JP4711256B2 - Bullet ball machine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a ball game machine such as a pachinko game machine, and more particularly to a technique for reducing the load of rendering processing in a ball game machine.

In a gaming machine such as a ball ball game machine or a revolving game machine, a plurality of substrates are electrically connected by signal lines. This signal line transmits a control command for each board as an electrical signal (hereinafter, command data relating to the control of game content is referred to as “game control data”). For example, in a ball game machine, a control device called a main board is in charge of game ball winning determination, lottery, payout and the like. On the other hand, a control device called a sub-board is mainly responsible for audiovisual user interface processing such as image display and audio output. Depending on the game situation, the main board unilaterally transmits game control data to the sub-board. The sub board performs display processing and the like based on game control data from the main board. Usually, the communication between the main board and the sub board is a one-way communication, and no signal is transmitted from the sub board to the main board. With such a configuration, measures are taken to ensure the independence of the ball exit control by the main board.
JP 2003-325920 A

  Pachinko gaming machines are required to be further improved in playability. In order to improve game playability, attempts have been made to elaborate the game content and effects by more complex control. As the control becomes complicated, the amount of game control data transmitted from the main board to the sub-board increases. The increase in the game control data causes an increase in the load on the main board that transmits the game control data and an increase in the load on the sub-board that receives the game control data. If the data processing capability of the main board and the sub board is not sufficient, there is a possibility that the game control data is not processed properly and the desired game content is not executed.

  Further, when the amount of game control data increases, the capability required for hardware such as a CPU used for the main board and the sub board becomes higher, resulting in a problem that the manufacturing cost of the pachinko gaming machine increases.

  Also, when the processing capacity of the game control data on the main board and the sub board is close to the limit, the game control data has no room for new control contents, so that it is impossible to try a new effect. Arise.

  For this reason, in order to improve the reliability of various game controls in pachinko gaming machines, it is required to reduce the data amount of game control data.

  The present invention has been made in view of the problems recognized as described above, and its main object is to provide a technique for reducing the load of the rendering process in the ball game machine.

  A bullet ball game machine according to an aspect of the present invention includes a game board in which a game area is formed, a start prize opening provided at a predetermined position in the game area, and a game ball entry is a lottery opportunity, and a game content. A main board to be controlled, and a sub-board for variably displaying a symbol for showing a player the control content by the main board based on information in one direction from the main board, and the main board goes to the start winning opening The lottery means for executing the lottery to determine whether or not to shift to the special game that is more advantageous to the player than the normal game, and the lottery result memory for holding the lottery result up to a predetermined upper limit number Means, and a symbol fluctuation control means for variably displaying the symbol for indicating the result of the lottery on the symbol display device, and the sub-board is stopped in which the symbol stop state continues after the symbol variation stops. When stopping to obtain the duration It includes an acquiring unit, to infer the presence or absence of a pending by stopping duration to determine whether more than a predetermined time, a demonstration execution means for controlling an effect in accordance with the estimation result.

  According to this, since it is possible to appropriately perform an effect according to the presence or absence of the hold without transmitting game control data relating to the hold from the main board to the sub board, the load of the effect process in the ball game machine is reduced. The Moreover, the risk of erroneous transmission of game control data is reduced, and the reliability of game control in the ball game machine is improved.

  The effect execution means may stop the sound that is continuously output according to the variation of the design when the stop duration exceeds a predetermined time.

  According to this, when it is estimated that there is a hold without transmitting game control data related to the hold from the main board to the sub-board, the sound is continuously output, and when it is estimated that there is no hold. The continuous audio output is stopped.

  The effect execution means may stop the sound by gradually decreasing the sound volume when the stop duration exceeds a predetermined time.

  According to this, when it is estimated that there is no hold, the voice can be stopped without making the player feel uncomfortable.

  The effect execution means may return the sound volume to the sound volume at the time of the change of the symbol by gradually increasing the sound volume when the game ball enters the start winning opening before the sound stops.

  According to this, it is possible to continuously perform the sound production accompanying the symbol variation without making the player feel uncomfortable.

  The effect execution means outputs a ball entering notification sound for notifying that the game ball has entered the start winning opening when the game ball has entered the start winning opening when the stop duration exceeds a predetermined time. May be.

  According to this, it is possible to make the player recognize by the sound effect that there is a ball entry in a state where it is estimated that there is no hold without transmitting game control data related to the hold from the main board to the sub-board.

  It should be noted that any combination of the above-described constituent elements, or the constituent elements and expressions of the present invention may be mutually replaced between methods, apparatuses, systems, computer programs, recording media storing computer programs, data structures, etc. This is effective as an embodiment of the present invention.

  According to the ball game machine of the present invention, it is possible to reduce the load required for the rendering process.

  FIG. 1 shows a basic structure on the front side of a pachinko gaming machine. Hereinafter, a so-called first type pachinko gaming machine will be described as an example of a bullet ball gaming machine. The pachinko gaming machine 10 is mainly composed of a gaming machine frame and a gaming board. The gaming machine frame of the pachinko gaming machine 10 includes an outer frame 11, a front frame 12, a transparent plate 13, a door 14, an upper ball dish 15, a lower ball dish 16, and a launch handle 17. The outer frame 11 has an opening and is a frame for fixing the pachinko gaming machine 10 to a position where it should be installed. The front frame 12 is a frame body that aligns with the opening portion of the outer frame 11, and is attached to the outer frame 11 so as to be opened and closed by a hinge mechanism (not shown). The front frame 12 includes a mechanism for launching a game ball, a mechanism for detachably storing a game board, a mechanism for guiding or collecting the game ball, and the like.

