Game system, method, and program

Abstract

To further increase motivation to cause a user to execute combination processing in a game system that combines multiple game media to impart a new game medium to the user.SOLUTION: A game system (1) includes a combination processing unit (111) that executes combination processing in which multiple first game media specified by a user are consumed to impart a second game medium specified from the multiple game media to the user from the game media owned by the user. Parameters are associated with the first game medium and the second game medium. A portion of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the first game medium is an accumulated parameter used to determine an additional parameter to be added as a portion of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the second game medium. The combination processing includes processing of determining the additional parameter to be associated with the second game medium using the accumulated parameter associated with the first game medium.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a game system, a method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] There is a character combination method in which a new character is randomly generated by consuming a plurality of material characters (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-176522 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in the character combination described in Patent Document 1, it is possible that a character not desired by the user will be generated. If characters not desired by the user continue to be generated, there is a concern that the user will lose interest in the combination. One aspect of the present invention aims to realize a technology that further improves the motivation of a user to perform a combination process in a game system that combines multiple game media to provide the user with new game media. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In order to solve the above problem, a game system according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a combination processing unit that executes a combination process in which a second game medium identified from among the game media owned by the user is granted to the user by consuming a plurality of first game media identified by the user from among the game media owned by the user, wherein parameters are associated with the first game medium and the second game medium, and a portion of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the first game medium is an accumulated parameter used when determining an additional parameter to be added as part of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the second game medium, and the combination process includes a process of determining the additional parameter to be associated with the second game medium using the accumulated parameter associated with the first game medium.

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, a method according to one aspect of the present invention is a method executed by one or more computers, which includes a step in which the one or more computers execute a combination process in which a second game medium identified from among the game media owned by the user is granted to the user by consuming a plurality of first game media identified by the user from among the game media owned by the user, wherein parameters are associated with the first game medium and the second game medium, and a portion of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the first game medium is an accumulated parameter used when determining an additional parameter to be added as part of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the second game medium, and the combination process includes a process in which the accumulated parameter associated with the first game medium is used to determine the additional parameter to be associated with the second game medium.

[0007] In order to solve the above problem, a program according to one aspect of the present invention causes one or more computers to execute a combination process in which a plurality of first game media identified by a user from among game media owned by the user are consumed to grant the user a second game medium identified from among the plurality of game media, wherein parameters are associated with the first game medium and the second game medium, and a portion of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the first game medium is an accumulated parameter used when determining an additional parameter to be added as part of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the second game medium, and the combination process includes a process of determining the additional parameter to be associated with the second game medium using the accumulated parameter associated with the first game medium. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to one aspect of the present invention, in a game system in which multiple game media are combined to provide a new game medium to a user, it is possible to further increase the motivation of the user to perform the combination process. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a game system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 1 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a game system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of owned game content information according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of combination-permitted game media information according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] 1 is a diagram showing an example of possessed combination permission game media information according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 6] 1 is a diagram showing a schematic diagram of an example of a normal blend and a recipe blend in embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 7]A diagram showing the difference in rank of generated characters between normal combination and recipe combination in embodiment 1 of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of second candidate group information according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a process for determining acquired skills and inherited skills according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of a process for determining an additional value of an ability parameter according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically showing another example of the process for determining the additional value of the ability parameter in the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 12] FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of game content initial value information according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 13] 1 is a flowchart showing the flow of a method executed by the game system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] 14 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen displayed on a display device of a game terminal in the method shown in FIG. 13. FIG. [Figure 15] 14 is a flowchart showing a detailed flow of a display control process included in the method shown in FIG. 13. FIG. [Figure 16] 14 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen displayed on a display device of a game terminal in the method shown in FIG. 13. FIG. [Figure 17] 14 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen displayed on a display device of a game terminal in the method shown in FIG. 13. FIG. [Figure 18] 14 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen displayed on a display device of a game terminal in the method shown in FIG. 13. FIG. [Figure 19] FIG. 14 is a flow chart showing the detailed flow of normal blending included in the method shown in FIG. 13. [Figure 20] 14 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen displayed on a display device of a game terminal in the method shown in FIG. 13. FIG. [Figure 21] FIG. 14 is a flow chart showing a detailed flow of recipe formulation included in the method shown in FIG. 13. [Figure 22] 14 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen displayed on a display device of a game terminal in the method shown in FIG. 13. FIG. [Figure 23] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen for selecting a recipe to possess in embodiment 1 of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] [Embodiment 1] The game system 1 according to this embodiment will be described in detail below. The game system 1 is a system that progresses a game played by a user. The game progressed by the game system 1 is a game played using game media owned by a user. The game media that a user may own may or may not include game media associated with a non-fungible token (hereinafter, NFT) for managing the owner.

[0011] <Configuration of Game System 1> FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a game system 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the game system 1 includes a game terminal 10 and a game server 30. These devices are communicatively connected via a network NW. The network NW includes, for example, but is not limited to, the Internet. Although FIG. 1 shows one game terminal 10 and one game server 30, the game system 1 may include multiple devices of each type.

[0012] The game terminal 10 and the game server 30 cooperate with each other to execute a game program, thereby progressing the game. The game system 1 according to one aspect of the present invention does not necessarily include the game server 30. The game system 1 may include at least one game terminal 10. In this case, the at least one game terminal 10 may not have a function for communicating with the game server 30.

[0013] If the game media that a user may own includes game media associated with NFTs, the game system 1 may include or be connected to a blockchain system (not shown). The blockchain system stores transaction data including the NFTs associated with the game media and owner information of the game media.

[0014] (Hardware configuration of game terminal 10) A game terminal 10 is a terminal used by a user to play a game. Examples of game terminals 10 include, but are not limited to, a home game console, a personal computer, a smartphone, a tablet, a smart TV, or a commercial game console. As shown in FIG. 1 , for example, game terminal 10 includes a processor 11, a memory 12, a communication interface 13, an input device 14, and a display device 15. These components are connected via a bus 19.

[0015] Processor 11 controls each part of game terminal 10 by executing a program stored in memory 12. Processor 11 is configured by an integrated circuit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), for example.

[0016] Memory 12 stores programs executed by processor 11 and various data used by processor 11. Memory 12 may be configured, for example, with a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), an EEPROM (registered trademark) (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory), a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), or a combination of these. Note that part or all of memory 12 need not necessarily be built into game terminal 10, but may be externally attached via an input / output interface (not shown) such as a universal serial bus (USB). Also, part or all of memory 12 may be connected to game terminal 10 via a network as a device independent of game terminal 10.

[0017] The communication interface 13 is an interface for connecting to the network NW. The communication interface 13 is configured by, for example, a wired connection interface such as Ethernet (registered trademark) or a wireless connection interface such as WiFi (registered trademark).

[0018] The input device 14 is a device that accepts user operations and is configured, for example, by a controller, keyboard, mouse, touchpad, microphone, or a combination of some or all of these. The display device 15 is a device that displays a screen for progressing through the game and is configured, for example, by a display. The input device 14 and the display device 15 may be separate devices, or at least a part of the input device 14 may be formed integrally with the display device 15 as a touch panel or the like. The input device 14 and a part or all of the display device 15 are not necessarily built into the game terminal 10, but may be connected externally as peripheral devices.

[0019] (Hardware configuration of game server 30) The game server 30 is a computer capable of communicating with the game terminal 10. As shown in FIG. 1, the game server 30 includes, for example, a processor 31, a memory 32, and a communication interface 33. These components are connected via a bus 39. The processor 31, the memory 32, and the communication interface 33 will be described in the same manner as the components of the same name that are provided in the game terminal 10, and therefore detailed description thereof will not be repeated.

[0020] (Functional configuration of game system 1) FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of game system 1. As shown in FIG. 2, game system 1 includes control unit 110 and storage unit 130. Control unit 110 is realized by one or both of processor 11 of game terminal 10 and processor 31 of game server 30 executing a game program. In other words, processor 11 of game terminal 10 executes a game program stored in memory 12, thereby realizing at least some of the functions of control unit 110 while cooperating with game server 30 as necessary. Processor 31 of game server 30 executes a game program stored in memory 32, thereby realizing at least some of the functions of control unit 110 while cooperating with game terminal 10 as necessary. Storage unit 130 is composed of memory 12 of game terminal 10 and memory 32 of game server 30.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 2 , the control unit 110 includes a combination processing unit 111, a parameter change processing unit 112, a list display control unit 113, an identification display control unit 114, a skill deletion processing unit 115, a display processing unit 116, and a warning processing unit 117. Some or all of these functional blocks may be located in the game terminal 10, the game server 30, or distributed between the game terminal 10 and the game server 30. The storage unit 130 also stores owned game media information, combination-permitted game media information, owned combination-permitted game media information, second candidate group information, and game media initial value information. Some or all of this information may be stored in the memory 12 of the game terminal 10, the memory 32 of the game server 30, or distributed between the memory 12 and the memory 32.

[0022] The combination processing unit 111 executes a combination process in which a user consumes a plurality of first game media identified by the user from among the game media owned by the user and grants the user a second game medium identified from among the plurality of game media. The combination process includes a first combination process and a second combination process. The first combination process is a process in which a second game medium is identified from among the plurality of game media by lottery and the identified second game medium is granted to the user. The second combination process is executed on the condition that the user possesses combination-permitted game media that enable the second combination process to be executed. The combination-permitted game media are associated with a combination of a predetermined plurality of first game media and a predetermined second game medium. The second combination process is a process in which a predetermined plurality of first game media associated with the combination-permitted game media are consumed to grant the user a second game medium associated with the combination-permitted game media. This increases the variety of ways to identify the other game media in a game system in which a user consumes game media such as a material character to grant another game medium to the user, thereby further enhancing the enjoyment of the game system.

[0023] "Game media" refers to media used in the progression of a game. Specific examples of game media include game objects such as characters appearing in a game or character cards corresponding to characters, various items used in a game (e.g., items that exert a predetermined effect when equipped to a character or used on a character), in-game value, and media possessed by a user that is separate from the game terminal (e.g., a recording medium such as a card on which data to be read by a game terminal is recorded). Furthermore, game media is, for example, a unit that can be possessed by a user. A possessable unit is, for example, the smallest unit when consumed or acquired. Note that "possessed by a user" refers to being associated with a user. "Possessed by a user" may also refer to being associated with a user in a state where the game media is available for exclusive use by the user. Providing a user with game media in its possession is also referred to as "granting the user." In other words, a game media is possessed by being granted to a user.

[0024] In-game value is the value required to exchange for game content or services (such as participating in a lottery), and examples include in-game currency, points to exchange for items, etc. Game content may be associated with non-fungible tokens that are managed by holders on the blockchain.

[0025] The "first game medium" refers to a game medium consumed in the combination process. The specific examples of game media described above can be used as the first game medium. The "second game medium" refers to a game medium identified in the combination process. The specific examples of game media described above can be used as the second game medium.

[0026] The "combining process" refers to a process in which a user consumes a plurality of first game media identified by the user from among the game media owned by the user, and grants the user a second game medium identified from among the plurality of game media. The combining process includes, for example, a first combining process and a second combining process.

[0027] The first combination process may be, for example, a process of consuming multiple characters and identifying a new character by lottery, or a process of consuming multiple items and identifying a new item by lottery. The candidates for the second game medium may differ depending on the first game medium consumed, or may be the same regardless of the first game medium consumed. When the candidates for the second game medium differ depending on the first game medium consumed, they may differ depending on parameters such as attributes and rarity associated with the first game medium. Furthermore, the probability of identifying a second game medium by lottery may be equal for all second game media, or the probability may be weighted depending on parameters such as the attributes of the second game medium.

[0028] The second blending process may be, for example, a process of consuming multiple characters to identify a new character, or a process of consuming multiple items to identify a new item. The second game medium identified by the second blending process may be included in the candidates for the second game medium in the first blending process. Furthermore, the candidates for the second game medium identified by the first blending process may not include game media that are candidates for the second game medium identified by the second blending process. In this manner, the second blending process may potentially provide game media that cannot be obtained by the first blending process, thereby increasing the appeal of the second blending process.

[0029] Either the first combination process or the second combination process may be executed according to the user's instructions, and when the user possesses a combination-permitted game medium, the corresponding second combination process may be executed without permitting the execution of the first combination process that consumes the corresponding first game medium.

[0030] The game system 1 may also include other combination processes, such as a process of combining specific types of game media and granting a specific game media associated with the combination to a user without requiring a combination-authorized game media.

[0031] "Combination-permitted game media" are game media that enable execution of the second combination process. Combination-permitted game media are associated with a combination of a predetermined number of first game media and a predetermined second game medium. In the second combination process, the predetermined number of first game media are consumed to grant the second game medium to the user.

[0032] The combination-permitted game medium may be referred to as, for example, a "recipe," a "blueprint," or the like. The first game medium and the second game medium may be the various game media described above. Thus, the combination-permitted game medium may be associated with a plurality of characters as the first game medium and another character as the second game medium (in this case, the second combination process consumes the plurality of characters to grant the other character to the user), or may be associated with a plurality of items such as a weapon as the first game medium and another item such as a weapon as the second game medium (in this case, the second combination process consumes the plurality of items to grant the other item to the user).

[0033] The number of associated second game media may be one or more. When there are multiple associated second game media, the second blending process may consume multiple first game media and grant all of the multiple second game media to the user, or may identify some of the multiple second game media based on predetermined rules and grant the identified second game media to the user. Examples of the predetermined rules include lottery and user selection.

[0034] The combination-permitted game media may or may not be consumed when the second combination process is executed. The non-consumption mode is advantageous in that the second combination process can be executed again by acquiring the corresponding first game media, which is expected to increase the user's satisfaction.

