WO2010004908A1 - Game device, digest display method, information recording medium, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

A game device (150) comprises a selection unit (151), a presentation unit (152), and a determination unit (153).  The selection unit (151) selects any of a plurality of pieces of music as a reproduction candidate in response to a selection instruction given by the player.  The presentation unit (152) sequentially presents feature motions indicating motions to be taken by the player in a certain interval within the total reproduction time of the music selected as the reproduction candidate.  The determination unit (153) determines the music selected as the reproduction candidate as a reproduction target in response to a determination instruction given by the player.

Description

Game device, digest display method, information recording medium, and program

The present invention relates to a game device, a digest display method, an information recording medium, and a program that make it easier for a player to select a song to be played.

2. Description of the Related Art Dance game devices in which a player performs a stepping action (stepping action) in accordance with the music to be played are gaining popularity in amusement halls and the like.
As an example, the dance game apparatus is configured to sequentially present a task action (stepping action as a challenge) on a monitor as the music is played. The player inputs the stepping motion required for the task motion by stepping on a panel arranged on the step casing (stepping platform). Then, the dance game apparatus evaluates such a player's stepping action including the timing and reflects it in the score.
In other words, the dance game device is such that the player competes for a high score by performing a correct stepping motion in time with the music.

As an example of such a dance game apparatus, an invention for calculating and displaying the calorie consumption of a player who has played a game is also disclosed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2001-95969 A (page 3-14, FIG. 1)

In the dance game apparatus described above, a plurality of music pieces that can be played are prepared, and the player can select a favorite music piece from the music pieces.
In recent years, the number of songs that can be played on a dance game device has been dramatically increased in order to meet the demands of a wide range of players. In other words, from the latest music to nostalgic music, and from popular music to minor music, it is possible to perform according to the preferences of various players.
Therefore, the player performs a music selection operation to select a desired music from such a large number of music before starting the game. For example, the player operates the operation unit of the dance game device to display a music list on a monitor, and selects a desired music from the list.

Such a music list includes information indicating the level of difficulty of the game along with the name of the music (title) and artist, and the player selects the music to play with reference to the level of difficulty. become.
For example, if it is a beginner player, music with a low difficulty level is often selected. On the other hand, if a player is intermediate or higher, music with a high difficulty level is often selected.

Nevertheless, the difficulty level of such music is only divided into several stages (for example, low level, medium level, high level, etc.), and is only a rough division. For this reason, even if the difficulty level is the same, it is difficult to know how much difference there is unless you actually select a song and play it.
In addition, since each player has different step performances for the pros and cons, it feels difficult even when playing music with low difficulty, or conversely, it feels easy even when playing music with high difficulty. There was a case.
Therefore, it is necessary for the player to grasp and remember his / her own difficulty level for the music actually played.

However, even if the music has been played before, if the number of times of play is small or the play interval is vacant, there are many cases where the difficulty level that should have been grasped is forgotten. In this case, the player tends to select other music that he or she remembers rather than the music that has forgotten his or her own difficulty level, and it has become difficult to increase the repertoire of music that can be played.
Moreover, it may be mistaken for the music played before and another music which has not been played may be selected. If the music piece selected by mistake is too difficult for the player, or conversely too easy, the player seems to be wasted playing the music.
Furthermore, even if a new song (new song) is released so as to be playable, there is a situation that the player cannot easily play such an unknown song.

Therefore, when selecting a song to play from the song list, the player always selects only a fixed song, or it is difficult to decide one song from several candidate songs, In addition, there was a situation where it was wondering whether or not to play a new song.

For this reason, in the dance game apparatus, there has been a demand for a technique that can provide more useful information when the music to be played is selected, and that allows the player to easily select the music.

The present invention has been made to solve such problems, and provides a game device, a digest display method, an information recording medium, and a program that can make it easier for a player to select a music to play. With the goal.

The game device according to the first aspect of the present invention plays a song determined as a playback target from a plurality of songs by a player, and presents a task action representing an action to be taken by the player according to the playback time of the song The game device evaluates the accuracy of the action performed by the player, and includes a selection unit, a presentation unit, and a determination unit.

First, in response to a selection instruction made by the player, the selection unit selects one of a plurality of songs as a reproduction candidate. For example, the selection unit causes the player to press a direction key provided in the controller to select a music piece that is a reproduction candidate from a plurality of music pieces presented on a display device (a monitor or the like).
On the other hand, the presentation unit sequentially presents feature actions that are actions that the player should take in the feature section. This feature section is a section of the total playback time of the music selected as the playback candidate. Here, among the task actions such as the stepping action and the swinging action imposed on the player during the reproduction of the music, a characteristic task action that is a digest of the task action can be set as the feature action. For example, the task action imposed on the player in the portion corresponding to the chorus of the music can be set as the characteristic action. At this time, the section in which the rust of the music is played out of the total playback time of the music is the characteristic section described above. For example, the presentation unit displays the content of the characteristic motion on a display device or the like to present a digest of the motion imposed on the music to the player. Note that information necessary for playing back each piece of music and information that defines the content of the task action corresponding to each piece of music (for example, an arrangement of footsteps for a stepping action) is stored in advance in a storage device or the like. The
Then, the confirmation unit confirms the reproduction candidate song as a reproduction target song in response to a confirmation instruction made by the player. For example, the confirming unit confirms the music selected as the playback candidate music as the music to be played back in response to the player pressing the determination button provided in the controller.

In this way, since the digest of the task operation (for example, the stepping operation) of the music is presented, it becomes possible to grasp in advance the operation content imposed on the music, its difficulty level, and the like. Therefore, the player can remember that it is a song that has been played before and its difficulty level. Further, even if a song or a new song has never been played, the repertoire can be increased because it becomes easier to play a new song based on the imposed operation content and difficulty level.
As a result, it is possible to make it easier for the player to select the music to be played.

