JPH07204346A - Game system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a game system which achieves automatic judgment of erroneous setting in the contents of game environment items for multiple players of game apparatuses to perform a multi-player game better within the same game space among game apparatuses. CONSTITUTION:In this game system, a plurality of independent game apparatuses are connected through a data transmission line 24 so that data can be given and taken mutually to carry out a multi-player game. The game apparatuses 10 each contain an operator's input section 48 which inputs the contents of multi-player game environment items of the game apparatuses by an operator, a game environment setting section 36 to set the contents of the multi-player game environment items inputted and a judging section 38 which judges whether the contents of the multi-player game environment item set are proper or not based on data received from other game apparatuses.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a game system in which a plurality of independent game devices are connected to each other via a data transmission line so that data can be transferred to and from each other and a multi-player game can be played.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a game system for playing a multi-player game by connecting a plurality of independent game devices to each other via a data transmission line has been developed and put into practical use (Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 1-91887 and 1-91887). -91888,
JP-A-1-91889). This game system can play a single-player game on a single game device, and can play a multi-player game on a plurality of game devices.

As this type of game system, a game system called "Final Lap", which is a product of the applicant of the present application, is well known. In this game system, a plurality of independent drive game devices are connected to each other via a transmission line. When the player selects the single player game, the player can enjoy the game by competing the racing car operated by the player and the racing car operated by the computer in the game space displayed on the display. Also, when a player selects a multi-player game with a player of another drive game device, a racing car driven by the player and a racing car driven by another player are competing in the same game space. You can enjoy player games.

In such a game system, each game device is an independent game device capable of playing a single player game. For this reason, the lap data such as the game time and the number of laps on the racing course of the lap to reach the goal are independently set as the game condition. Further, since game data is transmitted and received between other game devices connected via a transmission line, identification data indicating which game device the transmitted data is is set for each game device.

In particular, in the multi-player game system described above, the number of game devices connected to each game center is often different. In addition, in the same game center, first build a multi-player game system with three game devices, then add one game device,
It is also common to build a multi-player game system with four game devices.

Further, the game time per game,
Game conditions such as lap data are often set to different values for each game center. For example, game centers in the city center with a large number of visitors often set the time per game shorter than the standard.

Therefore, in each of the game devices constituting the multi-player game system, the contents of the multi-player game environment items such as the above-mentioned game conditions and identification data can be individually set by an operator such as a game center. Is formed.

[0008]

However, in the conventional system, the contents of these multi-player game environment items set individually for each game device become the contents of the game environment items set in another game device. In light, it was not judged whether it was appropriate or not. Therefore, there is a problem in that a game device in which the setting contents of these multi-player game environment items are improperly included in the system may cause various problems.

For example, if the identification data of a game device is set to the same value as the identification data of another game device, it becomes impossible to identify which game device the data transmitted and received between the devices is. Therefore, there is a problem in that a racing car of the game device in which the same identification data is set appears or disappears on the display.

Further, if the system includes other game devices and game devices having different game conditions such as the game time and the number of laps, the game fairness between the game devices cannot be maintained. For example, when a multi-player game is played on four game devices A, B, C, and D, A,
When the number of laps of the B and C game devices is set to 5 laps and the number of laps of the D game device is set to 3 laps, the game device D
There is a difference of two laps until the goal-in between the player of No. 1 and the players of the other game devices A, B, C, the fairness of the race cannot be maintained, and the fun of the game itself is killed. There is a problem.

In particular, when this type of game system is installed in a game center or the like, if the game system is very popular, a new game device is added to the system thereafter. In this case, the operator sets the same game environment as the other game devices with respect to the added game device. However, when setting up the game environment when adding such a game device, it is easy to make a mistake in setting the game environment.
There was a problem that the operator often did not notice.

The present invention has been made in view of the conventional problems as described above, and an object thereof is to automatically discriminate a setting error in the content of a multi-player game environment item of a game device, and to determine each game device. Is to provide a game system capable of favorably playing a multi-player game in the same game space.

[0013]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention of claim 1 is connected via a data transmission line so that data can be exchanged with each other, and a multi-player game can be played. The game device includes a plurality of independent game devices, and each of the game devices is set based on game environment setting means for allowing an operator to set the contents of a multi-player game environment item of the game device, and data received from other game devices. And a determination unit that determines whether or not the content of the multi-player game environment item is appropriate.

