gaming machines

Abstract

To provide a game machine capable of enhancing interest in a game.SOLUTION: When a start lever provided in a slot machine is operated, a lottery of winning combinations is held inside and reels visible through display windows start rotating. When stop switches are operated, the reels corresponding to the respective stop switches are stopped. In the slot machine, a main control device manages a normal section and an advantageous section. The advantageous section is composed of a chance mode and an informing mode. When shifting from a chance mode to an informing mode, control is shifted to an informing mode A for always reporting operation order of a stop switch allowing bell winning to be satisfied when a pressing order bell is won. When control is shifted to an informing mode B, the number of game times playable under the informing mode A can be increased.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 135

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a gaming machine such as a slot machine. [Background technology]

[0002] An example of a gaming machine that stops multiple reels after spinning is a slot machine. In a slot machine, multiple symbols are attached to the outer periphery of each reel, and a portion of the symbols attached to each reel is visible through a display window. When a player inserts a medal, a winning line is set. Then, when the player operates the start lever, a lottery is held within the slot machine for winning combinations such as a big bonus (hereinafter referred to as "BB"), a small bonus, or a replay, and each reel begins to spin. After each reel starts spinning, the player operates the stop switch, which stops each reel sequentially, completing one game. When all reels have stopped spinning, if a combination of symbols corresponding to a winning combination stops on a winning line, the player wins a prize, and the player is awarded a prize, such as a medal payout or a game state change (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] In recent years, in addition to the BB state, which is entered when a BB win is achieved, some machines have an assist time (hereinafter referred to as "AT") state, which is an advantageous game state for the player, that notifies the player of the order in which to operate the stop switch to achieve a specified win when a specified role is won. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-355364 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In the gaming machines exemplified above, there is a demand for further improvement in gaming enjoyment.

[0006] It should be noted that the above problem is not limited to slot machines such as those exemplified above, but also applies to other gaming machines that cyclically display multiple types of images and then end the cyclical display based on the operation of a stop operation means.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a gaming machine that can increase the interest in gaming. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The invention described in claim 1 is a gaming machine comprising a plurality of cyclic display means for cyclically displaying a plurality of types of pictures, a start operation means operated to start the cyclic display of the pictures, a lottery means for drawing a winning combination, a plurality of stop operation means operated to individually stop the cyclic display of the pictures, and a bonus awarding means for awarding a bonus to a player when a winning combination that is selected in the lottery for the winning combination is achieved, a control means for controlling the plurality of cyclic display means so that, when the lottery result of the role becomes a specific result, if the plurality of stop operation means are operated in a specific operation method, a specific winning is established, and if the plurality of stop operation means are operated in an operation method other than the specific operation method, the specific winning is not established; The present invention is provided with a grant determination means for determining whether or not to grant a special benefit, and a special benefit granting means for granting the special benefit when the grant determination means determines that the special benefit should be granted, and the grant determination means is set to a value determined by the lottery result of the winning combination. The aforementioned In the game that resulted in a specific result, Between the time when the lottery result of the role becomes the specific result and before the operation of the plurality of stop operation means becomes effective, a predetermined lottery is used to determine whether or not the special benefit will be awarded, and if it is determined that the special benefit will not be awarded, after all of the circulating display of the patterns has stopped, a determination is made as to whether or not the special benefit will be awarded based on whether or not the specific win has been achieved, and even if the award determination means determines that the special benefit will not be awarded based on the predetermined lottery, the special benefit will be awarded if the specific win is achieved. A gaming machine characterized by the above configuration. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] It is possible to increase interest in playing games. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a front view of a slot machine according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a slot machine with a front door closed. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a slot machine with a front door open. [Figure 4] Rear view of the front door. [Figure 5] Front view of the housing. [Figure 6] A diagram showing the arrangement of symbols on each reel. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the symbols visible through the display window and the combination lines. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between winning modes and the benefits to be awarded. [Figure 9] Block diagram of a slot machine. [Figure 10] 10 is a flowchart showing a timer interrupt process. [Figure 11] 10 is a flowchart showing normal processing. [Figure 12] 10 is a flowchart showing a lottery process. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a lottery table for three-coin play. [Figure 14] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a lottery table for two-coin play. [Figure 15] 10 is a flowchart showing a reel control process. [Figure 16] 10 is a flowchart showing a pseudo-game determination process. [Figure 17] 10 is a flowchart showing a rotation start process. [Figure 18] 10 is a flowchart showing a command transmission process 1. [Figure 19] 10 is a flowchart showing an instruction monitor display process. [Figure 20] 10 is a flowchart showing a command transmission process 2. [Figure 21] 10 is a flowchart showing a stop control process. [Figure 22] 10 is a flowchart showing a stop position determination process. [Figure 23] 10 is a flowchart showing a migration preparation process. [Figure 24] An explanatory diagram for explaining the transition of game areas. [Figure 25] 10 is a flowchart showing a section lottery process in a normal section. [Figure 26]10 is a flowchart showing game zone processing in a normal zone. [Figure 27] 10 is a flowchart showing a section lottery process in a chance mode. [Figure 28] 10 is a flowchart showing game section processing in chance mode. [Figure 29] 10 is a flowchart showing an end determination process. [Figure 30] 10 is a flowchart showing a section lottery process in a notification mode. [Figure 31] 10A and 10B are diagrams showing examples of rotation and display modes in a simulated game. [Figure 32] 10A and 10B are diagrams showing examples of rotation and display modes in a simulated game. [Figure 33] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a slide table used in simulated gaming. [Figure 34] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a slide table used in simulated gaming. [Figure 35] 10A and 10B are diagrams showing examples of rotation and display modes in a simulated game. [Figure 36] 10 is a flowchart showing game section processing in notification mode. [Figure 37] 10 is a flowchart showing a reel control process in the second embodiment. [Figure 38] 10 is a flowchart showing an instruction monitor display process. [Figure 39] 10 is a flowchart showing a stop control process. [Figure 40] 10 is a flowchart showing a stop position determination process. [Figure 41] 10 is a flowchart showing a performance determination process in a display control device. [Figure 42] 10 is a flowchart showing a performance execution process in a display control device. [Figure 43] 10 is a flowchart showing an additional notification process in the display control device. [Figure 44] FIG. 10(a) is a diagram showing the configuration of a pseudo game flag storage area in the third embodiment, and FIG. 10(b) is a diagram showing the configuration of a header. [Figure 45]10 is a flowchart showing a command transmission process 1. [Figure 46] 10 is a flowchart showing a command transmission process 2. [Figure 47] 10 is a flowchart showing a stop position determination process. [Figure 48] 10 is a flowchart showing a command transmission process 3. [Figure 49] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a slot machine according to a fourth embodiment, showing a state in which the front door is closed. [Figure 50] FIG. 2 is a block diagram relating to a display control device. [Figure 51] 10 is a flowchart showing a reel control process. [Figure 52] 10 is a flowchart showing an instruction monitor display process. [Figure 53] 10 is a flowchart showing a stop control process. [Figure 54] 10 is a flowchart showing a stop position determination process. [Figure 55] 10 is a flowchart showing an operation end command process. [Figure 56] 10 is a flowchart showing a start waiting process. [Figure 57] 10 is a flowchart showing a menu process. [Figure 58] 10 is a flowchart showing a standby process. [Figure 59] 10 is a flowchart showing a start command waiting process. [Figure 60] 10 is a flowchart showing a performance determination process. [Figure 61] 10 is a flowchart showing a press performance process. [Figure 62] 10 is a flowchart showing a result display process. [Figure 63] 13 is a flowchart showing game section processing in a chance mode in the fifth embodiment. [Figure 64] 10 is a flowchart showing a section lottery process in a notification mode. [Figure 65] 10 is a flowchart showing game section processing in notification mode. [Figure 66]10 is a flowchart showing section command processing in a notification mode. [Figure 67] 10 is a flowchart showing a start command process in a notification mode. [Figure 68] 10 is a flowchart showing section command processing in a normal section and a chance mode. [Figure 69] 10 is a flowchart showing a start command process in a normal section. [Figure 70] 10 is a flowchart showing lottery result command processing in a normal section. [Figure 71] 10 is a flowchart showing the processing of an all reel stop completion command in a normal section. [Figure 72] 10 is a flowchart showing a start command process in a chance mode. [Figure 73] 10A and 10B are diagrams showing examples of display modes displayed on an auxiliary display unit. [Figure 74] FIG. 20 is a diagram showing the arrangement of symbols on each reel in the sixth embodiment. [Figure 75] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the symbols visible through the display window and the combination lines. [Figure 76] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between winning modes and the benefits to be awarded. [Figure 77] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between winning modes and the benefits to be awarded. [Figure 78] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between winning modes and the benefits to be awarded. [Figure 79] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a lottery table. [Figure 80] 10 is a flowchart showing a section lottery process in a normal section. [Figure 81] 10 is a flowchart showing game zone processing in a normal zone. [Figure 82] 10 is a flowchart showing a section lottery process in a chance mode. [Figure 83] 10 is a flowchart showing game section processing in chance mode. [Figure 84] 10 is a flowchart showing a section lottery process in a notification mode. [Figure 85]An explanatory diagram showing the relationship between winning roles and navigation rates. [Figure 86] 10 is a flowchart showing a winning combination information creation process. [Figure 87] 10 is a flowchart showing an operation navigation process. [Figure 88] 10 is a flowchart showing a promotion determination process. [Figure 89] 10 is a flowchart showing game section processing in notification mode. [Figure 90] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a lottery table. [Figure 91] 13 is a flowchart showing a section lottery process in a chance mode in the seventh embodiment. [Figure 92] 10 is a flowchart showing game section processing in chance mode. [Figure 93] 10 is a flowchart showing a competition command process in a chance mode. [Figure 94] 10 is a flowchart showing lottery result command processing in a chance mode. [Figure 95] 10 is a flowchart showing a competition presentation process. [Figure 96] 10 is a flowchart showing a performance determination process. [Figure 97] 10 is a flowchart showing a section lottery process in a notification mode. [Figure 98] 10 is a flowchart showing a first effect determination process. [Figure 99] 10 is a flowchart showing a second effect determination process. [Figure 100] 10 is a flowchart showing a pseudo-game determination process. [Figure 101] 10 is a flowchart showing game section processing in notification mode. [Figure 102] 10 is a flowchart showing a competition command process in the notification mode. [Figure 103] 10 is a flowchart showing lottery result command processing in the notification mode. [Figure 104] An explanatory diagram for explaining the transition of the game area in the eighth embodiment. [Figure 105]10 is a flowchart showing game section processing in chance mode. [Figure 106] 10 is a flowchart showing a navigation counter update process. [Figure 107] 10 is a flowchart showing a section lottery process in a notification mode. [Figure 108] 10 is a flowchart showing a navigation determination process. [Figure 109] 10 is a flowchart showing game section processing in notification mode. [Figure 110] FIG. 13 is a block diagram relating to auxiliary performance in the ninth embodiment. [Figure 111] (a) Diagram showing the channel configuration, (b) diagram showing the layer configuration for CH4. [Figure 112] An explanatory diagram for explaining the relationship between the volume of the background music and the volume of the winning sound. [Figure 113] 10 is a flowchart showing a performance control process. [Figure 114] 10 is a flowchart showing a liquid crystal control process. [Figure 115] 10 is a flowchart showing a winning sound instruction process. [Figure 116] An explanatory diagram to explain the relationship between the output time of the winning sound and the volume recovery time of the background music. [Figure 117] 10 is a flowchart showing a BGM output process. [Figure 118] 10 is a flowchart showing a volume value setting process. [Figure 119] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram for explaining changes in volume values ​​in each layer of the CH4 layer. [Figure 120] FIG. 23 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an ending movie in the tenth embodiment. [Figure 121] 10 is a flowchart showing an ED determination process. [Figure 122] 10 is a flowchart showing an ED process. [Figure 123] 10 is a flowchart showing an error confirmation process. [Figure 124] 10 is a flowchart showing a restart process. [Figure 125]23 is a flowchart showing the winning probability setting process in the eleventh embodiment. [Figure 126] 10 is a flowchart showing a setting change process. [Figure 127] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the configuration of a first sensor buffer. [Figure 128] 10 is a flowchart showing an ON edge confirmation process. [Figure 129] 10 is a flowchart showing a change end process. [Figure 130] 10 is a flowchart showing a setting key OFF waiting process. [Figure 131] 10 is a flowchart showing a front door command process. [Figure 132] 10 is a flowchart showing a setting change command process. [Figure 133] 10 is a flowchart showing a change end command process. [Figure 134] An explanatory diagram for explaining the relationship between the series of operations performed when setting the winning probability, the set values, and the notification sounds that are announced. [Figure 135] An explanatory diagram for explaining the transition of the game area in the 12th embodiment. [Figure 136] 10 is a flowchart showing game section processing in chance mode. [Figure 137] 10 is a flowchart showing a section lottery process in the notification mode A. [Figure 138] 10 is a flowchart showing game section processing in notification mode A. [Figure 139] 10 is a flowchart showing a section lottery process in a notification mode B. [Figure 140] A diagram showing the selection rate of the number of additional games in the lottery for the number of additional games. [Figure 141] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the correspondence between winning roles and notification contents. [Figure 142] 10 is a flowchart showing game section processing in notification mode B. [Figure 143] 10 is a flowchart showing the transfer game number addition process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] (First embodiment)

[0012] An embodiment of the present invention, which is applied to a reel-type gaming machine, specifically a slot machine, will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 is a front view of the slot machine 10, Figure 2 is a perspective view of the slot machine 10 with the front door 12 closed, Figure 3 is a perspective view of the slot machine 10 with the front door 12 open, Figure 4 is a rear view of the front door 12, and Figure 5 is a front view of the cabinet 11.

[0013] As shown in Figures 1 to 5, the slot machine 10 has a housing 11 that forms its outer shell. The housing 11 is formed in a box shape with an open front as a whole, and is attached to so-called island equipment by nailing it when installed in an amusement hall.

[0014] A front door 12 is attached to the front side of the housing 11 in an openable and closable manner. A pair of upper and lower support shafts 13a and 13b are provided on the left side of the housing 11 when viewed from the front. The front door 12 is provided with bearings 14a and 14b at positions corresponding to the support shafts 13a and 13b. When the support shafts 13a and 13b are inserted into the bearings 14a and 14b, the front door 12 is rotatably supported relative to the housing 11 about an opening / closing axis extending in the vertical direction connecting the support shafts 13a and 13b. Rotation of the front door 12 allows the front open side of the housing 11 to be opened or closed. The front door 12 is locked and cannot be opened by a locking device 20 provided on its back surface. A key cylinder 21 integrated with the locking device 20 is provided at the upper right end of the front door 12. The locked state is released by operating a predetermined key on the key cylinder 21.

[0015] A game panel 25 that notifies the player of the game status is provided near the upper center of the front door 12. The game panel 25 has three vertically long display windows 26L, 26M, and 26R formed side by side, and the interior of the slot machine 10 can be seen through each of the display windows 26L, 26M, and 26R. The display windows 26L, 26M, and 26R may be combined into one common display window.

[0016] As shown in FIG. 3, the interior of the housing 11 is divided into two sections, upper and lower, by a partition plate 30, and a reel unit 31 constituting a variable display means is attached to the upper part of the partition plate 30. The reel unit 31 includes a left reel 32L, a center reel 32M, and a right reel 32R, each formed in a cylindrical (annular) shape. Each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R is rotatably supported so that its central axis coincides with the axis of rotation of the reel. The axes of rotation of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are arranged on the same axis extending substantially horizontally, and each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R corresponds one-to-one to each display window 26L, 26M, and 26R. Therefore, a portion of the surface of each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R is visible through the corresponding display window 26L, 26M, and 26R. Furthermore, when the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R rotate forward, the surfaces of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are projected through the respective display windows 26L, 26M, and 26R as if they were moving from top to bottom.

[0017] Here, the configuration of the reel unit 31 will be briefly described.

[0018] Each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R is connected to a stepping motor, and each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R can be rotated individually, i.e., independently, by driving each stepping motor. The stepping motor is set to rotate once by applying a drive signal (hereinafter also referred to as an excitation pulse) of, for example, 480 pulses, and this excitation pulse controls the rotational position of the stepping motor, i.e., the rotational position of the reel. Furthermore, the reel unit 31 is provided with a reel index sensor on each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R to detect when the reel has rotated once. Each time the reel index sensor detects that the reel has rotated once, it outputs a detection signal to the main control device 101, which will be described later. Therefore, the main control unit 101 can check and correct the angular position of each reel 32L, 32M, 32R for each rotation based on the detection signal of the reel index sensor and the number of excitation pulses output before the detection signal is input.

[0019] On the outer periphery of each reel 32L, 32M, 32R, a plurality of symbols are drawn along the long side (circumference direction) of the reel, serving as identification information. More specifically, 20 symbols are drawn at equal intervals. Therefore, to switch from one symbol to the next symbol at a predetermined position, 24 excitation pulses (= 480 pulses ÷ 20 symbols) must be output. Furthermore, the main control device 101 can determine which symbols are visible through the display windows 26L, 26M, 26R and stop a predetermined symbol at a position visible through the display windows 26L, 26M, 26R based on the number of excitation pulses output after the reel index sensor detection signal is input.

[0020] Next, the symbols depicted on the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R will be described.

[0021] FIG. 6 shows the arrangement of symbols on the left reel 32L, center reel 32M, and right reel 32R. As shown in FIG. 6, 20 symbols are arranged in a row on each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R. Numbers ranging from 0 to 19 are assigned to the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R, respectively. However, these numbers are used by the main control device 101 to identify the symbols visible through the display windows 26L, 26M, and 26R, and are not actually assigned to the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R. However, these numbers will be used in the following explanation.

[0022] There are eight types of symbols: a "cherry" symbol (e.g., the 19th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "watermelon" symbol (e.g., the 18th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "bell" symbol (e.g., the 17th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "red 7" symbol (e.g., the 16th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "replay" symbol (e.g., the 15th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "star" symbol (e.g., the 14th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "bar" symbol (e.g., the 11th symbol on the left reel 32L), and a "white 7" symbol (e.g., the 6th symbol on the left reel 32L). As shown in Figure 6, the number and arrangement order of the various symbols are completely different on each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R.

[0023] Each of the display windows 26L, 26M, and 26R is formed so that only three of the 20 symbols on the corresponding reel are visible in their entirety. Therefore, when each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R is stopped, 3 x 3 = 9 symbols are visible through the display windows 26L, 26M, and 26R.

[0024] In the slot machine 10, a total of five combination lines are set, three parallel lines in the horizontal direction and two diagonally crossing lines, connecting the positions where these nine symbols are visible. More specifically, as shown in Fig. 7(a), the horizontal combination lines are set as follows: an upper line L1 connecting the upper row symbols of each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R; a middle line L2 connecting the middle row symbols of each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R; and a lower line L3 connecting the lower row symbols of each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R. In addition, diagonal combination lines are set, including a line L4 that slopes downward to the right connecting the upper symbols on the left reel 32L, the middle symbols on the middle reel 32M, and the lower symbols on the right reel 32R, and a line L5 that slopes upward to the right connecting the lower symbols on the left reel 32L, the middle symbols on the middle reel 32M, and the upper symbols on the right reel 32R. When symbols stop in a predetermined combination on an activated combination line, i.e., an activated line, a win is achieved, and a bonus is awarded in which a predetermined number of medals serving as game media are paid out, or a bonus is awarded in which the game state is changed.

[0025] In the slot machine 10, only the middle line L2 is set as an activated line, as shown in Figure 7(b). The four lines of the upper line L1, the lower line L3, the downward right line L4, and the upward right line L5 are not activated.

[0026] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the correspondence between winning symbol combinations and the benefits awarded when a winning symbol combination is obtained.

[0027] The state transition winnings that only result in a transition of the game state include the BB1 ​​winning and the BB2 winning.

[0028] When the "red 7" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R stop on an active line, a BB1 win is achieved. When the "red 7" symbols on the left reel 32L and center reel 32M and the "white 7" symbol on the right reel 32R stop on an active line, a BB2 win is achieved. When these BB wins are achieved, the game state transitions to the BB state.

[0029] A replay win is a win that gives a replay privilege, which allows the player to play the next game without inserting a medal.

[0030] If the "Replay" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R stop on an active line, a replay win will be awarded.

[0031] The minor winning combinations that result in medal payouts include watermelon winning, cherry winning, bell winning, and compensation winning.

[0032] When the "watermelon" symbols on reels 32L, 32M, and 32R stop on an active line, three medals are paid out as a watermelon win. When the "cherry" symbol on left reel 32L stops on an active line, three medals are paid out as a cherry win.

[0033] When the "bell" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R stop on any of the combination lines, nine medals are paid out as a bell win. More specifically, in addition to when the "bell" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R stop on the middle line L2, nine medals are paid out as a bell win when a symbol combination that causes the "bell" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R to stop on the top line L1 stops on the middle line L2. Symbol combinations that appear to result in a bell win include, for example, a combination of a "red 7" symbol, a "star" symbol, and a "star" symbol, or a combination of a "bar" symbol, a "cherry" symbol, and a "bar" symbol. While details of winning symbol combinations are omitted, one medal is paid out when a complementary winning combination is achieved.

[0034] In the following, the symbol combinations corresponding to each winning prize are also referred to as winning symbol combinations. For example, the BB2 symbol combination is a symbol combination that results in the BB2 prize, i.e., a combination of "red 7," "red 7," and "white 7." The symbols on the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R that correspond to each winning prize are also referred to as winning symbols. For example, the BB2 symbol is a "red 7" symbol on the left reel 32L and the center reel 32M, and a "white 7" symbol on the right reel 32R.

[0035] A start lever 41 that is operated to start the rotation of each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R is provided on the lower left side of the game panel 25. The start lever 41 constitutes a start operation means or a starting operation means that is operated to start the rotation of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R, i.e., to start the variable display of symbols. When the start lever 41 is operated with a predetermined number of medals inserted, each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R starts to rotate.