In the present invention, the determination unit may determine that a determination instruction has been given when the player performs the feature motions presented in order. That is, when the stepping motion according to the digest display is performed by the player, the determination unit determines the music selected as the reproduction candidate as the reproduction target.
According to such a configuration, the stepping action according to the digest display made by the player is an action for determining the music to be played. Therefore, the player can practice the characteristic operation of the music to be played before playing, instead of pressing the determination button of the controller.

Further, in the present invention, the action to be taken by the player can be an action of operating one of a plurality of light-emitting operators. In this case, the presentation unit sequentially emits the operation elements to be operated by the operations represented by the characteristic operations. Thereby, the presentation unit presents the characteristic motion to the player. Here, as each operation element, a light-emitting element embedded therein and capable of emitting light can be adopted. Then, the presentation unit presents the digest of the task operation by causing the operation elements to emit light in order.
According to such a configuration, the player can remember what kind of music is the reproduction candidate music piece by observing how the operation elements to be operated emit light sequentially.

In the present invention, the confirmation unit determines that a confirmation instruction has been given when an operation of operating the emitted operation element within a predetermined time from the light emission exceeds a predetermined number of times or a predetermined ratio. May be. For example, if the number of times the operating element emits light for digest display is 8, the predetermined time is 100 msec, and the predetermined number is 5 times, the operation of operating the operating element within 100 msec from the light emission of the operating element is performed 6 times or more. It is determined that a confirmation instruction has been issued. Further, for example, if the number of times the operation element emits light for digest display is 8 times, the predetermined time is 100 msec, and the predetermined ratio is 50%, the operation of operating the operation element within 100 msec from the light emission of the operation element is performed 5 times. When the above is done, it is determined that a confirmation instruction has been given. When the digest display is repeatedly performed, it is determined whether or not a confirmation instruction has been issued every time the digest display is performed.
According to such a configuration, it is determined by the player's level whether or not it is allowed to determine a reproduction candidate song as a reproduction target. For example, it is possible to allow a player who has a good feature motion to play a musical piece with a high degree of difficulty and not to a player who has a bad feature motion. It should be noted that the player can practice the characteristic motion by repeatedly performing the digest display. As a result, even if the player is not allowed to play a certain piece of music because of poor feature movement, the characteristic action is improved by practicing the characteristic action during the digest display, and the play of the certain piece of music is permitted. Can be done. It should be noted that the level at which the player is allowed to reproduce the music can be adjusted by changing the above-mentioned predetermined number of times or a predetermined ratio.

In the present invention, the presentation unit can make the interval for sequentially presenting the feature actions proportional to the interval at which the feature actions should be taken in the feature section. As a result, the order of the feature actions and the ratio of the interval between the feature actions presented in the digest display coincide with what the player should do during play. Therefore, the player can grasp what kind of music is the candidate music by looking at the digest display. Typically, the interval at which the feature actions are presented in order is matched with the interval at which the feature actions should be taken in the feature section. In this case, the player can accurately grasp the timing at which the characteristic action should be taken. On the other hand, the interval for sequentially displaying the feature actions can be made larger than the interval for taking the feature actions in the feature section. In this case, the player can grasp the timing at which the characteristic action should be taken carefully over time. In addition, the interval for sequentially presenting the feature actions can be made smaller than the interval for taking the feature actions in the feature section. In this case, the player can grasp the timing at which the characteristic action should be taken in a short time.
According to such a configuration, the player can accurately grasp the timing at which the characteristic action should be taken.

Further, in the present invention, the selection unit can set the music for the motion most accurately performed among the motions performed by all players before the selection instruction is given by the players. Such music is expected to be music selected by many players, music selected by advanced players, or well-known music (famous music). Therefore, such music is considered to be music that is highly likely to be selected by the player. Therefore, it can be expected that the operation burden on the player at the time of music selection is reduced by setting such music as the default music.

Further, in the present invention, each of the plurality of music pieces may be divided into a plurality of sections. In this case, of the plurality of sections, a section in which the action performed by all the players is most accurate can be set as the feature section. The section in which the movements made by all players are most accurate is considered to be a section in which the rhythm of the music is accurately grasped by the players. Such a section is considered to be a section that best represents the characteristics of the music, such as a section that is repeatedly played or a section corresponding to chorus. Accordingly, such a section is set as the feature section, and the feature motion in the feature section is presented to the player, so that the player understands what kind of music is selected as the reproduction candidate. It becomes easy to do.

A digest display method according to another aspect of the present invention is a digest display method in a game device having a selection unit, a presentation unit, and a confirmation unit, and includes a selection step, a presentation step, and a confirmation step. The Here, the game device reproduces a song determined as a reproduction target from a plurality of songs by the player, presents a task action representing an action to be taken by the player according to the reproduction time of the song, It is a game device that evaluates the accuracy of actions performed.

First, in the selection step, in response to a selection instruction made by the player, the selection unit selects one of a plurality of songs as a reproduction candidate. For example, the selection unit causes the player to press a direction key provided in the controller to select a music piece that is a reproduction candidate from a plurality of music pieces presented on a display device (a monitor or the like).
On the other hand, in the presenting step, the presenting unit sequentially presents feature actions that are actions that the player should take in the feature section. This feature section is a section of the total playback time of the music selected as the playback candidate. In addition, among task actions such as a stepping action and a swinging action imposed on the player during the reproduction of music, a characteristic task action that is a digest of the task action can be set as a feature action. For example, the task action imposed on the player in the portion corresponding to the chorus of the music can be set as the characteristic action. At this time, the section in which the rust of the music is played out of the total playback time of the music is the characteristic section described above. The presenting unit presents a digest of the operation imposed on the music to the player, for example, by displaying the content of the characteristic operation on the display device. Note that information necessary for playing back each piece of music and information that defines the content of the task action corresponding to each piece of music (for example, an arrangement of footsteps for a stepping action) is stored in advance in a storage device or the like. The
In the confirmation step, the confirmation unit confirms the music selected as the reproduction candidate as the music to be reproduced in response to the confirmation instruction given by the player. For example, the confirming unit confirms the music selected as the playback candidate music as the music to be played back in response to the player pressing the determination button provided in the controller.

