Game machine, performance determination program of game machine, and performance determination method of game machine

Abstract

To provide a game machine capable of enhancing interest in a game or an optional game.SOLUTION: A game machine includes a storage unit, a setting unit, a lottery unit, a determination unit, and an output unit. The lottery unit executes a lottery and determines a lottery result, the determination unit executes determination processing for determining a performance on the lottery result, and the output unit outputs the performance. The setting unit receives designation on an attribute of a performance from a user, and stores it in the storage unit as setting information. The storage unit stores a generation probability of a performance pattern for each kind of the lottery result and a performance attribute beforehand, the performance pattern including attribute designation for designating reference to setting information, and the performance attribute indicating correspondence between the performance and the attribute. The determination unit determines the performance pattern on the lottery result according to the generation probability in the determination processing, identifies, the attribute designated by the setting information on the basis of the attribute designation of the performance pattern, and determines the performance associated with the attribute as a performance on the lottery result in the performance attribute.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a gaming machine, a performance determination program for the gaming machine, and a performance determination method for the gaming machine. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there have been known pachinko machines and the like that output advance notice effects that suggest the likelihood of a big win. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technology for appropriately controlling the number of effects to be executed when multiple effects are executed for one variable game.

[0003] Furthermore, Non-Patent Document 1 discloses a customization function for a pachinko game machine, which allows customization of the probability of a big win when an effect occurs. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2019-063397 A [Non-patent literature]

[0005] [Non-Patent Document 1] “Pachinko, customization function?? Let's introduce it with Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn.”, [online], [searched on July 10, 2023], Internet<URL:https: / / yuraku-group.jp / blog-kyowa / fever-gundam-uc-custom / > Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, the technology described in Patent Document 1 only controls the execution of a plurality of effects, and is not capable of selecting an effect that reflects the user's preferences.

[0007] In addition, although the technology described in Non-Patent Document 1 allows the user to change the probability of a jackpot when an effect occurs through user settings, it is limited to changing the probability and is not possible to reflect the user's preferences in the effect itself.

[0008] The present invention has been made in consideration of such conventional techniques, and an object of the present invention is to provide a gaming machine that can increase interest in play or any game. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a gaming machine comprising a memory unit, a setting unit, a lottery unit, a determination unit, and an output unit, wherein the lottery unit conducts a lottery to determine a lottery result, the determination unit executes a determination process for determining an effect related to the lottery result, and the output unit outputs the effect, wherein the setting unit accepts designation regarding attributes of the effect from a user and stores the designation in the memory unit as setting information, the memory unit pre-stores the probability of occurrence of an effect pattern for each type of lottery result and an effect attribute, the effect pattern includes an attribute designation that designates a reference to the setting information, and the effect attribute indicates the correspondence between the effect and an attribute, and the determination unit determines the effect pattern related to the lottery result in accordance with the occurrence probability in the determination process, identifies an attribute designated by the setting information based on the attribute designation of the effect pattern, and determines an effect associated with the attribute in the effect attribute as the effect related to the lottery result.

[0010] With this configuration, the effects can be determined based on the attributes specified by the user. In other words, while in the past, the occurrence probability could only be changed by setting, according to the present invention, the content of the effects themselves can be changed by the user's settings. Therefore, for example, it is possible to apply applications such as selecting an effect in which a favorite character appears when the expectation of a big win is high, depending on the character that the user likes, and this can further increase the interest according to the user's preferences.

[0011] In a preferred form of the present invention, the attribute designation is a designation of an attribute ranking, and the setting unit accepts input from a user indicating a ranking for each attribute of the effect as the setting information and stores it in the memory unit, and the determination unit, in the determination process, determines the effect pattern related to the lottery result determined by the lottery unit in accordance with the occurrence probability, identifies an attribute in the setting information that is set to the same rank as the attribute ranking of the effect pattern, and determines, in the effect attribute, the effect associated with that attribute as the effect related to the lottery result.

