter, and the notification effect is performed a plurality of times until the result of the hit determination is shown by the notification effect in which the category is recognized. A specific effect can be executed. Therefore, the content of the notification effect can be accurately controlled, and the player's interest can be attracted.

  Further, in the gaming machine according to claim 2 of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the invention according to claim 1, a table that associates the category of the notification effect with the value of the category determination random number is stored in the hit random number storage means. Are stored in accordance with the number of random numbers per game (hereinafter referred to as “the number of reserved balls”). Then, when starting the notification effect, one of a plurality of categories can be determined with reference to a table corresponding to the number of reserved balls at that time. That is, after determining the category of the notification effect according to the number of reserved balls, it is possible to execute the effect pattern belonging to the determined category. Therefore, when the selection ratio of the category of the notification effect is changed according to the number of reserved balls, the processing is performed with less burden than the method of storing a plurality of tables for determining the effect pattern according to the number of reserved balls. be able to.

  In addition to the effect of the invention according to claim 2, the gaming machine according to claim 3 of the present invention is more than a predetermined expectation among a plurality of categories having different expectation that the determination result is correct. It can be determined by the minimum expectation level determination means whether the category is determined regardless of the number of reserved balls. And according to this judgment result, it can be determined whether a notification effect is made into a specific effect. That is, in addition to being able to change the selection ratio of the category of the notification effect according to the number of reserved balls, it is possible to accurately control the execution of the specific effect according to the minimum expectation degree of the notification effect executed thereafter. it can.

  Further, the gaming machine according to claim 4 of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the invention according to claim 2 or 3, determines whether or not the predetermined category is determined regardless of the number of reserved balls. It can be determined by the means, and it can be determined whether or not to execute the specific effect according to the determination result. Therefore, in addition to being able to change the selection ratio of the category of the notification effect according to the number of reserved balls, it is possible to grasp the category of the notification effect to be executed thereafter and control the execution of the specific effect.

  The gaming machine according to claim 5 of the present invention controls various effects including a specific effect in accordance with a signal received from the main control board in addition to the effects of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 4. A sub-control board is provided. Therefore, various effects can be executed without excessively increasing the processing load on the main control board that controls the main control of the game.

  Hereinafter, a pachinko machine 1 which is an embodiment of a gaming machine according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, with reference to FIG.1 and FIG.2, the mechanical structure of the pachinko machine 1 is demonstrated. FIG. 1 is a front view of the pachinko machine 1, and FIG. 2 is a front view of the game board 2.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the upper half of the front surface of the pachinko machine 1, a game board 2 is provided in which a game ball as a game medium launched from a launcher (not shown) flows by operating the launch handle 7. ing. The game board 2 is substantially square (see FIG. 2) and is protected by a glass frame 13 holding a transparent glass plate. In the lower part of the game board 2, an upper plate 5 is provided for supplying game balls to the launcher and receiving prize balls. A lower plate 6 for receiving a prize ball is provided directly below the upper plate 5, and a launch handle 7 for adjusting the launch of the game ball is provided on the right side of the lower plate 6. Further, a front-view crescent-shaped illumination device 35 is disposed above the glass frame, and speakers 48 are respectively provided on the left and right corners above the glass frame 13. In addition, a large number of lighting lamps for production are provided on the front surface of the glass frame 13.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a substantially circular game area 4 surrounded by a guide rail 3 is formed on the front surface of the game board 2. In the approximate center of the game area 4, there is provided a symbol display device 8 provided with a display screen 28, an LED, etc. composed of LCD. A normal symbol start gate 12 is provided on the left side of the symbol display device 8. Further, a special symbol starting electric accessory 15 is disposed below the symbol display device 8, and a special prize opening 16 is provided below the special symbol starting electric accessory 15. Further, the normal winning ports 17 and 19 are provided on the left side of the big winning port 16, and the normal winning ports 18 and 20 are provided on the right side. In addition to the above, the game board 2 is provided with various illumination lamps, other illumination LEDs, windmills, and many obstacle nails.

  Next, the symbol display device 8 will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, the symbol display device 8 includes a display screen 28 formed of an LCD at the center. Various images such as moving images and messages are displayed on the display screen 28. In order to particularly notify the player of the result of the jackpot determination, the display screen 28 is provided with three demo symbol display portions side by side. . Then, by displaying the same demo symbols on the three demo symbol display units, the player is notified that the result of the jackpot determination is a win. When a notification effect for notifying the player of the determination result is started, the operation of the demo symbol is changed to a low speed through a high speed change and stops in the order of left and right. Then, if the left and right demo symbols are the same, various reach effects are performed indicating that the judgment result may be a big hit. If all the demo symbols are the same, the big hit game is started. The Rukoto. On the other hand, if the left and right demo symbols that have stopped after the low-speed fluctuation are different, the center demo symbol is also stopped without performing the reach effect, indicating that the determination result is off.

  In addition, a special symbol display unit 25 configured by two 7-segment LEDs and a normal symbol display unit 24 configured by one LED are provided at the lower right of the display screen 28. The special symbol display unit 25 displays a special symbol composed of alphabets, numbers, or a combination thereof in order to notify the player of the result of the jackpot determination. The timing for starting and confirming the change of the demo symbol described above coincides with the timing for starting and stopping the change of the special symbol. Further, in the normal symbol display unit 24, the lighting state indicates the normal winning, the unlit indicates the normal winning, and the blinking state indicates that the normal hit determination result will be notified from now on. It is said that.

  In addition, a special symbol memory number display LED 60 and a normal symbol memory number display LED 59 constituted by two LEDs are arranged at the lower right of the special symbol display unit 25 and the normal symbol display unit 24. The special symbol memory number display LED 60 displays the number of game balls for which the jackpot determination result has not yet been displayed, that is, the so-called special symbol operation hold ball number, and the normal symbol memory number display LED 59 displays the normal symbol operation hold ball number. . Then, only the lower side of the two LEDs indicates that the number of held balls is “1”, both the lighting is “2”, the lower side blinking is “3”, and both blinking is “4”. Note that the number of reserved special symbol actuated balls is also displayed on the reserved ball number display unit 29 provided on the display screen 28.

  Next, the outline | summary of the game in the pachinko machine 1 of this Embodiment and an effect is demonstrated. In the pachinko machine 1, various random numbers are acquired when a game ball wins the special symbol starting electric accessory 15 and a jackpot determination is performed based on the acquired random numbers. The result of the jackpot determination is notified to the player when the special symbol displayed on the special symbol display unit 25 is fixedly displayed after the change. Furthermore, various notification effects are performed on the display screen 28 in synchronization with fluctuations in special symbols in order to attract the player's interest more strongly while notifying the player of the result of the jackpot determination in an easy-to-understand manner. In this notification effect, various effects are executed in accordance with the change of the demo symbol, and a combination of the demo symbols indicating the result of the jackpot determination is determined and displayed. And many variation patterns for determining the production time and the content of the production of the notification effect are stored, and when one of the variation patterns is determined with reference to the table corresponding to the result of the jackpot determination, the determined variation is determined. The notification effect and the variation of the special symbol are controlled according to the pattern.

  Here, in the pachinko machine 1, when the game ball wins the special symbol start electric accessory 15 during the execution of the notification effect, the newly acquired random number is stored as the holding ball, and the jackpot determination for the stored holding ball The results are sequentially notified to the player. However, the maximum number of reserved balls that can be stored is "4". If the number of reserved balls is already "4", a new random number cannot be stored. Therefore, when there are many stored balls, if the notification effect is not executed in a shorter time than when there are few held balls, there is a possibility that the chance of performing the hit determination may be reduced. In order to solve this problem, there is a method of storing a plurality of tables for determining the variation pattern according to the number of reserved balls, and setting so that the average time of the notification effect is shortened as the number of reserved balls increases. It is done. However, with this method, the creation of the table is complicated, and it is difficult to reduce the processing load of the pachinko machine.

  On the other hand, in the pachinko machine 1, the specific effect indicating that the degree of expectation that the jackpot game is subsequently executed is higher than normal can be executed during one or more notification effects. In detail, the demo symbol during the notification effect shifts to the low-speed change after performing the high-speed change, and in a predetermined case, the reach effect is given and is displayed in a combination indicating the determination result, but in the pachinko machine 1, By executing the specific effect during the high-speed fluctuation, it is possible to increase the player's expectation for the jackpot game. Further, by executing the specific effect over a plurality of notification effects, it is possible to attract the player's interest more strongly. However, even if a specific performance is executed multiple times in succession, if there are many situations where a combination of demo symbols showing a gap is displayed without even reaching a reach, the player is discouraged and results in a loss of interest. It becomes. Therefore, the result of the jackpot determination to be notified thereafter and the type of notification effect (for example, whether or not a notification effect with a high expectation degree of jackpot is executed) are determined, and the specific effect is controlled according to the determination result. There is a need to. However, it has been difficult to grasp the type of notification effect to be executed at the time of random number acquisition. In particular, in a gaming machine that changes the time of notification effect according to the number of held balls as described above, it is impossible to grasp the number of reserved balls at the time of notification effect execution at the time of random number acquisition. It was not possible to accurately grasp the type of notification effect.