In this way, since the digest of the task operation (for example, the stepping operation) of the music is presented, it becomes possible to grasp in advance the operation content imposed on the music, its difficulty level, and the like. Therefore, the player can remember that it is a song that has been played before and its difficulty level. Further, even if a song or a new song has never been played, the repertoire can be increased because it becomes easier to play a new song based on the imposed operation content and difficulty level.
As a result, it is possible to make it easier for the player to select the music to be played.

An information recording medium according to another aspect of the present invention stores a program that causes a computer (including an electronic device) to function as the above game device.

A program according to another aspect of the present invention causes a computer (including an electronic device) to function as the above game device.

This program can be recorded on a computer-readable information recording medium such as a compact disk, flexible disk, hard disk, magneto-optical disk, digital video disk, magnetic tape, and semiconductor memory.

The above program can be distributed and sold via a computer communication network independently of the computer on which the program is executed. The information recording medium can be distributed and sold independently of the computer.

According to the present invention, it is possible to make it easier for the player to select the music to be played.

It is a mimetic diagram showing appearance of a dance game device concerning an embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of the game screen displayed on the monitor of a dance game. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of the panel arrange | positioned at a step housing | casing. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows the internal structure of a panel. It is a block diagram which shows the internal structure of a dance game apparatus. It is a block diagram for demonstrating the basic function of the game device which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the game device which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the relationship between a note and a musical score. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the relationship between a note and a musical score. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the relationship between a note and a musical score. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of the music list displayed. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of the light emission instruction | indication information produced | generated from the footsteps of the identified area. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of light emission instruction information. It is a schematic diagram which shows the mode of light emission of the panel in a step housing | casing. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the music selection / confirmation process which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. In the following, in order to facilitate understanding, an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a commercial dance game device arranged in a game hall or the like will be described, but the same applies to home game machines and various computers. The present invention can be applied to. That is, the embodiment described below is for explanation, and does not limit the scope of the present invention. Therefore, those skilled in the art can employ embodiments in which each or all of these elements are replaced with equivalent ones, and these embodiments are also included in the scope of the present invention.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an external appearance of a business dance game apparatus in which a game apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is realized. As an example, this dance game apparatus presents a stepping action (task action / task operation) as a task to the player according to the music to be played, and evaluates the stepping action actually performed by the player including timing. It is. Hereinafter, an outline of the dance game apparatus will be described with reference to this drawing.

The dance game apparatus 1 includes a performance speaker 11, a monitor 12, a joystick 13, a rhythm speaker 14, and a step housing 20, as shown in the figure.

The performance speaker 11 outputs the music sound of the dance game selected by the player. That is, the music sound of the music to be played is output. In addition, the performance speaker 11 outputs a sound or the like according to the suitability (evaluation) of the stepping action performed by the player during the game.

The monitor 12 displays various information necessary for the dance game.
For example, the monitor 12 displays a music list (a music list searched by a stepping action as described later) and the like before starting the game, and prompts the player to select a desired music.
When the music is selected and the game is started, the monitor 12 displays a game screen as shown in FIG. 2, for example.
In this game screen, the step zone SZ is a fixed image for showing the timing of the stepping motion to the player. On the other hand, the footstep AF (AFu, AFd, AF1, AFr) is an image for showing the stepping action (task action / task operation) as a task to the player. Scroll display from below to above. When the footstep AF reaches the step zone SZ (when the footstep AF overlaps with the same image in the step zone SZ), when the required stepping action is performed by the player (a panel described later is correctly stepped on). And), you can get a score.

Returning to FIG. 1, the joystick 13 is operated by the player and receives various information necessary for the dance game.
For example, the joystick 13 receives selection information of music to be played and setting information such as the difficulty level of the game before the game starts.

The rhythm speaker 14 outputs the rhythm sound of the music being played as a heavy bass. That is, the rhythm sound is emphasized and output so that the player can easily take the rhythm of the music.

As an example, the step casing 20 is a stepping platform on which two players can simultaneously step on and perform a stepping action, and a plurality of panels (operators) are arranged.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3A, the step housing 20 is divided into a left player area LA and a right player area RA, and a plurality of panels including panels Pu, Pd, Pl, and Pr, respectively. Is arranged.
The panels Pu, Pd, Pl, and Pr are drawn with arrows in different directions of up, down, left, and right. These panels Pu to Pr correspond to the above-mentioned footsteps AFu to AFr in FIG. That is, the footstep AFu (up arrow) instructs the player to step on the panel Pu (up arrow), and the footstep AFd (down arrow) is the panel Pd (down arrow). It is instructed to step on. Similarly, the footsteps AF1 (left arrow) instructs to step on the panel Pl (left arrow), and the footsteps AFr (right arrow) instructs to step on the panel Pr (right arrow).

Each panel including these panels Pu to Pr can be detected by an internal sensor that the player has stepped on. For example, as shown in FIG. 3B, a plurality of cable sensors CS are arranged inside, and a load (pressure) applied when stepped on can be detected.
In each panel including the panels Pu to Pr, light-emitting elements that can be turned on / off are stored inside. For example, as shown in FIG. 3B, a plurality of cold cathode ray tubes RK are arranged.
The top plate TI is made of, for example, a translucent acrylic plate. The top plate TI can be illuminated with the lighting (light emission) of the cold cathode ray tube RK. Thereby, as will be described later, the stepping action on the music can be displayed as a digest.

Next, the internal configuration of such a dance game apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the dance game apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. Hereinafter, a description will be given with reference to FIG.