[0012] With this configuration, the effects can be determined based on the ranking set by the user. Therefore, for example, it is possible to select effects with attributes that are ranked higher as the expectation of a big win increases, which can further increase interest.

[0013] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the attribute is specified by a combination of a plurality of attribute items.

[0014] With this configuration, the attributes of the effects can be set in more detail, and the user can specify the attributes in more detail, thereby allowing the user's preferences to be reflected in more detail.

[0015] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the attribute items include characters appearing in the presentation.

[0016] With this configuration, it is possible to determine the presentation taking into consideration the characters that the user likes and dislikes.

[0017] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the setting section allows the user to select a plurality of the attribute items in order, and determines an option for the attribute item to be selected next according to the attribute item previously selected.

[0018] With this configuration, for example, when there is no effect corresponding to a particular combination of attribute items, it is possible to perform control so that such a combination cannot be selected.

[0019] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a program that causes a computer to function as a gaming machine comprising a memory unit, a setting unit, a lottery unit, a determination unit, and an output unit, in which the lottery unit conducts a lottery to determine a lottery result, the determination unit executes a determination process for determining an effect related to the lottery result, and the output unit outputs the effect, wherein the setting unit accepts designation regarding the attributes of the effect from a user and stores the designation in the memory unit as setting information, the memory unit pre-stores the probability of occurrence of an effect pattern for each type of lottery result and the effect attributes, the effect patterns include attribute designation that designates a reference to the setting information, and the effect attributes indicate the correspondence between the effects and attributes, and the determination unit determines the effect pattern related to the lottery result in accordance with the occurrence probability in the determination process, identifies an attribute designated by the setting information based on the attribute designation of the effect pattern, and determines an effect associated with the attribute in the effect attribute as the effect related to the lottery result.

[0020] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a computer-executed effect determination method comprising a memory unit, a setting unit, a lottery unit, a determination unit, and an output unit, wherein the lottery unit conducts a lottery to determine a lottery result, the determination unit executes a determination process for determining an effect related to the lottery result, and the output unit outputs the effect, wherein the setting unit accepts designation regarding the attributes of the effect from a user and stores the designation in the memory unit as setting information, the memory unit pre-stores the probability of occurrence of an effect pattern for each type of lottery result and the effect attributes, the effect pattern includes an attribute designation that designates a reference to the setting information, and the effect attributes indicate the correspondence between the effect and the attribute, and the determination unit determines the effect pattern related to the lottery result in accordance with the occurrence probability in the determination process, identifies an attribute designated by the setting information based on the attribute designation of the effect pattern, and determines an effect associated with the attribute in the performance attribute as the effect related to the lottery result. Effect of the Invention

[0021] According to the present invention, a gaming machine that enhances interest in gaming can be provided. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0022] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing the appearance of a gaming machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of a gaming machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] 4 is an example of information stored in a memory unit of a gaming machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 11 is a flowchart illustrating a determination process according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] 11 is a display example for inputting setting information according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0023] The present invention relates to a technique for determining the effects of a gaming machine, and in particular to a technique for determining the effects according to the user's preferences. In general, in gaming machines such as pachinko and slot machines, effects suggesting the lottery result are output before the lottery result is displayed, thereby creating a sense of expectation in the user and increasing interest. For example, when a specific effect is displayed, the expectation corresponding to the effect is determined, such as a 70% probability of winning, a 30% probability of winning the jackpot, etc., and the effect is output according to this.

[0024] In this case, the effect is determined after the lottery result is determined. In other words, the lottery is not performed according to the degree of expectation of the effect, but the effect is determined according to the lottery result by setting the probability of the effect occurring for each type of lottery result so as to match the degree of expectation determined in advance as described above.

[0025] In the present invention, the effects are selected based on the user's settings, allowing the user's preferences to be reflected in the determination of the effects. Hereinafter, an embodiment of a gaming machine according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiment shown below is an example of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the following embodiment, and various configurations can be adopted.