[0036] To the right of the start lever 41 are provided button-shaped stop switches 42-44 that are operated to individually stop the rotating reels 32L, 32M, and 32R. Each stop switch 42-44 is located directly below the display window 26L, 26M, or 26R corresponding to the reel 32L, 32M, or 32R to be stopped. That is, when the left stop switch 42 is operated, the left reel 32L stops spinning, when the center stop switch 43 is operated, the center reel 32M stops spinning, and when the right stop switch 44 is operated, the right reel 32R stops spinning. The stop switches 42-44 constitute stop operation means that are operated to stop the variable display of symbols based on the rotation of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R.

[0037] A medal insertion slot 45 for inserting medals is provided below and to the right of the display windows 26L, 26M, and 26R. The medal insertion slot 45 constitutes input means for inputting game media. In addition, considering that the medal insertion slot 45 involves the action of the player directly inserting medals, it can also be said to constitute direct input means for directly inputting game media.

[0038] Medals inserted through the medal insertion slot 45 are guided to either a storage passage 47 or a discharge passage 48 by a selector 46 serving as a passage switching means provided on the back surface of the front door 12. More specifically, the selector 46 is provided with a medal passage switching solenoid 46a, and when the medal passage switching solenoid 46a is not energized, the medals are guided to the discharge passage 48 side, and when the medal passage switching solenoid 46a is energized, the medals are guided to the storage passage 47 side. Medals guided to the storage passage 47 are guided to a hopper device 51 stored inside the housing 11. Meanwhile, medals guided to the discharge passage 48 are guided from a medal discharge port 49 provided at the bottom front of the front door 12 to a medal tray 50 and are returned to the player.

[0039] The hopper device 51 is composed of a storage tank 52 that stores medals and a payout device 53 that pays out medals to players. The payout device 53 rotates a medal payout rotating plate (not shown) to discharge medals into an opening 48a provided in the discharge passage 48, and then pays out the medals to a medal tray 50 via the discharge passage 48. In addition, a spare tank 54 is provided to the right of the hopper device 51 to prevent more than a predetermined amount of medals from being stored in the storage tank 52. A guide plate 52a is provided inside the storage tank 52 of the hopper device 51 to discharge medals from the storage tank 52 to the spare tank 54. Therefore, if medals are stored above the height at which the guide plate 52a is provided, those medals will be stored in the spare tank 54.

[0040] A button-shaped return switch 55 is provided below the medal insertion slot 45. If the return switch 55 is operated when a medal inserted into the medal insertion slot 45 is stuck in the selector 46, the selector 46 is mechanically linked and operated, and the medal stuck in the selector 46 is returned from the medal discharge slot 49.

[0041] A first credit insertion switch 56 is provided on the left below the display windows 26L, 26M, and 26R for inserting three credited virtual medals as gaming media at a time. Also, a second credit insertion switch 57 and a third credit insertion switch 58 are provided to the left of the first credit insertion switch 56. The second credit insertion switch 57 is for inserting two virtual medals at a time, and the third credit insertion switch 58 is for inserting one virtual medal. The credit insertion switches 56-58, together with the medal insertion slot 45, constitute input means for inputting gaming media. Furthermore, while the medal insertion slot 45 involves the player directly inserting medals, the credit insertion switches 56-58 merely involve the insertion of virtual medals based on stored memory. Considering this, the credit insertion switches 56-58 can also be said to constitute indirect input means for indirectly inputting gaming media.

[0042] A settlement switch 59 is provided to the left of the start lever 41. In other words, the slot machine 10 has a credit function that stores and stores, as virtual medals, any surplus medals inserted up to a predetermined maximum value (equivalent to 50 medals) and medals paid out when a prize is won, and when the settlement switch 59 is operated while virtual medals are stored and stored, the virtual medals are paid out as real medals from the medal outlet 49. In this case, when attention is focused on the function of paying out credited virtual medals as real medals, the settlement switch 59 can also be said to constitute a settlement operation means for actually paying out the stored and stored game media.

[0043] Below the display windows 26L, 26M, and 26R of the game panel 25 are provided a credit display section 60 that displays the number of credited virtual medals, a remaining payout number display section 61, and a payout number display section 62 that displays the number of medals paid out when a prize is won. A section indicator 66 that indicates the game section is provided in the lower right corner of the payout number display section 62. These display sections 60 to 62 and the section indicator 66 are configured as 7-segment displays, but they can of course be replaced with liquid crystal displays or the like.

[0044] The upper part of the front door 12 is provided with an upper lamp 63 that lights up and flashes as the game progresses, a pair of left and right speakers 64 that play various sound effects as the game progresses and notify the player of the game status, and an auxiliary display unit 65 that provides various information to the player. The auxiliary display unit 65 is used to perform various display effects as the game progresses, and since the game using each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R can be considered to be performed by the main display unit, it is referred to as the auxiliary display unit 65 in this embodiment. A display control device 81 for driving the upper lamp 63, speaker 64, and auxiliary display unit 65 is provided on the back of the auxiliary display unit 65.

[0045] A power supply box 70 is provided inside the housing 11 to the left of the hopper device 51. The power supply box 70 houses a power supply device 91 and is equipped with a power switch 71, a reset switch 72, a setting key insertion hole 73, and the like. The power switch 71 is an activation switch for supplying power to the main control device 101 and other components. The reset switch 72 is a switch for resetting an error state of the slot machine 10. The setting key insertion hole 73 is used by a hall manager or the like to adjust the number of medals dispensed. In other words, a hall manager or the like can set the winning probability of the slot machine 10 by inserting a setting key into the setting key insertion hole 73 and turning it ON. The reset switch 72 is operated not only to reset an error state but also to change the winning probability of the slot machine 10.

[0046] Above the reel unit 31, a main control device 101 for controlling the overall game is attached to the cabinet 11.

[0047] Next, the electrical configuration of the slot machine 10 will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG.

[0048] The main control device 101 is equipped with a microcomputer centered around a CPU 102, which is a calculation processing means. In addition to a power supply device 91, the CPU 102 is connected to a clock circuit 103 that outputs a rectangular wave of a predetermined frequency, an input / output port 104, and the like via an internal bus. The main control device 101 functions as a main board built into the slot machine 10.

[0049] Various sensors are connected to the input side of the main control device 101, including the reel unit 31 (more specifically, a reel index sensor that individually detects when each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R has made one rotation), a start detection sensor 41a that detects the operation of the start lever 41, stop detection sensors 42a to 44a that individually detect the operation of each stop switch 42 to 44, an inserted medal detection sensor 45a that detects medals inserted through the medal insertion slot 45, a payout detection sensor 51a that detects medals paid out from the hopper device 51, credit insertion detection sensors 56a to 58a that individually detect the operation of each credit insertion switch 56 to 58, a settlement detection sensor 59a that detects the operation of the settlement switch 59, a reset detection sensor 72a that detects the operation of the reset switch 72, and a setting key detection sensor 73a that detects when a setting key is inserted into the setting key insertion hole 73 and turned ON, and signals from these various sensors are output to the CPU 102 via the input / output port 104.

[0050] Furthermore, a power supply unit 91 is connected to the input side of the main control unit 101 via an input / output port 104. The power supply unit 91 is equipped with a power supply unit 91a that supplies driving power to the main control unit 101 and other electronic devices of the slot machine 10, a power outage monitoring circuit 91b, and the like.

[0051] The power failure monitoring circuit 91b monitors the power supply interruption state and generates a power failure signal not only during a power failure but also when the power is shut off by the power switch 71. Therefore, the power failure monitoring circuit 91b monitors the stabilized drive voltage, which in this example is 12 volts DC, output from the power supply unit 91a, and is configured to output a power failure signal when this drive voltage drops to, for example, less than 10 volts, determining that the power supply has been interrupted. The power failure signal is supplied to both the CPU 102 and the input / output port 104, and the CPU 102 recognizes this power failure signal and executes the power failure processing described below. The power failure signal is also supplied to the display control device 81.

[0052] Power supply unit 91a is configured so that even if the output voltage drops below 10 volts, it outputs a stabilized voltage of 5 volts that is used as a drive voltage in control systems such as main control device 101. The time for which this stabilized voltage is output is long enough for main control device 101 to execute power outage processing.

[0053] The output side of the main control device 101 is connected via input / output port 104 to the reel unit 31 (more specifically, the stepping motor for rotating each reel 32L, 32M, 32R), the medal path switching solenoid 46a provided on the selector 46, the hopper device 51, the credit display unit 60, the remaining number of coins to be paid out display unit 61, the number of coins to be paid out display unit 62, the section display unit 66, the display control device 81, and an external centralized terminal board 121 that can transmit information to a hall management device (not shown), etc.

[0054] The display control device 81 is a control device for driving the upper lamps 63, the speaker 64, and the auxiliary display unit 65, and includes a board on which a CPU, ROM, RAM, etc. for driving these are integrated. After receiving signals from the main control device 101, the display control device 81 independently drives and controls the upper lamps 63, the speaker 64, and the auxiliary display unit 65. Therefore, the display control device 81 is a sub-board that performs auxiliary control in relation to the main control device 101, which is the main board that comprehensively manages the game. Note that the display control device 81 may also be configured to drive and control the various display units 60 to 62.

[0055] The above-mentioned CPU 102 has built-in ROM 105 storing various control programs and fixed value data executed by the CPU 102, RAM 106 for securing a work area for temporarily storing various data when executing the control programs stored in ROM 105, and various processing circuits required for the slot machine 10, such as an interrupt circuit, a timer circuit, a data transmission / reception circuit, etc., as well known, and various counters, such as a credit counter for counting the number of credits, although not shown. The ROM 105 and RAM 106 form a main memory as storage means, and the programs for executing the various processes shown in the flowcharts of Figures 10 to 36 are stored in the above-mentioned ROM 105 as part of the control program.

[0056] The RAM 106 is configured to be able to retain (back up) data by receiving a backup voltage from the power supply device 91 even after the power supply to the slot machine 10 is cut off. The RAM 106 is provided with a backup area in addition to memories for temporarily storing various data, a win flag storage area 106a for storing the lottery results of winning combinations, a stop information storage area 106b for storing stop information used when controlling the stop of each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R, a status information storage area 106c for storing the game status, and a section information storage area 106d for storing the game section.

[0057] The backup area is an area for storing the value of the stack pointer at the time of power cutoff (including power cutoff by operating the power switch 71; the same applies below) when the power is cut off due to a power outage or the like, and when the power outage is resolved (including power on by operating the power switch 71; the same applies below), the state of the slot machine 10 can be restored to the state before power cutoff based on the information in the backup area. Writing to the backup area is performed by the power outage processing (see Figure 10) when power is cut off, and the restoration of each value written to the backup area is performed in the main processing when power is turned on.

[0058] Furthermore, when the power supply is cut off due to a power outage or the like, a power outage signal is input from the power outage monitoring circuit 91b to the NMI terminal (non-maskable interrupt terminal) of the CPU 102. When the power supply is cut off, an NMI interrupt process is immediately executed as a power outage flag generation process.

[0059] Next, we will explain each control process executed by the CPU 102 of the main control device 101. The processes of the CPU 102 can be broadly divided into main processing that is started when the power is turned on, timer interrupt processing that is started periodically (every 1.49 msec in this embodiment), and NMI interrupt processing that is started when a power outage signal is input to the NMI terminal. Below, we will explain the processes related to the progress of the game among these processes, i.e., timer interrupt processing, and normal processing performed in the main processing, with reference to the flowcharts of Figures 10 to 36.

[0060] FIG. 10 is a flowchart of the timer interrupt process that is periodically executed by the main control device 101, and the CPU 102 of the main control device 101 generates a timer interrupt every 1.49 msec, for example.

[0061] First, in the register save process shown in step S101, the values ​​of all registers in the CPU 102 used in normal processing, which will be described later, are saved to a backup area in the RAM 106. In step S102, it is checked whether the power outage flag is set, and if the power outage flag is set, the process proceeds to step S103, where power outage processing is executed.

[0062] Here, the power outage process will be outlined.

[0063] When the power supply is cut off due to a power outage or the like, a power outage signal is output from the power outage monitoring circuit 91b of the power supply device 91, and the power outage signal is input to the main control device 101 via the NMI terminal. When the power outage signal is input, the main control device 101 immediately executes NMI interrupt processing and sets a power outage flag in a power outage flag storage area provided in the RAM 106.

[0064] During power outage processing, the value of the stack pointer of the CPU 102 is saved in the backup area of ​​the RAM 106. The output status of the output port of the input / output port 104 is then cleared, and all actuators (not shown) are turned off. Then, when the power outage is resolved, a RAM judgment value is calculated to determine whether the data in the RAM 106 is normal and saved in the backup area, thereby prohibiting further RAM access. After the above processing is performed, an infinite loop is entered to prepare for the possibility that the power supply will be completely cut off and processing will no longer be possible. Note that, in consideration of the possibility that the power outage flag may be erroneously set due to noise, for example, the system checks whether a power outage signal is being output before entering the infinite loop. If the power outage signal is not being output, this indicates that the power outage has been recovered, and the system allows writing to the RAM 106, resets the power outage flag, and returns to timer interrupt processing. If the power outage signal continues to be output, the system enters the infinite loop. Incidentally, the system also checks whether the power outage signal is being output within the infinite loop. If the power outage signal is no longer being output, the system transitions to main processing.

[0065] Returning to the explanation of the timer interrupt process, if the power outage flag is not set in step S102, various processes from step S104 onwards are carried out.

[0066] That is, in step S104, a watchdog timer clearing process is performed to initialize the value of the watchdog timer for monitoring for malfunctions. In step S105, an interrupt end declaration process is performed to enable the CPU 102 itself to set the next timer interrupt. In step S106, a stepping motor control process is performed to drive the stepping motors that drive the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R to rotate each reel, and to brake the corresponding stepping motor to stop the rotating reels 32L, 32M, and 32R. In step S107, a sensor monitoring process is performed to read the status of various sensors (see FIG. 9) connected to the input / output port 104, such as the stop detection sensors 42a to 44a, the inserted medal detection sensor 45a, and the payout detection sensor 51a, and to monitor whether the read results are normal. In step S108, a timer subtraction process is performed to subtract the values ​​of each counter and timer. In step S109, a counter process is performed to count the number of medals bet and the number of medals paid out and output the results to the external centralized terminal board 121.

[0067] In step S110, a segment data setting process is performed to set the segment data to be displayed in the credit display unit 60, the remaining payout number display unit 61, and the payout number display unit 62. In step S111, a segment data display process is performed to supply the segment data set in the segment data setting process to each of the display units 60-62 and display the corresponding numbers, symbols, etc. In step S112, a port output process is performed to output data corresponding to the I / O device from the input / output port 104. In step S113, the values ​​of each register saved in the backup area in the previous step S101 are restored to the corresponding register in the CPU 102. Thereafter, in step S114, an interrupt enable process is performed to enable the next timer interrupt, and this series of timer interrupt processes is terminated.

[0068] Next, the normal processing for carrying out main control relating to the game will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0069] First, in step S201, an interrupt permission process is performed to permit the next timer interrupt. In step S202, a pre-start process is performed to enable a game. In the pre-start process, the process waits until the display control device 81 and the like have completed initialization. When the initialization of the display control device 81 and the like has completed, the game management process shown in steps S203 to S215 is performed.

[0070] As part of the game management process, in step S203, data such as various game information (for example, random number values ​​used in the previous game) stored in the RAM 106 is cleared. After that, in step S204, a start waiting process is performed.

[0071] In the start waiting process, it is determined whether a replay win was achieved in the previous game. If a replay win was achieved, an automatic insertion process is performed to automatically insert virtual medals equal to the number of bets made in the previous game, and the start waiting process is terminated. Note that in the automatic insertion process, virtual medals are inserted without reducing the number of virtual medals displayed in the credit display unit 60. In other words, if a replay win was achieved in the previous game, the player can play the current game without reducing the number of medals they own or inserting any more medals. If a replay win was not achieved, a sensor abnormality confirmation process is performed to check whether an abnormality has occurred in the sensor reading results obtained in the sensor monitoring process step S107 of the timer interrupt process. If an abnormality has occurred, an abnormality occurrence process is performed to place the slot machine 10 in an error state and notify the player of the occurrence of the error. This error state is maintained until the reset switch 72 is operated. If the sensor reading results are normal, it is determined whether the settlement switch 59 has been operated. If the settlement switch 59 has been operated, a medal return process is performed to pay out the same number of medals as the credited virtual medals. After the medal return process is completed or if the settlement switch 59 has not been operated, it is determined whether medals have been inserted or the credit insertion switches 56-58 have been operated between the previous start waiting process and the current start waiting process, and if either has been done, a medal insertion process is carried out to change the number of bets, etc., and the start waiting process is terminated. Also, if neither medals have been inserted nor the credit insertion switches 56-58 have been operated between the previous start waiting process and the current start waiting process, the start waiting process is terminated.

[0072] After the start waiting process is completed, in step S205, it is determined whether the number of medals bet has reached a specified number. In this slot machine 10, the specified numbers are set to "2" and "3". If the number of medals bet has not reached the specified number, the process returns to the start waiting process of step S204, and the processes from the sensor abnormality confirmation process onwards are carried out. If the number of medals bet has reached the specified number, it is determined in step S206 whether the start lever 41 has been operated. If the start lever 41 has not been operated, the process returns to the start waiting process of step S204, and the processes from the sensor abnormality confirmation process onwards are carried out.

[0073] On the other hand, if the start lever 41 is operated, this means that a start command has been issued to start play, since the system is configured so that play can begin when the start lever 41 is operated under conditions in which a specified number of medals have been bet. In this case, an active line setting process is performed in step S207 to set the middle line L1 as the active line, and the medal path switching solenoid 46a is switched to a non-excited state in step S208 to prohibit bet acceptance. Thereafter, the following processes are executed in order: a lottery process in step S209, a rotation initialization process in step S210, a 4.1-second wait process in step S211, a reel control process in step S212, a medal payout process in step S213, a play section process in step S214, and a BB state process in step S215, and then the system returns to step S203.

[0074] Next, the lottery process in step S209 will be described with reference to the flowchart in FIG.

[0075] In step S301, a random number is acquired to be used when determining whether a winning combination has been achieved. In this slot machine 10, when the start lever 41 is operated, the hardware circuitry latches the value of the free-run counter at that time. The free-run counter generates a random number between 0 and 65535, and after the CPU 102 confirms the operation of the start lever 41, it stores the value latched by the hardware circuitry in the RAM 106. This configuration makes it possible to quickly acquire a random number when the start lever 41 is operated, thereby avoiding problems such as synchronization. The hardware circuitry of this slot machine 10 latches the value of the free-run counter each time the start lever 41 is operated.

[0076] After obtaining the random number, in step S302, a lottery table is selected to determine whether the winning combination has been achieved. In this slot machine 10, six winning probabilities, from "Setting 1" to "Setting 6," are pre-set, and by inserting a setting key into the setting key insertion hole to turn it ON and performing a predetermined operation, it is possible to set which winning probability the internal processing will be based on. In step S302, when the setting state is "Setting 1," a lottery table with the lowest expected value of medal payout is selected, and when the setting state is "Setting 6," a lottery table with the highest expected value of medal payout is selected.

[0077] The lottery table will be briefly explained. Fig. 13 is a lottery table selected in a three-coin game of "setting 3", and Fig. 14 is a lottery table selected in a two-coin game of "setting 3". Index values ​​IV are set in the lottery table, and each index value IV is uniquely associated with a winning combination and is also set with a point value PV.

[0078] After selecting a lottery table, in step S303, the index value IV is set to 1, and in the following step S304, a judgment value DV to be used when determining whether a winning combination has been achieved is set. In this judgment value setting process, a point value PV corresponding to the current index value IV is added to the current judgment value DV to set a new judgment value DV. Note that in the first judgment value setting process, the random number value acquired in step S301 is set as the current judgment value DV, and the point value PV corresponding to the current index value IV, which is 1, is added to this random number value to set a new judgment value DV.

[0079] Thereafter, in step S305, a win / loss determination is made for the combination corresponding to the index value IV. In the combination win / loss determination, it is determined whether the determination value DV has exceeded 65535. If it has exceeded 65535, the process proceeds to step S306, and a win flag corresponding to the index value IV at that time is set in the win flag storage area 106a of the RAM 106. For example, if the determination value DV exceeds 65535 when IV=5, in step S306, a middle right left bell win flag indicating that the bell, the compensation combination 2, or the compensation combination 4 has been won is set in the win flag storage area 106a.

[0080] Incidentally, if the set winning flag is not a BB1 winning flag indicating a win in BB1 or a BB2 winning flag indicating a win in BB2, the winning flag set in the winning flag storage area 106a is reset after the game in which the corresponding winning flag was set ends (see S203 in the normal processing). On the other hand, if the winning flag is a BB1 winning flag or a BB2 winning flag, these winning flags are reset on the condition that the corresponding winning is achieved. In other words, the BB1 ​​winning flag and the BB2 winning flag may be valid over multiple games. In step S306, when the BB1 ​​winning flag or the BB2 winning flag is carried over, if a winning combination other than BB1 or BB2 is achieved, the corresponding winning flag is set, and if BB1 or BB2 is achieved, the corresponding winning flag is not set. Therefore, for example, if BB2 is won in a two-coin game and a three-coin game is performed while the BB2 winning flag is carried over, BB1 is not won.

[0081] If the judgment value DV does not exceed 65535 in step S305, this means that the hand corresponding to the index value IV has not been obtained. In this case, the index value IV is incremented by 1 in step S307, and the following step S308 determines whether or not there is a hand corresponding to the index value IV, i.e., whether or not there is a target for judgment of whether or not there is a winning or losing hand. Specifically, it determines whether or not the index value IV incremented by 1 exceeds the maximum value of the index value IV set in the lottery table. If there is a target for judgment of whether or not there is a winning or losing hand, the process returns to step S304, and the judgment of whether or not the hand is a winning or losing hand continues. At this time, in step S304, the point value PV corresponding to the current index value IV is added to the judgment value DV used to judge whether or not the previous hand is a winning or losing hand (i.e., the current judgment value DV) to obtain a new judgment value DV, and in step S305, the winning or losing hand is judged based on the judgment value DV.

[0082] Incidentally, when the lottery table shown in Figure 13 is used to determine whether a winning combination is a success or failure in a three-coin game, the probability of winning a replay is approximately 1 in 7.3, the probability of winning left-center-right bell, left-right-center bell, center-left-right bell, center-right-left bell, right-center-left bell, and right-left-center bell is approximately 1 in 9.0 each, the probability of winning watermelon and cherry is approximately 1 in 50 each, and the probability of winning BB1 is approximately 1 in 12. In a three-coin game, the event of winning a one-coin combination and the event of winning BB2 do not occur.