[0035] The parameter change processing unit 112 executes a process to change the second game medium determination parameters used to determine the parameters to be associated with the second game medium, which are associated with the combination-permitted game medium, so that the parameters to be associated with the second game medium are determined to be advantageous to the progress of the game by satisfying a predetermined condition. This not only makes it possible to obtain the combination-permitted game medium and execute the second combination process, but also provides an advantageous effect to the progress of the game by satisfying the predetermined condition, thereby further increasing the interest of the game.

[0036] "Advantageous to the progress of the game" means that it is easier for the user to achieve the objective in the game. Examples of processing to make the parameters associated with the second game medium advantageous to the progress of the game include processing to increase or decrease parameters that affect the progress of the game so as to be advantageous to the progress of the game. For example, if the game medium is a character, this may include improving parameters that indicate the ability of the character, or if the game medium is an item such as a weapon, this may include improving the effect. Examples of parameters that indicate the ability of a character (hereinafter also referred to as "ability parameters") include attack power, defensive power, etc. when fighting against enemy characters, etc.

[0037] In other words, the higher the second game media determination parameter (e.g., "recipe level" in the embodiment) associated with the blending-permitted game media, the higher the ability parameter of the second game media granted to the user. In this aspect, improvement of the ability parameter may include, for example, improvement of attack power, defense power, etc., and may also include an improvement in the base value of the ability parameter and the accompanying improvement in rarity, change in appearance, etc., as expressed as "evolution" in many conventionally known games.

[0038] This section describes the "predetermined conditions" for changing parameters used in processing that provides a beneficial effect to the progress of a game on a second game medium associated with a combination-permitted game medium. Hereinafter, these parameters will be referred to as "levels," and changing the level of a combination-permitted game medium so that the effect is beneficial will be expressed as "raising the level" or "increasing the level." For example, the level may increase not only in a manner in which the numerical value increases, such as from 1 to 2 to 3, but also in a manner in which the numerical value decreases, such as from 3 to 2 to 1, resulting in a higher level (and a more beneficial effect).

[0039] An example of a "predetermined condition" for raising the level of a combination-permitted game medium is the acquisition of a combination-permitted game medium (hereinafter simply referred to as "same combination-permitted game medium") that is the same as the combination of a plurality of predetermined first game media and the predetermined second game media associated with the combination-permitted game medium possessed by the user. In a mode in which the combination-permitted game medium is not consumed in the execution of the second combination process, when a user acquires the same recipe multiple times, the combination-permitted game medium can be effectively utilized. Another example of a "predetermined condition" for raising the level of a combination-permitted game medium is the consumption of game media such as items to raise the level of the combination-permitted game medium.

[0040] When the first game medium specified by the user as the first game medium for executing the first combination process is a first game medium that can be used in the second combination process, the warning processing unit 117 outputs information indicating that the first game medium is a first game medium that can be used in the second combination process before executing the first combination process, thereby preventing the user from mistakenly using a first game medium that can be used in the second combination process in the first combination process.

[0041] The "warning process" refers to a process for issuing a warning when a first game medium identified by a user as a first game medium for executing a first blending process is a first game medium that can be used in a second blending process. Examples of the warning process include a process for displaying text, an image, or the like indicating the above on the screen, and a process for outputting a specific sound effect or voice.

[0042] The list display control unit 113 displays a list of owned game media to accept selection of first game media to be used in the combination process. In response to accepting an operation from the user to identify some owned game media as first game media from among the owned game media listed by the list display control unit 113, the distinguishable display control unit 114 displays the remaining first game media associated with the combination-permitted game media to which the first game media is associated so that they can be distinguished from the other owned game media. This allows the user to easily recognize first game media that can be used in the second combination process along with the currently identified first game medium.

[0043] In one aspect, the combination process may involve consuming multiple first game media identified by the user from among the game media owned by the user and granting the user a second game medium identified by lottery from among the multiple game media. The first game media and the second game medium are associated with skills used to execute a process that has a beneficial effect on game progress. The combination process includes associating, with the second game medium, inheritable skills identified from a first candidate group, which is a group of skill candidates including skills associated with the multiple first game media consumed in the lottery to identify the second game media, and non-inheritable skills identified from a second candidate group, which is a group of skill candidates including skills associated with the second game media. This provides a new technique for setting the skills of game media when combining multiple game media to obtain new game media. Furthermore, identifying non-inheritable skills from the skills associated with the second game media before granting them to the user makes it easier for the game operator to maintain the appeal of each second game medium as envisioned by the game operator and to control the range of abilities the game operator desires for the second game media.

[0044] A "skill" is information used to execute a process that has a beneficial effect on the progress of a game. Examples of skills include those that improve the ability parameters of game media used in the progress of a game, those that inflict damage on opponent game media in a battle, a sports match, or the like, and those that restore parameters such as the stamina of allies. A process that has a beneficial effect executed using a skill may be executed in response to a user's operation (e.g., a skill known as an "active skill") or may be executed without a user's operation (e.g., a skill known as a "passive skill"). Depending on the game, a skill may also be referred to as a "ability," "ability," or the like. For example, a skill may be associated with a game media in various ways. For example, as described below, when a game media is identified through a combination process, an inherited skill and a non-inherited skill may be associated. Furthermore, for example, a skill of a game media that is assigned to a user without a combination process may be predetermined according to the type of the game media (e.g., an identification ID), or may be determined by lottery from a candidate group corresponding to the game media. In this case, the candidate group may be the same as a second candidate group described below, or may be at least partially different.

[0045] An "inherited skill" is a skill associated with a second game medium that is derived from a skill associated with a first game medium and consumed when the second game medium is identified in a combination process. A "non-inherited skill" is a skill associated with a second game medium that is derived from a skill associated with a first game medium and consumed when the second game medium is identified in a combination process.

[0046] The "first candidate group" is a group of multiple skills that are candidates for inherited skills. The "second candidate group" is a group of multiple skills that are candidates for non-inherited skills.

[0047] The first candidate group includes skills associated with the first game medium. "Skills associated with the first game medium" include skills usable by the user when using the first game medium to progress through the game, as well as skills associated with the first game medium even if they are not usable. Examples of skills associated with the first game medium even if they are not usable by the user include skills that have the same type of effect as usable skills but a different degree of effect. For example, if the "usable skill" is a skill that performs an attack that inflicts greater damage on an enemy character associated with a specific attribute among attributes that can be associated with enemy characters, a skill that inflicts greater damage on the enemy character than the first skill may also be included in the first candidate group as a "skill associated with the first game medium even if it is not usable," provided that the skill is associated with the first game medium. More specifically, suppose there is a skill called "First Flame" that can perform a fire-attribute attack that inflicts greater damage on an enemy character that is set to be weak to fire, and a skill called "Second Flame" that can perform a fire-attribute attack that inflicts even greater damage than the first skill. In this case, "First Flame" corresponds to a "usable skill," and "Second Flame" corresponds to a "skill associated with the first game medium even if it is not usable." In this case, if character X is identified as the first game medium, "Second Flame" may be included in the first candidate group. In such a case, "Second Flame" is also one of the skills associated with character X. An example of such an embodiment is one in which character X can only use "First Flame" while his level is below a predetermined value, and can use "Second Flame" once his level is raised above the predetermined value. In this embodiment, even if his level is lower than the predetermined value, by using character X in breeding, "Second Flame" may be included in the skills of the new character obtained by breeding. In this way, there is a possibility that the breeding process will result in a skill superior to that of the character used as material, thereby increasing the appeal of the breeding process.

[0048] The non-inheritable skills may be skills identified from a group of skill candidates that includes skills associated with the second game medium. Furthermore, unlike the first group of candidates, the second group of candidates may be established independently of the skills of the first game medium. For example, the second group of candidates may or may not ultimately include skills included in the first group of candidates. Furthermore, even if the second group of candidates happens to consist of the same skills as the first group of candidates established based on the skills of the first game medium, as described above, the second group of candidates may be established independently of the skills of the first group of candidates.

[0049] In addition, the combination process may identify the non-inherited skill from the second candidate group by lottery. This allows the user to anticipate what the non-inherited skill will be, since the user does not know what the non-inherited skill will be until the combination process is executed.

[0050] Furthermore, the inherited skill may be determined by lottery from among the first group of candidates. This allows the player to anticipate what the inherited skill will be, since it is not known which skill from the first group of candidates will be determined until the lottery is held.

[0051] In response to a user instruction, the skill deletion processing unit 115 executes a process of deleting at least some of the skills included in the first candidate group, thereby increasing the probability that a desired skill will be identified by lottery from the first candidate group.

[0052] The process of deleting skills may or may not require conditions for execution. Examples of conditions include possession or consumption of a game medium such as a predetermined item, completion of a predetermined task in the game, or a limit on the number of skills that can be deleted. An example of a mode that does not require conditions is a mode implemented as a rescue mode for players who are not good at games.

[0053] Furthermore, the inheritable skill and the non-inheritable skill may be different skills, thereby ensuring the diversity of skills associated with the second game medium.

[0054] Additionally, parameters are associated with the first game medium and the second game medium. A portion of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the first game medium is an accumulated parameter used to determine an additional parameter to be added as a portion of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the second game medium. The combination process includes a process of determining an additional parameter to be associated with the second game medium using the accumulated parameter associated with the first game medium. This allows an additional parameter based on the accumulated parameter to be associated with the second game medium, further increasing the motivation of the user to perform the combination process.

[0055] The "accumulated parameter" is a parameter that is a part of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the first game medium and is used to determine the added parameter. The "added parameter" is a parameter that is a part of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the second game medium identified by the combination process and is determined using the accumulated parameter.

[0056] Accumulated parameters and additional parameters are, for example, part of a character's ability parameters. In an embodiment in which accumulated parameters and additional parameters are numerical values, they may also be referred to as "accumulated values" and "additional values." The additional parameters are determined using the accumulated parameters and associated with the second game medium. The additional parameters may have the same value as the accumulated parameters, or may be increased or decreased using the accumulated parameters according to a predetermined calculation method.

[0057] For example, in a mode in which attack power is associated with the first game medium and the second game medium as a parameter, an example will be described in which the attack power of the first game medium is 1017, a portion of that amount, which is an accumulated value, is 17, and the remaining 1000 is the base value of the attack power. In this case, the additional value added to the attack power of the second game medium by the combination process may be 17, which is the same value as the accumulated value. If the base value of the attack power of the second game medium is 1700, the additional value is added, making the attack power 1717. Furthermore, a predetermined calculation may be performed on the accumulated value to increase or decrease it from the aforementioned 17.

[0058] In the above example, the accumulated value is associated with one of the plurality of first game media. In this manner, the accumulated parameter may be associated with at least one of the plurality of first game media.

[0059] As another example, even if accumulation parameters are associated with multiple first game media, the additional parameter may be determined using the accumulation parameters associated with some of the first game media, or may be determined using all accumulation parameters associated with the multiple first game media. For example, if first game medium A has a base attack power value of 1000 and an accumulation value of 17, first game medium B has a base attack power value of 1700 and an accumulation value of 10, and second game medium has a base attack power value of 1700, the additional value for first game medium A and first game medium B may be added together to determine 27, and the attack power of the second game medium may be determined to be 1727.

[0060] As the aforementioned parameters, multiple types of parameters may be associated with the first game medium and the second game medium. Each of the multiple types of parameters includes an accumulated parameter. The combination process determines an additional parameter for each of the multiple types. This allows the additional parameter to be added for each of the multiple types, thereby providing diversity in value to the second game medium.

[0061] The combination process may also determine the additive parameter so that it is within a preset threshold value, thereby preventing the additive parameter from becoming too large and thus disrupting the game balance.

[0062] The combination process may also determine the additive parameter so that the sum of all the multiple types of parameters is within a preset threshold, thereby comprehensively preventing the multiple types of parameters from being overly large and thus disrupting the game balance.

[0063] The combination process may also include determining an additional parameter so that the additional parameter is equal to or greater than the highest accumulated parameter among accumulated parameters associated with the first game media, thereby ensuring that the additional parameter is greater than the highest accumulated parameter, further increasing the user's satisfaction with the combination process.

[0064] The display processing unit 116 executes a display process for displaying parameters including accumulated parameters. The display process includes a process for identifiably displaying the accumulated parameters. The accumulated parameters affect the parameters of the second game media obtained by the combination process. Therefore, by identifiably displaying the accumulated parameters, the user can be provided with information to determine whether or not to perform the combination process using game media having the accumulated parameters.

[0065] (One aspect of the game) The following describes one aspect of a game in which the game media that a user can possess are characters that appear in the game, and then describes an aspect in which the "combination process" is "character combination" in which a character is generated. Furthermore, "normal combination" and "recipe combination" are aspects of the first combination process and the second combination process, respectively. That is, character combination includes normal combination and recipe combination. Furthermore, in this aspect, the "material character" is an aspect of the first game media consumed in the combination process, and the "generated character" is an aspect of the second game media identified in the combination process. In normal combination and recipe combination, "identifying the generated character" is also referred to as "generating a character." Furthermore, in this aspect, the "recipe" is an aspect of the combination-permitted game media that enables recipe combination. Furthermore, in this aspect, "non-inheritable skills" are also referred to as "acquired skills" because the generated character can be recognized as having newly acquired skills regardless of the skills of the material characters.

[0066] (Example of owned game media information) 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of owned game media information stored in storage unit 130 in one aspect of the game described above. The owned game media information includes information specific to the user and may be stored in memory 12 of game terminal 10. Alternatively, the owned game media information may be stored in memory 32 of game server 30 in association with the user.

[0067] The owned game media information is information about owned characters that is generated when a character is granted to a user. An owned character refers to a character granted to a user. The character may be granted to a user through a so-called "gacha" system, in which the character to be granted is determined by lottery, or may be granted to a user by the operator. The character may also be granted to a user as a reward for completing a mission in the game. The character may also be granted to a user for a fee or free of charge.