  The transparent plate 13 is made of glass or the like and is supported by the door 14. The door 14 is attached to the front frame 12 so that it can be opened and closed by a hinge mechanism (not shown). The upper ball tray 15 has a mechanism for storing game balls, sending the game balls to the launch rail, and extracting the game balls to the lower ball tray 16. The lower ball tray 16 has a mechanism for storing and extracting game balls. A speaker 18 is provided between the upper ball tray 15 and the lower ball tray 16, and a sound effect corresponding to the gaming state is output.

  The game board 50 has an out port 58, a special symbol display device 61, an effect display device 60, and a start winning port (hereinafter referred to as “start port”) 62 on a game area 52 defined by the outer rail 54 and the inner rail 56. , A center ornament 64, a grand prize opening 66, an operation opening 68, and a general prize opening 72. Furthermore, in the game area 52, a plurality of mechanisms such as a game nail and a windmill (not shown) are installed. The start port 62 includes a start winning detection device 74 for detecting the entrance of a game ball and a normal electric accessory solenoid 76 for expanding the start port. The start winning detection device 74 is a sensor that detects the entry of a game ball into the start port 62, and generates start win information indicating the winning at the time of entering. The general winning opening 72 includes a general winning detecting device 73 for detecting the entering of a game ball. The general winning detection device 73 is a sensor that detects the entry of a game ball into the general winning opening 72, and generates general winning information indicating the winning at the time of winning. The special winning opening 66 includes a winning detection device 78 for detecting the entry of a game ball and a special winning opening solenoid 80 for expanding the special winning opening 66. The winning detection device 78 is a sensor that detects the entry of a game ball into the big winning opening 66, and generates big winning opening winning information indicating the winning at the time of winning.

  The big winning opening 66 is a horizontal rectangular winning opening that is opened as a “big hit” when the special symbol 192 stops in a predetermined manner. The big winning opening 66 is provided above the out opening 58 and the like. The inside of the special winning opening 66 is divided into a specific area (so-called V zone) and a general area. The winning detection device 78 of the big winning opening 66 includes a sensor that detects passage of a game ball through a specific area and a sensor that detects passage of a general area.

  The operation port 68 is provided at the left side position of the game board 50. The operation port 68 includes a passage detection device 69. The passage detection device 69 is a sensor that detects the passage of the game ball to the operation port 68, and generates operation passage information indicating the passage at the time of passage. The passing of the game ball to the operation port 68 triggers a lottery for expanding the start port 62.

  The special symbol display device 61 and the effect display device 60 provided substantially in the center of the game area 52 include a variation of the special symbol 192 on each screen and a variation of the effect image including the decorative symbol 190 linked to the special symbol 192. (Hereinafter, such display is referred to as “symbol change” or “change display”). Here, the special symbol 192 is a symbol corresponding to the result of the lottery performed when the game ball is dropped into the start port 62, and the symbol mode when the change display is stopped is determined to be the winning symbol. When the symbol is a symbol, the timing at which the stop symbol is displayed is the jackpot occurrence timing. The special symbol display device 61 is display means composed of, for example, 7 segment LEDs. The effect display device 60 is a liquid crystal display that variably displays the decorative symbol 190 in a manner interlocked with the variation display of the special symbol 192. The decorative symbol 190 is a symbol for visually producing the lottery result display indicated by the special symbol 192. The effect display device 60 displays, as the decorative symbol 190, for example, a plurality of rows of moving images of symbol variation simulating a slot machine game in the central area of the screen. The effect display device 60 is constituted by a liquid crystal display in this embodiment, but may be constituted by other display means such as a mechanical drum or LED. Since the special symbol 192 does not necessarily have a role of production, in this embodiment, the special symbol 192 is displayed in an inconspicuous size on the special symbol display device 61 at the lower left of the production display device 60. In the case of adopting a technique in which a decorative role is not displayed and a decorative symbol is not displayed, the special symbol may be displayed on a liquid crystal display such as the effect display device 60.

  When the player rotates the launch handle 17 by hand, the game balls stored in the upper ball tray 15 are guided one by one to the inner rail 56 and the outer rail 54 with a strength corresponding to the rotation angle, thereby playing the game area. To 52. When the player fixes the rotation position of the firing handle 17 by hand, the game ball is repeatedly fired at regular time intervals. The game ball launched to the upper part of the game area 52 falls in a direction according to the way of hitting while hitting a plurality of game nails and windmills. When a game ball is dropped into each of the general winning opening 72, the start opening 62, and the big winning opening 66, a winning ball corresponding to the type of the winning opening is paid out to the upper ball tray 15 or the lower ball tray 16. A game ball dropped into each winning hole such as the general winning hole 72 is processed as a safe ball, and a game ball dropped into the out hole 58 is processed as an out ball. Each winning opening includes a gate type through which a game ball passes. In the present application, “incoming”, “entering”, and “winning” include “passing”.

