Amusement devices: games – Including means for processing electronic data – Data storage or retrieval
Reexamination Certificate
1998-11-27
2001-05-29
Harrison, Jessica J. (Department: 3713)
Amusement devices: games
Including means for processing electronic data
Data storage or retrieval
C463S043000, C463S045000, C463S046000, C463S047000, C273S14800B, C273S14800B
Reexamination Certificate
active
06238291
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cartridge, a game machine and a bi-directional communication type game system that makes it easy to play a game which requires connecting a plurality of portable game machines to one TV game machine for displaying common images on the TV screen for all to see, and for displaying individual images on the portable game machine display screen for only the individual player to see.
2. Description of the Related Art
TV game machines and portable game machines have each been commercialized, but each machine plays a single game. Bi-directional communication between different machines, such as between a TV game machine and a portable game machine connected to share the same game, have not yet been commercialized. The only exception is playing a match game connecting the same portable game machines to one another using communication cables.
Often, concealing a player's hand is a key to enjoying and implementing strategy in a game, such as is the case of mah-jong. When playing a game with a TV game machine using controllers (without displays), the players commonly see the same TV screen. This results in all players seeing all other players' hands, rendering it impossible to play the game according to the original intent of the game. Therefore, in the current situation, game conditions must be set such that a player cannot see other players' hands, for example, one human player vs. three computer players. This imposes many constraints to enjoyment of the game.
If the above game is played using portable game machines connected with communication cables, a player's hand can be seen only on an individual screen without being seen by the other players since the portable game machine is provided with a liquid crystal display. This overcomes the hand viewing dilemma as a common screen is not available, i.e., a “common field”, which all players need to see during the game to inform them of the kind of tiles which are discarded and the number of tiles that still remain in mah-jong, for example.
Generally when playing a game such as mah-jong, one does not know which tile another player will discard, the number of tiles another player will draw, whether the player will reveal tiles or what private strategy a player is forming, merely by looking at the screen. Generally, it is not fair if one player's private strategy is revealed to the other players by viewing the movements of their hands during the game. When two or more players play a game together, if a player looks at the controller of another player, the strategy of the other player is known. In arcade games, a partition curtain is set to partition the display horizontally, so that players cannot see the screens or hand strategies of others. This, however, is far from the spirit of original gaming, because players cannot read the expressions of other players and cannot observe the gestures of other players.
As described above, a bi-directional communication type game system to share a game connecting different models, such as a TV game machine and portable game machine, has not yet been commercialized. When a game as mah-jong, is played, a player's hand cannot be concealed when using a TV game machine, since individual screens do not exist, and the game cannot be played smoothly when using a portable game machine since a common screen does not exist. In both cases, it is impossible to enjoy such a strategy oriented thinking game if other players can see the other players' hands thus revealing their strategy.
Home TV game machines are based on playing games at home. Portable game machines are used in a wide environment, including in homes and outdoors. If both types of machines could be connected to share a game, utilizing the respective advantages of home game machines and portable game machines, the above mentioned type of games could be supported and games would diversify. The present invention was made based on this knowledge.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide a cartridge, a game machine and a bi-directional communication type game system which solve the problems of the prior art described above by exchanging data directionally by connecting a TV game machine and portable game machines so that new game play becomes possible.
An example of a portable game machine is Gameboy (registered trademark) which has a liquid crystal display and a cross-key. An example of a TV game machine which bi-directionally communicates with the portable game machine is “NINTENDO 64” (registered trademark), “Super Famicon” (product name), and “Family Computer” (product name), where a plurality of controllers are connected so that two or more players can play at the same time.
Appropriate games are thinking games played by two or more players, such as mah-jong, Hanafuda, cards (poker, seven card bridge, canasta), where no game-strategy is established if tiles or cards of a player are revealed to the other players. This system can also be applied to games where a player's hand can be revealed to the other players, such as bowling, go, shogi and chess without detracting from the spirit of the game. Likewise, the system can be applied to a one player game, such as solitaire. The desirable RAM for these types of games is S-RAM (Static RAM), which can hold stored content for a long time by using a backup battery.
ROM stores a game program to a TV game machine and a portable game machine respectively. The ROM for a game stores the program content in the TV game machine for developing an overall game, whereas, the ROM of the portable game machine stores the program content for assisting the game development of a player or for progressing a game. In the case of a game played by two or more players, such as mahjong, the former program content relates to the general and common aspects of the game which the other players can see, and the latter program content relates to the individual and confidential aspects of the game, that is, tiles or cards that the other players should not see. The program of the portable game machine normally has content which allows a single player to play alone, so that playing a game is possible even if disconnected from a TV game machine. In the case of bi-directional communication, it is instructed such that a stand-alone program is not executed but a common program linked with the program for a home TV game machine is executed, and concealed content is displayed only on the display of the local machine.
The simplest and least expensive way to connect a TV game machine and a portable game machine with a display is to use a communication cable. However, infrared communication or high frequency radio communication may also be used as the means of communication. For bi-directionally exchanging data required for development of a game between the TV game machine and the above mentioned portable game machine, image display instructions and voice output instructions sent from the TV game machine to the portable game machine, and data required for bi-directional communication sent from the portable game machine to the TV game machine, such as the input information of the control system are used.
Common images that any player can see are discarded tiles, stacked tiles and revealed tiles of mah-jong, for example, which are displayed on the display of the TV game machine. Individual images which only one player can see are the player's own tiles and drawn tiles, which are displayed only on the display of the portable game machine.
The program content to develop an overall game is stored on the cassette for the TV game machine, and the program content to assist game development of an individual player or to progress the game is stored on the cartridge for the portable game machine with a display. The TV game machine, with a display where the cassette for the TV game machine is set, and the portable game machine, with a display where-the-cartridge for the portable game machine is set, a
Fujimoto Jun
Nonaka Nobuyuki
Yamaguchi Masahiro
Harrison Jessica J.
Nguyen Binh-An D.
Oliff & Berridg,e PLC
Seta Corporation
LandOfFree
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