[0068] In the example of FIG. 3, the owned game media information indicates information about owned characters, including information indicating the owned ID, character ID, name, rank, attributes, level, attack power, defense power, HP (hit points), skill 1, and skill 2. The owned ID is information that identifies a record generated in response to the assignment of the character. The character ID is information that identifies the type of character. The name indicates the name of the character. Hereinafter, a character named "Character A" will also be referred to simply as "Character A." Furthermore, if character A is a material character or a generated character, it will also be referred to as material character "A" or generated character "A." This user possesses at least character A with a character ID of "0555," character B with a character ID of "0077," and character C with a character ID of "0030." Furthermore, the same user may be assigned multiple characters of the same type. For example, if multiple characters A are assigned, their owned IDs will be different, but their character IDs will be the same, "0555." The rank indicates the rarity of the character, and is set to, for example, any of 1 to 5. However, the number of rank levels is not limited to 5. For example, the rank of character A is 2. The attribute indicates the group to which the character belongs. For example, the attribute of character A is "race GA." The level indicates the strength of the character, and it is possible to increase the level by meeting certain conditions in the game. For example, in the example of Figure 3, the level of character A is "10."

[0069] Attack power, defense power, and HP are each a character's ability parameters. In other words, a character possesses multiple types of ability parameters. Each type of ability parameter includes a base value and an accumulated value, and the sum of the base value and accumulated value is applied as the ability parameter when the character is used in a game. The base value and accumulated value will be described in detail later. Skill 1 and Skill 2 indicate the skills possessed by the character. In the example of Figure 3, the character possesses two skills, but the number may be one or three or more. Furthermore, the number of skills possessed by two characters with different character IDs may be the same or different.

[0070] (Example of permitted game media information) 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the combination-permitted game media information stored in the storage unit 130 in one aspect of the game described above. The combination-permitted game media information is common information regardless of the user, and may be stored in the memory 32 of the game server 30 or in the memory 12 of the game terminal 10.

[0071] In the example of FIG. 4, the combination permission game media information indicates information about a recipe, including information indicating a recipe ID, a generated character, material character 1, and material character 2. The recipe ID is information that identifies a recipe. A recipe is identified by a combination of a generated character and multiple material characters. Hereinafter, a recipe with a recipe ID of, for example, "0001" will also be referred to as recipe 0001. The generated character indicates a generated character defined in the recipe. Material character 1 and material character 2 indicate a combination of multiple material characters defined in the recipe. In the example of FIG. 4, for example, recipe 0001 specifies that a generated character "X" is generated when material character "A" and material character "B" are consumed. The information indicating the generated character, material character 1, and material character 2 included in the combination permission game media information is not limited to character names as in the example of FIG. 4, but may also be character IDs. Note that the number of multiple material characters defined in a recipe is not limited to two, but may be three or more.

[0072] (Example of possession permission game media information) 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of possessed combination-permitted game media information stored in the storage unit 130 in one aspect of the game described above. The possessed combination-permitted game media information includes information corresponding to the user and may be stored in the memory 12 of the game terminal 10. The possessed combination-permitted game media information may also be stored in the memory 32 of the game server 30 in association with the user.

[0073] The owned blending permission game media information is information about owned recipes that is generated when a recipe is assigned to a user. An owned recipe refers to a recipe that has been assigned to a user. A recipe may be assigned to a user through an in-game gacha or may be assigned to a user by the operator. A recipe may also be assigned to a user as a reward for completing a mission in a game. A recipe may also be assigned to a user for a fee or free of charge. "For a fee" refers to receiving a service, etc. in exchange for legal tender or virtual currency, and "free of charge" refers to receiving a service, etc. without the need to exchange for legal tender or virtual currency.

[0074] In the example of FIG. 5, the blending permission game media information indicates information about owned recipes, including information indicating the owned recipe ID, recipe ID, level, material character 1, and material character 2. The owned recipe ID is information that identifies a record generated when a recipe is assigned. The recipe ID indicates the recipe ID of the assigned recipe. If the recipe ID of a owned recipe is 0001, it is also referred to as the owned recipe "0001." The level indicates the magnitude of the effect achieved by recipe blending based on the recipe, and the level of the recipe can be increased by satisfying certain conditions in the game. The certain condition may be, for example, that a new recipe with the same recipe ID as a recipe already owned is assigned. In other words, if a recipe with the same recipe ID as a recipe already owned is assigned to a user, the newly assigned recipe may be consumed to increase the level of the owned recipe. This process of "consuming the newly assigned recipe to increase the level of the owned recipe" may be performed without requiring user operation when the new recipe is assigned, or may be performed in response to user operation when the new recipe is assigned. Material character 1 indicates whether the user possesses material character 1 included in the recipe. Material character 2 indicates whether the user possesses material character 2 included in the recipe. For example, the user possesses recipe 0001, and the level of the recipe is 3. The user also possesses both material character 1 and material character 2 included in recipe 0001. For example, the user possesses recipe 0057, and the level of recipe 0057 is 1. The user also possesses material character 1 included in recipe 0057, but does not possess material character 2.

[0075] (Example of normal and recipe combinations) FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of normal and recipe combinations in one aspect of the game described above. Normal combination is a process in which a new character is generated by lottery from a group of character candidates using multiple material characters from the player's possession, without using a recipe. The above-described owned game media information is at least referenced in normal combination. In the example of FIG. 6, the player consumes material characters "A," "B," and "C" to generate a new character "G," which is determined by lottery from among the characters G, H, J, and K, which are the character candidates. The character candidates may be the same regardless of the material characters consumed, or may be narrowed down based on the attribute, rank, etc., of at least one of the material characters consumed. Furthermore, the selection from the character candidates may be performed with equal probability, so that all characters have the same winning probability, or with a probability weighted by attribute, rank, etc. Note that the character generated by normal combination is given to the user and can be used as a material character for other normal or recipe combinations.

[0076] Recipe combination is a process in which multiple material characters included in a recipe are consumed from among the characters possessed by the user to generate a generated character included in the recipe. The recipe is not consumed. Recipe combination at least references the possessed game media information, the combination-permitted game media information, and the possessed combination-permitted game media information. In the example of FIG. 6, possessed characters A, B, and C are material characters included in the possessed recipe. Therefore, possessed material characters "A," "B," and "C" are consumed to generate generated character "X" included in the possessed recipe. For example, recipe combination may be performed when a combination of multiple material characters selected by the user from among the possessed characters for character combination matches a combination included in the possessed recipe; otherwise, normal combination may be performed. Alternatively, recipe combination may be performed when the user selects a possessed recipe from one or more possessed recipes that contains multiple material characters included in the recipe.

[0077] Furthermore, as shown in the example of Figure 6, the characters G, H, J, and K, which are the candidate group of characters generated in normal breeding, do not include the character "X" generated in recipe breeding. As a result, recipe breeding produces characters that cannot be obtained through normal breeding. As a result, the appeal of recipe breeding can be improved. Note that this is not limited to this embodiment, and the candidate group of characters generated in normal breeding may include the character generated by recipe breeding (i.e., a character generated through recipe breeding may also be obtained through normal breeding), but in this case, the character "X" is obtained probabilistically.

[0078] Furthermore, generated characters obtained through recipe combination are more likely to have higher value (e.g., ability parameters, rank, etc.) than generated characters obtained through normal combination. Thus, in one aspect of the present invention, the probability that a game medium generated through the second combination process will be more valuable than a game medium generated through the first combination process may be higher than the probability that a game medium will be less valuable, or the higher value may be determined. For example, the first combination process may generate a second game medium less valuable than the second game medium generated through the second combination process higher than the probability that a second game medium more valuable than the second game medium generated through the second combination process. Note that the first combination process may also determine that the second game medium generated will be more valuable than the first game medium. Figure 7 is a diagram schematically illustrating the difference in rank between generated characters through normal combination and recipe combination. In the example of Figure 7, characters are assigned ranks ranging from 1 to 5. Here, the higher the number, the higher the value. The candidate group of generated characters in normal breeding includes a character of rank 2, which is the highest rank among the material characters, and a character of rank 3, which is higher than the rank of any of the material characters. In contrast, the recipe for recipe breeding specifies a generated character of rank 3, which is higher than the rank of any of the material characters. In other words, while normal breeding determines probabilistically whether a generated character with higher value than the material characters will be obtained, recipe breeding guarantees that a generated character with higher value than the material characters will be obtained. As a result, the appeal of recipe breeding can be further improved. Note that in the example of Figure 7, neither normal breeding nor recipe breeding will result in a generated character with lower value than the material characters.

[0079] Furthermore, the value of the generated character obtained by recipe combination may be guaranteed to be higher than that of the generated character obtained by normal combination. For example, the rank of the generated character included in the recipe may be higher than that of any of the material characters, while the group of generated character candidates for normal combination may not include any characters with a rank higher than that of any of the material characters. As a result, the appeal of recipe combination may be further improved.

[0080] Furthermore, the ability parameters (for example, base or additional values ​​of attack power, defense power, or HP) of the generated character obtained by recipe combination may be higher as the recipe level is higher. Furthermore, the generated character obtained by recipe combination may be set with higher-ranked skills as the recipe level is higher.

[0081] Note that Figures 6 and 7 show an example in which the number of material characters required for normal combination and recipe combination (hereinafter also referred to as the required number) is 3, but this is not limited to this and may be 2, 4 or more. Furthermore, the required number of material characters may be the same or different for normal combination and recipe combination. Furthermore, if there are multiple types of recipes, the required number of material characters may be set for each recipe. As a specific example, the required number of material characters may be 2 for one recipe and 3 for another recipe.

[0082] (Example of second candidate group information) 8 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of second candidate group information stored in storage unit 130 in one aspect of the above-described game. The second candidate group information is information common to all users, and may be stored in memory 32 of game server 30 or in memory 12 of game terminal 10.

[0083] In the example of FIG. 8, the second candidate group information indicates information regarding a candidate group of acquired skills associated with a character, and includes information indicating a character ID, a character name, candidate skill 1, and candidate skill 2, respectively. The character ID and character name are as described above. Candidate skill 1 and candidate skill 2 indicate candidate skills to be acquired by a generated character when a character of that type is determined as a generated character in character breeding. For example, in the example of FIG. 8, when character A is determined as a generated character, the candidate acquired skills to be acquired by generated character "A" are skill SA1 and skill SA2. It is desirable to set the candidate skills as skills that are compatible with the character. A compatible skill may be a skill that is highly related to the parameters possessed by the character. For example, for a character characterized by high attack power, a skill that has the effect of further increasing that attack power is compatible with the character. Note that while FIG. 8 shows an example in which the number of candidate skills associated with a certain character is two, the number may be one or three or more. The number of associated candidate skills may also be set depending on the character. For example, the number of candidate skills associated with two characters with different character IDs may be the same or different.

[0084] (An example of a process for determining acquired skills and inherited skills) FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a process for determining acquired skills and inherited skills for a character generated by character merging in one aspect of the game described above. The process for determining acquired skills and inherited skills at least references the owned game media information and second candidate group information described above. In the example of FIG. 9, a generated character "G" is generated by character merging material character "A" and material character "C." At this time, an inherited skill determined by lottery from a first candidate group including skills associated with the material character is applied as Skill 1 for the generated character "G." The determined inherited skill is also referred to as a skill inherited from the material character. In the example of FIG. 9, the first candidate group includes skills SL1 and SL2 possessed by material character "A" and skills SL5 and SL6 possessed by material character "C," and skill SL6 determined by lottery is inherited. Here, in the lottery for determining the inherited skills, the winning probability for each skill included in the first candidate group may be equal or weighted. In this way, by selecting a material character that possesses a desired skill that the user wants the generated character to possess, the user is more likely to be able to have the desired skill inherited by the generated character. Note that the first candidate group may include evolved skills of the skills possessed by the material character instead of or in addition to the skills possessed by the material character.

[0085] Furthermore, the skill 2 of the generated character G is an acquired skill determined by lottery from a second candidate group associated with the generated character. In the example of FIG. 9, the second candidate group includes skills SG1, SG2, and SG3, which are candidate skills associated with the generated character "G," and skill SG2 is determined by lottery. In other words, the acquired skill is a skill that is difficult for the user to predict. Note that there may be only one candidate skill included in the second candidate group. In this case, that candidate skill is determined as the acquired skill.

[0086] Here, FIG. 9 shows an example in which an inherited skill is applied as skill 1 of the generated character and an acquired skill is applied as skill 2, but the present invention is not limited to this example. If individual characteristics are set for each of skill 1 and skill 2 (hereinafter, each will also be referred to as a skill slot), the acquired skill and inherited skill can be applied according to the set characteristics. An example of the characteristics set for the skill slots will be described later.

[0087] In this way, a character generated by character merging possesses inherited skills and acquired skills. The inherited skills and acquired skills may be the same, or may always be different. In a case where the inherited skills and acquired skills are always different, for example, the inherited skills may be determined first, and a lottery may be held to determine the acquired skills by excluding the determined inherited skills from the second candidate group. Alternatively, the acquired skills may be determined first, and a lottery may be held to determine the inherited skills by excluding the determined acquired skills from the first candidate group. Alternatively, if the inherited skills and acquired skills become the same, a re-lottery for one of the skills may be repeatedly held until a skill different from the other is determined.

[0088] The process of determining the acquired skills and inherited skills to be possessed by the generated character is applied at least to the normal breeding. In the example of Figure 9, this process is applied to the normal breeding in which the generated character "G" is selected by lottery from the generated character candidate group.