Further, the invention of claim 2 is based on claim 1, wherein the judging means sets the contents of the multi-player game environment item set by the game environment setting means, and the power source of its own game device is turned on. The above determination operation is carried out when

According to the invention of claim 3, in any one of claims 1 and 2, the judging means is
When the contents of the set multi-player game environment item are determined to be inappropriate, an error message is displayed on the display.

Further, the invention of claim 4 is the method according to any one of claims 1 and 2, wherein the determination means is
When it is determined that the content of the set multi-player game environment item is inappropriate, the participation of the player's own game device in the multi-player game is prohibited.

Further, in the invention of claim 5 according to any one of claims 1 to 4, the game environment setting means sets the identification data and the game condition of its own game device as the contents of the multiplayer game environment item. When the set identification data matches the identification data of the other game device to be received, and the determination means is configured to receive all of the set game conditions or data of the other game device to receive the basic condition. And the content of the set multi-player game environment item is determined to be inappropriate.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to fifth aspects, the game device is a drive for driving a vehicle driven by a player on a racing course set in a predetermined game space. The game environment setting means is formed so as to set the identification data of the own game device, the game time and the number of laps to the goal as the contents of the multi-player game environment item, and the determining means sets the setting. It is set when the received identification data matches the identification data of the other game device that is received and when the set game time and number of laps to the goal are different from the data of the other game device that is received. It is characterized in that the content of the multi-player game environment item is determined to be inappropriate.

[0019]

In the game system of the present invention, a plurality of independent game devices are connected to each other via the data transmission line. Then, each game device can play a single-player game independently, and can also play a multi-player game with a plurality of players with another game device.

Each of the game devices is provided with an operator input means, a game environment setting means, and a judging means.

The operator uses the operator input means to input the contents of the multi-player game environment item of the game device.

The contents of the input environment item are set by the game environment setting means.

Then, the determination means determines whether or not the contents of the multi-player game environment item set in the game device are appropriate based on the data received from another game device.

In this way, according to the game system of the present invention, it is automatically determined whether or not the contents of the multi-player game environment item set for each game device by the operator are appropriate, so that the game system is configured. It is possible to prevent the game device set in an incorrect multi-player game environment from being included in the plurality of game devices in advance and reliably.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the determination means performs the determination operation each time the contents of the multi-player game environment item are set in the game device, and further, the power supply of the own game device. The determination operation is performed each time is turned on.

As a result, it is possible to more reliably prevent a game device having a setting error in the contents of the multi-player game environment item from being incorporated in the game system. In particular, each time the power of each game device is turned on,
Since the determination operation is performed on the game device, it is possible to know whether or not the contents of the multiplayer game environment item of the entire system are properly set when the entire game system is started up and actually used. , The whole system can be moved well.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, an error message is displayed on the display of the game device for which the setting of the contents of the multi-player game environment item is determined to be inappropriate. Therefore, the operator can more surely know the setting error of the content of the game environment item.

Further, according to the invention of claim 4, participation of the game device, in which the setting of the contents of the multi-player game environment item is determined to be inappropriate, to the multi-player game is automatically prohibited. For this reason, only the game devices in which the content of the multi-player game environment item is set well always participate in the multi-player game, so that the player can enjoy the multi-player game under a more appropriate environment.

According to the invention of claim 5, it is judged whether or not the setting of the contents of the basic multi-player game environment items such as the identification data of each game device and the game condition is appropriate for each game device. Therefore, the player can play the multi-player game under a better environment.

In particular, by determining whether or not the setting of the identification data is appropriate for each game device, each game device can surely identify which game device the game data transmitted / received is. become able to. Further, by determining whether or not the game condition is properly set for each game device, participation of a multi-player game under an incorrect game condition is prevented in advance, and the player can play the multi-player under a better environment. You can play games.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, each player has a good multiplayer driving game in which he or she drives the car on which he or she is driving while competing with the car driven by another player. It can be enjoyed under a player game environment.

[0032]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an example of a circuit race type game system to which the present invention is applied. The game system of the embodiment includes a plurality of independent game devices 10.
-1, 10-2, ... Are connected to each other via a data transmission line.

