JP2997601B2 - Pseudo multiple scroll method by color change - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to scrolls used in computer games. Particularly, the present invention relates to an effective method in a system having only one background screen of a VRAM.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, many home computer game machines usually have only one background screen. In such a model, a plurality of screens cannot be overlapped to perform multiple scrolling.

[0003]

However, since scrolling in the horizontal direction can be performed in dot units, the screen can be divided into several parts in the horizontal direction and multiple scrolling can be performed. However, since scrolling can be performed only in raster units in the vertical direction, the screen cannot be divided into several parts in the vertical direction to perform multiple scrolling. As a result, it was difficult to create a variety of moving images by changing the speed of movement.

An object of the present invention is to provide a method for performing pseudo multiple scrolling in the vertical direction in such a home computer game apparatus having only one background screen in order to represent as if there are a plurality of screens. And

[0005]

In the home computer game machine used in the present invention, smooth scrolling can be performed on the background in both horizontal and vertical directions.

[0006] Since horizontal smooth scrolling can be performed in dot units, multiple scrolling in which a raster line is divided into a plurality of lines can be performed. However, since vertical smooth scrolling can be performed only in raster units, multiple scrolling in which the screen is divided in the vertical direction cannot be performed.

In a system having many background screens in VRAM, it is sufficient to move each screen separately.
In a home computer game machine, it is difficult to prepare such a VRAM due to cost. Therefore, in order to perform multiple scrolling in the vertical direction, it is necessary to make it appear as if multiple scrolling is performed in some way. That is, a so-called pseudo multiple scroll is required.

[0008] Among neon signs, there is a method in which a light bulb is turned on in order from the bottom and the light bulb below is turned off so as to follow the light. To the human eye, it looks as if the light is moving from bottom to top. The present invention utilizes this principle.

In a computer, an image is created by illuminating a dot on a display. Moreover, it is colored. In the present invention, it is intended to make a motion by sequentially changing the color. Before explaining the principle, a procedure in a computer game apparatus for displaying colors will be described.

[0010] The background is managed by the BAT and CG of the VRAM, and the contents are displayed on the screen. FIG. 1 shows the structure and connection of individual records of BAT and CG. The BAT record is composed of two items, CG COLOR and character code, and CG is composed of four bitmaps showing character patterns.

The character code indicates the address of the CG, from which the record position of the CG can be known. The CG record has a graphic pattern of 8 × 8 dots on four sides. These planes are called CH0,
Named CH1, CH2, CH3.

[0012] As shown in FIG.
CH and CH3 of R and CG are set in a shift register in the video display controller VDC.

The contents are further sent to video data output ports VD0-VD8. CGCOLOR is set to VD4-VD7, and CH0-CH3 is set to VD0-VD3. The data of VD0-VD8 is matched with a color palette (color table RAM), converted into color image data, and sent to a video color encoder.

Further, when the VCE converts the RGB signals and the video color signals for the TV image and transfers them to the television screen, the final image is displayed on the television screen.

The color palette has a structure as shown in FIG. When dealing with a background, VD8 is set to 0, so that a background block can be selected from the value of VD4-VD7, and the dot color in the block can be extracted from the value of VD0-VD3. VD4-VD7
Is the original value of CG COLOR, and VD0−V
That of D3 is CH0-CH3.

The above processing is automatically performed by the system of the computer game machine.
It is only necessary to prepare a RAM and a color palette in advance.

As shown in FIG. 3, C in the BAT record
G COLOR is used to select any one of the 16 blocks in the color palette. That is, by changing the value of CG COLOR, the color pattern can be changed.

CG COLOR is very simple because it only requires setting a value of 0-15 (0-F in hexadecimal). Therefore, in the present invention, several patterns of the color palette are prepared in advance, and these color patterns are sequentially changed (CG COP
(LOR setting) to make it appear as if screen scrolling is being performed.

Moreover, if the range in which this is performed is limited, only a specific portion appears to move. Furthermore, if a combination of vertical smooth scrolling and a specific column of pseudo scrolling is performed, pseudo multiple scrolling is realized, and it is possible to make it appear as if there are a plurality of background screens.

[0020]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The method of the present invention will be described below based on specific examples. An example will be described in which the screen is divided into three in the vertical direction, and multiple scrolling is performed in combination with pseudo scrolling by color change in the divided central row and overall smoothing scrolling in the vertical direction.

FIG. 4 shows an example in which the dot configuration of one character in the background is represented by color. Since the pattern color numbers represent the same color in units of two rows (16 dots) from the top,
One character has a horizontal stripe pattern of up to four colors.

Assuming that this character is buried in the entire screen, the entire screen has horizontal stripes of up to four colors. The reason for describing “up to four colors” is that the color is determined only by looking at the contents of the color palette.

First, color palette blocks 0, 1,
Colors are set for the two and three as follows. Block 0: black, red, white, green, yellow,... Block 1: black, white, green, yellow, red,... Block 2: black, green, yellow, red, white,. : Black, yellow, red, white, green, ...

This block is the BAT CG COLOR
Since items can be selected, the value of CG COLOR is sequentially set to 0, 1, 2, 3, 0, 1, 2, 3, 0, 1, ...
If you specify, the 16 pattern colors corresponding to the block will change sequentially.

That is, the color of the character defined in FIG. 4 is determined, and the color changes as shown in FIG. 5 are observed. When this is repeatedly displayed on the screen, the pattern appears to move upward from the bottom of the screen.

When this operation is performed on the character group in the central portion divided into three, only the central portion of the screen appears to move. If you add smooth scrolling further downward, the screens at both ends move downward at the same speed as the smooth scroll, and the screen at the center scrolls at the speed obtained by subtracting the speed of the smooth scroll and the speed of the pseudo scroll. appear.

When this is viewed on the screen, it looks as if two background screens exist.

[0028]

According to the present invention, a pattern color necessary for pseudo scrolling is prepared in a color palette in advance, and only the value of CG COLOR of the BAT is changed to enable pseudo multiple scrolling.

Therefore, pseudo scrolling can be performed with a simple program. Also, by combining with smooth scrolling, multiple scrolling can be expressed as if there were a plurality of background VRAMs.

This color change method can be used not only for pseudo-multiple scrolling, but also for instantaneously changing the color of the background or for expressing the background as if it is scrolling diagonally. Further, there is an effect that a specific picture can be raised from a one-color background (all colors can be specified for one block).

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a BAT on a VRAM of a computer game device.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration of a CG.

FIG. 2 shows BAT and C in a computer game device.
FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a flow of control and data from G to setting a dot pattern in a shift register.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a relationship between a color palette (color table VRAM) and video data output ports (VD0-VD8) in the computer game device.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a dot pattern of a character according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the value of CG COLOR and the display color according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a pseudo multiple scroll by dividing a screen into three parts in one embodiment of the present invention.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-60-111291 (JP, A) JP-A-63-193180 (JP, A) JP-A-2-22697 (JP, A) JP-A-2- 58095 (JP, A) JP-A-2-152380 (JP, A) JP-A-3-67297 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G09G 5/34 G09G 5 / 06 A63F 9/22 G06F 15/44

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A computer game device which is managed by a background table of a VRAM and a character generator, and has one smooth scrollable background for designating a color by a color palette. And a color pallet is sequentially changed by preparing a pseudo scroll pattern area in which dots of the same color move to adjacent positions by sequentially changing the color palette.