Game apparatus, enlarged display processing method, and program

Abstract

To provide a game device, an enlarged display processing method and a program, allowing pop-up display of a pop-up screen 210 in which a hint numeral is displayed together with an enlarged whole square of one row or one column.SOLUTION: The control unit 104 of the game device 100 may be configured to, when generating the pop-up screen 200 for a row of squares in the answer area 201 of the puzzle of the no-hit game, change the display position of the hint field 202a to be adjacent to the row of squares from above or below and enlarge the row of squares until the entire displayable area 400 of the display unit 101 in the horizontal direction of the screen is filled with the row of squares, and, when generating the pop-up screen 210 for a line of squares, change the display position of the hint field 202a to be adjacent to the line of squares from left or right and enlarge the line of squares until the entire displayable area 400 of the display unit 101 in the vertical direction of the screen is filled with the line of squares.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a game device, an enlarged display processing method, and a program for a nonogram game. [Background technology]

[0002] There is a type of puzzle game known as a nonogram game in which a grid consisting of multiple rows and columns is displayed, and players use hint numbers (hint numbers indicate the number of consecutive squares to fill in in the entire corresponding row or column) displayed for each row and column as clues to identify which squares to fill in, and then by filling in or coloring the squares, a picture or letters will eventually emerge.

[0003] Additionally, game programs that allow this nonogram game to be run on electronic game machines are known.

[0004] In recent years, it has become possible to play nonogram games by installing the game program on a smartphone or other device that has a touch panel, and touching the squares displayed on the screen to fill them in.

[0005] However, when trying to display the entire puzzle of a nonogram game on a small display screen such as a smartphone, the display of each square becomes small, which creates a problem of significantly reduced visibility and touch operability.

[0006] To address this issue, an invention has been disclosed that enlarges the square to be filled in, in order to improve the readability of the squares and touch input (Patent Document 1, Patent Document 2).

[0007] Patent document 1 discloses an invention in which, when in normal mode (see Figure 15) in which the entire puzzle of the nonogram game is displayed on the screen, the user touches a screen enlargement button (not shown) to switch to enlargement mode, and when the user touches a square (within the bold frame in Figure 15) that they want to enlarge during enlargement mode, a screen enlarged with that square at the center (see Figure 16) is displayed.

[0008] Patent document 2 discloses an invention in which, on a game screen displaying the entire puzzle of a nonogram game, a user pinches out on a square, enlarging the area of ​​the specified square (see Figure 17). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0009] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5022671 [Patent Document 2] Patent No. 6493844 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0010] In nonogram games, players fill in the squares in each row and column using clue numbers corresponding to each row and column of the squares as a hint. However, the inventions disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 enlarge and display a specified area of ​​the entire puzzle along with the clue numbers, but do not enlarge and display the entire squares in a specific row or column. In Patent Document 1, the entire puzzle is 15 squares x 15 squares (number of squares in all rows x number of squares in all columns) (see Figure 15), and after enlargement, a square area of ​​9 squares x 10 squares is displayed (see Figure 16), and the entire squares in a specific row or column are not enlarged. In Patent Document 2, the entire puzzle is 20 squares x 20 squares (number of squares in all rows x number of squares in all columns) (see the left side of Figure 17), and after enlargement, a square area of ​​7 squares x 7 squares is displayed (see the right side of Figure 17), and the entire squares in a specific row or column are not enlarged.

[0011] That is, when the inventions disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 are enlarged, a clue number is also displayed, but since the clue number indicates the number of consecutive squares to be filled in in the entire corresponding specific row or column, if the entire row or column corresponding to the clue number is not displayed, it is inconvenient to derive the squares to be filled in (the answer) from the clue number. Furthermore, since the entire row or column corresponding to the clue number is not displayed when the display is enlarged, there is a problem in that the operation of filling in the squares for the entire specific row or column cannot be performed in one go.

[0012] Furthermore, when the inventions disclosed in Prior Art Documents 1 and 2 are enlarged, the hint column displaying the enlarged squares and hint numbers appears to cover the entire display screen, making it difficult to ascertain the position of the enlarged area in the overall puzzle.