[0089] Furthermore, the process of determining the acquired skills and inherited skills to be possessed by a generated character, as described above, may be applied to recipe combination. For example, in recipe combination, inherited skills that are more advantageous than the inherited skills that would be obtained if the same combination of material characters were combined in a normal combination may be determined. "More advantageous" means "having a more advantageous effect in the game." For example, by assigning different weightings to the winning probability of each skill included in the first candidate group to be selected by lottery for inherited skills between normal combination and recipe combination, the likelihood that the inherited skills obtained in recipe combination will be more advantageous than the skills obtained by normal combination may be increased. Furthermore, in recipe combination, acquired skills that have a more advantageous effect in the game than the acquired skills obtained in normal combination if the same combination of material characters were combined in a normal combination may be determined. For example, by assigning different weightings to the winning probability of each skill included in the second candidate group to be selected by lottery for acquired skills between normal combination and recipe combination, the likelihood that the acquired skills obtained in recipe combination will be more advantageous than the skills obtained by normal combination may be increased.

[0090] Furthermore, for a character generated by recipe combination, inherited skills or acquired skills may be determined according to the level of the recipe. For example, even when a recipe with the same recipe ID is used, the higher the level of the recipe, the greater the weighting given to the probability of winning a higher-ranked skill among the skills included in the first candidate group. Also, even when a recipe with the same recipe ID is used, the higher the level of the recipe, the greater the weighting given to the probability of winning a higher-ranked skill among the skills included in the second candidate group.

[0091] (Skill Clear) A process may be executed to facilitate the transfer of a desired skill from a material character to a generated character. One example of a process for facilitating the transfer of a desired skill is skill deletion. Skill deletion is a process for deleting a skill from a first group of candidates for inheritance skills in response to a user instruction. For example, in the example of FIG. 9, assume that the user desires to inherit skill SL6 of material character "C," and skill SL1 of material character A is deleted from the first group of candidates based on the user's operation. In this case, the skill to be inherited is determined by lottery from the three remaining skills SL2, SL5, and SL6 in the first group of candidates. Assuming that the winning probability in the lottery is equal, the probability of the desired skill SL6 being inherited is 1 / 4 if skill SL1 is not deleted, but the probability is 1 / 3 if skill SL1 is deleted. In this way, skill deletion can increase the likelihood that the user will inherit a desired skill to the generated character.

[0092] Furthermore, skill deletion may be performed, for example, during character combination or before character combination. "During character combination" may be, for example, the period from when a screen for character combination is displayed on game terminal 10 until an operation to instruct the execution of character combination is performed. Furthermore, "skill deletion performed before character combination" may mean that the operation for character combination and the operation for skill deletion are separate and independent operations, and skill deletion is performed by performing an operation for skill deletion in advance before performing the operation for character combination.

[0093] Furthermore, the consumption of an item may be required to execute skill erasure. Furthermore, in order to prevent desired skills from being inherited too easily, it is desirable that the item consumed for skill erasure be of high rarity. Furthermore, an upper limit may be set on the number of skills that can be erased. For example, the upper limit may be one per material character, but is not limited to this. By consuming an item or setting an upper limit on the number of skills that can be erased, it is possible to prevent desired skills from being inherited too easily by skill erasure.

[0094] (Skill Change) Another example of a process for making it easier to inherit desired skills is skill change. Skill change is a process for changing one of a first group of candidates for inherited skills in response to a user instruction. For example, in the example of FIG. 9, suppose that the user desires to inherit skill SL6 of material character "C," and skill SL1 of material character "A" is changed to skill SL6 based on the user's operation. As a result, two of the four skills included in the first group of candidates become skill SL6, and the probability of skill SL6 being inherited increases from 1 / 4 before the skill change to 1 / 2. Skill change can increase the likelihood that the user will inherit the desired skill to the generated character.

[0095] Furthermore, the consumption of an item may be required to perform the skill change. The item is preferably a dedicated item for performing the skill change (hereinafter also referred to as a skill change item). For example, the skill change item may be an item that specifies the skill after the change. Furthermore, for example, the skill change item may be an item that changes one of Skill 1 and Skill 2 possessed by the material character to the same skill as the other skill.

[0096] (Select inherited skills) Another example of a process for making it easier to inherit desired skills is the selection of inherited skills. The selection of inherited skills is a process in which a skill selected by the user from a first group of candidates is set as the inherited skill. The selection of inherited skills may involve the consumption of more expensive items or more items than skill deletion or skill change. In other words, it may be possible for the user to reliably inherit desired skills to the generated character by paying a high price.

[0097] (Consumes a character you own that is different from the material character) Another example of a process for facilitating the inheritance of a desired skill is a process for consuming a character different from any of the multiple material characters. Consuming a different character is a process for adding the skill of a different character to a first group of candidates for inherited skills by consuming a character selected by the user that is different from the multiple material characters. For example, in the example of FIG. 9 , if the user desires to inherit skill SL6 of material character "C," the user can select another character that possesses skill SL6 in addition to the multiple material characters "A" and "C." This adds skill SL6 possessed by the other character to the four skills included in the first group of candidates, making a total of five. Therefore, the probability of skill SL6 being inherited increases from 1 / 4 to 2 / 5 when the other character is not consumed. In this way, consuming a different character increases the likelihood that the user will inherit a desired skill to the generated character.

[0098] Here, we will explain the difference between multiple material characters and different possessed characters. As an example, the attributes of each of the multiple material characters affect the generated character, while the attributes of different possessed characters do not affect the generated character. For example, in character combination, the generated character may be affected by the attributes of the multiple material characters. As an example, in normal combination, the generated character may be selected by lottery from a group of generated character candidates with attributes corresponding to the combination of the attributes of the multiple material characters. In this case, to obtain a generated character with desired attributes, the user can select multiple material characters with a corresponding combination of attributes and then consume other possessed characters that have desired skills regardless of their attributes. This increases the likelihood that the generated character will have the user's desired attributes and skills.

[0099] (specific skill combination) Furthermore, the inherited skills to be possessed by the generated character do not necessarily have to be selected from the first candidate group, but may instead be skills related to the first candidate group. For example, if the first candidate group includes a specific combination of skills, a skill associated with the specific combination (an example of a skill related to the first candidate group) may be selected as the inherited skill. For example, assume that "skill SX" is associated with the combination of "skills SL1, SL2, SL6." In the example of FIG. 9, since the first candidate group includes the combination "skills SL1, SL2, SL6," "skill SX" is selected as the inherited skill. "Skill SX" is an example of a skill related to the first candidate group.

[0100] Note that, when a specific combination of skills is included in the first candidate group, the related skills may always be determined as the inherited skills, or the related skills may be determined probabilistically. In the case where the related skills are determined probabilistically, for example, the inherited skills may be determined by lottery including the related skills in the first candidate group. Furthermore, when multiple skills are associated with a specific skill combination, for example, the inherited skills may be determined by lottery from the multiple related skills. In this way, by allowing the specific skill combination included in the first candidate group to influence the inherited skills, the user can enjoy exploring the skill combinations possessed by each of the multiple material characters.

[0101] (Number of inherited skills and acquired skills) Here, if a character can possess three or more skills, the number of inherited skills may be two or more. Also, the number of acquired skills may be two or more. As an example, if the number of inherited skills is two, two different inherited skills may be determined by lottery from a first candidate group. Also, as an example, if the number of acquired skills is two, two different acquired skills may be determined by lottery from a second candidate group.

[0102] Furthermore, the number of inherited skills and / or acquired skills may be determined according to the type of generated character. For example, when the breeding processing unit 111 generates character A, it may specify one inherited skill and two acquired skills, and when it generates character B, it may specify two inherited skills and three acquired skills. Here, in character breeding, the fewer skills the material characters have, the more likely the generated character will inherit the skills desired by the user. Therefore, in an aspect in which the number of inherited skills and / or acquired skills is determined according to the type of generated character, the user can enjoy wondering how many skills the generated character will have through character breeding.

[0103] In this embodiment, the total number of inherited skills and learned skills may be commonly determined regardless of the type of generated character. For example, when the combination processing unit 111 generates character A, it may specify one inherited skill and three learned skills, for a total of four skills, and when generating character B, it may specify two inherited skills and two learned skills, for a total of four skills. By commonly determining the total number of inherited skills and learned skills, it is possible to prevent the ability differences between generated characters from becoming too large.

[0104] Furthermore, regardless of the type of generated character, the number of inherited skills and / or acquired skills may be determined at the time of character merging. For example, the number may be determined by lottery. In this case, even if the type of generated character is the same, the number of skills may differ.

[0105] (Skill type according to skill slot) The above-mentioned skill 1 and skill 2 may have a skill type determined according to the skill slot. The skill type according to the skill slot is an example of the aforementioned "characteristics according to the skill slot." Examples of skill types include a buff skill that strengthens the abilities of an ally character and a debuff skill that weakens the abilities of an enemy character. For example, an inherited skill that is a debuff skill may be determined as skill 1, and an acquired skill that is a buff skill may be determined as skill 2. In this case, the inherited skill may be determined by lottery among only debuff skills in the first candidate group. In addition, in this case, the acquired skill may be determined by lottery among only buff skills in the second candidate group. Alternatively, the second candidate group may be predetermined to include only buff skills. In addition, the type of skill according to the skill slot may be changeable by management, etc. (Functions according to skill slots) The above-mentioned Skill 1 and Skill 2 may have functions defined according to the skill slots. The functions defined according to the skill slots are an example of the aforementioned "characteristics according to the skill slots." An example of a function defined according to the skill slot is the ease with which inherited skills and acquired skills are determined. For example, Skill 1 may be more likely to have an inherited skill determined than Skill 2.

[0106] (An example of a process for determining an additional value) 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a process for determining additional ability parameter values ​​for a character generated by character combination in one aspect of the game described above. The process for determining additional values ​​at least references the owned game content information described above.

[0107] In FIG. 10, the numbers outside the parentheses written to the right of each notation of attack power, defense power, and HP indicate base values, and the numbers inside the parentheses indicate accumulated or added values. For example, the sum of the base and accumulated attack power values ​​is applied to a character's attack power. Also, the sum of the base and accumulated defense power values ​​is applied to a character's defense power. Also, the sum of the base and accumulated HP values ​​is applied to a character's HP. Attack power, defense power, and HP are examples of ability parameters.

[0108] As shown in FIG. 10 , the combination processing unit 111 generates a generated character “G” by performing character combination using material characters “A” and “C.” For example, the base values ​​of each ability parameter of the generated character “G” may be selected from the base values ​​of the ability parameters of the material characters “A” and “C.” When selecting by lottery, the higher or lower of the base values ​​of the material characters “A” and “C” may be applied. In the example of FIG. 10 , the base value of 1000 of the material character “A,” which has the lower base value, is selected by lottery as the base attack power of the generated character “G.” Furthermore, the base value of 1200 of the material character “C,” which has the lower base defensive power, is selected by lottery as the base defensive power of the generated character “G.” Furthermore, the base value of 3000 of the material character “A,” which has the lower base defensive power, is selected by lottery as the base HP of the generated character “G.”

[0109] As shown in FIG. 10 , the sum of the accumulated values ​​of the ability parameters of the material characters "A" and "C" is used as the sum of the accumulated values ​​of the ability parameters of the material characters "A" and "C." Therefore, the sum of the accumulated values ​​of the material characters is always greater than the accumulated values ​​of the material characters. For example, the sum of the attack power of the material characters "A" and "C" is 17, which is the sum of the accumulated attack power values ​​of 10 and 7, respectively. The sum of the defense power of the material characters "A" and "C" is 20, which is the sum of the accumulated defense power values ​​of 15 and 5, respectively. The sum of the HP of the material characters "A" and "C" is 50, which is the sum of the accumulated HP values ​​of 30 and 20, respectively. When the owned game media information for the material characters "G" is stored in the storage unit 130, the sum of the ability parameters of the material characters "G" is stored as an accumulated value. A character generated by character combination can become a material character for new character combination.

[0110] For example, as shown in FIG. 10, the generated character "G" is used as a material character, and a character combination is performed using the material character "G" and the material character "D" to generate a generated character "H." At this time, the base offensive power of the generated character "H" is selected by lottery from the base offensive power of the material character "D," which has the higher base offensive power, i.e., 1700. Furthermore, the base defensive power of the generated character "H" is selected by lottery from the base defensive power of the material character "G," which has the higher base defensive power, i.e., 1200. Furthermore, the base HP of the generated character "H" is selected by lottery from the base HP of the material character "G," which has the lower base HP, i.e., 3000.

[0111] As shown in FIG. 10 , the attack power accumulation value of generated character "H" is 27, which is the sum of the accumulated attack power values ​​of material character "G" and material character "D," 17 and 10, respectively. Here, the defensive power accumulation value of material character "G" is 20, but the defensive power accumulation value of material character "D" is not set. Thus, depending on the character, an ability parameter accumulation value may not be set. An accumulation value that is not set may be considered to be zero. Therefore, the defensive power accumulation value of material character "D," 20, is applied as is to the defensive power accumulation value of generated character "H." Furthermore, the HP accumulation value of generated character "H" is 70, which is the sum of the accumulated HP values ​​of material character "G" and material character "D," 50 and 20, respectively. When the owned game media information for generated character "H" is stored in the storage unit 130, the accumulated values ​​of each ability parameter are stored as accumulation values. In other words, in another combination process using character H as a material, the added value is used as an accumulation value to determine the added value of a newly generated character.

[0112] The base value of each ability parameter of the generated character may be determined so long as it is influenced by the base value of that ability parameter of each of the multiple material characters, and is not necessarily determined by lottery. However, the base value of each ability parameter of the generated character is determined so that the base value of that ability parameter of the material character is not "accumulated." Not "accumulating" a base value means, for example, that the base value may be equal to or lower than the highest base value among the multiple material characters. For example, a random value based on the average base value of the material characters (e.g., a random value within a range of ±10% of the average) may be applied as the base value of the generated character. Alternatively, the highest base value of that ability parameter among the multiple material characters may be applied as is as the base value of each ability parameter of the generated character. Alternatively, a random value based on the highest base value (e.g., a random value within a range of ±10% of the highest base value) may be applied as the base value of the generated character.