[0083] When the lottery table shown in Figure 14 is used to determine whether a winning combination will occur in a two-coin game, the probability of winning a replay is approximately 1 in 7.3, the probability of winning left-center-right bell, left-right-center bell, center-left-right bell, center-right-left bell, right-center-left bell, and right-left-center bell is approximately 1 in 16,000 each, the probability of winning watermelon and cherry is approximately 1 in 50 each, the probability of winning a one-coin combination is approximately 1 in 1.9, and the probability of winning BB2 is approximately 1 in 4.0. In a two-coin game, there is no event of winning BB1.

[0084] After the winning flag is set in step S306, or if it is determined in step S308 that there are no judgment targets to be judged, this means that the judgment of the winning or losing role has been completed. In such cases, the process proceeds to step S309, where a section lottery process related to the transition of the game section is performed. In step S310, a lottery result command is sent to the display control device 81. By receiving the lottery result command, the display control device 81 grasps the various results performed in this lottery process, specifically, the result of the winning or losing role judgment and the lottery result in the section lottery process. When the lottery result command is sent, the lottery process ends.

[0085] When the lottery process is completed, a rotation initialization process is performed in step S210, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 11. The RAM 106 is provided with a motor control storage area for storing information used to control the drive of the stepping motor, and the rotation initialization process initializes the motor control storage area. In step S211, a 4.1-second wait process is performed. In the 4.1-second wait process, it is confirmed whether a predetermined wait time (approximately 4.1 seconds in this embodiment) has elapsed since the reels started spinning in the previous game. If the wait time has not elapsed, the system waits until the wait time has elapsed. If the wait time has elapsed, the system resets the wait time for the next game, and ends the 4.1-second wait process. Because of this 4.1-second wait process, even if a player bets a specified number of medals and operates the start lever 41, the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R may not immediately start spinning.

[0086] Next, the reel control process of step S212 will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 15. In the slot machine 10, in addition to a game in which a bonus such as a medal payout is awarded when a combination of symbols corresponding to a winning role is stopped during one game (hereinafter also referred to as "main game"), a pseudo game may also be performed. For ease of understanding, the reel control process when no pseudo game is performed, i.e., when only the main game is performed, will be described below.

[0087] In the reel control process, in step S401, a pseudo game determination process is performed to determine whether or not a pseudo game is to be performed. In step S402, a rotation start process is performed to start the rotation of each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R.

[0088] In the rotation start process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 17, in step S601, a repetition counter provided in the RAM 106 is set to 3. In step S602, it is determined whether a post-pseudo-game flag indicating that a pseudo-game has been played is set. If the post-pseudo-game flag is not set, i.e., if a pseudo-game has not been played, the process proceeds to step S607, where the acceleration of the reels is started according to the value of the repetition counter. More specifically, if the value of the repetition counter is 3, the spin start setting table address for the left reel 32L is acquired; if the value of the repetition counter is 2, the spin start setting table address for the center reel 32M is acquired; and if the value of the repetition counter is 1, the spin start setting table address for the right reel 32R is acquired. That is, in step S607, only the spin start setting table address according to the value of the repetition counter is acquired, and no drive control of the stepping motor is performed. Drive control of the stepping motor is performed in the stepping motor control process S107 of the timer interrupt process described above based on the acquired spin start setting table.

[0089] If the rotation start setting table address corresponding to the value of the repeat counter is acquired in step S607, the process proceeds to step S608, where 1 is subtracted from the value of the repeat counter. In step S609, it is determined whether the value of the repeat counter has reached 0, and if the value of the repeat counter has not reached 0, the process returns to step S602. If the value of the repeat counter has reached 0, the process proceeds to step S610, where it is determined whether the post-pseudo game flag has been set. If the post-pseudo game flag has not been set, the process ends.

[0090] As described above, in the spin start process, acceleration begins in the order of the left reel 32L, the center reel 32M, and the right reel 32R.

[0091] Returning to the explanation of the reel control process, in step S403, it is determined whether stop information for reel stop control in this game has been set. If the stop information has not been set, the process proceeds to step S404, where a stop information setting process is performed to set the stop information. In the stop information setting process, stop information is created according to the result of the winning / losing combination determination, and the created result is stored in the stop information storage area 106b. Note that in step S404, only stop information for reel stop control in this game (hereinafter simply referred to as "stop information") is set, and even if a pseudo game is performed, stop information for reel stop control in the pseudo game (hereinafter referred to as "pseudo game stop information") is not set. In step S405, a reel rotation number counter provided in RAM 106 is set to 3, and in step S406, command transmission process 1 is performed.

[0092] In the command transmission process 1, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 18, a pseudo-game rotation start command is set in step S701. The pseudo-game rotation start command is a command transmitted to the display control device 81 to indicate that the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have started spinning in the pseudo-game. In step S702, it is determined whether a pseudo-game flag indicating that a pseudo-game is being performed is set. If the pseudo-game flag is not set, i.e., if a pseudo-game is not being performed, the pseudo-game rotation start command is cleared in step S703, and a rotation start command is set in step S704. The rotation start command is a command transmitted to the display control device 81 to indicate that the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have started spinning in the actual game. In step S705, the set rotation start command or pseudo-game rotation start command is transmitted to the display control device 81. This process then terminates.

[0093] Returning to the explanation of the reel control process, if command transmission process 1 is completed in step S406, the process proceeds to step S407, where it is determined whether or not there is an accelerating reel. If there is an accelerating reel, the process waits until the acceleration of all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R has finished. If the acceleration of all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R has finished and all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are rotating at a constant speed at a predetermined rotation speed, the process proceeds to step S408, where instruction monitor display process is performed. In the following step S409, command transmission process 2 is performed.

[0094] In the command transmission process 2, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 20, it is determined in step S901 whether or not the pseudo game flag is set. If the pseudo game flag is not set, the process proceeds to step S902, where a stop enable command is transmitted to the display control device 81. By receiving the stop enable command, the display control device 81 determines that all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have started rotating at a constant speed in the main game. Also, in step S902, the display control device 81 turns on lamps (not shown) of the stop switches 42 to 44 to notify the player that it is now possible to issue a stop command in the main game. Thereafter, the command transmission process 2 ends.

[0095] When the command transmission process 2 is completed, the process proceeds to step S410, where a stop control process is performed.

[0096] In the stop control process, as shown in the flowchart of Figure 21, it is determined in step S1001 whether or not the pseudo game flag is set. If the pseudo game flag is not set, the process proceeds to step S1008, where it is determined whether or not the stop switch corresponding to the spinning reel has been operated, i.e., whether or not a stop command has been issued. If a stop command has not been issued, the process returns to step S1001. If a stop command has been issued, the process proceeds to step S1009, where a stop position determination process is performed to stop the spinning reel.

[0097] In the stop position determination process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 22, in step S1101, the symbol number of the reaching symbol that has reached the base position (the lower row in this embodiment) at the time the stop switch is operated is obtained. Specifically, the symbol number of the reaching symbol that has reached the base position is obtained based on the number of excitation pulses output from the time the detection signal of the reel index sensor is input. In step S1102, 1 is subtracted from the value of the reel rotation counter. In step S1103, it is determined whether or not the pseudo game flag is set. If the pseudo game flag is not set, the process proceeds to step S1106, where a stop command is sent to the display control device 81. By receiving the stop command, the display control device 81 determines which stop switch was operated to issue the stop command and which reel will stop. In addition, in step S1106, the lamp (not shown) of the stop switch that issued the stop command is turned off to notify the player that it is no longer possible to issue a stop command in this game. In the next step S1107, the number of reels to be stopped is calculated based on the stop information stored in the stop information storage area 106b. In the slot machine 10, five stop patterns are available for stopping each reel 32L, 32M, 32R when the stop switches 42-44 are operated: a stop pattern in which the reaching symbol that has reached the base position is stopped as is; a stop pattern in which the corresponding reel is stopped after sliding one symbol; a stop pattern in which the corresponding reel is stopped after sliding two symbols; a stop pattern in which the corresponding reel is stopped after sliding three symbols; and a stop pattern in which the corresponding reel is stopped after sliding four symbols. Therefore, in step S1107, a value of 0 to 4 is calculated as the number of reels to be stopped based on the stop information stored in the stop information storage area 106b. Then, in step S1108, the calculated number of reels to be stopped is added to the symbol number of the reaching symbol to determine the symbol number of the stop symbol that will actually stop at the base position. In step S1109, it is determined whether or not the pseudo game flag is set, and if the pseudo game flag is not set, the stop information change process is performed in step S1110, and then the stop position determination process is terminated.

[0098] Here, the stop information change process is a process of changing the stop information stored in the stop information storage area 106b of the RAM 106 after the reels have stopped. In the stop information change process, the stop information is changed based on the set win flag and the stop results of the stopped reels. In the slot machine 10, when any of the left-center-right bell, left-right-center bell, center-left-right bell, center-right-left bell, right-center-left bell, and right-left-center bell is won (see FIG. 13), the stop information change process is performed to change the winning mode established by the operation order of the stop switches 42 to 44 that generated the stop command.

[0099] For example, if the left, center, and right bell is won, the stop information is changed so that if the left stop switch 42 → center stop switch 43 → right stop switch 44 are operated in this order, a bell win will be achieved, and if the stop switches 42 to 44 are operated in a different order, a compensation role 1 win or a compensation role 4 win will be achieved. The same applies to the left, right, and center bells, center, left, and right bells, center, right, and left bells, right, center, left bell, and right, left, and center bells. The stop information is changed so that if the stop switches 42 to 44 are operated in the order corresponding to the name of the winning role, a bell win will be achieved, and if the stop switches 42 to 44 are operated in a different order, a compensation role win corresponding to the winning role will be achieved. Note that, hereinafter, the left, center, right bell, left, right center bell, center, left, right bell, center, right, left bell, center, right, center, left bell, and right, left, and center bells are collectively referred to as "push order roles" or "push order bells."

[0100] Incidentally, in this slot machine 10, if a replay is won through the stop information setting process and the stop information changing process, a replay win is achieved regardless of the operation sequence and timing of the stop switches 42 to 44. If a push-order bell is won, a bell win is achieved regardless of the operation timing if the stop switches 42 to 44 are operated in the correct operation sequence, and a supplementary win is achieved regardless of the operation timing if the stop switches 42 to 44 are operated in the incorrect operation sequence. If a one-coin win is won, a supplementary win is achieved regardless of the operation sequence and timing of the stop switches 42 to 44. If a watermelon, cherry, BB1, or BB2 is won, the corresponding win is achieved by operating the stop switches 42 to 44 aiming for the winning symbol, i.e., at the specified timing.

[0101] Returning to the explanation of the stop control process, when the stop position determination process is completed, the process proceeds to step S1010, where it is determined whether the value of the reel spin counter has reached 0. If the value of the reel spin counter is not 0, the process returns to step S1001. That is, in this slot machine 10, once the stop symbol number of the reel for which a stop command has been issued is determined, it is determined whether a next stop command has been issued in step S1008, regardless of whether the reel for which the stop command has been issued has actually stopped. Therefore, the player can issue stop commands consecutively without waiting for the reel to stop. Note that the reel is not stopped in the stop control process (normal process), but in the stepping motor control process S107 of the timer interrupt process described above. In the stepping motor control process, it is determined whether the symbol number of the arrival symbol of the reel for which the stop command has been issued is equal to the stop symbol number, and if so, the brake process is performed to stop the reel for which the stop command has been issued.

[0102] If it is determined in step S1010 that the value of the reel rotation counter is 0, this means that stop symbol numbers have been determined for all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R, so the process proceeds to step S1011, where it is determined whether the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have become stop symbol numbers. If the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have not become stop symbol numbers, the process waits until the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R become stop symbol numbers. If the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have become stop symbol numbers, the process proceeds to step S1012, where an all-reel stop completion command is sent to the display control device 81. By receiving the all-reel stop completion command, the display control device 81 determines that all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have reached their stop positions. In the next step S1013, it is determined whether all of the stop switches 42-44 are in an unoperated state. More specifically, it is determined whether all of the input signals from the stop detection sensors 42a-44a are OFF. If the input signal from any of the stop detection sensors 42a-44a is ON, this means that the player is operating the corresponding stop switch, and the process continues to wait. If all of the stop switches 42-44 are in an unoperated state, the process proceeds to step S1014, where it is determined whether an instruction monitor (described later) is being displayed. If an instruction monitor is being displayed, the instruction monitor is cleared in step S1015. If the instruction monitor is cleared or if the instruction monitor is not being displayed, the process waits for 100 msec in step S1016 and then terminates. The reason for waiting for 100 msec in step S1016 is to wait for the braking process to be completed in the stepping motor control process and for the reel swing to converge.

[0103] Returning to the explanation of the reel control process, when the stop control process is completed, the process proceeds to step S411, where it is determined whether or not the pseudo game flag is set. If the pseudo game flag is not set, the process is terminated.

[0104] Next, the medal payout process in step S213 will be outlined.

[0105] In the medal payout process, a payout determination process is first performed. The payout determination process is a process for setting the number of medals to be paid out, with one of the conditions being that a winning combination of symbols is aligned on a payout line. In the payout determination process, a combination of symbols formed on a payout line is derived from the symbol numbers of the symbols stopped on the lower rows of each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R, and a determination is made as to whether a winning combination has been achieved on the payout line. If a winning combination has not been achieved, the payout determination process is terminated. If a winning combination has been achieved, the payout determination process is terminated. If a winning combination has been achieved, the payout determination process is terminated. If a winning combination is ... This error state is maintained until the reset switch 72 is operated. When the payout determination process is completed, a winning result command is sent to the display control device 81 to let it know which condition device won in this game.

[0106] When a winning result command is sent, it is determined whether the payout number set in the payout information storage area is 0. If the payout number is 0, it means that it was determined in the previous payout determination process that a small winning combination was not achieved. In such a case, it is determined whether a replay winning combination has been achieved based on the condition device set in the payout determination process. If a replay winning combination has not been achieved, the medal payout process is terminated as is, and if a replay winning combination has been achieved, the replay setting process is performed and the medal payout process is terminated. In addition, in the start waiting process S204 described above, if it is determined that the replay setting process has been performed, an automatic insertion process is performed.

[0107] On the other hand, if the payout number set in the payout information storage area is not 0, medals equal to the payout number are paid out, and the medal payout process is terminated. Specifically, regarding the payout of medals, if the count value of the credit counter has not reached the upper limit (50 medals stored), the payout number is added to the count value of the credit counter, and the value after the addition is displayed on the credit display unit 60. Furthermore, if the count value of the credit counter has reached the upper limit, or if the count value reaches the upper limit while the payout number is being added, the medal payout rotating plate is driven, and medals are paid out from the hopper device 51 to the medal tray 50 via the medal discharge port 49. Note that the medal payout process also involves changing the payout number displayed on the payout number display unit 62 in accordance with the payout of medals.

[0108] Next, the game section processing in step S214 will be described later, and the BB state processing in step S215 will be described.

[0109] In the BB state processing, it is determined whether the current gaming state is the BB state. If it is not the BB state, it is determined whether the BB1 ​​hit flag or the BB2 hit flag is set. If neither of the BB hit flags is set, a state command is sent to the display control device 81, and the BB state processing ends. Here, the state command is a command sent to the display control device 81 to allow the display control device 81 to grasp the gaming state at the end of the game (i.e., the gaming state of the next game), and a state command corresponding to the setting flag set in the state information storage area 106c is sent.

[0110] If any of the BB winning flags is set, it is determined whether the corresponding BB winning has occurred based on the condition device set in the previous payout determination process. If the corresponding BB winning has not occurred, a status command is sent and the BB status process is terminated. If the corresponding BB winning has occurred, the BB winning flag set in the winning flag storage area 106a of the RAM 106 is cleared. At this time, if a BB1 winning has occurred, a BB1 setting flag is set in the status information storage area 106c, and the remaining BB game number counter provided in the status information storage area 106c is set to 30. If a BB2 winning has occurred, a BB2 setting flag is set in the status information storage area 106c, and the remaining BB game number counter provided in the status information storage area 106c is set to 30. Thereafter, a status command is sent and the BB status process is terminated.

[0111] If the current game state is the BB state, 1 is subtracted from the value of the remaining BB game number counter, and it is determined whether the value of the remaining BB game number counter has reached 0. If the value of the remaining BB game number counter has not reached 0, a state command is sent and the BB state processing is terminated. If the value of the remaining BB game number counter has reached 0, this means that the BB state termination condition has been met, so the BB setting flag is cleared. After that, a state command is sent and the BB state processing is terminated.

[0112] As described above, when the BB1 ​​setting flag or the BB2 setting flag is set in the state information storage area 106c, the game state remains in the BB state until 30 games have been played. In the BB state based on the BB1 ​​setting flag, only three-coin play is possible, and a one-coin role is always won, resulting in a compensation win in which one medal is paid out. Therefore, when the game transitions to the BB state based on the BB1 ​​setting flag, the player will lose 60 (= (3 - 1) x 30) medals before the BB state ends. In the BB state based on the BB2 setting flag, only two-coin play is possible, and a one-coin role is always won, resulting in a compensation win in which one medal is paid out. Therefore, when the game transitions to the BB state based on the BB2 setting flag, the player will lose 30 (= (2 - 1) x 30) medals before the BB state ends.

[0113] In this slot machine 10, the main control device 101 manages two types of game states, the normal state and the BB state, and also manages two types of game zones, the normal zone and the advantageous zone.

[0114] FIG. 24 is a diagram showing the transition of the gaming area.

[0115] The normal zone is a game zone in which a lottery can be held to determine whether or not to transition to the advantageous zone. In the normal zone, if the push order bell is won, the operation order of the stop switches 42 to 44 is not announced. Therefore, in the normal zone, if two coins are played, a decrease of approximately 0.95 medals is expected per game, and if three coins are played, a decrease of approximately 0.91 medals is expected per game. If the lottery for transition to the advantageous zone is won, the game zone will transition to the advantageous zone.

[0116] The advantageous zone is a game zone in which the operation order of the stop switches 42 to 44 can be announced if the push order bell is won. In other words, the advantageous zone is a game zone that is more advantageous to the player than the normal zone in that the operation order can be announced. The advantageous zone consists of two game modes: chance mode and notification mode. If the player wins the lottery to transition to the advantageous zone in the normal zone, the game transitions to the chance mode of the advantageous zone. The advantageous zone ends when 1,500 plays are played in the advantageous zone or when the difference in the number of coins in the advantageous zone reaches 2,400, regardless of the game mode at that time. When the difference in the number of coins in the advantageous zone reaches 2,400, more specifically, when the increase in the number of coins owned by the player in the advantageous zone reaches 2,400 without reaching 0, in other words, when the difference in the number of coins from the base point at which the player's owned coins in the advantageous zone have decreased the most reaches 2,400.

[0117] The chance mode is a game mode in which a transition lottery is held to determine whether or not to transition to the notification mode. The chance mode ends when the transition lottery is won or when a predetermined number of games have been played in the chance mode. When the chance mode ends, the game transitions to the notification mode. In the chance mode, as in the normal mode, if the push order bell is won, the operation order of the stop switches 42 to 44 is not announced. Therefore, in the chance mode, if two coins are played, approximately 0.95 coins are expected to be lost per game, and if three coins are played, approximately 0.91 coins are expected to be lost per game.

[0118] The notification mode is a game mode in which, in a three-coin game, the operation sequence of the stop switches 42-44 that will result in a bell win if the push order bell is selected is announced. Therefore, in the notification mode, a decrease of approximately 0.95 medals is expected per game in a two-coin game, while an increase of approximately 3.5 medals is expected per game in a three-coin game. The notification mode ends when the net increase in medals in the notification mode reaches a predetermined number. When the notification mode ends, the advantageous zone also ends and the game transitions to the normal zone.

[0119] As described above, the slot machine 10 has a game feature in which the player increases the number of medals owned by playing with three medals in the notification mode.

[0120] Below, various processes performed by the main control device 101 when managing game zones will be explained with reference to the flowcharts in Figure 25 and subsequent figures. To make it easier to understand, various processes performed by the main control device 101 in each game zone will be explained individually.

[0121] First, the processing in the normal section will be described.

[0122] 25 is a flowchart showing the section lottery process in the normal section. The section lottery process is a process performed after the winning / losing hand determination is completed in the lottery process (step S309, see FIG. 12), and is performed at the start of the game.

[0123] In step S1301, it is determined whether the current game is a three-coin game. If it is a three-coin game, the process proceeds to step S1302, where it is determined whether a win flag is set in the win flag storage area 106a, i.e., whether any winning combination has been achieved. If a win flag is set, the process proceeds to step S1303, where it is determined whether the win flag is set in the current game. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 13, a BB2 win does not occur in a three-coin game. Therefore, if the only win flag that is set is the BB2 win flag, it is determined that the win flag is not set in the current game. If a win flag other than the BB2 win flag is set, it is determined that the win flag is set in the current game. If the win flag is set in the current game, a transition flag is set in step S1304, and the section indicator 66 is turned ON in step S1305, and this process ends. If the current game is a two-coin game, if the winning flag is not set, or if the winning flag is set but not for the current game, the process ends.

[0124] 26 is a flowchart showing the game section processing in the normal section. The game section processing is processing that is carried out after the medal payout processing is completed (step S214, see FIG. 11), and is carried out at the end of the game.

[0125] In step S1401, it is determined whether or not the transition flag is set. If the transition flag is set, it means that the transition lottery has been won in the current game. In this case, the advantageous zone transition process shown in steps S1402 to S1408 is performed.

[0126] In the advantageous zone transition process, the transition flag is cleared in step S1402. In step S1403, the game zone flag stored in the zone information storage area 106d is changed to an advantageous flag, and in step S1404, the zone game number counter provided in the zone information storage area 106d is set to 0. In the following step S1405, the game mode flag stored in the zone information storage area 106d is changed to a chance flag. In step S1406, the transition game number counter provided in the zone information storage area 106d is set to 700. In step S1407, the mode game number counter provided in the zone information storage area 106d is set to 0, and in step S1408, the difference number counter provided in the zone information storage area 106d is set to 0.