[0013] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above, and aims to provide a game device, an enlarged display processing method, and a program that enable the pop-up display of a pop-up screen in which an enlarged entire row or column of squares is displayed along with a clue number. [Means for solving the problem]

[0014] The means for solving the problems are described below together with the reference numerals used in the description of the embodiment of the invention. These reference numerals are used to clarify the correspondence between the description of the claims and the description of the embodiment of the invention, and needless to say, are not used to restrict the interpretation of the technical scope of the present invention.

[0015] In order to achieve the above object, the game device 100 of the present invention: The device comprises a display unit 101, an input unit 102 having a touch panel superimposed on the display unit 101, a memory unit 103 for storing a program for a nonogram game using a puzzle 200, and a control unit 104 for executing the program for the nonogram game (see FIG. 1), The puzzle 200 has an answer area 201 and a hint area 202, The answer area 201 consists of a grid of n rows and m columns, The hint area 202 is made up of hint columns 202a displayed around the answer area 201 for each row and column of the answer area 201, and the hint columns 202a have hint numbers 203 displayed within the columns (see FIG. 3 ). The control unit 104 generates a pop-up screen 210 in which the entire grid of a predetermined row or column in the answer area 201 selected by the user is enlarged and displayed together with the hint field 202a, and pops up and displays the pop-up screen 210 on the display unit 101 (see FIG. 5 ). When generating the pop-up screen 210 for a row of squares, the control unit 104 changes the display position of the hint column 202a so that it is adjacent to the upper or lower side of the row of squares, and also expands the row of squares until the entire row of squares fills the displayable area 400 in the horizontal direction of the screen of the display unit 101, When the pop-up screen 200 is generated for a row of squares, the display position of the hint column 202a is changed so that it is adjacent to the left or right of the row of squares, and the entire row of squares is expanded until it fills the displayable area 400 in the vertical direction of the screen of the display unit 101 (Claim 1; the above-mentioned figures and Figure 7).

[0016] The control unit 104 may detect that the hint field 202a or the hint number 203 has been touched via the input unit 102, and generate the pop-up screen 210 for the corresponding row or column of squares, and display it as a pop-up on the display unit 101 (Claim 2; Figure 9).

[0017] The control unit 104 may be configured to pop up the pop-up screen 210 on a part of the puzzle 200 displayed on the display unit 101 (claim 3).

[0018] In this case, the control unit 104 may be configured to reflect touch operations via the input unit 102 on the pop-up screen 210 that is popped up and displayed on a portion of the puzzle 200 on the puzzle 200 that is displayed outside the pop-up screen 210 (Claim 4).

[0019] The control unit 104 may close the pop-up screen 210 by detecting that an area outside the display area of ​​the pop-up screen 210 has been touched via the input unit 102 (claim 5).

[0020] The enlarged display processing method of the present invention is an enlarged display processing method for a game device 100 that includes a display unit 101, an input unit 102 having a touch panel superimposed on the display unit 101, a storage unit 103 that stores a program for a nonogram game using a puzzle 200, and a control unit 104 that executes the program for the nonogram game, The puzzle 200 has an answer area 201 and a hint area 202, The answer area 201 consists of a grid of n rows and m columns, The hint area 202 is made up of hint columns 202a displayed around the answer area 201 for each row and column of the answer area 201, and the hint columns 202a have hint numbers 203 displayed within the columns (see FIG. 3 ). A pop-up screen 210 is generated in which the entirety of a predetermined row or column of squares in the answer area 201 selected by the user is enlarged and displayed together with the hint column 202a, and the pop-up screen 210 is popped up and displayed on the display unit 101 (see FIG. 5 ); When generating the pop-up screen 210 for a single row of squares, the display position of the hint column 202a is changed so that it is adjacent to the top or bottom of the single row of squares, and the process is performed to enlarge the single row of squares until the entire displayable area 400 in the horizontal direction of the screen of the display unit 101 is filled (see FIG. 7). When the pop-up screen 210 is generated for a row of squares, the display position of the hint column 202a is changed so that it is adjacent to the left or right of the row of squares, and the row of squares is expanded until it fills the displayable area 400 in the vertical direction of the screen of the display unit 101 (claim 6).