[0113] (Other processes to determine the additional value) The sum of the ability parameters of the generated character need only be determined so that the accumulated values ​​of the ability parameters of the material characters are "accumulated," and is not necessarily limited to the sum of the accumulated values ​​of each of the material characters. "Accumulating" accumulated values ​​means that the sum of the ability parameters of the generated character is determined so that it is greater than the largest accumulated value of the ability parameters of the material characters. In this way, by repeatedly combining characters using the generated characters as material characters, the accumulated values ​​of the generated characters "accumulate" and the ability parameters increase, thereby increasing the motivation for the user to combine characters.

[0114] As an example, the additional value of each ability parameter may be determined to be greater than the maximum accumulated value of the ability parameter among the multiple material characters but less than the sum of the accumulated values. For example, the additional value may be determined to be the sum of the maximum accumulated value and the value obtained by multiplying each of the accumulated values ​​of the other material characters by a coefficient (greater than 0 and less than 1) for calculating the additional value. FIG. 11 is a diagram schematically illustrating another example of the process for determining such an additional value. Similar to FIG. 10, FIG. 11 illustrates a character combination in which a generated character "G" is generated by consuming material characters "A" and "C." The process for determining the base value is similar to that of FIG. 10, but the process for determining the additional value is different. For example, the additional value of the attack power of the generated character "G" is calculated by adding the higher accumulated value (10) of the material characters "A" and "C" (7) to the lower accumulated value (2) multiplied by a coefficient of 1 / 3 (decimals rounded down), resulting in 12. The same applies to defense power and HP. In the example of FIG. 11, the added value of the generated character is always greater than the largest accumulated value among the multiple material characters. Therefore, although the accumulated value of the material character is "accumulated," the added value can be smaller than when the added value is the sum of the accumulated values ​​of the multiple material characters. This prevents the added value of the generated character from easily increasing. Furthermore, when an upper limit value for the added value or an upper limit value for the total amount of ability parameters is set, as described below, the added value or the total amount can be prevented from easily reaching the upper limit value.

[0115] The processes for determining the base values ​​and additional values ​​shown in Figures 10 and 11 may be applied to normal breeding or recipe breeding. The base values ​​determined in recipe breeding may be higher than the base values ​​that would be determined if normal breeding were performed with the same combination of material characters. For example, the base value of each ability parameter of the generated character may be selected by lottery from the base values ​​of the ability parameter of each of the multiple material characters in normal breeding, and the largest base value among the multiple material characters may always be selected in recipe breeding. The additional values ​​determined in recipe breeding may be higher than the additional values ​​that would be determined if normal breeding were performed with the same combination of material characters. For example, the additional value of each ability parameter of the generated character may be determined to be a value that is greater than the largest accumulated value of the ability parameter of the multiple material characters in normal breeding but smaller than the sum of the accumulated values, and the sum of the accumulated values ​​may be determined in recipe breeding. The base values ​​or additional values ​​determined in recipe breeding may be higher the higher the level of the recipe, even when using recipes with the same recipe ID.

[0116] (Items with additional value increase effect) In addition, an item with an effect of increasing the added value may be applied in the process of determining the added value. When consumed during character merging, this item has the effect of increasing the added value. For example, if an item with the effect of increasing the added value by "+5" is consumed during the character merging of material character "A" and material character "C" in FIG. 10, the accumulated value of attack power will be increased by an additional 5 to 17, becoming 22. The same applies to the accumulated values ​​of defense power and HP.

[0117] (Upper limit of added value) The additional value of an ability parameter to be possessed by a generated character may be determined within an upper limit. In other words, an upper limit may be set for the additional value. This prevents the ability parameter from increasing too much as a result of repeated character breeding. For example, the sum of the accumulated values ​​of multiple material characters for a certain ability parameter may exceed the upper limit. In this case, the upper limit, rather than the sum, is applied as the additional value of the ability parameter of the generated character. The upper limit may be set according to the type of ability parameter (e.g., attack power, defense power, and HP). Note that the upper limit may be a common value regardless of the character type, and is preferably not set according to the character type. This is because the character type may change as the accumulated value accumulates through character breeding. The upper limit may also change according to the progress of the game. For example, the upper limit may increase as the game progresses. This allows a character whose additional value has reached the upper limit to be used again as a material character if the upper limit is subsequently raised as the game progresses. As a result, a generated character with an even higher additional value can be obtained.

[0118] (Upper limit of total amount) Furthermore, the additional value of the ability parameters to be possessed by the generated character may be determined so that the total amount of each type of ability parameter does not exceed an upper limit. In other words, an upper limit may be set for the total amount. The total amount of ability parameters is, for example, the sum of the base and additional values ​​of attack power, the base and additional values ​​of defense power, and the base and additional values ​​of HP. For example, if the sum of the accumulated values ​​of multiple material characters for each of multiple types of ability parameters is assumed to be the additional value, the total amount of the ability parameters of the generated character may exceed the upper limit. In this case, the additional value of at least one ability parameter to be possessed by the generated character is determined to be a value smaller than the sum of the accumulated values ​​of that ability parameter for each of the multiple material characters so that the total amount does not exceed the upper limit. In this case, the sum of the additional values ​​of each ability parameter may be presented to the user so that the total amount does not exceed the upper limit. Furthermore, how the sum is distributed among the additional values ​​of each ability parameter may be determined based on user instructions. Note that when calculating the total amount of the ability parameters of the generated character, weighting may be performed according to the type of ability parameter.

[0119] (Display of accumulated value) The accumulated value of ability parameters possessed by a character affects the added value of a generated character when used as a material character in character combination, and therefore determines the value of the character. Therefore, the accumulated value of ability parameters possessed by a character is displayed so that the user can recognize it. For example, on a screen that provides the character combination function, the accumulated value may be displayed for possessed characters that can be selected as material characters. Also, on a screen that presents characters generated by character combination, the added value for the generated character may be displayed. Furthermore, even when not using the character combination function, the accumulated value possessed by the character may be displayed on a viewing screen for viewing the character's details or overview.

[0120] (Example of game media initial value information) 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of game content initial value information stored in the storage unit 130 in one aspect of the game described above. The game content initial value information is information for calculating the initial values ​​of ability parameters set for a character when the character is assigned to the user without character combination. The game content initial value information is information common to all users and may be stored in the memory 32 of the game server 30 or in the memory 12 of the game terminal 10.

[0121] In the example of Figure 12, the game media initial value information indicates information regarding the initial values ​​of ability parameters to be possessed by a character, and includes information indicating a character ID, a character name, an initial attack power value, an initial defense power value, and an initial HP value. The character ID and character name are as described above. The initial attack power value indicates a value that is referenced when setting the base value of the attack power when the character is assigned to a user without character combination. For example, the initial attack power value may be applied as is as the base value of the attack power, or the result of a calculation using the initial attack power value may be applied. The same applies to the initial defense power value and the initial HP value. Note that the initial value of the accumulation value may be, but is not limited to, zero.

[0122] <Game System 1 Processing> The game system 1 configured as above executes method S1. The flow of method S1 will be described with reference to Fig. 13. Fig. 13 is a flow diagram showing the flow of method S1 executed by game system 1. Note that the following description will be given assuming that the game played by game system 1 is one aspect described above. As shown in Fig. 13, method S1 includes steps S100 to S118.

[0123] Step S100 is an example of a list display control process. In step S100, the list display control unit 113 displays a list of possessed characters to accept the selection of material characters to be used in character combination.

[0124] In step S102, the control unit 110 distinguishably displays the material characters included in the recipes among the displayed list of possessed characters. For example, the control unit 110 may further distinguishably display the material characters included in the possessed recipes and the material characters included in the recipes that the user does not possess.

[0125] FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen displayed on display device 15 of game terminal 10 in steps S100 to S102. As shown in FIG. 14, screen example G1 includes area G101 displaying a list of owned characters. Area G101 includes areas G102a, G102b, G102c, G102d, G102e, and G102f, which respectively show owned characters A, B, C, D, E, and F. Area G102a shows an overview of character A, including the name "Character A" and level "10." Furthermore, the number "2" inside a circle in the upper left corner of area G102a indicates character A's rank. The same applies to areas G102b, G102c, G102d, G102e, and G102f, which show other owned characters. If the number of possessed characters is greater than the number that can be simultaneously displayed in area G101, area G101 may be made scrollable and pages may be switched.

[0126] As shown in Figures 4 and 5, characters A and B are material characters for the owned recipe "0001." Character E is a material character for the owned recipe "0057." Therefore, the frames of areas G102a, G102b, and G102e corresponding to characters A, B, and E are represented by thick lines indicating the material characters included in the owned recipe. This allows the user to recognize which owned character to select as a material character when performing recipe combination using the owned recipe. Furthermore, the user can avoid a situation in which the owned character is consumed as a material character for a normal combination without realizing that the owned character can be a material character for the owned recipe. Note that the display mode for identifying a material character for a owned recipe is not limited to a thick frame, and other display modes such as changing the color or adding a mark may also be used.

[0127] Furthermore, character F is one of the material characters for recipe 0015, but the user does not own recipe 0015. Therefore, the frame of region G102f corresponding to character F is represented by a thick dotted line, indicating a material character included in an unowned recipe. This prevents the user from consuming a character they own as a normal-mix material character without realizing that the character could be a material character for a recipe they may own in the future. Note that the display mode that makes it possible to identify a material character for an unowned recipe is not limited to a thick dotted line frame, and other display modes may be used.

[0128] The example screen G1 also includes operators G103 and G104 that accept operations for the list display in the area G101. The operator G103 accepts an operation to instruct the rearrangement of the possessed characters in the area G101. When an operation for the operator G103 is accepted, a screen (not shown) for specifying the rearrangement order, such as an order (ascending or descending) based on, for example, acquisition date and time, name, attribute, rank, level, possessed skills, ability parameters, base value, or accumulated value, is displayed, and the possessed characters rearranged according to the specified order are displayed in the area G101. The operator G104 accepts an operation to instruct the narrowing down of the possessed characters in the area G101. When an operation for the operator G104 is accepted, a screen (not shown) for specifying the narrowing down conditions based on, for example, acquisition date and time, name, attribute, rank, level, possessed skills, ability parameters, base value, or accumulated value is displayed, and the possessed characters narrowed down according to the specified narrowing down conditions are displayed in the area G101.

[0129] In step S103, the control unit 110 accepts an operation to select multiple material characters and combination items for character combination. The combination items are items that must be consumed to have an effect on the character combination, and may be items that have the effects of, for example, the aforementioned skill deletion, skill change, inherited skill selection, and added value increase. In addition, the aforementioned "possessed character other than the material character" may be selected as the combination item.

[0130] As an example, as shown in Fig. 14, screen example G1 includes areas G105-1 and G105-2 in which selected material characters are displayed. As an example, by operating any of areas G102a, G102b, G102c, G102d, G102e, and G102f, the corresponding possessed character is selected as the material character. The first material character to be selected is displayed in area G105-1. The second material character to be selected is displayed in area G105-2.

[0131] 14, the example screen G1 includes an operator G106 for selecting a compounding item. When an operation on the operator G106 is accepted, a list screen (not shown) of the compounding items in your possession is displayed, allowing you to select a compounding item from the list.

[0132] (Display control process flow) In step S104, the control unit 110 performs display control processing in accordance with the selection of the material character, etc. Fig. 15 is a flowchart showing a detailed flow of the display control processing in step S104. As shown in Fig. 15, the display control processing in step S104 includes steps S200 to S214.

[0133] Step S200 is an example of the display process. In step S200, the display processing unit 116 displays the base value and accumulated value of the ability parameters of the selected material character in an identifiable manner.

[0134] In step S202, the control unit 110 determines whether the number of material characters required for character combination (hereinafter also referred to as the required number) have been selected. For example, in screen example G1, the required number is two. In this case, the control unit 110 determines whether two material characters have been selected. If the determination in step S202 is Yes, step S210, which will be described later, is executed. If the determination in step S202 is No, the next step S204 is executed. For example, if the required number is two and only one material character has been selected, the determination in step S202 is No.

[0135] In step S204, the control unit 110 determines whether the user has remaining material characters that can be combined with the selected material characters to create a recipe in the owned recipe. If the determination in step S204 is No, step S208, which will be described later, is executed. If the determination in step S204 is Yes, the next step S206 is executed.

[0136] Step S206 is an example of a distinguishable display control process. In step S206, the distinguishable display control unit 114 distinguishably displays the remaining material characters from among the possessed characters displayed in a list.

[0137] FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen displayed on the display device 15 of the game terminal 10 in steps S200 to S206. Screen example G2 shown in FIG. 16 is displayed when an operation to select a first material character is accepted on screen example G1. Also, on screen example G2, "Item A" is selected as the compounding item. Also, the first material character "A" is selected. In area G101, area G102a corresponding to the selected material character "A" is filled with a dot pattern indicating that the character is currently selected. Area G105-1 displays details of the first selected material character "A." For example, area G105-1 includes information indicating the name, attributes, level, attack power, defense power, HP, possessed skills 1 and 2, and rank of material character "A." Furthermore, for attack power, the base value is indicated outside parentheses, such as "1000 (+10)," and the accumulated value is indicated inside parentheses. The same applies to defense power and HP. In other words, the base value and accumulated value of each ability parameter are displayed in a distinguishable manner. When the operator G108 for switching whether or not to display the accumulated value is operated, the display may switch to a mode in which the sum of the base value and accumulated value is displayed, such as attack power "1010." Furthermore, each time the operator G108 is operated, the display may switch between a display mode in which the base value and accumulated value are distinguishable and a display mode in which their sum is displayed.

