JP6147331B2 - Persistent party room - Google Patents

Description

  The present application relates to an online game environment, and more particularly, to a party room or a chat room used while playing a game.

  The party room is an online chat environment in which a gamer performs voice chat, text chat, video chat, etc. during a game or during a game break while playing a game or an online game. One problem with party rooms is that the party room is temporary and does not persist from session to session. Previously, whenever everyone left the room, if someone wanted to return to the party room or join a new party room, the user had to recreate the party room. This approach is inefficient from the end user perspective.

  Our implementation provides a persistent party room that is persistent and can be bookmarked back.

  Some implementations provide a way to take advantage of persistent party rooms. This method involves initializing a global array according to a hierarchical server architecture via a computing device, and creating a new persistent party room via the computing device or previously bookmarked. Determining whether to join a persistent party room; generating the new persistent party room at a location indexed to the global array via a computing device; and computing device Via the global sequence to join the previously bookmarked persistent party room by searching for the previously bookmarked persistent party room.

  In another implementation, a non-transitory computer readable recording medium storing a computer program is applied. The computer program includes executable instructions that cause a computer to execute a method utilizing a persistent party room, the method initializing a global array according to a hierarchical server architecture, and a new persistent Determining whether to create a party room or join a previously bookmarked persistent party room; and generating the new persistent party room at a position indexed in the global array And joining the previously bookmarked persistent party room by searching for the previously bookmarked persistent party room using the global sequence.

  In yet another implementation, a system utilizing a persistent party room is provided. The system includes at least one computer system that includes persistent party room software, at least one server that stores persistent party room information compatible with the persistent party room software, and the at least one computer system. And a network connecting the at least one server.

  Other features and advantages of the present application will be readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art by reference to the following detailed description and drawings.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a screenshot of an example of a persistent party room according to an implementation of the present application. It is a figure explaining the server architecture which concerns on implementation of this application. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for creating and joining a persistent party room according to an implementation of the present application. It is a figure explaining the flowchart which shows the initialization method which concerns on a certain implementation of this application. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for creating a new persistent party room according to an embodiment of the present application. FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart illustrating a method that occurs for a first route when joining a bookmarked room, according to an implementation of the present application. FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart illustrating a method that occurs for a second route when joining a bookmarked room, according to an implementation of the present application. FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart illustrating a method that occurs for a third route when joining a bookmarked room, according to an implementation of the present application. It is a figure explaining the computer system and user which concern on a certain implementation of this application. FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram illustrating a computer system that hosts a logged-in person according to an implementation of the present application.

  As disclosed herein, certain implementations provide a persistent party room. After reading this description, it will become apparent how to implement this application in various alternative embodiments and alternative applications. However, although various implementations of the invention are described herein, these implementations are presented for illustrative purposes only and are not limiting. Accordingly, the detailed description of various alternative implementations should not be construed as limiting the scope or extension of the present application.

  In one implementation, a persistent party room is a pseudo-permanent party room that appears to the user as a permanent party room, and after being destroyed, the user returns to that party room (which can be bookmarked) Sometimes generated. Keep friends and online players away from your friends and online players by moving from game to game and staying involved in voice, text, and video chat, even if they are playing different game titles A party room is used to do this. With a persistent party room, friends may bookmark or save the party room to make it easier to rejoin the same party room later.

  The bookmarked persistent party room is the central place where they will go when friends are in the mood to play games with each other. For example, a bookmarked persistent party room can be named “FPS” for a user's friend who wants to play a first person shooter. In addition, a room can be named “racing” for a friend who wants to play a racing game. Depending on the game the user wants to play, the user's mood, or whether there are more or fewer people in the persistent party room, the user can participate in any of the persistent party rooms. The backend software used to manage the persistent party room stores the associated unique ID of the persistent party room. When a user wants to join a persistent party room, the system searches to determine if there is a bookmark with an associated unique ID. If the bookmark does not exist, a new associated unique ID is generated. This approach saves resources by always keeping these persistent party rooms on hand. To the user, it looks as if a persistent party room always exists, but in reality, when everyone leaves the persistent party room, the room is destroyed (stored and associated unique Bookmarked by a pointer representing the ID). Later, when the first user joins a bookmarked persistent party room, the system looks up the associated unique ID of the persistent party room and regenerates the room.

