JP2011056301A - Game program, recording medium recording the game program, and game device applied with the game program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To activate mutual communication of players. <P>SOLUTION: A game program is provided for allowing a computer to function as a game device 1 communicably connected to the other game device 1 and carrying out a game in which a hunter A (a character controlled in action by the operation of the player) and a follower character F (a character controlled in action by the computer) to appear on a game space between the game device 1 and the other game device 1. The computer functions as: transmitting means for transmitting the attribute information on the follower character F to the other game device 1; receiving means for receiving the attribute information on the follower character F changing with the progress of the game in the other game device 1; and privilege granting means for granting a predetermined privilege to the hunter A based on the attribute information on the follower character F received by the receiving means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a game program applied to a plurality of communicable game devices, a recording medium recording the game program, and a game device to which the game program is applied.

  Conventionally, game software that can be enjoyed by a plurality of players executing a common game program in a plurality of game devices connected to each other by a wired or wireless LAN has been proposed.

  In such game software, an action game that is progressed when a character (hereinafter referred to as a “hunter”) as a substitute for the player executes a command to subdue a monster that is an enemy character, for example. There is. In this type of action game, when a plurality of players participating in the game perform operations on the game device, hunters operated by each player operate on the game screen, for example, a plurality of hunters cooperate to subdue monsters. It can be said that.

  In this action game, like the above monsters, characters (hereinafter referred to as “non-player characters”) that cannot be directly controlled by the player are set. A character (hereinafter referred to as “cooking character”) that cooks a hunter, gives a predetermined item, or talks with the hunter is included.

  The hunter is set so that his / her ability can be improved by having the cooking character cook and eat it. Moreover, game development can be advantageously advanced by giving an item from a cooking character. For example, these items are set so that weapons and armor used to subjugate enemy characters can be generated, and weapons and armor can be made more powerful.

  For example, a cooking character is set with a plurality of levels indicating the ability to make a dish, and a higher level activates a technique (hereinafter referred to as “skill”) that increases the number of types of cooking and makes game development advantageous. It becomes easy to do. The hunter can increase the level of the cooking character by increasing the number of times the cooking character is asked to cook or by giving an item requested by the cooking character, that is, the cooking character can be raised.

  Conventionally, cooking characters appearing in the action game have a kind of master-slave relationship with the hunter as described above, and the hunter nurtures the cooking character to make game development advantageous. Here, the applicant of the present application can give a non-player character such as a cooking character nurtured by a hunter (player) to another player who operates another game device. We thought that it would add a new interest to the action game if the player was given a training and returned the result of the training to the player who gave it to give some privilege to the player who gave it.

  In other words, the player needs to communicate with another player via the game device when assigning the non-player character, and further via the game device with the other player when receiving a non-player character breeding result. I need to communicate. Therefore, it is considered that communication between players via the game device is frequently performed, and activation of communication may be achieved.

  In the gazette shown in Patent Document 1 described below, a player trains a character, transmits the data of the trained character to a game device operated by another player, and the other player is trained in the transmitted game device. The contents that the character is operated and further nurtured are described.

JP 2001-175175 A

  For example, the game of the prior art mainly has a game content for which a player nurtures a game character who is a player belonging to a baseball team. Basically, a player enjoys cultivating a game character with his game device. . In this game, the developed game character can be given to another player, that is, the game character can be transmitted to another game device.

  However, in the invention of the above publication, once the trained game character is transmitted as data to a game device operated by another player, the transmission source game device relates to the transmission destination game device and the game character. The relationship is lost. That is, in the game device that is the transmission source, after the game character that has been trained has been transmitted to another game device, the game character that has been trained will be owned by the other game device. The connection with other game devices will be interrupted.

  Therefore, in the invention of the above publication, it is difficult for two players who have sent and received game characters to communicate frequently through the game device, and it is difficult to activate communication between both players. is there.

  The present invention has been conceived under the circumstances described above, and a game program capable of activating communication between players, a recording medium storing the game program, and the game program are applied. It is an object of the present invention to provide a game device.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention takes the following technical means.

  In the game program provided by the first aspect of the present invention, a computer is operated directly on a game space by a first character whose operation is directly controlled by a player's operation and by the player's operation. The other game device is capable of executing a game in which a second character that is not controlled appears, and configuring a network wired or wirelessly with another game device that executes the same game as the game. A game program for functioning as a game device connected to be communicable with the computer, wherein the computer transmits the attribute information of the second character to the other game device, and the other game device. Receiving means for receiving attribute information of the second character changed by the progress of the game in I based on the attribute information of the second character received by the receiving unit, is characterized and benefits applying means for applying a predetermined privilege in the first character, to that to function (claim 1).

  In this game program, the attribute information of the second character includes the identification information of the second character, and the computer includes attribute information including the identification information of the second character. When the second character identification information stored by the storage means matches the second character identification information received by the receiving means The privilege may be given based on the attribute information of the second character received by the receiving means (claim 2).

  Further, in this game program, the attribute information of the second character includes a numerical value related to the action of the second character on the game, and the privilege granting means includes the other game The privilege may be given when a numerical value of the action of the second character when the game is executed on the device reaches a predetermined value (Claim 3).

  In this game program, the privilege granted to the first character by the privilege granting unit may be an item that the first character can use on the game (claim 4).

  In the game program, the second character is associated with the predetermined action of the first character, and the attribute information of the second character includes the predetermined action of the first character. When the game is executed on the other game device, when the number of times that the second character is tied reaches a predetermined number, A privilege may be given (claim 5).

  In this game program, the attribute information of the second character transmitted to the other game device by the transmitting means includes a display execution command for displaying the second character on the display screen. (Claim 6).

  In this game program, the transmission process of the attribute information of the second character by the transmission unit and the reception process of the attribute information of the second character by the reception unit include the first character and the other It may be executed when both the other first character whose movement is controlled by the operation of the player of the game apparatus are present at a specific place in the game space (claim 7).

  Further, in this game program, the game includes a content to be played against a third character that opposes the first and second characters, and the second character responds to a predetermined action of the first character. It is preferable that an attack is made against the third character when the band is accompanied (claim 8).

  Further, in this game program, the game includes a hunter who is a part of the player as the first character, and an accompaniment character serving the hunter of the hunter as the second character, in the game space, The hunting action game may include a monster that is the hunting target of the hunter as the third character, and the hunting action of the monster together with the accompanying character.

  The recording medium provided by the second aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the game program provided by the first aspect of the present invention is recorded in a computer-readable manner (claim 10).

  The game device provided by the third aspect of the present invention includes a first character whose movement is directly controlled by a player's operation on the game space, and a game whose movement is not directly controlled by the player's operation. A game that allows two characters to appear can be executed, and can communicate with the other game devices by configuring a wired or wireless network with another game device that executes the same game as the game. A transmission device for transmitting attribute information of the second character to the other game device, and the second character changed by the progress of the game in the other game device. Based on attribute information of the second character received by the receiving means, and receiving means for receiving the attribute information of the first character It is characterized by and a privilege providing means for providing a predetermined privilege in character (claim 11).

  The game program provided by the fourth aspect of the present invention is capable of executing a game that causes a computer to appear a character whose operation is controlled by a player's operation on the game space, and is the same game as the game. A game program for causing a computer to function as a game device communicably connected to the other game device by configuring a wired or wireless network with the other game device to be executed. Transmitting means for transmitting character attribute information to the other game device, receiving means for receiving the character attribute information changed by the progress of the game in the other game device, and the received by the receiving means Based on the attribute information of the character, the player is given a predetermined value on the game. It is characterized and benefits assigning means for assigning Dian, that is to function (claim 12).

  The recording medium provided by the fifth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the game program provided by the fourth aspect of the present invention is recorded in a computer-readable manner (claim 13).

  The game device provided by the sixth aspect of the present invention is capable of executing a game in which a character whose movement is controlled by a player's operation appears in the game space, and executing the same game as the game. A game device connected to the other game device by composing a wired or wireless network with the other game device, and transmitting the character attribute information to the other game device Means, receiving means for receiving the attribute information of the character changed by the progress of the game in the other game device, and based on the attribute information of the character received by the receiving means, And a privilege granting means for granting a predetermined privilege (claim 14).

  According to the present invention, the attribute information of the second character appearing in the game space executed by the player is transmitted to the other game device operated by the other player, and the second character changed in the other game device. When the attribute information is received, a privilege is granted to the first character based on the received attribute information of the second character. That is, in order for the first character to be given a privilege, the players need to frequently communicate with each other in order to exchange the attribute information of the second character. Revitalization of communication.

