JP5362182B2 - Programs and computer systems - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a multi-person simultaneous participation type network game facilitating purchase of an item or a real commodity with reference to an item worn or held by an avatar of another person in a virtual society, and rewarding the referred avatar. <P>SOLUTION: When a player of an avatar (A) clicks another avatar (B) that is the avatar of the other player (a second user) on a screen, A automatically enters a store selling the item worn by B. When A purchases the item in the store, affiliate to creation of an opportunity of commodity sale to A is imparted to B. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a program for activating an avatar in a virtual society and a computer system that executes the program.

  In recent years, network games in which a large number of people participate via the Internet, such as MMORPG (MMORPG: Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game), have become widespread (for example, Non-Patent Document 1).

  In this type of network game, the player can tailor his / her favorite avatar, which is his / her character, to his / her favorite appearance by putting on his / her favorite clothes or wearing shoes. A player operates an input device such as a controller to activate a character in a virtual society. These so-called items such as virtual clothes and shoes are sold at stores in the virtual society.

  As a reward (affiliate) providing system using the Internet, systems such as Patent Documents 1 and 2 have been proposed.

“Han Game Guide”, [online], NHN Japan Co., Ltd. [Search February 9, 2007], Internet <URL: http://www.hangame.co.jp/guide/index.asp?Content=avatar > JP 2001-202454 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-083202

  In the above network game, multiple avatars appear in the virtual society at the same time, and players can see other people's avatars on the screen, so each player tends to compete for the avatar's clothes, that is, the items worn by the avatar. Yes, when another player's avatar (another person's avatar) wears a good item, his / her avatar tends to want to wear that item.

  Conventionally, when there are a plurality of stores (item shops) in the virtual society of RPG, if the other person's avatar wears a good item, the player can obtain the item wherever he goes without asking the other person's avatar. However, there was a problem that it was troublesome to find the source of the item because it was not immediately known. Similarly, for sites that sell actual products related to items, there is also a problem that players are not immediately aware, and it is troublesome to search for sites that can obtain such actual products. .

  Conversely, if an item worn by your avatar is liked by many other players, other players will get the same type of item with reference to their avatar items, My avatar who contributed to spreading the item in the virtual society had the disadvantage that no reward was granted. The same applies to the case where a player who purchases an actual product with reference to an item worn by an avatar in the virtual society of RPG occurs, and no award is given to the avatar wearing the item. There wasn't.

  The present invention relates to a game program that is displayed in a virtual society in a network game and that makes it easy to purchase an item or an actual product with reference to an item owned by another person's avatar. It is an object to provide a game program that provides motivation for wearing and coordinating better items by giving rewards, and to provide a computer system that executes these game programs.

The program provided by the first aspect of the present invention stores information relating to position data, owned items, and possession amount data of a plurality of virtual characters (hereinafter referred to as avatars) corresponding to each of a plurality of users. A player data storage unit, a virtual social data storage unit that stores location data and building designation data of a virtual building including a store that sells virtual items, and stores internal layout data and item designation data of the virtual building A virtual society building having a database including a building data storage unit and an image data storage unit storing image data of the building and the avatar, and displaying the virtual society and the avatar based on the data of the database and procedures, in response to the operation of moving the avatar by the corresponding user, the play By updating the position data of Deta storage unit, the avatar movement instructions for moving the avatar, that the first user was an operation of selecting others avatar is an avatar of the other second user As an opportunity, search for building data including item designation data of the same item that is owned and displayed by the other person's avatar or related items , and obtain a store that sells the selected item. The location data of the building searched with reference to the data is acquired, and the location data of the first user's avatar is updated based on the location data of the building. And a store guidance procedure for moving the avatar of the first user.

  Here, “as an opportunity” includes a direct cause-and-effect relationship in which the first user performs an operation of selecting another person's avatar as a trigger and proceeds to the sales procedure as it is, and the first user is another person. When an avatar is designated, for example, a list of items worn by other avatars is displayed, and an indirect causal relationship (see claim 3) of proceeding to a sales procedure by selecting this item is included.

Moreover, the said store guidance procedure of this invention displays the list of at least one part of the items which this other person avatar owns when the said 1st user performs operation which selects another person avatar, The method includes moving the avatar of the first user to a store that sells the same item as the item selected by the first user or an item related thereto.

Also, the store induction procedure of the invention, the position data of the first user's avatar, position data of the store from the position data when said first user performs the operation of selecting the others avatar The method includes a step of updating discontinuously .

In addition, the store guidance procedure of the present invention is based on the position data of the first user's avatar from the position data when the first user selects the other person's avatar to the virtual society. The method includes a step of continuously updating up to the location data of the store via the location data of the formed road .

The present invention also allows the avatar to own a virtual item by updating the data of the owned item in the player data storage unit in response to the item purchase operation by the first user in the store. An item acquisition procedure is further executed by the computer system .

Further, the virtual society construction procedure of the present invention includes a procedure of further storing possession amount data in the player data storage unit, and the item acquisition procedure includes an item purchase operation by the first user. In this case, the method includes a step of subtracting the possessed amount data of the first user 's avatar by the price of the purchased item .

Further, the virtual society construction procedure of the present invention includes a procedure of further storing possession amount data in the player data storage unit, and the item acquisition procedure includes an item purchase operation by the first user in the store. When it is performed, the computer system is further caused to execute a reward providing procedure for adding a predetermined value to the possessed amount data of the other person's avatar .

The computer system of the present invention is configured by connecting a server computer and a plurality of terminal devices via a network, and the virtual society construction procedure is performed by a plurality of users operating their own terminal devices. It includes a procedure for activating the avatar.

A computer system provided by the second aspect of the present invention includes a program storage unit that stores the program, and a control unit that executes the program stored in the program storage unit .