[0026] For example, the configuration, operation, etc. of the gaming machine will be described in this embodiment, but a method, computer program, etc. with a similar configuration can also achieve the same effects. The program may be stored in a non-transitory recording medium that can be read by a computer. For example, the device according to the present invention can be realized by installing the program in a computer and mounting it in the housing of the gaming machine, and the method according to the present invention can be executed by the computer.

[0027] In addition, in this embodiment, the gaming machine is described assuming that it is a pachinko gaming machine, but the present invention is not limited to this and can also be applied to, for example, lottery presentations in slot gaming machines and other computer games.

[0028] 1 is an example of the appearance of the gaming machine of this embodiment. The gaming machine of this embodiment includes a handle operated by the user when launching a gaming ball, and a button operated by the user for setting and selecting information during play. The performance unit that outputs the performance includes a display unit and a movable unit. The performance unit also includes a light-emitting unit that outputs the performance by light emission, and a speaker that outputs the performance by sound.

[0029] In addition, the gaming machine has a winning hole on the gaming board from which the gaming balls are shot, and when a user operates the gaming ball to enter the winning hole, a lottery instruction is sent to the control unit of the gaming machine, and a lottery process is executed. In addition, there is a big winning hole that opens when a lottery involving a ball entering the winning hole results in a big win, and a ball can be inserted into the big winning hole to win a prize, and a second winning hole that opens after a big win, and a lottery can be held under more favorable conditions than the winning hole if a ball is inserted into the big winning hole.

[0030] The gaming machine includes a control unit as a hardware configuration. The control unit is a computer including an arithmetic unit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), a main storage device such as a RAM (Random Access Memory), and an auxiliary storage device such as a HDD (Hard Disk Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive), or a flash memory. The control unit functions as each unit described below and executes various processes, thereby realizing the gaming machine of this embodiment.

[0031] 2 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of the gaming machine of this embodiment realized by a program. The gaming machine 0 includes an input unit 1, a setting unit 2, a memory unit 3, a lottery unit 4, a determination unit 5, an output unit 6, and a game unit 7.

[0032] In the gaming machine 0 of this embodiment, when a user operates the handle and a gaming ball enters a winning hole, a lottery instruction is sent to the lottery unit 4, and a lottery process is executed. The lottery unit 4 then transmits the lottery result to the determination unit 5, which executes the determination process to determine the presentation related to the lottery result, and the output unit 6 outputs the presentation. The details of the determination process will be described later.

[0033] The input unit 1 receives electronic information converted from operations using buttons, etc., and transmits instructions to each unit to execute processing according to the input. For example, it receives an operation from a user to give instructions regarding the attributes of a performance, and passes it to the setting unit 2.

[0034] The setting unit 2 receives designation of the attributes of the effects from the user via the input unit 1, and stores the designation as setting information in the storage unit 3. In this embodiment, the attributes are combinations of multiple attribute items, and the designation of the attributes receives an input designating the user's preferred order of options for each attribute item. The setting unit 2 then stores the setting information indicating the order of each attribute item in the storage unit 3.

[0035] For example, when a main character and an enemy character appear in a performance, each of the main character and the enemy character can be set as an attribute item. Then, as a designation regarding the attribute of the performance, a designation of the ranking of each of the main character and the enemy character is accepted. The designation of the ranking can be made by the user at will, and for example, the ranking can be designated in the order of the user's preference.

[0036] As other attribute items, for example, if a comic book or a TV anime is the theme of the gaming machine 0, episodes of the comic book or the TV anime may be used as attribute items. Also, for example, background sounds and sound effects during the performance may be selected as attribute items. The performance may be a so-called group preview performance in which many characters are displayed, and in this case, for example, the type of character and whether or not it is a group preview are expected to be attribute items.