  Other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the detailed description given below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

It is a block diagram which shows an example of the game system which concerns on this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the internal structure of a game device. It is a figure which shows an example of a basic scene structure at the time of a hunter receiving a "quest" order on the game space and going on a journey for achieving the "quest". It is a figure which shows an example of a guild card. It is a figure which shows an example of a character card. It is a figure for demonstrating the addition form of the Otomo character of a player. It is a figure for demonstrating the case where a player gives an Otomo character. It is a figure for demonstrating the mode of the change in the number of Otomo of an Otomo character. It is a figure for demonstrating the case where an activity flag is set to an Otomo character. It is a flowchart which shows the giving process of an Otomo character. It is a figure which shows an example of the display screen of an "online meeting place." It is a figure which shows an example of the display screen of an "online meeting place." It is a figure which shows an example of the display screen of an "online meeting place." It is a figure which shows an example of the display screen of an "online meeting place." It is a figure which shows an example of the display screen of an "online meeting place." It is a flowchart which shows the reception process of an Otomo character. It is a figure which shows an example of the display screen of an "online meeting place." It is a figure which shows an example of the display screen of an "online meeting place." It is a figure which shows an example of the display screen of an "online meeting place." It is a figure which shows an example of the display screen of an "online meeting place." It is a flowchart which shows the process in which a hunter acquires a privilege.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a game system according to the present invention. This game system is configured by a plurality of (four in FIG. 1) portable game devices 1 (hereinafter simply referred to as “game device 1”) that mutually form a network by, for example, a wireless LAN (Local Area Network). ing.

  The game device 1 is communicably connected to another game device 1 via a wireless LAN, so that each player can execute the same game software between the game devices 1 (hereinafter referred to as “wireless LAN function”). Is provided.)

  The game apparatus 1 reads the game program and game data from a dedicated portable recording medium (hereinafter referred to as “game media”, which will be described later) in which the game program and game data are recorded into a memory (described later) in the apparatus. By executing a game program by a CPU (described later), the player can enjoy the game development.

  In this embodiment, as a game that can be enjoyed on the game apparatus 1, a virtual society is constructed in the game space, and characters (hereinafter referred to as “hunters”) that are the players of the player appear in the virtual society. A game whose main game development is to execute various requests and commands (hereinafter referred to as “quest”) provided in the virtual society by controlling the operation of the hunter will be described. More specifically, in this game, when a player operates the game apparatus 1, a character operating on the game screen subjugates an enemy character (for example, a dinosaur, hereinafter referred to as “monster”) on the game. It is a so-called hunting action game.

  In this hunting action game, the game devices 1 are connected to each other by the wireless LAN function, and the operation information in each game device 1 is communicated with each other, so that a plurality of players can enjoy a common game development. “Party play” mode is provided. In the party play mode, the player can team up with a plurality of other players to receive an order for the same “quest” and cooperate to achieve the “quest”.

  That is, in this hunting action game, a plurality of players can bring the game apparatus 1 to the same place and enjoy the hunting action game in the party play mode while talking to each other. In this game system, each player can communicate with other players via a hunter in the game space, but each player can communicate with other players by directly talking with each other. it can.

  In addition, unlike the party play mode, this hunting action game also has a mode such as “single play” in which each player can enjoy the game development independently.

  In the hunting action game, so-called “non-player characters” that cannot be directly controlled by the player appear. The non-player character behaves based on the program content of a game program (described later) and performs an action that helps the hunter. Some non-player characters can be owned by a hunter (called “hire” in the game). For example, when the hunter hires this non-player character, the hunter cooks or has a conversation with the hunter. Hereinafter, this non-player character is referred to as a “cooking character”. Since the hunter is set so that the ability is increased by eating the dish created by the cooking character, the cooking character indirectly performs an action to help the hunter achieve the “quest”.

  In the present embodiment, as one of the non-player characters, a non-player character (hereinafter referred to as “Otomo character”) who participates in a “quest” such as defeating a monster appears. In other words, if a hunter owns (or hires) this otomo character, the otomo character will be accompanied by a hunter, etc., for the hunter to achieve the “quest”, and the otomo character will attack the monster by himself. Take action to help hunters.

  In this hunting action game, the Otomo character can be given from a hunter that is a player's alternate to another hunter that is a substitute for another player. The assigned Otomo character can increase its ability to accompany other hunters, such as accompanying a “quest”. That is, the player can “nurture” hired Otomo characters and Otomo characters given by other players. And after the Otomo character provided in the other hunter is nurtured, the nurturing information is transmitted to the hunter of the granting source so that a predetermined privilege is given to the hunter of the granting source.

  When an Otomo character is given to another hunter (player), it is necessary for hunters, that is, players to communicate with each other using the game apparatus 1 and the network. Further, when transmitting the breeding information of the Otomo character to the hunter as the grant source, it is necessary for the players to communicate again using the game apparatus 1 and the network. For this reason, communication between the players is improved. Details will be described below.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of the game apparatus 1 in which the hunting action game is executed.

  The game apparatus 1 includes a CPU 2, a drawing data generation processor 3, a RAM 4, a ROM 5, a drawing processing processor 6, a VRAM (Video-RAM) 7, a D / A (Digital-Analog) converter 8, a display unit 9, a sound processing processor 10, The amplifier 11, the speaker 12, the operation unit 13, the media drive unit 14, the wireless LAN module 15, and the bus 16 are configured.

  In the game apparatus 1, the game media 17 in which the hunting action game software is recorded is loaded into the media drive unit 14, and the game program and game data in the game media 17 are read from the media drive unit 14 into the RAM 4, and the game is played by the CPU 2. By executing the program, the player can enjoy the game contents. The player can advance the game by operating each operation member (not shown) of the operation unit 13.

  The CPU 2 comprehensively controls the progress of the game by executing the game program read from the game media 17 into the RAM 4 by the media drive unit 14 as described above.

  More specifically, the CPU 2 is based on the player operation signal from the operation unit 13 in the single play mode, and via the player operation information from the operation unit 13 and the wireless LAN function in the party play mode. Based on the operation information from the other game devices 1 (such as action command information for the hunter and information on the change of the position of the hunter on the game screen) as needed from the game media 17 and the game program and image data. Etc. are read into the RAM 4. Then, the contents of the three-dimensional image to be displayed on the display unit 9 are determined by processing these data and executing the game program. Further, the drawing data generation processor 3 generates drawing data necessary for the contents, and the drawing data is transferred to the drawing processing processor 6 to perform drawing processing.

  Further, the CPU 2 determines the sound effect or BGM sound content to be output from the speaker 12, causes the sound processor 10 to generate sound data for the sound content, and outputs sound based on the sound data from the speaker 12. Let

  The drawing data generation processor 3 performs various arithmetic processes necessary for the drawing process. The CPU 2 determines a game image to be displayed on the display unit 9 and reads out image data (for example, data indicating the positional relationship between the hunter, non-player character, monster, and background) necessary for drawing the game image from the RAM 4. This is supplied to the drawing data generation processor 3. Further, the CPU 2 supplies operation information input from the operation unit 13 to the drawing data generation processor 3.

  The drawing data generation processor 3 calculates data necessary for drawing based on the image data and operation information supplied from the CPU 2 and supplies the calculation result to the drawing processor 6.

  The RAM 4 provides an area for storing the game program and game data read from the game media 17 by the media drive unit 14 and a work area for the CPU 2 to process the game program. In the RAM 4, game programs and game data necessary for the progress of the game are read from the game media 17 and stored.

  The game program describes processing procedures and various instructions to be executed by the CPU 2, and includes contents for controlling the game screen, sound, and the like in accordance with operation signals from the operation unit 13. include. The game data includes, for example, the background, hunter, non-player character and monster polygon data, texture data, image data such as light source data, menu screen, item list, hunter and non-player character status, etc. In addition to image data for information display, etc., voice data used as BGM and various sound effects, message data using characters and symbols, and the like are also included.

  The ROM 5 stores a basic program indicating a basic function of the game apparatus 1 such as a disk loading function, a game program stored in the game media 17 and a procedure for reading game data, and the like. When the game media 17 is loaded in the media drive unit 14, the CPU 2 operates the media drive unit 14 according to the basic program in the ROM 5, reads the game program and game data from the game media 17 into the RAM 4, and sets the game start state.

  The game program is configured by combining a plurality of programs. For example, the operation of the hunter displayed on the display unit 9 is controlled based on the operation information, or the hunter receives an order for a “quest”. Game progress program for controlling game development when "quest" is achieved, etc., network control program for controlling transmission / reception of data (eg, status data of hunters, non-player characters, etc.) between players And a graphic control program for controlling a three-dimensional image to be displayed on the display unit 9.