  According to the present invention, by selecting the other person's avatar in the virtual society, it is possible to proceed to the purchase procedure of the item owned and displayed by the other person's avatar. Easily obtain items you want to wear on your own items with reference to items worn or owned by other people's avatars, without asking other people's avatars where to buy the items become.

  In addition, according to the present invention, by designating the other person's avatar in the virtual society, it is possible to proceed to the procedure for purchasing the actual product corresponding to the item owned and displayed by the other person's avatar. It becomes easy to obtain a product worn by the user with reference to the items owned by.

  In addition, according to the present invention, when an item owned by one's avatar or an actual product is purchased triggered by another player's selection of his / her avatar, his / her avatar is rewarded. Since it is given, it becomes possible to prompt each user to wear the item better.

<< Overview of the game >>
First, an online game developed in a computer system to which the present invention is applied will be described.
This game is a multiplayer network game executed on a computer system in which a portal server and a personal computer as a terminal device are connected via a network such as the Internet. In a virtual society created using functions (especially image processing functions), a virtual character (avatar) that can be operated by a player who is a user of each terminal device appears, and this avatar is displayed in the virtual society. It is a game that lets people live and perform various activities.

  In this computer system, the portal server operates a portal site and displays a game image of the game on the portal site. As a result, a game image linked with the portal function can be displayed, and a highly interesting portal site can be provided. For example, when a link is set to a store or item in a virtual society of the game, and the player selects the store or item by clicking a mouse or the like, the terminal device is connected to the link destination. In addition, when a search is performed on the portal site, an area corresponding to the search content is displayed in the virtual society. For example, when searching for “game”, a list of sites related to the game is displayed, and a game center or the like in the virtual society is displayed.

  In this network game, the avatar wears various items such as clothes and glasses. This item is also a virtual item worn by the avatar in the virtual society. However, in this network game, some items are linked items linked to actual products. In other words, the linked item is a virtual item having a shape / pattern that reflects a product actually sold in the real world. Players can try to see what the actual product looks like when they wear it by having their avatar wear the linked item, and the same linked item as the actual product purchased By wearing an avatar, you can make your avatar work in a virtual society with your favorite appearance.

  The player can obtain these items for his / her avatar by purchasing them at a store installed in the virtual society, or receiving or exchanging them from other avatars. In the network game, the player's purchase operation appears as an avatar activity in which the user's own avatar visits the store and purchases the item. In the following description, the player's operation may be appropriately expressed as an avatar activity. Note that virtual currency that is valid in this virtual society is used to purchase items.

  The virtual society image displayed on the display of the terminal device includes not only the user's own avatar (operated by the first user) but also the other person's avatar operated by another player (second user). Appears to interact and collaborate. And when the player (self avatar) is interested in the items worn by this other avatar, the player designates the other avatar (for example, clicks with the mouse) so that the other avatar wears it. An avatar can be moved to a store that sells items that are or own. This store is also a virtual store that sells the above-mentioned virtual items in the virtual society. Then, the player can purchase the same item for the user's avatar that the other person's avatar wears or owns at the store.

And as mentioned above, a certain player is interested in the items worn by other people's avatars or other people's avatars, and by specifying other people's avatars, that is, as a result of visiting the store via other people's avatars, When a player purchases a product, an affiliate (reward) for giving a chance to sell the product is given to the player of the other avatar who has passed through from the store. Affiliates are generally granted in virtual currency.
Although details will be described later, the player can also purchase an actual product by Internet mail order through the cooperation item of the virtual society.

<< Detailed explanation of the game >>
Hereinafter, the game will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
A virtual society created by the portal server and a plurality of terminal devices is composed of a plurality of stages. Each stage has a different aspect such as a town with a house and a store, a field where a river flows, and a coast.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a bird's-eye view of the city layout. In this town, a train station 100, a store 101 selling various products, a park 102, and the like are laid out. When a player logs in to the network game, the game starts from where the player's avatar is standing at the train station. The player can move his / her avatar in the city to visit the store 101, the park 102, and the like. It is also possible to move his / her avatar to another stage on the train 103.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a monitor display example of the town shown in FIG. On the monitor 26 of each terminal device, a part of the city shown in FIG. 1 is displayed with a substantially horizontal line of sight. This figure shows the scenery in the vicinity of the store 101A (cigarette) in FIG. Here, a self avatar 110 and a plurality of other avatars 111 are displayed. The player can move (walk) his / her avatar 110 in the direction of the mouse click by clicking the mouse on the screen. Further, when the player clicks the store 101A with a mouse, his / her avatar 110 can enter the store 101A.
In FIG. 2, other avatars 111 </ b> A and 111 </ b> B are female avatars and wear items such as sweaters. This item is a linked item that represents a product that is actually sold in the real world.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example in which a male avatar wears various items. The male avatar has a basic shape as shown in its own avatar 110 in FIG. This basic shape is referred to as an element body, and is denoted by reference numeral 120 in FIG. The player can make the avatar have his or her favorite appearance by causing the avatar body 120 to wear various items. In FIG. 3, items such as a wig (hairstyle) 121, glasses 122, a T-shirt 123, a jacket 124, pants 125, and shoes 126 are worn on the element body 120 to finish the appearance as shown in the figure. In the figure, among these items, glasses 122, T-shirt 123, jacket 124, pants 125, and shoes 126 are linked items linked with actual products, and are purchased at a price about 1/50 of actual products. can do. This price ratio is a ratio in a case where the virtual currency in the virtual society and the actual currency (yen) are associated with each other by 1: 1.

  When the player is interested in the items worn by the other person's avatar 111, the other person's avatar is clicked with the mouse. Then, a pop-up window (not shown) displays a list of items worn (or owned) by this other avatar, and further specifies items that the player is particularly interested in (for example, a mouse) Click), your avatar automatically moves to the store that sells the item.