  When the game ball falls into the start port 62, the special symbol 192 and the decorative symbol 190 are variably displayed on the special symbol display device 61 and the effect display device 60. The variable display of the special symbol 192 and the decorative symbol 190 is stopped after the elapse of the display time determined prior to the display. When the special symbol 192 and the decorative symbol 190 at the time of the stop are symbols indicating a big hit, the game shifts to a special game that is more advantageous to the player than the normal game, and the opening / closing operation of the big prize opening 66 is started. At this time, the decorative pattern 190 simulating a game of a slot machine takes a display mode in which three symbols are matched.

  The big winning opening 66 is temporarily closed after being opened for about 30 seconds or after nine or more game balls are dropped. If at least one game ball falls into a specific area while the big prize opening 66 is open, the big prize opening 66 is opened again. In this way, the opening / closing of the special winning opening 66 is repeated a predetermined number of times, for example, eight times, on condition that at least one game ball falls into the specific area while the special winning opening 66 is opened once.

  When a special game is generated and a predetermined condition such as a lottery is satisfied, probability variation and a variation time reduction are started as the specific game after the special game is finished. During the probability change, a lottery with a higher probability of winning than the normal probability state is performed, and a new special game is generated relatively early.

  When the game ball passes through the operation port 68, a symbol called a normal symbol is variably displayed on the normal symbol display device 59 for a predetermined time. The normal symbol display device 59 is provided on the right side of the effect display device 60. When the change display of the normal symbol stops after the lapse of the predetermined time, the normal symbol is usually won with a probability of about 50% to 80%, and the start port 62 is expanded for the predetermined time. During the probability fluctuation or the fluctuation time reduction, the normal symbol fluctuation display time is shortened, and the time during which the ordinary electric accessory at the start port 62 is expanded is switched to a relatively long time. In addition, during the probability change or the reduction of the change time, the probability that the normal symbol is won is increased and the number of times the normal electric accessory is expanded at the start port 62 for one hit is increased.

  A center ornament 64 is provided around the effect display device 60. The center ornament 64 has functions such as a flow path of the game ball, protection of the special symbol display device 61 and the effect display device 60, and decoration. The center decoration 64 is provided with a lottery holding lamp 20 at the upper part thereof and an operation holding lamp 22 at a left side part thereof. The lottery hold lamp 20 is composed of four lamps, and displays the number of lottery holds depending on the number of lights. The number of lottery holds is the number of lottery results won in the starting port 62 during symbol variation or special game, and indicates the number of winning balls for which symbol variation has not yet been executed. The operation holding lamp 22 is also composed of four lamps, and displays the number of holdings of normal symbol fluctuations depending on the number of lights. The number of normal symbol fluctuations held is the number of game balls that have passed through the operation port 68 during the fluctuation of the normal symbol, and indicates the number of normal symbol lotteries for which the fluctuation of the normal symbol has not yet been executed. In addition, a game effect lamp 90 is provided in the game area 52 and plays a role of production by blinking or the like. The operation button 82 is a button operated by the player to input a predetermined instruction on the gaming machine side. The operation button 82 is provided on the outer wall surface near the upper ball tray 15.

  FIG. 2 shows a basic structure on the back side of the pachinko gaming machine. The power switch 40 is a switch for turning on / off the power of the pachinko gaming machine 10. The main board 102 controls the overall operation of the pachinko gaming machine 10 and processes all game operations such as a lottery when a winning is made to the start port 62. The sub board 104 includes a liquid crystal unit 42, controls display contents on the effect display device 60, and changes display contents according to a lottery result by the main board 102 in particular. The main board 102 and the sub board 104 constitute a game control device 100. The set base 39 includes a prize ball tank 44, a flow path for prize balls, a payout unit 43 for delivering prize balls. The payout unit 43 pays out the game balls supplied from the winning ball tank 44 to the upper ball tray 15 in accordance with winning in each winning opening. The payout control board 45 controls the payout operation by the payout unit 43. The launching device 46 launches the stored balls in the upper ball tray 15 to the game area 52 one by one. The launch control board 47 controls the launch operation of the launch device 46. The power supply unit 48 supplies power to each part of the pachinko gaming machine 10.

  FIG. 3 shows functional blocks of the pachinko gaming machine 10 in the present embodiment. In the pachinko gaming machine 10, the game control device 100 includes a start port 62, a big winning port 66, a general winning port 72, an operating port 68, a special symbol display device 61, an effect display device 60, a normal symbol display device 59, and operation buttons 82. The speaker 18 and the game effect lamp 90 are electrically connected to each other, and can transmit and receive various control signals. The game control device 100 controls not only the basic operation of the game, but also staging operations such as symbol variation display and electrical decoration. The game control device 100 is configured in such a manner that functions are shared by a main board 102 that controls the overall operation of the pachinko gaming machine 10 including basic operations of the game, and a sub board 104 that controls design effects and the like. The game control device 100 is configured by hardware including elements such as a ROM and a RAM for storing data and programs, and a CPU used for arithmetic processing.

  The main board 102 controls the overall operation of the pachinko gaming machine 10 and the basic operation of the game. On the other hand, the sub-board 104 controls the staging operations such as the variable display of the decorative symbol 190 and the special symbol 192 and the illumination around the pachinko gaming machine 10.

  Although game control data is sent from the main board 102 to the sub board 104, feedback information or signals are not sent from the sub board 104 to the main board 102, and always one-way from the main board 102 to the sub board 104. It becomes communication. The main board 102 and the sub board 104 include elements such as a ROM for storing data and programs and a CPU used for arithmetic processing in terms of hardware.