[0138] In FIG. 16, the currently selected material character "A" is one of the material characters included in the owned recipe "0001." The remaining material character included in recipe 0001 is character B. The remaining material characters refer to material characters that are included in the recipe containing the currently selected material character but are not selected. Therefore, the frame of region G102b corresponding to character B is indicated by a thick line, indicating that the character is a remaining material character. This allows the user to recognize that when a user wants to use the first selected material character "A" to create a recipe combination, they should select character B as the second material character. Note that while FIG. 16 shows an example in which a recipe includes two material characters, a recipe may also include three or more material characters. For example, if the user owns a recipe including three material characters "A," "B," and "E," the "remaining material characters" in screen example G2 are characters B and E. Therefore, in screen example G2, in addition to region G102b corresponding to character B, region G102e corresponding to character E may also be indicated by a thick line, indicating that the character is a remaining material character. Alternatively, when one of the three ingredient characters is selected, the remaining ingredient characters may not be displayed in a distinguishable manner, but when two of the ingredients are selected, the remaining ingredient characters may be displayed in a distinguishable manner. In other words, the remaining ingredient character for finalizing the recipe combination may be displayed in a distinguishable manner.

[0139] It is also possible that a player has multiple recipes each containing the selected material character "A." For example, in addition to the owned recipe "0001" that uses characters A and B as material characters, there may be another owned recipe that uses characters A and E as material characters. In this case, the remaining material characters that can be combined with the selected material character "A" may be represented by a thick line in the frame of region G102b corresponding to character B, as well as region G102e corresponding to character E.

[0140] Note that the frame of area G102c corresponding to character E is represented by a thick two-dot chain line in screen example G1, but is represented by a thick two-dot chain line in screen example G2. The thick two-dot chain line frame indicates that although the combination with the selected material character "A" does not match the combination of the owned recipe, it is a material character of another owned recipe "0057." This prevents the user from selecting character E as the second material character without realizing that it is a material character included in another owned recipe, and then performing normal combining in combination with the first material character "A." Note that the display mode that makes it possible to identify that it is a material character of another owned recipe that does not include the first selected material character is not limited to a thick two-dot chain line frame, and may be other display modes.

[0141] Furthermore, even when the required number of material characters have not been selected (e.g., screen example G2), character F is displayed identifiably as a material character included in recipe 0015 that is not in possession, just as in a state where no material characters have been selected (e.g., screen example 1).

[0142] In step S208, the control unit 110 determines that an operation to instruct character combination cannot be accepted because the number of material characters required for character combination has not been selected. For example, the control unit 110 disables the operator G109 (combine button) that instructs character combination in the example screen G2. Disabling the operator G109 means that the character combination process will not be executed even if an operation is performed on the operator G109. Furthermore, the control unit 110 may display the operator G109 in a manner (for example, grayed out) that indicates that it is disabled. If it is determined No in step S202, the display control process (S104) ends.

[0143] On the other hand, the display control process (S104) will be described when the determination in step S202 is Yes. That is, the number of material characters required for character combination has been selected. In step S210, the control unit 110 determines whether the user has a recipe that includes a combination of the selected material characters. If the determination in step S210 is No, step S214, which will be described later, is executed. If the determination in step S210 is Yes, the next step S212 is executed.

[0144] In step S212, the control unit 210 identifiably displays that the selected material characters match the combination of material characters included in the owned recipe. FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen displayed on the display device 15 of the game terminal 10 in step S212. In FIG. 17, in screen example G3, as shown in areas G105-1 and G105-2, character A is selected as the first material character and character B is selected as the second material character. Furthermore, areas G102a and G102b corresponding to characters A and B in area G101 are filled with a dot pattern indicating that they are selected. Furthermore, area G301 identifiably indicates that the combination of selected characters A and B is recipe-compatible in the owned recipe. This allows the user to recognize that operating the operator G109 will result in recipe-compatible combination rather than normal combination. Note that the display mode that identifiably displays that the selected material characters are a combination that can be used in the owned recipe is not limited to the mode including text information such as area G301. For example, a display mode that allows identification of a combination that is possible for recipe combinations in owned recipes may be a display mode that changes the background color of areas G105-1, G105-2 in which the selected material character is displayed.

[0145] In step S214, the control unit 110 is able to accept an operation to instruct character combination because the number of material characters required for character combination has been selected. For example, the control unit 110 enables the operator G109 (combine button) that instructs character combination in the example screen G3. Enabling the operator G109 means making it responsive to an operation on the operator G109. The control unit 110 may also change the display mode of the operator G109 to indicate that it is enabled (for example, by canceling the grayout). If it is determined Yes in step S202, the display control process (S104) ends.

[0146] In step S106 of FIG. 13, the control unit 110 determines whether an operation to instruct character combination has been accepted. As an example, in screen examples G1-G2, the required number of material characters have not been selected and the operator G109 is disabled, so it is determined that an operation to instruct character combination has not been accepted. Also, in screen example G3, the required number of material characters have been selected, so it is determined whether an operation for the enabled operator G109 has been accepted. If the determination in step S106 is No, the processing from step S102 is repeated. In other words, steps S103-S104 are repeated until the required number of material characters have been selected and an operation to instruct character combination is accepted. If the determination in step S106 is Yes, the next step S108 is executed.

[0147] In step S108, the control unit 110 determines whether there is a recipe in possession that includes a combination of the selected multiple material characters. If the determination in step S108 is Yes, the recipe combination in step S118, which will be described later, is executed. If the determination in step S108 is No, the next step S110 is executed.

[0148] In step S110, the control unit 110 determines whether any of the selected material characters is included in the owned recipe. For example, when the required number is two, it is possible that neither of the two selected material characters is included in the owned recipe. In this case, the determination in step S110 is No. If the determination in step S110 is No, the normal combination in step S116, which will be described later, is performed.

[0149] Furthermore, one of the two selected material characters may be a material character included in a possessed recipe, and the other may be a material character not included in a possessed recipe. In this case, the determination in step S110 is Yes. Furthermore, one of the two selected material characters may be a material character included in a certain possessed recipe, and the other may be a material character included in another possessed recipe. In this case, the determination in step S110 is also Yes. If the determination in step S110 is Yes, the next step S112 is executed.

[0150] In step S112, the control unit 110 outputs warning information indicating that at least some of the selected material characters to be consumed in normal combination are included in the owned recipe. FIG. 18 shows an example of a game screen displayed on the display device 15 of the game terminal 10 in step S112. In FIG. 18, in screen example G4, as shown in areas G105-1 and G105-2, character A is selected as the first material character and character C is selected as the second material character. Furthermore, areas G102a and G102c in area G101 corresponding to characters A and C are filled with a dot pattern indicating that they are selected. Since there are no owned recipes containing the combination of material characters "A" and "C," normal combination will be performed for this combination, rather than recipe combination. However, the selected material character "A" is included in owned recipe "0001." Therefore, warning information is displayed in area G401.

[0151] The warning information includes information such as that normal combination will be performed with the combination of selected material characters "A" and "C," and that material character "A" is included in the owned recipe "0001." The warning information also includes controls G402 to G403 that accept an operation to instruct whether or not normal combination can be performed with the combination of selected material characters. This allows the user to more reliably avoid a situation in which material characters included in a owned recipe are unintentionally consumed in normal combination. Note that the warning information is not limited to the example shown in area G401, as long as it indicates that at least some of the multiple material characters that will be consumed in normal combination are included in the owned recipe.

[0152] In step S114, the control unit 110 determines whether an operation to instruct the execution of normal combination has been accepted in response to the output of warning information. As an example, in screen example G4, if an operation on operator G402 is accepted, the result of step S114 is determined to be No. In this case, the processing from step S103 is repeated. In other words, a user who has canceled the normal combination by consuming material characters included in the owned recipe can change the selection of material characters. Furthermore, if an operation on operator G403 is accepted, the result of step S114 is determined to be Yes. In this case, the normal combination of step S116 is executed.

[0153] (Normal compounding process) Fig. 19 is a flow diagram showing the detailed flow of the normal blending in step S116. As shown in Fig. 19, the normal blending in step S116 includes steps S300 to S312.

[0154] In step S300, the combination processing unit 111 executes processing according to the selected combination item. For example, if the selected combination item has the effect of changing the first candidate group, the combination processing unit 111 changes the first candidate group. Examples of combination items that have the effect of changing the first candidate group include the aforementioned "skill deletion," "skill change," and "other possessed character different from the material character."

[0155] For example, if the selected combination item has the effect of "skill deletion," the skill deletion processing unit 115 displays a game screen (not shown) for performing skill deletion. The game screen includes, for example, a first candidate group consisting of skills possessed by each of the selected material characters, and is capable of accepting an operation to select a skill to delete from among the first candidate group. The skill deletion processing unit 115 deletes the skill selected by the user from the first candidate group.

[0156] Also, for example, if the selected combination item has a "skill change" effect, the combination processing unit 111 displays a game screen (not shown) for performing the skill change. For example, the game screen includes a first candidate group consisting of skills possessed by each of the selected material characters, and a candidate group of skills after the change, and is capable of accepting an operation to select each skill before and after the change. Based on the operation on the game screen, the combination processing unit 111 changes the pre-change skill selected by the user to the post-change skill selected by the user.

[0157] Furthermore, for example, if the selected combination item has the effect of adding a skill to "another possessed character different from the material character," the combination processing unit 111 displays a game screen (not shown) that allows the user to select "another possessed character different from the material character." As an example, the game screen includes a list of possessed characters excluding the selected material character, and is capable of accepting an operation to select one of the characters. Based on the operation on the game screen, the combination processing unit 111 adds the skill possessed by the selected other possessed character to a first candidate group consisting of skills possessed by each of the multiple material characters.

[0158] If the combination item has an effect other than "changing the first candidate group," processing according to the combination item is executed, for example, in step S304 or S308 described below.

[0159] In step S302, the combination processing unit 111 determines a character to be generated from the group of character generation candidates by lottery. A second group of candidates is determined according to the determined character to be generated.

[0160] In step S304, the combination processing unit 111 determines inheritable skills to be possessed by the generated character from the first candidate group. For example, the combination processing unit 111 determines inheritable skills by lottery from the first candidate group.

[0161] If the selected combination item has the effect of "selecting an inherited skill," the combination processing unit 111 determines a skill selected from the first candidate group based on a user's operation as the inherited skill, instead of performing a lottery from the first candidate group. For example, the combination processing unit 111 displays a game screen (not shown) for selecting an inherited skill. As an example, the game screen includes a first candidate group consisting of skills possessed by each of the selected material characters, and is capable of accepting an operation to select an inherited skill from the first candidate group to be inherited by the generated character.

[0162] In step S306, the combination processing unit 111 determines the acquired skills to be possessed by the generated character from the second candidate group. For example, the combination processing unit 111 determines the acquired skills by lottery from the second candidate group. Note that in steps S304 and S306, the inherited skills and the acquired skills may be determined to be different skills from each other.

[0163] In step S308, the blending processing unit 111 determines the ability parameters to be possessed by the generated character. For example, the blending processing unit 111 selects one of the base values ​​of each of the multiple material characters for each type of ability parameter and determines it as the base value to be possessed by the generated character. Also, for example, the blending processing unit 111 determines an additional value for each type of ability parameter that is equal to or greater than the maximum accumulated value among the accumulated values ​​of the multiple material characters. As an example, the additional value may be the sum of the accumulated values ​​of each of the multiple material characters. Also, the additional value may be a value that is greater than the maximum accumulated value but less than the sum. Also, if an upper limit is set for the additional value for each type of ability parameter, the blending processing unit 111 determines the additional value within the upper limit. Also, if an upper limit is set for the total amount of ability parameters, the blending processing unit 111 determines the additional value of each ability parameter so that the total amount is within the upper limit.

[0164] If the selected combination item has the effect of "additional value increase," the combination processing unit 111 determines the value obtained by adding the increase amount specified for the combination item to the addition amount determined as described above as the addition amount after applying the combination item. The combination processing unit 111 also consumes the combination item.

[0165] In step S310, the combination processing unit 111 consumes the selected multiple material characters and combination items. For example, the combination processing unit 111 deletes owned game media information related to each material character from the storage unit 130. Also, for example, the combination processing unit 111 deletes information (not shown) indicating that the user owns the combination item from the storage unit 130.

[0166] In step S312, the combination processing unit 111 assigns the user a generated character that possesses the determined inherited skills, acquired skills, and ability parameters. Specifically, the combination processing unit 111 generates new owned game media information and stores it in the storage unit 130.

[0167] FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen displayed on the display device 15 of the gaming terminal 10 in step S312. Screen example G5 shown in FIG. 20 may be displayed by operating the control G403 on screen example G4 shown in FIG. 18. That is, screen example G5 shows a generated character "G" generated by normal breeding from the material characters "A" and "C" selected on screen example G4. The generated character "G" is a character selected by lottery from a group of generated character candidates. Screen example G5 includes an area G501 showing details of the generated character "G." For example, area G501 includes information showing the name, attributes, level, attack power, defense power, HP, skill 1, skill 2, and rank of the generated character "G."

[0168] The rank of generated character "G" is "2," which is the same as the higher rank "2" of material characters "A" and "C." This is because the group of candidate generated characters included a character with the higher rank "2" and a character with a rank higher than rank "2" (for example, 3). In this way, with normal breeding, it is possible to obtain a generated character with a rank equivalent to the higher rank of the material characters, such as character G.

[0169] Skill 1 is determined to be skill SL6, which is an inherited skill inherited from material characters "A" and "C." Skill 2 is determined to be skill SG2, which is a newly acquired skill acquired by generated character "G." Details of an example in which skill SL6 is determined as an inherited skill and details of an example in which skill SG2 is determined as an acquired skill are as described with reference to FIG. 9.

[0170] Additionally, in area G501, the base value and additional value of each ability parameter are identifiably displayed, such as attack power "1000 (+17)" etc. An example in which these additional values ​​are determined based on the accumulated values ​​of material characters "A" and "C" has been described with reference to FIG.