As shown in the drawing, the dance game apparatus 1 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 101, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 102, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 103, an interface 104, a hard disk 105, and an image processing unit 106. And an audio processing unit 107 and a NIC (Network Interface Card) 108.

The hard disk 105 stores a dance game program and necessary data, and when the dance game apparatus 1 is turned on, the program is executed to realize the game apparatus of the present embodiment. .

The CPU 101 controls the overall operation of the dance game apparatus 1 and is connected to each component to exchange control signals and data.

The ROM 102 stores an IPL (Initial Program Loader) that is executed immediately after the power is turned on, and when this is executed, the program recorded on the hard disk 105 is read into the RAM 103 and the CPU 101 starts execution. . The ROM 102 stores an operating system program and various data necessary for controlling the operation of the entire dance game apparatus 1.

The RAM 103 is for temporarily storing data and programs, and holds programs and data read from the hard disk 105 and other data necessary for the progress of the game.

The interface 104 relays communication with the joystick 13 and the step housing 20 described above.
Specifically, the interface 104 receives instruction information and the like input with the joystick 13.
Further, the interface 104 receives a stepping action performed by the player on the step housing 20. That is, when the cable sensor CS detects that any one (or a plurality of panels) including the panels Pu to Pr described above has been stepped on by the player, the detection signal is received from the step housing 20. This makes it possible to immediately detect which panel has been stepped on.
Further, when the CPU 101 gives a lighting (light emission) instruction to any (or a plurality of) panels including the panels Pu to Pr, the information of the lighting instruction is supplied to the step casing 20. The cold cathode ray tube RK of the target panel is turned on.

The hard disk 105 stores a dance game program and accompanying image data and music data (including footnote data described later). These programs and data are read out under the control of the CPU 101 and temporarily stored in the RAM 103 or the like. The hard disk 105 is an example and may be another storage medium.

The image processing unit 106 includes an image arithmetic processor (not shown) and a frame memory (not shown), and performs various image processes under the control of the CPU 101. For example, the image processing unit 106 processes the image data read from the hard disk 105, generates image information, and stores it in the frame memory. Then, the image information stored in the frame memory is converted into a video signal at a predetermined synchronization timing, and supplied to the monitor 12 described above. Thereby, various image displays are possible.

The image calculation processor can execute a two-dimensional image overlay calculation, a transmission calculation such as α blending, and various saturation calculations at high speed.
In addition, the polygon information arranged in the virtual three-dimensional space and added with various kinds of texture information is rendered by the Z buffer method, and a rendered image is obtained by overlooking the polygon arranged in the virtual three-dimensional space from a predetermined viewpoint position. High speed execution of the obtained operation is also possible.

The sound processing unit 107 converts the music data read from the hard disk 105 into an analog sound signal and outputs the analog sound signal from the performance speaker 11 described above. In addition, under the control of the CPU 101, sound effects and the like to be generated during the progress of the game are generated, and the corresponding sound is output from the performance speaker 11.
Furthermore, the audio processing unit 107 performs, for example, predetermined signal processing, extracts a rhythm sound (rhythm signal) from the music data, and outputs the rhythm sound from the rhythm speaker 14 described above. When rhythm data corresponding to music data is stored in the hard disk 105 in advance, a rhythm sound based on the rhythm data may be output from the rhythm speaker 14.

The NIC 108 is used to connect the dance game apparatus 1 to a computer communication network (not shown) such as the Internet, and is used when configuring a LAN (Local Area Network) 10BASE-T / 100BASE-T standard. And analog modems for connecting to the Internet using telephone lines, ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) modems, ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) modems, and cable television lines for connecting to the Internet It is composed of a cable modem and the like and an interface (not shown) that mediates between these and the CPU 101.

In addition to this, the dance game apparatus 1 may include a unit for detecting inserted coins (coins, medals, etc.), a unit for reading prepaid cards, and the like.

Further, instead of the dance game apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, a general computer (general-purpose personal computer or the like) or a home game machine can be used as the game apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. For example, a general computer includes a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, a hard disk, and a NIC as in the dance game apparatus 1, and includes an image processing unit having a simpler function than the dance game apparatus 1. As a storage device, a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk, a magnetic tape, or the like can be used. Further, instead of the step housing 20, a commercially available game mat (such as a mat for detecting an area stepped on by a player) is used. When the game program is installed after the game program is installed, it functions as a game device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

(Outline configuration of game device)
FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of the game device according to the embodiment of the present invention. As an example, this game device is a device that presents a part of the content of a task imposed when playing a music piece when the music piece is selected so that the player can easily select the music piece.
More specifically, before starting a dance game on this game device, the stepping motion imposed on the candidate music piece is displayed in a digest manner by causing the panel of the step housing 20 to emit light. Hereinafter, a description will be given with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 5, the game apparatus 150 includes a selection unit 151, a presentation unit 152, and a determination unit 153.

First, the selection unit 151 selects any song from a plurality of songs as a reproduction candidate in response to a selection instruction made by the player. For example, the selection unit 151 causes the player to press a direction key provided in the controller to select a music piece that is a reproduction candidate from a plurality of music pieces presented on a display device (a monitor or the like).
On the other hand, the presentation unit 152 sequentially presents feature actions that are actions that the player should take in the feature section. This feature section is a section of the total playback time of the music selected as the playback candidate. Here, among the task actions such as the stepping action and the swinging action imposed on the player during the reproduction of the music, a characteristic task action that is a digest of the task action can be set as the feature action. The presentation unit 152 presents a digest of the motion imposed on the music to the player, for example, by displaying the content of the characteristic motion on a display device or the like.
Then, in response to a confirmation instruction given by the player, the confirmation unit 153 confirms the reproduction candidate music as a music to be reproduced. For example, the confirming unit 153 confirms the music selected as the reproduction candidate music as the music to be reproduced in response to the player pressing the determination button provided in the controller.