[0127] If it is determined in step S1401 that the transition flag is not set, or if the difference number counter is set to 0 in step S1408, an interval command is sent in step S1409, and this process ends. Here, the interval command is a command sent to the display control device 81 to allow various information regarding the game interval at the end of the game (i.e., the game interval and game mode of the next game, and if it is an advantageous interval, the number of games played in the advantageous interval and the number of games played in the game mode, etc.), and in step S1409, an interval command corresponding to the game interval flag, game mode flag, and values ​​of various counters set in the interval information storage area 106d is sent.

[0128] As described above, if a winning combination is achieved during three-coin play in the normal zone, the game moves to the chance mode in the advantageous zone. As shown in FIG. 13, for example, in the case of "setting 3," if the BB1 ​​winning flag and the BB2 winning flag are not carried over, the probability of a miss occurring is approximately 1 in 13, and if the BB1 ​​winning flag or the BB2 winning flag is carried over, the probability of a miss occurring is approximately 1 in 6.4. Therefore, if three-coin play is performed in the normal zone, the game will end in a few games. Note that if two-coin play is performed, the game will not move to the advantageous zone regardless of the winning combination.

[0129] Next, the processing in the chance mode of the advantageous zone will be explained.

[0130] 27 is a flowchart showing the section lottery process in the chance mode. The section lottery process is a process performed after the winning / losing judgment of the winning combination is completed in the lottery process (step S309, see FIG. 12), and is performed at the start of the game.

[0131] In step S1501, it is determined whether the current game is a three-coin game. If it is a three-coin game, the process proceeds to step S1502, where it is determined whether a rare combination has been won. In this slot machine 10, watermelon and cherry are set as rare combinations, so in step S1502, it is determined whether a watermelon win flag or a cherry win flag has been set. If a rare combination has been won, the process proceeds to step S1503, where a transition lottery is held to determine whether to transition to the notification mode. In the transition lottery in the chance mode, a win / loss determination is made based on the win flag that has been set and the random number obtained when determining whether the combination has been won or not. In step S1504, it is determined whether the transition lottery has been won. If the transition lottery has been won, the transition flag is set in step S1505 and the process is terminated. If the transition lottery has not been won, the process is terminated without setting the transition flag. If the current game is a two-coin game instead of a three-coin game, or if a rare combination is not won, the process ends without conducting the transition lottery.

[0132] 28 is a flowchart showing the game section processing in the chance mode. The game section processing is processing that is carried out after the medal payout processing is completed (step S214, see FIG. 11), and is carried out at the end of the game.

[0133] In step S1601, an end determination process is performed.

[0134] In the termination determination process, as shown in the flowchart of Fig. 29, in step S1701, 1 is added to the value of the interval game number counter, and in step S1702, it is determined whether the value of the interval game number counter has reached 1500. If the value of the interval game number counter has not reached 1500, the process proceeds to step S1706, where it is determined whether a replay win has been achieved. If a replay win has not been achieved, the process proceeds to step S1707, where a difference in number of coins adjustment process is performed to change the value of the difference in number of coins counter.

[0135] In the difference coin adjustment process, the number of medals bet (3 or 2 in this embodiment) is subtracted from the number of medals paid out in the current game, and the result of this subtraction is added to the difference coin counter. After that, it is determined whether the value of the difference coin counter is 0 or greater. If the value of the difference coin counter is less than 0, the value of the difference coin counter is changed to 0 and the difference coin adjustment process is terminated, and if the value of the difference coin counter is 0 or greater, the difference coin adjustment process is terminated as is. Note that the reason the difference coin adjustment process is not performed when a replay win is established is because the result of subtracting the number of medals bet from the number of medals paid out in the current game is 0, so there is no need to perform the difference coin adjustment process.

[0136] If it is determined in step S1706 that a replay win has been achieved, or if the difference in number of coins adjustment processing has been performed in step S1707, it is determined in step S1708 whether the value of the difference in number of coins counter is greater than 2400. If the value of the difference in number of coins counter is 2400 or less, this processing ends as is.

[0137] If it is determined in step S1702 that the value of the interval game number counter is 1500, or if it is determined in step S1708 that the value of the difference coin counter is greater than 2400, advantageous interval end processing shown in steps S1703 to S1705 is performed, and this processing is terminated. In the advantageous interval end processing, the game interval flag stored in the interval information storage area 106d is changed to a normal flag in step S1703, and the interval indicator 66 is turned OFF in step S1704. In step S1705, initialization processing is performed in response to the end of the advantageous interval. In the initialization processing, processing is performed to initialize information related to the instruction function stored in the interval information storage area 106d (for example, the interval game number counter value, etc.).

[0138] Returning to the explanation of the game zone processing, in step S1602, it is determined whether the current game zone is an advantageous zone. If it is determined that the current game zone is not an advantageous zone but a normal zone, this means that the advantageous zone end processing has been performed in the end determination processing of step S1601, and after sending the zone command in step S1610, this processing is terminated.

[0139] If the current play zone is a favorable zone, the process proceeds to step S1603, where it is determined whether the current play is a three-coin play. If it is a three-coin play, the value of the mode game number counter is incremented by 1 in step S1604, and it is determined in step S1605 whether the transition flag is set. If the transition flag is set, this means that the lottery for transition to the notification mode has been won, so the transition flag is cleared in step S1606, and the play mode flag stored in the zone information storage area 106d is changed to a notification flag in step S1608. In step S1609, the net increase number counter provided in the zone information storage area 106d is set to 120. Thereafter, an zone command is sent in step S1610, and this process ends.

[0140] If it is determined in step S1605 that the transition flag is not set, this means that the lottery for transitioning to the notification mode was not won. In this case, the process proceeds to step S1607, where it is determined whether the value of the mode game number counter matches the value of the transition game number counter. If the value of the mode game number counter does not match the value of the transition game number counter, an interval command is sent in step S1610, and then this process ends. On the other hand, if the value of the mode game number counter matches the value of the transition game number counter, the game mode flag stored in the interval information storage area 106d is changed to an announcement flag in step S1608, and the net increase number counter is set to 120 in step S1609. Thereafter, an interval command is sent in step S1610, and this process ends.

[0141] If it is determined in step S1603 that the current game is a two-coin game and not a three-coin game, an interval command is sent in step S1610 without updating the mode game number counter, and this process is terminated.

[0142] As described above, even if the player does not win the transition lottery, the chance mode transitions to the notification mode if a three-coin play corresponding to the value of the transition game counter is performed. The value set in the transition game counter when transitioning from the normal zone to the advantageous zone is 700. Therefore, the event in which the value of the interval game counter becomes 1500 during the game zone end determination process (step S1702, see FIG. 21) does not occur if three-coin play is performed. Furthermore, because the expected medal gain or loss in the chance mode is -0.91 (three-coin play) or -0.95 (two-coin play), the event in which the value of the difference medal counter exceeds 2400 during the game zone end determination process (step S1708, see FIG. 21) does not occur. In other words, in this slot machine 10, when a three-coin play is performed, the event in which the advantageous zone ends in the chance mode and the player transitions to the normal zone does not occur.

[0143] Next, the processing in the advantageous zone notification mode will be explained.

[0144] 30 is a flowchart showing the section lottery process in the notification mode. The section lottery process is a process performed after the winning / losing hand determination is completed in the lottery process (step S309, see FIG. 12), and is performed at the start of the game.

[0145] In step S1801, it is determined whether the current game is a three-coin game. If it is a three-coin game, the process proceeds to step S1802, where it is determined whether a rare combination has been won. If a rare combination has been won, the process proceeds to step S1803, where an add-on lottery is conducted to determine whether or not to increase the value of the net increase number counter. The add-on lottery is conducted based on the set win flag and the random number obtained when determining whether or not the combination has been won. Incidentally, in the add-on lottery, for example, in a setting of 3, if a watermelon is won, there is approximately a one-in-five probability of winning one of the add-on numbers 30, 50, 100, or 300, and if a cherry is won, there is approximately a one-in-three probability of winning one of the add-on numbers 10, 20, 30, or 50. In step S1804, it is determined whether or not the add-on lottery has been won. If the add-on lottery has been won, the add-on flag is set in step S1805, and an add-on command is sent in step S1806. Here, the add-on command is a command sent to the display control device 81 to inform the player that they have won the add-on lottery and the number of add-on coins to be added to the value of the net increase number counter. In step S1807, a value corresponding to the result of the add-on lottery is added to the value of the net increase number counter. Then, this process ends. If the add-on lottery is not won, this process ends without setting the add-on flag. If the current game is a two-coin game instead of a three-coin game, or if a rare combination is not won, this process ends without conducting the add-on lottery.

[0146] Here, a specific process performed in the notification mode in the reel control process will be described.

[0147] As shown in the flowchart of FIG. 15, in step S401, pseudo game determination processing is performed.

[0148] In the pseudo game determination process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 16, in step S501, it is determined whether the current game mode is the notification mode, and if it is not the notification mode, the process is terminated. If the current game mode is the notification mode, the process proceeds to step S502, where it is determined whether the bonus flag is set. If the bonus flag is set, i.e., if the bonus lottery is won, the bonus flag is cleared in step S503, and the pseudo game flag is set in step S504, and the process is terminated. If the bonus flag is not set, i.e., if the bonus lottery is not won, a pseudo game lottery is held in step S505 to determine whether or not to play a pseudo game. In the pseudo game lottery, a win / loss determination is made based on the win flag that has been set and the random number obtained when determining whether or not the winning combination has been won. In step S506, it is determined whether or not the pseudo game lottery has been won, and if the pseudo game lottery is not won, the process is terminated. If the pseudo game lottery is won, the pseudo game flag is set in step S504, and this process ends.

[0149] As described above, in the notification mode, if the additional lottery is won or if the pseudo game lottery is won, the pseudo game flag is set and a pseudo game is played in that game round.

[0150] FIG. 31 is a diagram showing an example of the rotation state of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R and the display state of the auxiliary display portion 65 when a pseudo game is played.

[0151] In the notification mode, the auxiliary display unit 65 displays an image of a young man character strolling along a road, and the number of remaining payouts until the end of the notification mode is displayed in the upper right corner of the auxiliary display unit 65. In FIG. 31(a), a bell win was achieved in the previous game, and the upper right corner of the auxiliary display unit 65 displays that 84 coins remain until the end of the notification mode. In a pseudo game, when each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R starts to spin, as shown in FIG. 31(b), a notification urging the player to operate the stop switches 42 to 44 in order to aim for the "red 7" symbol and a notification that the current game is a pseudo game are displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65. At this time, the number of remaining payouts until the end of the notification mode is not displayed. When the "red 7" symbols on each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R pseudo-stop on the center line L2, the auxiliary display unit 65 displays a notification that the current game is a pseudo game, and also displays that 100 coins will be added, as shown in FIG. 31(c). When the pseudo game ends, the left reel 32L starts spinning, as shown in FIG. 31(d). At this time, the auxiliary display unit 65 ends the notification that the pseudo game is in progress, and displays an image of a young man character strolling along the road and a message that the number of coins remaining to be paid out until the end of the notification mode has increased to 184, thereby notifying the player that the pseudo game has been switched to the main game.

[0152] FIG. 32 is a diagram showing another example of the rotational state of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R and the display state of the auxiliary display portion 65 when a pseudo game is played.

[0153] In FIG. 32(a), a bell win was achieved in the previous game, and the upper right corner of the auxiliary display unit 65 displays that 84 coins remain until the end of the notification mode. When a pseudo game is being played, as shown in FIG. 32(b), when each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R starts spinning, a notification urging the player to operate the stop switches 42-44 to aim for the "red 7" symbol and a notification that the current game is a pseudo game are displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65. At this time, the number of payouts remaining until the end of the notification mode is not displayed. If the "red 7" symbol on each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R does not pseudo-stop on the center line L2, as shown in FIG. 32(c), the auxiliary display unit 65 displays a notification that the current game is a pseudo game and that no bonus will be added. When the pseudo game ends, as shown in FIG. 32(d), spinning begins with the left reel 32L. At this time, if the push order bell is won, the auxiliary display unit 65 ends the notification that the pseudo game is in progress, and displays the operation sequence that can achieve the bell win and that the remaining number of payouts until the end of the notification mode remains at 84, thereby notifying the player that the pseudo game has been switched to the main game. If the center left and right bells are won, the operation sequence of "213" is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 as shown in Figure 32(d).

[0154] As described above, when a pseudo game is played in the slot machine 10, the game progresses in the order of pseudo game → main game in one game session. Therefore, the following will be described in order, starting with the reel control process in the pseudo game.

[0155] As shown in the flowchart of FIG. 15, in step S402, a rotation start process is performed to start the rotation of each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R.

[0156] In the rotation start process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 17, in step S601, a repetition counter provided in RAM 106 is set to 3. In step S602, it is determined whether a post-pseudo game flag indicating that a pseudo game has been played is set. If the post-pseudo game flag is not set, i.e., if a pseudo game is not being played, the process proceeds to step S607, where acceleration of the reels begins according to the value of the repetition counter. In step S608, 1 is subtracted from the value of the repetition counter. In step S609, it is determined whether the value of the repetition counter has reached 0. If the value of the repetition counter has not reached 0, the process returns to step S602. If the value of the repetition counter has reached 0, the process proceeds to step S610, where it is determined whether a post-pseudo game flag is set. If the post-pseudo game flag is not set, the process ends.

[0157] Returning to the explanation of the reel control process, in step S403, it is determined whether or not stop information for reel stop control in this game has been set. Since the stop information has not been set in the first step S403, the process proceeds to step S404, where a stop information setting process is performed to set the stop information. That is, in this slot machine 10, after performing the rotation start process for the pseudo game, i.e., while the pseudo game is being executed, the stop information for this game is set. Thereafter, in step S405, the reel rotation counter provided in RAM 106 is set to 3, and in step S406, command transmission process 1 is performed.

[0158] In command transmission process 1, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 18, a pseudo game rotation start command is set in step S701. In step S702, it is determined whether or not the pseudo game flag is set. If the pseudo game flag is set, the process proceeds to step S705, where the pseudo game rotation start command is sent to the display control device 81. Thereafter, this process ends. Upon receiving the pseudo game rotation start command, the display control device 81 starts the auxiliary effects for the pseudo game shown in FIG. 31(b) and the like.

[0159] Returning to the explanation of the reel control process, if command transmission process 1 is completed in step S406, the process proceeds to step S407, where it is determined whether or not there is an accelerating reel. If there is an accelerating reel, the process waits until the acceleration of all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R has finished. If the acceleration of all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R has finished and all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are rotating at a constant speed at a predetermined rotation speed, the process proceeds to step S408, where instruction monitor display process is performed.

[0160] Here, the instruction monitor is a display unit that notifies the operation order of the stop switches 42 to 44 that can achieve a bell win, and is managed by the main control unit 101. In the slot machine 10, the payout number display unit 62 functions as an instruction monitor, and when a left, center, or right bell win is achieved, that is, when a bell win can be achieved by operating the left stop switch 42, the center stop switch 43, and the right stop switch 44 in that order, the payout number display unit 62 displays "1." When a center, right, or left bell win is achieved, the payout number display unit 62 displays "2." When a right, left, or center bell win is achieved, the payout number display unit 62 displays "3." When a left, right, or center bell win is achieved, the payout number display unit 62 displays "4." When a center, left, or right bell win is achieved, the payout number display unit 62 displays "5." When a right, center, or left bell win is achieved, the payout number display unit 62 displays "6."

[0161] Now, in the instruction monitor display process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 19, it is determined in step S801 whether the current game mode is the notification mode. If the current game mode is the notification mode, the process proceeds to step S802, where it is determined whether the push order bell has been won. If the push order bell has been won, it is further determined in step S803 whether the pseudo game flag has been set. If the pseudo game flag has been set, this process ends without displaying the instruction monitor. In other words, in a pseudo game, even if the push order bell has been won, the operation sequence that can achieve a bell win is not displayed on the instruction monitor. If the current game mode is not the notification mode or if the push order bell has not been won, this process ends.

[0162] Returning to the explanation of the reel control process, in step S409, command transmission process 2 is performed.

[0163] In the command transmission process 2, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 20, it is determined in step S901 whether or not the pseudo game flag is set. If the pseudo game flag is set, the process proceeds to step S903, where a pseudo stop enable command is transmitted to the display control device 81. By receiving the pseudo stop enable command, the display control device 81 determines that all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have started rotating at a constant speed in the pseudo game. Also, in step S903, the lamps (not shown) of each stop switch 42 to 44 are lit to notify the player or the like that it is now possible to issue a pseudo stop command in the pseudo game. Thereafter, the command transmission process 2 is terminated.

[0164] When the command transmission process 2 is completed, the process proceeds to step S410, where a stop control process is performed.

[0165] In the stop control process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 21, it is determined in step S1001 whether a pseudo game flag is set. If the pseudo game flag is set, the process proceeds to step S1002, where it is determined whether a cancel operation to end the pseudo game has been performed. More specifically, in this slot machine 10, the settlement switch 59 functions as a cancel operation means, so it is determined whether the settlement switch 59 has been operated. If a cancel operation has not been performed, the process proceeds to step S1008, where it is determined whether a stop switch corresponding to the rotating reel in the pseudo game has been operated, i.e., whether a pseudo stop command has been issued. If a pseudo stop command has not been issued, the process returns to step S1001. If a pseudo stop command has been issued, the process proceeds to step S1009, where a stop position determination process is performed to pseudo-stop the rotating reel.

[0166] In the stop position determination process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 22, in step S1101, the symbol number of the reached symbol is obtained. In step S1102, 1 is subtracted from the value of the reel rotation counter. In step S1103, it is determined whether the pseudo game flag is set. If the pseudo game flag is set, the process proceeds to step S1104, where pseudo game stop information is referenced. ROM 105 of main control device 101 pre-stores a slide table (stop table) for pseudo stop control in a pseudo game based on winning the additional lottery, and a slide table for pseudo stop control in a pseudo game based on winning the pseudo game lottery. In step S1104, the slide table corresponding to the execution trigger of the pseudo game is referenced. Here, the slide table is a table that determines how far reels 32L, 32M, and 32R should slide (spin) from the timing when stop switches 42 to 44 are operated before a pseudo stop is made. In other words, a slide table is a group of stop data that can derive the relationship between the reaching pattern that reaches the base position when the stop switch 42 to 44 is pressed and the pseudo-stop pattern that actually causes a pseudo-stop at the base position.

[0167] Figure 33 is a slip table referenced in a simulated game based on a winning bonus lottery. A symbol with a slip count of 0 is a symbol that actually stops in the lower row. For example, if the left stop switch 42 is operated when the No. 15 "Replay" symbol on the left reel 32L has reached the bottom row, the left reel 32L will stop without slipping, and the No. 16 "Red 7" symbol will stop in the middle row. Furthermore, a symbol with a non-zero slip count indicates that the reel will slide the number of symbols indicated. For example, if the left stop switch 42 is operated when the No. 11 "BAR" symbol on the left reel 32L has reached the bottom row, the left reel 32L will slide four symbols, and the No. 15 "Replay" symbol will stop in the lower row and the No. 16 "Red 7" symbol will stop in the middle row. In this way, in the slide table, the number of slides when the stop switches 42 to 44 are operated at the timing when the symbols on each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R reach the bottom row is set for each symbol number. In the slide table shown in Figure 33, regardless of the operation timing of each of the stop switches 42 to 44, the number 16 "red 7" symbol on each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R will stop pseudo-stop in the middle row.

[0168] 34 is a slide table that is referred to in a pseudo game based on winning a pseudo game lottery. In this slide table, regardless of the operation timing of each stop switch 42 to 44, the number 16 "red 7" symbol on the left reel 32L and the center reel 32M will pseudo-stop in the middle row, while the number 16 "red 7" symbol on the right reel 32R will pseudo-stop in the lower row instead of the middle row.

[0169] Returning to the explanation of the stop position determination process, in step S1105, a pseudo stop command is sent to the display control device 81. By receiving the pseudo stop command, the display control device 81 determines which stop switch was operated to generate the pseudo stop command and which reel will be pseudo-stopped. In step S1106, the display control device 81 turns off the lamp (not shown) of the stop switch that generated the pseudo stop command, thereby informing the player that it is no longer possible to generate a pseudo stop command in the pseudo game. In step S1107, the number of slips of the reel to be stopped this time is obtained based on the referenced pseudo game stop information. Then, in step S1108, the obtained number of slips is added to the symbol number of the arrival symbol to determine the symbol number of the stop symbol that will actually pseudo-stop at the base position. In step S1109, it is determined whether the pseudo game flag is set. If the pseudo game flag is set, the process ends.

[0170] Returning to the explanation of the stop control process, when the stop position determination process is completed, the process proceeds to step S1010, where it is determined whether the value of the reel spin counter has reached 0. If the value of the reel spin counter has not reached 0, the process returns to step S1001.

[0171] If it is determined in step S1010 that the value of the reel rotation counter is 0, this means that stop symbol numbers have been determined for all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R, so the process proceeds to step S1011, where it is determined whether the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have become stop symbol numbers. If the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have not become stop symbol numbers, the process waits until the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R become stop symbol numbers. If the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have become stop symbol numbers, the process proceeds to step S1012, where an all-reel stop completion command is sent to the display control device 81. By receiving the all-reel stop completion command, the display control device 81 determines that all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have reached their stop positions. In the next step S1013, it is determined whether or not all of the stop switches 42 to 44 are in an unoperated state, and if any of the stop switches 42 to 44 are being operated, the process continues to wait. If all of the stop switches 42 to 44 are in an unoperated state, the process proceeds to step S1014, where it is determined whether or not the instruction monitor is being displayed. Since the instruction monitor is not displayed in a pseudo game, the process ends after waiting for 100 msec in step S1016.

[0172] Returning to the explanation of the reel control process, when the stop control process is completed, the process proceeds to step S411, where it is determined whether or not the pseudo game flag is set. If the pseudo game flag is set, the process proceeds to step S412, where a transition preparation process is performed to transition to the main game.