[0021] In addition, the enlarged display processing method of the present invention may generate the pop-up screen 210 and display it as a pop-up on the display unit 101 by detecting that the hint field 202a or the hint number 203 has been touched via the input unit 102 (Claim 7).

[0022] Furthermore, the enlarged display processing method of the present invention may pop up the pop-up screen 210 on a part of the puzzle 200 displayed on the display unit 101 (claim 8).

[0023] In this case, a touch operation via the input unit 102 on the pop-up screen 210 that is popped up on a part of the puzzle 200 may be reflected on the puzzle 200 that is displayed outside the pop-up screen 210 (Claim 9: see Figure 9).

[0024] In addition, the enlarged display processing method of the present invention may close the pop-up screen 210 by detecting that an area outside the display area of ​​the pop-up screen 210 has been touched via the input unit 102 (claim 10).

[0025] Furthermore, the program of the present invention causes a computer to execute the above-mentioned enlarged display processing method (claim 11). [Effects of the Invention]

[0026] As in the configuration of the present invention described above, by moving the position of the hint column 202a when enlarging the entirety of a predetermined row or column of squares, the space required for the enlarged display is created, making it possible to generate and display a pop-up screen 210 in which the enlarged hint column 202a is displayed together with the row or column of squares enlarged in the entirety to the displayable area 400 of the display unit 101 in a predetermined direction (see FIGS. 3, 5, and 7). The present invention is particularly useful when the screen area (display size) of the display unit 101 of a smartphone, portable game console, or the like is relatively small.

[0027] When the above-mentioned pop-up screen 210 is displayed as a pop-up, the user can concentrate on the squares in a particular row or column displayed on the pop-up screen 210, and since the pop-up screen 210 displays the entire squares in the corresponding row or column along with the hint number 203, there is no inconvenience in deriving the squares to fill in from the hint number 203, and furthermore, with a single pop-up display, the user can perform the operation of filling in the squares for the entire pop-up row or column.

[0028] Furthermore, when the pop-up screen 210 is popped up on a portion of the puzzle 200 displayed on the display unit 101, the puzzle 200 is displayed outside the pop-up screen 210, so the user can confirm where the square in a particular row or column displayed on the pop-up screen 210 is located within the entire puzzle 200.

[0029] Furthermore, by making it so that touch operations on a pop-up screen 210 that is displayed as a pop-up on a portion of the puzzle 200 are also reflected on the puzzle 200 that is displayed outside the pop-up screen 210, the user can grasp the operation contents of the enlarged rows and columns in the context of the entire puzzle. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0030] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram of a game device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a storage unit 103 of the game device 100 of FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen of the nonogram game displayed on the display unit 101 of the game device 100 of FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the data structure of a square number. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a popup screen 210 that displays an enlarged view of a specific row of squares. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a popup screen 210 that displays an enlarged view of a specific row of squares. [Figure 7]The figures explain the enlargement display processing performed by the program of the present invention. Figure (a) shows the processing for setting a rectangular displayable area (safe zone) 400 surrounded by two parallel boundary lines 400a facing each other in the horizontal direction of the screen and two parallel boundary lines 400b facing each other in the vertical direction of the screen. Figure (b) shows the processing for enlarging the entire row of squares in the horizontal direction of the screen excluding the hint column 202a until the space between the two opposing boundary lines in the horizontal direction of the screen is filled without any gaps. Figure (c) shows the processing for enlarging the space between the boundary lines 400b excluding the hint column until the space between the boundary lines 400b is filled without any gaps in order to enlarge the squares in a column, and sequentially enlarging the vertical and horizontal directions of each square by the same magnification. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a popup screen 210 displayed as a popup on a horizontally long display unit 101. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a popup screen 210 displayed as a popup on a vertically long display unit 101. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen when a pop-up screen 210 is displayed as a pop-up. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of how a hint is displayed on the game screen when the pop-up screen 210 is displayed as a pop-up. [Figure 12] 10 is a diagram showing a process of reflecting a touch operation on a square in a pop-up screen 210 to a square in a puzzle 200 in the background. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining a process for closing the pop-up screen 210. [Figure 14] 10 is a flowchart showing an enlarged display process in the present embodiment. [Figure 15] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a game screen of a conventional nonogram game. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a state in which a part of the game screen in FIG. 15 is enlarged and displayed. [Figure 17] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a state in which a part of the game screen of another conventional nonogram game is enlarged and displayed. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0031] The present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0032] 1, the game device 100 of the present invention comprises at least a display unit 101, an input unit 102, a storage unit 103, and a control unit 104. These components of the game device 100 are electrically connected to each other via a communication bus. The game device 100 of the present invention can be applied to, for example, smartphones, tablet terminals, portable game consoles, etc.