Next, a specific configuration for realizing the above-described functions will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 6, the game device 200 specifically includes a music information storage unit 201, a footstep information storage unit 202, a music list generation unit 203, an image drawing unit 204, and a selection / confirmation unit 205. A light emission instruction information generation unit 206, a light emission control unit 207, and a stepping operation unit 208. The selection unit 151 and the determination unit 153 described above are realized by the selection / confirmation unit 205, for example. The above-described presentation unit 152 is realized by the light emission instruction information generation unit 206, the light emission control unit 207, the step operation unit 208, and the like.

First, the music information storage unit 201 stores a plurality of pieces of music information that can be played in a dance game. That is, the music information of all the music that the player can select is stored.
When an arbitrary piece of music is selected by the player, the music information is reproduced and the dance game is started.
The music information includes related information such as the music ID, the name of the music, the artist name, and the degree of difficulty in addition to the music data on which the music sound is based.
The hard disk 105 described above can function as such a music information storage unit 201.

The footstep information storage unit 202 stores footstep information that defines a stepping motion (task motion / task operation) that is a task corresponding to each piece of music. That is, the musical score information corresponding to the music information stored in the music information storage unit 201 is stored.
For example, as shown in FIG. 7A, the footstep information is information on an array of footstep AFs indicated by arrows (that is, task action sequence / task operation sequence), and corresponds to a musical note OP as an example. is doing. 7A shows a case where the note OP and the footstep AF correspond one-to-one, but more specifically, as shown in FIG. 7B, in synchronization with the beat (time signature). In addition, footsteps AFu to AFr indicating the respective directions of up, down, left and right are defined.
Note that the footstep AF is not limited to one for the beat, and as shown in FIG. 7C, two footsteps AFu and AFd may be defined for the beat. In some cases, footsteps are not specified.
The footstep information storage unit 202 stores footstep information, which is an array of footstep AF synchronized with the beat of such a piece of music, in association with each piece of music.
The hard disk 105 described above can function as such a musical score information storage unit 202.

Returning to FIG. 6, the music list generation unit 203 generates a music list for music that can be reproduced.
For example, the music list generation unit 203 searches the music information storage unit 201 for music information based on the music genre, difficulty level, and the like, and generates a music list including a music name (title) and an artist name.
Note that the CPU 101 and the like described above can function as such a music list generation unit 203.

The image drawing unit 204 generates an image of the music list generated by the music list generation unit 203 and displays the image on the monitor 12 described above.
For example, the image drawing unit 204 generates an image of a music list as shown in FIG. 8 and displays it so that the player can select a music. Specifically, the cursor CR is moved in accordance with an instruction from the selection / confirmation unit 205 described later, and one of the songs is selected as a reproduction candidate.
Note that the music list shown in FIG. 8 displays information of only the music name and artist name as an example, but other information may be added to the music list.
The image processing unit 106 described above can function as such an image drawing unit 204.

Returning to FIG. 6, the selection / confirmation unit 205 selects an arbitrary piece of music from the above-described music list displayed in accordance with the operation of the player, and confirms it as the music to be played.
For example, after the music specified by the cursor CR of the music list shown in FIG. 8 is selected as a reproduction candidate and a digest display for emitting an operation element of the step operation unit 208 described later is performed, the player's operation is performed. The selected music is confirmed as the music to be played.
The joystick 13 described above can function as such a selection / determination unit 205.

The light emission instruction information generation unit 206 is an operator corresponding to a footstep in a predetermined section of the footstep information associated with the music that is a reproduction candidate (an operator of the step operation unit 208 described later. More specifically, The light emission instruction information of the panel of the step housing 20 described above is generated.
That is, the light emission instruction information generation unit 206 reads the footstep information associated with the music selected as the reproduction candidate by the selection / confirmation unit 205 from the footstep information storage unit 202. Then, the section including the characteristic footsteps in the read footstep information is specified, and the light emission instruction information of the operator corresponding to the footsteps in the section is generated. That is, light emission instruction information (presentation information) for presenting a digest of the stepping action imposed on the music is generated.

For example, as shown in FIG. 9, the light emission instruction information generation unit 206 specifies a section K including a characteristic footstep in the footstep information AF, and emits light from an operator corresponding to each footstep in the section K. Instruction information HS is generated. That is, the light emission instruction information HS is information for causing the operators (more specifically, the panels Pu to Pr of the step housing 20) to emit light along the same time series in the section K.
The section K may be determined in advance, for example, as a rust section or a singing section, according to the music (footnote information). Information may be scanned and a characteristic footsteps may be searched and determined.
Further, in FIG. 9, the light emission instruction information HS is shown by pulse waves for causing the panels Pu to Pr to emit light, but this is for ease of explanation, and actually the panels Pu to A command including a value defining Pr (for example, an I / O port value) and a value defining ON / OFF of light emission is generated corresponding to each footstep. That is, a command sequence corresponding to each footstep in the section K is generated.
The CPU 101 and the like described above can function as such a light emission instruction information generation unit 206.

Returning to FIG. 6, the light emission control unit 207 is an operator (an operator of the step operation unit 208 described later) based on the light emission instruction information (command string) generated by the light emission instruction information generation unit 206. In this case, the above-described step casing 20 panel) is caused to emit light.
That is, based on the generated command sequence, the above-described cold cathode ray tube RK of FIG. 3B on the target panel in the step operation unit 208 is caused to emit light (turn on / off) sequentially.
Specifically, based on the light emission instruction information HS (command string) as shown in FIG. 10A, as shown in FIG. 10B, the panels of the step housing 20 are caused to emit light in order. That is, at timings t1, t2, and t3, the panels Pl, Pd, and Pu are made to emit light according to each command, and after an interval, the panels Pd, Pl at timings t4, t5, t6, and t7 according to each command. , Pr, Pu are emitted. Thereby, the digest of the stepping action imposed at the time of reproducing the music is shown in time series by the light emission of the operation element. That is, a digest of the stepping action imposed on the music is presented to the player.
The CPU 101 and the like described above can function as such a light emission control unit 207.