  The drawing processor 6 generates a game image every 1/30 seconds, for example, and displays it on the display unit 9. The drawing processor 6 calculates data necessary for drawing based on the image data and operation information supplied from the CPU 2 and causes the VRAM 7 to perform drawing processing based on the calculation result.

  The VRAM 7 performs image data drawing processing, and outputs and displays it on the display unit 9 via the D / A converter 8. The VRAM 7 is provided with a texture buffer 71 and a screen buffer 72. The texture buffer 71 is a buffer for performing preprocessing for creating two-dimensional image data to be displayed on the display unit 9. The screen buffer 72 is a buffer area for storing the image data of each frame displayed on the display unit 9, and has two configurations such as screen buffers 72A and 72B. The screen buffers 72A and 72B have the same memory structure and memory capacity.

  By providing the two screen buffers 72A and 72B in the VRAM 7, it is possible to smoothly perform the drawing process of each frame on the display unit 9, for example, every 1/30 seconds. That is, in the case of the drawing process for displaying the image data on the display unit 9, the image data of the next frame is displayed in the other screen buffer 72B while the display process on the display unit 9 is performed using the one screen buffer 72A. , And this process is alternately performed between the screen buffer 72A and the screen buffer 72B, thereby smoothly performing the drawing process.

  The D / A converter 8 converts the image data output from the VRAM 7 into an analog signal and outputs the analog signal to the display unit 9. The D / A converter 8 is provided with a switch circuit (not shown) for switching between the image data from the screen buffer 72A and the image data from the screen buffer 72B. Switching of the switch circuit is controlled by the drawing processor 6. Is done.

  As described above, the display unit 9 displays various information regarding the operation state of the game apparatus 1, the progress state of the game, and the game content. The display unit 9 is configured by a light emitting element including, for example, a transflective color liquid crystal display and an LED, which is provided at approximately the center of the surface of the apparatus main body configured by a thin rectangular parallelepiped having a horizontally long rectangular front shape. . The operation state (power on / off, mode setting state, etc.) of the game apparatus 1 is displayed by turning on the light emitting element, and various information relating to the progress of the game and game contents are displayed on the transflective color liquid crystal display. Let

  The sound processor 10 performs various arithmetic processes necessary for processing to generate sound such as sound effects. The sound processor 10 reads sound effects or BGM sound data from the RAM 4 based on a sound command from the CPU 2, performs necessary processing and D / A conversion processing, and outputs the processed sound to the amplifier 11. The amplifier 11 amplifies the audio signal input from the audio processor 10 with a predetermined amplification degree, and then outputs it to the speaker 12. Note that one speaker 12 is provided at each of the left and right ends of the apparatus body, and stereo output is possible.

  The operation unit 13 is for inputting an operation command to the CPU 2. The operation unit 13 includes a power switch for turning on / off the power, a wireless switch for using a wireless LAN, and a plurality of operation buttons necessary for playing a game. The plurality of operation buttons are, for example, direction keys including four keys, up, down, left, and right, four operation buttons “◯”, “△”, “×”, and “□”, and a menu screen for displaying the menu screen. These are operation buttons or the like generally provided in the game apparatus 1 such as a menu button, a “SELECT” button, and a “START” button.

  The “START” button is basically an operation button for instructing “game start” at the start of the game, and the “SELECT” button is basically an operation for selecting a game operation mode or the like at the start of the game. Although it is a button, it also functions as an operation button for inputting a specific command (for example, a command such as “deletion” or “confirmation” in editing work) while the game is in progress by the game program.

  The direction key is operated mainly for designating a movement direction of a hunter displayed on the display unit 9 and designating a selection direction for selecting a selection item displayed on the menu screen. The “○” button, “△” button, “×” button, and “□” button indicate, for example, the type of hunter action (type of attack / defense, type of run / jump / bend, etc.) Specify, display information about hunters (hunter status, information about acquired items, etc.), and command specific items (eg “detail display” and “confirm”) on the menu screen ) To input.

  The media drive unit 14 reads game programs, game data, and the like recorded on the game media 17 from the game media 17.

  The game media 17 is composed of, for example, an optical disk or the like, and the game media 17 is recorded with a game program prepared in both a single play mode and a party play mode, and various data necessary for executing the game program. Has been. As described above, the game program includes a game progress program, chat control with other players when a team is formed with a hunter operated by another player, and operation data of the game apparatus 1 of other players. A network control program for controlling data such as a graphic control program for displaying a three-dimensional image is included.

  The wireless LAN module 15 is a communication module for configuring a network by performing data communication with another game apparatus 1 by a wireless LAN compliant with, for example, the communication standard IEEE802.11b (used frequency band 2.4 GHz, communication speed 11 Mbps). is there. The wireless LAN module 15 performs data communication with the wireless LAN module 15 of the other game apparatus 1 in, for example, an ad hoc mode, and the operation information of the operation unit 13 and the game status with the other game apparatuses 1. It fulfills the function of sending and receiving various information such as information.

  Here, an outline of the hunting action game according to the present embodiment will be described.

  As described above, the hunting action game is based on the fact that a hunter that is a player's alternation appears in the virtual society in the game space and various quests are achieved through the hunter.

  The virtual society is, for example, a society in which a plurality of types of monsters as enemy characters live in an environment similar to the real world (an environment similar to a natural environment such as a forest, a hill, a jungle, a desert, and a lake). In addition, the “quest” subjugates or captures monsters (hereinafter referred to as “subjugation”), and other things that exist in the virtual society (for example, fish, insects, animals, mushrooms, wild plants, etc., plants and jewelry). Such as minerals, etc.), or obtaining specific items (such as huge eggs) placed in a virtual society.

  The “quest” includes a wide variety of contents, and is classified into a plurality of levels, for example, “low”, “medium”, “high”, and the like according to the difficulty level of achievement. For example, when the difficulty level of “quest” is classified into 8 levels of levels L1 to L8, “quest” of level L1 to L3 is low class, “quest” of level L4 and L5 is middle class, level L6 to The L8 “quest” is classified as a high class. The “quest” includes a “village head quest” received from the village head (described later) and a “meeting hall quest” to be arranged at the meeting place (described later).

  Monsters include multiple types of monsters with different attack and defense powers. The higher the difficulty level of the “quest”, the higher the attack power and defense power of the monsters to be subjugated. In addition, the types of other items or specific items (hereinafter referred to as “items”) that can be collected or acquired by the “quest” class are different.

  A hunter can acquire multiple weapons with different attack power and armor with different defense power as the game progresses, and the player equips the hunter with the desired weapon and armor from the acquired multiple weapons and armor Can do. In addition, the hunter can acquire items for making tools, weapons, and armor that assist the attack power and defense power as the game progresses. In the virtual society, there is an armor shop that buys and sells weapons, armor, and items, and an armor shop that manufactures weapons and armor, and hunters purchase armor and items using the currency distributed in the virtual society. Or can be manufactured.

  When the player completes the “quest” by operating the hunter, a reward is paid for the achievement of the “quest”. The reward increases as the “quest” level increases. Each player receives an order for a “quest” by himself and does not only proceed with the game to achieve the “quest”, but also recruits friends for the “quest” he has ordered, The player can apply for a “quest” for recruiting friends, and can form a team of a predetermined number of players to advance a game to achieve a common “quest”.

  Players get rewards while completing various “quests” for hunters, and purchases and manufactures armor and items from armor shops using the rewards. You can experience life in Japan.

  When the player achieves the “quest” by operating the hunter, a point for the hunter set in the “quest” to obtain a title is given to the hunter separately from the reward. In addition, multiple ranks (hereinafter referred to as “hunter ranks”) indicating the ability to subjugate monsters are set for hunters, and the hunter rank of each hunter increases each time a predetermined “quest” is cleared. .

  When a player joins a game for the first time, the hunter is given the minimum necessary equipment, living funds and residence. Accordingly, the player operates the game apparatus 1 to control the movement of the hunter in the virtual society, obtains a reward while performing a “quest” according to the hunter rank, and uses the reward to obtain necessary weapons and items. The process of obtaining is repeated. As the hunter rank of the hunter rises, it becomes possible to accept orders for “quests” with a higher difficulty level (quest level), and if a “quest” with a higher difficulty level is achieved, a higher reward can be obtained. Can experience how the hunter's living environment in the virtual society improves as the game progresses.

  In the virtual society of the hunting action game, a field where a hunter lives and receives an order for a “quest” and prepares for the “quest” (hereinafter referred to as “base field”) is provided. .