[0033] The display unit 101 is a display screen such as a liquid crystal panel or an organic EL (Organic Electro Luminescence) panel, and displays various images.

[0034] The input unit 102 is a touch panel disposed on top of the display unit 101. In the present invention, it is preferable that the input unit 102 and the display unit 101 are configured integrally as a touch panel display. The input unit 102 accepts various inputs made by a user through touch operations and outputs the inputs to the control unit 104.

[0035] The storage unit 103 is a storage device such as a memory or an SSD (Solid State Drive), etc. The storage unit 103 stores at least various programs executed by the control unit 104, such as a game program 301 for the nonogram game and an enlarged display processing program 302 (the program of the present invention), as well as various data used by the control unit 104, such as question data 311 (described later) and image data 312 (see FIG. 2).

[0036] The control unit 104 executes various functions by controlling each unit of the game device 100. For example, the control unit 104 is realized when a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or the like provided in the game device 100 reads a program from the storage unit 103 and executes a process.

[0037] Furthermore, by executing a process, when the control unit 104 detects a user's touch operation on the input unit (touch panel) 102, it detects the position coordinates of the touched location, determines which operation was performed based on the detected position coordinates, and performs various processes according to the operation content.

[0038] In addition, by executing a process, the control unit 104 performs processing (display control processing) related to controlling the screen displayed on the display unit 101, such as displaying a screen according to the operation content received on the display unit 101 based on the detection results of the user's touch operation on the input unit 102.

[0039] Next, we will explain the basic processing of the Nonogram Game.

[0040] While the nonogram game is being executed by the game device 100, the control unit 104 executes the program of the nonogram game stored in the storage unit 103, thereby displaying a game screen on the display unit 101, for example, as shown in FIG.

[0041] A puzzle 200 of the nonogram game is displayed on the game screen of this embodiment shown in Fig. 3. The puzzle 200 is made up of an answer area (cell area) 201 and a hint area 202.

[0042] The answer area 201 is a grid area consisting of n rows and m columns of squares (15×15 squares in the example of FIG. 3).

[0043] The hint area 202 is a rectangular frame with a width of one square that is displayed on the left side of each row and at the top of each column of the answer area 201, and is composed of a hint column 202a in which a hint number 203 is displayed within the frame (column).

[0044] In addition, in each hint column 202a of the hint area 202 displayed to the left of the answer area 201, a hint number 203 for the row (horizontal direction) of the square corresponding to each hint column 202a is displayed, and in each hint column 202a of the hint area 202 displayed at the top of the answer area 201, a hint number 203 for the column (vertical direction) of the square corresponding to each hint column 202a is displayed (see Figure 3).

[0045] The hint number 203 indicates the number of consecutive squares to be filled in (black squares in this embodiment).

[0046] Then, on the game screen of Figure 3, the user uses the hint number 203 displayed in the hint column 202a as a hint to determine which square to fill in, and touches the corresponding square displayed on the display unit 101 with a touch pen or a finger via the input unit (touch panel) 102.

[0047] Then, the control unit 104 detects a square from the coordinates of the position touched on the input unit 102, and performs processing to display an image in which the square is filled in (black square) (see FIG. 3).