[0171] Note that the above-described steps S300 to S310 only need to be performed before step S312, which assigns a generated character, and they are not limited to being performed in this order, and may be performed in a different order or in parallel. However, the process of changing the first candidate group in step S300 must be performed at least before referring to the first candidate group in step S304. Also, the process of determining a generated character by lottery in step S302 must be performed before referring to the second candidate group in step S306.

[0172] (Recipe composition flow) Fig. 21 is a flow diagram showing a detailed flow of recipe combination in step S118. As shown in Fig. 21, recipe combination in step S118 includes steps S400 to S408.

[0173] In step S400, the combination processing unit 111 identifies a recipe containing a combination of the selected material items and determines a character to be generated that is included in the identified recipe. The character to be generated may not be included in the character candidate group that is the subject of lottery in normal combination.

[0174] In step S402, the blending processing unit 111 determines the skills to be possessed by the generated character according to the level of the possessed recipe. Note that, if a recipe with the same recipe ID as the possessed recipe has been given multiple times, the level of the possessed recipe is changed by the parameter change processing unit 112.

[0175] As an example, the combination processing unit 111 may determine inherited skills and acquired skills in the same manner as in steps S304 and S306 in normal processing. The combination processing unit 111 may also determine inherited skills and acquired skills that are more advantageous than normal combination. In this case, the combination processing unit 111 may first execute a process of changing the first candidate group depending on the combination item, in the same manner as in step S300 in normal processing. The combination processing unit 111 may also determine more advantageous inherited skills and acquired skills depending on the level of the recipe.

[0176] In step S404, the blending processing unit 111 determines the ability parameters to be possessed by the generated character according to the level of the possessed recipe. As an example, the blending processing unit 111 may determine the base value and additional value of the ability parameters in the same manner as in step S308 in the normal processing. Alternatively, the blending processing unit 111 may determine the base value and additional value of the ability parameters that are more advantageous than the normal blending. Alternatively, the blending processing unit 111 may perform processing to further increase the additional value when a blending item having an additional value increase effect is selected, in the same manner as in step S308 in the normal processing.

[0177] In step S406, the combination processing unit 111 consumes the selected multiple material characters and combination items. A specific example of step S406 is the same as step S310 in normal combination. Note that in recipe combination, the used material characters and combination items are consumed, but the owned recipe is not consumed. One owned recipe can be used repeatedly for recipe combination.

[0178] In step S408, the combination processing unit 111 assigns the generated character having the determined skills and ability parameters to the user. Specifically, the combination processing unit 111 generates new owned game media information and stores it in the storage unit 130.

[0179] FIG. 22 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen displayed on the display device 15 of the game terminal 10 in step S408. Screen example G6 shown in FIG. 22 may be displayed by operating the control G109 on screen example G3 shown in FIG. 17. That is, screen example G6 shows a generated character "X" generated by combining the material characters "A" and "B" selected on screen example G3 through a recipe combination. The generated character "X" is a generated character included in the owned recipe "0001" that includes the material characters "A" and "B." Screen example G6 includes an area G601 showing details of the generated character "X." For example, area G601 includes information indicating the name, attributes, level, attack power, defense power, HP, possessed skills 1 and 2, and rank of the generated character "X."

[0180] The generated character "X" has a rank of "3," which is higher than the ranks of the material characters "A" and "B" (both of which are 2), as specified in the possessed recipe "0001." In this way, by combining the recipes, the generated character "X" is reliably obtained as a rank 3, higher than either of the material characters "A" and "B."

[0181] Skill 1 is determined to be the inherited skill as skill SL1α, which is an evolved version of skill SL1 from a first candidate group consisting of skills possessed by material characters "A" and "B." For example, the first candidate group may include skill SL1α, which is an evolved version of a skill possessed by material characters "A" and "B." As an example, if the first candidate group does not include evolved versions of the skills possessed by the material characters in normal breeding, the inherited skills in recipe breeding may be more advantageous than the inherited skills in normal breeding.

[0182] Skill 2 is determined to be skill SX3, a newly acquired skill for generated character "X." This is determined by lottery from the second candidate group associated with generated character "X" (candidate skills "X1," "X2," "X3," ...).

[0183] Additionally, in area G601, the base value and accumulated value of each ability parameter are identifiably displayed, such as attack power "1500 (+25)". An example of determining these additional values ​​based on the accumulated values ​​of material characters "A" and "B" is as described with reference to FIG. 10. However, for example, in order to determine the ability parameters in recipe combination more advantageously than in normal combination, the coefficients for calculating the additional values ​​described above may be made larger than in normal combination.

[0184] Note that the above steps S402 to S406 do not necessarily have to be executed in this order, but may be executed in a different order or in parallel.

[0185] (Recipe combination by recipe selection) In the above embodiment, recipe combination is performed when the combination of multiple material characters selected by the user matches the combination of the owned recipe, and when they do not match, normal combination is performed. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and recipe combination may be performed based on the owned recipe selected by the user.

[0186] FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating an example of a game screen for selecting a recipe. As illustrated in FIG. 23, the example screen G7 may be displayed by operating the control G107 for displaying a list of recipes on the example screen G1, for example. The example screen G7 includes an area G701 displaying a list of recipes. The area G701 includes areas G702x, G702y, and G702z each showing a recipe, and an area G702q showing a recipe that the player does not own. The area G702x displays an overview of the generated character "X" included in the recipe corresponding to the area, including the name "Character X" and the level "3." The number "2" in the circle in the upper left corner of the area G702x indicates the rank of the generated character "X." The same applies to the areas G702y and G702z showing other recipes. If the number of recipes is greater than the number that can be simultaneously displayed in the area G701, the area G701 may be scrollable or page-switchable.

[0187] Here, area G702z is grayed out. This indicates that there are material characters included in the owned recipe corresponding to that area that the user does not possess. In other words, it indicates that recipe combination using that owned recipe is not possible with the character possession status at this time. In contrast, areas G702x and G702y are not grayed out. This indicates that all of the multiple material characters included in the owned recipe corresponding to that area are possessed. In other words, it indicates that recipe combination using that owned recipe is possible. However, the display mode that makes it possible to identify whether recipe combination can be performed is not limited to graying out, and other display modes may also be used. This allows the user to recognize whether recipe combination is possible with the characters currently possessed for the owned recipe.

[0188] Furthermore, the area G702x is filled with a dot pattern, which indicates that the owned recipe corresponding to that area is currently selected. However, the display manner that makes it possible to identify that the owned recipe is currently selected is not limited to this, and other display manners may also be used.

[0189] Furthermore, area G702q indicates recipes that the user does not possess. For example, if there are six types of recipes that can be possessed in the game and three of them are not possessed, three areas G702q may be displayed. This allows the user to recognize the number of recipes that the user does not possess. Furthermore, area G702q does not contain information about recipes that the user does not possess. Therefore, the user can recognize that there are recipes that the user does not possess, but cannot know about the material characters and the generated characters while they are not possessed. This increases the user's anticipation of possessing recipes in the future.

[0190] Furthermore, the example screen G7 includes operators G703 and G704 that accept operations for the list display in the area G701. The operator G703 accepts an operation to instruct the rearrangement of the possessed recipes in the area G701. When an operation for the operator G703 is accepted, a screen (not shown) for specifying the rearrangement order, such as an order (ascending or descending) based on, for example, the acquisition date and time, the name, attributes, rank, and whether or not the recipe can be combined, of the generated character, is displayed, and the possessed recipes rearranged according to the specified order are displayed in the area G701. The operator G704 accepts an operation to instruct the narrowing down of the possessed recipes in the area G701. When an operation for the operator G704 is accepted, a screen (not shown) for specifying the narrowing down conditions, such as the name, attributes, rank, and whether or not the recipe can be combined, of the generated character, is displayed, and the possessed recipes narrowed down according to the specified narrowing down conditions are displayed in the area G701.

[0191] Furthermore, screen example G7 includes an area G705. Area G705 is an area where details of the currently selected owned recipe are displayed. Area G705 includes information indicating the recipe level "3," material characters "A," "B," and generated character "X." Material characters that are not possessed in area G705 may be displayed in a display mode (e.g., grayed out) that makes it clear that they are not possessed. Furthermore, if at least one of the material characters is not possessed, the generated character in area G705 may also be displayed in a display mode (e.g., grayed out) that makes it clear that it cannot yet be generated. This allows the user to know whether or not they possess the material characters included in the owned recipe.

[0192] Furthermore, the example screen G7 includes an operator G706 for instructing recipe combination using the selected owned recipe. The operator G706 may be disabled when an unexecutable owned recipe is selected, and enabled when an executable owned recipe is selected. When an operation on the enabled operator G706 is accepted, recipe combination is executed based on the selected owned recipe. In other words, by selecting an executable owned recipe and operating the operator G706, the user indirectly selects the owned character, which is the material character included in the owned recipe, and instructs recipe combination. The detailed flow of recipe combination has been described with reference to FIG. 21. Furthermore, the example screen of the character generated by recipe combination has been described with reference to FIG. 22.

[0193] (Normal and recipe combination modes) In the above-described embodiment, recipe combination is performed when the combination of multiple material characters selected by the user matches the combination of a owned recipe, and normal combination is performed when it does not match. This is not a limitation; the normal combination mode and the character combination mode may be switchable. For example, when screen example G1 or the like is displayed in the normal combination mode, normal combination may be performed even if the combination of multiple selected material characters matches the combination of a owned recipe. In addition, in the recipe combination mode, recipe combination may be performed by selecting a owned recipe from a recipe list such as screen example G7. Instead of or in addition to providing a mode, the user may be allowed to select whether to use recipe combination or normal combination when the combination of selected material characters satisfies the combination of the owned recipe.

[0194] (multiple generated characters) In the above-described embodiment, a mode in which one generated character is generated by recipe combination has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and multiple generated characters may be generated by recipe combination. In other words, there may be a recipe that includes multiple generated characters. Furthermore, when recipe combination is performed using the recipe, all of the multiple generated characters may be granted to the user, or only some of the multiple generated characters may be granted to the user. When some generated characters are granted to the user, the generated characters to be granted may be specified by, for example, drawing lots or by user designation.

[0195] (Recipe combination lottery) The above-mentioned form in which some of the multiple generated characters are awarded to the user by lottery in recipe combination will now be described in detail. In this case, it is preferable that the lottery in recipe combination be set so that the probability of winning a high-value character is higher than the lottery in normal combination. Furthermore, it is preferable that the number of characters included in the generated character candidate group in recipe combination (in other words, the number of multiple generated characters included in the recipe) is smaller than the number of characters included in the generated character candidate group in normal combination. As an example, the generated character candidate group in recipe combination may include three characters, while the generated character candidate group in normal combination may include 300 characters. This has the advantage that it is easier for the user to imagine the generated characters in recipe combination than in normal combination.

[0196] (Ingredients included in the recipe) In the above-described embodiment, an example was described in which a recipe includes multiple material characters. Instead of material characters, a recipe may include material conditions that specify the conditions of the material characters. For example, the material conditions may specify the attributes of the material characters. For example, if a recipe includes "race GA" and "race GB" as material conditions, recipe combination using the recipe may be possible by consuming "characters of the GA race" and "characters of the GB race" as material characters. This expands the range of characters that can be used as material characters, making recipe combination relatively easy.

[0197] (Buying and Selling Characters) In the above-described embodiment, characters may be tradeable between users. Trading may include trading, buying and selling, etc. This makes it easier for users to collect material characters necessary for character combination. Characters that can be traded between users may include generated characters that are granted to users through character combination. Furthermore, characters that can be traded between users may include characters with NFTs associated therewith. Furthermore, NFTs may be associated with characters that do not have NFTs associated therewith when traded between users. Associating NFTs with characters can prevent the trading of illegally copied characters. Furthermore, users can trade with other users who do not play the game that uses the character, allowing them to collect a wider range of material characters.

[0198] [Note] From the above description, the present invention can be understood, for example, as follows: It should be noted that, to facilitate understanding of the present invention, reference numerals in the accompanying drawings are conveniently placed in parentheses, but this does not mean that the present invention is limited to the illustrated embodiments.

[0199] A game system (1) according to aspect A1 includes a combination processing unit (111) that executes a combination process in which a user consumes a plurality of first game media identified by the user from among the game media owned by the user to grant the user a second game medium identified from among the plurality of game media, the combination process including a first combination process and a second combination process, the first combination process identifying a second game medium from among the plurality of game media by lottery and granting the identified second game medium to the user, the second combination process being executed on the condition that the user possesses combination-permitted game media that enable the second combination process to be executed, the combination-permitted game media being associated with a combination of a predetermined plurality of first game media and a predetermined second game medium, and the predetermined plurality of first game media associated with the combination-permitted game media being consumed to grant the user the second game medium associated with the combination-permitted game media. According to the above configuration, in a game system in which a user consumes game media such as a material character to grant another game medium to the user, increasing the variety in which the other game media can be identified further enhances the game system's appeal.

[0200] In the game system (1) according to aspect A2, in aspect A1, when the second combination process is executed, the combination-permitted game media are not consumed. According to the above configuration, in the non-consumed mode, the second combination process can be executed again by acquiring the corresponding first game media, thereby improving the satisfaction given to the user.

[0201] In the game system (1) according to aspect A3, in aspect A1 or A2, the candidates for the second game medium identified by the first blending process do not include game media that are candidates for the second game medium identified by the second blending process. According to the above configuration, the second blending process may produce game media that cannot be obtained by the first blending process, thereby increasing the appeal of the second blending process.

[0202] The game system (1) according to aspect A4 is any one of aspects A1 to A3, in which the combination-permitted game medium is associated with a second game medium determination parameter used to determine a parameter to be associated with the second game medium, and further includes a parameter change processing unit (112) that executes processing to change the second game medium determination parameter so that the parameter to be associated with the second game medium is determined to be advantageous to the progress of the game by satisfying a predetermined condition. With this configuration, in addition to being able to obtain the combination-permitted game medium and execute the second combination process, satisfying the predetermined condition also provides an advantageous effect to the progress of the game, thereby further increasing the interest of the game.