Here, the independent game devices 10-1, 1
0-2, ... means that each of the game devices 10-1, 10
-2, ... Means that each of them is formed so as to be able to play a single player game independently, and does not mean that the housings for game devices are formed of each independently. In the embodiment, two game devices 10
-1, 10-2 are provided on the same base 12, and the other two game devices 10-3, 10-4 are also provided on the same base 12.

Each of the game devices 10 is modeled on the driver's seat of a racing car. And sheet 1
The player 16 sitting at 4 operates the steering wheel 20, accelerator, brake, etc. while watching the game screen displayed on the front display 18 to operate the player car displayed on the display 18 to enter the game space. It is designed to compete with other racing cars.

FIG. 2 shows each of the game devices 10-1 and 1 described above.
0-2, ... Are connected in a loop via the communication interface 22 and the transmission line 24. Each game device 10-1, 10-2, ... Of the embodiment
... are these communication interfaces 22 and transmission lines 24
The game information is transmitted and received to and from another game device via the. In the embodiment, the transmission line 24 connected in a loop is formed so as to transmit the game information in the clockwise direction.

FIG. 3 shows a specific structure of the game apparatus 10 of the embodiment.

The game device 10 of the embodiment includes an arithmetic control unit 3
0, work RAM 40, image processing device 42, display 18, player input unit 44, coin insertion unit 46, operator input unit 48, and I / O interface 50.
Then, transmission / reception of data to / from another game device via the transmission line 24 is performed by the custom IC 5 for communication.
6 is formed to control the reception RAM 52, the transmission RAM 54, and the communication interface 22. That is, data received from another game device is received in the reception RAM.
The transmission data written in the memory 52 in order and calculated by the game calculation unit 32 of the game device 10 are transmitted to the transmission RAM.
It is formed so as to be temporarily taken into 54 and transmitted to another game device through the communication interface 22.

The arithmetic control unit 30 is the game arithmetic unit 3
2, a group setting unit 34, a game environment setting unit 36, and a game environment determining unit 38 are included.

The player input section 44 includes various operation sections such as a steering wheel 20, an accelerator and a brake for the player 16 to operate a racing car.

Then, the game calculation section 32 changes the racing car operated by the player on the racing course set in the predetermined game space based on the operation signal from the player input section 44 and the predetermined game program. Game calculation to compete with the racing car of
The calculation result is output to the image processing device 42.

The image processing device 42 calculates the image data of the game screen displayed on the display 18 based on the game calculation result, and displays it on the display 18.

As a result, a game game screen 100 as shown in FIG. 4A is displayed on the display 18. This game screen 100 shows a state in which a racing car 120 operated by a player is running on a racing course 110.

In the present embodiment, when the game device 10 plays a single player game, the player is formed to enjoy the game while competing with the computer car appearing in the game space. Further, when a multi-player game is played between a plurality of game devices 10, each player is formed so as to enjoy the game while competing with a racing car driven by another player.

By the way, in order to play a multi-player game using such a game device 10, the data of each game device 10 is set between the game devices 10-1, 10-2, ... 10-8. Need to send and receive.

FIG. 5 shows the data structure of each game device transmitted and received in the embodiment. The transmission data of each game device 10 basically includes board status data and own vehicle status data.

FIG. 6 shows the specific contents of the transmitted / received data. The board status data is configured to include identification data of each game device 10 and game environment data such as game conditions, group data for specifying a group to play a multi-player game, and other necessary data.

The own vehicle status data includes various game information such as the coordinate position of the own vehicle in the game space, speed, and whether or not there is a collision with another obstacle. In particular, this vehicle status information is sequentially calculated by the game calculation unit 32 every 1/60 seconds.

The board status and the vehicle status data calculated in this way are transmitted as shown in FIG.
It is transferred to AM54 every 1/60 seconds and custom IC5
6, the data is sequentially transmitted to other game devices via the communication interface 22 and the transmission line 24.

In this manner, for example, when all the eight game devices 10-1, 10-2, ... 10-8 shown in FIG. 2 are operating normally, the transmission line Information of eight game devices 10 shown in FIG. 5 is transmitted in the clockwise direction in the figure via 24.