  Therefore, in the pachinko machine 1, the variation pattern for controlling the notification effect is divided into a plurality of categories and stored. This category is divided according to the degree of expectation that the jackpot game will be executed, and each category will be “reach non-established”, “normal reach”, “super reach”, “development reach” in descending order of expectation. The selection ratio is determined. In addition, a table for determining this category is provided according to the number of held balls and the result of the jackpot determination, and when a game ball wins the special symbol start electric accessory 15, along with a jackpot random number for performing the jackpot determination A category determination random number that is a random number for determining a category is acquired.

  Under such a configuration, when the game ball wins the special symbol start electric accessory 15 during the notification effect, a determination as to whether or not to execute the specific effect is made using the jackpot random number and the category determination random number. The content of the notification effect is determined by selecting one of the variation patterns belonging to the determined category after determining the category with reference to a table corresponding to the number of reserved balls at that time. Thereby, it is possible to execute a notification effect with appropriate contents according to the number of reserved balls, and to easily determine whether or not to execute a specific effect. Details thereof will be described later with reference to the drawings.

  Next, the electrical configuration of the pachinko machine 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the pachinko machine 1. As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 40 includes a main board 41, a power supply board 42, an effect control board 43, a payout control board 45, a lamp driver board 46, a relay board 47, and a sub integrated board 58. This control part 40 is provided in the back side (back side) of the pachinko machine 1 (refer FIG. 1).

  First, the main substrate 41 will be described. The main board 41 that performs main control of the pachinko machine 1 is provided with a main board CPU unit 50 that performs various processes according to a program. The main board CPU unit 50 includes a CPU 51 for performing various arithmetic processes, a RAM 52 for temporarily storing values of data generated during the arithmetic processes, an initial control program, various data, and other boards. A ROM 53 that stores commands and the like for instructing these instructions is provided, and these are integrally molded as one LSI. Further, an interrupt signal generation circuit 57 is connected to the CPU unit 50, and the CPU 51 executes a control program stored in the ROM 53 every time an interrupt signal is input from the interrupt signal generation circuit 57. To do.

  Further, the main board 41 is provided with an I / O interface 54, and sub-boards such as a sub-integrated board 58, a payout control board 45, and a relay board 47, and a game ball that has won a prize for the special symbol starting electric machine 15. Is connected to a start port switch 70 for detecting Further, the I / O interface 54 of the main board 41 is connected to an output port 55 that outputs information of the pachinko machine 1 to a game hall management computer (not shown).

  Next, the payout control board 45 and the relay board 47 will be described. The payout control board 45 incorporates a CPU 45 a, an input interface (not shown), a RAM and a ROM, and is connected to a prize ball payout device 49. Then, according to the command transmitted from the main board 41, the prize ball payout device 49 is controlled. The relay board 47 has a normal symbol operation switch 71 for detecting the passing of the game ball to the normal symbol start gate 12, a special winning opening opening solenoid 72 for opening / closing the opening / closing member of the special winning opening 16, and a special symbol starting. An electric accessory opening solenoid 73 that opens and closes the opening / closing member of the electric accessory 15, a big prize opening switch 75 for detecting a gaming ball won in the big prize opening 16, and a game ball won in the normal winning openings 17 to 20 Are connected to a normal winning opening switch 76, a normal symbol display unit 24, a special symbol display unit 25, a normal symbol memory number display LED 59, and a special symbol memory number display LED 60. The relay board 47 relays wiring of switches and solenoids and relays from the main board 41 to a display unit or the like that is directly controlled. In addition, when a game ball wins the special symbol start electric accessory 15, the big winning opening 16, and the normal winning openings 17 to 20, a predetermined number of gaming balls are paid out.

  Next, the sub integrated board 58, the effect control board 43, and the lamp driver board 46 will be described. The sub integrated board 58 is provided with a CPU 581, a RAM 582, and a ROM 583, and is connected to the effect control board 43, the lamp driver board 46, and the speaker 48. Then, in accordance with a command transmitted from the main board 41, comprehensive control such as production is performed. Further, the effect control board 43 incorporates a CPU 43a, an input interface (not shown), RAM and ROM, and controls the display screen 28. The lamp driver board 46 includes a CPU 46a, an input interface (not shown), a RAM and a ROM, and a lighting device 35 is connected to the lamp driver board 46. Based on the command transmitted from the sub-integrated board 58, the light emission of the lighting device 35 is controlled.

  Next, the power supply substrate 42 will be described. The power supply board 42 is connected to the main board 41 and the game ball launching device 37, and supplies DC stabilized power to each board and the game ball launching device 37. The game ball launching device 37 includes a launching motor (not shown), a touch sensor provided on the launching handle 7, a launching device stop switch, a firing strength adjustment volume, and the like. The game ball launching device 37 has a fixed interval (in this embodiment, 0.6 seconds). ) Launch one game ball into the game area every time.

  Next, the storage area of the RAM 52 of the main board 41 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram showing a storage area of the RAM 52 of the main board 41. As shown in FIG. 4, the RAM 52 indicates whether or not a game ball has won a prize at each of the winning openings such as a counter storage area 5201 for storing various counters, a normal symbol start gate 12, a special symbol start electric accessory 15, and the like. A winning ball flag storage area 5202 for storing a flag to indicate, a normal hit relation information storage area 5203 for storing a random number acquired when a game ball passes through the normal symbol start gate 12, and a normal number for storing a normal symbol operation reserved ball number Symbol operation holding ball number storage area 5204, jackpot relation information storage area 5205 for storing a random number acquired when winning a game ball to the special symbol starting electric player 15, special symbol operation holding for storing the number of special symbol operation holding balls Control commands output to the ball number storage area 5206, the main board 41, the sub-integrated board 58, the payout control board 45, the relay board 47, etc. Command relation storage area 5207 to the flag relation storage area 5208 for storing various flags. Further, the RAM 52 is provided with various storage areas not shown.

  Next, each counter stored in the counter storage area 5201 of the RAM 52 will be described. The counter stored in the RAM 52 includes a random number acquisition counter for acquiring a random number, a timer counter for measuring time, a winning ball counter for counting the number of winning balls, and the like.

  First, the random number acquisition counter will be described. Examples of the random number acquisition counter include a normal hit determination counter, a big hit determination counter, a big hit special symbol determination counter, a category determination counter, and a variation pattern determination counter. The values of these counters are determined at regular intervals (for example, in the counter update process of the main process (S12, see FIG. 9)) that is executed based on the interrupt signal from the interrupt signal generation circuit 57 (see FIG. 3). , A predetermined amount (for example, “1”) is added every 2 ms which is an interval of interrupt signal generation. Each counter has a minimum value (lower limit value) and a maximum value (upper limit value), and is configured to circulate in a numerical value in a range from the minimum value to the maximum value. Then, every time the value is rounded to the same value as the initial value by the update, a new initial value is acquired, and “1” is added to the initial value. For the determination of the new initial value, a random number generated by an initial value random number process for generating a random number by a predetermined algorithm is used. These random number acquisition counters are used in a normal symbol process (S16, see FIG. 9) and a special symbol process (see FIGS. 10 to 12) of the main process described later.

  Next, the timer counter will be described. The timer counter is a counter used for measuring time, and a predetermined value is stored as an initial value at the start of time measurement. For example, when measuring 1 second, “500” is stored as an initial value. Then, “1” is subtracted by “1” in the counter update process (S12, see FIG. 9) performed every 2 ms, which is an interval of interrupt signal generation. It is determined that the predetermined time has passed by becoming “0”.

  Next, the winning ball counter will be described. The winning ball counter is used to count the number of game balls that have won the big winning opening 16 while the large winning opening 16 is opened and closed once. The initial value of this counter is “0”, and is incremented by “1” each time a winning is detected in a switch read process (S11, see FIG. 9) of the main process described later. When the special winning opening 16 is closed, it is initialized.

  Next, the jackpot relation information storage area 5205 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram showing a jackpot relation information storage area 5205 of the RAM 52. The jackpot relation information storage area 5205 is used in a special symbol process (see FIGS. 10 to 12) of the main process described later. As shown in FIG. 5, the jackpot relation information storage area 5205 is provided with a determination area and first to fourth storage areas. In the first to fourth memory areas, random numbers acquired by the game balls (special symbol operation holding balls) that have won the special symbol start electric accessory 15 and have not yet been notified of the jackpot determination result are stored. . The determination area stores information on the results of the jackpot determination that is currently being performed and random numbers that are the basis of the jackpot game.