[0173] In the transition preparation process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 23, an operation waiting timer is set in step S1201 (approximately 3.0 seconds in this embodiment). In step S1202, it is determined whether the start lever 41 has been operated, and if the start lever 41 has not been operated, it is determined in step S1203 whether the value of the operation waiting timer has reached 0. The value of the operation waiting timer is decremented in the timer decrement process of the timer interrupt process (step S108, see FIG. 10). If the value of the operation waiting timer has not reached 0, the process returns to step S1202. If it is determined in step S1202 that the start lever 41 has been operated, or if it is determined in step S1203 that the value of the operation waiting timer has reached 0, a post-pseudo game flag is set in step S1204, and this process ends.

[0174] Returning to the explanation of the reel control process, when the transition preparation process is completed, the process returns to step S402 and the rotation start process is performed.

[0175] In the rotation start process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 17, in step S601, a repetition counter provided in the RAM 106 is set to 3. In step S602, it is determined whether a post-pseudo game flag indicating that a pseudo game has been played is set. As described above, if a pseudo game has been played, the post-pseudo game flag is set in the transition preparation process, so the process proceeds to step S603, where it is determined whether a push-order bell has been won. If a push-order bell has been won, the process proceeds to step S604, where the operation sequence of the stop switches 42 to 44 that can result in a bell win is displayed on the instruction monitor. Also, in step S604, an operation sequence command indicating the operation sequence to be notified is transmitted to the display control device 81. Upon receiving the operation sequence command, the display control device 81 displays the operation sequence of the stop switches 42 to 44 that can result in a bell win on the auxiliary display unit 65. Therefore, the operation sequence is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 with a slight delay from the timing when the operation sequence is displayed on the instruction monitor.

[0176] If the instruction monitor is displayed in step S604 or if it is determined in step S603 that the push order bell has not been won, the process proceeds to step S605, where a delay time is acquired. The RAM 106 of the main control device 101 is provided with a delay timer for determining the start timing of each of the pseudo-stopped reels 32L, 32M, and 32R. In step S605, a random number is acquired and a value corresponding to the acquired result (i.e., a value obtained by a predetermined lottery) is set in the delay timer. The value of the delay timer is subtracted in the timer subtraction process of the timer interrupt process (step S108, see FIG. 10). In step S606, the process waits until the value of the delay timer reaches 0. If the value of the delay timer reaches 0, the process proceeds to step S607, where the acceleration of the reels is started according to the value of the repetition counter. In step S608, 1 is subtracted from the value of the repetition counter. In step S609, it is determined whether the value of the repetition counter has reached 0, and if the value of the repetition counter has not reached 0, the process returns to step S602. If the value of the repetition counter has reached 0, the process proceeds to step S610, where it is determined whether the post-pseudo game flag has been set. If the post-pseudo game flag has been set, the pseudo game flag is cleared in step S611, and the post-pseudo game flag is cleared in step S612, and the process ends.

[0177] Returning to the explanation of the reel control processing, in step S403, it is determined whether or not stop information has been set. In step S403 after the pseudo game has been played, a negative determination is made because the stop information has already been set, and the process proceeds to step S405 without performing the stop information setting process. In step S405, the reel spin counter provided in RAM 106 is set to 3, and in step S406, command transmission process 1 is performed. In command transmission process 1 after the pseudo game has been played, a spin start command is sent to the display control device 81. Upon receiving the spin start command, the display control device 81 starts the auxiliary effects for the actual game shown in FIG. 31(d) and the like.

[0178] In step S407, it is determined whether any reels are accelerating. If any reels are accelerating, the process waits until the acceleration of all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R has finished. When the acceleration of all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R has finished and all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are rotating at a constant speed, the process proceeds to step S408, where an instruction monitor display process is performed.

[0179] In the instruction monitor display process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 19, in step S801, it is determined whether the current game mode is the notification mode. If the current game mode is the notification mode, the process proceeds to step S802, where it is determined whether the push-order bell has been won. If the push-order bell has been won, it is further determined in step S803 whether the pseudo game flag has been set. If the pseudo game flag has not been set, in step S804, the operation sequence of the stop switches 42 to 44 that can achieve the bell win is displayed on the instruction monitor, and this process ends. Also, in step S804, an operation sequence command indicating the operation sequence to be notified is transmitted to the display control device 81. However, after the pseudo game has been performed, since the operation sequence has already been displayed on the instruction monitor in the rotation start process (step S604, see FIG. 17), the display content of the instruction monitor does not change by performing the process of step S804. In other words, the process of step S804 can be said to be a process for displaying the instruction monitor in a game round in which a pseudo game is not performed.

[0180] Returning to the explanation of the reel control process, the command transmission process 2 in step S409 and the stop control process in step S410 are the same as those explained in the reel control process in this game, so explanations will be omitted. When the stop control process is completed, proceed to step S411, where it is determined whether or not the pseudo game flag is set. If the pseudo game flag is not set, this process is terminated.

[0181] The slot machine 10 is configured to be able to cancel the pseudo game and transition to the main game. Hereinafter, this configuration will be specifically described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0182] If it is determined in step S1001 that the pseudo game flag is set, the process proceeds to step S1002, where it is determined whether a cancel operation to end the pseudo game has been performed. More specifically, in this slot machine 10, since the settlement switch 59 functions as a cancel operation means, it is determined whether the settlement switch 59 has been operated. If a cancel operation has been performed, the process proceeds to step S1003, where it is determined whether the value of the reel spin counter is 3, i.e., whether all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are spinning. If all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are spinning, the pseudo game flag is cleared in step S1004, and the above-mentioned instruction monitor display process is performed in step S1005. In the following step S1006, a pseudo game end command is sent to the display control device 81. By receiving the pseudo game end command, the display control device 81 recognizes that the pseudo game has been canceled. Thereafter, the process waits for 30 msec in step S1007, and returns to step S1001. Incidentally, the process waits for 30 msec in step S1007 in order to wait for the display control device 81 to switch from the auxiliary effect for the pseudo game to the auxiliary effect for the main game.

[0183] FIG. 35 is a diagram showing an example of the rotation state of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R and the display state of the auxiliary display portion 65 when the pseudo game is canceled.

[0184] In the notification mode, the auxiliary display unit 65 displays a scene of a young man walking down a road, and the upper right corner of the auxiliary display unit 65 displays the remaining payout amount until the notification mode ends. In FIG. 35(a), a bell win occurred in the previous game, and the upper right corner of the auxiliary display unit 65 displays the remaining 84 coins until the notification mode ends. When a pseudo game is being played, once each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R starts spinning, a notification urging the player to operate the stop switches 42-44 to aim for the "red 7" symbol and a notification that the current game is a pseudo game are displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65, as shown in FIG. 35(b). At this time, the remaining payout amount until the notification mode ends is not displayed. If a cancel operation is performed while all of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are spinning, the game transitions directly to the main game without the pseudo stop of all of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R, as shown in FIG. 35(c). At this time, the auxiliary display unit 65 ends the notification of the pseudo game without notifying the result of the pseudo game in more detail, i.e., whether or not the bonus was added, and displays an image of the young man character walking down the road and the number of payouts remaining until the end of the notification mode, thereby notifying the user that the pseudo game has been switched to the main game. However, if the bonus lottery was won, the number of payouts remaining until the end of the notification mode is updated from 84 to 184, as shown in Figure 35(c).

[0185] Returning to the explanation of the stop control process, if it is determined in step S1003 that the value of the reel spin counter is not 3, i.e., if a cancel operation is performed while at least one reel has pseudo-stopped, a cancel operation flag indicating that a cancel operation has been performed is set, and then the process proceeds to step S1009, where a stop position determination process is performed to pseudo-stop the spinning reel. Thereafter, in step S1010, it is determined whether the value of the reel spin counter has reached 0. If the value of the reel spin counter is not 0, this means that one remaining reel is spinning, so the process returns to step S1001, an affirmative determination is made in step S1001, and the process proceeds to step S1002. In step S1002, it is determined that a cancel operation has been performed based on the fact that the cancel operation flag is set. Thereafter, a negative determination is made in step S1003, and a stop position determination process is performed in step S1009. In step S1010, it is determined whether the value of the reel spin counter has reached 0. If the value of the reel rotation counter becomes 0, the cancel operation flag is cleared and the processing from step S1011 onwards is carried out.

[0186] As described above, if a cancel operation is performed while all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are spinning, the game will proceed to the main game without pseudo-stopping all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R, and if a cancel operation is performed while at least one reel is pseudo-stopped, the game will proceed to the main game after all spinning reels are pseudo-stopped.

[0187] 36 is a flowchart showing the game section processing in the notification mode. The game section processing is processing that is performed after the medal payout processing is completed (step S214, see FIG. 11), and is performed at the end of the game.

[0188] In step S1901, the above-mentioned termination determination process is performed, and in step S1902, it is determined whether the current gaming zone is an advantageous zone. If it is determined that the current gaming zone is not an advantageous zone but a normal zone, this means that the advantageous zone termination process has been performed in the termination determination process of step S1901, and then the process is terminated after sending a zone command in step S1908.

[0189] If the current gaming zone is a favorable zone, a net increase coin count update process is performed in step S1903 to update the value of the net increase coin count counter. Specifically, the number of medals paid out in the current game is subtracted from the value of the net increase coin count counter, and the medal bet number (3 or 2 in this embodiment) is added to the subtraction result. In step S1904, it is determined whether the value of the net increase coin count counter has reached 0. If the value of the net increase coin count counter has not reached 0, an interval command is sent in step S1908, and then this process ends. If the value of the net increase coin count counter has reached 0, an advantageous zone termination process shown in steps S1905 to S1907 is performed, and an interval command is sent in step S1908, and then this process ends. In the advantageous zone termination process, the gaming zone flag stored in the zone information storage area 106d is changed to a normal flag in step S1905, and the zone indicator 66 is turned off in step S1906. In step S1907, initialization process is performed in response to the end of the advantageous zone. In the initialization process, the information related to the instruction function stored in the section information storage area 106d (for example, the section game number counter value, etc.) is initialized.

[0190] Here, the playability of the slot machine 10 will be explained.

[0191] The slot machine 10 allows two-coin and three-coin play. However, when two-coin play is performed in the normal zone, even if a winning combination is achieved, the game does not transition to the advantageous zone. Furthermore, when two-coin play is performed in the advantageous zone, if the current play mode is the notification mode, the operation order of the stop switches 42-44 is not announced even if the push order bell is won, and if the current play mode is the chance mode, no transition lottery is conducted. In addition, in two-coin play, the mode game number counter, which triggers a transition to the notification mode, is not updated, while the interval game number counter, which triggers a transition to the normal zone, is updated (end determination process, see Figure 29). Furthermore, in two-coin play, the probability of winning BB2 is approximately 1 in 4.0. If BB2 is achieved, the player must play 30 games to reduce their owned medals by 30. Therefore, when comparing two-coin play and three-coin play, three-coin play is more advantageous for the player.

[0192] In a three-coin game, there is a 1 in 12 chance of winning BB1, and if a BB1 win is achieved, it is necessary to reduce the number of owned medals by 60 over 30 games. However, if a three-coin game is played while the BB2 win flag is carried over, a win in BB1 will not occur, and a BB2 win will not occur either. Therefore, playing a three-coin game while the BB2 win flag is carried over is the most advantageous game for the player. Therefore, the following will explain the gameplay when a three-coin game is played while the BB2 win flag is carried over.

[0193] In the normal zone, if you win any role with three coins, you will win the lottery to move to the advantageous zone. For example, in the case of "Setting 3," there is a probability of about 1.2 to win any role, and a probability of about 1 in 6.4 to lose. Therefore, if you play three coins in the normal zone, it will end in almost one game.

[0194] When the game shifts from the normal zone to the advantageous zone, the game starts from the chance mode, and the number of games to shift to is set to 700 (see FIG. 26).

[0195] In the chance mode, if a rare combination is won, a lottery for transition to the notification mode is held. If the transition lottery is won, the game transitions from the chance mode to the notification mode. Even if the transition lottery is not won, if 700 three-coin plays are performed in the chance mode, the game transitions to the notification mode (S1603, S1604, S1607, see FIG. 28). In other words, in this slot machine 10, when transitioning from the normal mode to the chance mode, 700 plays function as the so-called ceiling number. Regardless of the current play mode, the advantageous zone ends when 1,500 plays are performed or when the difference in number of coins reaches 2,400. When transitioning to the notification mode after reaching the ceiling of 700 plays, the remaining number of plays in the advantageous zone is 800. In the notification mode, the operation order is always announced when the push order bell is won, so players can expect to gain approximately 3.5 coins per game. Assuming that 800 games can be played in the notification mode, an increase of approximately 2,700 medals can be expected. Therefore, even if the notification mode is entered after reaching the ceiling, it is expected that the difference in medals will reach 2,400 and the advantageous period will end before 1,500 games are played.

[0196] When transitioning from chance mode to notification mode, the net increase number counter is set to 120 (see Figure 28). Therefore, when transitioning to notification mode, an increase of at least 120 medals can be expected. Furthermore, when a rare combination is won in notification mode, a draw is held to determine whether or not to increase the net increase number (see Figure 30). At this time, if the draw for the increase based on a watermelon win is won, one of 30, 50, 100, or 300 is added, and if the draw for the increase based on a cherry win is won, one of 10, 20, 30, or 50 is added. When the value of the net increase number counter reaches 0, the notification mode and advantageous zone end, and the game transitions to the normal zone (see Figure 36).

[0197] If the player wins the bonus lottery, a pseudo game flag is set and a pseudo game is played in the game. In a pseudo game based on a bonus lottery win, the "red 7" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R stop on the center line L2, and the number of coins added to the net increase coin counter is announced. Even if the player does not win the bonus lottery, if the player wins the pseudo game lottery, a pseudo game flag is set and a pseudo game is played in the game. In a pseudo game based on a pseudo game lottery win, the "red 7" symbols on the left reel 32L and center reel 32M stop on the center line L2, while the "red 7" symbol on the right reel 32R does not stop on the center line L2, and it is announced that the net increase coin counter will not be added. These pseudo games can be canceled by operating the settlement switch 59. If the settlement switch 59 is operated while all the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are spinning, the game will proceed to the actual game without any pseudo-stop of all the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R, and if the settlement switch 59 is operated when at least one reel is pseudo-stopped, the game will proceed to the actual game after all the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have pseudo-stopped.

[0198] According to the present embodiment described above in detail, the following excellent effects are achieved.

[0199] If the additional lottery is won, a pseudo game is executed. In the pseudo game, each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R starts to rotate, and when the stop switches 42 to 44 are operated, the corresponding reel is pseudo-stopped. Then, when all of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have pseudo-stopped, the pseudo game ends. By configuring the system to execute such a pseudo game, it becomes possible to execute auxiliary effects using the reels, thereby increasing the enjoyment of the game.

[0200] On the other hand, it is possible that some players may find it bothersome to operate the stop switches 42 to 44 during the pseudo game. Therefore, the slot machine 10 is configured so that the pseudo game can be ended if the settlement switch 59 is operated during the execution of the pseudo game. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to prevent players who find it bothersome to operate the stop switches 42 to 44 during the pseudo game from losing their motivation to play once the pseudo game has started.

[0201] As a result of the above, it is possible to increase interest in the game.

[0202] If the settlement switch 59 is operated while all the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are spinning, the pseudo game ends without any pseudo-stop of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to configure the pseudo game so that the pseudo-stop result of the symbols in the pseudo game cannot be known unless the stop switches 42 to 44 are operated in the pseudo game, and it is possible to encourage the operation of the stop switches 42 to 44 in the pseudo game.

[0203] When a pseudo game is executed, the actual game is executed after the pseudo game ends. This configuration avoids the occurrence of a situation where the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are not stopped when the next game is started, even if the pseudo game ends without the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R coming to a pseudo stop. Furthermore, with this configuration, if the settlement switch 59 is operated while all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are spinning, the system can transition to determining whether a stop command has been issued without bringing the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R to a pseudo stop or restarting their rotation. This allows for a swift transition from the pseudo game to the actual game.

[0204] If the settlement switch 59 is operated when at least one reel has come to a pseudo-stop, all of the reels that are currently spinning are brought to a pseudo-stop and then the pseudo game ends. With this configuration, a player who wishes to end the pseudo game in the middle of a pseudo game without operating the stop switches 42 to 44 can do so by operating the settlement switch 59 without operating the stop switches 42 to 44.

[0205] When the settlement switch 59 is operated during execution of a pseudo game, the subsequent processing changes depending on the value of the reel spin counter. This configuration allows the manner in which the pseudo game ends to be changed depending on the circumstances under which the settlement switch 59 is operated, thereby enhancing the enjoyment of the game. For example, it is possible to configure the system so that all rotating reels are pseudo-stopped whenever the settlement switch 59 is operated. However, this configuration may negate the purpose of operating the stop switches 42-44 in the pseudo game. This concern is more pronounced in a configuration such as the present slot machine 10 in which the stopping result of symbols in the pseudo game does not depend on the timing of operation of the stop switches 42-44. However, this concern can be effectively resolved by configuring the subsequent processing to change depending on the value of the reel spin counter.

[0206] The system is configured so that a pseudo game is played when the additional lottery is won. By using this configuration, the pseudo game can be used to notify the player that the net increase in the number of coins will increase, thereby increasing the player's interest in the game.

[0207] In the pseudo game, when the "red 7" symbol combination pseudo stops on the middle line L2, the increase in the net increase in coins is notified, and when the "red 7" symbol combination does not pseudo stop on the middle line L2, the increase in the net increase in coins is not notified. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to prompt a player who wants to be notified of the increase in the net increase in coins to operate the stop switches 42 to 44, while allowing a player who does not need to be notified of the increase in the net increase in coins to operate the settlement switch 59.

[0208] Furthermore, the stopping of symbols in the pseudo-game does not directly contribute to the increase in the net coin count. In this game, unless a winning combination is achieved, a player cannot receive a bonus, such as a medal payout. However, in the pseudo-game, the increase in the net coin count is already determined through the additional lottery, so the player does not suffer any disadvantage even if the "red 7" symbol combination does not stop on the middle line L2. If the "red 7" symbol combination does not stop on the middle line L2, the player simply is not notified that the net coin count will increase. By making the pseudo-game unrelated to the player's direct profits, it is possible to position the pseudo-game as a form of presentation in which the player can actively participate, and it is possible to avoid the player suffering disadvantages from operating the settlement switch 59, thereby increasing the player's interest in the game.

[0209] When a player wins the bonus lottery, a pseudo game is played in that game. This configuration enhances the player's interest in the game. It is certainly possible to play a pseudo game in a game other than the game in which the bonus lottery was won. However, with this configuration, if a player forgets that they won a rare combination in a game prior to the start of the pseudo game, the player may perceive the pseudo game as a fake and stop operating the stop switches 42-44 in an attempt to hit the "red 7" symbol. Furthermore, if a player wins a rare combination in the final game of the notification mode and the notification mode ends without winning the bonus lottery, the player may suspect that the bonus lottery was not even played. On the other hand, if a pseudo game is played in the game in which the bonus lottery was won, the game flow is pseudo game → actual game, which effectively alleviates the above concerns.

[0210] Even if the player does not win the additional lottery, the player can still play a pseudo game if he or she wins the pseudo game lottery. By adopting this configuration, it is possible to provide opportunities in the pseudo game where an increase in the net increase in the number of coins is notified and opportunities where an increase in the net increase in the number of coins is not notified, thereby increasing the player's interest in the game.

[0211] When a pseudo game is played, the auxiliary display unit 65 is configured to notify the player that a pseudo game is being played. This configuration makes it possible to prevent the player from mistakenly thinking that one game has ended when the pseudo game has ended. Furthermore, even if the pseudo game is switched to the main game without all the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R stopping, it is possible to prevent the player from becoming confused as to whether the game is a pseudo game or a main game.

[0212] When a pseudo game is played in a game in which the push order bell is won, the system is configured to notify the player of the operation sequence that will result in a bell win after all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have been pseudo-stopped in the pseudo game. This configuration makes it possible to avoid operating the stop switches 42 to 44 in the pseudo game in the above operation sequence. Furthermore, the system is configured to notify the player of the above operation sequence after all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have been pseudo-stopped and before the acceleration of the pseudo-stopped reels begins. This configuration makes it possible to avoid operating the stop switches 42 to 44 in a different operation sequence in the actual game, which will result in the player being unable to win a bell.

[0213] In a game in which a pseudo game is not executed, the operation sequence for achieving a bell win is notified after all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have reached a constant speed. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to differentiate the timing of notification of the operation sequence in a game in which a pseudo game is executed from that in which a pseudo game is not executed. In this way, by differentiating the timing of notification of the operation sequence in a game depending on whether a pseudo game is executed or not, while ensuring that the operation sequence is notified before the operation of the stop switches 42 to 44 becomes effective, it is possible to alert the player to check the instruction monitor.

[0214] When the pseudo game ends, a delay time is set based on the random number obtained for each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R, and the reels begin accelerating after waiting for the delay time. This configuration allows the start times of each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R to be staggered when transitioning to the actual game. Even if the "red 7" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R are pseudo-stopped along the center line L2 during the pseudo game, the "red 7" symbols will not be aligned when the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R begin rotating at a constant speed. This prevents the stop results of the pseudo game from being used as a guide for pressing the buttons during the actual game.

[0215] When an operation sequence that can establish a bell win is notified, the auxiliary display unit 65 controlled by the display control device 81 notifies the user, and the instruction monitor controlled by the main control device 101 notifies the user. Since the main control device 101 determines whether the stop switches 42 to 44 have been operated, this configuration makes it possible to reliably avoid an event in which it is determined whether the stop switches 42 to 44 have been operated before the operation sequence is notified.

[0216] The system is configured such that when the settlement switch 59 is operated, it is determined that a cancellation operation of the pseudo game has been performed. This configuration reduces the chances that a player will unintentionally perform a cancellation operation. For example, it is also possible to configure the system to determine that a cancellation operation has been performed when the start lever 41 is operated after the pseudo game has started. However, with this configuration, if a player repeatedly presses the start lever 41 to issue a start command, the second and subsequent operations of the start lever 41 may be determined to be cancellation operations, which could result in the pseudo game ending despite the player's intention to enjoy the game.

[0217] When a pseudo game is executed, the stop information for the main game is set after each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R has been spun, i.e., while the pseudo game is being executed. This configuration allows for a quicker transition from the pseudo game to the main game than a configuration in which the stop information for the main game is set after the pseudo game has ended.