Then, the custom IC 56 of the game apparatus 10 shown in FIG. 3 sequentially stores the data of the other seven game apparatuses received via the transmission line 24 and the communication interface 22 in the reception RAM 52. The custom IC 56 basically performs such a transmission / reception operation every 1/60 seconds.

At this time, the group setting unit 34 determines which game device to use based on the input signals from the player input unit 44 and the coin insertion unit 46, the received data from the other game devices received in the reception RAM 52, and the like. Determine whether to make group settings for a multiplayer game. Specifically, the board status group data output to the transmission RAM 54 is calculated and set. As a method of setting such a group, various methods can be adopted as necessary. As a specific method thereof, for example, the seventh method of Japanese Patent Publication No. 3-70993, which the applicant previously applied, is disclosed.
One example is described from column 33rd line to 11th column 44th line, and another example is described from column 12th line 19th to 42nd line.

For example, the group setting by the group setting unit 34 can be performed as follows.

Eight game devices 10-1 and 1 shown in FIG.
0-2, ... 3 after powering on all 10-8
3 players 10-1, 10-2, 10-4
Assume a case of heading for one game device. At this time,
All of the game devices 10 are controlled in the attract mode (waiting state for customers), and the game screen calculated by the computer is displayed on the display 18 as the attract game screen.

At this time, it is assumed that the player of the game device 10-1 inserts a coin and inputs the start instruction signal for the multi-player game from the input section 44. Thereby, the game device 10-1 is switched from the attract mode to the game start mode, and the timer built in the game device 10-1 starts the countdown operation. Here, the game start mode means a standby state for game start.

At the same time, the group setting section 34 of the game device 10-1 sets new group data and writes it in the transmission RAM 54 as a part of the transmission data.

The custom IC 56 is the transmission RAM.
When the transmission data set in 54 is transmitted to another game device, all the remaining game devices 10-2, 10-3, ... 10-8 that have received the transmission data change from the attract mode to the game ready state. The mode is controlled to be switched to a mode (a state of inquiring about participation in a multi-player game), and a confirmation message as to whether or not to play the multi-player game together with the game device 10-1 is displayed on the display as a game ready screen. .

Therefore, the remaining two players insert coins into their own game devices 10-2 and 10-4 while the game ready screen is being displayed, and give a game start instruction from the input section 44. If a signal is input, the group setting unit 34 of each of these game devices 10-2 and 10-4.
The group data of his own game device to the game device 1
It is set to the same value as the group data of 0-1 and is controlled to switch from the game ready mode to the game start mode.

Then, the game devices 10-1, 10-2,
When all of 10-4 are set to the game start mode, the countdown value of the timer of the game device 10-1 becomes "0", and at the same time, the game start signal from the game device 10-1 is directed to another game device. Then, the game devices 10-1, 10-2, 10-4 start the multi-player game at the same time. In this way, the game 10-operated by the three players
1, 10-2, 10-4 can play a multi-player game at the same time in the same game space.

After this, the remaining game devices 10-3, 1
By similarly setting the group for multiplayer between 0-5 and 10-8, the two groups can individually play the multiplayer game in the same manner.

By the way, the game devices 10-1, 10-
When the group setting of the multi-player game is performed between the three game devices 2 and 10-4, the group setting unit 34 of the game device 10-1 stores the other seven game devices in the reception RAM 52, for example. Each time data is written,
While referring to the group data, the received data of the game devices 10-2 and 10-4 of the own group is used as the work R
Selectively transfer to AM40. And the game calculation unit 3
2 performs a game calculation based on the received data of the game devices of the same group written in the work RAM 40 and its own data, and outputs the game calculation data to the image processing device 42.
To display the game screen on the display 18.

At this time, when the player of the game device 10-1 is running at the front, the racing car 12 which is driven by himself / herself as shown in FIG.
One 0 is displayed. When the racing car of the game device 10-2 is running just behind the racing car of the game device 10-1, as shown in FIG. Both the own racing car 122 and the racing car 120 of the game device 10-1 described above are displayed.

In this way, each player of the game devices 10-1, 10-2, 10-4 set as a group,
While watching the racing cars of the respective players displayed on the display 18, it is possible to enjoy the multi-player game while competing for each other's driving technique.

