JP3120620B2 - Automatic demonstration system using home game consoles - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic demonstration system for demonstrating game software (software for games) of a home game machine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional automatic demonstration system for game software of a home-use game machine, a special hardware is used, and several kinds of cartridges are sequentially switched inside one another to execute an automatic demonstration function by executing the game software. Was realized. Such an automatic demonstration device (demonstration device) is a device dedicated to demonstration, and a person who wants to perform a test play of game software has performed a test play using a game device having a configuration independent of the demonstration device. .

[0003]

The conventional automatic demonstration system for game software described above has a drawback that a large number of cartridges are required because several types of cartridge software are required for each demonstration machine. In addition, the demonstration machine is large because it has a mechanism for switching several types of cartridges internally, and furthermore, a display device is required for each of the demonstration machine and the game machine. There were drawbacks.
In addition, when it is desired to change the contents of the demonstration, the replacement of the cartridge is complicated and cannot be easily performed.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to store game software in an external storage device, send the stored game software to a home game machine, and successively execute each game. It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic demonstration system using a home-use game machine, in which a demonstration of a game software can be automatically performed at set time intervals and a test play and a recording of the play state can be performed.

[0005]

According to the present invention, the game software (demo software) to be demodulated is stored in a storage device, and the stored demo software is switched and executed by software. No special hardware switching mechanism is required. In addition, demo software can be loaded using disk media such as FDs and MOs as well as communications, in addition to cartridge media.
There is no need to prepare cartridge software for each demonstration machine.

In addition, since a demonstration can be automatically performed by controlling the game machine using a home game machine and a test play can be performed, the game machine for the test play is referred to as a demo machine. There is no need for a separate installation. Further, at the time of the test play, the play status can be automatically recorded, so that the play status of each software can be checked.

[0007]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an automatic demonstration system using a home game machine according to the present invention, in which a home game machine body 100 and a demonstration control device 200 are connected. . The software (game software) to be demonstrated is the R
The data is written in the AM 101 and executed under the control of the demonstration control device 200. As shown in the external view of FIG.
Reference numeral 01 denotes a cartridge type, which is set in a loading section of cartridge software (ROM) for games.
Here, in the example of FIG. 2, the home game machine 100 and the demonstration control device 200 have a combined configuration. The demonstration control device 200 may use a general personal computer and an external storage device and connect them.

In such a configuration, first, a flow until data (demo software) is loaded into the storage device 220 of the demonstration control device 200 will be described with reference to a block diagram of FIG. 1 and a flowchart of FIG. There are three input forms of the execution target software of the demonstration, and when the input medium is the disk medium 32 (FD, MO, etc.), the demonstration control device 200
The CPU 211 in the fetches the data of the disk medium 32 from the external storage device 220 of the control device 210 via the I / O interface 213 (step S3).
02), and store it in an auxiliary storage medium such as an HD in the external storage device 220 (step S305). If the input medium is the communication medium 33, the transfer software is received via the I / O interface 213 (step S303), and stored in the auxiliary storage medium in the external storage device 220 (step S305).

On the other hand, the input medium is a cartridge (ROM)
In the case of the medium 31, the CP in the demonstration control device 200
U211 stores the contents of the cartridge medium 31 loaded in the cartridge loading section of the home game machine body 100 in the RO.
M (step S304), the external storage device 22
0 is stored in the auxiliary storage medium (step S305), and the data fetch process ends. The cartridge medium 31 used for capturing data is a normal game cartridge, and data is sequentially captured by repeatedly loading a cartridge used for demonstration.

Next, an operation example of the demonstration execution control will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG. 1 and the flowchart of FIG. The CPU 211 in the demonstration control device 200
After performing an initialization process such as checking whether 01 is set or opening a file (step S40)
1), a setting menu such as a demonstration time is displayed on the CRT 30, and a demonstration execution time for one software, a time limit for test play, a location where a file exists (HD, FD, MO
, Etc.) to determine each set value (step S
402). When the value of the setting item is determined, the CPU 211
Writes the software from the external storage device 220 to the RAM 101 of the main console 100 (step S40).
3).

Then, the CP of the home game machine body 100
A game start command is sent to U102 to start the demonstration (step S404). Home video game console 1
The CPU 102 executes the demonstration of the software on the RAM 101 in response to the start command, and displays the demonstration screen in the VDP (Vi
The information is displayed on the CRT 30 via a video display processor (step S405). In addition,
The operation in the home game machine main body 100 is the same as the operation in the normal game processing.