  In addition, when a player designates another avatar, the store selling any item worn or owned by this other avatar without displaying a list of items worn or owned by this other avatar You may make it move to. For example, you may make it move automatically to the store which sells the item which the other person's avatar wears most, the item which the other person's avatar has purchased most recently among the items which are wearing. This is the same when moving to a product sales server 5 (see FIG. 11) that sells actual products to be described later.

  The operation when the player designates another person's avatar or item is generally an operation of clicking on the screen display (single click or double click) with the mouse, but the designation operation may be accepted by other operations. . For example, you may make it select objects, such as an avatar and an item, with the cursor key of ↑ → ↓ ←, and a return key.

  As a form of movement when this own avatar moves to the store, the screen display may suddenly switch to the image inside the store so as to warp the space, and the avatar is separated from the operation of the player You may make it walk to the store.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a store. When the user's own avatar moves to the store, a video of the store as shown in the figure is displayed on the monitor 26 of the terminal device. This store is a store that sells clothes, and exhibits items such as inners 130 and jackets 131. Here, when the player specifies an item of interest (for example, with a mouse click), details (name, price, etc.) of the product are displayed, and when a try-on is selected, the avatar can try on the item. Then, when the purchase procedure is performed, the item is registered as an owned item of the own avatar, and the virtual currency possessed by the own avatar is subtracted by the price of the item.

  Here, the avatar can enter the store by himself, that is, by a player's entry operation, and as described above, when the player clicks on the other person's avatar, You can also move and enter the store.

Here, with reference to FIG. 5, the affiliate provision system with respect to the other person's avatar which passed is demonstrated. A player (first user) of a certain avatar (Mr. A) is interested in items worn by a different avatar (Mr. B) who is an avatar of another player (second user) (S1). When Mr. B is clicked on the screen (S2), Mr. A automatically enters the store (by the control of the game progress management unit 12 described later) (S3). As a result of this store entry, when Mr. A purchases an item at the store (S4), Mr. B is given an affiliate for creating an opportunity for selling products to Mr. A (S5).
Thus, in this system, Mr. B wears an item he likes and walks in the virtual society, and if other avatars are interested in the item, an affiliate can be acquired (S6). ).

  In the description of FIG. 5, the affiliate amount is set to 20 pts, which is 1/10 of the price of the purchased item (200 pts), but the affiliate amount (ratio) is not limited to this. Further, in the description of FIG. 5, when Mr. A visits the store via Mr. B and purchases the same item as that worn by Mr. B, an affiliate is generated. , Affiliate generation time and conditions are not limited to this.

In other words, the condition for Mr. A to visit the store via Mr. B is essential,
Presence / absence of purchase: Whether Mr. A purchases an item as a condition for generating an affiliate, or whether Mr. A visits a store to generate an affiliate. Type of purchased item: A's item purchase As a condition, is it necessary to purchase items that Mr. B wears (or owns), or to purchase other items sold at the store? As a condition of item purchase, the time of purchase is limited to when you visit the store via Mr. B, it can be at the next revisit, or when you visit the store via Mr. B Conditions such as whether or not to purchase within a predetermined time (for example, until logoff) can be freely set as appropriate in the design of the network game.

  In addition, when the above conditions are met, you can immediately set up an affiliate for Mr. B, or at the closing date such as the end of the month to generate an affiliate for an avatar that met the conditions before that time. can do.

<< Description of system configuration >>
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a computer system that executes the network game. This computer system is configured by connecting a portal server 1 and a plurality of terminal devices 2 via the Internet 3. The portal server 1 may be configured by a general server computer or workstation, and the terminal device 2 may be configured by a general personal computer, and thus detailed description of the hardware configuration is omitted.

  The portal server 1 includes a server database 11 (see FIG. 7) that stores and stores data of a virtual society and a plurality of avatars, a game progress management unit 12 that controls and manages the entire progress of the network game, and sales of items for avatars in stores. An item sales management unit 13 that controls and manages the issuance of affiliates and a communication control unit 14 that controls communication with the terminal device 2 and the like are provided. The game progress management unit 12 is a functional unit in which the game progress management process by the game progress management program is realized by hardware resources such as the CPU of the portal server 1. The item sales management unit 13 is a functional unit in which the item sales management process by the item sales management program is realized by hardware resources such as the CPU of the portal server 1. The communication control unit 14 is a functional unit in which communication control processing by the communication control program is realized by hardware resources such as the CPU of the portal server 1 and communication-related peripheral devices.

  The terminal device 2 is a local database 21 that stores data for advancing a network game on its own device, a display control unit 22 that displays a game screen on the monitor 26, and an operation that receives an operation of a player who is a user of the terminal device 2. A management control unit 24, a communication control unit 24 that controls communication with the portal server 1 and the like, and a game progress control unit 25 that controls the progress of the game in its own machine are provided. A monitor 26 is connected to the display control unit 22. The display control unit 22 is a functional unit in which display control processing by the display control program is realized by hardware resources such as the CPU of the terminal device 2. The operation management unit 23 is a functional unit in which operation management processing by the operation management program is realized by hardware resources such as peripheral devices such as a CPU of the terminal device 2 and a mouse / keyboard. The communication control unit 24 is a functional unit in which communication control processing by the communication control program is realized by hardware resources such as the CPU of the peripheral device 2 and communication-related peripheral devices. The game progress control unit 25 is a functional unit in which game progress control processing by a program for controlling game progress is realized by hardware resources such as the CPU of the terminal device 2.