  FIG. 3 shows an example of a basic scene configuration when a hunter receives an order for a “quest” in the game space and goes on a journey to achieve the “quest”.

  The “village” as the base field is provided with a plurality of facilities such as “meeting place”, “home”, “farm”, “training place”, and the like. FIG. 3A is a diagram illustrating a “village” square, and is a scene that is first displayed on the display unit 9 when the game is started or restarted by the player.

  A “armor shop” and a “general shop” (both not shown) are provided in the “village” square. The “armor shop” is a facility where the weapons and armor owned by Hunter A can be manufactured and strengthened. In addition, “General Store” is a facility where Hunter A can buy and sell items. Although not shown in the figure, the “village” square is connected to “farm” and “training place”, and Hunter A can head to “farm” or “training place” arbitrarily. . The “farm” is a facility where items such as fish, insects, minerals and plants can be collected, and the “training place” is a facility where Hunter A can improve his / her ability by performing predetermined training. .

  Although not shown in the figure, non-player characters such as “village chief” and “travel merchant” stand in the “village” square. The “village head” is a character that provides the hunter A with a “quest (village head quest)” and advises the hunter A regarding hunting and the like. The “travel merchant” is a character that gives a hunter character or a cooking character to Hunter A or buys or sells items.

  As shown in FIG. 3A, a “village” plaza is provided with “meeting hall S1” and “home S2”. Hunter A can operate “ It is possible to move to the meeting place S1 and home S2, and return to the square from the meeting place S1 and home S2.

  FIG. 3B is a diagram illustrating a scene of “meeting place S1” displayed on the display unit 9. When the player moves Hunter A in “village” to “meeting hall S1”, the screen of the display unit 9 is switched to the scene “in the meeting hall” of FIG. At the same time, the wireless LAN module 15 is activated and shifts to a communicable state for transmitting and receiving information to and from other game apparatuses 1. This communication state is continued even when a trip for “Quest” is achieved from “Meeting Hall S1” to “Hunting Field” (described later) in (c). It will be canceled when it comes out. That is, a wireless LAN is configured with another game apparatus 1 in the scenes of FIGS.

  The “meeting hall S1” is a facility where a plurality of hunters gather to exchange information, form a team, and receive an order for a “quest”. For example, Hunter A can receive an order for “Quest” by having a conversation with Miss Receptionist B. The “meeting hall S1” has an “online meeting hall” where a player (hunter) enters to perform a party play, and a player (hunter) enters a “meeting hall quest” without performing a party play. An “offline meeting place” is available.

  When the hunter A whose operation is controlled by the player moves to the “online meeting hall” and another hunter C whose operation is controlled by another player also moves to the “online meeting hall”, the other hunter C becomes the “online meeting hall”. Information indicating that it has entered and information related to other hunters C (information for drawing other hunters C, position information at the “online meeting place”, etc.) are transmitted to game device 1 on which hunter A is operated. At the same time, similar information regarding the hunter A is transmitted from the game device 1 of the hunter A to the other game devices 1 on which the hunter C is operated. In the following description, the game apparatus 1 on which the hunter A is operated is referred to as “game apparatus 1A”, and the game apparatus 1 on which the hunter C is operated is referred to as “game apparatus 1C”.

  In the game apparatus 1A in which the hunter A is operated by sending and receiving these pieces of information, the hunter C is displayed in the “online meeting place” displayed on the display unit 9 by the drawing processor 6 based on the received information about the hunter C. A drawing process for making the character appear is performed. Similarly, in the game apparatus 1C in which the hunter C is operated, based on the received information about the hunter A, an image in which the hunter C enters the “meeting place S1” where the hunter A exists on the display unit 9 by the drawing processor 6. A drawing process for switching to is performed.

  As will be described later, when hunters other than hunters A and C gather at the “online meeting place”, the status data of each hunter is sent and received between each game device 1 operated by each player. By sending and receiving these status data, Hunter A gives the Otomo character that he owns to Hunter C and other hunters, and is given to Hunter C and other hunters and is nurtured by Hunter C and other hunters. You can receive the breeding information of the Otomo character.

  Each hunter is provided with a card similar to a business card in the real world (hereinafter referred to as “guild card”), and this guild card can be exchanged with other hunters at the “online meeting hall”. By referring to this guild card, the hunter can recognize the status of other hunters.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a guild card.

  On the upper left side of the guild card 18, there is provided a hunter specific information display area 18a for displaying information specific to the hunter, and an equipment display area for displaying information on weapons and armor currently equipped by the hunter at the right center. 18b is provided, and on the right side of the equipment display area 18b, a friendship degree display area 18c for displaying information on the friendship points is provided. Below the hunter-specific information display area 18a and the equipment display area 18b, A self-introduction area 18d describing the self-introduction is provided.

  In the hunter specific information display area 18a, information such as a hunter title, a hunter name, a hunter rank, and a battle history is displayed. In the equipment display area 18b, the equipment that the hunter is currently equipped with is “weapon”, “head equipment”, “body equipment”, “arm equipment”, “waist equipment”, and “leg equipment” from the top. Is displayed. In the friendship degree display area 18c, the integrated value of the friendship degree for each hunter is displayed by the amount of points accumulated in the flame type container 18e. The friendship level represents the closeness between hunters. In the self-introduction display area 18d, a simple self-introduction message of the hunter is displayed in characters.

  In this hunting action game, in addition to the base field, as shown in FIG. 3 (c), a field in which hunter A moves to achieve a “quest” in which monster D lives and subjugates monster D, etc. (Hereinafter referred to as “hunting field”). Hunter A can move from the “village” or “meeting place” to the hunting field. In the hunting field, for example, a plurality of areas having different monster types and habitat environments such as “snowy mountain”, “dense forest”, “desert”, and “swamp” are provided.

  In each area, a plurality of areas having different land conditions such as “base camp”, “plain field”, “snow field”, and “cave” are set. “Base camp” is a scene that is displayed on the display 9 first when Hunter A enters each area of the hunting field, and the items collected by the hunting field at the hunting field are delivered or rested. It is an area where you can. Hunter A can move to each area from the “base camp”, and can move between areas in a predetermined area.

  Hunter A, operated by each player, accepts an order for a “quest” from the base field “village” and receives a single “quest”, or teams up with other hunters C for party play. Go to the hunting field according to. In the hunting field, the hunter A performs an action (for example, collecting a predetermined item, subjugating a predetermined monster D, etc.) to achieve the “quest” in each region.

  FIG. 3D shows a scene of “Home S <b> 2” displayed on the display unit 9. “Home S2” is a facility where items owned by Hunter A can be stored and where Hunter A can rest. When the hunter A is laid down on the bed b1, the game is saved.

  As shown in FIG. 3E, “home” is provided with a “kitchen” where Hunter A can eat. In the “kitchen”, as a non-player character that cannot be directly controlled by the player, for example, there is a cooking character E that has the appearance of a cat that cooks for Hunter A.

  Hunter A can own (or hire) a plurality of cooking characters E as being like a servant. Specifically, the hunter A can acquire the cooking character E from the “travel merchant” or the like with a free price for the first one and the appropriate amount after the second. When the cooking character E is hired by the hunter A, the cooking character E comes to live in this “kitchen”.

  Hunter A moves to this “kitchen” and can cause cooking character E to cook by giving instructions to cooking character E or by providing food (such as raw meat or fish). Further, the hunter A can talk with the cooking character E, give the cooking character E the food required by the cooking character E, or receive a predetermined item from the cooking character E. Hunter A can increase his ability (for example, physical strength and attack power) by eating the food cooked by cooking character E.

  In the present embodiment, apart from the cooking character E that makes the above-described cooking, as described above, when the hunter A goes to a “quest” such as hunting or collecting, the appearance of a cat that can be taken together as an attendant Otomo character F who appeared. When the otomo character F encounters a monster or the like during hunting, it takes action to assist Hunter A by attacking the monster or the like alone.

  The hunter A can acquire (or hire) the Otomo character F from the “travel merchant” or the like with an appropriate amount. When the Otomo character F is hired by Hunter A, it will live in the “kitchen”. Hunter A can own up to a predetermined number (for example, 13) of Otomo characters F under predetermined conditions.

  In “Kitchen”, if you own multiple Otomo characters F, you can select the Otomo character F to be taken as a companion to “Quest”, change the rank (to be described later) of the Otomo character F, or eliminate the Otomo character F (Referred to as “dismissal” in the game) or newly acquired within a predetermined number of ranges.