By the way, the game device 10 used in such a system needs to set the contents of the game environment items for the single player game and the multiplayer game.

The contents setting of such a game environment item is as follows.
For example, an operator who manages a game center or the like uses the operator input unit 48.

The operator input section 48 of each of the game devices 10-1, 10-2, ...
It is provided at a location that is difficult to see from the outside, for example, a position below the handle 20. When the operator opens the operation door of the operator input section 48 using a dedicated key or the like, the DIP switch for the environment setting mode is exposed inside the housing.

When the operator turns on the game environment setting mode switch, the game device 10
A game option screen as shown in FIG. 7 is displayed on the display 18 and the game apparatus 10 enters the environment setting mode. This game option screen is for setting a game environment unique to each game device, and includes setting items such as game cost, free play, rank, lap, seat number, and high score initialization. The game cost is for setting how many coins are used to play one game, and the free play is for setting a mode in which the game is played any number of times without inserting coins.

The rank indicates which rank is set from the four ranks A, B, ... D. This rank represents the difficulty level of the game. Specifically, A
It is set in four stages of ~ D. In the embodiment, the difficulty level of the game is set as the game time per game,
For example, it is set as shown in FIG. 8 according to each rank.
When Rank A is set, the first game time is 63 seconds, and if the first extension point is passed during this 63 seconds, the game time is extended by 43 seconds, and if the next extension point is passed, another 33 seconds. The time will be extended.

On the other hand, when ranks B, C, ... Are selected, the game time is set to be shortened by several seconds.

The lap sets the number of laps on the circuit course after the start point is started and the goal is reached. In the embodiment, any value of 3 to 6 can be selectively set.

The sheet number corresponds to the identification data shown in FIG. 6 and is used to identify the game device 10 and the data of other game devices.

The link is not a setting item for the game environment, but represents how many game devices are currently connected so that they can communicate with each other.

The high score initialization is used to set whether to erase the high score play data currently stored in the game apparatus 10. If YES is set, all stored high score data is deleted.

The operator sequentially inputs each setting item displayed on the game option screen by using a game operation unit such as a handle and an accelerator. Then, the input contents are sequentially set by the game environment setting unit 36,
The setting contents are displayed as an image on the display 18 as shown in FIG. When the setting is completed, the operator turns off the switch for the game environment setting mode,
The settings are confirmed. After that, the operator closes the operation door of the operator input unit 48 and locks it.

Such setting of the game environment can be performed relatively freely when the game device 10 is to play a single-player game by itself. However, as in the system of the embodiment, when playing a multi-player game while communicating with another game device, at least the items constituting the multi-player game environment are related to the other game device. It is necessary to set it so that it is appropriate content. For example, the identification data such as the seat number must be set to a value different from that of other game devices. This is because if this is set to the same value as that of another game device, the other game device cannot be distinguished from the own game device, and communication will be confused.

Also, multi-player game environment items such as rank and lap must be set the same as those of other game devices. This is because if the contents of these items are set to different values, the fairness of the game cannot be maintained between the game devices. This is because, for example, if the rank is set to a value different from that of other game devices, the game time will be shortened or lengthened only for this game device. Also, if you set the lap to a value different from other game devices,
The number of laps from the start to the goal changes from other game devices, for example, other game devices do not finish in 5 laps, whereas the game device finishes in 3 laps. This is because inequality will occur.

Conventionally, after the operator has set up such a multi-player game environment, it has not been determined whether or not the contents of the setting items are appropriate.

On the other hand, in the game device 10 of the embodiment, the game environment determining section 38 determines whether the contents of the set multiplayer game environment items such as rank, lap, seat number, etc. are appropriate. Judge based on the data received from the device. That is, it is determined whether or not the contents of the setting items such as rank and lap completely match the setting values of the other seven game devices. If they do not match, it is determined that the contents of the setting items are inappropriate. Further, it is determined whether or not the seat number value is set to a value different from the values of other connected game devices. If the seat number value is set to the same value, the contents of the setting item are judged to be inappropriate. to decide.