Returning to FIG. 6, the step operation unit 208 has a plurality of operation elements each having a light emitting element embedded therein, and a step operation is performed by the player during the game. In addition, the operation control unit 207 controls the light emission of the operation element (light emitting element). That is, the target panels Pu to Pr emit light according to the supplied light emission instruction information (command string).
Note that the above-described step housing 20 can function as such a stepping operation unit 208.

(Overview of game device operation)
FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a flow of music selection / confirmation processing executed in the game device 200 having the above-described configuration. Hereinafter, the operation of the game apparatus 200 will be described with reference to FIG. In the music selection / confirmation process, in the game device 200 that executes the dance game, the stepping action imposed on the music selected as a candidate is displayed as a digest by causing the operator (the panel of the step housing 20) to emit light. This is a process in which the player confirms the music while confirming the content of the task motion. This music selection / confirmation process is started while waiting for the start of the dance game.

First, the game device 200 displays a list of songs (step S301).
That is, the music list generation unit 203 generates a music list for music that can be reproduced. Then, for example, the image drawing unit 204 generates an image of a music list as shown in FIG. 8, and displays the music so that the player can select the music.

The game device 200 determines whether or not a song has been selected (step S302). In other words, the selection / confirmation unit 205 according to the player's operation determines whether or not an arbitrary piece of music to be played is selected from the music list. For example, when the cursor CR position in the music list of FIG. 8 is moved, the movement destination music is selected. Conversely, if the cursor CR position has not moved, no new music has been selected.
And the game device 200 waits for execution of a subsequent process, while the music is not selected (step S302; No).

On the other hand, when the music is selected (step S302; Yes), the game device 200 reads the footstep information associated with the music (step S303).
That is, the light emission instruction information generation unit 206 reads out the footstep information associated with the music selected as the reproduction candidate from the footstep information storage unit 202.

The game device 200 generates light emission instruction information from a predetermined section of the footstep information (step S304).
That is, the light emission instruction information generation unit 206 specifies a section including a characteristic footstep in the read footstep information, and generates light emission instruction information of an operator corresponding to the footstep in the section.
For example, as shown in FIG. 9, the section K including the characteristic footsteps is specified, and the light emission instruction information HS (command string) of the operator corresponding to each footstep in the section K is generated.

The game device 200 controls the light emission of the operator based on the generated light emission instruction information HS (step S305).
That is, the light emission control unit 207 causes the operator (the target panel in the step operation unit 208) to emit light based on the light emission instruction information HS generated by the light emission instruction information generation unit 206.
For example, based on the light emission instruction information HS (command string) as shown in FIG. 10A, the panels Pu to Pr of the step housing 20 are caused to emit light in time series as shown in FIG. 10B.

The game device 200 determines whether or not there is a confirmation instruction by the player's operation (step S306).
That is, the game device 200 determines whether or not the selection / confirmation unit 205 has confirmed the music to be reproduced from the music list in accordance with the operation of the player. Note that the player confirms the content of the stepping action imposed on the music piece by the light emission of the operator (the panel of the stepping operation unit 208), and gives a confirmation instruction when he wants to play the music piece.
If it is determined that there is no confirmation instruction (step S306; No), the game device 200 returns the process to step S302, and repeatedly executes the processes of steps S302 to S306 described above.

On the other hand, when it is determined that there is a confirmation instruction (step S306; Yes), the game device 200 confirms the music to be reproduced (step S307).
When the music to be played is determined in this way, the game apparatus 200 starts a dance game.

By such music selection / confirmation processing, it is possible to confirm the music to be reproduced (music to play) while confirming the task operation (contents of the footsteps) of the music that is a reproduction candidate.
In other words, since the digest of the stepping action imposed on the music that is a candidate for reproduction is presented by the light emission of the operator (the panel of the stepping operation unit 208), the content of the stepping action imposed on the music and its difficulty level, etc. Can be grasped in advance. Therefore, the player can remember that it is a song that has been played before and its difficulty level. Further, even if a song or a new song has never been played, the repertoire can be increased because it becomes easier to play a new song based on the imposed operation content and difficulty level.
As a result, the music to be played can be selected more easily.

(Other embodiments)
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and applications are possible.
In the above embodiment, the light emission control unit 207 sequentially emits the panel of the step housing 20 at the same timing as the footstep sequence (by the same time series) based on the generated light emission instruction information HS. As described above, the light emission speed (time series) may be different from that of an actual footstep sequence.
In other words, the light emission control unit 207 narrows the interval of the light emission instruction information HS (command sequence) to emit light earlier than the actual time sequence of the footstep sequence (stepping action), or conversely, increases the interval of the command sequence. Thus, the light may be emitted later than the actual stepping time series.
That is, in the digest display, the interval at which the panel of the step housing 20 sequentially emits light is proportional to the interval at which the player should take the stepping action during actual play for the footnote portion corresponding to the digest display. As a result, the order of the stepping action and the ratio of the stepping action interval presented in the digest display are consistent with what the player should do during play. Therefore, the player can grasp what kind of music is the candidate music by looking at the digest display.
Specifically, the speed of the digest display can be selected from three levels (fast, normal, slow) as an example. Then, for example, if it is a beginner player, it is easy to grasp the contents of the stepping action, the difficulty level, etc. by selecting the slow speed digest display. Conversely, if the player is an advanced player, the content and difficulty level of the stepping motion can be grasped in a short time by selecting a fast digest display.

In the above-described embodiment, a case has been described in which a stepping action imposed at the time of reproduction is displayed in a digest manner by performing light emission control on the operation element of the step operation unit 208 (panel of the step housing 20). The stepping motion may be displayed in a digest manner by displaying the image of the above, etc., and emitting the image of the operation element.
In this case, for example, even in a home game device using a commercially available game mat (mat that cannot emit light), the stepping motion can be displayed in a digest manner.