  The Otomo character F is classified into classes. For example, “Regular” and “Reserve” are set in the class, and Hunter A can associate the Otomo character F registered in “Regular” with “Quest”. For example, up to 3 animals can be registered in the “regular”, and up to 10 animals can be registered in the “record”. The replacement of the Otomo character F between “regular” and “record” can be performed by a predetermined operation by the player.

  In the Otomo character F, various statuses are set in the form of data (data of this status corresponds to “attribute information” described in claims). FIG. 5 is an example of a guild card (hereinafter referred to as “character card”) for an otomo character representing the status of the otomo character F. The status data represented by the character card 19 is stored in the RAM 4 (corresponding to the “storage means” described in the claims) together with the data of the guild card 18 described above when the hunter owns the otomo character. It is. As shown in FIG. 5, the character card 19 can be displayed on the display screen of the display unit 9 by the operation of the player.

  When the guild card is exchanged with another player, the data represented by the guild card 18 is also transmitted to and received from the game apparatus 1 operated by the other player. In this case, the status data represented by the character card 19 and the data represented by the guild card 18 are also transmitted to and received from other game apparatuses 1. That is, after the guild card 18 is exchanged, the game device 1 of the player can display the status of the Otomo character owned by the other player using the character card 19, and the game device 1 of the other player The status of the Otomo character owned by itself can be displayed using the character card 19.

  Further, when the guild card 18 is not exchanged with another player and the Otomo character is given to another player, the status data represented by the character card 19 is represented by the guild card 18. It is separately transferred to the game device 1 of another player without accompanying data.

  In the character card 19, the face and unique name ("Patricia" in the figure) of the Otomo character are described in the upper part, and each status and its value are described in the lower part.

  To explain each status, the “level” is a level that is more advantageous as it is higher in battle (for example, 20 levels are set). The higher this level is, the higher the physical strength and attack power when going out to hunting etc. And the defense power increases, and it becomes advantageous by the hunter who took the Otomo character for hunting. Although not shown in FIG. 5, “battle experience value” is set as the status of the Otomo character, and the “level” stage is determined by this “battle experience value”. The “combat experience value” is increased when the Otomo character is taken to the “quest” and the “quest” is successful.

  “Attack power” is a numerical value of damage given to a monster during a battle with a monster, and the higher this value, the greater the damage to the monster. “Defensive power” represents the difficulty of receiving damage to a monster or the like during a battle with a monster or the like. When this value is high, the damage is more difficult to receive.

  “Natsuki degree” indicates the familiarity of the Otomo character with the player, and the “question” is increased when the “quest” is successful. As shown in FIG. 5, the “degree of natsuki” is expressed, for example, by the number of hearts. If the “degree of natsuki” is high (the number of hearts is high), unnecessary behavior of the Otomo character is reduced, or damage is caused when playing against monsters. Take action to recover faster than when you receive, or approach the physical distance to the hunter (the distance that follows the hunter) when you are taken to hunting. In other words, the shorter the distance from the hunter, the higher the “degree of nagging”.

  The initial value when the “hunting degree” is hired by a hunter is set to “3500”, for example (changes between 0 and 7000, for example). As will be described later, this Otomo character may be given to other hunters, but immediately after being given, it is assumed that the friendship between the Otomo character and other hunters has no familiarity. “Degree” is reset to “0”.

  “Woman” represents the appearance characteristics of a cat as an Otomo character, and a plurality of types are prepared. When a hunter first hires an otomo character, it is randomly determined, but depending on the hunter's quest level, the otomo character's type of fur is different, and the higher the quest level, the more rare "Otomo character" has appeared.

  “Personality” refers to behavior during battle with monsters, such as bomb lovers or close combat lovers, recklessness or timidity, and whether or not the boss's monster has an attack target for each monster type. There are different types. This “personality” is also randomly determined when the hunter first hires an Otomo character.

  “Attack system” indicates whether the user tends to prefer to cut a monster or attack the monster. “Attack tendency” means that when attacking monsters, etc., it tends to prefer to attack at a long distance using, for example, a bomb, or to attack at a short distance using a sword, etc. Is shown. These “attack line” and “attack tendency” are also randomly determined when the hunter first hires an Otomo character.

  The “special ability” is an ability that the Otomo character can have a plurality of types of, for example, a special ability such as quick action and quick recovery when receiving damage. The Otomo character is set to have, for example, three or less special abilities. In FIG. 5, an example (“42 points” in the drawing) of points for acquiring “special abilities” (hereinafter referred to as “Nyanko points”) is displayed in the “special abilities” column. The type of “special ability” that can be acquired is determined based on the value of “Nyanko point”, and the player can set the “special ability” within the acquirable range. The acquired “special ability” is displayed below the “special ability” column in FIG. According to the figure, “paralysis attack technique”, “recovery horn flute” and “cat bomber” are displayed.

  Among the above statuses of the Otomo character, “Combat Experience Value”, “Natsuki Degree”, and “Nyanko Point” take the Otomo Character to the “Quest”, and if the “Quest” is successful, It is going to rise. In this case, if the “battle experience value” increases, the “level” also increases according to the value.

  In addition, among the above statuses of the Otomo character, “combat experience value”, “attack power”, “defense power”, “degree of nagging” and “Nyanko point” are predetermined training (for example, shadow boxing, abdominal muscle exercise, etc.) By doing so, these values can be raised within a predetermined range. In this way, the hunter can so-called “nurture” the otomo character by achieving a “quest” in which the otomo character is accompanied, or by allowing the otomo character to perform training.

  Although not shown in FIG. 5, “foster parent”, “unique ID”, and “number of otomo” are stored as the status of the otomo character.

  “Foster parent” is a hunter or player who first hires the Otomo character, and the name is stored as the status. The name “foster parent” can be arbitrarily set by the player as the name of the hunter or player.

  The “unique ID” is set when the otomo character is hired by a hunter and serves as identification information for the otomo character. This unique ID is not changed even when it is given to another hunter and owned by another hunter.

  “Number of Otomo” represents the number of times when the hunter causes the Otomo character to participate in the “quest” and the “quest” succeeds. This “Otomo count” is used when a predetermined privilege is given to the hunter, as will be described later. Further, as will be described later, the “Otomo count” is reset to “0” immediately after the Otomo character is added, since the other hunters have never used the Otomo character for the “Quest”.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, a player (hunter) can give his / her own Otomo character to a plurality of other players (hunters). For example, the player P1 can give, for example, “Patricia (a unique name of the otomo character)” which is an otomo character owned by the player P1, to the players P2, P3, and P4, respectively. In this case, the self-owned Otomo character is maintained as it is, that is, the otomo character owned by itself is given to other players. Therefore, two Otomo characters with the same unique ID exist by one granting action.

  Specifically, when a hunter operated by a player moves to an “online meeting place” and a plurality of players including himself / herself gather at the “online meeting place”, the respective game apparatuses 1 are mutually connected using the wireless LAN function. By performing the communication, data regarding the Otomo character is transmitted to the game apparatus 1 of another player. In the game apparatus 1 of the other player, the hunter whose operation is controlled by the game apparatus 1 of the other player can own the otomo character by receiving the transmitted data regarding the otomo character.

  In this case, various status data such as a unique ID, a unique name, a foster name, and a level possessed by the Otomo character provided by the player P1 to the other players P2, P3, and P4 are almost unchanged. Will be taken over. Therefore, for example, the player P2 recognizes that the assigned Otomo character is the assigned Otomo character given from the player P1 based on the unique ID, foster name, etc., which is the status data of the Otomo character.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the player P2 can give the otomo character given from the player P1, for example, to the player P5, and the player P3 gives the otomo character given from the player P1, for example, the players P6 and P7. Respectively. Also in this case, the various status data possessed by the Otomo character is directly passed on to the player P5 or the players P6 and P7. Therefore, there are a plurality of Otomo characters having the same unique information between players.

  The player can perform the operation of assigning the otomo character to other players any number of times under a predetermined condition, and can acquire a predetermined item from the otomo character when the number of times the otomo character is applied increases. As this item, the value of the skill used to increase the status value of the Otomo character (for example, the value of the attack power, the value of the defense power, etc.) is increased. And so on.

  Specifically, the number of times that the Otomo character is given is counted, and when the given number of times becomes a predetermined number (for example, n times 10 (n is an integer)), an item handing flag is set for the Otomo character owned by the player. The Thereafter, in the “kitchen”, the hunter speaks to the Otomo character with the item handing flag set, so that the item is acquired.