  In each of the determination area and the first to fourth storage areas, a jackpot random number field in which the value of the jackpot determination counter is stored, a jackpot special symbol determination random number field in which the value of the jackpot special symbol determination counter is stored, and a category determination counter A category determination random number column in which the value of the variation pattern is stored and a variation pattern determination random number column in which the value of the variation pattern determination counter is stored are provided. Then, when the game ball passes through the special symbol starting electric accessory 15, each value is stored in a storage area corresponding to the value of the special symbol operation reserved ball number storage area 5206 of the RAM 52, and the jackpot determination, jackpot is based on this value Are determined, the variation pattern category is determined, and the variation pattern belonging to the determined category is determined. Then, when the processing for the value stored in the determination area is completed, the value stored in the first storage area is shifted to the determination area, and processing such as the next jackpot determination is performed based on this value. Along with this, each value in the second to fourth storage areas is shifted to the one numbered young storage area, and the value in the fourth storage area is cleared. Here, the number of storage areas is four. In other words, the number of game balls that have won the special symbol starting electric accessory 15 can store a random number and can hold the operation is four. Accordingly, the upper limit of the number of special symbol operation reserved balls is four, and the value of the special symbol operation reserved ball number storage area 5206 does not take a value larger than “4”. In the ordinary hit relation information storage area 5203 of the RAM 52, similarly, a determination area and first to fourth storage areas are provided so that information on four game balls can be held.

  Next, the storage area of the ROM 53 of the main board 41 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram showing a storage area of the ROM 53 of the main board 41. The ROM 53 has an initial setting storage area 5301 for storing initial values stored in the respective storage areas when the pachinko machine 1 is reset, and a control program for storing various programs for the CPU 51 to control the pachinko machine 1. A storage area 5302, a control command table storage area 5303 for storing a table of control commands output from the main board 41 to each sub board, and a special symbol combination pattern storage area for storing a combination of special symbols to be displayed on the special symbol display unit 25 5304, a category determination table storage area 5305 for storing a category determination table for determining the category of the variation pattern according to the number of reserved balls, a special symbol variation pattern for storing information such as a table relating to the variation pattern of the special symbol and the demo symbol Storage area 5306, large Or determination, usually hit determination, the determination table storage area 5307 for storing various tables referred to when determining the like of the special symbols is performed is provided. Further, the ROM 53 is provided with various storage areas not shown.

  Next, the category determination table stored in the category determination table storage area 5305 of the ROM 53 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram showing a category determination table stored in the category determination table storage area 5305 of the ROM 53. As described above, the category is an effect category to which each notification effect belongs. In the pachinko machine 1, “reach non-established”, “normal reach”, “super reach” There are four categories of “Development Reach”.

  In the notification effect belonging to the category of “not reachable”, the demo symbols are changed at high speed and then shifted to low-speed change, and the combination of the demo symbols indicating the deviation is confirmed and displayed without passing through the reach effect. Therefore, when the determination result is a big hit, the category of “not reachable” is not selected. In the notification effect belonging to the category of “normal reach”, the left and right demo symbols become the same symbol after low speed fluctuation, and the normal reach effect is performed, but the effect time is shorter than other reach effects (see FIG. 8), and at the time of the big hit The percentage chosen is also low. In the notification effect belonging to the “super reach” category, after the low speed fluctuation, various super reach effects are performed through effects similar to the normal reach effect. In the notification effect belonging to “Development reach”, after reaching the same effect as the super reach effect, an advanced reach effect indicating that the expectation of jackpot is higher is performed.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the jackpot expectation degree for each category is assigned by changing the category selection ratio according to the result of the jackpot determination. For example, the rate at which the category of “development reach” with the highest degree of expectation is determined is 68/128 in the case of jackpot, but is significantly smaller than in the case of jackpot in the case of loss (for example, the number of holds) 3/128 when the value is 4. Then, as will be described later, the notification time of the category having a higher degree of expectation of jackpots is made longer by increasing the production time, thereby attracting the player's expectation more strongly (see FIG. 8).

  Here, in the pachinko machine 1, when the game ball wins the special symbol starting electric accessory 15 during the execution of the notification effect, the various random numbers obtained are stored as the holding balls, and the jackpot determination for the stored holding balls is made. The result is sequentially notified to the player. However, since the maximum number of hold balls that can be stored is “4”, when there are many stored hold balls, the notification effect is executed in a shorter time in order to prevent a decrease in the chance of executing the jackpot determination. It is desirable. In addition, when the number of reserved balls is small, it is desirable to perform the notification effect for a longer time in order to shorten the time during which the notification effect is not performed and entertain the player. In order to realize this, conventionally, a table for determining a variation pattern has to be stored separately according to the number of balls held.

  On the other hand, the pachinko machine 1 uses the category determination table shown in FIG. 7 to determine the category of the notification effect according to the number of reserved balls before specifically determining the variation pattern. Thereafter, one of the variation patterns belonging to the already determined category is determined using a variation pattern determination table (see FIG. 8) described later. The category determination table (see FIG. 7) is configured such that a category with a shorter presentation time (a category with a lower expectation) is more easily determined as the number of reserved balls is larger. For example, when it is determined that there is a shift in the normal state (non-short-time state) and the value of the category determination random number is 108, if the number of reserved balls is either “1 · 2”, the category of “reach not established” On the other hand, if the number of reserved balls is “0”, the category of “normal reach” is determined. As a result, it is possible to easily realize the prevention of a decrease in the chance to execute the jackpot determination and the reduction of the time during which the notification effect is not performed. Note that the probability that the determination result is a jackpot is about 1/300, and even if the selection ratio of the category in the case of a jackpot is changed according to the number of reserved balls, the effect is small. The category selection ratio is the same regardless of the number of reserved balls. However, it goes without saying that the category selection ratio may be changed even in the case of jackpot.

  Further, in the pachinko machine 1, a specific effect indicating that the degree of expectation that a jackpot game will be executed thereafter is higher than normal can be executed during one or more notification effects. Specifically, in one or a plurality of notification effects, the player's expectation can be enhanced by performing various specific effects such as displaying characters on the display screen 28 during high-speed fluctuation of the demo symbol. Here, in order to increase the player's expectation by the specific effect, it is necessary to grasp in advance the types of notification effects to be executed thereafter. For example, if the situation where even the reach effect is not performed even though the specific effect is executed continues, the player's interest is impaired. However, it has been difficult to grasp the type of notification effect to be executed at the time of random number acquisition. In particular, in a gaming machine that changes the time of notification effect according to the number of reserved balls as described above, it is impossible to grasp the number of reserved balls at the time of notification effect execution at the time of random number acquisition. Therefore, it was not possible to accurately grasp the type of notification effect executed thereafter.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, the category determination table is configured so that the category having a higher degree of expectation of jackpot is determined as the value of the category determination random number increases. Thereby, it can be easily determined at the time of winning a game ball to the special symbol starting electric accessory 15 whether or not a category having a predetermined expected level or more is determined regardless of the number of reserved balls. For example, by determining whether or not the value of the category determination random number is 115 or more, it is possible to determine whether or not a category having an expected degree of “normal reach” or more is determined.

  More specifically, if the value of the category determination random number is 1 to 107, it is determined that the reach effect is not executed, and a reach non-establishment command indicating that the reach effect is not performed is received from the main board 41. It is transmitted to the sub integrated board 58. If the category determination random number value is 108 to 114, a reachability command indicating that the normal reach category may be determined is transmitted. If the category determination random value is 115 to 120, a normal or higher determination command indicating that a normal reach category or a super reach category having a higher expectation is determined is transmitted. If the category determination random value is 121 to 124, a super or higher determination command indicating that a super reach or a category of development reach with a higher expectation is determined is transmitted. If the category determination random value is 125 to 127, an expansion confirmation command indicating that the category of the expansion reach is determined is transmitted to the sub-integrated board 58.

  With such a configuration, it is possible to easily pre-read which expected degree of notification effect will be executed thereafter when the game ball wins the special symbol start electric accessory 15. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately determine whether or not to execute the specific effect. Note that the configuration of the category determination table that is referred to during the time reduction state is the same as that of the table that is referred to during the normal state, and thus description thereof is omitted.