  In the present embodiment, the main board 102 is a ball determination unit 110, a winning / failing lottery unit 112, a symbol determination unit 114, a hold control unit 116, a main display control unit 118, a special game control unit 120, a specific game execution unit 122, and an open / close control Means 124 and information transmission means 126 are provided. The sub-board 104 in this embodiment includes information receiving means 129, pattern storage means 130, pattern selection means 132, stop duration acquisition means 133, effect display control means 134, and audio data storage means 135.

  The entrance determination means 110 determines whether or not a game ball has entered each winning opening. When receiving the start winning information, the winning determination means 110 determines that the game ball has won the start opening 62, and when receiving the big winning opening winning information, determines that the game ball has won the big winning opening 66, and the general winning is obtained. When the information is received, it is determined that the game ball has won the general winning opening 72. When receiving the operation passage information, the entrance determination unit 110 determines that the game ball has passed through the operation port 68.

  The success / failure lottery means 112 accepts a random number value to determine whether or not to shift to a special game that is more advantageous to the player than the normal game when the game ball enters the start port 62. Get as a value. For example, the success / failure lottery value is acquired from a value range from “0” to “65535”. The “random number” in the present application may not be a mathematically generated random number, but may be a pseudo-random number generated by a hardware random number, a software random number, or the like. The success / failure lottery means 112 holds a plurality of success / failure tables to be referred to in the success / failure determination. In the plurality of success / failure tables, a determination result of winning or losing is associated with a lottery value, and the success / failure probability is determined according to the associated winning range setting. The success / failure lottery means 112 refers to a success / failure table for determination of success / failure based on a normal probability in normal times, and refers to a success / failure table in which the winning probability is higher than the normal probability when the probability changes. The success / failure lottery means 112 refers to any of the plurality of success / failure tables and determines whether or not the success / failure lottery value is a win. The determination result by the success / failure lottery means 112 is variably displayed in the special symbol display device 61 in the form of a special symbol. In addition, a decorative symbol that shows the determination result by the success / failure lottery means 112 is displayed in a variable manner on the effect display device 60.

  The symbol determination means 114 determines the special symbols and decorative symbols to be displayed on the special symbol display device 61 and the effect display device 60 according to the result of the lottery by the success / failure lottery means 112. Moreover, the symbol determination means 114 determines the stop symbol of the normal symbol displayed on the normal symbol display device 59 by lottery. The stop symbol is a symbol to be displayed at the end of symbol variation. The symbol determining unit 114 holds a symbol range table to be referred to in order to determine a stop symbol such as a special symbol or a decorative symbol, or a pattern determination table to be referred to in order to determine a variation pattern.

  The symbol determination unit 114 acquires a symbol determination lottery value for determining a special symbol, and determines a stop symbol of the special symbol according to the determination result of the success / failure lottery unit 112 and the symbol determination lottery value. The symbol determination unit 114 selects one of a plurality of variation patterns in accordance with the determination result of the success / failure lottery unit 112. The symbol determination unit 114 sends data indicating the determined stop symbol and variation pattern to the main display control unit 118.

  The symbol determination means 114 stores a plurality of types of variation patterns in which variation modes from the variation start to the stop when the special symbol is variably displayed are defined. Multiple types of variation patterns have various variation times. That is, for each variation pattern, a variation display time is defined for each pattern as an end condition of the symbol variation, and the variation of the special symbol is stopped when the variation display time elapses.

  The symbol determination unit 114 determines the stop symbol of the decorative symbol according to the determination result of the determination of whether or not the lottery unit 112 determines, the stop symbol of the special symbol, and the variation pattern of the special symbol. The symbol determining unit 114 selects a variation pattern of the effect image including the decorative symbol from a plurality of patterns according to the variation pattern of the special symbol. The symbol determination unit 114 sends data indicating the determined stop symbol and variation pattern to the pattern selection unit 132.

  The stop symbol of the decorative symbol is formed as a combination of three symbols. For example, when the determination result by the success / failure lottery means 112 indicates a shift to a special game, three symbols such as “777” and “111” are arranged. A combination is selected. In this case, it is preferable that the same numbers as the special symbols are selected as the numbers to be arranged as the decorative symbols. For example, when the special symbol is “3”, the decorative symbol is “333”. When the determination result by the success / failure lottery means 112 indicates that the game does not shift to the special game, a combination that does not have three symbols such as “312” and “946” is selected. However, if the determination result is that the game does not shift to a special game, and a variation pattern indicating a loss with reach is selected, only one symbol such as “191” or “727” is provided. Select a combination that is not.

  The variation pattern of the effect image defines a variation display mode of the effect image, that is, an effect process from the start of change of the effect image to the stop of change. In the fluctuation pattern, a pattern for displaying a normal out symbol, a pattern for displaying a symbol out of reach after reaching a big win if one more symbols are aligned, and a jackpot symbol through a reach state are displayed. When the pattern is included. In particular, the pattern when reaching the reach state includes patterns having various fluctuation times. For each variation pattern, a variation time is defined for each pattern as an end condition of the symbol variation, and the symbol variation is stopped when the variation time elapses. The symbol determining means 114 selects a variation pattern of the effect image having the same variation time as that of the special symbol according to the variation pattern of the special symbol.

  The symbol determining means 114 acquires a lottery random number for determining a normal symbol when the game ball passes through the operation port 68, and determines a stop symbol of the normal symbol according to the lottery random number. When the stop symbol of the normal symbol is a specific symbol, the opening / closing control means 124 expands the normal electric accessory at the start port 62 for a predetermined time. During the probability change and the reduction of the change time, the probability that the stop symbol of the normal symbol becomes the winning symbol is switched to a probability higher than the normal state.