  In the terminal device 2, this network game may be displayed by an Internet browser or may be executed by an independent application program. When displayed on an Internet browser, a game program (display control program, operation management program, communication control program, etc.) is provided as a plug-in for the Internet browser. These programs are recorded in the terminal device 2 when the portal server 1 distributes these programs to the terminal device 2 when the terminal device 2 first logs in to the portal server 1 by, for example, a player's operation. Is done. The terminal device 2 may store these programs by reading these programs from a recording medium such as a CD-ROM (registered trademark) set in the terminal device 2. Similarly, data stored in the local database 21 (data shown in FIG. 7) is also stored in the terminal device 2. The data and programs stored in the local database 21 are updated by downloading the latest data from the portal server 1 each time the user logs in to the portal server 1 by a player login operation.

  The operation management unit 23 monitors the player's operation and transmits operation information representing the detected operation content to the portal server 1 via the communication control unit 24. The portal server 1 (game progress management unit 12) manages the progress of the game so that each player's avatar is activated based on the operation information sent from each terminal device 2. Management of the progress of the game is performed by updating the contents of the server database 11 that stores all the states of the virtual society so as to match the state of the virtual society at that time. Then, the update information of the database 11 (described later with reference to FIG. 7) is transmitted to each terminal device 2 as appropriate. Each terminal device 2 (each game progress control unit 25) updates the local database 21 based on the update information sent from the portal server 1, and advances the game by updating the screen display accordingly. .

  The item sales management unit 13 functions when an avatar operated by any player (terminal device 2) visits a store provided in a virtual society. When the item sales management unit 13 transmits the sales item information of the store to the terminal device 2 that operates the avatar that visited the store or the avatar (player) purchases the item, the item sales management unit 13 owns the item. The item is registered in the item table, and the price of the item is subtracted from the possessed virtual currency. In addition, if the sale is based on the above-mentioned visit, an affiliate is issued to Mr. Avatar B.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the configuration of the server database 11. The server database 11 includes a virtual society data storage unit 30 that stores the configuration of the virtual society, a building data storage unit 31 that stores data on buildings such as houses, stations, and parks standing in the virtual society. Item data storage unit 32 that stores data of items that are owned and worn, player data storage unit 40 that stores information on the avatars of each player registered in the portal server 1 and the possession amount of virtual currency, and the building Image data storage unit 50 for storing image data such as the exterior, building interior, each item, and the body of the avatar. In addition to these image data, the server database 11 appropriately stores thumbnail images and enlarged images of these image data.

  The virtual social data storage unit 30 stores virtual social data set for each stage for each stage. The virtual social data includes map data in which an arrangement of a building or the like on the stage is written, building designation data for designating a building arranged on the map data, and the like. The building data storage unit 31 stores building data set for each building for each building. This building data includes building name data indicating the name of the building (for example, “XX department store”, etc.), building image designation data for designating an image of the exterior of the building, and building type data (store, private house, whether entry is possible) In the case of a building that can be entered, internal layout data is included, and in the case of a store that sells items, item specifying data that specifies sales items is included. The building data is set not only for structures but also for roadside street stalls.

  The item data storage unit 32 stores item data set for each item. Item data includes data indicating the name of the item (such as “red umbrella”), item image designating data for designating the image of the item, item type data for instructing where the item is to be worn by the avatar, and sales at the store Includes price data indicating the price.

  The player data storage unit 40 stores player data set for each player registered in the portal server 1. The player data includes data indicating the name of the player's avatar, avatar selection data specifying the image of the avatar's body selected by the player, position data indicating where the avatar is located at which coordinates, Owned item table in which items owned by this avatar are registered, worn item table in which items currently owned by the avatar among the owned items are registered, and the possession amount of virtual currency used in the virtual society Including possession amount data etc.

  The portal server 1 always stores a data group shown in FIG. When the terminal device 2 logs in to the portal server 1 for the first time by a player operation, the terminal device 2 downloads data other than the player data of other players from the data shown in FIG. That is, the player's (self) player data, virtual social data of all stages, building data of buildings in the virtual society, item data, image data designated by each data, and the like are downloaded to the local database 21. Is remembered. These data are updated by downloading the latest data every time the player logs in to the portal server 1.

  When the user's avatar moves on the stage, the player data of the other person's avatar located on the destination stage is downloaded. At this time, the player data of the other avatar that was located on the stage before the movement is discarded.

  In addition, since the user's avatar and other people's avatars always move and the items to be worn or possessed may be changed, the portal server 1 can change the player data such as the avatar position change from each terminal device 2. When the information indicating the change is received, the player data of the server database 11 is updated, and the updated data is periodically transmitted to each terminal device 2 as update information.

≪Description of operation≫
The operation of the computer system shown in FIG. 6 will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS.
FIG. 8A is a flowchart showing an operation waiting operation during login and after login. When the player performs a login operation such as inputting an ID and a password using the terminal device 2 (S10), the terminal device 2 transmits this login operation information to the portal server 1 (S11).

  When the portal server 1 receives the login operation information (S12), the portal server 1 registers the player as a login (assuming that the login operation information is correct), and performs processing to make the avatar appear in the virtual society (S13). . Then, the latest data is transmitted to the terminal device 2 operated by the player (S14).

  The terminal device 2 receives the data sent from the portal server 1 (S15) and stores it as the local database 21 of the own device (if the data is already stored, it is stored as the received data). Update your data). Then, the virtual society and the avatar are displayed based on the data written in the local database 21, and the network game is started on the terminal device 2 (S16).

  After that, the game progress control unit 25 of the terminal device 2 manages the progress of the game based on the player operation detected by the operation management unit 23 and the update information received from the portal server 1 by the communication control unit 24, and is necessary. Various subroutines are activated and executed according to the above. The operations in FIGS. 9B and 9C and the operations in FIGS. 9 to 10 are examples of this subroutine. The game progress control unit 12 of the portal server 1 manages the progress of the game based on the operation information received from the terminal devices 2 by the communication control unit 14 and activates and executes various subroutines as necessary. The operations in FIGS. 10B and 10C and the item sales operation in FIG. 10 for realizing the item sales management unit 13 are examples of this subroutine.