  Next, the special symbol variation pattern determination table stored in the special symbol variation pattern storage area 5306 of the ROM 53 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a conceptual diagram showing a special symbol variation pattern determination table stored in the special symbol variation pattern storage area 5306 of the ROM 53. The variation pattern is a variation pattern of a symbol used when a determination result by jackpot determination is shown. Due to this variation pattern, the variation time of the symbol displayed on the special symbol display unit 25 and the demo symbol display unit of the display screen 28, the display screen 28, the illumination device 35, the speaker 48, etc. in synchronization with the variation of these symbols. The pattern of the notification effect performed by is determined. Then, the sub integrated board 58 determines whether or not to execute specific contents of the effect, for example, the specific effect, based on the variation pattern determined by the main board 41.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the variation pattern determination table is provided with a table according to the gaming state (normal state or short-time state) at the time of jackpot determination and the result of jackpot determination (hit or miss). In each table, one or more variation patterns are associated with the above-described category. In the special symbol processing (see FIGS. 10 to 12) described later, the special symbol variation pattern determination table corresponding to the gaming state and the determination result is referred to, and the variation belonging to the category determined by the category determination table and the category determination random number One of the patterns is determined by the value of the variation pattern determination random number. For example, when the “normal reach” category is determined, the variation pattern of normal reach is determined regardless of the value of the variation pattern determination random number. Further, when the category of “super reach” is determined, one of the three fluctuation patterns of super reach A, B, and C is determined. This makes it easy to change the appearance ratio of the notification effect according to the number of reserved balls without providing a plurality of special symbol variation pattern determination tables according to the number of reserved balls. It should be noted that, when the category of “not reachable” is determined, the change pattern of not reachable is always determined, but this change time (that is, the time of notification effect) becomes shorter as the number of reserved balls increases. Is set to Thereby, in addition to changing the appearance ratio of the notification effect according to the number of reserved balls, it is possible to reduce the possibility that the opportunity to execute the jackpot determination will be lost.

  It should be noted that the category determination table and the special symbol variation pattern determination table used in the present embodiment are merely examples, and it goes without saying that the contents of the table can be set as appropriate. For example, the category determination table (see FIG. 7) of the present embodiment is configured such that a category having a higher degree of expectation of jackpot is selected as the value of the category determination random number increases. However, the present invention can be realized even when a category having a lower expectation level is selected as the random value increases. That is, if each category corresponds to a random number in the order of expectation according to the ascending or descending order of the random value, it is determined by the random value whether or not a category with a predetermined expected degree or more is determined regardless of the number of reserved balls. Can do. Needless to say, the number of categories, types of notification effects, variation time, and the like can be set as appropriate.

  Next, details of the operation of the main board 41 of the pachinko machine 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 to 12. FIG. 9 is a flowchart of main processing in the main board 41, and FIGS. 10 to 12 are flowcharts of subroutines of special symbol processing executed in the main processing. Hereinafter, each step of the flowchart is abbreviated as “S”.

  The pachinko machine 1 is controlled by a control program stored in the control program storage area of the ROM 53. The main process of the control program is executed by the CPU 51 when the CPU 51 senses an interrupt signal generated by the interrupt signal generation circuit 57 (see FIG. 3). Since the interrupt signal is generated at regular intervals (2 ms in the present embodiment), the main process is repeatedly executed every 2 ms.

  First, main processing performed on the main board 41 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 9, when the main process is started by sensing an interrupt signal, a command output process is first performed (S10). In this command output process, a control command is output to the sub-integrated board 58, the payout control board 45, the relay board 47, etc. via the I / O interface 54. The control command includes a reserved ball number notification command for notifying the number of held balls to the sub-integrated board 58, a jackpot random number prefetching command for notifying a result of prefetching about the jackpot random number newly acquired during execution of the notification effect, and prefetching Category notification command for notifying information about the category of the notification effect, a command for instructing the variation pattern of the determined special symbol, a command for instructing the timing to stop the special symbol, a command for notifying the start of the jackpot game, There are a number of commands such as commands for instructing the opening and closing timing of objects. The control command output here is a control command stored as an output command in the command relation storage area 5207 of the RAM 52 in the main process executed last time.

  Next, a switch reading process is performed (S11). In this switch reading process, a process for detecting a winning of a game ball in the normal symbol starting gate 12, the special symbol starting electric accessory 15, the normal winning ports 17 to 20, and the big winning port 16 is performed. Specifically, it is determined whether or not a game ball is detected by each switch (see FIG. 3) provided at these winning openings, and when a game ball is detected, a winning ball flag storage area in the RAM 25 is detected. A flag corresponding to each switch stored in 5202 is turned ON. Further, the number of game balls won during one opening of the big winning opening 16 is counted by a winning ball counter. At the start of the switch reading process, all flags in the winning ball flag storage area are reset.

  Next, a counter update process is performed (S12). As described above, in this counter update process, each value of the random number acquisition counter stored in the counter storage area of the RAM 52 is added by a predetermined amount, and each value of the timer counter is subtracted by a predetermined amount.

  Next, special electric accessory processing is performed (S13). In the special electric accessory process, a command for instructing the opening / closing operation of the big prize opening 16 is performed during the big hit game. Also, at the end of the jackpot game, a flag (probability change flag and short-time / medium flag) for generating either the short state at the time of probability change or the short state at the time of non-probability change according to the type of the special symbol that is the basis of the jackpot game ) Is performed.

  Next, special symbol processing is performed (S14). In this special symbol processing, processing such as prefetching of information about the jackpot random number, prefetching of the category of notification effect, jackpot determination, determination of variation pattern, instruction, designation of start and end of symbol variation, and the like are performed. This special symbol process will be described later with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS.

  Next, ordinary electric accessory processing is performed (S15). In this ordinary electric accessory process, when a normal hit is achieved, a process for facilitating winning a game ball by opening the opening / closing member of the special symbol starting electric accessory 15 for a predetermined time is performed. It should be noted that the opening time of the special symbol starting electric member 15 once is longer in the short time state than in the normal state.

  Next, normal symbol processing is performed (S16). In the normal symbol process, when the game ball passes through the normal symbol start gate 12, the value of the normal hit determination counter is acquired as a normal hit random number. Then, a normal hit determination is performed based on the acquired random number, and a process of displaying the determination result on the normal symbol display unit 24 is performed. Note that the variation time of the normal symbol displayed on the normal symbol display unit 24 is shorter in the short time state than in the normal state.

  Next, a payout process (S17) for paying out prize balls and an error check (S18) are performed. If an error has occurred in the pachinko machine 1, an error is displayed on the display screen 28 or an error sound is generated on the speaker 48. Therefore, an error command to be transmitted to the sub integrated board 58 in the command output process of S10 is stored in the command related storage area of the RAM 52. Next, in the information output process (S19), various kinds of information such as jackpot information, starting information, etc. of the pachinko machine 1 are output via the output port 55 to a game hall management computer (not shown). When the information output process ends, the main process ends. When the interrupt signal is received from the interrupt signal generation circuit 57, the main process is executed again from the beginning.

  Next, details of the special symbol process (S14) of the main process will be described with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. As described above, in the special symbol processing, processing such as prefetching of information about the jackpot random number, prefetching of the category of notification effect, jackpot determination, determination of the variation pattern, instruction, instructions for starting and ending the variation of the symbol, and the like are performed. .

  First, the flags used in the special symbol process will be described. In the flag-related storage area of the RAM 52, a special symbol display state flag, a jackpot gaming state flag, a probability variation flag, an hour / medium flag, and the like are stored. The special symbol display state flag is a flag indicating the state of the special symbol display unit 25, and is “1” when the special symbol display unit 25 is fluctuating (fluctuating), and when it is stopped (during stop display). ) Stores “2”, and “0” is stored when the state is neither variable nor stopped. The jackpot game state flag is “ON” because “1” is stored during the jackpot game. Further, the probability variation flag is “ON” by storing “1” during the probability variation in which the probability of determining that the jackpot is higher than that in the normal state. In the hour / short flag, “1” is stored in the hour / short state when the normal symbol variation time becomes shorter than usual and the opening / closing member opening time of the special symbol starter electric accessory 15 becomes longer than usual. ON ".

  As shown in FIG. 10, when the special symbol process of the main process is started, it is determined whether or not a game ball has won the special symbol starting electric accessory 15 (S21). In the switch reading process (S11, see FIG. 9), when the winning of the game ball to the special symbol start electric accessory 15 is not detected (S21: NO), the process proceeds to the determination of S31 (see FIG. 11) as it is. To do.

  When a winning of a game ball to the special symbol starting electric accessory 15 is detected (S21: YES), a process for obtaining a random number for the game ball is performed. However, the number of special symbol actuated balls that can acquire and store random numbers is “4”. Therefore, it is determined whether or not the value of the special symbol operation reserved ball number storage area 5206 of the RAM 52 is “4” (S22), and if it is “4” (S22: YES), this game ball Since the random number cannot be stored, the process proceeds to S31 as it is.

  When the number of special symbol operation reservation balls is “0” to “3” (S22: NO), “1” is added to the value of the special symbol operation reservation balls number storage area 5206 (S23), A reserved ball number notification command for notifying the number of held balls to the sub-integrated board 58 is stored in the command relation storage area 5207 of the RAM 52 (S24). Then, the values of the jackpot determination counter, the jackpot special symbol determination counter, the category determination counter, and the variation pattern determination counter in the counter storage area 5201 are acquired (S25).