[0218] The pseudo game stop information is configured to be set after a pseudo stop command is generated. By using this configuration, even if the stop information is configured to be set during the execution of the pseudo game, it is possible to shorten the time required to determine whether or not a pseudo stop command has been generated in the pseudo game.

[0219] On the other hand, if the pseudo game stop information is set after the pseudo stop command is generated, there is a possibility that the time from the generation of the pseudo stop command to the pseudo stop of the corresponding reel may be extended. Therefore, in the present slot machine 10, in the case of a pseudo game based on a winning bonus lottery, the number 16 "red 7" symbol on each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R is pseudo-stopped in the middle row regardless of the operation timing of each of the stop switches 42 to 44, and in the case of a pseudo game based on a winning pseudo game lottery, the number 16 "red 7" symbol on the left reel 32L and the center reel 32M is pseudo-stopped in the middle row, while the number 16 "red 7" symbol on the right reel 32R is pseudo-stopped in the lower row instead of the middle row regardless of the operation timing of each of the stop switches 42 to 44. In this way, by configuring the stopping result of the symbols in the pseudo game to be independent of the operation timing of the stop switches 42 to 44, it is possible to prevent the time between the issuance of the pseudo stop command and the pseudo stopping of the corresponding reel from being prolonged, even if the configuration is such that the stop information for the pseudo game is set after the pseudo stop command is generated.

[0220] In the pseudo game, the reels are configured to slide a maximum of 19 symbols from the time the stop switches 42-44 are operated, resulting in a pseudo stop. This configuration allows for time to set pseudo game stop information after a pseudo stop command is generated, and time to determine the reel stop position based on the pseudo game stop information. Furthermore, in this game, the reels must be stopped within a predetermined time after the stop command is generated, so it is difficult to set the stop information after the stop command is generated. It is therefore necessary to set the stop information before determining whether or not a stop command has been generated. On the other hand, in the pseudo game, the above-mentioned constraints are not imposed, and the configuration allows for a pseudo stop after a maximum of 19 symbols has been generated, thereby ensuring the above-mentioned respective times.

[0221] (Second embodiment)

[0222] In the first embodiment, the number of added coins is notified in the pseudo game, but the number of added coins may be notified in the actual game. Therefore, the following will explain such a configuration in detail. Note that the basic configuration is the same as the first embodiment, so only the differences will be explained below.

[0223] FIG. 37 is a flowchart showing the reel control process.

[0224] In step S2001, a repetition counter provided in RAM 106 is set to 3. In step S2002, acceleration of the reels begins according to the value of the repetition counter. More specifically, if the value of the repetition counter is 3, the spin start setting table address for the left reel 32L is obtained; if the value of the repetition counter is 2, the spin start setting table address for the center reel 32M is obtained; and if the value of the repetition counter is 1, the spin start setting table address for the right reel 32R is obtained. Note that drive control of the stepping motor is performed in stepping motor control processing S107 of the timer interrupt processing based on the obtained spin start setting table.

[0225] If a spin start setting table address corresponding to the value of the repetition counter is acquired in step S2002, the process proceeds to step S2003, where 1 is subtracted from the value of the repetition counter. In step S2004, it is determined whether the value of the repetition counter has reached 0. If the value of the repetition counter has not reached 0, the process returns to step S2002. If the value of the repetition counter has reached 0, the process proceeds to step S2005, where a stop information setting process is performed to set stop information. In the stop information setting process, stop information corresponding to the result of the winning / losing combination determination is created, and the created result is stored in the stop information storage area 106b. In step S2006, a reel spin counter provided in RAM 106 is set to 3, and in step S2007, a spin start command is sent to the display control device 81. In step S2008, it is determined whether any reels are accelerating. If any reels are accelerating, the process waits until all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have finished accelerating. When the acceleration of all the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R has finished and all the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are rotating at a constant predetermined rotation speed, the process proceeds to step S2009, where an instruction monitor display process is performed.

[0226] In the instruction monitor display process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 38, in step S2101, it is determined whether the current game mode is the notification mode. If the current game mode is the notification mode, the process proceeds to step S2102, where it is determined whether the push order bell has been won. If the push order bell has been won, in step S2103, the operation sequence of the stop switches 42 to 44 that can achieve the bell win is displayed on the instruction monitor, and this process ends. Also, in step S2103, an operation sequence command indicating the operation sequence to be notified is sent to the display control device 81. If the current game mode is not the notification mode or if the push order bell has not been won, this process ends as is.

[0227] Returning to the explanation of the reel control process, in step S2010, a stop possible command is sent to the display control device 81. Thereafter, in step S2011, stop control process is performed, and this process ends.

[0228] In the stop control process, as shown in the flowchart of Figure 39, in step S2201, it is determined whether or not the stop switch corresponding to the spinning reel has been operated, i.e., whether or not a stop command has been issued. If a stop command has not been issued, the process waits until a stop command is issued. If a stop command is issued, the process proceeds to step 2202, where a stop position determination process is executed to stop the spinning reel.

[0229] In the stop position determination process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 40, in step S2301, the symbol number of the reaching symbol that has reached the base position (the lower row in this embodiment) at the time the stop switch is operated is obtained. Specifically, the symbol number of the reaching symbol that has reached the base position is obtained based on the number of excitation pulses output from the time the detection signal of the reel index sensor is input. In step S2302, 1 is subtracted from the value of the reel rotation number counter. In step S2303, a stop command is sent to the display control device 81. Also in step S2303, a lamp (not shown) of the stop switch that issued the stop command is turned off to notify the player that it is no longer possible to issue a stop command in this game. In the following step S2304, the number of slips of the reel to be stopped this time is calculated based on the stop information stored in the stop information storage area 106b. In the slot machine 10, five stop patterns are available for stopping each reel 32L, 32M, 32R when the stop switches 42-44 are operated: a stop pattern in which the reaching symbol that has reached the base position is stopped; a stop pattern in which the corresponding reel slides one symbol, a stop pattern in which the corresponding reel slides two symbols, a stop pattern in which the corresponding reel slides three symbols, and a stop pattern in which the corresponding reel slides four symbols. In step S2304, a value of 0 to 4 is calculated as the number of slips based on the stop information stored in the stop information storage area 106b. Then, in step S2305, the calculated number of slips is added to the symbol number of the reaching symbol to determine the symbol number of the symbol that will actually stop at the base position. In step S2306, it is determined whether the value of the reel spin counter is equal to 0. If the value of the reel spin counter is not 0, i.e., if a stop command has not been issued to at least one reel, the stop information change process is performed in step S2307, and then the stop position determination process is terminated. If the value of the reel spin counter is 0, i.e., if a stop command has been issued to all reels, the stop position determination process is terminated without performing the stop information change process.

[0230] Returning to the explanation of the stop control process, when the stop position determination process is completed, the process proceeds to step S2203, where it is determined whether the value of the reel spin counter has reached 0. If the value of the reel spin counter is not 0, the process returns to step S2201. That is, in this slot machine 10, once the stop symbol number of the reel for which a stop command has been issued is determined, it is determined in step S2201 whether a next stop command has been issued, regardless of whether the reel for which the stop command has been issued has actually stopped. Therefore, the player can issue stop commands consecutively without waiting for the reel to stop. Note that the reel is not stopped in the stop control process (normal process), but in the stepping motor control process S107 of the timer interrupt process. In the stepping motor control process, it is determined whether the symbol number of the arrival symbol of the reel for which the stop command has been issued is equal to the stop symbol number, and if so, the brake process is performed to stop the reel for which the stop command has been issued.

[0231] If it is determined in step S2203 that the value of the reel rotation counter is 0, this means that stop symbol numbers have been determined for all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R, so the process proceeds to step S2204, where it is determined whether the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have become stop symbol numbers. If the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have not become stop symbol numbers, the process waits until the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R become stop symbol numbers. If the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have become stop symbol numbers, the process proceeds to step S2205, where an all-reel stop completion command is sent to the display control device 81. By receiving the all-reel stop completion command, the display control device 81 determines that all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have reached their stop positions. In the next step S2206, it is determined whether all of the stop switches 42-44 are in an unoperated state. More specifically, it is determined whether all of the input signals from the stop detection sensors 42a-44a are OFF. If the input signal from any of the stop detection sensors 42a-44a is ON, this means that the player is operating the corresponding stop switch, and the process continues to wait. If all of the stop switches 42-44 are in an unoperated state, the process proceeds to step S2207, where an operation end command is sent to the display control device 81. Upon receiving the operation end command, the display control device 81 determines that all of the stop switches 42-44 are in an unoperated state. In step S2208, it is determined whether the instruction monitor is being displayed, and if it is being displayed, the instruction monitor is cleared in step S2209. If the instruction monitor is cleared or if the instruction monitor is not being displayed, the process waits for 100 msec in step S2210 and then terminates. Incidentally, the reason for waiting 100 msec in step S2210 is to wait until the braking process is completed in the stepping motor control process and the swinging of the reel is settled.

[0232] Next, various processes performed by the display control device 81 when executing an additional notification effect that notifies the number of additional coins will be described.

[0233] FIG. 41 is a flowchart showing the effect determination process carried out at the start of a game round.

[0234] In step S2401, it is determined whether a lottery result command has been received. If not, this process is terminated. If a lottery result command has been received, the process proceeds to step S2402, where it is determined whether the current game mode is the notification mode. If the current game mode is not the notification mode, the process is terminated. If the current game mode is the notification mode, it is determined in step S2403 whether a rare combination has been won. If a rare combination has not been won, the process is terminated. If a rare combination has been won, the process proceeds to step S2404, where a performance execution lottery is conducted. In the performance execution lottery, a win or loss is determined based on the type of rare combination won and the random number acquired by the display control device 81. Incidentally, in the performance execution lottery, if a watermelon is won, there is approximately a 1 in 10 chance of winning the performance execution lottery, and if a cherry is won, there is approximately a 5 in 1 chance of winning the performance execution lottery. In step S2405, it is determined whether the performance execution lottery has been won. If the effect execution lottery is won, the effect flag is set in step S2406 and this process ends. If the effect execution lottery is not won, the process proceeds to step S2407 and determines whether or not an add-on command has been received. The add-on command is a command sent from the main control device 101 when the add-on lottery is won, and is sent before the lottery result command when the add-on lottery is won (see Figures 12 and 30). Therefore, if an add-on command has been received, it means that the add-on lottery has been won in this game round. In this case, the effect flag is set in step S2406 and this process ends. If an add-on command has not been received, this process ends as is. Note that when the display control device 81 receives an add-on command, it stores the number of add-on coins indicated by the add-on command in an add-on coin number counter provided in the RAM of the display control device 81.

[0235] FIG. 42 is a flowchart showing the effect execution process carried out during the execution of this game.

[0236] In step S2501, it is determined whether the effect flag is set, and if the effect flag is not set, this process is terminated. If the effect flag is set, this means that an additional notification effect will be executed, so the process proceeds to step S2502, where it is determined whether a stop command has been received. If the stop command has not been received, the process waits until the stop command is received, and if the stop command is received, in step S2503, 1 is added to the value of the stop operation number counter provided in the RAM of the display control device 81. In step S2504, it is determined whether the value of the stop operation number counter is 3, and if it is not 3, in step S2505, an alarm sound corresponding to the value of the stop operation number counter is output from the speaker 64, and the process returns to step S2502. If the value of the stop operation number counter is 3, in step S2506, additional notification processing is performed, and then this process is terminated.

[0237] In the bonus notification process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 43, it is determined in step S2601 whether an bonus command has been received, i.e., whether the bonus lottery has been won in the current game round. If the game round has won the bonus lottery, the process waits in step S2602 until an all-reel stop completion command is received. If an all-reel stop completion command is received, the process proceeds to step S2603, where an alert sound corresponding to the value 3 of the stop operation number counter is output from speaker 64. Thereafter, the process waits in step S2604 until an operation end command is received. If an operation end command is received, the process proceeds to step S2605, where the number of bonus coins won in the bonus lottery is displayed on auxiliary display unit 65. Thereafter, in step S2606, the value of the stop operation number counter is set to 0, and in step S2607, the effect flag is cleared, and this process ends.

[0238] If it is determined in step S2601 that an add-on command has not been received, i.e., if the add-on lottery has not been won in this game round, the process proceeds to step S2608, where an alarm sound execution lottery is held to determine whether or not to output an alarm sound. In the alarm sound execution lottery, a win / loss determination is made based on a random number acquired by the display control device 81. The probability of winning the alarm sound execution lottery is approximately one in three. In step S2609, it is determined whether or not the alarm sound execution lottery has been won. If the alarm sound execution lottery has been won, the process waits in step S2610 until an all-reel stop completion command is received. If an all-reel stop completion command has been received, the process proceeds to step S2611, where an alarm sound corresponding to the value 3 of the stop operation number counter is output from speaker 64. Thereafter, in step S2606, the value of the stop operation number counter is set to 0, and in step S2607, the effect flag is cleared, and the process ends. If the notification sound execution lottery is not won, the notification sound is not output from the speaker 64, the value of the stop operation number counter is set to 0 in step S2606, the effect flag is cleared in step S2607, and this process ends.

[0239] Here, the effect of the additional notification effect will be explained.

[0240] The additional notification effect is performed when the additional lottery is won and when the effect execution lottery is won.

[0241] When the display control device 81 receives a stop command based on the first stop command, it outputs a first notification sound (e.g., a "do" sound) if it receives a stop command based on the second stop command, and outputs a second notification sound (e.g., a "re" sound) if it receives a stop command based on the third stop command. Then, when the display control device 81 receives a stop command based on the third stop command, it outputs a third notification sound (e.g., a "mi" sound) after receiving an all-reel stop completion command indicating that all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have reached their stop positions, and displays the number of additional coins won in the additional lottery on the auxiliary display unit 65 after receiving an operation completion command indicating that all stop switches 42 to 44 are in an unoperated state.

[0242] When the display control device 81 does not win the additional lottery, if it receives a stop command based on the first stop command generation, it outputs a first alert sound (for example, the sound of "do"), and when it receives a stop command based on the second stop command generation, it outputs a second alert sound (for example, the sound of "re"). When it receives a stop command based on the third stop command generation, if the alert sound execution lottery is won, it outputs a third alert sound (for example, the sound of "mi") after receiving an all reels stop completion command indicating that all reels 32L, 32M, 32R have reached their stop positions, and if it does not win the alert sound execution lottery, it does not output the third alert sound (for example, the sound of "mi") after receiving the all reels stop completion command.

[0243] As described above, in the bonus notification effect, if the bonus lottery is won, the sequence is as follows: first alert sound output → second alert sound output → third alert sound output → bonus number notification; whereas if the bonus lottery is not won, the sequence is as follows: first alert sound output → second alert sound output → third alert sound output, or first alert sound output → second alert sound output. Here, the probability of winning the bonus lottery is approximately one-fifth if the player wins a watermelon, and approximately one-third if the player wins a cherry, for example, in the case of setting 3. The probability of winning the effect execution lottery is approximately one-tenth if the player wins a watermelon, and approximately one-half if the player wins a cherry. Therefore, in the case of a watermelon win, when the first alert sound is output, i.e., when the bonus notification effect is initiated, the expected probability of the bonus number being notified exceeds 66%. In the case of a cherry win, when the first alert sound is output, i.e., when the additional notification effect begins, the expected probability of the additional coins being announced exceeds 40%. Since the probability of winning the alert sound execution lottery is approximately one-third, when the third alert sound is output, the expected probability of the additional coins being announced becomes even higher than the above percentage. Since the third alert sound is output after all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have reached their stop positions, the player can continue to operate the stop switch that generated the third stop command to their heart's content before ending it.

[0244] According to the present embodiment described above in detail, the following excellent effects are achieved.

[0245] In the stop control process, once the stop symbol number of the reel for which the stop command was issued has been determined, it is determined in step S2201 whether or not a next stop command has been issued, regardless of whether the reel for which the stop command was issued has actually stopped. This configuration allows the player to operate another stop switch without waiting for the reel corresponding to the operated stop switch to stop. As a result, the operability of the stop switches 42 to 44 is improved, thereby increasing the enjoyment of the game.

[0246] On the other hand, if the system were configured to determine whether the next stop command has been issued without waiting for the reels to stop, new problems could arise, such as the next game being able to start before the reels have stopped. Therefore, the slot machine 10 is configured to perform a standby process that waits for 100 msec after determining the stop symbol numbers for all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R. This configuration allows the reel oscillation to converge during the standby process, thereby effectively eliminating the above-mentioned concerns.

[0247] As a result of the above, it is possible to increase interest in the game.

[0248] The standby process of waiting for 100 msec is performed after it is determined that the symbol numbers of the arrival symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have reached the stop symbol numbers. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to shorten the standby time in the standby process, and even when the standby process is performed, it is possible to prevent the delay before the next game can be started.

[0249] It is certainly possible to configure the system to perform a standby process before determining whether the symbol numbers of the reaching symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have reached the stop symbol numbers when the reel spin counter is determined to have a value of 0, i.e., between steps S2203 and S2204. However, in such a configuration, the standby time must consider not only the time for the reel rotation to converge, but also the time required for the symbol numbers of the reaching symbols on the reels to reach the stop symbol numbers (i.e., the reel slide time). Since the slot machine 10 can slide up to four symbols, a standby time of approximately 179 msec (=1.49 × 24 × 5) must be secured in addition to the time for the reel rotation to converge. Furthermore, if the reels stop with three or fewer symbols instead of four, the standby time of approximately 36 msec (=1.49 × 24 × 1) or more becomes wasted time, leading to prolonged gameplay. On the other hand, if the configuration is such that a standby process is performed after it is determined that the pattern numbers of the reaching patterns on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have become the stopping pattern numbers, it is possible to suitably resolve each of the above concerns.

[0250] The standby process, which waits for 100 msec, is performed after it is determined that all stop switches 42-44 are in an unoperated state. This configuration allows for uniformity of the time required for the next game round to be started, even when the standby process is performed, thereby improving operability when starting the next game round. For example, it is possible to perform the standby process after it is determined that the symbol numbers of the reaching symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have reached the stop symbol numbers, without providing the process S2206 for determining whether all stop switches 42-44 are in an unoperated state. However, with this configuration, the time required for the next game round to be started varies depending on whether the player stops operating all stop switches 42-44 after the standby process has ended or during the standby process. Furthermore, if the time required until the next round of play can be started changes, an event may occur in which, for example, even if the player attempts to insert a coin to start the next round of play, the operation is not accepted, and the operability when starting the next round of play will be reduced.

[0251] A standby process of 100 msec is performed before the medal payout process. This configuration prevents the awarding of a special prize, such as a medal payout, when the reel oscillation has not yet converged. Furthermore, by performing the standby process before the payout determination process performed in the medal payout process, the versatility of the processing program related to the standby process can be improved while preventing the processing configuration from becoming too complex. For example, if the payout determination process determines that a small prize has been awarded, the standby process may not be performed, or a standby process may be performed that waits for a time corresponding to the number of medals to be paid out. If the payout determination process determines that a small prize has not been awarded, the standby process may be performed for a predetermined time. This configuration prevents the delay before the next game can be started, since the standby time varies depending on whether or not a medal has been paid out. However, this configuration complicates the processing configuration, and when the processing program is applied to other slot machines that award different numbers of medals when a small prize is awarded, the processing time must be adjusted accordingly, reducing versatility.

[0252] In a configuration in which a push order bell is provided as a lottery role and the player is given an advantage if they operate the stop switches 42 to 44 in the notified operation order, the system is configured to be able to issue stop commands consecutively without waiting for the reels to stop. This configuration reduces the chances that a player will unintentionally operate the stop switches 42 to 44 in the wrong order. That is, in a configuration in which the player is given an advantage if they operate the stop switches 42 to 44 in the notified operation order, a player may unintentionally operate the stop switches 42 to 44 in the wrong order. This occurs when, for example, a player operates the stop switch that should be operated second when the reel corresponding to the first stop command has not yet stopped, and the operation is not recognized as valid, and the third stop switch operated is determined to be the operation of the second stop command.

[0253] The standby process of waiting for 100 msec is configured to be performed after the operation sequence is hidden if it is currently displayed on the instruction monitor. This configuration makes it possible to shorten the standby time in the standby process while quickly ending the notification of the operation sequence on the instruction monitor. This is because the standby time in the standby process can be shortened by the time required for the processes in steps S2208 and S2209.

[0254] If the configuration were such that determining whether the next stop command has been issued without waiting for the reels to stop would result in new problems, such as the reel corresponding to the second stop command not being stopped even though all the stop switches 42 to 44 have been operated, or the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have stopped but at least one stop switch has not been operated. If such problems occur, problems will arise in the control performed by the display control device 81. Therefore, in the slot machine 10, when the main control device 101 determines the stop positions of all the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R, it determines whether the symbol numbers of the arrival symbols on all the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are the same as the stop symbol numbers, and also determines whether all the stop switches 42 to 44 are in an unoperated state. When the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R match the stop symbol numbers, an all-reel stop completion command is sent to the display control device 81, and when all stop switches 42 to 44 are in an unoperated state, an operation end command is sent to the display control device 81. With this configuration, the display control device 81 can perform control in response to the fact that all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have stopped by receiving the all-reel stop completion command, and can perform control in response to the fact that the operation of all stop switches 42 to 44 has ended by receiving the operation end command. As a result, the above-mentioned concerns can be suitably resolved.

[0255] As a result of the above, it is possible to increase interest in the game.

[0256] The main control device 101 is configured to transmit an operation end command after transmitting an all-reel stop completion command. This configuration allows the display control device 81 to perform control in response to the completion of operation of all stop switches 42-44 after performing control in response to the completion of operation of all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R. Furthermore, the maximum time required from determining the stop position of a reel for which a stop command is issued until the reel actually reaches the stop position is approximately 179 msec, which allows the reel to slide up to four symbols, and can be determined by the main control device 101. Meanwhile, the time required until all stop switches 42-44 are no longer operated depends on the player's operation and cannot be determined or predicted by the main control device 101. Therefore, by configuring the display control device 81 to transmit an operation end command after transmitting an all-reel stop completion command, it is possible to reduce the time lag between the timing when all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have stopped and the timing when the display control device 81 performs control based on the receipt of the all-reel stop completion command.