  FIG. 5B is a flowchart showing an update data distribution operation that is periodically executed. As described above, the progress of the game is managed by the game progress management unit 12 of the portal server 1 based on the operation information transmitted from the plurality of terminal devices 2. The game progress management unit 12 periodically transmits data (update information) for updating the local database, such as movement of each avatar, possession, and wearing of items, to each terminal device 2 (S17). The terminal device 2 receives the data sent from the portal server 1 and updates the local database 21 (S18), and updates the screen display such as the arrangement of the avatar based on the updated data (S19).

  The portal server 1 periodically executes the processing of FIG. 8B if there is at least one terminal device 2 logged in. In addition, the terminal device 2 periodically executes the process shown in FIG. 5B in response to the update information sent from the portal server 1 until the terminal device 2 logs on to log off.

  FIG. 8C is a flowchart showing the operation of the computer system corresponding to the operation of moving the avatar, which is the most common operation by the player. When the player moves his / her avatar, the player clicks an appropriate position in the direction in which he / she wants to move on the screen of the terminal device 2 (S21). Then, the terminal device 2 transmits this movement operation information to the portal server 1 (S22). Upon receiving this movement operation information (S23), the portal server 1 updates the avatar position data of the corresponding player based on this movement operation (S24). The updated position data is transmitted to the other terminal device 2 at the time of periodic data update (S17) shown in FIG. 5A, but to the terminal device that transmitted the movement operation information. On the other hand, the updated position data is immediately returned (S25). On the other hand, the terminal device 2 receives the updated position data (S26), and moves the display position of its own avatar to the updated position based on the moving operation (S27). In addition, the portal server 1 complete | finishes this process after execution of step S25 until it receives movement operation information again. In addition, after executing step S27, the terminal device 2 ends this process until a moving operation is accepted again.

  In this way, the player can smoothly operate the terminal device by sending back the operation result immediately to the terminal device to which the operation information has been sent. In this process, when the terminal device 2 receives the position data, the avatar is moved to the position indicated by the position data. However, instead of this configuration, the terminal device 2 moves the avatar from the player. You may employ | adopt the structure which changes the position of an avatar, when operation is received.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an operation of the computer system (an operation corresponding to a click on another avatar) when the player (first user) clicks on the other person's avatar on the network game screen displayed on the monitor 26.

  When the player clicks the other person's avatar with the mouse on the monitor 26 of the terminal device 2 operated by the player (S30), the terminal device 2 transmits operation information corresponding to the click operation to the portal server 1 (S31). ). When the portal server 1 receives the operation information (S32), the profile information of the clicked avatar is transmitted to the terminal device 2 that has transmitted the operation information (S33). The profile information includes at least information on items (or items owned) worn by the avatar (player). For example, item information includes item type (jacket, T-shirt, etc.), item vendor, price (virtual currency price, actual product price corresponding to item), and the like. The profile information is generated as follows, for example. The portal server 1 refers to the wearing item table included in the player data of the other person's avatar where the mouse is clicked, reads out the price data included in the item data shown in the wearing item table, and generates it using the read data. In this case, it is preferable that the item data includes profile information such as an item type and an item selling manufacturer in addition to the data shown in FIG.

  When the terminal device 2 receives the profile information of the clicked avatar (S34), the profile information is displayed on the monitor 26 (S35). This profile information is displayed in a display form such as a pop-up window. In this process, the portal server 1 generates profile information and distributes the profile information to the terminal device 2, but it may be generated and displayed by the terminal device 2. If any item is selected by the player from the displayed profile information (YES in S36), the terminal device 2 sends information indicating that this item has been selected (item selection information) to the portal server 1. Transmit (S37).

  Upon receiving the item selection information (S38), the portal server 1 transmits a movement instruction message to the terminal device 2 so as to move to the store selling the item (S39). This movement instruction message includes location information indicating where the store is located. The movement instruction message is generated as follows, for example. The portal server 1 acquires a building that sells the selected item by searching for building data including item designation data of the item indicated by the item selection information. Furthermore, the portal server 1 acquires the position of the building data searched with reference to the virtual social data, and generates a movement instruction message including this position information.

  Upon receiving this movement instruction message, the terminal device 2 moves its own avatar to the instructed store (S40). As described above, the form of movement when the own avatar moves to the store may switch the screen display to the image inside the store so as to warp the space. You may walk to.

  In this process, the terminal device 2 moves the avatar to the position corresponding to the movement instruction message from the portal server 1, but the terminal device 2 acquires the position of the building where the item selected by the player is sold. The avatar may be moved to this position.

  When the portal server 1 receives this item selection information (S39), the information of the player (referee: first user) who clicked the other person's avatar and the player of this other person's avatar (introducer: second user) ) As an argument (S41), the item sales management program is started (S42). The information on the first user includes, for example, identification information (for example, a user ID) for identifying the introduced person and information indicating that the person is the introduced person. The information on the second user includes, for example, identification information (for example, a user ID) for identifying the introducer and information indicating that the user is an introducer.

  After executing step S40, the terminal device 2 proceeds to the operation of step S48 in FIG. The portal server 1 shifts the operation to the item sales management program (item sales management unit 13) in step S42, and then terminates the other avatar click corresponding operation and monitors reception of the next operation information and the like. Return to standby mode. In the terminal device 2, the game progress management unit 25 responds to the item sales management unit 13 (item sales management program) of the portal server 1.