[0037] The storage unit 3 stores in advance the probability of occurrence of a presentation pattern for each type of lottery result and the presentation attributes. It also stores the setting information received from the setting unit 2. The probability of occurrence of a presentation pattern and the presentation attributes are fixed settings and cannot be changed by the user. The setting information can be freely changed by the user's operation, and when a new setting is made by the setting unit 2, the storage unit 3 overwrites the latest setting and erases the previous setting.

[0038] In the present invention, the effect pattern does not directly correspond to the effect or the effect attribute, but specifies a reference to the setting information. As a result, the effect pattern and the effect are associated with each other via the setting information set by the user, so that the effect that reflects the user's preferences can be selected. In this embodiment, the setting information includes multiple specifications, and the effect pattern specifies a reference in the setting information.

[0039] The setting information may always specify only one attribute or effect, and the effect pattern may simply specify that the setting information is to be referenced. In this case, there may be a mixture of effect patterns that specify a reference to the setting information and effect patterns that specify a fixed attribute or effect. In other words, the configuration may be such that only a specific effect pattern depends on the setting information, and the other effect patterns always output the same effect regardless of the setting information.

[0040] Specific examples of various types of stored information in this embodiment will be described. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of information stored in the memory unit 3 in this embodiment. The occurrence probability indicates the occurrence probability of a presentation pattern for each lottery result. There are types of lottery results, such as miss, win, and jackpot. In addition, there are multiple types of game states, and the type and probability of each lottery result differ depending on the game state.

[0041] The presentation pattern includes, as an attribute specification, an attribute ranking indicating the ranking of each attribute item. Specifically, the attribute items of the main character and the attribute items of the enemy character are included, respectively. In the presentation determination process, the presentation is determined based on the attribute set in the setting information to the same rank as the attribute ranking in this presentation pattern.

[0042] The effect attribute represents the attribute of each effect. As described above, in this embodiment, the attribute is represented by a combination of the attribute items of the "main character" and the attribute items of the "enemy character". In addition, the effect and the attribute correspond one-to-one, and the effect can be uniquely determined by specifying the attribute.

[0043] The setting information is information set by the setting unit 2 and can be changed as desired by the user. The user may, for example, rank the attribute items in the order of their preference, and the setting unit 2 registers the rank of each attribute item as setting information in the storage unit 3. In this embodiment, the rankings of the main character and enemy characters are accepted and registered as setting information.

[0044] The lottery unit 4 performs a lottery and determines the lottery result. In this embodiment, when a game ball enters the winning port or the second winning port, the game unit 7 recognizes the game state and causes the lottery unit 4 to execute a lottery process. The lottery unit 4 randomly determines the lottery result according to a predetermined probability and transmits the lottery result to the determination unit 5.

[0045] The determination unit 5 executes a determination process for determining the effect related to the lottery result. The determination process is performed based on the occurrence probability of each effect pattern for each lottery result stored in the storage unit 3, the attribute designation of the effect pattern, the setting information, and the effect attribute. Details will be described later.

[0046] The output unit 6 outputs the effect determined by the determination unit 5 prior to the lottery result. Specifically, the output unit 6 transmits an output instruction to various output devices equipped in the gaming machine 0 according to the specified effect. The output mode can be determined arbitrarily, but it is assumed that the effect will be performed, for example, by displaying on the display unit, emitting sound from a speaker, illuminating a light-emitting unit, driving a movable unit, etc.

[0047] Next, the execution procedure of the determination process will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a flowchart of the determination process of this embodiment. When the game ball enters the winning port or the second winning port, the process starts, and the lottery unit 4 executes a lottery in step S1. Note that the lottery when the game ball enters the winning port and the lottery when the game ball enters the second winning port have different contents (type of lottery result and its probability), and the presentation pattern selected accordingly also differs, but the selection of the presentation is the same, so the explanation will be omitted.