  Next, prefetching of information about the acquired jackpot random number (the value of the jackpot determination counter) is performed (S26), and a jackpot random number prefetch command indicating the result of the prefetching is stored in the RAM 52 (S27). In this jackpot random number prefetching process, the latest jackpot random number obtained is applied to a table stored in the determination table storage area 5307 of the ROM 53 to prefetch information on the jackpot random number. Here, the determination table for performing jackpot determination includes a low probability determination table used in a normal state (during non-probability fluctuation), and a high probability determination in which the probability of being determined to be a big hit is higher than during non-probability fluctuation A table is provided. All random number values assigned as jackpots in the low probability determination table are also assigned as jackpots in the high probability determination table. Therefore, in the jackpot random number look-ahead process (S26), any one of a random number determined to be out of place regardless of the gaming state, a random number determined to be a big hit only during probability variation, and a random number determined to be a big hit regardless of the gaming state. It is judged whether there is. Then, in the process of storing the command (S27), if the random number is determined to be a loss regardless of the gaming state, the random number for which the command “01H” indicating the loss is determined to be a big hit only during the probability variation is acquired. If the command “02H” indicating that is acquired and a random number that is determined to be a jackpot regardless of the gaming state is acquired, the command “03H” indicating the jackpot is stored. Thereby, even when the gaming state at the time of the prefetching process is different from the gaming state at the time of the actual jackpot determination, it is possible to control the specific effect using the result of the prefetching for the jackpot random number.

  In the jackpot random number look-ahead process, it is not always necessary to make a determination that matches the actual jackpot determination result. For example, only a part of random numbers assigned as jackpots may be set so that a prefetch command indicating jackpot is transmitted, and a prefetch command indicating a loss is transmitted for other random numbers. In the present embodiment, by sending the command “01H” indicating the loss, it is not notified to the player that it is “loss” in advance, so a part of the random numbers assigned as jackpots Even if a prefetch command indicating a loss is transmitted, only the difference in the winning ratio of the specific effect execution lottery occurs, and no particular problem occurs.

  Next, a pre-reading process of the category of the notification effect is performed with the obtained category determination random number (the value of the category determination counter) (S28). This process is performed with reference to the category determination table (see FIG. 7). As described above, the ratio at which each category is selected is set to be different depending on the number of reserved balls at the start of the notification effect, but according to the category determination table in the present embodiment, a predetermined expected degree or more is set. It can be easily determined whether or not the category is determined regardless of the number of reserved balls. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, if the value of the category determination random number is 107 or less when it is determined that there is a shift in the normal state, it can be determined that the reach is not established, and if it is 108 or more, the reach effect is achieved. It can be judged that there is a possibility of being performed. Further, if the random value is 115 or more, it can be determined that the category having the jackpot expectation level of normal reach or higher is determined. If the random value is 121 or higher, the category having the expectation level of super reach or higher (super reach or development reach). ) Is determined. If the random number value is 125 or more, it can be determined that the category of the development reach with the highest expectation is determined.

  Next, a category notification command indicating the category of the pre-read notification effect is stored in the command relation storage area 5207 of the RAM 52 (S29). More specifically, when it is determined that there is a deviation during the normal state, if the value of the category determination random number is 0 or more and 107 or less, a reach non-established command for notifying that the reach effect is not performed is stored, and the random value is If it is 108 or more and 114 or less, the reach possibility command which shows that a reach production may be performed is memorize | stored. If the random number value is 115 or more and 120 or less, a normal or more confirmation command indicating that an expected degree category of normal reach or more is determined is stored, and if the random number value is 121 or more and 124 or less, it is super reach or more. A super-determined command indicating that the expectation category is determined is stored. If the random number value is 125 or more and 127 or less, an evolution confirmation command indicating that an evolution reach category is determined is stored.

  Next, the random number acquired in the process of S25 is stored in the storage area of the number corresponding to the value of the special symbol operation reserved ball number storage area 5206 in the jackpot relation information storage area 5205 of the RAM 52 (S30). Specifically, the jackpot determination counter value in the jackpot random number column, the jackpot special symbol determination counter value in the jackpot special symbol determination random number column, the category determination random number value in the category determination random number column, and the variation pattern determination The value of the variation pattern determination counter is stored in the random number column. Then, the process proceeds to S31.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 11, it is determined whether or not the game state is a jackpot gaming state (S31). When it is a jackpot game state, the jackpot determination and the notification of the determination result are not performed. Therefore, if the jackpot gaming state flag is “ON” and it is determined that the jackpot gaming state is set (S31: YES), the process directly returns to the main process.

  When the jackpot gaming state flag is “OFF” (S31: NO), since it is not the jackpot gaming state, processing relating to the control of the special symbol display unit 25 and the notification effect is performed. First, it is determined whether or not the special symbol display unit 25 is changing based on the special symbol display state flag (S32). If the special symbol display state flag is not “1” and is not changing (S32: NO), it is determined whether or not the special symbol is being stopped (S33). If the special symbol display state flag is not “2” and the special symbol displayed on the special symbol display unit 25 is not being stopped (S33: NO), the big hit determination is performed.

  Therefore, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 12, it is determined whether or not there is a game ball that should be subjected to the jackpot determination (S35). If the value in the special symbol operation reserved ball number storage area 5206 of the RAM 52 is not equal to or greater than “1” (S35: NO), there is no game ball for which a big hit determination is to be made, and the process directly returns to the main process. If it is “1” or more (S35: YES), there is a game ball for which a jackpot determination is to be made, so the value in the special symbol actuated holding ball number storage area 5206 is subtracted by “1” (S36), and the jackpot relation information is stored. The value stored in the area (see FIG. 5) is shifted. That is, the random number stored in the first storage area is shifted to the determination area, the random number stored in the second to fourth storage areas is shifted to the storage area one number lower, and the value of the fourth storage area Is cleared (S37). Then, a reserved ball number notification command for notifying the sub-integrated board 58 of the special symbol operation reserved ball number at that time is stored in the RAM 52 (S38).

  Next, a jackpot determination according to the gaming state is performed (S39). As described above, the determination table for performing jackpot determination includes a low probability determination table used in the normal state (non-probability fluctuation), and a high probability that the probability of determining the jackpot is higher than in the normal state. And a determination table. The jackpot determination is performed by referring to one of the determination tables depending on whether or not a probability variation state has occurred.

  If it is determined that the jackpot is determined to be a jackpot (S40: YES), the jackpot combination stored in the special symbol combination pattern storage area 5304 of the ROM 53 based on the value stored in the jackpot special symbol determination random number column One of these is determined (S41). And the process which determines the category of alerting | presentation effect is performed according to whether it is in a time-short state. If the time / short flag is “ON” and it is determined that the time is short (S42: YES), the time / medium jackpot is determined based on the value stored in the category determination random number column (see FIG. 5). The category of the notification effect is determined by referring to the category determination table (see FIG. 7) (S43). Then, the process proceeds to S51. If it is determined that the time is not short (S42: NO), the category is determined by referring to the jackpot table in the normal state (S44), and the process proceeds to S51.

  If the jackpot is not determined to be a jackpot (S40: NO), a special symbol ("-" in the present embodiment) indicating a loss is determined (S46). Then, when the time is short (S47: YES), the category for the notification effect is determined by referring to the category determination table for the time shortage (S48), and the process proceeds to S51. If the time is not short (S47: NO), the category is determined by referring to the table of detachment in the normal state (S49), and the process proceeds to S51.

  Next, one of the one or more variation patterns belonging to the determined category is determined by referring to the special symbol variation pattern determination table (see FIG. 8) (S51). For example, if the category determined when it is determined that there is a shift in the normal state is “reach non-established”, the non-reach variation pattern is determined regardless of the value of the variation pattern determination random number. In this variation pattern in which reach is not established, four patterns with different variation times are provided according to the number of reserved balls, and the variation pattern according to the number of reserved balls at that time is determined. In addition, if the category determined when the jackpot is determined during the normal state is “super reach” and the value of the variation pattern determination random number is “30 to 79”, the variation pattern of “super B” is determined. Will be.

  Next, a variation pattern designating command indicating the determined variation pattern and instructing the variation start of the special symbol and the demo symbol is stored in the command relation storage area 5207 of the RAM 52 (S52). Then, the special symbol variation time determined for each variation pattern is stored in the special symbol variation time counter (S53), and "1" indicating that the special symbol is changing is stored in the special symbol display state flag. (S54), the process returns to the main process.