  The holding control means 116 holds the winning / losing lottery value acquired by the winning / failing lottery means 112 as a holding ball. The success / failure lottery value is accumulated until the number of holds reaches a predetermined upper limit. The upper limit of the number of holds is 4. In the conventional pachinko gaming machine, when the number of reserves has reached the upper limit, even if more game balls enter the start port 62, they are not held and will not lead to further symbol variations. For this reason, in a state where the number of holds reaches the upper limit, the player sometimes presses the weight button to make a so-called stoppage that temporarily stops the launch of the game ball. In a conventional pachinko gaming machine, the number of holds held in the hold control means 116 is transmitted as game control data from the main board 102 to the sub board 104, and is used for controlling the effect processing according to the number of holds in the sub board 104. It was. However, in the pachinko gaming machine 10 of the present embodiment, the number of holds held by the hold control means 116 is not transmitted from the main board 102 to the sub board 104. As will be described later, the sub-board 104 estimates the number of holds, and executes the rendering process based on the estimation result.

  The main display control means 118 causes the special symbol display device 61 to display the lottery result by the success / failure lottery means 112 as a special symbol variation display according to the variation pattern determined by the symbol determination unit 114. The main display control means 118 transmits the change start command and the change stop command to the effect display control means 134 at the timing of starting and stopping the change display of the special symbol, so that the main display control means 118 and the effect display are displayed. The fluctuation display by the control means 134 is synchronized and interlocked. When the number of holds held by the hold control means 116 is 1 or more, the main display control means 118 transmits a change stop command for stopping the changing symbols and displays the stop symbols for a predetermined time, for example, After a lapse of 0.8 seconds, a change start command for starting the change of the symbol corresponding to the holding ball is transmitted. Thereby, the division | segmentation for every symbol fluctuation | variation becomes clear and it becomes easy to recognize the start and the end of symbol fluctuation | variation. The main display control means 118 causes the normal symbol display device 59 to display normal symbol fluctuations.

  The special game control means 120 controls the execution process of the special game when the result of the lottery determination by the success / failure lottery means 112 is a win. The special game is a game in which the opening / closing operation of the special winning opening 66 is continuously continued a plurality of times, and is constituted by one or a plurality of unit games with one opening / closing as a unit. The unit game is repeated up to 15 times, for example, and the grand prize opening 66 is opened for about 30 seconds in one unit game. The special game control means 120 determines whether or not to continue the unit game, that is, whether or not to start the next unit game, based on the number of continuations of the unit game and the presence / absence of the passage detection of the special winning opening 66 to the specific area. Determine. If the continuation condition for starting the next unit game is not satisfied, or if the upper limit number of unit games is exhausted, the special game is terminated.

  The specific game execution means 122 controls specific games such as probability fluctuation and fluctuation time reduction. The specific game execution means 122, when the result of the winning / failing lottery corresponding to the symbol in the variable display is a win, changes the game state after the special game generated by the win according to a predetermined lottery probability to the probability fluctuation state. Transition. The probability variation state is continued until the next jackpot occurs or the symbol variation reaches a predetermined number of times, for example, 100 times, and the probability of the hit determination by the success / failure lottery means 112 is maintained at a high value. Further, the specific game executing means 122 switches the symbol variation time to a shorter time than usual while the probability variation state continues.

  The opening / closing control means 124 controls the opening / closing of the ordinary electric accessory at the start opening 62 and the opening / closing of the special winning opening 66. When the game ball passes through the operating port 68 and the normal symbol is stopped at a specific symbol, the opening / closing control means 124 sends an expansion instruction to the normal electric accessory solenoid 76 to cause the normal electric accessory at the start port 62 to be opened. Expand. Further, the opening / closing control means 124 sends an opening instruction to the special winning opening solenoid 80 during the special game, and opens the special winning opening 66.

  The information transmission unit 126 receives commands such as a change start command and a change stop command from the main display control unit 118 and transmits them to the information reception unit 129 on the sub-board 104 side.

  The information receiving unit 129 receives commands such as a change start command and a change stop command transmitted from the information transmitting unit 126 and inputs them to the effect display control unit 134.

  The pattern storage unit 130 holds a plurality of variation pattern data as the variation pattern of the effect image including the decorative design. The pattern storage means 130 has variation pattern data corresponding to a plurality of effect modes in a state where the game state is not changed as in the case where the normal game state is continuing. As a plurality of production modes, for example, there are a series of modes that represent changes in one day such as “morning”, “daytime”, and “night”. For example, the pattern storage unit 130 stores a variation pattern that expresses how the sun rises for the “daytime” mode. In addition, as a plurality of production modes, a series of modes representing the transition of the seasons such as “spring”, “summer”, “autumn”, “winter” may be used, and “joy”, “anger”, “sorrow”, “easy”. A series of modes representing changes in psychological state may be used.

  The pattern selection unit 132 selects the variation pattern data determined by the symbol determination unit 114 from the pattern storage unit 130 and sends it to the effect display control unit 134. The pattern selection means 132 selects a specific effect mode from a plurality of effect modes in a state where the gaming state is not changed, and selects variation pattern data corresponding to the selected effect mode from the pattern storage means 130. The selection of the effect mode may be performed by lottery for changing the effect mode, or may be performed by sequentially switching on the condition that a predetermined time or a predetermined number of symbol fluctuations has elapsed.