[0048] It should be noted that the control unit 104 may be configured to perform processing to change the display of the black square back to a white square when the user touches again a square that has been filled in once (black square).

[0049] Furthermore, if the user determines that a square does not need to be filled in (is a white square), the control unit 104 can process the square by performing a predetermined operation on the input unit 102 to display an "X" mark in the square (see Figure 3).

[0050] Examples of the predetermined operation include long pressing the square or touching it twice in succession, or, if a "fill in mode" icon (not shown) and an "X mark giving mode" icon (not shown) are provided to allow switching between operations by touching the square, touching the "X mark giving mode" icon during the game to switch to "X mark giving mode" and then touching the square.

[0051] In addition, in this embodiment, the memory unit 103 stores data such as question data 311 and image data 312 as part of various data (see Figure 2), as well as various variables and flags used in game processing.

[0052] The problem data 311 is data on puzzle problems of the Nonogram Game, and is stored separately for each problem. The problem data 311 includes grid information 311a, hint number information 311b, and the like.

[0053] The cell information 311a is information about each cell displayed in the answer area 201, and is stored as information for each cell. The cell information 311a can include information such as the total number of cells, the number of rows and columns of cells, the row number of the cell, the column number of the cell, the cell number, and the cell coordinates for each question.

[0054] The row number of the cell is a number for identifying the row of each cell, and the column number of the cell is a number for identifying the column of each cell.

[0055] The square numbers are numbers used to identify each square, and for example, as shown in Figure 4, in the answer area 201, which is 5 rows x 5 columns (5 x 5 squares), consecutive numbers starting from "0" to "24" are assigned to each square from the top left square to the bottom right square.

[0056] The square coordinates are information relating to the position coordinates on the display screen of the display unit 101 where the square is displayed.

[0057] 3, the numeric clue information 311b is information about the numeric clue 203 displayed in the hint column 202a, and is divided into sections for each hint column 202a (or numeric clue 203). In addition, when storing the numeric clue information 311b, it may be stored in association with the row (for example, the row number of the cell) or column (for example, the column number of the cell) of the corresponding square for each hint column 202a (or numeric clue 203).

[0058] Next, the enlarged display processing of the game screen executed by the program of the present invention (enlarged display processing program 302) will be described.

[0059] 5 and 6, the enlarged display process of the game screen executed by the program of the present invention generates a pop-up screen 210 on the game screen that enlarges and displays the entire squares of a specified row or column in the answer area 201 selected by the user, and pops up and displays the pop-up screen 210 on the display unit 101.

[0060] In more detail, in this embodiment, first, the control unit 104 detects whether or not the hint field 202a displayed on the display unit 101 has been touched via the input unit (touch panel) 102 on the game screen displaying the puzzle 200. Then, when the control unit 104 detects a touch on the hint field 202a, it executes an enlargement display process. Note that the touch target may not be the hint field 202a, but may instead be the numerical clue 203 displayed in the hint field 202a. In this way, in the present invention, the hint field 202a or the numerical clue 203 serves as a button (starting point) for starting the enlargement display process.

[0061] When a touch on the hint column 202a (or hint number 203) is detected, the control unit 104 identifies the row or column of the square corresponding to the touched hint column 202a (or hint number 203). For this identification, for example, when the control unit 104 reads the problem data 311, generates the puzzle 200, and displays the puzzle 200 on the display unit 101, a variable indicating which row or column of the square it belongs to may be assigned to each hint column 202a (or hint number 203), and the row or column of the square corresponding to the touched hint column 202a (or hint number 203) may be identified using this variable as a clue. As another example, the row number or column number of the square associated with the touched hint column 202a (or hint number 203) from the hint number information 311b may also be used as a clue, and is not particularly limited.

[0062] After specifying the squares, the control unit 104 generates a pop-up screen 210 in which the entire row or column of the specified square is enlarged to fit the size of the display screen of the display unit 101.