  In addition, in the determination of S32 shown in FIG. 11, when “1” is stored in the special symbol display state flag and it is determined that the special symbol display unit 25 is changing (S32: YES), the change is made. It is determined whether time has passed (S71). When the value of the special symbol variation time counter set in S53 (see FIG. 12) becomes “0”, the variation time has elapsed (S71: YES), so that the special symbol is stored in the command related storage area 5207 of the RAM 52. A stop command is stored (S72). This special symbol stop command is a command for instructing the special symbol display unit 25 to stop the variation of the special symbol and to end the variation effect performed by the display screen 28 or the like. Then, a predetermined stop display time is stored in the special symbol stop time counter (S73), and “2” indicating that the special symbol is being stopped is stored in the special symbol display state flag (S74). Return to. On the other hand, if it is determined in S71 that the value of the special symbol variation time counter is not “0” and the variation time has not yet elapsed (S71: NO), the variation of the special symbol is continued. Therefore, the special symbol process is terminated as it is, and the process returns to the main process.

  Further, in the determination of S33, when “2” is stored in the special symbol display state flag and it is determined that the special symbol display unit 25 is in the stop display (S33: YES), the stop display time is increased. It is determined whether or not it has elapsed (S75). If the value of the special symbol stop time counter set in S73 is not “0” (S75: NO), the special symbol process is terminated as it is, and the process returns to the main process. On the other hand, when the counter value is subtracted to “0” in the counter update process (S12, see FIG. 9), the stop display time has elapsed (S75: YES), and the special symbol display unit 25 “0” indicating that neither stop display nor change is stored in the special symbol display state flag (S76). Then, a short / medium flag process is performed (S77). In the pachinko machine 1, the non-stochastic fluctuation short-time state that occurs after the end of the jackpot game ends when the jackpot determination is performed 100 times. Therefore, in the process of S77, when the jackpot determination is made 100 times during the non-probability fluctuation time-saving state, the processing for setting the time-shortage flag to “0” is performed.

  Next, when it is determined that the jackpot is made in the previous jackpot determination (S78: YES), “1” indicating the jackpot gaming state is stored in the jackpot gaming state flag and is set to “ON” ( In step S79, a jackpot game start command for notifying the sub-integrated board 58 of starting the jackpot game is stored (S80), and the process returns to the main process. On the other hand, if it is not determined that the jackpot (S78: NO), the process returns to the main process.

  Next, processing in the sub integrated substrate 58 will be described. In the sub-integrated substrate processing, processing for controlling effects by the display screen 28, the illumination device 35, the speaker 48, and the like is performed in accordance with a command transmitted from the main substrate 41. In particular, it is determined based on a category notification command or the like transmitted from the main board 41 whether or not to execute a specific effect indicating that the degree of expectation that the jackpot game will be executed after that is higher than normal. When it is determined to execute the specific effect, control for executing the specific effect is performed during the high-speed fluctuation of the demo symbol.

  First, the RAM 582 of the sub integrated substrate 58 will be described. The RAM 582 includes a variation pattern storage area in which a variation pattern designated by the main board 41 is stored, a counter storage area in which various counters are stored, a reserved ball number storage area in which a special symbol operation reserved ball number is stored, and execution. A specific effect pattern storage area in which a pattern of a specific effect that has been determined is stored, a command relationship storage area in which a control command output to the effect control board 43 or the like is stored, and a flag relationship storage area in which various flags are stored Etc. are provided.

  The counter stored in the counter storage area includes a final variation determination counter. The final variation is a variation of a special symbol and a demo symbol for a random number that triggers the execution of the specific effect, and the series of specific effects ends when the final variation is performed. The final variation determination counter is a counter for determining the number of symbol variations (number of notification effects) required until the final variation. For example, if the value of this counter is “1”, It shows that the final change is performed after one notification effect with the change. The aspect of the specific effect is determined based on the value of this counter, and details will be described later with reference to a flowchart.

  Next, the ROM 583 of the sub integrated board 58 will be described. The ROM 583 stores various programs for the CPU 581 to assist the control of the pachinko machine 1. In addition, a control command table storage area for storing a table of control commands output from the sub-integrated board 58 to the effect control board 43 and the lamp driver board 46, a table for determining whether or not to execute a specific effect, etc. Various storage areas such as a table storage area in which various tables are stored are provided.

  Next, with respect to the correspondence between the specific effect pattern and the winning ratio of each pattern and the category notification command, a case where it is determined that the prefetched jackpot random number is a random number indicating a deviation will be described with reference to FIG. To explain. FIG. 13 is a table in which the contents of the category notification command in the case where it is determined that the prefetched jackpot random number is a random number indicating a deviation and the winning ratio of each pattern of the specific effect are associated with each other. As described above, when a game ball wins the special symbol start electric accessory 15 during the execution of the notification effect, the main board 41 pre-reads information about the jackpot random number and the notification effect based on the newly acquired random number. The look-ahead of the category is performed. Then, the result of prefetching is notified to the sub integrated board 58. In the sub-integrated board 58, whether or not to execute the specific effect and the pattern of the specific effect to be executed are determined according to the result of the prefetch notified from the main board 41, and specified over one or more notification effects. Control to execute the production.

  First, a specific effect pattern in the pachinko machine 1 will be described. “0 times” indicates that the specific effect is not executed, that is, the lottery for determining whether or not to execute the specific effect is lost. “Once” is a pattern in which the specific effect is not executed until the final change, and the specific effect is executed only during the notification effect in the final change. “Pattern A” means that the specific effect is not executed in the next change of the symbol variation performed when the execution of the specific effect is decided, and the specific effect is performed from the next change to the final change. It is a pattern to be executed. For example, if the number of reserved balls when it is determined to execute “Pattern A” is “4”, the specific variation is not executed during the first notification effect, and the second to fourth notifications are performed. The specific production is executed continuously during the production. “Pattern B” means that the specific effect is executed with the next change after the execution of the specific effect is determined, the specific effect is not executed from the next change to the last change, and the specific effect is again performed with the final change. It is a pattern to execute. For example, if the number of reserved balls when it is determined to execute “pattern B” is “4”, then the specific effect is executed during the first notification effect, and the second and third notification effects are being performed. The specific effect is executed again during the fourth notification effect. The “total variation” is a pattern in which a specific effect is accompanied by all symbol variations until the final variation is performed. When there are a plurality of reserved balls, the specific effect is always executed continuously. The Rukoto.

  Next, the correspondence between the winning ratio of these specific effect patterns and the category notification command received from the main board 41 will be described. As shown in FIG. 13, the pachinko machine 1 is set such that the higher the degree of expectation for jackpot corresponding to the received category notification command is, the higher the ratio of executing the specific effect is. For example, when a “reach non-established command” having a jackpot expectation of zero is received, the ratio of execution of a specific effect is “4/1024”, whereas “expected development” When the “command” is received, the rate at which the specific effect is executed is “800/1024”. As described above, according to the pachinko machine 1, it is possible to control the content of the specific effect in combination with the category of the notification effect by being able to pre-read the category of the notification effect to be executed thereafter regardless of the number of reserved balls. Yes.

  In this embodiment, the ratio of winning each pattern of the specific effect is the same, but it is possible to change this. For example, when a “reach possibility command” having a relatively low expectation level of jackpot is received, the “one-time” pattern is easier to win than the “total variation”, and the expectation level is the highest. When the “development confirmation command” is received, the “total change” pattern is more easily won than the “once” pattern. As a result, the higher the expected degree of notification effect to be executed, the easier it is to execute the specific effect of the “total variation” pattern, so that the player's expectation when the specific effect is continuously executed is further enhanced. Can do.

  Further, although not shown, when it is determined that the pre-fetched jackpot random number is a random number indicating a jackpot, the specific effect is executed at a higher rate than in the case of the loss shown in FIG. This makes it possible for the player to expect that the degree of expectation of jackpot is higher than usual by executing the specific effect.

  Hereinafter, the sub integrated substrate processing performed in the sub integrated substrate 58 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 14 is a flowchart of sub-integrated board processing in the sub-integrated board 58. When the sub-integrated board processing is started, first, it is determined whether or not a reserved ball number notification command is received from the main board 41 (S101). If received (S101: YES), the number of special symbol actuated reserve balls notified by the command is stored in the reserve ball count storage area of the RAM 582 (S102). Then, the stored number of held balls is displayed on the held ball number display unit 29 in the display screen 28 (S103), and the process returns to the determination of S101.

  If the pending ball number notification command has not been received (S101: NO), it is determined whether a category notification command has been received (S105). If received (S105: YES), it is determined whether or not the value of the final variation determination counter for determining the number of symbol variations required until the final variation is "0" (S106). If it is not “0” (S106: NO), it is already determined to execute the specific effect or the specific effect is being executed, and the process directly returns to the determination in S101.