  The stop duration acquisition means 133 acquires the time during which the special symbol and the decorative symbol are stopped as the stop duration. Specifically, the stop duration acquisition unit 133 first acquires the time t0 when the fluctuation stop command is transmitted from the main display control unit 118 to the effect display control unit 134. The stop duration acquisition unit 133 obtains the stop duration by measuring the time during which no change start command is transmitted from the main display control unit 118 to the effect display control unit 134 after time t0. When the change start command is transmitted from the main display control means 118 to the effect display control means 134, the stop duration is reset to zero seconds.

  The effect display control means 134 causes the special symbol display device 61 and the effect display device 60 to variably display the special symbol and the effect image, respectively, according to the selected variation pattern data based on the result of the success / failure lottery by the success / failure lottery means 112. The effect display control unit 134 causes the effect display device 60 to display the effect image in a variable manner according to the change pattern data corresponding to the effect mode selected by the pattern selecting unit 132 in a state where the game state is not changed. As a result, in the state where the gaming state is not actually changed, it is possible to obtain an effect as if the gaming state has changed. The effect display control means 134 further controls effect processing such as lighting and extinguishing of the game effect lamp 90 and sound output from the speaker 18.

  The audio data storage unit 135 has audio data related to audio output from the speaker 18 during symbol variation. The audio data is data for outputting music or the like, for example. The audio data storage means 135 has a plurality of audio data corresponding to the production mode. For example, music that recalls a refreshing morning is stored as audio data corresponding to the “morning” mode, and music that recalls an active state is stored as audio data corresponding to the “daytime” mode. Then, in correspondence with the “night” mode, music that reminds of a resting state is stored as audio data. The sound data for each effect mode may be composed of one data, or may be composed by combining part data divided for each measure. In the latter case, for example, a combination of part data A twice, part data B four times, and part data C two times constitutes a set of music. The effect display control means 134 can repeat this part data set.

  FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram showing a detailed configuration of the symbol determining unit 114. The symbol determination unit 114 includes a table storage unit 200, a symbol selection unit 202, and a pattern determination unit 204.

  The table storage means 200 holds a plurality of pattern determination tables in which the correspondence relation between the success / failure lottery value acquired by the success / failure lottery means 112 and the variation pattern is defined.

  The symbol selection means 202 determines each stop symbol of a special symbol, a decorative symbol, and a normal symbol. When determining a special symbol, the symbol selecting unit 202 refers to a predetermined special symbol table and determines a stop symbol corresponding to the winning / losing lottery value acquired by the winning / failing lottery unit 112. The symbol selection means 202 determines the stop symbol of the decorative symbol in accordance with the stop symbol of the special symbol.

  The pattern determination unit 204 refers to any one of the plurality of pattern tables held in the table storage unit 200 and selects a variation pattern corresponding to the success / failure lottery value acquired in the success / failure lottery.

  FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram showing a detailed configuration of the effect display control means 134. The effect display control means 134 includes effect image display means 210, fluctuation control means 212, and audio output control means 214. The effect image display means 210 controls display of an effect image included in the variation pattern. The variation control means 212 controls the variation display of the decorative symbol. When the fluctuation control means 212 receives the fluctuation start command, the fluctuation control means 212 starts the fluctuation display of the special symbol and the decorative symbol. When the variation control means 212 receives the variation stop command, the variation control means 212 stops the variation display of the special symbol and the decorative symbol, and displays the stop symbol respectively assigned to the special symbol and the decorative symbol.

When the voice output control means 214 receives the fluctuation start command in a state where the stop duration exceeds a predetermined time, for example, 1 second, the voice output control means 214 turns on the voice output for symbol fluctuation. The audio output control unit 214 determines whether or not the stop duration has exceeded a predetermined time. If the audio output control means 214 determines that the stop continuation time does not exceed the predetermined time, the audio output control means 214 continues the audio output once started and maintains the continuity of the audio output. According to this, the sound output control means 214 continuously outputs the sound in accordance with the continuous variation of the symbols without receiving the game control data regarding the number of holds from the main board 102 in the continuous variation of the symbols when there is a hold. Can be executed automatically. The audio output control unit 214 outputs audio data corresponding to the effect mode selected by the pattern selection unit 132. For this reason, in the state where the specific production mode is continued, it is possible to continuously output audio data across a plurality of symbol variations. As a result, the continuity of the production mode is produced by voice, and the state in which the production mode is continued can be made to be pseudo-recognized by the player as one gaming state. By performing an audio presentation that enhances the feeling, it is possible to give the gaming state a variation that has not existed before.

On the other hand, when it is determined that the stop duration has exceeded the predetermined time, the audio output control unit 214 stops the audio output once started. At this time, the sound output may be stopped by instantaneously reducing the sound output volume to zero, but may be stopped by gradually decreasing the sound output volume. According to this, since the voice output accompanying the symbol variation is not suddenly interrupted, the continuity of the voice output is ensured and the player can play the game without feeling uncomfortable. When the output of the sound is completely stopped, the sound output control means 214 starts the sound output from the beginning of the music or the first part when the game ball wins again at the start port 62. Thereby, reproduction of a sense of reality in each effect mode is realized.