[0203] In the game system (1) according to Aspect A5, in Aspect A4, the predetermined condition is that the user acquires a combination of the predetermined plurality of first game media and the predetermined second game media associated with the combination of the combination-permitted game media owned by the user. According to the above configuration, in an aspect in which the combination-permitted game media is not consumed in the execution of the second combination process, when the user acquires the same recipe twice, the combination-permitted game media can be effectively used.

[0204] The game system (1) according to aspect A6 is any one of aspects A1 to A5, and includes a warning processing unit (117) that, when a first game medium specified by a user as the first game medium for executing the first combination process is a first game medium usable in the second combination process, executes a warning processing to output information indicating that the first game medium is a first game medium usable in the second combination process before executing the first combination process. This configuration prevents a user from mistakenly using a first game medium usable in the second combination process in the first combination process.

[0205] The game system (1) according to aspect A7 is any one of aspects A1 to A6, and further includes a list display control unit (113) that displays a list of the owned game media to accept selection of first game media to be used in the combination process, and an identification display control unit (114) that, in response to accepting an operation from the user to identify some owned game media as the first game media from the owned game media listed by the list display control unit (113), displays the remaining first game media associated with the combination-permitted game media to which the first game media is associated so that the remaining first game media can be identified and distinguished from the other owned game media.With this configuration, the user can easily recognize first game media that can be used in the second combination process together with the currently identified first game medium.

[0206] A method (S1) according to aspect A8 is a method executed by one or more computers, and includes steps (S116, S118) in which the one or more computers execute a combination process in which a plurality of first game media identified by a user from among game media owned by the user is consumed to grant the user a second game medium identified from among the plurality of game media, the combination process including a first combination process (S116) and a second combination process (S118), and the first combination process (S116) selects the second game medium by lottery from among the plurality of game media. The second combination process (S118) is executed on the condition that the user possesses combination-permitted game media that enable the second combination process to be executed, and the combination-permitted game media are associated with a combination of a predetermined number of first game media and a predetermined number of second game media, and the predetermined number of first game media associated with the combination-permitted game media are consumed to grant the second game media associated with the combination-permitted game media to the user. The above configuration achieves the same effect as mode A1.

[0207] The program according to aspect A9 causes one or more computers to execute steps (S116, S118) of executing a combination process in which a second game medium identified from among the game media owned by the user is granted to the user by consuming a plurality of first game media identified by the user from among the game media owned by the user, the combination process including a first combination process (S116) and a second combination process (S118), the first combination process (S116) being a process in which the second game medium is identified from among the plurality of game media by lottery and the identified second game medium is granted to the user, and the second combination process (S118) being executed on the condition that the user possesses combination-permitted game media that enables the second combination process to be executed, the combination-permitted game media being associated with a combination of a predetermined plurality of first game media and a predetermined second game medium, and the second combination process being a process in which the predetermined plurality of first game media associated with the combination-permitted game media are consumed to grant the user the second game medium associated with the combination-permitted game media. According to the above configuration, the same effects as those of the aspect A1 are achieved.

[0208] A game system (1) according to aspect B1 includes a combination processing unit (111) that executes a combination process in which a user consumes a plurality of first game media identified by the user from among the game media owned by the user and grants the user a second game medium identified by lottery from among the plurality of game media, the first game media and the second game media being associated with skills used to execute a process that has an advantageous effect on the progress of the game, and the combination process includes associating, with the second game medium, inheritable skills identified from a first candidate group, which is a candidate group of skills including skills associated with the plurality of first game media consumed in the lottery that identifies the second game media, and non-inheritable skills identified from a second candidate group, which is a candidate group of skills including skills associated with the second game media. This configuration provides a new technique for setting the skills of game media when combining a plurality of game media to obtain a new game medium. Furthermore, by identifying non-inheritable skills from the skills associated with the second game medium before granting them to the user, it becomes easier to maintain the appeal of each second game medium as envisioned by the game operator, and the game operator can control the range of abilities that they want the second game medium to have.

[0209] In the game system (1) according to aspect B2, in aspect B1, the combination process identifies the non-inheritable skill by lottery from the second candidate group. With this configuration, the user does not know which skill will be the non-inheritable skill until the combination process is executed, which increases the enjoyment of executing the combination process.

[0210] In the game system (1) according to aspect B3, in aspect B1 or B2, the inheritable skill is identified by lottery from among the first candidate group. With this configuration, the user does not know which skill from the first candidate group will be identified until the lottery is held, which increases the user's enjoyment of the lottery.

[0211] The game system (1) according to aspect B4 is in aspect B3, and further includes a skill deletion processing unit (115) that executes processing to delete at least some of the skills included in the first candidate group in response to a user instruction. According to the above configuration, the probability of a desired skill being identified by lottery from the first candidate group increases, thereby improving the user's satisfaction.

[0212] In the game system (1) according to aspect B5, in any one of aspects B1 to B4, the inherited skill and the non-inherited skill are different skills. According to the above configuration, duplicate skills are not associated with the second game medium, thereby improving the user's satisfaction.

[0213] A method (S1) according to aspect B6 is a method executed by one or more computers, the method including steps (S116, S118) of executing a combination process in which a user consumes a plurality of first game media identified by the user from among the game media owned by the user and grants the user a second game medium identified by lottery from among the plurality of game media, the first game media and the second game media being associated with skills used to execute a process that has an advantageous effect on the progress of the game, and steps (S304, S306) of associating, with the second game media, inheritable skills identified from a first candidate group, which is a candidate group of skills including skills associated with the plurality of first game media consumed in the lottery to identify the second game media, and non-inheritable skills identified from a second candidate group, which is a candidate group of skills including skills associated with the second game media. This configuration achieves the same effect as aspect B1.

[0214] A program according to aspect B7 causes one or more computers to execute a combination process in which a user consumes a plurality of first game media identified by the user from among the game media owned by the user and grants the user a second game medium identified by lottery from among the plurality of game media, the first game media and the second game media being associated with skills used to execute a process that has an advantageous effect on the progress of the game, and the combination process includes steps (S304, S306) of associating, with the second game media, inheritable skills identified from a first candidate group that is a candidate group of skills including skills associated with the plurality of first game media consumed in the lottery that identifies the second game media, and non-inheritable skills identified from a second candidate group that is a candidate group of skills including skills associated with the second game media. This configuration achieves the same effect as aspect B1.

[0215] A game system (1) according to aspect C1 includes a combination processing unit (111) that executes a combination process in which a user consumes a plurality of first game media identified by the user from among the game media owned by the user to grant the user a second game medium identified from among the plurality of game media, wherein parameters are associated with the first game media and the second game media, and a portion of the amount indicated by the parameters associated with the first game media is an accumulated parameter used to determine an additional parameter to be added as a portion of the amount indicated by the parameters associated with the second game medium, and the combination process includes a process of determining the additional parameter to be associated with the second game medium using the accumulated parameter associated with the first game media. With the above configuration, an additional parameter based on the accumulated parameter is associated with the second game medium, thereby further motivating the user to execute the combination process.

[0216] In the game system (1) according to aspect C2, in aspect C1, multiple types of parameters are associated with the first game medium and the second game medium, each of the multiple types of parameters includes the accumulated parameter, and the combination process determines the added parameter for each of the multiple types. With this configuration, the user does not know which skill the non-inherited skill will be until the combination process is executed, which increases the enjoyment of executing the combination process.

[0217] In the game system (1) according to aspect C3, in aspect C1 or C2, the blending process determines the additive parameter so that it is within a preset threshold. With this configuration, it is possible to prevent the additive parameter from becoming too large and thus disrupting the game balance.

[0218] In the game system (1) according to aspect C4, in aspect C2, the combination process determines the additive parameter so that the sum of all the multiple types of parameters is within a preset threshold. This configuration prevents the additive parameter from becoming too large and disrupting the game balance.

[0219] In the game system (1) according to aspect C5, in any one of aspects C1 to C4, the combination process includes a process of determining the additional parameter so that the additional parameter is equal to or greater than the highest accumulated parameter among the accumulated parameters associated with the first game media. According to the above configuration, the additional parameter is always higher than the maximum accumulated parameter, further increasing the user's satisfaction with the combination process.

[0220] The game system (1) according to aspect C6 is any one of aspects C1 to C5, further including a display processing unit that executes a display process for displaying the parameters including the accumulated parameters, and the display process includes a process for identifiably displaying the accumulated parameters. According to the above configuration, the accumulated parameters affect the parameters of the second game medium obtained by the combination process, so by displaying them identifiably, the user can be provided with information to determine whether or not to perform the combination process using game media having the accumulated parameters.

[0221] A method (S1) according to aspect C7 is a method executed by one or more computers, the method including steps (S116, S118) of executing a combination process in which the one or more computers consume a plurality of first game media identified by the user from among the game media owned by the user to grant the user a second game medium identified from among the plurality of game media, wherein parameters are associated with the first game media and the second game media, a portion of the amount indicated by the parameters associated with the first game media is an accumulated parameter used to determine an additional parameter to be added as a portion of the amount indicated by the parameters associated with the second game medium, and the combination process includes a step (S308) of determining the additional parameter to be associated with the second game medium using the accumulated parameter associated with the first game media. This configuration achieves the same effect as aspect C1.

[0222] A program according to aspect C8 causes one or more computers to execute steps (S116, S118) of executing a combination process in which the one or more computers consume a plurality of first game media identified by the user from among game media owned by the user to grant the user a second game medium identified from among the plurality of game media, wherein parameters are associated with the first game media and the second game media, and a portion of the amount indicated by the parameters associated with the first game media is an accumulated parameter used to determine an additional parameter to be added as a portion of the amount indicated by the parameters associated with the second game medium, and the combination process includes a step (S308) of determining the additional parameter to be associated with the second game medium using the accumulated parameter associated with the first game media. This configuration achieves the same effect as aspect C1.

[0223] [Software implementation example] The functions of the game terminal 10 and game server 30 (hereinafter referred to as "devices") that make up the game system 1 can be realized by a program that causes a computer to function as the device, and a program that causes a computer to function as each control block of the device (particularly each part included in the control unit 110).

[0224] In this case, the device includes a computer having at least one control device (e.g., a processor) and at least one storage device (e.g., a memory) as hardware for executing the program. The control device and storage device execute the program, thereby realizing the functions described in each of the above embodiments.

[0225] The program may be non-transitory and may be recorded on one or more computer-readable recording media. The recording media may or may not be included in the device. In the latter case, the program may be supplied to the device via any wired or wireless transmission medium.

[0226] Furthermore, some or all of the functions of the control blocks can be realized by logic circuits. For example, an integrated circuit in which a logic circuit that functions as each of the control blocks is formed is also included in the scope of the present invention. In addition, the functions of the control blocks can also be realized by, for example, a quantum computer.

[0227] Furthermore, each process described in each of the above embodiments may be executed by AI (Artificial Intelligence). In this case, the AI ​​may run on the control device or on another device (for example, an edge computer or a cloud server).

[0228] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. Embodiments obtained by appropriately combining the technical means disclosed in different embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0229] 1. Game System 10 gaming terminals 30 Game Servers 11, 31 processors 12, 32 memory 13, 33 Communication Interface 14 Input Devices 15 Display device Buses 19 and 39 110, 210 control unit 111 Blending processing section 112 Parameter change processing section 113 List display control section 114 Identification display control unit 115 Skill Erase Processing Unit 116 Display processing unit 117 Warning processing section 130 Storage section

Claims

1. a combination processing unit that executes a combination process in which a second game medium specified from among the game media owned by the user is granted to the user by consuming a plurality of first game media specified by the user from among the game media owned by the user; parameters are associated with the first game medium and the second game medium; a portion of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the first game medium is an accumulated parameter used when determining an additional parameter to be added as a portion of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the second game medium; the combining process includes a process of determining the additional parameter to be associated with the second game medium using the accumulated parameter associated with the first game medium; Game system.

2. a plurality of types of parameters are associated with the first game medium and the second game medium; Each of the plurality of types of parameters includes the accumulation parameter; The blending process determines the addition parameter for each of the plurality of types. The game system according to claim 1 .

3. The blending process includes: determining the addition parameter so as to be within a preset threshold; The game system according to claim 1 .

4. The blending process includes: determining the additive parameter such that the sum of all the plurality of types of parameters is within a preset threshold value; The game system according to claim 2 .

5. The blending process includes: determining the additional parameter so that the additional parameter is equal to or greater than the highest accumulated parameter among accumulated parameters associated with the plurality of first game media; The game system according to claim 1 .

6. a display processing unit that executes a display process for displaying the parameters including the accumulated parameters; the display process includes a process of identifiably displaying the accumulated parameters. The game system according to claim 1 .

7. 1. A method implemented by one or more computers, comprising: a step in which the one or more computers execute a combination process in which a second game medium specified from among the game media owned by the user is granted to the user by consuming a plurality of first game media specified by the user from among the game media owned by the user; parameters are associated with the first game medium and the second game medium; a portion of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the first game medium is an accumulated parameter used when determining an additional parameter to be added as a portion of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the second game medium; the combining process includes a process of determining the additional parameter to be associated with the second game medium using the accumulated parameter associated with the first game medium; method.

8. On one or more computers, executing a step of executing a combination process in which a plurality of first game media specified by the user from among game media owned by the user is consumed, and a second game medium specified from among the plurality of game media is granted to the user; parameters are associated with the first game medium and the second game medium; a portion of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the first game medium is an accumulated parameter used when determining an additional parameter to be added as a portion of the amount indicated by the parameter associated with the second game medium; the combining process includes a process of determining the additional parameter to be associated with the second game medium using the accumulated parameter associated with the first game medium; program.

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