[0257] When it is determined that the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have matched the stop symbol numbers, an all-reel stop completion command is sent before determining whether all stop switches 42 to 44 have reached an unoperated state. This configuration reduces the time lag between the timing when all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have stopped and the timing when the display control device 81 performs control based on the receipt of the all-reel stop completion command. Furthermore, when it is determined that all stop switches 42 to 44 have reached an unoperated state, an operation end command is sent before determining whether the indicator monitor is being displayed. This configuration reduces the time lag between the timing when the operation of all stop switches 42 to 44 has reached an end and the timing when the display control device 81 performs control based on the receipt of the operation end command.

[0258] The additional notification effect is configured to progress when all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R stop and when all stop switches 42-44 have been operated, and the additional notification effect is controlled by the display control device 81. In this configuration, there is a concern that one of the carefully prepared effects may not be executed depending on whether all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R stop or all stop switches 42-44 have been operated first. To address this concern, for example, a third notification sound may be output when either all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R stop or all stop switches 42-44 have been operated first, and an additional notification may be executed when the other occurs. However, with this configuration, the command type received from the main control device 101 may not correspond to the processing content to be executed, which may result in a new problem of the processing configuration related to the additional notification effect becoming more complex and requiring larger memory capacity.

[0259] On the other hand, by configuring the main control device 101 to transmit an all-reel stop completion command indicating that all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have reached their stop positions and an operation end command indicating that operation of all stop switches 42-44 has ended, the display control device 81 can determine that all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have stopped by receiving the all-reel stop completion command, and can determine that operation of all stop switches 42-44 has ended by receiving the operation end command. Furthermore, because the main control device 101 transmits the operation end command after transmitting the all-reel stop completion command, the display control device 81 can control the output of a third notification sound upon receiving the all-reel stop completion command, and then control the execution of an additional notification upon receiving the subsequent operation end command. This effectively alleviates the above concerns.

[0260] In the additional notification effect, the third notification sound is output from the speaker 64 upon receipt of the all reels stop completion command, and the additional notification is executed on the auxiliary display unit 65 upon receipt of the operation end command. By configuring the device that executes the effect upon receipt of the all reels stop completion command and the device that executes the effect upon receipt of the operation end command to be different in this way, it is possible to reliably execute the output of the third notification sound even if the interval between receiving the all reels stop completion command and receiving the operation end command is short.

[0261] (Third embodiment)

[0262] In the first embodiment, as shown in Fig. 20, for example, commands for pseudo games and commands for real games are prepared separately, and commands according to the presence or absence of a pseudo game flag are transmitted to the display control device 81. However, this configuration will be changed. Note that the basic configuration is the same as in the first embodiment, so only the differences will be explained below.

[0263] Figure 44(a) is a diagram showing the configuration of the pseudo game flag storage area provided in RAM 106 of the main control unit 101. The pseudo game flag storage area is composed of 1 byte. Of the bits in the pseudo game flag storage area, the most significant bit 7 and bits 5 to 0 are blank, and the 6th bit functions as a pseudo game flag storage bit. When setting a pseudo game flag (step S504, see Figure 16), the main control unit 101 sets "1" to the 6th bit of the pseudo game flag storage area, and when clearing a pseudo game flag (step S611, see Figure 17 or step S1004, see Figure 21), it sets "0" to the 6th bit of the pseudo game flag storage area. Therefore, if each bit in the pseudo-game flag storage area is arranged from the most significant bit and the resulting value is assumed to be an 8-digit binary number, and converted to hexadecimal, the result will be 40H (01000000) if the pseudo-game flag is set, and 00H (00000000) if the pseudo-game flag is not set.

[0264] Next, the command transmission process 1 in this embodiment will be described. The command transmission process 1 is a process performed in the reel control process (step S406, see FIG. 15), and is a process of transmitting a rotation start command or a pseudo game rotation start command to the display control device 81.

[0265] In command transmission processing 1, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 45, rotation start header information is acquired in step S2701.

[0266] Here, we will briefly explain the structure of a command. A command consists of a header that indicates the command type, a body that indicates the specific content, and a footer that indicates the last information of the command. The header consists of one byte, as shown in Figure 44(b). The function of each bit in the header is as follows. The most significant bit, bit 7, functions as a header identification bit and always stores "1". Bit 6 functions as a pseudo-game identification bit that indicates whether or not a pseudo-game is being played, bit 5 is blank, and bits 4 to 0 function as command type storage bits that indicate the command type. For example, the rotation start header information is 86H, or 10000110, and is pre-stored in ROM 105 of the main control device 101.

[0267] If the rotation start header information is acquired in step S2701, the process proceeds to step S2702, where pseudo game determination information is added to the rotation start header information. In this embodiment, the information stored in the pseudo game flag storage area also functions as pseudo game determination information. Therefore, in step S2702, 40H or 00H is added to the rotation start header information, 86H. As a result, if the pseudo game flag is set, i.e., if a pseudo game is being played, the addition result in step S2702 becomes C6H (11000110). If the pseudo game flag is not set, i.e., if a real game is being played, the addition result in step S2702 becomes 86H (10000110). In step S2703, the addition result is sent to the display control device 81 as a header. In step S2704, it is determined whether or not body information is present. If body information is present, the body information is sent to the display control device 81 in step S2705, and the footer is sent to the display control device 81 in step S2706, and this process ends. If body information is not present, the footer is sent to the display control device 81 in step S2706, and this process ends. In command sending process 1, since body information is not set in the rotation start command (pseudo game rotation start command), a header indicating that it is a rotation start command (pseudo game rotation start command) and the footer are sent to the display control device 81.

[0268] Next, a description will be given of the command transmission process 2 in this embodiment. The command transmission process 2 is a process performed in the reel control process (step S409, see FIG. 15), and is a process of transmitting a stop enable command or a pseudo stop enable command to the display control device 81.

[0269] In command transmission process 2, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 46, stoppable header information is acquired in step S2801. The stoppable header information is 87H, i.e., 10000111, and is pre-stored in ROM 105 of the main control device 101. In step S2802, pseudo-game determination information is added to the stoppable header information. That is, in step S2802, 40H or 00H is added to the stoppable header information 87H. As a result, if the pseudo-game flag is set, i.e., if a pseudo-game is in progress, the addition result in step S2802 becomes C7H (11000111). If the pseudo-game flag is not set, i.e., if a real game is in progress, the addition result in step S2802 becomes 87H (10000111). In step S2803, the addition result is transmitted to the display control device 81 as a header. In step S2804, it is determined whether or not body information is present. If body information is present, the body information is transmitted to the display control device 81 in step S2805, and the footer is transmitted to the display control device 81 in step S2806, and this process ends. If body information is not present, the footer is transmitted to the display control device 81 in step S2806, and this process ends. Note that in command transmission process 2, since body information is not set for the stoppable command (pseudo stoppable command), a header indicating that it is a stoppable command (pseudo stoppable command) and the footer are transmitted to the display control device 81.

[0270] 47 is a flowchart showing the stop position determination process. In the stop position determination process in the first embodiment, it is determined in step S1103 whether or not the pseudo game flag is set, and a pseudo stop command or a stop command is sent to the display control device 81 depending on the determination result (see FIG. 22). In this embodiment, as in the first embodiment, it is determined in step S2903 whether or not the pseudo game flag is set, but regardless of the determination result, command sending process 3 is performed in step S2905 to send a pseudo stop command or a stop command.

[0271] In the command transmission process 3, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 48, stop header information is acquired in step S3001. The stop header information is 88H, i.e., 10001000, and is pre-stored in the ROM 105 of the main control device 101. In step S3002, pseudo game determination information is added to the stop header information. That is, in step S3002, 40H or 00H is added to the stop header information 88H. As a result, if the pseudo game flag is set, i.e., if a pseudo game is being played, the addition result in step S3002 becomes C8H (11001000). If the pseudo game flag is not set, i.e., if a real game is being played, the addition result in step S3002 becomes 88H (10001000). In step S3003, the addition result is transmitted to the display control device 81 as a header. In step S3004, it is determined whether or not body information is present. If body information is present, the body information is transmitted to the display control device 81 in step S3005, and a footer is transmitted to the display control device 81 in step S3006, and this process ends. If body information is not present, a footer is transmitted to the display control device 81 in step S3006, and this process ends. In command transmission process 3, in step S3005, information indicating the reel on which the stop command or pseudo-stop command has occurred is transmitted as body information. More specifically, if the reel is the left reel 32L, 01H is transmitted as body information; if the reel is the center reel 32M, 02H is transmitted as body information; and if the reel is the right reel 32R, 03H is transmitted as body information. These pieces of body information are pre-stored in ROM 105 of the main control device 101. As a result of the above, in command sending process 3, a stop command (pseudo stop command) is sent to the display control device 81, including a header indicating that it is a stop command (pseudo stop command), a body indicating a stopped reel (pseudo stopped reel), and a footer.

[0272] According to the present embodiment described above in detail, the following excellent effects are achieved.

[0273] The system is configured to send different commands depending on whether the game is a pseudo game or a real game. This configuration allows the display control device 81 to determine whether the game is a pseudo game or a real game.

[0274] As a result of the above, it becomes possible for the display control device 81 to control auxiliary effects and the like according to the pseudo game and the actual game, thereby making it possible to improve the enjoyment of the game.

[0275] On the other hand, if the command to be transmitted in the case of a pseudo game and the command to be transmitted in the case of a real game are configured to be stored in advance in ROM 105, there is a concern that the amount of data to be stored in advance will increase. Also, since it becomes necessary to determine whether or not a command is a pseudo game when transmitting a command, there is a concern that the amount of data will increase due to the addition of the determination process, and that the processing configuration will become more complicated.

[0276] Therefore, in this embodiment, in command transmission process 1, etc., header information such as rotation start header information is added to information stored in the pseudo game flag storage area to create a header to be transmitted to the display control device 81. With this configuration, it is no longer necessary to store in advance the header to be transmitted in the case of a pseudo game, making it possible to reduce the amount of data. Furthermore, with this configuration, the created header includes whether or not it is a pseudo game, so there is no need for a process to determine whether or not it is a pseudo game. Therefore, by simplifying the processing configuration, it is possible to reduce the amount of data.

[0277] The header is configured to include information indicating whether or not a pseudo game is being played. This configuration makes it possible to prevent the command sent from the main control device 101 to the display control device 81 from becoming redundant. In other words, a configuration in which the display control device 81 can determine whether or not a pseudo game is being played can be achieved by sending 00H or 40H in the body instead of the header, instead of performing a calculation as in this embodiment. However, this configuration increases the command to be sent by one byte, which results in the command becoming redundant.

[0278] The header is provided with a header identification bit, a pseudo game identification bit, and a command type storage bit, and is configured so that the header fits into one byte. This configuration prevents commands from becoming redundant and allows the display control device 81 to grasp a lot of information through the header.

[0279] In the header, the pseudo game identification bit is located lower than the header identification bit and higher than the command type storage bit. This configuration allows information indicating whether or not a pseudo game is being played to be stored in a bit that would previously have been unused, effectively preventing redundancy in commands sent from the main control unit 101 to the display control unit 81. Furthermore, by creating header information by adding pseudo game determination information, it becomes possible to include information indicating whether or not a pseudo game is being played in the header without changing the conventional header configuration. This makes it possible to prevent an increase in the man-hours required for developing the slot machine 10.

[0280] The pseudo game flag storage area is configured with one byte, the same as the header, and all bits except bit 6 are left blank. By configuring it in this way, it is possible to avoid changing the values ​​of other bits, such as the command type storage bit, when adding pseudo game judgment information to the header information.

[0281] The header is created using the information stored in the pseudo game flag storage area. By using this configuration, it is possible to give the information stored in the pseudo game flag storage area both the function of information used to determine whether or not to execute a pseudo game and the function of information used when creating a header. As a result, it is no longer necessary to provide a storage area in RAM 106 for storing pseudo game determination information, making it possible to suppress an increase in storage capacity.

[0282] (Fourth embodiment)

[0283] In the first embodiment, the configuration is such that a pseudo game is performed, but it may be such that only the actual game is performed without performing the pseudo game. Therefore, such a configuration will be described in detail below. Note that the basic configuration is the same as in the first embodiment, so only the differences will be described below.

[0284] FIG. 49 is a perspective view of the slot machine 10 according to the present embodiment.

[0285] An effect switch 67 and a selection switch 68 are provided to the right of the first credit insertion switch 56 and to the left of the medal insertion slot 45. The effect switch 67 is operated when a press effect, which will be described later, is executed or when a menu screen is called up when no game is being played, and the word "PUSH" is displayed on its upper surface. The selection switch 68 is composed of four switches, an up switch, a down switch, a left switch, and a right switch, which specify the up, down, left, and right directions, and is operated to select desired information from various information displayed on the menu screen. The effect switch 67 (more specifically, an effect switch detection sensor that detects the operation of the effect switch 67) and the selection switch 68 (more specifically, a selection switch detection sensor that detects the operation of the selection switch 68) are connected to a display control device 81, as shown in FIG. 50.

[0286] FIG. 51 is a flowchart showing the reel control process.

[0287] In step S3101, a repetition counter provided in RAM 106 is set to 3. In step S3102, acceleration of the reels begins according to the value of the repetition counter. More specifically, if the value of the repetition counter is 3, the spin start setting table address for the left reel 32L is obtained; if the value of the repetition counter is 2, the spin start setting table address for the center reel 32M is obtained; and if the value of the repetition counter is 1, the spin start setting table address for the right reel 32R is obtained. Note that drive control of the stepping motor is performed in stepping motor control processing S107 of the timer interrupt processing based on the obtained spin start setting table.

[0288] If a spin start setting table address corresponding to the value of the repetition counter is acquired in step S3102, the process proceeds to step S3103, where 1 is subtracted from the value of the repetition counter. In step S3104, it is determined whether the value of the repetition counter has reached 0. If the value of the repetition counter has not reached 0, the process returns to step S3102. If the value of the repetition counter has reached 0, the process proceeds to step S3105, where a stop information setting process is performed to set stop information. In the stop information setting process, stop information corresponding to the result of the winning / losing combination determination is created, and the created result is stored in the stop information storage area 106b. In step S3106, a reel spin counter provided in RAM 106 is set to 3, and in step S3107, a spin start command is sent to the display control device 81. In step S3108, it is determined whether any reels are accelerating. If any reels are accelerating, the process waits until all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have finished accelerating. When the acceleration of all the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R has finished and all the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R are rotating at a constant predetermined rotation speed, the process proceeds to step S3109, and an instruction monitor display process is performed.

[0289] In the instruction monitor display process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 52, in step S3201, it is determined whether the current game mode is the notification mode. If the current game mode is the notification mode, the process proceeds to step S3202, where it is determined whether the push order bell has been won. If the push order bell has been won, in step S3203, the operation sequence of stop switches 42 to 44 that can achieve the bell win is displayed on the instruction monitor, and this process ends. Also, in step S3203, an operation sequence command indicating the operation sequence to be notified is sent to the display control device 81. If the current game mode is not the notification mode or if the push order bell has not been won, this process ends directly.

[0290] Returning to the explanation of the reel control process, in step S3110, a stop possible command is transmitted to the display control device 81. Thereafter, in step S3111, stop control process is performed, and this process ends.

[0291] In the stop control process, as shown in the flowchart of Figure 53, in step S3301, it is determined whether or not the stop switch corresponding to the spinning reel has been operated, i.e., whether or not a stop command has been issued. If a stop command has not been issued, the process waits until a stop command is issued. If a stop command is issued, the process proceeds to step 3302, where a stop position determination process is executed to stop the spinning reel.

[0292] In the stop position determination process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 54, in step S3401, the symbol number of the reaching symbol that has reached the base position (the lower row in this embodiment) at the time the stop switch is operated is obtained. Specifically, the symbol number of the reaching symbol that has reached the base position is obtained based on the number of excitation pulses output from the time the detection signal of the reel index sensor is input. In step S3402, 1 is subtracted from the value of the reel rotation number counter. In step S3403, a stop command is sent to the display control device 81. In addition, in step S3403, a lamp (not shown) of the stop switch that issued the stop command is turned off to notify the player that it is no longer possible to issue a stop command in this game. In the following step S3404, the number of slips of the reel to be stopped this time is calculated based on the stop information stored in the stop information storage area 106b. In the slot machine 10, five stop patterns are available for stopping each reel 32L, 32M, 32R when the stop switches 42-44 are operated: stopping the reaching symbol that has reached the base position; stopping the corresponding reel after sliding one symbol; stopping the corresponding reel after sliding two symbols; stopping the corresponding reel after sliding three symbols; and stopping the corresponding reel after sliding four symbols. In step S3404, a slip count (0 to 4) is calculated based on the stop information stored in the stop information storage area 106b. Then, in step S3405, the calculated slip count is added to the symbol number of the reaching symbol to determine the symbol number of the symbol that will actually stop at the base position. In step S3406, it is determined whether the value of the reel spin counter is equal to 0. If the value of the reel spin counter is not 0, i.e., if a stop command has not been issued to at least one reel, the stop information change process is performed in step S3407, and then the stop position determination process is terminated. If the value of the reel spin counter is 0, i.e., if a stop command has been issued to all reels, the stop position determination process is terminated without performing the stop information change process.

[0293] Returning to the explanation of the stop control process, when the stop position determination process is completed, the process proceeds to step S3303, where it is determined whether the value of the reel spin counter has reached 0. If the value of the reel spin counter is not 0, the process returns to step S3301. That is, in this slot machine 10, once the stop symbol number of the reel for which a stop command has been issued is determined, it is determined in step S3301 whether a next stop command has been issued, regardless of whether the reel for which the stop command has been issued has actually stopped. Therefore, the player can issue stop commands consecutively without waiting for the reel to stop. Note that the reel is not stopped in the stop control process (normal process), but in the stepping motor control process S107 of the timer interrupt process. In the stepping motor control process, it is determined whether the symbol number of the arrival symbol of the reel for which the stop command has been issued is equal to the stop symbol number, and if so, the brake process is performed to stop the reel for which the stop command has been issued.

[0294] If it is determined in step S3303 that the value of the reel rotation counter is 0, this means that stop symbol numbers have been determined for all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R, so the process proceeds to step S3304, where it is determined whether the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have become stop symbol numbers. If the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have not become stop symbol numbers, the process waits until the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R become stop symbol numbers. If the symbol numbers of the reached symbols on all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have become stop symbol numbers, the process proceeds to step S3305, where an all-reel stop completion command is sent to the display control device 81. By receiving the all-reel stop completion command, the display control device 81 determines that all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have reached their stop positions. In the following step S3306, it is determined whether all stop switches 42-44 are in an unoperated state. More specifically, it is determined whether all input signals from the stop detection sensors 42a-44a are OFF. If the input signal from any of the stop detection sensors 42a-44a is ON, this means that the player is operating the corresponding stop switch, and the process continues to wait. If all stop switches 42-44 are in an unoperated state, the process proceeds to step S3307, where an operation end command is sent to the display control device 81. Upon receiving the operation end command, the display control device 81 determines that all stop switches 42-44 are in an unoperated state. In step S3308, it is determined whether an instruction monitor is being displayed, and if it is being displayed, the instruction monitor is cleared in step S3309. If the instruction monitor is cleared or if the instruction monitor is not being displayed, the process ends after waiting for 100 msec in step S3310. Incidentally, the reason for waiting 100 msec in step S3310 is to wait until the braking process is completed in the stepping motor control process and the swinging of the reel is settled.

[0295] Next, we will explain the processing related to the present invention among the various processing performed by the display control device 81. To briefly explain the processing configuration of the display control device 81, the display control device 81, like the main control device 101, performs main processing and timer interrupt processing that is executed periodically. The timer interrupt processing in the display control device 81 is executed approximately every 10 msec. In addition, the display control device 81 receives various commands, such as lottery result commands, sent from the main control device 101 to grasp the progress of the game, etc., and starts the corresponding processing.

[0296] FIG. 55 is a flowchart showing the operation end command process.

[0297] In step S3501, it is determined whether an operation end command has been received. If an operation end command has not been received, this process is terminated. On the other hand, if an operation end command has been received, this means that all stop switches 42-44 have been unoperated, i.e., the operation to issue stop commands to all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R has ended. In this case, the process proceeds to step S3502, where a standby timer provided in the RAM of the display control device 81 is set to 18000. The value of the standby timer is decremented by 1 in timer interrupt processing. Since the timer interrupt processing is performed approximately every 10 msec, the value of the standby timer becomes 0 after approximately 180 seconds. In step S3503, it is determined whether the effect flag has been set. If the effect flag has not been set, this process is terminated.

[0298] 56 is a flowchart showing the start waiting process, which is performed in the main process and is executed upon receiving an operation end command.

[0299] In step S3601, it is determined whether the effect flag is set. If the effect flag is not set, the process proceeds to step S3603, where it is determined whether the effect switch 67 has been operated. If the effect switch 67 has not been operated, the process proceeds to step S3604, where it is determined whether the value of the standby timer has reached 0. If the value of the standby timer has not reached 0, the process proceeds to step S3605, where it is determined whether the number of bets is 0. Although detailed explanation will be omitted, the main control device 101 transmits a bet number command indicating the number of bets to the display control device 81 in the medal insertion process, which is performed when medals are inserted or credit insertion switches 56-58 are operated. The display control device 81 determines whether the number of bets is 0 based on the number of bets indicated by the received bet number command or whether a bet number command has not been received. If the number of bets is 0, the process returns to step S3603.

[0300] If it is determined in step S3603 that the effect switch 67 has been operated, menu processing is performed in step S3606.