  Furthermore, when the sound output control unit 214 gradually decreases the sound output volume, the sound output control unit 214 gradually increases the sound output when the change start command is received before the sound output is stopped. Return to the state. According to this, it is possible to continuously perform the sound production accompanying the symbol variation without making the player feel uncomfortable.

  Further, when the voice output control unit 214 receives the change start command in a state where the stop duration exceeds a predetermined time, the voice output control unit 214 outputs a ball entry notification sound for notifying that the game ball has entered the start port 62. According to this, without receiving the game control data regarding the number of holds from the main board 102, it is possible to make the player recognize by the sound effect that there is a ball entry when there is no hold.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a basic operation process in the pachinko gaming machine. First, a winning information generation process when the game ball has won the start port 62, the general winning port 72, and the big winning port 66, and a passing information generation process when the game ball has passed through the operation port 68 are executed (S10). If it is not in a special game (N in S12), a control process for a normal game such as a winning lottery is executed (S14), and if it is in a special game (Y in S12), a control process for a special game is executed ( S16), and award ball payout according to various winnings in the processing from S10 to S16 is processed (S18).

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing in detail the normal game control process of S14 in FIG. In the normal game control process, if the winning / losing lottery value is on hold (Y in S30) and the symbol variation is not being displayed (N in S32), the winning / losing lottery means 112 executes the determining process. (S34). In accordance with the determination result, the main display control means 118 starts changing display, transmits a change start command to the effect display control means 134, and the effect display control means 134 that receives the command displays the effect image according to the change pattern data. The fluctuation display is started (S36). If the winning / losing lottery value is not held in S30 (N in S30), the processing from S32 to S36 is skipped, and if the symbol variation is being displayed in S32 (Y in S32), S34 and S36. Is skipped. Subsequently, if the symbol variation display has already started (Y in S38), the symbol variation display process is executed (S40). If the symbol variation display has not started (N in S38), S40 is skipped. .

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing in detail the success / failure determination process of S34 in FIG. First, when the probability is changing (Y of S42), the success / failure lottery means 112 refers to the probability change success / failure table (S44). When the probability is not changing (N of S42), the success / failure lottery means 112 is a normal success / failure. The table is referred to (S46). The success / failure lottery means 112 determines whether or not the success / failure lottery value is a win based on the success / failure table (S50). When the result of the winning / failing lottery is a win, the game state after the special game generated by the win according to a predetermined lottery probability is shifted to the probability fluctuation state.

  Next, the pattern determining means 204 determines the variation pattern of the special symbol according to the lottery result of the success / failure lottery means 112 (S58), and determines the variation pattern of the effect image (S59).

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing in detail the variation display process of S40 in FIG. First, when the elapsed time from the start of the change with respect to the symbol change being displayed has reached the change display time specified in advance (Y in S60), the main board 102 sends a change display change stop command to the effect display control means 134. Transmitting (S62), the main board 102 stops the variation display of the special symbol, and the effect display control means 134 stops the variation display of the effect image (S64).

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing in detail the special game process of S16 in FIG. First, if the big prize opening 66 has not been opened (N in S70), the production display control means 134 starts the special game production process (S72), and the open / close control means 124 opens the special prize opening 66 (S74). ). If the big winning opening 66 has been opened, S72 and S74 are skipped (Y in S70). When the predetermined opening time has elapsed since the grand prize opening 66 was opened (Y in S76), or the opening time has not elapsed (N in S76), there are nine or more game balls to the big winning opening 66 When the player has entered the ball (Y in S78), the opening / closing control means 124 closes the special winning opening 66 (S80). If the opening time has not elapsed (N in S76) and the number of balls entered into the grand prize winning opening 66 has not reached nine or more (N in S78), the processing after S80 is skipped and the flow of S16 Exit.

  If the number of rounds of the unit game has reached 15 after closing the special winning opening 66 in S80 (Y in S82), the effect display control means 134 ends the effect processing of the special game (S84), and the special game control means 120 ends the special game (S86). If the number of rounds has not reached 15 (N in S82), 1 is added to the number of rounds and the flow of S16 is terminated (S90).

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing processing related to audio output by the effect display control means. First, when a change start command is received in a state where the sound output is off (Y in S100), the sound output accompanying the symbol change is started (S110). If the change start command is not received in the state where the audio output is off (N in S100), the process here ends. After the start of sound output in S110, it is determined whether or not the stop duration acquired by the stop duration acquisition unit 133 exceeds a predetermined time (S120). If the stop duration does not exceed the predetermined time (N in S120), the audio output is continued (S130), and the process returns to the determination regarding the stop duration in S120. If the stop duration exceeds the predetermined time (Y in S120), the audio output is gradually lowered (S140). After the voice output starts to be gradually lowered, it is determined whether or not a change start command is received before the voice output stops (S150). When the change start command is received before the voice output is stopped, the volume of the voice output is gradually returned to the original volume (S160), and the process returns to the determination regarding the stop duration in S120. If the change start command is not received before the audio output is stopped, the audio output is stopped (S170).

  In this way, by estimating the presence or absence of the hold according to the stop duration time, by controlling the reproduction of the sound output accompanying the symbol variation, the data relating to the hold is reduced from the game control data, and the data amount of the game control data Can be reduced.

FIG. 12 is a timing chart showing an example of processing by the effect display control means.

