IP Library Granted Patent US 9,370,713
Granted Patent B2
US 9,370,713 · App. 13/342,422 · Granted Jun 21, 2016

Game device, game control method, and game control program for controlling game in which character is moved in three dimensional space

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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 9,370,713
App. No.
13/342,422
Granted
Jun 21, 2016
Kind
B2
Abstract

A game device includes: a screen generation unit configured to read data for a character and an object located in a three-dimensional game field from a storage device, generate images of the character and the object, and display the images on a displace device; a character control unit configured to control the movement of the character landing on the object; a gravitational direction control unit configured to change the direction of gravitational force exerted on the character in accordance with a command input from a player acknowledged by an input device; and a fall control unit configured to cause the character to fall in the changed direction of the gravitational force. The gravitational direction control unit displays a marker indicating a position where the character would land after falling.

Claims (53)

1. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium having stored therein a game control program capable of causing a processing system or device to exhibit functional modules, comprising:

a module configured to read data for a character and an object located in a three-dimensional game field from a storage device, to generate images of the character and the object, and to display the images on a display device;

a module configured to control a movement of the character landing on an object;

a module configured to change a direction of gravitational force exerted on the character in accordance with a command input from a player acknowledged by an input device;

a module configured to cause the character to fall in the changed direction of the gravitational force; and

a module configured to display a marker indicating a position where the character would land after falling.

2. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium according to claim 1 , wherein, if an object is located within a range defined by a predetermined distance in the direction that the character falls, the module to display the marker displays the marker at the position of the closest object, and, if there are no objects in the direction of the fall, the module to display the marker displays the marker at a position defined by the predetermined distance.

3. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium according to claim 1 , further comprising:

a module configured to change a viewing position or viewing direction used when generating the image, in accordance with a command input from the player acknowledged by the input device,

wherein the module to change the gravitational direction changes the gravitational direction to a direction that is parallel to the viewing direction occurring when a command input for changing the gravitational direction is acknowledged.

4. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium according to claim 3 , wherein the module configured to change the gravitational direction causes the character to float to a predetermined height in accordance with a command input from the player acknowledged by the input device, and to change the direction of gravitational force exerted on the character in accordance with a further command input from the player acknowledged by the input device.

5. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium according to claim 4 , wherein the module configured to control the movement of the character does not move the character while the character is floating in the air.

6. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium according to claim 4 , wherein

the module configured to change the viewing position or viewing direction changes the viewing position or viewing direction in accordance with a command input from the player acknowledged by the input device even while the character is floating in the air, and

the module configured to display the marker changes the position of the marker in accordance with a change in the viewing position or viewing direction.

7. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium according to one of claim 1 , wherein the module configured to display a marker displays the character, displacing the character from the marker so that the character does not overlap with the marker, in the case where the character and the marker would otherwise overlap each other.

8. A game device comprising:

a screen generation device configured to read data for a character and an object located in a three-dimensional game field from a storage device, to generate images of the character and the object, and to display the images on a displace device;

a character control device configured to control a movement of the character landing on the object;

a gravitational direction control device configured to change a direction of gravitational force exerted on the character in accordance with a command input from a player acknowledged by an input device; and

a fall control device configured to cause the character to fall in the changed direction of the gravitational force,

wherein the gravitational direction control unit displays a marker indicating a position where the character would land after falling.

9. A game control method comprising:

reading, using an image generation device, data for a character and an object located in a three-dimensional game field from a storage device, generating images of the character and the object, and displaying the images on a displace device;

controlling, using a character control device, a movement of the character landing on the object;

changing, using the gravitational direction control device, a direction of gravitational force exerted on the character in accordance with a command input from a player acknowledged by an input device; and

causing, using a fall control device, the character to fall in the changed direction of the gravitational force,

wherein the gravitational direction control device displays a marker indicating a position where the character would land after falling.

10. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium having stored therein a game control program capable of causing a processing system or device to exhibit functional modules, comprising:

a module configured to read data for a character and a plurality of objects from a storage device and to generate images of the character and the plurality of objects located in a three-dimensional game field, and to display the images on a display device;

a module configured to control a movement of the character landing on an object;

a module configured to change a direction of gravitational force exerted on the character in accordance with a command input from a player;

a module configured to cause the character to fall in the changed direction of the gravitational force; and

a module configured to cause an object within a predetermined range from the character to fall in the changed direction of the gravitational force along with the character.

11. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium according to claim 10 , further comprising:

a module configured to change a viewing position or viewing direction used when generating the image,

wherein the module configured to change the gravitational direction changes the gravitational direction to a direction that is parallel to the viewing direction occurring when the command input is acknowledged.

12. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium according to claim 11 , wherein the module configured to change the viewing position or viewing direction changes the viewing position in accordance with a command input from the player and defines the viewing direction for viewing the character from the viewing position.

13. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium according to claim 10 , wherein the module configured to cause the character to fall controls a part of the character while the character is falling to be oriented in a direction of fall or in a direction opposite to the direction of fall.

14. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium according to claim 10 , wherein the module configured to cause the character to fall controls, while the gravitational direction is being changed, a part of the character to be oriented in the gravitational direction occurring before the direction is changed by the module configured to change the gravitational direction.

15. The non-transitory computer readable recording medium according to claim 10 , further comprising: a module configured to change the viewing position used when generating the image to a predetermined position after the falling character lands on an object located in the game field, and rotates the image so that the current gravitational direction is aligned with the vertical direction of the image.

16. A game device, comprising:

a screen generation device configured to generate images of a character and a plurality of objects located in a three-dimensional game field and to display the images;

a character control device configured to control a movement of the character landing on the object;

a gravitational direction control device configured to change a direction of gravitational force exerted on the character in accordance with a command input from a player; and

a fall control device configured to cause the character to fall in the changed direction of the gravitational force and cause an object within a predetermined range from the character to fall in the changed direction of the gravitational force along with the character.

17. A game control method comprising:

reading data for a character and a plurality of objects from a storage device;

generating images of the character and the plurality of objects located in a three-dimensional game field and displaying the images on a display device;

controlling a movement of the character landing on an object;

changing a direction of gravitational force exerted on the character in accordance with a command input from a player;

causing the character to fall in the changed direction of the gravitational force; and

causing an object within a predetermined range from the character to fall in the changed direction of the gravitational force along with the character.

Assignments (4)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Sep 6, 2017
From: SONY CORPORATION
To: SONY INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT INC.
Reel/Frame 043761/0975 →
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded May 11, 2016
From: SONY COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT INC.
To: SONY INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT INC.
Reel/Frame 038545/0045 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded May 11, 2016
From: SONY INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT INC.
To: SONY CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 038545/0059 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 2, 2012
From: OKURA, JUNYA
To: SONY COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT INC.
Reel/Frame 027794/0998 →