[0063] In Figure 7, when generating the pop-up screen 210, the control unit 104, for example, checks the displayable screen area (displayable area) of the display unit 101 in advance, and sets a rectangular displayable area (safe zone) 400 surrounded by two parallel boundary lines 400a, 400a facing each other in the horizontal direction of the screen and two parallel boundary lines 400b, 400b facing each other in the vertical direction of the screen as shown in Figure 7(a).When enlarging and displaying a row of squares, as shown in Figure 7(b), the entire row of squares excluding the hint column 202a is enlarged in the horizontal direction of the screen until the space between the two opposing boundary lines 400a, 400a facing each other in the horizontal direction of the screen is filled without any gaps.On the other hand, when enlarging and displaying a column of squares, as shown in Figure 7(c), the entire column of squares excluding the hint column 202a is enlarged in the vertical direction of the screen until the space between the two opposing boundary lines 400b, 400b facing each other in the vertical direction of the screen is filled without any gaps, while enlarging the vertical and horizontal directions of each square by the same magnification.

[0064] Furthermore, when enlarging and displaying a row of squares, the control unit 104 enlarges the hint column 202a at the same magnification as the squares, and changes the display position of the hint column 202a so that it is adjacent to the top or bottom of the row of squares to be enlarged. For example, in the pop-up screen 210 shown in Fig. 5, the hint column 202a is adjacent to the top of the row of squares to be enlarged. Note that the position of the hint column 202a in the left-right direction is not particularly limited as long as it is positioned adjacent to the top or bottom of the row of squares to be enlarged, but it is preferable that the hint column 202a be positioned on the left, as shown in Fig. 5.

[0065] On the other hand, when enlarging a row of squares, the control unit 104 enlarges the hint column 202a at the same magnification as the squares, and changes the display position of the hint column 202a so that it is adjacent to the left or right of the row of squares being enlarged. For example, in the pop-up screen 210 shown in Fig. 6, the hint column 202a is adjacent to the left of the row of squares. Note that the position of the hint column 202a in the vertical direction is not particularly limited as long as it is positioned adjacent to the left or right of the row of squares being enlarged, but it is preferable that the hint column 202a be positioned at the top, as shown in Fig. 6.

[0066] As described above, by moving the position of the hint column 202a when enlarging the entirety of a predetermined row or column of squares, the space required for the enlarged display is created, making it possible to generate a pop-up screen 210 in which the entire row or column of squares is enlarged in a predetermined direction to the displayable area 400 of the display unit 101, along with the enlarged hint column 202, are simultaneously displayed. Note that the present invention is particularly useful when the screen area (display size) of the display unit 101 of a smartphone, portable game console, or the like is relatively small.

[0067] Here, Fig. 8 shows an example of a popup display of the generated pop-up screen 210 by the enlargement display process executed by the program of the present invention described above when the display screen of the display unit 101 is horizontally long. Fig. 9 shows an example of a popup display of the generated pop-up screen 210 by the enlargement display process executed by the program of the present invention described above when the display screen of the display unit 101 is vertically long. In either case, the pop-up screen 210 can fill as much of the displayable area 400 (not shown) of the display unit 101 as possible in a predetermined direction, improving the readability of the grid and the operability of touch input.

[0068] Furthermore, in the present invention, the control unit 104 pops up the pop-up screen 210 generated as described above (i.e., displays it superimposed on a portion of the puzzle 200 on the game screen), so that the entire puzzle 200 is displayed in the background of the pop-up screen 210 (see Figures 5, 6, 8 to 11).

[0069] When enlarging and displaying a row of squares, in a preferred embodiment, the pop-up screen 210 is popped up and displayed in the vertical center of the screen, as shown in Figure 5. This is not limited to the vertical center of the screen, and it can be at the top or bottom of the screen. Similarly, when enlarging and displaying a row of squares, in a preferred embodiment, the pop-up screen 210 is popped up and displayed in the horizontal center of the screen, as shown in Figure 6, but it is not limited to the horizontal center of the screen, and it can be at the left or right of the vertical center of the screen.

[0070] Furthermore, during the pop-up display, the control unit 104 performs processing to reflect the results of the operation of filling in the squares in the pop-up screen 210 in the puzzle 200 displayed outside the pop-up screen 210 (see Figures 10 and 11).