When the execution of the demonstration on the home game machine is started, the CPU 211 in the demonstration control device 200 starts monitoring the execution time, and periodically checks whether or not the time set in step S402 has elapsed. (Step S4)
06). Then, when the set time has elapsed, the home game machine main unit 1 is used to terminate the demonstration of the running software.
The CPU 102 sends a stop command to the CPU 102 (step S407) to interrupt the execution of the software on the RAM 101 (step S407). Subsequently, the execution target software is changed to the next software, and the process returns to step S403 (step S408). The next corresponding software is read from the external storage device 220 and written into the RAM 101 of the consumer game machine.
The demonstration of each software is executed sequentially by repeating the above operation. Then, the demonstration is executed until an interruption instruction (step S405) is given by an input device (not shown). In addition,
When the execution of the demonstration of each software completes, the execution of the demonstration continues in a circular manner.

Next, the execution control of the test play will be described. In the automatic demonstration system using the home game machine of the present invention, the automatic demonstration of software can be performed, the test play can be performed, and the execution management of the test play and the recording of the play status can be performed. Hereinafter, an operation example of the test play execution control will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

When the execution of the demonstration is interrupted by the interruption instruction and a test play instruction is issued (step S501), the CPU 211 in the demonstration control device 200 displays a list of game software on the CRT 30 and selects the software to be played from the menu. (Step S502). When the execution software is determined by the menu selection, the CPU 211 reads the relevant software from the external storage device 220 and writes it in the RAM 101 of the consumer game machine (step S503).
A start command is sent to the CPU 102 (step S50).
4). The CPU 102 of the main console 100 reads the software from the RAM 101 in response to the start command, and starts executing the software. Then, the player starts the test play using the home game machine in the same manner as the normal game play (step S505).

When the test play is started, the demonstration control device 200 starts monitoring the execution time, and proceeds to step S40.
It is periodically checked whether the time set in step 2 has elapsed (step S506). Then, when the set time has elapsed, the play status during the test play (the content of the control buffer indicating the progress status of the execution software, etc.) is stored in the external storage device 220 (step S507), and the CPU 102 of the home game machine stores the play status in the external storage device 220. Then, a stop command is sent (step S508), and the execution of the software on the RAM 101 is interrupted (step S508). When a test play instruction is given by the input device, the operation from step S502 is repeated, and the test play of the selected software is started. In step S509, when the restart instruction of the demonstration is instructed, the process proceeds to step S408, and the demonstration is restarted from the software next to the interrupted demonstration software, and when the end instruction is issued, all the processes are ended.

[0016]

According to the automatic demonstration system using the home game machine of the present invention, no special hardware such as a cartridge switching mechanism is required, and a test play can be performed by switching to a demonstration. It is not necessary to install a game machine separately, and the display device is shared for demonstration and test play, so that the size of the automatic demonstration system can be reduced and the installation space can be reduced. In addition, since the demo software can be loaded using a disk medium or communication in addition to the cartridge medium, the demo software can be easily loaded, and the content of the demo can be easily changed.

Further, since no game cartridge is required for the execution of the demonstration and the test play, it is not necessary to prepare several types of game cartridges for each demonstration machine as in the prior art. Also, since the play status is recorded at the time of test play, the play status of each software can be checked, and the popularity and the play status of the execution software can be known, so it can be used as reference material for the next development software .

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an automatic demonstration system using a home game machine of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a connection configuration example of a home game machine and a demonstration control device of the system of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation example of data capture control of the system of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation example of a demonstration execution control of the system of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining a monitoring / management function of a test play execution status of the system of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 31 Cartridge medium 32 Disk medium 33 Communication medium 100 Consumer game machine main body 101 RAM 200 Demo control device 210 Control device 220 External storage device

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A home game machine, comprising: a control device for controlling the execution of software on the home game device; and a demonstration control device comprising an external storage device. Loading means for loading into the external storage device; and RAM for loading the software loaded into the external storage device into the home game machine.
Execution means for writing and executing the demonstration, and execution for controlling the execution means to stop execution of the demonstration on the consumer game machine, switch the demonstration of the demonstration target software at set time intervals, and execute the demonstration one after another. An automatic demonstration system using a home game machine, comprising: a control unit. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said demonstration target software is loaded by said loading means in a cartridge medium loaded in said home-use game machine, a disk medium loaded in said external storage device, or a communication sent via a communication line. 2. The automatic demonstration system using a home-use game machine according to claim 1, wherein the automatic demonstration system can be taken from any of the media. 3. The execution control means interrupts the execution of the demonstration on the home game machine according to a test play execution instruction during the demonstration and displays a test play menu, or directly executes the test play from the demonstration. 2. A test play on the consumer game machine by instructing the execution means to start.
An automatic demonstration system using the home game machine according to claim 2. 4. The home-use game machine according to claim 3, wherein said execution control means is configured to record, in said external storage device, a play status of software for which a test play has been performed on said home-use game machine. Automatic demonstration system using. 5. The execution control means monitors a test play time in the garden game machine, and when a set time has elapsed, suspends the execution of the test play and restarts the demonstration or the test play in accordance with an instruction. An automatic demonstration system using the home-use game machine according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the automatic demonstration system is controlled.