  Currently, party room implementations allow users to create one party room where friends are invited to join or are allowed to join through a regular search. When all users leave the party room, the party room is destroyed. When the user subsequently wants to enter the party room, the party room is recreated by the user.

  As disclosed by this application, a persistent party room can be bookmarked or stored through a unique ID associated with it for quick reference or later use. To solve this inefficiency problem. Users may create different types of persistent party rooms around their different types of activities with their friends. In addition, if your friends have a good time in a lasting party room, they will be able to join the same lasting party room when all or some of their friends become available next time. You can choose to bookmark that persistent party room and coordinate their activities. Game scheduling can be further facilitated by using a participating game acknowledge function in conjunction with a persistent party room, so that slots in the game are reserved in advance.

  In one implementation, a persistent party room stored and executed by a computer system to create a persistent party room where users can be grouped to play games, text chats, voice chats, video chats, etc. Software is provided. In some implementations, the computer system may be a next generation game console such as Sony PlayStation®.

  FIG. 1 shows a screenshot of an example of a persistent party room 100, according to an implementation of the present application. The persistent party room 100 includes a current persistent party room toolbar 102, a persistent party room chat box 104, a current member list 106, a persistent party room list 108, a user chat GUI window 110, a user chat button. 112 and a user information box 114. When the user launches a persistent party room application, a screen similar to persistent party room 100 appears.

  The current persistent party room toolbar 102 displays which persistent party room the user is currently in. The heart icon in the toolbar 102 may be grayed out if the current persistent party room is not bookmarked. If the user touches a grayed heart icon, the heart icon turns red and the current persistent party room is bookmarked and associated bookmark data information (such as the room's associated unique ID). May be stored in the local storage. The bookmark information stored in the local storage may be compared with the bookmark information of the party room being used by friends or other users.

  The current member list 106 shows users or friends in the current persistent party room. If the room used by the user matches a previously bookmarked room, the heart icon in toolbar 102 will be red next to the name of that room. Further, when a user listed in the current member list 106 is touched, the profile of the user appears in the user information box. In some implementations, if the cursor is placed over a user name, a user information box will appear near the cursor. In other implementations, clicking on the user name opens another page that displays the user information box, or opens a small window that displays the user information box.

  The persistent party room list 108 provides a list of bookmarked rooms so that the user can decide to join at any time. A heart icon next to the room name also indicates whether the room is bookmarked. If there is no bookmarked party room and the user wants to create a room, a persistent party room is created on the server with an associated unique ID.

  The user chat GUI window 110 allows a user to enter text, video, links, or other information to communicate with other users. User chat button 112 reflects various modes of communication with other users (text, video, phone, etc.), and these modes of communication are not limited to the buttons shown here. User information box 114 summarizes information about the current user.

  FIG. 2 illustrates a server architecture according to the implementation of the present application. In particular, FIG. 2 illustrates a server architecture 200 that shows at least one server 202. Each server 202 includes at least one world 204, and each world 204 includes at least one room 206.

  In one implementation, room 206 is where persistent party rooms are stored, and each persistent room (room 206) resides in one world 204, which world 204 is on one server 202. Exists. In one implementation, each server 202 has multiple worlds 204, and each world 204 has multiple rooms 206. Each persistent party room (eg, room 206) is created on a particular server 202 and world 204. Each of the room 206, the world 204, and the server 202 has a unique ID (for example, a room ID, a world ID, and a server ID) associated with each other. In one implementation, each room ID uses a world ID and a server ID in this unique ID. In another implementation, each world ID uses a server ID in its unique ID. In another implementation, each ID may track data about information associated with other IDs (eg, each server ID may specify information about the world ID and room ID associated with it). Each world ID can specify information about the server ID and room ID associated with it, and each room ID can specify information about the server ID and world ID associated with it).