[0071] As an example of a processing method reflected in this puzzle 200, when a pop-up screen 210 is generated for the third row in a 5-row x 5-column answer area 201 as shown in Figure 12 and displayed as a pop-up, the control unit 104 associates square numbers 10 to 14 in the third row with square numbers 0 to 4 of the squares in one row displayed in the pop-up screen 210, and when, for example, the square with square number 3 in the pop-up screen 210 is touched, an image of that square filled in (a black circle in the example shown in the figure) is displayed, and also an image of the associated square with square number 13 displayed outside the pop-up is displayed as filled in.

[0072] Similarly, when popping up a column, in the 5-row x 5-column answer area 201 shown in Figure 12, if a popup screen 210 is generated and displayed for, for example, the fourth column, the control unit 104 associates the square numbers 3, 8, 13, 18, and 23 in the fourth column with square numbers 0 to 4 of the squares in a row displayed in the popup screen 210, and when, for example, the square with square number 3 in the popup screen 210 is touched, an image of that square filled in (a black circle in the example shown in the figure) is displayed, and also a filled-in image is displayed for the associated square with square number 18 displayed outside the popup.

[0073] Furthermore, even when the pop-up screen 210 is displayed as a pop-up, various hints (options) that are displayed during a normal game when no pop-up display is displayed may be displayed on the game screen, that is, on the pop-up screen 210 and the puzzle 200 outside the pop-up screen 210. As an example, as shown in Fig. 11, when the pop-up screen 210 is displayed as a pop-up, if a square corresponding to a hint number 203 in the hint field 202a is filled in, a " / " mark that is displayed on the hint number 203 as a hint to the user may also be displayed on the pop-up screen 210 and on the background puzzle 200 (in the illustrated example, " / " marks are displayed on the first three hint numbers 203 from the left for the hint numbers "2, 2, 3, 2, 2" in the hint field 202a on the pop-up screen 210 and in the background puzzle 200), allowing the user to concentrate on the other hint numbers 203. As another example, as shown in FIG. 11, when a pop-up is displayed, a caution mark (a mark with an exclamation mark inside a triangle in the figure) may be displayed on the hint column 202a of the puzzle 200 outside the pop-up screen 210 as a hint to the user as to the row or column of the square that the user should answer next.

[0074] Furthermore, when a touch operation is performed on the input unit (touch panel) 102 during pop-up display, the control unit 104 detects whether or not the touch position is within the display area of ​​the pop-up screen 210. If a touch outside the display area of ​​the pop-up screen 210 is detected, the control unit 104 closes (ends) the pop-up screen 210 (see FIG. 13). In addition to the above, the pop-up screen 210 may also be closed (ended) by, for example, a pinch-in operation with two fingers on the input unit 102, and is not particularly limited.

[0075] Next, with reference to FIG. 14 below, the flow of the enlarged display process of the game screen executed by the game device 100 while the nonogram game is being played will be described.

[0076] FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the enlarged display process of the game screen executed by the game device 100 while the nonogram game is being played.

[0077] First, the control unit 104 detects whether or not the hint field 202a (or the hint number 203) on the nonogram game screen displayed on the display unit 101 has been touched via the input unit (touch panel) 102 (step S1). If the hint field 202a (or the hint number 203) has not been touched (No in step S1), the process returns to step S1.

[0078] In step S1, if the hint field 202a (or hint number 203) is touched via the input unit 102 (Yes in step S1), the control unit 104 identifies the row or column of the square corresponding to the touched hint field 202a (or hint number 203) (step S2).

[0079] Next, the control unit 104 generates a pop-up screen 210 that displays an enlarged version of the identified row or column of squares, and pops up the pop-up screen 210 on the game screen (step S3).