[0048] Next, the process proceeds to step S2, where the determination unit 5 determines an effect pattern according to the lottery result received from the lottery unit 4, in accordance with the occurrence probability of the effect pattern for each lottery result.

[0049] In step S3, based on the attribute ranking of the presentation pattern selected in step S2, an attribute set to the same rank as the attribute ranking in the setting information is identified. For example, in the example of Fig. 3, if presentation pattern 1 is selected in step S2, the combination of the main character ranked first and the enemy character ranked first becomes the target attribute ranking. In the setting information, the main character ranked first is "Character 1" and the enemy character ranked first is "Character C," so this combination is identified as an attribute in step S3.

[0050] In step S4, the effect associated with the attribute specified in step S3 is determined as the effect related to the lottery result. For example, in the above example, effect 3, which is a combination of the main character's attribute item "Character 1" and the enemy character's attribute item "Character C", is determined as the effect related to the lottery result.

[0051] In this embodiment, the attributes and effects are associated one-to-one, and the effect is uniquely determined by the attribute specified in step S3. However, multiple effects may correspond to one attribute, and an effect may be randomly determined from among them. For example, multiple effects may be prepared that correspond to the combination of "Character 1" and "Character C." Also, for example, it is possible to allow the user to set a ranking for only one of the attribute items, and an effect may be randomly determined from among multiple effects that correspond to attributes that meet the conditions of that attribute item.

[0052] The determined effect is output by the output unit 6 in step S5, and then the lottery result is output in step S6. In this way, the effect that creates a sense of expectation for the lottery result can be selected based on the attributes set by the user, and interest can be further increased. For example, if a character that the user likes appears when the expectation is high, the user can be more entertained. Also, the effect that is frequently output can be configured to have the user's favorite character appear, providing more enjoyment.

[0053] Next, a display example for inputting setting information will be described with reference to Fig. 5. When inputting, a selection screen such as that shown in Fig. 5(a) is displayed first. On the screen in Fig. 5(a), options for various attribute items that can be specified by the user are displayed, and one of them can be selected.

[0054] When you select an attribute item, a screen like that shown in Figure 5(b) or (c) will be displayed, and you can select the ranking for each attribute item. Here, you cannot select the same character for multiple rankings in each attribute item. Also, if there is a combination that does not exist in the performance attributes, you cannot select that combination.

[0055] Specifically, first, the effect attribute set for the selected character is referenced based on the ranking of the attribute item selected first, and the type of other attribute items (enemy characters, etc.) that can be combined with the character is identified.

[0056] Furthermore, the attribute rankings of other attribute items that are combined with the same attribute ranking as the attribute ranking in the performance pattern are identified. Then, the attribute rankings of the combinations of rankings that exist in the performance pattern are filtered based on the types of attribute items that can be combined as identified by the above method, and are determined as options.

[0057] For example, if there is no effect where the main character's attribute item is "Character 3" and the enemy character's attribute item is "Character C", the setting unit 2 determines options for the next attribute item to be selected according to the attribute item selected first, and displays the screen so that the order selection that results in that combination is not possible. That is, when the order of the enemy character's attribute items is selected after each order of the main character's attribute items has been selected, the enemy characters selectable for each order are determined according to the result of the main character's order selection and the type of attribute order registered in the effect pattern, and are presented as options on the screen of Fig. 5(c). By performing this for each order, only combinations that can actually be output can be selected.

[0058] In addition, although the present embodiment shows an example in which each attribute item is selected individually, it is also possible to register several patterns of setting information and allow the user to select from among them. That is, the user may select a setting pattern, and the rankings of all attribute items corresponding to that pattern may be input and registered as setting information. This allows the user to easily perform settings, and solves the problem that settings may be cumbersome.

[0059] As described above, according to the gaming machine of this embodiment, it is possible to determine the presentation that reflects the user's preferences, rather than the uniform presentation according to the lottery result. This can further increase the interest. In addition, by specifying the attribute by combining multiple attribute items, detailed settings are possible, making it easier to reflect the user's preferences.