  Further, when any item is not selected by the player from the displayed profile information (NO in S36), the terminal device 2 notifies the portal server 1 to that effect, and ends this other person avatar click compatible operation. To do. In response to receiving the notification that the item is not selected (NO in S43), the portal server 1 ends the other person avatar click corresponding operation.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a procedure of item sales / purchase operations executed by the portal server in accordance with the item sales processing program. The portal server 1 (item sales management unit 13) executes the item sales program when the avatar moves to the store, that is, when the avatar visits the store. The portal server 1 determines whether the visit of the current avatar is due to the player's movement operation or a visit via another person's avatar (via visit) (S45). This determination is made by the item sales management unit 13 based on whether or not the information of the introducer and the introduced person is passed from the game progress management unit 12 as an argument. In the case of the via visit, the information of the introducer / referee (visitor) passed as an argument is registered in the via visit table (S46). This route visit table is set separately from the database 11 and is managed by the item sales management unit 13 by executing this item sales management program.

And the portal server 1 transmits sales item information with respect to the terminal device 2 of the player where the avatar visited the store (S47). The sales item information is list information including the names of items sold at the store, information for designating images, prices, and the like. Sales item information is generated as follows, for example. That is, the portal server 1 refers to the item designation data of the building data and acquires the item data indicated by the item designation data. Information including item name data, item image designation data, and price data included in the item data is generated as sales item information. When receiving the sales item information (S48), the terminal device 2 acquires the item image data indicated by the sales item information, and displays a list in association with the item name and price indicated by the sales item information (S49). This list display may be performed in a pop-up window as shown in FIG. 15, for example, or may be performed in a display mode in which products are displayed at a store in the network game. In this process, the terminal device 2 downloads the sales item information from the portal server 1, but the terminal device 2 may generate the sales item information.

  When one item is selected from the sales items displayed in a list by the player (YES in S50), the terminal device 2 provides information (item selection information) indicating that the item has been selected to the portal server 1. (S51). On the other hand, in the case of NO in step S50, that is, when an operation such as leaving the store is performed, the terminal device 2 notifies the portal server 1 of this fact and ends this processing. . When the portal server 1 receives this notification, it executes S65, deletes information from the route visit table, and ends the operation. If the visit is not a transit visit, the operation is terminated without substantially performing the process in S65.

  Upon receiving the item selection information (S52), the portal server 1 transmits detailed information regarding the item to the terminal device 2 (S53). The detailed information includes information for designating an enlarged image of the item, PR information, and the like. This detailed information is generated as follows, for example. That is, the portal server 1 stores PR information in association with the item data shown in FIG. 7, and reads the PR information corresponding to the item data of the selected item when the item selection information is received. Then, information including PR information and image designation data included in the item data (designating an enlarged image) is generated as detailed information. When receiving the detailed information of the selected item (S54), the terminal device 2 displays the enlarged image corresponding to the information specifying the enlarged image and the PR information in association with each other (S55), and purchases this from the player. Prompt for selection input. In this process, the terminal device 2 displays the detailed information received from the portal server 1, but the present invention is not limited to this configuration, and the terminal device 2 may be configured to generate the detailed information by storing the PR information by itself. Good. Further, it is not always necessary to display the detailed information, and the item may be purchased when the item selection information is transmitted to the portal server 1.

  When the player inputs purchase (YES in S56), the terminal device 2 transmits purchase operation information to the portal server 1 (S57). If the player has made an operation not to purchase (NO in S56), the detailed information display is deleted and the process returns to S49.

  Upon receiving the purchase operation information (S58), the portal server 1 subtracts the value for the price of this item from the possessed currency data included in the player data of this player (S59), and uses this item as the possessed item of this player. Register (S60). In addition, when an item is selected in S50, try-on can be selected. When an item being tried-on is purchased, it is registered as an item owned by the player data and also as a wear item.

  Then, the portal server 1 transmits the updated player data to the terminal device 2 that has transmitted the purchase operation information (S61), and the terminal device 2 receives the updated player data and stores the local database 21. It updates (S62), and the other person avatar click corresponding | compatible operation | movement started by step S30 of FIG. 9 is complete | finished. The updated player data is transmitted to the other terminal device 2 in step S17 of the process shown in FIG. As described above, in this processing, the player data is updated when the terminal device 2 receives the updated player data. However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration, and the player data (owned item) is received when a purchase operation is accepted. Table) may be updated.

Thereafter, the portal server 1 determines whether or not the current item sale is due to a route visit (S63). This is determined based on whether or not the information of the player (avatar) who purchased the item this time is registered as an introduced person in the above-described route visit table. In the case of the via visit, an affiliate is issued to the introducer registered corresponding to the player who purchased the item this time in the via visit table (S64). Here, the issue of the affiliate increases the value of the possessed currency of the player data of the introducer as an affiliate by a predetermined value. The increase amount is, for example, a few percent of the purchase amount of the item, and this amount is calculated and increased. The increase amount may be constant regardless of the purchase amount of the item. In addition, the affiliate is not limited to the increase in virtual passage, and may be a coupon in a virtual society (mileage, etc.) or a coupon that can be used in a virtual store. It may be a currency or the like.

  Then, the portal server 1 deletes the introducer / referee information from the via-visit table (S65), and ends the processing of the item sales management program. If the visit is not a transit visit, the processes of S64 and S65 are skipped. Further, as described above, when an operation not to select an item (to leave the store) is performed in S50, a notification to this effect is received from the terminal device 2, and at this time, from the via-visit table The information is deleted and the operation ends.

  In the flowchart of FIG. 10, an affiliate is sent to another avatar (second user) on the condition that any item sold in this store may be purchased before the avatar leaves the store. Although issued, the conditions for affiliate issuance are not limited to this as described above.