  FIG. 3 illustrates a flowchart illustrating a method 300 for creating and joining a persistent party room according to an implementation of the present application. In some implementations, the method 300 begins at box 302, but may begin at other locations in FIG. 3, and the boxes described below may also be performed in any order. In box 304, an initialization process (described further below with reference to FIG. 4) is performed.

  In decision box 306, decide whether to join the bookmarked persistent party room or create a new persistent party room. If the answer to decision box 306 is to create a new persistent party room, the next box is box 310, where a new persistent party room is created. If the answer to decision box 306 is to join a bookmarked persistent party room, the next box is box 308, from which it branches to at least one of three different scenarios. The route A is box 312, the route B is box 314, and the route C is box 316.

  Box 312 after Route A is a scenario where a bookmarked persistent party room is not found and a duplicate persistent party room is not found, and is further described below with reference to FIG. Box 314 after Route B is a scenario where a bookmarked persistent party room is not found and a duplicate persistent party room is found, and is further described below with reference to FIG. Box 316 after Route C is a scenario where a bookmarked persistent party room is found and is further described below with reference to FIG.

  After box 310, or boxes 312, 314, or 316, the next box is decision box 318, whether the process of method 300 is complete (ie, create or join a more persistent party room). hear. If the answer to decision box 318 is “no”, method 300 returns to box 306. In one implementation, the above box may be executed by a system that implements the persistent party room software or technology discussed herein.

  FIG. 4 illustrates a flowchart illustrating an initialization method for box 304 (FIG. 3) according to an implementation of the present application. In one implementation, box 3040 is a continuation from box 302 in FIG. In some implementations, the method described below begins at box 3040, but may start at other locations in FIG. 4, and the boxes described below may also be performed in any order. A box 3041 obtains a list of server IDs. In box 3042, a list of world IDs is received from each server ID. In box 3043, an array (eg, named GlobalWorldlDListArray) is generated that includes world IDs that span servers. For example, if there are two servers, each with four worlds, the list of world IDs across the servers will include a total of eight items. In box 3044, the array is stored for later use, for example, when a persistent party room is created (as detailed below). In box 3045, the array is also sorted by world ID for safety to ensure that the array is uniform across clients and is substantially similar (eg, having the same order). Then everything ends in box 3046, and in one implementation, the next box from box 3046 is 306 in FIG.

  In one implementation, the above process gets a list of all server IDs, gets a list of all world IDs from each server ID, creates an array containing all worlds across all servers, and all clients The array may be sorted for safety to ensure that the order is the same between them.

  FIG. 5 illustrates a flowchart illustrating a method for creating a new persistent party room for box 310 (FIG. 3) according to an embodiment of the present application. In one implementation, box 3100 is a continuation from box 306 in FIG. In one implementation, the method described below begins at box 3100, but may start at other locations in FIG. 5 and the boxes described below may also be performed in any order. In box 3101, a bookmark UID (user ID) is generated using the network platform ID and the current time. In one implementation, the bookmark UID is a data structure that includes a network platform ID and a snapshot of the current time. The network platform ID is the username or login name of the current user who is logged into the network utilized by the persistent party room software.

In one implementation, the bookmark UID is approximately 64 bytes of data. The bookmark UID is also used to determine which world ID (from the array eg GlobalWorldlDListArray) should create a persistent party room. In box 3102, the data contained in the bookmark UID is added, for example in 16-bit chunks, and stored in another world list array (e.g., named WorldListChunk), so that the bookmark UID is used in any world ID from the array. Decide whether a persistent party room should be created. In one implementation, the world list array is another 16-bit (or 2-byte) value, and all bytes in the bookmark UID structure are added and stored, for example, as a 16-bit value named WorldListChunk. The overflow that occurs during the addition is arbitrary and the goal is to get some randomness using every byte in the bookmark UID structure. Thereafter, in box 3103, the world ID is indexed and selected from the GlobalWorldlDListArray, for example, using the following formula:
WorldListChunk% Count (GlobalWorldlDListArray) = GlobalWorldlDListArrayIndex
Here, GlobalWorldlDListArraylndex represents an index to GlobalWorldlDListArray and includes a world ID in which a persistent party room is generated. Also,% is a modulo operation, and Count is the length of GlobalWorldlDListArray. Thus, the bookmark UID is used to index the GlobalWorldlDListArray. In box 3104, GlobalWorldlDListArraylndex is used as an index into GlobalWorldlDListArray and contains the world ID where the persistent party room is created. Thereafter, in box 3106, the process ends, and in one implementation, the next box is box 318 in FIG.

  FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart illustrating the method of box 312 (FIG. 3) that occurs for the first route when joining a bookmarked room, according to an implementation of the present application. Box 312 continues to Route A in FIG. In some implementations, box 3120 is a continuation from box 308 in FIG. In one implementation, the method described below begins at box 3120, but may start at other locations in FIG. 6 and the boxes described below may also be performed in any order. Box 3121 gets the bookmark UID and GlobalWorldIDListArrayIndex in GlobalWorldIDListArray and determines on which world ID a persistent party room should exist. In box 3122, a search is performed on this world ID for the bookmark UID (which is a searchable attribute in some implementations) to determine if any persistent party room with this world ID already exists. .

  In decision box 3123, a branch query is made as to whether any persistent party room with the bookmark UID already exists.

  If the answer to decision box 3123 is no, the next box is box 3124 where a new persistent party room is created. In box 3125, join the new persistent party room created in box 3124 with a bookmark UID, and then the method returns to box 3122 to see how many persistent party rooms exist with the current bookmark UID. Perform another search to determine Thereafter, boxes 3123 and 3126 are repeated, ending with box 3127. In some implementations, the answer to decision box 3123 in the first pass may be “no”.

  However, if the answer to box 3123 is yes, then the next box is box 3126, and there is only one persistent party room (current persistent party room) with the same bookmark UID as above. Verify whether it exists. If there is only one persistent party room, the method ends at box 3127 and in one implementation proceeds to box 318 of FIG. In one implementation, the answer to decision box 3123 may be “Yes” on the first pass, which means that two or more bookmarked rooms have been found.

  FIG. 7 illustrates a flowchart illustrating the method of box 314 (FIG. 3) that occurs for the second route when joining a bookmarked room, according to an implementation of the present application. Box 314 continues to Route B in FIG. In some implementations, box 3140 is a continuation from box 308 in FIG. In one implementation, the method described below begins at box 3140, but may start at other locations in FIG. 7, and the boxes described below may also be performed in any order. Box 3141 gets the bookmark UID and GlobalWorldIDListArrayIndex in the GlobalWorldIDListArray and determines on which World ID the persistent party room should be. In box 3142, a search is performed on this world ID for a bookmark UID (which is a searchable attribute in some implementations) to determine if any persistent party room with this world ID already exists. .

  In decision box 3143, a branch query is made as to whether any persistent party room with bookmark UID already exists.

  If the answer to decision box 3146 is “no”, then box 3147 is executed and participates in the first persistent party room in the search results, effectively destroying or participating in the current persistent party room. Replace with a persistent party room. The method then ends at box 3148 and proceeds to box 318 in FIG. In some implementations, the answer to decision box 3146 may be “no” in the first pass.

  However, if the answer to box 3143 is yes, the method proceeds to decision box 3146. In decision box 3146, if there are two or more persistent party rooms with the same bookmark UID, it is determined whether the current persistent party room is the first to appear in the search results. If the answer to decision box 3146 is yes, the method ends at box 3148 and, in one implementation, proceeds to box 318 of FIG. In one implementation, the answer to box 3123 may be “Yes” on the first pass, which means that two or more bookmarked rooms have been found.