  In this way, for a player, the possibility of acquiring an item increases by giving the Otomo character to another player and increasing the number of grants, so the player tries to give the Otomo character as much as possible. In order to give an Otomo character, it is necessary to communicate with other players via the game apparatus 1, and as a result, the exchange with other players is deepened and the game can be further enjoyed. Have

  When each player (hunter) owns the otomo character, the player can take the “quest” or increase the status value of the otomo character by performing a predetermined training or the like, that is, nurturing the otomo character. In the same manner, other hunters to which the otomo character is assigned can also be hired by other players and cultivate the otomo character. Therefore, depending on the elapse of the play time of each player, there are Otomo characters having different degrees of breeding even if they are the same unique ID.

  The Otomo character cannot be returned to the player who has given it. This is to prevent the hunter whose motion is controlled by the player as the granting source from holding a plurality of Otomo characters with the same unique ID.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, when the player meets another player who has been given the otomo character at the “online meeting place” again through the hunter and communicates with each other, the status data value of the otomo character (for example, “ If the “degree of breeding” indicating the number of times given to the “quest” or the like has risen to some extent, a predetermined privilege is given to the foster parent player.

  Here, the predetermined privilege includes obtaining an item necessary for producing a predetermined item (a “foster parent ticket” described later), an item capable of improving a training effect, and the like. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, it is assumed that the player P1 and the player P2 gather at an “online meeting place” via a hunter and the player P1 gives the player P2 an otomo character. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 8, it is assumed that the assigned Otomo character is raised in the player P2.

  For example, when the player P2 brings the Otomo character to the “quest” and the number of times (hereinafter referred to as “the number of Otomo”) becomes 5, for example, “5 times” is stored in the character card 19 as the number of Otomo. Recorded as status data. Further, when the player P2 brings the Otomo character to the “quest” 10 times, for example, “10 times” is recorded as the status data of the character card 19 as the number of Otomo. It is recorded as status data of the character card 19.

  In such a case, as shown in FIG. 9, when the players P1 and P2 gather again at the “online meeting place” and the players P1 and P2 communicate with each other, they are recorded as status data of the character card 19. The value of the number of otomo in the player P2 of the otomo character is transmitted to the player P1. In the player P1, it is determined whether or not the number of otomo has reached a predetermined number (for example, 10 times), and if the number of otomo has reached the predetermined number, a flag indicating this (hereinafter referred to as “active flag”). )) Is set to the assignment source Otomo character owned by the player P1.

  Thereafter, the player P1 has a conversation in the “kitchen” with the Otomo character for which the “activity flag” is set to determine whether or not the “activity flag” is set, and the “activity flag” is set. A predetermined privilege is given to the hunter to be controlled by the player P1.

  Therefore, a foster parent player is nurtured by the other players, and when the degree of breeding increases, a predetermined privilege is given to other players. Try to grant to. In order to give the Otomo character, it is necessary to move to the “online meeting place” and perform communication between the game apparatus 1 and other players, so that communication is activated.

  In addition, the player can acquire a predetermined privilege depending on the degree of development of the otomo character given by himself, but in order to acquire the predetermined privilege, the value of the otomo number of the otomo character must be received from another player. In other words, since it is necessary to communicate with another player and the game apparatus 1 again, further activation of communication is achieved.

  As described above, the present embodiment is intended to promote communication between players by assigning an Otomo character, but in addition to this, the fact that the assigned Otomo character has been nurtured is transmitted to the granting player. By doing so, further communication between players is promoted.

  Next, the giving process in the case of giving the Otomo character will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 10 and the display screen (FIGS. 3 and 11 to 15) displayed on the display unit 9. FIG.

  In each game device 1, when the player gives an instruction to start or restart the game, the image data at the start or restart of the hunter's game and the game progress program in the base field are read from the game media 17, and the image data Based on the above, a game screen at the time of starting or resuming the game is displayed on the display unit 9, and the game is ready.

  In the present embodiment, when the game is started for the first time, or when the game is temporarily ended and then restarted, the game is set to be possible from the “village” square, which is the base field. As shown in FIG. 6, an image of the state where the hunter A is in the “village” square is displayed on the display unit 9, and the player advances the game by controlling the operation of the hunter from this display state.

  Then, for example, when the player controls the operation of the hunter to move to the “online meeting place” for receiving the “quest”, the image data in the “online meeting place” and the “online meeting place” are transferred from the game media 17. The game progress program in “” is read from the game media 17 to the RAM 4, and the game screen in “Online meeting place” is displayed on the display unit 9 as shown in FIG.

  At this time, if the player who operates the other game device 1 similarly moves the hunter C operated by himself / herself to the “online meeting hall”, the game device 1 of the player who operates the hunter A from the other game device 1 Movement information indicating that the hunter C has moved to the “online meeting place” and information for identifying the hunter C are transmitted. In each game apparatus 1, based on the movement information and the hunter identification information, as shown in FIG. 3B, the hunter A and the other game apparatuses 1 that are controlled by the game machine of the display unit 9 by themselves. An image in which the controlled Hunter C is in the “online meeting room” is displayed.

  Hereinafter, the game apparatus 1 operating the hunter A will be described. In this display state, the game apparatus 1 determines whether or not an operation for displaying a menu has been performed by the player as shown in FIG. Is performed (S1). When there is no operation for displaying the menu (S1: NO), the operation wait state is entered. If it is determined that an operation for displaying a menu has been performed (S1: YES), it is determined whether or not Hunter A owns one or more otomo characters (S2). When one or more Otomo characters are owned (S2: YES), it is determined whether or not there are one or more other hunters C in the “online meeting place” (S3).

  If there is one or more other hunters C in the “online meeting place” in step S3 (S3: YES), the condition for assigning the Otomo character is established. As shown in FIG. Is displayed on the right side of the display screen (S4). The menu includes "items" for operations related to items, "compositions" for operations related to compounding, "quest confirmations" for confirming "quests", "actions" for operating some actions, “Player list” for displaying a list of players in the “meeting hall”, “Guild card” for performing operations related to “Guild cards”, “Otomo passing” for giving Otomo characters to other players, etc. Is included as an item.

  In the case where Hunter A does not own one or more Otomo characters in Step S2 (S2: NO), or in the case where one or more other Hunters C are not in the “online meeting place” in Step S3 (S3: NO), The menu list 21 is displayed. In this case, the item “Otomo passing” in the menu is displayed in gray, so that the player cannot operate and set the item (S5). That is, if Hunter A does not have one or more otomo characters, or if there is not one or more other hunters C in the “online meeting hall”, hunter A grants otomo characters to other hunters C. Because you can't.

  Next, it is determined whether or not the item “handling” is operated (S6). Here, when the player performs an operation of canceling the assignment of the Otomo character (S6: Cancel), the menu list 21 is hidden (S7), and the process returns to Step S1. An example of the canceling operation is an operation of the “x” button by the player. Further, when there is no operation of the item “handling” (S6: NO), the operation wait state is entered.

  When the item “handling” is operated in step S6 (S6: YES), as shown in FIG. 12, “handing”, “regular”, and “refusal” for giving the otomo character to another hunter C. Then, a sub-menu 22 is displayed in which items “Replace” for replacing the Otomo character and “Dismiss” for dismissing the Otomo character are displayed (S8).

  Next, it is determined whether or not the setting operation of the item “pass” has been performed from the submenu 22 showing “pass”, “replacement”, and “dismiss” (S9). When there is no setting operation for the item “pass” (S9: NO), the operation wait state is entered. Further, when the operation setting of the item “pass” is performed by the player (S9: YES), a list 23 of otomo characters owned by Hunter A is displayed on the upper right portion of the display screen as shown in FIG. 13, for example. (S10).

  Next, it is determined whether any Otomo character is selected from the list 23 of Otomo characters owned by Hunter A (S11). When there is no selection operation of any of the Otomo characters (S11: NO), the operation wait state is entered.

  When any of the Otomo characters to be assigned is selected (S11: YES), a list of Hunter Cs as grant destinations is displayed (S12). In this case, a list 24 of other hunters C operated by other players gathered at the “online meeting place” as the grant destination is displayed as shown in FIG. 14, for example.

  Next, it is determined whether or not any hunter is selected from the list 24 of other hunters C (S13). When there is no selection operation of any hunter (S13: NO), it will be in the operation waiting state.

  When the hunter C as the grant destination is selected and operated (S13: YES), a motion indicating that the hunter A has been given is displayed as shown in FIG. 15, for example (S14). That is, a state in which Hunter A is giving the Otomo character F to Hunter C is displayed. At this time, data related to the otomo character F is transmitted from the game apparatus 1 where the hunter A is operated to the game apparatus 1 where the hunter C is operated. In addition to the status data, the data related to the Otomo character F includes a display execution command for displaying the Otomo character F on the display unit 9 of the game apparatus 1 on which the hunter C as the grant destination is operated.