When it is determined that the content is inappropriate, an option error screen as shown in FIG. 9 is displayed on the display 18 of the game apparatus 10. In this option error screen, the setting contents of the multi-player game environment item of the own game device are displayed at the top (the part surrounded by the broken line in the figure), and the contents of the setting items of other game devices are sequentially displayed below the setting contents. . Here, the sheet number (identification data) is set to the same value as that of the third game device. As described above, the option error screen is displayed in the same manner even when the contents of the setting items for each of the game conditions of rank and lap are different from those of other game devices in addition to the sheet number.

FIG. 10 shows an operation flowchart of the game environment judging section 38 of the game apparatus 10 of the embodiment.

When the game apparatus 10 of the embodiment is turned on in a state of being communicatively connected to another game apparatus via the transmission line 24 as shown in FIG. A determination operation of whether or not the setting content of the multi-player game environment item is appropriate is automatically started (S3).

Then, the received data from the other game device 10 connected via the transmission line 24 is collated with the contents of the multi-player game environment item set in the own game device 10, and the setting contents are compared. It is determined whether or not is appropriate (S4).

In the system of the embodiment, whether the content of the game environment setting item of the newly turned on game device 10 is appropriate based on the transmission data from the game device 10 which is turned on first. A determination operation of whether or not it is performed.

When the setting contents are judged to be inappropriate as a result of the judgment, an option error screen as shown in FIG. 9, for example, is displayed on the display 18 of the game apparatus 10 to determine which item Notify the operator if the settings are inappropriate.

If the result of the determination is that the settings are appropriate, the game device 10 is set in the attract mode (waiting for customers) and the game device 10 is used for both single-player games and multi-player games. Is controlled to an executable state (S6).

The reason why the determination operation described above is performed without immediately setting the game apparatus 10 to the attract mode when the game apparatus 10 is powered on in this manner is as follows.

That is, at a game center or the like, the operator may change the settings of each game device 10 after the store is closed. In such a case, for example, 8 shown in FIG.
Among the game devices 10-1, 10-2, ... 10-8, the settings of the seven game devices 10-1 to 10-7 were changed, but the settings of the game device 10-8 were changed. It is possible to forget it. Even in such a case, after the power is turned on, it is ensured that such a change in the game environment item is omitted by performing an operation of determining whether or not the contents of the multi-player game environment setting item of the game apparatus 10 are appropriate. Detected and all game devices 10-1, 10
-2, ..., 10-8 can all be set in a good multi-player game environment.

Further, in the system of the embodiment, when the contents of the game environment item are set other than when the power is turned on as described above (S2), at the end of the setting, the above-mentioned determination operations S3 and S4 are performed. , S5 and S6 are similarly performed.

In the above embodiment, the case where a plurality of game devices 10 are connected in a loop has been described as an example.
The present invention is not limited to this, and various networks can be configured via transmission lines as needed.

For example, as shown in FIG. 11, a plurality of game devices 10-1 and 10-2 can be star-connected via the central station 60.

Further, as shown in FIG. 12, the game device 12
-1, 12-2, ... May be connected to a tree to form a network, or a mesh type network may be formed as shown in FIG. 13, and a bus line may be formed as shown in FIG. It is also possible to connect via a loop type and a star type as shown in FIG. 15 to form a network.

In the above embodiment, the case of playing the drive game has been described as an example, but the present invention can be applied to a system for playing various multiplayer games. For example, a multiplayer game configured to allow various players to cooperate in various sports or to play in a battle, or configured to allow multiple players to chase, hide, and shoot in a game space. It can be applied to various games such as roll-plane games.

At this time, the multi-player game environment items set in each game device 10 differ depending on the game content. For example, in a multi-player game in which tanks operated by a plurality of players are formed so as to battle in a predetermined game space, for each game device 10,
The shield power that can prevent attacks from other tanks is set, and the values such as the attack power that indicates the degree of offensive ability to other tanks are set. In such a case, the game environment determination unit determines whether or not the setting content is appropriate depending on whether or not the shield power and the attack power of each game device 10 are the same or within a certain range. It may be formed to be performed.

[0094]

As described above, according to the game system of the present invention, the game system is configured to automatically determine whether the contents of the multi-player game environment item set in each game device are appropriate. It is possible to prevent the game device set in an incorrect multi-player game environment from being included in the plurality of game devices in advance and reliably.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, it is possible to more reliably prevent a game device having a setting error in the content of the multiplayer game environment item from being incorporated in the game system. In particular, since the determination operation for the game device is performed each time the power of each game device is turned on, the contents of the multi-player game environment item of the entire system are appropriate when the entire game system is started and moved. It is possible to know whether or not it is set to, and the entire system can be operated better.