<< Other Embodiments >>
In the embodiment described above, a configuration has been described in which a player purchases a virtual item to be worn by his / her avatar in a network game. On the other hand, as described above, in this network game, a linked item that is a virtual item linked with an actual product is provided, and an avatar wears this linked item and appears in a virtual society. Therefore, it is possible to connect to a product sales server that operates an Internet mail order site that sells actual products via this linked item so that players can purchase the same (or related) actual product as the linked item. It is also possible. Hereinafter, a game system in which the terminal device 2 of the player is connected to a product sales server that purchases / sells actual products via such network game cooperation items will be described.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a configuration of a computer system including a merchandise sales server that operates the Internet mail order sales site. In this figure, the same components as those in the system configuration diagram shown in FIG. Here, a product sales server 5 that is a server for operating an Internet mail order site is connected to the Internet 3. A plurality of merchandise sales servers 5 are connected to the Internet 3 for each type of merchandise to be sold. This merchandise sales server 5 is a server computer that operates a general Internet mail order site, and has a function of performing merchandise sales contract processing (and credit payment processing) online to a visitor who has visited the site. have. In general, the product is shipped by an attendant.

  The difference between the product sales server 5 and the conventional product sales server is that the customer who visited via the Internet mail order site (No. 1) in response to the designation of another avatar in the network game described above. When the user (1 user) purchases the product, an affiliate is issued to the player (second user) of the other avatar that triggered the customer to visit this site. This affiliate is issued by the portal server 1 by an application from the merchandise sales server 5 to the portal server 1.

  Furthermore, the product sales server 5 determines whether or not a customer (player in a network game) who visits this Internet mail order site purchases a product via a link via the mediation of the portal server 1, whether or not it is a transit visit. First, a linked item, which is a virtual item linked with the product, is presented to the player's avatar. Thereby, the provider of this Internet mail order site can advertise this product by causing the avatar of this player to wear the linked item in the RPG. The present of the cooperation item is performed by the portal server 1 by an application from the product sales server 5 to the portal server 1.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart for explaining a mail order procedure for merchandise by cooperation of the portal server 1, the terminal device 2, and the merchandise sales server 5. This flowchart shows the procedure from the list display in S49 of the flowchart of FIG. When the list is displayed in S49 of FIG. 10, selection of a virtual item is accepted in S50, and purchase of an actual product corresponding to the sales item (linked item) displayed in the list is accepted (S70 of FIG. 12). This operation is shown in FIG. When actual product purchase is selected, the portal server 1 connects the terminal device 2 to the product sales server 5 and causes the monitor display of the terminal device 2 to jump to the screen of the site provided by the product sales server 5.

  When the player chooses to purchase the actual product (YES in S70), the terminal device 2 gives the portal server 1 the purchase operation information including the identification information of the selected linked item and the purchase of the actual product. (S71). When the portal server 1 receives the purchase operation information (S72), the portal server 1 selects the product sales server 5 selling the actual product corresponding to the linked item, and connects the product sales server 5 and the terminal device 2. (S73). For selection by the merchandise sales server 5, the portal server 1 stores link information indicating the link destination in association with the item data, and reads the link information corresponding to the item data. The portal server 1 connects the product sales server 5 indicated by the link information and the terminal device 2. With this connection, communication between the product sales server 5 and the terminal device 2 is started, and the product sales server 5 transmits the contents of the Internet mail order site to the terminal device 2 (S74). Is received and the image of the mail order site is displayed on the Internet browser (S75).

  Meanwhile, the portal server 1 determines whether the terminal device 2 is connected to the merchandise sales server 5 this time is a route visit based on the information registered in S46 of FIG. 10 (S76). In this case, the introducer (second user) and visitor (first user) information is transmitted to the product sales server 5 (S78). The merchandise sales server 5 receives this introducer / visitor information and registers it in the via-visit table (S79).

  When the terminal device 2 performs a product purchase procedure with respect to the product sales server 5 according to the operation of the player (S80), the product sales server 5 performs product sales processing such as payment for the price and arrangement of shipping (S81). . This completes mail order via the Internet.

  Thereafter, the merchandise sales server 5 determines whether the sale of the current merchandise is due to a visit through the route (S82). In the case of a route visit (YES in S82), an introducer corresponding to the player who purchased the product with reference to the route visit table is acquired, and the introducer (second user) acquired for the portal server 1 is acquired. Apply for the issuance of an affiliate to (S83). In response to this application, the portal server 1 increases the value of the possessed currency of the player data of the introducer as an affiliate by a predetermined value (S84). Note that the increase value of the possessed currency amount is not a predetermined value, and may be an amount corresponding to the purchase price of the product of the player who is the referee. In this case, information indicating the purchase price of the product is included in the application for issuing an affiliate, and the increase value is calculated based on the information. Then, the information of the introducer / referee is deleted from the route visit table (S85, S86). If it is not a transit visit (NO in S82), the operations in S83 to 86 are not performed.

Further, the merchandise sales server 5 applies to the portal server to provide the linked item that copies the purchased merchandise to the avatar of the player who purchased the merchandise (free gift) (S87), and performs this sales management operation. finish. In response to this application, the portal server 1 registers this linked item in the owned item table of the player data of this player (S88), and ends the sales management operation of this actual product. Then, the portal server 1 transmits the updated player data to the terminal device 2 (S89), and the terminal device 2 receives the updated player data and updates the local server 21 (S90). Returning to the virtual item sales management operation (S49) of FIG.

  In the case of NO in S70, that is, when an operation not to purchase a real product (to leave the store) is performed, the terminal device 2 transmits a notification to this effect to the portal server 1 and ends this operation. To do. When the portal server 1 receives this notification, it executes S65 in FIG. 10 to delete information from the route visit table and ends this operation.

  In this embodiment, the avatar is temporarily moved to the store when the player clicks on the item worn by the avatar. However, when the player clicks the item with the mouse, the terminal device 2 is sold immediately. The server 5 may be jumped.