  Returning to decision box 3143, if the answer to decision box 3143 is no, the method proceeds to box 3144 and a new persistent party room is created. In box 3145, join the new persistent party room created in box 3144 with a bookmark UID, and then the method returns to box 3142 to see how many persistent party rooms exist with the current bookmark UID. Perform another search to determine Thereafter, boxes 3143, 3146 and 3147 are repeated, ending with box 3148.

  FIG. 8 illustrates a flowchart illustrating the method of box 316 (FIG. 3) that occurs for the third route when joining a bookmarked room, according to an implementation of the present application. Box 316 continues to Route C in FIG. In one implementation, box 3160 is a continuation from box 308 in FIG. In one implementation, the method described below begins at box 3160, but may start at other locations in FIG. 8, and the boxes described below may also be performed in any order. Box 3161 gets the bookmark UID and GlobalWorldIDListArrayIndex in the GlobalWorldIDListArray and determines on which World ID the persistent party room should be. In box 3162, a search is performed on this world ID for the bookmark UID (which is a searchable attribute in some implementations) to determine if any persistent party room with this world ID already exists. . If one or more rooms with bookmark UIDs are found in box 3163, join the first room returned in the search results. In some implementations, the search result is shown as a room ID that identifies a persistent party room to join and always returns the same bookmark UID in the same order for box 3163. If not, for example, when GlobalWorldlDListArray is initialized, persistent party rooms in GlobalWorldlDListArray are sorted by room ID, resulting in the first room in the sorted search results. After box 3163, the method ends at box 3164 and in one implementation continues to box 318 of FIG.

  In some implementations, a participating game acknowledge function may be integrated into a persistent party room. In essence, participating game acknowledgment is a function supported by a game. The participating game acknowledge function allows a player playing a game to reserve a slot for another player without distracting the player from the current game being played. In other words, slot reservation and organization are performed behind the scenes. For example, when player A is playing a game, player B is interested in participating in the same game as player A is playing. Instead of waiting for an empty slot to become available and hanging out with an empty game screen, or when the player B's game is loaded when the game is unnecessarily activated, the player A's game becomes full Instead of only knowing that the game has become, the player B may reserve a slot for the game in advance using the participating game acknowledge function. Player B may also obtain a dialog or dialog box indicating that player A's game is full before attempting to activate player A's game. The game has a participating game acknowledge function and operates behind the scenes without having Player A reserve a spot for Player B in advance. Player B is then sent confirmation that the given spot is reserved.

  In one implementation, the participating game acknowledge function supports the NP basic system. NP Basic may be a system that allows sending and receiving of game presence (eg, online / offline status of friends), which is also a game in a game that can or cannot be participated (eg, a single player game). Allows sending and receiving of presence. In a joinable game, the game presence may include details of an online game session that other friends can join. The Join Game Acknowledgment feature provides a persistent party so that users waiting in a party room can immediately join an active game or reserve a spot in an active game without waiting for a slot to vacate. It may be used in conjunction with rooms and all types of party rooms (including non-persistent party rooms). Using the participating game acknowledge feature, users in a party room may reserve game slots in each other's games as long as they are in the same party. Since the user can immediately know whether other games played by the party member are full or invalid (eg, the game session no longer exists), the participating game acknowledge feature further allows any party to Provide a better user experience for users in the room. The load time for a game can sometimes be several minutes, so if a user has to wait for the game to start before checking if another party member's game is full or invalid, It will be annoying. Participating game acknowledge functions cleverly avoid this problem by not letting the user wait unnecessarily for something that does not happen.

  In some implementations, a persistent party room application programming interface may support an NP basic system or an NP basic program call. The persistent party room application programming interface may also include a participating game acknowledge function, whether a game supports the participating game acknowledge function, and / or whether the party member is playing a game that supports the participating game acknowledge function. It may be implemented with a flag that is used to communicate whether this is stored for each party member. Also supported is whether a party member of a persistent party room or any other type of party room is playing a given game, and which session of the game is currently being played It is data to be.

  FIG. 9A is a diagram illustrating a computer system 900 and a user 902. User 902 uses computer system 900 to create, search, or join a persistent party room. Computer system 900 stores and executes persistent party room software 990.