  In other words, the image data of the Otomo character is pre-installed in the game program, and the game device 1 that is the grant destination receives the display execution command from the game device 1 that is the grant source, if necessary. Image data is read from the game data, and the otomo character is displayed on the display unit 9. Therefore, the image data of the otomo character is not actually transmitted / received between the game apparatuses 1, but is displayed as if the otomo character has been provided from the game apparatus 1 that is the grant source to the game apparatus 1 that is the grant destination. Is done.

  Next, it is determined whether or not the information indicating that the otomo character has been received from the game apparatus 1 on which the hunter C, to which the otomo character is given, is operated (S15). When the information indicating that the Otomo character is received from the game device 1 as the grant destination is received (S15: YES), the number of Otomo character grants is updated (S16). In other words, “1” is added to the number of grants before granting to give a new grant count. As described above, when the number of times of grant reaches the predetermined number, a predetermined privilege is given to the player as the grant source. Note that the number of grants counted to give a predetermined privilege may be the number of grants of the Otomo character selected for granting, or the number of grants of all Otomo characters owned by the player as the grant source.

  On the other hand, whether or not the otomo character is to be canceled by the player's operation (for example, operation of the “x” button) while the information indicating that the otomo character has been received from the game device 1 as the destination is not received (S15: NO) A determination of whether or not is made (S17). When the player performs an operation of canceling the assignment of the Otomo character (S17: YES), the Otomo character giving process is terminated without updating the number of times of giving. That is, before receiving the information indicating that the otomo character has been received from the game device 1 as the grant destination, the otomo character can be canceled by the player's operation.

  If the player does not perform an operation to cancel the assignment of the Otomo character (S17: NO), the process returns to step S15. In other words, the determination processing of step S15 and step S17 is repeated and waits until information indicating that the otomo character has been received from the game device 1 as the grant destination or until the player performs an operation to cancel the grant of the otomo character. .

  Next, the Otomo character receiving process will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 16 and the display screens (FIGS. 17 to 20) displayed on the display unit 9.

  In order to receive the otomo character, it is necessary that the grant destination hunter C has been moved to the “online meeting place” as in the case where the otomo character is given. That is, in the game device 1 where the grantee hunter C is operated, it is determined whether or not information indicating that the data of the otomo character has been transmitted from any game device 1 (S21). When the information is received by the game apparatus 1 (S21: YES), as shown in FIG. 17, a cat icon 25 representing an Otomo character blinks and is displayed at the upper center of the display screen (S22).

  That is, when the grantee player moves the hunter to the “online meeting place”, the cat icon 25 is displayed on the display screen, so that one of the hunters tries to give the otomo character to himself / herself. Can be recognized.

  Next, it is determined whether or not an operation for displaying a menu has been performed (S23). This is because it is necessary to display a menu in order for the player as the grant destination to acquire the Otomo character.

  If it is determined that the operation for displaying the menu has been performed (S23: YES), as shown in FIG. 18, a list 26 of menus is displayed on the right side of the display screen of “online meeting place” (S24). ). In this case, the menu list includes “status”, “detailed information”, “document”, “option”, “player log” for displaying the character status, “reception” for receiving the character, etc. Included as In addition, when an operation for displaying the menu is not performed in step S23 (S23: NO), an operation waiting state is entered.

  Thereafter, it is determined whether or not the “Receive” item has been operated by the player (S25). If the “Receive” item is not operated (S25: NO), an operation waiting state is entered. Further, for example, when an operation for canceling “reception” (for example, operation of “x” button) is performed in order to prevent the player from receiving the Otomo character (S25: cancel), the reception process ends.

  Further, when the item “Receive” is operated in Step S25 (S25: YES), a list 27 of Hunters C in “Online Meeting House” is displayed as shown in FIG. 19 (S26). In this case, a cat icon 28 is displayed to the right of the name of the player who operates the game apparatus 1 that has transmitted the Otomo character data. As a result, the player as the grant destination can recognize which player is trying to grant the Otomo character.

  Next, it is determined whether or not the “O” button of the operation unit 13 indicating that the Otomo character is received (S27). If the “O” button is not operated (S27: NO), the operation waiting state is set. Become. Further, for example, when a cancel operation (for example, an operation of the “x” button) is performed so that the player does not receive the Otomo character (S25: cancel), the reception process ends.

  Also, when the “O” button is operated in step S27 (S27: YES), whether or not the transmitted unique ID of the Otomo character matches the unique ID of each Otomo character owned by the receiving player. Is discriminated (S28). If the unique IDs match (S28: NO), a failure message indicating that the data of the Otomo character cannot be received is displayed (S29). For example, a failure message such as “The same Otomo character exists. Cannot be received any more. Press the ○ button” is displayed.

  In other words, possessing a plurality of Otomo characters with the same unique ID is prohibited because the data processing becomes complicated, and the determination process in step S28 is a process for implementing the prohibited items. When the player operates the “◯” button in response to the failure message, the cat icon 25 that has been blinking on the display screen is erased, and the process ends.

  If the unique IDs do not match in step S28 (S28: YES), it is determined whether there is a vacancy in the number of Otomo characters owned by the receiving player (S30). That is, when an Otomo character is received, the received Otomo character is registered in “Reserve”, and therefore, it is determined here whether or not there is an empty “Reserve”. If there is no vacancy in “Reserve”, any Otomo character registered in “Reserve” can be dismissed by the player's operation. Further, by registering the Otomo character registered in “Reserve” in “Regular” by the operation of the player, it is possible to make a space in “Reserve”.

  If there is no vacancy in the number of Otomo characters owned (S30: NO), a failure message indicating that the Otomo character data cannot be received is displayed (S31). For example, a failure message such as “You can't receive any more Otomo characters because your copy is full. Press the ○ button.” When the player operates the “◯” button in response to the failure message, the cat icon 25 that is blinking on the display screen is extinguished. In this case, the data related to the Otomo character received from the game device 1 as the grant source is discarded, and this process ends.

  On the other hand, if there is a vacancy in the number of Otomo characters owned in Step S30 (S30: YES), as shown in FIG. 20, a message 29 indicating that the Otomo character has been received is displayed (S32). In this case, the content of the status data of the received Otomo character is stored in the RAM 4 as character card status data (S33). In this case, among the statuses of the Otomo character, the value of “degree of play” and the value of “number of times of Otomo” are reset to “0” and stored. This is because the otomo character is not attached to the new master hunter and has never been associated with the new master hunter.

  Thereafter, information indicating that the Otomo character has been received is transmitted to the game device 1 as the grant source (S34), and the Otomo character receiving process is terminated.

  As described above, when the otomo character is given to the grantee hunter, the grantee hunter owns the otomo character. In other words, the game device 1 that is the grant destination reads out the image data of the Otomo character as necessary and displays it on the display unit 9. The hunter can associate the Otomo character with the “quest” or perform predetermined training. In the present embodiment, a predetermined privilege is given to the granting hunter by the “number of Otomo” that causes the Otomo character to be used in the “quest”.

  FIG. 21 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure when a predetermined privilege is given to the granting hunter according to the “otomo count” of the Otomo character.

  When the Otomo character is hired by a grantee hunter, the “Otomo count” is updated as shown in FIG. When the “Otomo count” reaches the predetermined number of times and communicates again with the granting source hunter, the granting source hunter is given a predetermined privilege.

  When the granting hunter moves to the “online meeting place” (S41), it is determined whether or not a “guild card” including the contents of the “character card” is received from another hunter (S42). When the “guild card” is received (S42: YES), the unique ID of the Otomo character owned by the granting hunter matches the unique ID of the Otomo character whose status data is stored in the “character card”. Is determined (S43).

  If the unique IDs match (S43: YES), that is, if there is an Otomo character that the hunter has owned in the past among the Otomo characters owned by other hunters, the status data of the Otomo character with the matching unique ID is displayed. Referring to the Otomo character, it is determined whether or not the “otomo count” is equal to or greater than a predetermined number (for example, 10 times) (S44).

  When the Otomo character's “Otomo count” is equal to or greater than the predetermined number (S44: YES), as shown in FIG. 9, it is determined that the Otomo character has been active at the grant destination with respect to the Otomo character owned by itself. A flag (hereinafter referred to as “activity flag”) is set (S45).

  Thereafter, it is determined whether or not the granting hunter has entered the “kitchen” (S46), and when the granting hunter does not enter the “kitchen” (S46: NO), a waiting state is entered. If the granting hunter enters “Kitchen” (S46: YES), the status of the Otomo character in “Kitchen” is referred to, and it is determined whether or not there is an Otomo character with the “Activity flag” set. (S47).