The processing operation in this case is shown in the flowcharts of FIGS. 13 is a modification of FIG. 9, and FIG. 14 is a modification of FIG. In FIG. 13 and FIG. 14, the same processing steps as those in FIG. 9 and FIG. The terminal device 2 transmits the item selection information to the portal server 1 in S37 of FIG. 13 and then proceeds to FIG. 14 to start communication with the merchandise sales server 5. When the game progress management unit 12 of the portal server 1 receives the item selection information from the terminal device 2 (S38), the game progress management unit 12 activates the item sales management unit 13 (item sales management program) in order to manage the sale of the actual product. (S42) to finish the operation. In FIG. 14, the item sales management unit 13 connects the terminal device 2 and the product sales server 5 (S73). In the case of a route visit (YES in S76), this information is also recorded in the route visit table of the own device (S77) before being sent to the product sales server 5 (S78).

  In the issuance of affiliates in the sale of actual products described in this embodiment, various conditions can be arbitrarily set as in the above-described issuance of affiliates at the time of item sales. Further, the content of the affiliate is not limited to the increase in virtual currency, as in the case of the affiliate issue at the time of item sale described above.

  In the present embodiment, the server constituting the computer system executes a portal function, and the game content is associated with the portal function, but is not limited to this configuration. The game according to the present embodiment may be a role-playing game, another type of game such as an action game, or a game that can activate an avatar that allows an item to be displayed in a virtual society. That's fine.

  Note that the system configuration of the computer system is not limited to this, and the portal server may be configured by a plurality of devices, and also has a function as a product sales server, so that actual products can be sold by the portal server. Also good.

  The “avatar” generally does not include a game character, but in the present invention includes a game character that is operated by a player's operation.

The figure which shows an example of the virtual society used as the stage of the network game performed with the computer system to which this invention is applied The figure which shows the example of a screen display of the said virtual society The figure which shows the example which the avatar wears various items The figure which shows an example of the store provided in the said virtual society The figure explaining the affiliate grant system in the said network game The figure which shows the structure of the computer system which performs the said network game The figure which shows the server database which is established in the portal server Flow chart showing actions when player logs in, waits for operation, and moves Flow chart showing the action when the player clicks on another person's avatar Flow chart showing item sales process The figure which shows the structure of the computer system containing a merchandise sales server Flowchart showing the procedure for jumping from the network game to the product sales server and processing the sale and purchase of the actual product The flowchart which shows the procedure which jumps to the product sales server from the network game concerning a modification, and processes sale / purchase of an actual product The flowchart which shows the procedure which jumps to the product sales server from the network game concerning a modification, and processes sale / purchase of an actual product Figure showing an example of a pop-up window that displays sales items

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Train station 101 (101A, 101B, 101C) ... Store 102 ... Park 103 ... Train 110 ... Own avatar 111 ... Other avatar 120 ... Avatar (element)
121-126 ... Various items

Claims (9)

Computer system,
A player data storage unit that stores information on position data, owned items, and possession amount data of a plurality of virtual characters (hereinafter referred to as avatars) corresponding to each of a plurality of users, and a store that sells virtual items A virtual social data storage unit that stores the position data and building designation data of the virtual building, the internal layout data of the virtual building, the building data storage unit that stores the item designation data, and the images of the building and the avatar A virtual society building procedure for displaying a virtual society and the avatar based on data of the database, the database having an image data storage unit for storing data ;
In response to the operation of moving the avatar by the corresponding user, the avatar moving procedure for moving the avatar by updating the position data in the player data storage unit,
When the first user performs an operation of selecting another person's avatar that is an avatar of another second user, the same item as that owned by and displayed by the other person's avatar or related thereto Search the building data including the item specification data of the item, acquire the store that sells the selected item, acquire the location data of the searched building by referring to the virtual social data, based on the location data of the building A store guidance procedure for moving the first user's avatar to the store of the virtual society that sells the item by updating the position data of the first user's avatar;
A program that executes
The store induction procedure, the first user is, when the operation to select the others avatar, to display at least a portion of the list of the items that the others avatar owns, the first from among the The program of Claim 1 including the procedure of moving the said 1st user's avatar to the store which sells the item which is the same as the item which the user selected, or the item relevant to it is sold. In the store guidance procedure, the position data of the first user's avatar is updated discontinuously from the position data when the first user performs an operation of selecting the other person's avatar to the position data of the store. The program of Claim 1 or Claim 2 including the procedure to perform . In the store guidance procedure, the location data of the first user's avatar is obtained from the location data when the first user performs an operation of selecting the other person's avatar. The program according to claim 1 or 2, comprising a procedure for continuously updating the position data of the store via the position data . In response to the item purchase operation by the first user in the store, the item acquisition procedure for causing the avatar to own the virtual item by updating the data of the owned item in the player data storage unit is further provided. The program according to any one of claims 1 to 4, which is executed by a computer system . The virtual society construction procedure includes a procedure of further storing possession amount data in the player data storage unit ,
The item acquisition procedure includes a procedure of subtracting the possessed amount data of the first user 's avatar by the price of the purchased item when an operation for purchasing the item by the first user is performed. The program according to claim 5. The virtual society construction procedure includes a procedure of further storing possession amount data in the player data storage unit,
In the item acquisition procedure, when a purchase operation of an item is performed by the first user in the store, a reward providing procedure for adding a predetermined value to the possessed amount data of the other person's avatar is further executed in the computer system. The program according to claim 5. The computer system is configured by connecting a server computer and a plurality of terminal devices via a network, and the virtual society building procedure is such that a plurality of users operate their avatars by operating their own terminal devices, respectively. The program according to any one of claims 1 to 7 , comprising a procedure. A computer system comprising: a program storage unit that stores the program according to any one of claims 1 to 8 ; and a control unit that executes the program stored in the program storage unit.