[0060] Furthermore, by dynamically varying the options based on the input information when specifying the setting information for each attribute item, it is possible to eliminate the problem of selecting an effect that cannot be output and the trouble of having the user repeatedly re-enter information. [Explanation of symbols]

[0061] 0: Gaming machine 1: Input section 2: Setting section 3: Storage section 4: Lottery Section 5: Decision section 6: Output section 7: Gaming Club

Claims

1. The apparatus includes a lottery unit, a determination unit, an output unit, a storage unit, and a setting unit, The lottery unit conducts a lottery to determine a lottery result, The determination unit executes a determination process for determining an effect related to the lottery result, The output unit outputs the effect, The setting unit accepts designation regarding attributes of the performance from a user and stores the designation as setting information in the storage unit; The storage unit stores in advance the probability of occurrence of an effect pattern for each type of lottery result and an effect attribute, The effect pattern includes an attribute designation that designates a reference to the setting information, The performance attribute indicates a correspondence between the performance and the attribute, The determination unit, in the determination process, determining the presentation pattern for the lottery result according to the occurrence probability; Identifying an attribute designated by the setting information based on an attribute designation of the effect pattern; The gaming machine determines an effect associated with the effect attribute as an effect related to the lottery result.

2. The attribute specification is a specification of an attribute order, The setting unit receives an input indicating a ranking of each attribute of the effects from a user as the setting information and stores the input in the storage unit; The determination unit, in the determination process, determining the presentation pattern related to the lottery result determined by the lottery unit according to the occurrence probability; Identifying an attribute set to the same rank as the attribute rank of the effect pattern in the setting information; 2. The gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein an effect associated with the effect attribute is determined as an effect related to the lottery result.

3. 3. The gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein the attribute is specified by a combination of a plurality of attribute items.

4. The gaming machine according to claim 3 , wherein the attribute items include a character appearing in the performance.

5. 4. The gaming machine according to claim 3, wherein the setting section causes the player to select a plurality of the attribute items in order, and determines an option for the attribute item to be selected next depending on the attribute item previously selected.

6. The apparatus includes a lottery unit, a determination unit, an output unit, a storage unit, and a setting unit, The lottery unit conducts a lottery to determine a lottery result, The determination unit executes a determination process for determining an effect related to the lottery result, The output unit outputs the effect, The setting unit accepts designation regarding attributes of the performance from a user and stores the designation as setting information in the storage unit; The storage unit stores in advance the probability of occurrence of an effect pattern for each type of lottery result and an effect attribute, The effect pattern includes an attribute designation that designates a reference to the setting information, The performance attribute indicates a correspondence between the performance and the attribute, The determination unit, in the determination process, determining the presentation pattern for the lottery result according to the occurrence probability; Identifying an attribute designated by the setting information based on an attribute designation of the effect pattern; The effect determination program for the gaming machine determines an effect associated with the effect attribute as an effect related to the lottery result.

7. The apparatus includes a lottery unit, a determination unit, an output unit, a storage unit, and a setting unit, The lottery unit conducts a lottery to determine a lottery result, The determination unit executes a determination process for determining an effect related to the lottery result, A computer-executed effect determination method, in which the output unit outputs the effect, The setting unit accepts designation regarding attributes of the performance from a user and stores the designation as setting information in the storage unit; The storage unit stores in advance the probability of occurrence of an effect pattern for each type of lottery result and an effect attribute, The effect pattern includes an attribute designation that designates a reference to the setting information, The performance attribute indicates a correspondence between the performance and the attribute, The determination unit, in the determination process, determining the presentation pattern for the lottery result according to the occurrence probability; Identifying an attribute designated by the setting information based on an attribute designation of the effect pattern; The effect determination method for a gaming machine determines an effect associated with the effect attribute as the effect related to the lottery result.

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