  FIG. 9B is a functional block diagram illustrating a computer system 900 that hosts persistent party room software 990 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The controller 910 is a programmable processor and controls the operation of the computer system 900 and its components. The controller 910 loads instructions (eg, in the form of a computer program) from the memory 920 or built-in control memory (not shown) and executes these instructions to control the system. In doing so, the controller 910 provides the persistent party room software 990 with a software system that allows for the creation, search, or participation of persistent party rooms. Alternatively, this service may be implemented as a controller 910 or another hardware component of the computer system 900.

  Memory 920 temporarily stores data for use by other components of computer system 900. In one embodiment, the memory 920 is implemented as a RAM (Random Access Memory). In some embodiments, the memory 920 also includes long-term or permanent memory such as flash memory and / or ROM (Read Only Memory).

  Storage device 930 stores data temporarily or for an extended period of time, for example, to store data used by persistent party room software 990, for use by other components of computer system 900. . In some embodiments, the storage device 930 is a hard disk drive.

  The media device 940 receives a removable device and reads and writes data from a built-in medium. The media device 940 is, for example, an optical disk drive.

  User interface 950 includes components for accepting input from a user of computer system 900 and presenting information to the user. In some embodiments, user interface 950 includes a keyboard, a mouse, audio speakers, and a display. The controller 910 coordinates the operation of the computer system 900 using user input.

  The I / O interface 960 includes a corresponding I / O port for connecting one or more I / O devices, such as an external storage device or additional equipment (eg, a printer or PDA). In some embodiments, the ports of the I / O interface 960 include ports such as USB (Universal Serial Bus) ports, PCMCIA ports, serial ports, and / or parallel ports. In other embodiments, the I / O interface 960 includes a wireless interface for wirelessly communicating with external devices.

  The network interface 970 includes a wireless network connection such as a “Wi-Fi®” interface (including but not limited to 802.11) that supports wired and / or RJ-45 and Ethernet connections. .

  Although not specifically shown in FIG. 9B for simplicity, the computer system 900 includes typical additional hardware and software (eg, power supply, cooler, operating system) of the computer system. In other embodiments, other configurations of the computer system (eg, different bus or storage configurations, or multiprocessor configurations) may be used. In one implementation, the computer system is a next generation game console such as Sony PlayStation®.

  In some implementations, significant bandwidth savings are experienced by using persistent party rooms. Because the party room from the current party room implementation is discarded and regenerated for each session, the persistent party room becomes a large band by using a bookmark pointer that stores information about a given persistent party room. Save width. Furthermore, persistent party rooms avoid the bandwidth problems associated with star, grid or mesh networks used when players are waiting in the lobby to play games.

  The above description of the disclosed implementations is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make and use the present application. It will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made to these implementations, and the general principles identified herein may be applied to other implementations without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Can do. For example, although the specification has described a persistent party room in the context of an online game, a persistent party room can be used with any online or offline activity (intranet, eg, offline in a local home network). In another example, a persistent party room can be used on a computer or mobile device in addition to a game console. Thus, this application is not intended to be limited to the implementations shown herein, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

  Various implementations of the present application can be implemented in electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of these technologies. Some implementations include one or more computer programs executed by one or more computing devices. In general, a computing device includes one or more processors, one or more data storage components (eg, volatile or non-volatile memory modules, hard disk drives, floppy disk drives, CD-ROM drives, magnetic tape drives, etc. Persistent optical and magnetic storage devices), one or more input devices (eg, game controllers, mice and keyboards), and one or more output devices (eg, display devices).

  Computer programs are typically stored on persistent storage media and copied to memory at runtime. At least one processor reads the program instructions from the memory in a predetermined order and executes the code. When executing the program code, the computer receives data from the input device and / or storage device, manipulates the data, and then provides the resulting data to the output device and / or storage device.

  Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the various exemplary modules and method steps described herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, software, firmware, or combinations thereof. To clearly illustrate that such a swap between hardware and software is possible, various exemplary modules and method steps have been generally described herein in terms of functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Those skilled in the art can implement the functionality described herein in a variety of ways for each specific application, but such implementation decisions should not be construed as deviating from the scope of the present application. Also, the grouping of functions within modules or steps is for ease of explanation. Moving a particular function from one module or step to another does not depart from this application.

  Further, the method and algorithm steps described in connection with the implementation disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in software modules executed by a processor, or in a combination of both. May be used. The software modules can be stored in RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disks, removable disks, CD-ROMs, or other forms of storage media including network storage media. A typical storage medium is connected to the processor such that the processor can read information from and write information to the storage medium. In another example, storage media may be integrated into the processor. A processor and storage media can also be installed in the ASIC.

  All features of each of the above examples are not necessarily required in a particular implementation of the present application. It should also be understood that the description and drawings presented herein are representative of subject matter that is broadly contemplated by the present application. Further, it is to be understood that the scope of the present application fully encompasses other implementations obvious to those skilled in the art, and the scope of the present application is not limited by anything other than the claims.

Claims (8)

A method of using a persistent party room,
Including a structure of at least one server having an associated server ID, wherein each of the at least one server includes at least one world having an associated world ID, the at least one world being an associated room In a hierarchical server architecture including at least one room having an ID, an array including world IDs across a plurality of servers, and a global array sorted by world IDs to ensure uniformity among clients , Initializing with a storage device,
In the hierarchical server architecture, a user has a persistent party room for chatting between the user and the friend across different games played by the user and the user's friends in one or more worlds. The persistent party room appears as pseudo- permanent in a graphical user interface available to the user and the friend , and the persistent party room is always open and the friend Can see what games the user is playing and can participate in games played by the user, and a persistent party room associated with a world having a predetermined world ID in the global array Is the associated uni Can be bookmarked by a pointer that represents the bookmark ID, and the persistent party room is destroyed when everyone leaves, but when the first user joins the bookmarked persistent party room A persistent party room is generated again,
The method further comprises:
Using the computing device to determine whether to create a new persistent party room or join a previously bookmarked persistent party room ;
A step of using a co-down computing device to generate a new persistent party room associated with World having a predetermined world ID in the global array,
With co emissions computing device, sustained that the previously bookmarks by searching the persistent party room the previously bookmark from the room associated with the world having a predetermined world ID in the global array Joining a secure party room. Creating the new persistent party room comprises:
Generating a bookmark ID by using the network platform ID and the current time;
Adding the data contained in the bookmark ID and storing the added data in a new world list chunk value;
Determining a global array index for pointing to one World ID from said global sequence using the pre-Symbol New World list chunk value,
Creating the new persistent party room with the bookmark ID in association with the world having the world ID pointed to by the global array index . Joining the bookmarked persistent party room includes
In order to determine whether there is one existing persistent party room with the bookmark ID , the persistent with the bookmark ID from among the rooms associated with the world with the world ID pointed to by the global array index Searching for a party room ,
When there is no persistent party room with the bookmark ID, creating a new persistent party room with the bookmark ID and joining the new persistent party room;
In order to determine if there is any existing persistent party room with the bookmark ID , the persistent with the bookmark ID from among the rooms associated with the world with the world ID pointed to by the global array index Searching for a new party room again,
3. The method of claim 2 , comprising the step of joining the returned persistent party room when only one persistent party room is returned in the search result having the bookmark ID. Joining the bookmarked persistent party room includes
In order to determine whether there is one existing persistent party room with the bookmark ID , the persistent with the bookmark ID from among the rooms associated with the world with the world ID pointed to by the global array index Searching for a party room ,
When there is no persistent party room with the bookmark ID, creating a new persistent party room with the bookmark ID and joining the new persistent party room;
In order to determine if there is any existing persistent party room with the bookmark ID , the persistent with the bookmark ID from among the rooms associated with the world with the world ID pointed to by the global array index Searching for a new party room again,