  When there is an Otomo character for which the “activity flag” is set (S47: YES), a “foster parent ticket” is set for the Otomo character (S48). Here, the “foster parent ticket” is a ticket necessary for production of a predetermined item.

  Next, it is determined whether or not the hunter has a conversation with the Otomo character for which the “foster parent ticket” is set (S49). If the hunter is not talking to the Otomo character (S49: NO), the hunter enters a waiting state.

  In addition, when the hunter has a conversation with the Otomo character for which the “foster parent ticket” is set (S49: YES), the “foster parent ticket” is given to the hunter (S50). In addition, as described above, for example, one “active flag” is set to 10 times as the “number of times”, but when the predetermined number is a multiple of 10, the multiple Minute “activity flag” may be set, and the type or number of “foster parents tickets” corresponding to the number of “activity flags” may be given. Alternatively, an “activity flag” of a type corresponding to the “number of Otomo” may be set, and a type or number of “foster parents” according to the type of the “activity flag” may be given.

  In this way, when the Otomo character granted in the past is playing an active role by increasing the “number of Otomo” under other hunters, a predetermined privilege is given to the player who has given the Otomo character. Therefore, the player frequently tries to give the Otomo character in the hope that the Otomo character assigned by another hunter will be active. In order to give an Otomo character, it is necessary to communicate with other players, so that communication is activated.

  Further, even when an activity flag for granting a privilege is set, communication with another player to whom the Otomo character is given is necessary, so further communication is activated.

  In addition, the hunter to whom the privilege is given is not only a foster parent hunter but also a transmission destination hunter, and may also be a hunter that gives the Otomo character to another hunter. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, for example, the player P2 is given the otomo character by the player P1 and gives the same otomo character to the player P5. When the breeding information is transmitted to the player P2 from the player P5, the privilege may be given to the player P2.

  In addition, when a foster parent hunter gives an otomo character to a transmission destination hunter and further assigns the otomo character to a lower transmission destination hunter (hereinafter referred to as “grandchild hunter”), the otomo character in the grandchild hunter When the child is nurtured to the extent that the condition for giving the privilege is satisfied and the training information is transmitted from the grandchild hunter to the foster parent hunter, the privilege may be given to the foster parent hunter. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, when the player P1 gives the player P2 an otomo character and the player P2 gives the player P5 the otomo character, the player P5 gives the privilege to the player P5. The player P1 may be given a privilege when the player is trained to the extent that the conditions are satisfied and the training information is transmitted from the player P5 to the player P1 (foster parent hunter).

  Of course, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above. For example, although the present embodiment has been described assuming that the non-player character is designed with a cat as a motif, the non-player character is not limited to a cat. Further, the non-player character given to another player is not limited to the above-mentioned Otomo character, and may be a cooking character, for example, or may be another non-player character.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the condition that the privilege is given to the grantee hunter is described as the number of Otomo being greater than or equal to the predetermined number. The “level” or “combat experience value” may be a predetermined value or more.

  In the above embodiment, a game in which a hunter and a non-player character appear, the hunter grants a non-player character to another hunter, and the hunter is given a privilege when the granted non-player character is nurtured. However, instead of this, the player gives a predetermined character (which may be a substitute character or a non-player character) to another player, and the given character is nurtured. Based on this, the game may be such that the player himself is given a predetermined privilege on the game.

  In the present embodiment, the hunting action game has been described as a game to which the invention is applied. However, the applied game is not limited to this, and other action games, role-playing games, racing games, fighting games, and the like You may make it apply also to a game.

  Moreover, although the said embodiment demonstrated the case where communication was performed between the some game apparatuses 1 which mutually comprised the network by wireless LAN, it replaced with this structure and a some game is provided via communication lines, such as the internet. For example, the device 1 may be configured to be connected to a game server. In this case, as the game apparatus 1, for example, a home video game machine or a personal computer equipped with game software for an online game having a function capable of communicating with a game server via a communication line is employed. In the above embodiment, the number of game apparatuses 1 configuring the network is described as four. However, the number is not limited to four, and the network can be configured by any number of two or more.

1 game machine 2 CPU
3 drawing data generation processor 4 RAM
5 ROM
6 Drawing processor 7 VRAM
9 Display unit 10 Audio processor 11 Amplifier 12 Speaker 13 Operation unit 14 Media drive unit 15 Wireless LAN module 17 Game media A Hunter C Other hunter D Monster E Cooking character F Otomo character P1 to P7 Player

Claims (14)

Computer
A game in which a first character whose movement is directly controlled by a player's operation on the game space and a second character whose movement is not directly controlled by the player's operation can be executed; and A game program for functioning as a game device communicably connected to the other game device by configuring a wired or wireless network with another game device that executes the same game as the game. And
The computer,
Transmitting means for transmitting attribute information of the second character to the other game device;
Receiving means for receiving attribute information of the second character changed by the progress of the game in the other game device;
Privilege granting means for granting a predetermined privilege to the first character based on the attribute information of the second character received by the receiving means;
A game program characterized by being made to function. The attribute information of the second character includes identification information of the second character,
The computer,
Function as storage means for storing attribute information including the identification information of the second character;
The privilege granting means
If the identification information of the second character stored by the storage means matches the identification information of the second character received by the receiving means, the attribute of the second character received by the receiving means The game program according to claim 1, wherein the privilege is given based on information. The attribute information of the second character includes numerical values related to the action of the second character on the game,
The privilege granting means
3. The privilege is given according to claim 1, wherein when the game is executed on the other game device, the privilege is given when a numerical value related to the action of the second character reaches a predetermined value. Game program.   The game program according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the privilege granted to the first character by the privilege granting unit is an item that the first character can use on the game. The second character is associated with the predetermined action of the first character,
The attribute information of the second character includes the number of times associated with the predetermined action of the first character,
The privilege granting means
The game according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein when the game is executed on the other game device, the bonus is given when the number of times the second character has reached the predetermined number of times. program.   6. The display execution command for displaying the second character on the display screen is included in the attribute information of the second character transmitted to the other game device by the transmitting means. A game program according to any one of the above. The transmission processing of the attribute information of the second character by the transmission means and the reception processing of the attribute information of the second character by the reception means are:
This is executed when the first character and the other first character whose movement is controlled by the operation of the player of the other game device are both present at a specific place in the game space. Item 7. A game program according to any one of Items 1 to 6. The game includes a content to be played against a third character that is hostile to the first and second characters,
The game program according to any one of claims 5 to 7, wherein the second character attacks the third character when accompanied by a predetermined action of the first character.   In the game space, a hunter who is a part of the player as the first character, a companion character for hunting the hunter as the second character, and a third character as the third character in the game space The game program according to claim 8, which is a hunting action game that includes a hunter hunting target monster and causing the hunter to hun the monster together with the accompanying character.   A recording medium in which the game program according to any one of claims 1 to 9 is recorded so as to be readable by a computer. A game in which a first character whose movement is directly controlled by a player's operation on the game space and a second character whose movement is not directly controlled by the player's operation can be executed; and A game device that is communicably connected to the other game device by configuring a wired or wireless network with another game device that executes the same game as the game,
Transmitting means for transmitting attribute information of the second character to the other game device;
Receiving means for receiving attribute information of the second character changed by the progress of the game in the other game device;
Privilege granting means for granting a predetermined privilege to the first character based on the attribute information of the second character received by the receiving means;
A game apparatus comprising: Computer
A game in which a character whose movement is controlled by a player's operation can be executed in the game space, and a network is formed with another game device that executes the same game as the game in a wired or wireless manner A game program for functioning as a game device connected to be communicable with the other game device,
The computer,
Transmitting means for transmitting the attribute information of the character to the other game device;
Receiving means for receiving attribute information of the character changed by the progress of the game in the other game device;
Privilege granting means for granting a predetermined privilege on the game to the player based on the attribute information of the character received by the receiving means;
A game program characterized by being made to function.   A recording medium in which the game program according to claim 12 is recorded so as to be readable by a computer. A game in which a character whose movement is controlled by a player's operation can be executed in the game space, and a network is formed with another game device that executes the same game as the game in a wired or wireless manner A game device that is communicably connected to the other game device,
Transmitting means for transmitting the attribute information of the character to the other game device;
Receiving means for receiving attribute information of the character changed by the progress of the game in the other game device;
Privilege granting means for granting a predetermined privilege on the game to the player based on the attribute information of the character received by the receiving means;
A game apparatus comprising:

Images