Method and apparatus for providing a simulated band experience including online interaction

Abstract

A method for facilitating real-time interaction between a first and second player of a music-based video game via a network having unpredictable delivery latency, the first player located remotely from the second player, includes displaying to a first player target musical data associated with a musical composition, receiving music performance input from the first player via a controller resembling a first musical instrument, displaying to a second player, the second player located remotely from the first player, target musical data associated with the musical composition, and receiving music performance input from the second player.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0001]This invention relates to video games and, more particularly, to video games in which game players emulate a musical performance using musical instrument simulators and interact musically, either cooperatively or competitively, with one another in real-time.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]Music is a temporal medium, the organization of sound in time. Accordingly, music making is highly timing sensitive. When a musician presses a key on a piano, the musician expects the result to be immediately audible. Any delay in hearing the sound, even as brief as few milliseconds, produces a perceived sluggishness that impedes the ability of the musician to use the instrument.[0003]Music making is also often a collaborative effort among many musicians who interact with each other. One form of musical interaction popular among non-musicians is provided by a video game genre known as “rhythm-action,” which requires a player to perform phrases from a pre-recorded musica...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The invention is a system and method that allows multiple individuals to play a music-based video game in real-time, either by connecting them through a network or physically proximate to each other. The players can use controllers that simulate musical instruments to compete or collaborate with each other. The game can be played between two bands, with the bands consisting of different players. The system includes a display for each player that shows the target musical data and music performance input from the other player. The technical effect of this invention is to provide a more immersive and enjoyable experience for music-based video games.

Problems solved by technology

Any delay in hearing the sound, even as brief as few milliseconds, produces a perceived sluggishness that impedes the ability of the musician to use the instrument.

If the player fails to perform this action successfully for a sufficient percentage of the notes, he scores poorly and loses the game.

Unfortunately, however, the latency inherent in networked communication imposes a significant engineering and design burden on video game developers: data signals are often subject to large and unpredictable transmission delays.

However, in action games and other “real-time” games, gameplay is extremely sensitive to the timing of various events, and transmission delays inherently result in continual inconsistencies between the local game states of the various players of a networked game.

The rhythm-action genre has a unique attribute, however, that makes traditional conflict resolution methods inapplicable.

If these two players are separated by a network, the data representing musical notes played by one player will incur transmission delays when being sent to the other player.

If note data were simply transmitted to a receiving machine it would trigger corresponding audio that would sound “out of sync” to the receiving player, resulting in cacophony.

However, this would significantly degrade the entertainment value of the game experience by destroying musical communication between the players.

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