[0080] Next, the control unit 104 detects whether or not the outside of the display area of ​​the pop-up screen 210 has been touched with the input unit 102 (step S4). If the outside of the display area of ​​the pop-up screen 210 has not been touched (No in step S4), the process returns to step S4. If the outside of the display area of ​​the pop-up screen 210 has been touched (Yes in step S4), the pop-up screen 210 is closed (ended). [Explanation of symbols]

[0081] 100 gaming devices 101 Display section 102 Input section 103 Storage section 104 Control Unit 200 Puzzles 201 Answer area 202 Hint Area 202a Hints 203 Hint Number 210 Pop-up Screen 301 Nonogram Game Program 302 Enlarged display processing program 311 Problem Data 311a Mass Information 311b Hint Number Information 312 Image data 400 viewable area (safe zone) 400a Boundary 400b border

Claims

1. The device comprises a display unit, an input unit having a touch panel superimposed on the display unit, a storage unit for storing a program for a nonogram game using puzzles, and a control unit for executing the program for the nonogram game, The puzzle has an answer area and a hint area, The answer area consists of a grid of n rows and m columns, The hint area is made up of a hint column displayed around the answer area for each row and column of the answer area, and the hint column has a hint number displayed within the column; the control unit generates a pop-up screen in which the entirety of a predetermined row or column of squares in the answer area selected by the user is enlarged and displayed together with the hint column, and pops up and displays the pop-up screen on the display unit; When generating the pop-up screen for a single row of squares, the control unit changes the display position of the hint column so that it is adjacent to the top or bottom of the single row of squares, and also expands the single row of squares until the entire single row of squares fills the displayable area in the horizontal direction of the screen of the display unit; A game device characterized in that, when generating the pop-up screen for a row of squares, the display position of the hint column is changed so that it is adjacent to the left or right of the row of squares, and the entire row of squares is expanded until it fills the displayable area in the vertical direction of the screen of the display unit.

2. The game device according to claim 1, characterized in that the control unit generates the pop-up screen for the corresponding square in one row or one column by detecting that the hint column or the hint number has been touched via the input unit, and displays it as a pop-up on the display unit.

3. 3. The game device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit displays the pop-up screen as a pop-up on a part of the puzzle displayed on the display unit.

4. 4. The game device according to claim 3, wherein the control unit reflects a touch operation via the input unit on the pop-up screen that is displayed as a pop-up on a part of the puzzle to the puzzle that is displayed outside the pop-up screen.

5. 3. The game device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit closes the pop-up screen when detecting that a part outside the display area of ​​the pop-up screen has been touched via the input unit.

6. An enlarged display processing method for a game device that includes a display unit, an input unit having a touch panel superimposed on the display unit, a storage unit that stores a program for a nonogram game using puzzles, and a control unit that executes the program for the nonogram game, comprising: The puzzle has an answer area and a hint area, The answer area consists of a grid of n rows and m columns, The hint area is made up of a hint column displayed around the answer area for each row and column of the answer area, and the hint column has a hint number displayed within the column; a pop-up screen is generated in which the entirety of a predetermined row or column of squares in the answer area selected by the user is enlarged and displayed together with the hint column, and the pop-up screen is displayed on the display unit; When generating the pop-up screen for a single row of squares, the display position of the hint column is changed so that it is adjacent to the upper or lower side of the single row of squares, and the single row of squares is expanded until it fills the displayable area in the horizontal direction of the screen of the display unit; When generating the pop-up screen for a row of squares, the display position of the hint column is changed so that it is adjacent to the left or right of the row of squares, and the entire row of squares is enlarged until it fills the displayable area in the vertical direction of the screen of the display unit.

7. The enlarged display processing method according to claim 6, characterized in that the pop-up screen is generated and displayed as a pop-up on the display unit by detecting that the hint field or the hint number has been touched via the input unit.

8. 8. The enlarged display processing method according to claim 6, wherein the pop-up screen is displayed as a pop-up on a part of the puzzle displayed on the display unit.

9. The enlarged display processing method according to claim 8, characterized in that a touch operation via the input unit on the pop-up screen displayed as a pop-up on a part of the puzzle is reflected on the puzzle displayed outside the pop-up screen.

10. 8. The enlarged display processing method according to claim 6, wherein the pop-up screen is closed by detecting that a part outside the display area of ​​the pop-up screen is touched via the input unit.

11. A program for causing a computer to execute the enlarged display processing method according to any one of claims 6 to 10.

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