  If the value of the final variation determination counter is “0” (S106: YES), a random number is acquired and a specific effect pattern is drawn (S107). As described above, this lottery is performed by referring to the table stored in the ROM 583 according to the contents of the received category notification command and the contents of the jackpot random number prefetch command transmitted from the main board 41 at the same time. It will be. Then, when the execution lottery for the specific effect is not won (S108: NO), the process directly returns to the determination of S101. When winning, that is, when winning a specific effect with any one of the patterns “one time”, “pattern A”, “pattern B”, and “total variation” (see FIG. 13) (S108). : YES), the pattern of the selected specific effect is stored in the specific effect pattern storage area of the RAM 582 (S109). Next, the same value as the value stored in the reserved ball number storage area is stored in the final variation counter (S110), and the process returns to the determination in S101. Since the pachinko machine 1 executes the specific effect only during the normal state, the lottery for executing the specific effect (S107) is not performed during the short time state.

  If the category notification command has not been received (S105: NO), it is determined whether a variation pattern designation command has been received (S113). If received (S113: YES), the variation pattern specified by the command is stored in the variation pattern storage area of the RAM 582 (S114). Then, it is determined whether or not the final variation determination counter is “0” (S115). When the value of the counter is “0” (S115: YES), the execution process of the specific effect is not performed, and the notification effect is started as it is according to the variation pattern (S118). Note that the demo symbols in the display screen 28 start to fluctuate simultaneously with the start of the notification effect.

  If the value of the final variation determination counter is not “0” (S115: NO), the counter value is decremented by “1” (S116). Next, in accordance with the specific effect pattern stored in the RAM 582 and the value of the final variation determination counter, the specific effect mode to be executed during the current notification effect is determined (S117). For example, when the determined pattern of the specific effect is “pattern B”, the value of the final variation determination counter is “0”, not the variation next to the variation determined to execute the specific effect. Otherwise, the specific performance is not performed. On the other hand, if the value of the counter is “0” and the variation is the final variation, one of the specific effects provided for the final variation is determined. Here, the aspect of the specific effect can be set as appropriate, but in the present embodiment, the display of the character logo, the change in the display state of the reserved ball number display unit 29, the display of the video in which the character appears, the mail reception effect, etc. A plurality of modes are provided, and one or more modes among these modes are configured to be executed during one notification effect. Next, the notification effect is started according to the variation pattern, and the specific effect is executed in the previously determined manner during the high-speed variation of the demo symbol in the notification effect (S118). And it returns to judgment of S101.

  If the variation pattern designation command has not been received (S113: NO), it is determined whether or not a special symbol stop command has been received (S121). If it is received (S121: YES), the notification effect that has been executed is terminated and a process of confirming and displaying the demo symbol is performed (S122), and the process returns to the determination of S101.

  If a special symbol stop command has not been received (S121: NO), it is determined whether a jackpot game start command has been received (S124). If it is received (S124: YES), processing for starting the effect during the jackpot game is performed (S125), and the process returns to the determination of S101. If the jackpot game start command has not been received (S124: NO), it is determined whether or not another command has been received (S127). If it has been received (S127: YES), it depends on the received command. Various processes are performed (S128), and the process returns to the determination in S101. If no command has been received (S127: NO), the process directly returns to the determination in S101.

  As described above, in the pachinko machine 1 according to the present embodiment, a plurality of notification effects are divided into a plurality of categories having different jackpot expectations. And the category determination table (refer FIG. 7) for determining the category of alerting | reporting effect according to the number of reservation balls is provided, and it determined after determining a category with the ratio suitable for the number of reservation balls by this table. One of the notification effects belonging to the category can be executed. Therefore, the execution ratio of the notification effect can be easily changed according to the number of reserved balls without providing a plurality of tables for determining the variation pattern.

  Further, in the pachinko machine 1, it can be easily determined at the time of winning a game ball to the special symbol start electric accessory 15 whether or not a category having a predetermined expected level or more is determined regardless of the number of held balls. . By using this determination result, the sub integrated board 58 can appropriately control a specific effect over one or more notification effects together with a category of notification effects executed in the final change. Furthermore, since the sub-integrated board 58, the presentation control board 43, and the lamp driver board 46 perform the control of the specific presentation, the presentation can be diversified without imposing an excessive burden on the main board 41.

  It should be noted that the special symbol start electric accessory 15 in the present embodiment corresponds to the “start opening” of the present invention, and the start opening switch 70 corresponds to the “game ball detecting means”. Further, the CPU 51 of the main board 41 that acquires the jackpot random number in S25 shown in FIG. 10 functions as the “hit random number acquisition means”, and the CPU 51 of the main board 41 that performs the jackpot determination in S39 shown in FIG. Function as. The variation pattern corresponds to an “effect pattern”, and the special symbol variation pattern storage area 5306 in the ROM 53 that stores the variation patterns in categories is equivalent to an “effect pattern storage unit”. Further, the CPU 51 of the main board 41 that acquires the category determination random number in S25 shown in FIG. 10 functions as “category determination random number acquisition means”, and one of the categories is selected in S43, 44, 48, and 49 shown in FIG. The CPU 51 of the main board 41 to be determined functions as “category determining means”. In addition, the display screen 28, the lighting device 35, and the speaker 48 correspond to “production execution means”, and the sub-integrated board 58, the production control board 43, and the lamp driver board 46 that control them according to the variation pattern are “production”. It functions as “execution control means”. Further, the CPU 581 of the sub-integrated board 58 that determines whether or not to execute the specific effect in S106 and 107 shown in FIG. 14 functions as “specific effect execution determining means”.

  Further, the jackpot relation information storage area 5205 shown in FIG. 5 corresponds to “hit random number storage means”, and the category determination table storage area 5305 of the ROM 53 for storing the category determination table shown in FIG. 7 becomes “category determination table storage means”. Equivalent to. Further, the CPU 51 of the main board 41 that pre-reads whether or not a category having a predetermined expected level or higher is determined in S28 shown in FIG. 10 functions as a “minimum expected level determining unit”. The main board 41 corresponds to a “main control board”, and the sub integrated board 58, the effect control board 43, and the lamp driver board 46 correspond to a “sub control board”.

  It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described in detail above, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

  Here, a modification of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 15 is a conceptual diagram showing a category determination table used in a modified pachinko machine. In the category prefetching process (S10, see FIG. 10) in the pachinko machine of this modification, unlike the above-described embodiment, it is not determined whether or not a category having a predetermined degree of expectation is determined, but is suspended. Whether or not a predetermined category is determined regardless of the number of balls is determined and notified to the sub-integrated board 58.

  As shown in FIG. 15, the category determination table in the present modification is also configured so that a category with a higher degree of expectation of jackpot is determined as the value of the category determination random number increases as in the table shown in FIG. ing. And it sets so that a category with a high expectation degree (long production time) may be determined easily, so that the number of reservation balls at the time of a notification production start increases. Therefore, taking as an example a table when it is determined that there is a shift in the normal state, if the value of the category determination random number is 108 or more and 114 or less, the category of “normal reach” may or may not be determined. It will be. However, if the random value is 115 or more and 117 or less, the category of “normal reach” is determined regardless of the number of reserved balls. Therefore, in the pachinko machine of the modified example, if the random number value is 115 or more and 117 or less in the category prefetching process (S28, see FIG. 10), the category of “normal reach” is determined regardless of the number of reserved balls. Can be prefetched, and a normal confirmation command, which is a command indicating the result, can be transmitted to the sub-integrated board 58 (S29). In this way, it is possible to determine whether or not a predetermined category is determined regardless of the number of reserved balls, and the sub-integrated board 58 can also control a specific effect based on the determination result. Note that the CPU 51 of the main board 41 that performs the category prefetching process (S28, see FIG. 10) in the present modification functions as the “determined category determination unit” of the present invention. Further, when the category to be determined differs depending on the number of reserved balls (for example, when the value of the category determination random number is 108 or more and 114 or less when it is determined that there is a shift in the normal state. The black color shown in FIG. ), A category notification command for notifying that the category is indefinite is transmitted to the sub-integrated board 58.

  Further, the above embodiment can be modified in various other ways. First, the configuration of various tables in the present embodiment can be changed as appropriate without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, the category determination table shown in FIG. 7 is configured such that a category with a high expectation is determined as the random value increases, but a category with a low expectation is determined as the random value increases. Even if it is determined, it can be determined whether or not a category having a predetermined expected degree or more is determined regardless of the number of reserved balls. In addition, the category of notification effects such as “normal reach” and “super reach” is merely an example, and it goes without saying that the present invention can be realized even if a category such as “premier reach” is newly added. Further, the selection ratio of each category when it is determined to be a big hit may be changed according to the number of reserved balls as in the case where it is determined to be out of play.