According to the third aspect of the invention, an error message is displayed on the display of the game device for which it is determined that the setting of the contents of the multi-player game environment item is inappropriate. Therefore, the operator can more surely know the setting error of the content of the game environment item.

Further, according to the invention of claim 4, participation in the multi-player game of the game device in which the setting of the content of the multi-player game environment item is determined to be inappropriate is automatically prohibited. For this reason, only the game devices in which the content of the multi-player game environment item is set well always participate in the multi-player game, so that the player can enjoy the multi-player game under a more appropriate environment.

According to the invention of claim 5, it is determined whether or not the setting of the contents of basic multi-player game environment items such as the identification data of each game device and the game conditions is appropriate for each game device. Therefore, the player can play the multi-player game under a better environment. In particular, by determining whether or not the setting of the identification data is appropriate for each game device, each game device can surely identify which game device the game data transmitted and received is. Become. Furthermore, by determining whether or not the setting of the game condition is appropriate for each game device, participation of the multi-player game under the wrong game condition is prevented, and the player can play the multi-player game under a better environment. You can play games.

Further, according to the invention of claim 6, each player is a good multi-player game in which a driving game in which a vehicle driven by the player runs while competing with a vehicle driven by another player. You can enjoy under the environment.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a drive game type game system to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a connection state of the system shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of a game device constituting the system of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a game screen displayed on the display of each game device.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of data transmitted and received between each game device.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of contents of data transmitted and received between the game devices.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of an option screen displayed at the time of setting the game environment on the display of the game device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a correspondence relationship between a set rank and a game time of the game device of the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of an option error screen displayed on the display when the content of the multi-player game environment item is determined to be inappropriate.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of an operation of determining the setting content of a multi-player game environment.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram of another network configuration of the game system of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram of another network configuration of the system of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram of another network configuration of the system of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram of another network configuration of the system of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram of another network configuration of the system of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 game device 16 player 18 display 22 communication interface 24 transmission line 30 operation control unit 32 game operation unit 34 group setting unit 36 game environment setting unit 38 game environment determining unit 48 operator input unit 100 game screen 110 racing course 120 racing car 122 Racing car

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of independent game devices connected to each other via a data transmission line so as to be able to exchange data with each other and formed so as to play a multi-player game, wherein each game device is operated by an operator. Operator input means for inputting the contents of the multi-player game environment item, the game environment setting means for setting the input contents of the multi-player game environment item, and the multi-setting set based on the received data from another game device. A game system comprising: a determination unit that determines whether or not the content of the player game environment item is appropriate. 2. The determining means according to claim 1, wherein the determining means performs the determining operation when the content of the multi-player game environment item is set by the game environment setting means and when the power of its own game device is turned on. A game system characterized by performing. 3. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the determination means determines that an error is displayed on the display when the content of the set multiplayer game environment item is determined to be inappropriate as a result of the determination. A game system characterized by displaying a message. 4. The game device according to claim 1, wherein the determination means determines that the content of the set multiplayer game environment item is inappropriate as a result of the determination. A game system characterized by prohibiting participation in the multiplayer game. 5. The game environment setting means according to claim 1, wherein the game environment setting means is configured to set identification data of a game device of the game device itself and game conditions as contents of a multi-player game environment item. Is set when the set identification data matches the identification data of the other game device to be received and when all of the set game conditions or the basic conditions are different from the data of the other game device to be received. A game system characterized by determining that the content of the created multi-player game environment item is inappropriate. 6. The game device according to claim 1, wherein the game device is formed as a drive game device for driving a vehicle driven by a player on a racing course set in a predetermined game space. The game environment setting means is formed to set the identification data of its own game device, the game time, and the number of laps to the goal as the contents of the multi-player game environment item, and the determining means sets the identification data set to A set multi-player game environment when it matches the received identification data of another game device and when the set game time and number of laps to the goal are different from the received data of another game device A game system characterized by determining that the content of an item is inappropriate.