In the above embodiment, a case has been described in which the selection / confirmation unit 205 confirms the music after performing the digest display for causing the operation element (panel of the step housing 20) of the step operation unit 208 to emit light. You may enable it to confirm a music from the operation part 208 (step housing | casing 20).
For example, when an arbitrary piece of music is selected as a playback candidate, the digest display of the stepping action is repeatedly performed, and the stepping action on the operator (the panel of the step housing 20) is accepted during that time. Then, when each of the emitted operating elements is correctly stepped at a certain rate, the music may be determined as a reproduction target.
In other words, any player who is aware of the characteristic stepping motion imposed on the music can perform the stepping motion along the digest display, and thus the confirmation operation is omitted and the music is finalized.
Also in this case, the music to be played can be selected more easily while omitting the operation.

Note that in any case, the selection / confirmation unit 205 can appropriately adjust the music. For example, the selection / confirmation unit 205 executes the following process each time a digest is displayed. First, the selection / confirmation unit 205 determines, for each light emission, whether or not an operation element that has emitted light during digest display is stepped on within a predetermined time from the light emission. Then, the selection / confirmation unit 205 obtains the number of times that the lighted operation element is stepped on within a predetermined time from the light emission. Here, the selection / confirmation unit 205 confirms the music when the obtained number of times exceeds a predetermined number. On the other hand, the selection / confirmation unit 205 does not confirm the music when the obtained number of times does not exceed the predetermined number. In this case, digest display is performed again. Note that how well the stepping motion is performed can be adjusted by adjusting a predetermined number of times or a predetermined time. For example, in order to make it difficult to determine the music, the predetermined number of times is increased or the predetermined time is shortened. On the other hand, in order to make it easy to confirm the music, the predetermined number of times is reduced or the predetermined time is lengthened.
Whether or not to confirm the music based on the ratio of the number of times the lighted operation element was stepped within the predetermined time from the light emission, rather than the number of times the lighted operation element was stepped within the predetermined time from the light emission. May be determined. For example, the selection / confirmation unit 205 determines, for each light emission, whether or not an operation element that has emitted light during digest display is stepped on within a predetermined time from the light emission. Then, the selection / confirmation unit 205 obtains the number of times that the lighted operation element is stepped on within a predetermined time from the light emission. Here, the selection / confirmation unit 205 divides the obtained number of times by the number of times of light emission in one digest display, and obtains the ratio of the number of times that the lighted operation element is stepped on within a predetermined time from the light emission. Then, the selection / confirmation unit 205 confirms the music when the obtained ratio exceeds a predetermined ratio. On the other hand, the selection / confirmation unit 205 does not confirm the music when the obtained ratio does not exceed the predetermined ratio. In this case, digest display is performed again. Note that how well the stepping motion is performed can be adjusted by adjusting a predetermined number of times or a predetermined time. For example, in order to make it difficult to determine the music, the predetermined ratio is increased or the predetermined time is shortened. On the other hand, in order to facilitate the determination of the music, the predetermined ratio is reduced or the predetermined time is lengthened.

In the above-described embodiment, the case where the digest display of the stepping motion is displayed for the reproduction candidate music selected from the music list has been described, but other stepping motions may be displayed in a digest manner.
For example, the stepping action of a player who has scored the highest score (best player) (for example, a characteristic stepping action such as a rust section) is stored, and when no player is playing (waiting to play) ), The stepping motion of the best player is displayed as a digest.
In this case, the ability of the best player in the amusement hall can be estimated, and if it is an advanced player or the like, it can be expected that he / she can get the highest score, and it will be an opportunity to play a dance game.
Similarly to the above, during the digest display, a stepping operation on the operator (the panel of the step housing 20) may be accepted so that the same music can be played immediately.

In the above embodiment, an example has been shown in which the default music that is a reproduction candidate is a predetermined music. However, the default music piece that is a candidate for playback may be a music piece that is the most accurate action among the actions made by all players. For example, the selection / confirmation unit 205 stores music and scores in association with each play made by any player. Then, the selection / confirmation unit 205 obtains an average score for each song. Here, the selection / confirmation unit 205 sets the music having the highest average score as the default music.
Such music is expected to be music selected by many players, music selected by advanced players, or well-known music (famous music). Therefore, such music is considered to be music that is highly likely to be selected by the player. Therefore, it can be expected that the operation burden on the player at the time of music selection is reduced by setting such music as the default music.

In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which a section (hereinafter referred to as “characteristic section”) in which an action to be performed by the player is displayed by the digest display is predetermined. However, in the present invention, the feature section may be determined dynamically.
In this case, the music list generation unit 203 determines, as a feature section, a section in which the action performed by all players is the most accurate among a plurality of sections constituting the music. For example, the music list generation unit 203 obtains the success rate of the stepping motion in each section for each of a plurality of sections constituting the music selected as the reproduction candidate music. And the music list production | generation part 203 determines the area where the success rate of stepping action is the highest as the characteristic area of the said music.
The section in which the movements made by all players are most accurate is considered to be a section in which the rhythm of the music is accurately grasped by the players. Such a section is considered to be a section that best represents the characteristics of the music, such as a section that is repeatedly played or a section corresponding to chorus. Accordingly, such a section is set as the feature section, and the feature motion in the feature section is presented to the player, so that the player understands what kind of music is selected as the reproduction candidate. It becomes easy to do.