Verifying that the joined new persistent party room is the first in the search results when there are two or more persistent party rooms with the same bookmark ID;
3. The method of claim 2 , comprising: joining a lasting party room that is first in the search results when the new lasting party room joined is not the first in the search results. Joining the bookmarked persistent party room includes
In order to determine whether there is one existing persistent party room with the bookmark ID , the persistent with the bookmark ID from among the rooms associated with the world with the world ID pointed to by the global array index Searching for a party room ,
Wherein when two or more persistent party room exists with a bookmark ID, method of claim 2 including the step of joining the first persistent party room returned in the search results. Wherein and belongs to the user and the second user persistent party rooms, with a participation game acknowledge functions of the computing device, to the second user to participate in online games played by the user Further comprising the step of reserving a spot ,
The persistent party room is the new persistent party room or the previously bookmarked persistent party room;
The second user is allowed to reserve the spot only while being a member of the persistent party room;
Using a computing device to notify the second user that the online game is full if the online game is full;
The method of claim 1, further comprising: using a computing device to allow the second user to participate in the online game at the reserved spot if the online game is available. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium storing a computer program, the computer program including executable instructions for causing a computer to execute a method of using a persistent party room, the method comprising:
Including a structure of at least one server having an associated server ID, wherein each of the at least one server includes at least one world having an associated world ID, the at least one world being an associated room In a hierarchical server architecture including at least one room having an ID, an array including world IDs across a plurality of servers, and a global array sorted by world IDs to ensure uniformity among clients , Initializing with a storage device,
In the hierarchical server architecture, a user has a persistent party room for chatting between the user and the friend across different games played by the user and the user's friends in one or more worlds. The persistent party room appears as pseudo- permanent in a graphical user interface available to the user and the friend , and the persistent party room is always open and the friend Can see what games the user is playing and can participate in games played by the user, and a persistent party room associated with a world having a predetermined world ID in the global array Is the associated uni Can be bookmarked by a pointer that represents the bookmark ID, and the persistent party room is destroyed when everyone leaves, but when the first user joins the bookmarked persistent party room A persistent party room is generated again,
The method further comprises:
Using the computing device to determine whether to create a new persistent party room or join a previously bookmarked persistent party room ;
A step of using a co-down computing device to generate a new persistent party room associated with World having a predetermined world ID in the global array,
With co emissions computing device, sustained that the previously bookmarks by searching the persistent party room the previously bookmark from the room associated with the world having a predetermined world ID in the global array A recording medium including a step of participating in a party room. A system that uses a persistent party room,
At least one computer system including persistent party room software;
At least one server storing information about one or more persistent party rooms compatible with the persistent party room software;
A network connecting the at least one computer system and the at least one server;
The persistent party room software is
Using information about the persistent party room stored by the at least one server, including a structure of at least one server having an associated server ID, each of the at least one server being associated Including at least one world having a world ID , wherein the at least one world is an array including world IDs across multiple servers in a hierarchical server architecture including at least one room having an associated room ID . , Including means for initializing a global array sorted by world ID to ensure consistency among clients ,
In the hierarchical server architecture, a user has a persistent party room for chatting between the user and the friend across different games played by the user and the user's friends in one or more worlds. The persistent party room appears as pseudo-permanent in a graphical user interface available to the user and the friend, and the persistent party room is always open and the friend Can see what games the user is playing and can participate in games played by the user, and a persistent party room associated with a world having a predetermined world ID in the global array Is the associated uni Can be bookmarked by a pointer that represents the bookmark ID, and the persistent party room is destroyed when everyone leaves, but when the first user joins the bookmarked persistent party room A persistent party room is generated again,
The persistent party room software further includes:
Means to determine whether to create a new persistent party room or join a previously bookmarked persistent party room ;
Means for creating a new persistent party room associated with a world having a predetermined world ID in the global array ;
Means for joining said previously bookmarked persistent party room by searching for said previously bookmarked persistent party room among rooms associated with a world having a predetermined world ID in said global sequence; Including system.

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