  In addition, in the pachinko machine, a large number of variation patterns are stored in order to perform various notification effects. Accordingly, it is difficult to pre-read which notification effect is to be executed based on which variation pattern is performed thereafter, and to control the notification effect over a plurality of notification effects according to the pre-read result, which is difficult. There was a problem. Therefore, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, first, the category of the notification effect is determined using the category determination random number, and one of the variation patterns belonging to the determined category is determined. Yes. As a result, the category of the notification effect to be executed thereafter is pre-read and notified to the sub integrated board 58. However, it may be set so that both the prefetching of the category of the notification effect and the determination of the variation pattern are determined based only on the category determination random number. Specifically, a table in which a variation pattern and a category of the variation pattern are assigned to each random number value is stored in the ROM 53. Here, it is the same as in the present embodiment that one or more variation patterns are associated with one category. Then, in the category prefetching step (S28, 29, see FIG. 10), the category corresponding to the random value is notified to the sub-integrated board 58, and in the variation pattern determining step, the variation pattern corresponding to the random value is determined. That is, the category is prefetched using the category determination random number, and the variation pattern is also determined using the same category determination random number. By setting it as such a structure, the category of the notification effect performed after that can be easily grasped | ascertained based on one random number. And a specific effect can be easily controlled based on the information of the category roughly divided rather than the fluctuation pattern. In this case, in the sub integrated substrate 58, the process of directly determining the variation pattern is performed by the processes of S43, 44, 48, and 49 shown in FIG. 12, and the process of S51 may be omitted.

  Further, in the present embodiment, two gaming states are set as a gaming state in which the number of jackpot determinations made per unit time is greater than usual, that is, a short time state with a probability variation and a short state with a non-probability variation time. However, the type of the time-saving state is not limited to these, and the present invention can be applied to a gaming machine having only one type of the time-saving state. Further, in the present embodiment, one variation pattern is determined from the same variation pattern candidates in the probability variation short time state and the non-probability variation short time state. However, a variation pattern may be determined by referring to a variation pattern determination table that is different for each gaming state in the normal state, the probability variation short state, and the non-probability variation short state.

  In the present embodiment, since the specific effect is executed only during the normal state, the lottery of whether or not to execute the specific effect is performed only during the normal state. It is possible to perform a specific performance. Moreover, although the kind of special symbol used by this Embodiment is one type, it is also possible to apply this invention to the gaming machine using two or more types of special symbols. In addition, the present invention can be applied to a gaming machine that does not cause a probability variation state or a short time state. Furthermore, the present invention is also applied to other gaming machines that do not use a special symbol, such as a so-called general electric role type game machine in which a plurality of ordinary games are played in conjunction with one ordinary game. it can.

  Moreover, the aspect of a specific effect can be set freely. For example, when a specific effect is continuously executed a plurality of times, the LED may be emitted white in the first specific effect, blue in the second specific effect, green in the third, and yellow in the fourth. it can. Alternatively, the number of continuous executions may be displayed on the display screen 28 or the like every time a specific effect is performed. Thereby, the player can easily grasp the number of continuous executions of the specific effect, and the player's expectation can be enhanced. Also, it is possible to diversify the specific effects by providing a plurality of scenarios for determining the framework of the specific effects. For example, scenario A in which character A appears and scenario B in which character B appears are provided. When it is determined to execute the specific effect of scenario A, the character A is displayed over a plurality of specific effects. When it is determined to execute the specific effect of scenario B, the character B is continuously displayed without causing the character A to appear. Thereby, in addition to diversifying the contents of the specific effects, it is possible to make the player recognize that the specific effects are a series of effects over a plurality of notification effects. Therefore, the player's interest can be more strongly attracted.

  Further, the specific effect pattern shown in FIG. 13 is merely an example, and can be changed as appropriate. For example, in the “pattern A” and “pattern B” of the specific effect pattern in the present embodiment, a plurality of notification effects up to the final change are expressed as “next change at the time of execution of the specific effect”, “changes one after another To the first change before the last change ”and“ last change ”, and the specific effects are controlled. However, it is divided into four categories: “next variation”, “from the next variation to the variation two times before the final variation”, “variation one time before the final variation”, and “final variation”, and control the specific effects. May be. Thereby, the aspect of a specific effect can be diversified more and a player's interest can be attracted.

  The gaming machine of the present invention is not limited to a pachinko machine, but can be applied to various gaming machines such as a pachinko machine.

1 is a front view of a pachinko machine 1. FIG. 2 is a front view of the game board 2. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the pachinko machine 1. FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing a storage area of a RAM 52 of a main board 41. FIG. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the jackpot relation information storage area 5205 of RAM52. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing a storage area of a ROM 53 of a main board 41. FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram showing a category determination table stored in a category determination table storage area 5305 of a ROM 53. FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram showing a special symbol variation pattern determination table stored in a special symbol variation pattern storage area 5306 of the ROM 53. FIG. 4 is a flowchart of main processing in the main board 41. It is a flowchart of a subroutine of special symbol processing executed in the main processing. It is a flowchart of a subroutine of special symbol processing executed in the main processing. It is a flowchart of a subroutine of special symbol processing executed in the main processing. It is the table | surface which matched the content of the category notification command when it is judged that the prefetched jackpot random number is a random number which shows deviation, and the winning ratio of each pattern of a specific effect. 5 is a flowchart of sub integrated substrate processing in a sub integrated substrate 58. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the category determination table used with the pachinko machine of a modification.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Pachinko machine 2 Game board 15 Special symbol start electric accessory 25 Special symbol display part 28 Display screen 29 Reservation ball number display part 35 Illumination device 41 Main board 43 Effect control board 46 Lamp driver board 48 Speaker 51 CPU
52 RAM
53 ROM
58 Sub-integrated board 60 Special symbol memory number display LED
70 Start port switch 581 CPU
582 RAM
583 ROM
5205 Jackpot related information storage area 5305 Category determination table storage area 5306 Special symbol variation pattern storage area

Claims (5)

A game ball detecting means for detecting the passage of the game ball to a start port provided on the game board;
A winning random number acquisition means for acquiring a winning random number for determining whether or not to execute a winning game advantageous to the player due to the detection of the gaming ball by the gaming ball detection means;
A hit determination means for determining whether the winning random number acquired by the winning random number acquisition means is a predetermined random number determined in advance, and a notification effect that is an effect indicating the determination result of the winning determination means About the production pattern storage means for storing a plurality of production patterns that determine the content of the production including the production time, divided into a plurality of categories having different degrees of expectation that the determination result by the hit determination means is successful,
Category determination random number acquisition means for acquiring a category determination random number that is a random number for determining the category due to the detection of the game ball by the game ball detection means;
Category determination means for determining one of the categories of the notification effect indicating the determination result by the hit determination means, based on the category determination random number acquired by the category determination random number acquisition means,
Production execution means for performing various productions;
Effect execution control means for causing the effect execution means to execute the notification effect according to the effect pattern in the category determined by the category determining means;
When a random number is newly acquired by the winning random number acquisition means and the category determination random number acquisition means while the notification effect is being executed in the effect execution means, the newly acquired winning random number and the category determination random number A specific effect execution determining means for determining whether the notification effect is a specific effect that is an effect of a specific aspect,
The said production | presentation execution control means is the said notification production | presentation until the determination result about the said winning random number used as the opportunity made into the said specific production is shown, when it is determined that the said specific production is made by the said specific production execution determination means. At least one of the above-mentioned effects is executed by the effect execution means as the specific effect. Per-random number storage means for sequentially storing the per-random numbers acquired by the per-random number acquisition means;
A table for associating the category of the notification effect with the value of the category determination random number according to the number of reserved balls that is the number of the winning random numbers stored in the winning random number storage unit and the determination result of the winning determination unit Category determination table storage means for storing each,
The category determining means refers to the table corresponding to the number of reserved balls stored in the winning random number storage means when starting the notification effect, and determines one of the categories. The gaming machine according to claim 1. When a random number is newly acquired by the winning random number acquisition means and the category determination random number acquisition means while the notification effect is being executed in the effect execution means, a predetermined expected degree or more is obtained by the acquired category determination random number. Comprising a minimum expectation degree judging means for judging whether or not the category is determined regardless of the number of reserved balls,
The gaming machine according to claim 2, wherein the specific effect execution determining means determines whether or not the notification effect is set as the specific effect according to a determination result by the minimum expectation degree determining means. When a random number is newly acquired by the winning random number acquisition means and the category determination random number acquisition means while the notification effect is being executed in the effect execution means, the predetermined category is determined by the acquired category determination random number. A decision category judging means for judging whether or not to be decided regardless of the number of held balls,
The gaming machine according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the specific effect execution determining means determines whether or not the notification effect is set as the specific effect according to a determination result by the determination category determining means. . A main control board comprising at least the hit random number acquisition means and the category determination random number acquisition means, which controls the main control of the game and transmits a signal according to the control,
5. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising at least the effect execution control unit, and a sub-control board that controls execution of the effect by the effect execution unit according to a signal received from the main control board. The gaming machine described.

Images