  It is assumed that the stop duration exceeds a predetermined time at time t1. When a game ball enters at time t1, a change start command is transmitted from the main board 102 to the sub board 104. As a result, the variation of the special symbol and the decorative symbol is started, and the sound output in accordance with the variation display of the symbol is started.

  When a game ball enters further at time t2, the number of reserved balls becomes one. At this time, information regarding the number of reserved balls is not transmitted from the main board 102 to the sub board 104.

  A change stop command is transmitted from the main board 102 to the sub board 104 at time t3 when a predetermined symbol change time has elapsed from time t2. Thereby, the variation of the special symbol and the decorative symbol is stopped, and a predetermined stop symbol is displayed. The stop duration is measured after the special symbol and decorative symbol change stop. At time t4 after 0.8 seconds have elapsed from time t3, a change start command for starting the change of the symbol corresponding to the stationary ball is transmitted from the main board 102 to the sub-board 104, and the change of the pattern is resumed. The stop duration is reset to zero seconds. For this reason, the audio output started in accordance with the symbol variation display is continued as it is, and the continuity of the audio output is maintained.

  At time t5, a change stop command is transmitted from the main board 102 to the sub board 104, and the pattern change stops. Since there is no new entry after time t5, the stop duration exceeds 1 second of the predetermined time at time t6. At time t6, the sound output volume is gradually reduced, and at time t7, sound output stops.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications such as design changes can be added based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art. The form can also be included in the scope of the present invention.

  For example, when it is estimated that there is a hold, whether or not to perform continuous production of sound output across a plurality of symbol variations may be switched according to the gaming state. For example, when the gaming state is a probability variation state, the sound output is interrupted for each symbol variation even when it is estimated that there is a hold. On the other hand, when the gaming state is a non-probability variation state, when it is estimated that there is a hold, a continuous production of voice output over a plurality of symbol variations is executed. According to this, the sound output is sharpened according to the gaming state, and the sound effect can be further enhanced.

It is a figure which shows the basic structure in the front side of a pachinko game machine. It is a figure which shows the basic structure in the back side of a pachinko game machine. It is a figure which shows the functional block of the pachinko game machine in a present Example. It is a functional block diagram which shows the detailed structure of a symbol determination means. It is a functional block diagram which shows the detailed structure of an effect display control means. It is a flowchart which shows the basic operation | movement process in a pachinko game machine. It is a flowchart which shows the normal game control process of S14 in FIG. 6 in detail. It is a flowchart which shows the success / failure determination process of S34 in FIG. 7 in detail. It is a flowchart which shows the fluctuation | variation display process of S40 in FIG. 7 in detail. It is a flowchart which shows the special game process of S16 in FIG. 6 in detail. It is a flowchart which shows the process regarding the audio | voice output by an effect display control means. It is a timing chart which shows an example of the process by an effect display control means.

Explanation of symbols

  10 Pachinko machines, 50 game boards, 52 game areas, 60 effect display devices, 61 special symbol display devices, 62 start ports, 68 operation ports, 100 game control devices, 112 winning / failing lottery means, 114 symbol determining means, 118 main display Control means, 120 special game control means, 202 symbol selection means, 204 pattern determination means.

Claims (5)

A game board in which a game area is formed;
A start winning opening provided at a predetermined position in the game area, and a game ball entering is a lottery opportunity;
A main board for controlling the game content;
Based on information in one direction from the main board, a sub board for variably displaying a symbol for showing a player the control content by the main board,
The main board has a lottery means for executing a lottery to determine whether or not to shift to a special game that is more advantageous to the player than a normal game, triggered by a ball entering the start prize opening,
Lottery result storage means for holding the lottery result up to a predetermined upper limit;
A symbol variation control means for variably displaying a symbol for indicating the result of the lottery on a symbol display device;
Information transmission means for transmitting to the sub-board a variation start command that is transmitted at a timing for starting the variation display of the symbol, and a variation stop command that is transmitted at a timing for stopping the variation display of the symbol. ,
The sub-board is a stop duration acquisition means for acquiring a stop duration in which the stop state of the symbol continues after the symbol variation stops,
Production execution means for estimating the presence or absence of the hold by determining whether the stop duration has exceeded a predetermined time, and controlling the production according to the estimation result;
Look including a information receiving means for receiving the change start command and the changing stop command from the main board,
The information transmitting means transmits the variation start command to the sub-board, and after a predetermined symbol variation time has elapsed from the transmission of the variation start command, transmits the variation stop command to the sub-board, and the game ball of the game ball The hold information regarding the entrance to the starting prize opening is not transmitted to the sub-board,
The effect execution means executes the control of the effect when the stop duration exceeds the predetermined time after the change of the symbol is stopped by receiving the change stop command. Gaming machine.   2. The bullet ball according to claim 1, wherein when the stop continuation time exceeds the predetermined time, the effect executing means stops the sound that is continuously output according to the variation of the symbol. Gaming machine.   3. The ball game according to claim 2, wherein when the stop duration exceeds the predetermined time, the effect execution unit stops the sound by gradually decreasing the volume of the sound. Machine.   The production execution means gradually increases the volume of the sound when a game ball enters the start winning opening before the sound stops, so that the volume of the sound is changed to a volume at the time of the change of the symbol. The bullet ball game machine according to claim 3, wherein the ball game machine is returned.   The effect execution means notifies that the game ball has entered the start winning opening when the game ball has entered the start winning opening when the stop duration exceeds the predetermined time. The bullet ball game machine according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a notification sound is output.

Images