In the above embodiment, the stepping motion has been described as an example, but the present invention can also be applied as appropriate to a game device that evaluates a motion other than such a stepping motion.
For example, even if it is a bodily sensation game in which a player performs a swinging motion or a tilting motion in accordance with the music to be played using a controller with a built-in acceleration sensor, it can be appropriately performed in the same manner.
In this case, the game device stores the task information corresponding to the footstep information in association with the music, and, for example, displays an image of an operator on the monitor 12 and shakes the game before starting the game. Digest display of tilting and other actions.
Furthermore, even a game in which a player's motion can be acquired by photographing a player's movement with an imaging device (camera or the like) can be applied as appropriate.
In this case as well, the game device stores the task information of the motion imposed on the player in association with the music, and the image of the motion content imposed etc. is digested on the monitor 12, for example, before the game is started. indicate.
As described above, even when an operation other than the stepping motion is evaluated, it is possible to make it easier to select the music to be played by displaying the imposed task motion on the display device or the like.

As for the present application, the priority based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2008-178673 is claimed and all the contents of the basic application are incorporated in the present application.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to make it easier for the player to select the music to be played.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Dance game apparatus 11 Speaker for performance 12 Monitor 13 Joystick 14 Speaker for rhythm 20 Step housing | casing 101 CPU
102 ROM
103 RAM
104 Interface 105 Hard Disk 106 Image Processing Unit 107 Audio Processing Unit 108 NIC
150, 200, 400 Game device 151 Selection unit 152 Presentation unit 153 Determination unit 201 Music information storage unit 202 Footnote information storage unit 203 Music list generation unit 204 Image drawing unit 205 Selection / determination unit 206 Light emission instruction information generation unit 207 Light emission control Part 208 Stepping operation part

Claims (10)

1. A player reproduces a song determined as a reproduction target from a plurality of songs, presents a task action representing an action to be taken by the player according to the playing time of the song, and determines the accuracy of the action performed by the player. A game device (150) to be evaluated,
   In response to a selection instruction made by the player, a selection unit (151) that selects one of the plurality of songs as a reproduction candidate;
   A presentation unit (152) for sequentially presenting characteristic actions representing actions to be taken by the player in a certain section (hereinafter referred to as “characteristic section”) of the total reproduction time of the music selected as the reproduction candidate;
   A confirmation unit (153) for confirming the music selected as the reproduction candidate as a reproduction target in response to a confirmation instruction made by the player;
   A game device (150) characterized by the above.
2. A gaming device (150) according to claim 1, comprising:
   The game device (150), wherein the confirmation unit (153) is configured to give the confirmation instruction when the player sequentially takes the presented characteristic actions.
3. A gaming device (150) according to claim 1, comprising:
   The action to be taken by the player is an action of operating one of a plurality of light-emitting operators,
   The game device (150), wherein the presenting unit (152) presents the characteristic action by sequentially emitting an operation element to be operated by the action represented by each of the characteristic actions.
4. A gaming device (150) according to claim 3,
   The confirmation unit (153) is configured to provide the confirmation instruction when an operation of operating the emitted operation element within a predetermined time from the light emission exceeds a predetermined number of times or a predetermined ratio. Characteristic game device (150).
5. A gaming device (150) according to claim 1, comprising:
   The game device (150), wherein the presenting unit (152) causes an interval for sequentially presenting the feature actions to be proportional to an interval at which the feature actions are to be taken in the feature section.
6. A gaming device (150) according to claim 1, comprising:
   The selection unit (151) selects a music piece for the motion most accurately performed among the motions performed by all players including the player before the selection instruction is made by the player. (150).
7. A gaming device (150) according to claim 1, comprising:
   Each of the plurality of pieces of music is divided into a plurality of sections, and the section in which the action performed by all the players including the player is most accurate among the plurality of sections is defined as the feature section. Game device (150) to play.
8. A player reproduces a song determined as a reproduction target from a plurality of songs, presents a task action representing an action to be taken by the player according to the playing time of the song, and determines the accuracy of the action performed by the player. A digest display method executed by the game device (150) to be evaluated,
   The game device (150) includes a selection unit (151), a presentation unit (152), and a confirmation unit (153).
   A selection step in which the selection unit (151) selects one of the plurality of songs as a reproduction candidate in response to a selection instruction made by the player;
   Presentation in which the presenting unit (152) sequentially presents characteristic actions representing actions to be taken by the player in a certain section (hereinafter referred to as “characteristic section”) of the total reproduction time of the music selected as the reproduction candidate. Step,
   The confirmation unit (153) includes a confirmation step of confirming a song selected as the reproduction candidate as a reproduction target in response to a confirmation instruction made by the player.
   A digest display method characterized by the above.
9. Computer
   A player reproduces a song determined as a reproduction target from a plurality of songs, presents a task action representing an action to be taken by the player according to the playing time of the song, and determines the accuracy of the action performed by the player. An information recording medium for storing a program that functions as a game device (150) to be evaluated,
   The program causes the computer to
   In response to a selection instruction made by the player, a selection unit (151) that selects one of the plurality of songs as a reproduction candidate;
   A presentation unit (152) for sequentially presenting characteristic actions representing actions to be taken by the player in a certain section (hereinafter referred to as “characteristic section”) of the total reproduction time of the music selected as the reproduction candidate;
   A confirmation unit (153) for confirming the music selected as the reproduction candidate as a reproduction target in response to a confirmation instruction made by the player;
   Functioning as an information recording medium.
10. Computer
    A player reproduces a song determined as a reproduction target from a plurality of songs, presents a task action representing an action to be taken by the player according to the playing time of the song, and determines the accuracy of the action performed by the player. A program that functions as a game device (150) to be evaluated,
    The computer,
    In response to a selection instruction made by the player, a selection unit (151) that selects one of the plurality of songs as a reproduction candidate;
    A presentation unit (152) for sequentially presenting characteristic actions representing actions to be taken by the player in a certain section (hereinafter referred to as “characteristic section”) of the total reproduction time of the music selected as the reproduction candidate;
    A confirmation unit (153) for confirming the music selected as the reproduction candidate as a reproduction target in response to a confirmation instruction made by the player;
    A program characterized by functioning as

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