[0301] In the menu processing, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 57, a menu screen is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 in step S3701. In step S3702, a selection menu execution process is performed. In the slot machine 10, the following selection menus are displayed on the menu screen: game history, payout table, volume adjustment, clear game history, and end menu. In the selection menu execution process, if the selection switch 68 is operated, a process is performed to highlight the selection menu corresponding to the operation of the selection switch 68. If the effect switch 67 is operated, a process is performed to execute the highlighted selection menu. In step S3703, it is determined whether the effect switch 67 was operated when the end menu was selected, i.e., whether a menu end operation has been performed. If a menu end operation has not been performed, the process proceeds to step S3704, where it is determined whether the number of bets is 0. If the number of bets is 0, the process returns to step S3702, and the selection menu execution process continues. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S3703 that a menu end operation has been performed, a menu end process is performed in step S3705. In the menu termination process, the menu screen and the like displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 are hidden and the normal screen is displayed. In the following step S3706, the standby timer is set to 18,000. After that, the process proceeds to step S3603 of the start waiting process described above. Also, if it is determined in step S3704 that the number of bets is not 0, this means that the player performed an operation to start the next game (betting medals or virtual medals) while the menu screen and the like were displayed. In such a case, the process proceeds to step S3707, where the menu termination process described above is performed. After that, the process proceeds to step S3901 of the start command waiting process described later.

[0302] Returning to the explanation of the start waiting process, if it is determined in step S3604 that the value of the waiting timer has reached 0, waiting process is performed in step S3607.

[0303] In the standby process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 58, a customer waiting effect is initiated in step S3801. In the customer waiting effect, a predetermined demo movie (attract effect) is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65. Note that instead of or in addition to the customer waiting effect, a transition to power-saving mode may be made and a message "Power Saving" may be displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65. Alternatively, the brightness of the auxiliary display unit 65 may be reduced and the transition to power-saving mode may be made without executing the customer waiting effect or the power-saving display. In step S3802, it is determined whether the effect switch 67 has been operated. If the effect switch 67 has not been operated, it is determined in step S3803 whether the number of bets is 0. If the number of bets is not 0, the process returns to step S3802. If it is determined in step S3802 that the effect switch 67 has been operated, the customer waiting effect is terminated in step S3804, and the standby timer is set to 18,000 in step S3805. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S3701 of the menu process. If it is determined in step S3803 that the number of bets is not 0, the customer waiting effect is ended in step S3806, and the waiting timer is set to 18000 in step S3807. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S3901 of the start command waiting process, which will be described later.

[0304] Returning to the explanation of the start waiting process, if it is determined in step S3605 that the number of bets is not 0, the process waits for a start command in step S3608.

[0305] In the start command waiting process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 59, it is determined in step S3901 whether a start command has been received. The start command is a command sent from the main control device 101 to the display control device 81, and is sent when it is determined in step S206 (see FIG. 11) of the normal process that a start command has been generated. If the start command has not been received, it is determined in step S3902 whether the number of bets is 0. If the number of bets is not 0, the process returns to step S3901. On the other hand, if the number of bets is 0, the standby timer is set to 18,000 in step S3903, and the process proceeds to step S3603 of the start waiting process. A typical example of a situation in which the number of bets becomes 0 in step S3902 is when the player operates the settlement switch 59 after betting a predetermined number of medals. If it is determined in step S3901 that a start command has been received, this means that a game has started, and the process proceeds to in-game processing in step S3904. A detailed explanation of the in-game processing will be omitted, but in the in-game processing, for example, if a push order bell is won in the notification mode, the operation sequence that will result in the bell winning will be displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65.

[0306] As described above, when the effect switch 67 is operated while no game is being played, the display control device 81 displays the menu screen on the auxiliary display unit 65, and when the value of the waiting timer reaches 0, starts the customer waiting effect.

[0307] In the slot machine 10, when the player wins the additional lottery in the notification mode, the number of additional coins is notified by performing a press effect that prompts the player to operate the effect switch 67 after the player has finished operating all the stop switches 42 to 44. Hereinafter, the process that the display control device 81 performs when executing such a press effect will be described.

[0308] 60 is a flowchart showing the effect determination process carried out in the above-mentioned in-game process. The effect determination process is carried out at the start of a game.

[0309] In step S4001, it is determined whether or not a lottery result command has been received. If not, this process is terminated. If a lottery result command has been received, the process proceeds to step S4002, where it is determined whether or not the current game mode is the notification mode. If the current game mode is not the notification mode, the process is terminated. If the current game mode is the notification mode, it is determined in step S4003 whether or not a rare combination has been won. If a rare combination has not been won, the process is terminated. If a rare combination has been won, the process proceeds to step S4004, where a performance execution lottery is conducted. In the performance execution lottery, a win or loss is determined based on the type of rare combination won and the random number acquired by the display control device 81. Incidentally, in the performance execution lottery, if a watermelon is won, there is approximately a 1 in 10 chance of winning the performance execution lottery, and if a cherry is won, there is approximately a 5 in 1 chance of winning the performance execution lottery. In step S4005, it is determined whether or not the performance execution lottery has been won. If the effect execution lottery is won, the effect flag is set in step S4006 and this process ends. If the effect execution lottery is not won, the process proceeds to step S4007 and determines whether or not an add-on command has been received. The add-on command is a command sent from the main control device 101 when the add-on lottery is won, and is sent before the lottery result command when the add-on lottery is won (see Figures 12 and 30). Therefore, if an add-on command has been received, it means that the add-on lottery has been won in this game round. In this case, the effect flag is set in step S4006 and this process ends. If an add-on command has not been received, this process ends as is. Note that when the display control device 81 receives an add-on command, it stores the number of add-on coins indicated by the add-on command in an add-on coin number counter provided in the RAM of the display control device 81.

[0310] When the operation of all stop switches 42 to 44 is completed, main control device 101 transmits an operation end command to display control device 81.

[0311] When the display control device 81 receives the operation end command, it determines in step S3303 of the operation end command processing shown in FIG. 55 that the effect flag is set, and proceeds to step S3304. In step S3304, the auxiliary display unit 65 displays the effect switch 67, and starts a press display to encourage the player to operate the effect switch 67. In the following step S3305, 1000 is set to a first timer provided in the RAM of the display control device 81. The value of the first timer is decremented by 1 in timer interrupt processing. Since the timer interrupt processing is performed approximately every 10 msec, the value of the first timer becomes 0 after approximately 10 seconds. When the first timer is set to 1000, the operation end command processing is terminated.

[0312] In the start waiting process, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 56, if the effect flag is set, an affirmative determination is made in step S3601 and press effect processing is performed in step S3602.

[0313] In the press effect processing, as shown in the flowchart of Fig. 61, it is determined in step S4101 whether or not the effect switch 67 has been operated, and if the effect switch 67 has not been operated, the process remains in standby. If the effect switch 67 has been operated, the process proceeds to step S4102, where a result flag is set. Here, the result flag is a flag for starting a result display that notifies the number of added coins if the add-on lottery has been won, and notifies the fact that no added coins will be added if the add-on lottery has not been won.

[0314] FIG. 62 is a flowchart showing the result display process performed in the timer interrupt process of the display control device 81.

[0315] In step S4201, it is determined whether the result flag is set. If the result flag is set, the result flag is cleared in step S4202, and the display flag is set in step S4203. In step S4204, a display counter provided in the RAM of the display control device 81 is set to 0, and in step S4205, an image corresponding to the value of the display counter is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65. Note that the ROM of the display control device 81 pre-stores result display image data to be executed when the additional lottery has been won and result display image data to be executed when the additional lottery has not been won. The result display image data is composed of 201 image data associated with values ​​from 0 to 200. In step S4205, result display image data corresponding to the lottery result of the additional lottery is obtained, and the image data associated with 0 is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65. If an image corresponding to the value of the display counter has been displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65, this process ends.

[0316] If it is determined in step S4201 that the result flag is not set, the process proceeds to step S4206, where it is determined whether the display flag is set. If neither the result flag nor the display flag is set, this means that the result display is not being performed, and the process terminates. On the other hand, if the display flag is set, this means that the result display is being performed, so in step S4207, the display counter value is incremented by 1, and in step S4208, an image corresponding to the display counter value is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65. In step S4209, it is determined whether the display counter value has reached 200. If the display counter value has not reached 200, this means that the final image data of the result display image data has been displayed, i.e., the result display has been performed to the end, so in step S4210, the display flag is cleared, and in step S4211, the completion flag is set. In step S4212, a second timer provided in the RAM of the display control device 81 is set to 300. The value of the second timer is decremented by 1 during timer interrupt processing. Since timer interrupt processing is performed approximately every 10 msec, the value of the second timer becomes 0 after approximately 3 seconds. If the second timer is set to 300, the result display processing ends.

[0317] As described above, when the result flag is set in the press performance process, the result display process is started in the timer interrupt process approximately every 10 msec, and the result display is executed for approximately 2 seconds. When the result display is executed to the end, the final image data of the result display image data continues to be displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 until the process moves to the menu process, standby process, or start command wait process (see FIG. 56).

[0318] Returning to the explanation of the press performance processing, in step S4103, it is determined whether the value of the first timer has reached 0. If the value of the first timer has not reached 0, the process waits until the value of the first timer reaches 0. If the value of the first timer reaches 0, this means that approximately 10 seconds have passed since the start of the press display. In this case, the process proceeds to step S4104, where it is determined whether the completion flag has been set. If the completion flag has been set, this means that the result display has been executed to the end, so the completion flag is cleared in step S4105, and the value of the second timer is set to 0 in step S4106, and this process ends. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S4104 that the completion flag has not been set, this means that the result display is still in progress, so the process proceeds to step S4107, where the process waits until the value of the second timer reaches 0. More specifically, in step S4107, the display counter value is 20, and the process waits until the value of the second timer reaches 0. If the value of the second timer becomes 0, the completion flag is cleared in step S4105, and the value of the second timer is set to 0 in step S4106, and this process ends.

[0319] Here, the subsequent flow when the push display is performed will be specifically described.

[0320] When the push-button display is performed, the push-button display continues on the auxiliary display unit 65 until the effect switch 67 is operated. If the effect switch 67 is operated while the push-button display is being performed, the result display begins. It takes about 2 seconds to display the result to the end.

[0321] Here, if the effect switch 67 is operated within approximately 8 seconds after the start of the push display, the result display can be completed within approximately 10 seconds after the start of the push display. Therefore, in such a case, the completion flag is also set when the value of the first timer reaches 0, so the push display processing is immediately terminated and processing proceeds to step S3603 of the start waiting processing. At this time, the value of the second timer is not referenced. In other words, if the effect switch 67 is operated within approximately 8 seconds after the start of the push display, the operation of the effect switch 67 to display the menu screen (hereinafter also referred to as the "menu start operation") becomes effective approximately 10 seconds after the start of the push display.

[0322] If the effect switch 67 is operated between approximately 8 and 10 seconds after the start of the push display, the timing will be approximately 10 seconds after the start of the push display, while the result display is in progress. Therefore, in such a case, the completion flag will not be set when the value of the first timer reaches 0, and the process will proceed to step S3603 of the start waiting process after the value of the second timer reaches 0. In other words, if the effect switch 67 is operated between approximately 8 and 10 seconds after the start of the push display, the menu start operation will become effective 3 seconds after the result display has been executed to the end, that is, approximately 5 seconds after the effect switch 67 is operated.

[0323] If the effect switch 67 is operated approximately 10 seconds or more after the start of the push-button display, the completion flag is not set when the value of the first timer reaches 0 (the result display has not started), so the result display is executed to completion and the process proceeds to step S3603 of the start waiting process after the value of the second timer reaches 0. In other words, if the effect switch 67 is operated approximately 10 seconds or more after the push-button display has started, the menu start operation becomes effective 3 seconds after the result display is executed to completion, that is, approximately 5 seconds after the effect switch 67 is operated.

[0324] According to the present embodiment described above in detail, the following excellent effects are achieved.

[0325] In conventional slot machines, there are some that do not execute menu processing after a game in which an auxiliary effect, such as the above-mentioned pressing effect, is executed as a trigger for the operation of an effect switch, i.e., the menu screen is not displayed even when the effect switch is operated. In such a configuration, if you want to display the menu screen, you have to continue playing until you reach a game in which the pressing effect is not executed, which can be frustrating for players.

[0326] Therefore, in this embodiment, the menu processing is executed even after the game in which the press effect is executed. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to increase the opportunities for the player to display the menu screen at the timing desired by the player, and it is possible to improve the enjoyment of the game.

[0327] When the press display is started, the menu start operation is valid when the value of the first timer reaches 0, or when the value of the second timer, not the first timer, reaches 0. This configuration makes it possible to change the timing at which the menu start operation is valid depending on the timing at which the result display starts, i.e., the operation timing of the effect switch 67. As a result, it is possible to reduce the chances that a player will feel annoyed when the menu screen does not appear even when the effect switch 67 is operated.

[0328] It is certainly possible to configure the menu start operation to be enabled after a game in which a push effect has been executed by configuring the menu start operation to be enabled after a certain period of time, such as three seconds, has elapsed since the result display was completed. However, such a configuration could potentially irritate players by having to wait three seconds. To address this concern, it would be possible to configure the menu start operation to be enabled immediately after the result display is completed. However, this configuration would create a new problem: the menu screen could be displayed at a timing unintended by the player. This is because if the result display is completed and the player operates the effect switch 67 again in hopes of further development of the effect, such as a so-called reversal effect, the display content of the auxiliary display unit 65 would switch from the push effect to the menu screen.

[0329] On the other hand, in the slot machine 10, in which the menu start operation is enabled based on the value of the first or second timer, a grace period can be set between the completion of the result display and the activation of the menu start operation, unless the effect switch 67 is operated approximately 8 seconds after the start of the press display. The existence of this grace period reduces the chance of the menu screen being displayed at a time unintended by the player. While this may lead to player frustration at having to wait the grace period, the length of the grace period varies depending on the timing of the operation of the effect switch 67. This allows the player to operate the effect switch 67 while exploring whether the menu start operation has already been activated. This reduces player frustration.

[0330] As a result of the above, the slot machine 10 is able to effectively resolve the above-mentioned concerns, and it is possible to reduce the number of times that a player will feel frustrated when the menu screen does not appear even when the effect switch 67 is operated.

[0331] When the value of the first timer reaches 0, if a completion flag indicating that the result display has been completed is set, the menu start operation is enabled. This configuration makes it possible to prevent the menu start operation from being enabled in the middle of the result display.

[0332] The first timer is configured to be set to 1000. When the push-button display is initiated, it is generally assumed that the time required from when the player recognizes the push-button display to when they actually operate the effect switch 67 is within 5 seconds, even if they operate it while hoping that the number of coins added will be announced. Since it takes approximately 2 seconds to complete the result display, setting the first timer to 1000 reduces the chance of the menu screen being displayed at a timing unintended by the player. Furthermore, with this configuration, if the effect switch 67 is operated within approximately 8 seconds after the push-button display is initiated, the menu start operation will become effective approximately 10 seconds later. This makes it possible to prompt the player to operate the effect switch 67 while reducing the chance of a delay between the push-button display and the result display.

[0333] The second timer is configured to set the value to 300. If the result display has not been completed approximately 10 seconds after the start of the push display, it is possible that the player has not operated the effect switch 67 due to leaving the seat, etc. In such a case, the menu start operation is configured to become valid approximately 3 seconds after the result display has been completed, thereby reducing the chances of the menu screen being displayed at a time unintended by the player.

[0334] (Fifth embodiment)

[0335] In the first embodiment, the notification mode is configured to end based on the net increase in coins, but the notification mode may also be configured to end based on the number of games played. Therefore, the following will explain this configuration in detail. Note that the basic configuration is the same as the first embodiment, so only the differences will be explained below.

[0336] First, the processing performed by main control device 101 will be described.

[0337] The processing performed by the main control device 101 in the normal zone is the same as that in the first embodiment. Therefore, in the normal zone, if a player wins a certain combination in a three-coin game, the player will win the lottery for transitioning to the advantageous zone. For example, in the case of "Setting 3," there is a probability of about 1 in 1.2 winning a certain combination, and a probability of about 1 in 6.4 losing. Therefore, the normal zone will end in approximately one game if three coins are played. Then, when the player transitions from the normal zone to the advantageous zone, the game starts in the chance mode, and the number of transition games is set to 700 (see Figure 26).

[0338] In the chance mode, the processing performed by the main control device 101 is different from that in the first embodiment in terms of the game section processing.

[0339] 63 is a flowchart showing the game section processing in the chance mode. The game section processing is processing that is carried out after the medal payout processing is completed (step S214, see FIG. 11), and is carried out at the end of the game.

[0340] In step S4301, the end determination process described in the first embodiment is performed (see FIG. 29).

[0341] In step S4302, it is determined whether the current gaming zone is a favorable zone. If it is determined that the current gaming zone is not a favorable zone but a normal zone, this means that the favorable zone end process has been performed in the end determination process of step S4301, so after sending the zone command in step S4311, this process is terminated.

[0342] If the current play zone is a favorable zone, the process proceeds to step S4303, where it is determined whether the current play is a three-coin play. If it is a three-coin play, the value of the mode game number counter is incremented by 1 in step S4304, and it is determined in step S4305 whether the transition flag is set. If the transition flag is set, this means that the lottery for transition to the notification mode has been won, so the transition flag is cleared in step S4306, and the play mode flag stored in the zone information storage area 106d is changed to a notification flag in step S4308. In the following step S4309, the transition game number counter is set to 50, and in step S4310, the mode game number counter is set to 0. Thereafter, in step S4311, an interval command is sent, and this process ends.

[0343] If it is determined in step S4305 that the transition flag is not set, this means that the player did not win the lottery for transitioning to the notification mode. In this case, the process proceeds to step S4307, where it is determined whether the value of the mode game number counter matches the value of the transition game number counter. If the value of the mode game number counter does not match the value of the transition game number counter, an interval command is sent in step S4311, and then this process ends. On the other hand, if the value of the mode game number counter matches the value of the transition game number counter, the game mode flag stored in the interval information storage area 106d is changed to an announcement flag in step S4308. In the following step S4309, the transition game number counter is set to 50, and in step S4310, the mode game number counter is set to 0. Thereafter, an interval command is sent in step S4311, and then this process ends.

[0344] If it is determined in step S4303 that the current game is a two-coin game and not a three-coin game, an interval command is sent in step S4311 without updating the mode game number counter, and this processing is terminated.

[0345] Next, the processing in the advantageous zone notification mode will be explained.

[0346] 64 is a flowchart showing the section lottery process in the notification mode. The section lottery process is a process performed after the winning / losing judgment of the winning combination is completed in the lottery process (step S309, see FIG. 12), and is performed at the start of the game.

[0347] In step S4401, it is determined whether the current game is a three-coin game. If it is a three-coin game, the process proceeds to step S4402, where it is determined whether a rare combination has been won. If a rare combination has been won, the process proceeds to step S4403, where an additional lottery is conducted to determine whether or not to increase the value of the transition game number counter. In the additional lottery, the result is determined based on the set win flag and the random number obtained when determining whether or not the combination has been won. Incidentally, in the additional lottery, for example, in a setting of 3, if a watermelon is won, there is approximately a one-in-five probability that the additional number of games will be won, either 50, 100, or 300, and if a cherry is won, there is approximately a one-in-three probability that the additional number of games will be won. In step S4404, it is determined whether or not the additional lottery has been won. If the additional lottery has been won, the process proceeds to step S4405, where a subsequent notification lottery is conducted to determine whether or not the additional number of games will be announced in a game subsequent to the current game. In the subsequent notification lottery, a win / loss determination is made based on the set win flag and the random number obtained when determining whether the winning combination is a win or a loss. If the subsequent notification lottery is not won, an additional flag is set in step S4407, and an additional command is sent in step S4408. Here, the additional command is a command sent to the display control device 81 to inform the display control device 81 that the player has won the additional lottery and the number of additional games to be added to the value of the transition game number counter. In step S4409, a value corresponding to the lottery result of the additional lottery is added to the value of the transition game number counter. Thereafter, this processing ends. On the other hand, if the subsequent notification lottery is won, a subsequent notification command is sent in step S4410 without setting the additional flag. Here, the subsequent notification command is a command sent to the display control device 81 to inform the display control device 81 that the player has won the subsequent notification lottery and the number of additional games to be added to the value of the transition game number counter. In step S4409, a value corresponding to the result of the additional lottery is added to the value of the transition game number counter. Then, this process ends. If the additional lottery is not won, this process ends. Also, if the current game is a two-coin game instead of a three-coin game, or if a rare combination is not won, this process ends without performing the additional lottery.

[0348] As described above, if the add-on lottery is won, an add-on command or a subsequent notification command is sent to the display control device 81. If the add-on flag is set and an add-on command is sent, the number of add-on games is announced in the pseudo game, as described in the first embodiment above (see Figure 31). Also, if a subsequent notification command is sent without setting an add-on command, the number of add-on games is announced in the revival effect described below. Note that if the pseudo game lottery is won when a subsequent notification command has been sent (see Figure 16), the number of add-on games is announced in the revival effect, not in the pseudo game.

[0349] 65 is a flowchart showing the game section processing in the notification mode. The game section processing is processing carried out after the medal payout processing is completed (step S214, see FIG. 11), and is carried out at the end of the game.

[0350] In step S4501, the end determination process described in the first embodiment is performed, and in step S4502, it is determined whether the current game zone is an advantageous zone. If it is determined that the current game zone is not an advantageous zone but a normal zone, this means that the advantageous zone end process has been performed in the end determination process of step S4501, and then the process is terminated after sending a zone command in step S4508.

[0351] If the current gaming zone is a favorable zone, in step S4503, 1 is added to the value of the mode game number counter, and in step S4504, it is determined whether the value of the mode game number counter matches the value of the transition game number counter. If the value of the mode game number counter matches the value of the transition game number counter, advantageous zone end processing shown in steps S4505 to S4507 is performed, and an zone command is sent in step S4508, and this processing ends. In the advantageous zone end processing, in step S4505, the gaming zone flag stored in the zone information storage area 106d is changed to a normal flag, and in step S4506, the zone indicator 66 is turned OFF. In step S4507, initialization processing is performed in response to the end of the advantageous zone. In the initialization processing, processing is performed to initialize information related to the instruction function stored in the zone information storage area 106d (for example, the zone game number counter value, etc.).

[0352] If it is determined in step S4504 that the value of the mode game number counter does not match the value of the transition game number counter, the process proceeds to step S4509, where it is determined whether a completion flag is set. If the completion flag is not set, it is determined in step S4510 whether the number of games remaining in the notification mode is greater than 50. The number of games remaining in the notification mode is derived by subtracting the value of the mode game number counter from the value of the transition game number counter. If the number of games remaining in the notification mode is greater than 50, the process proceeds to step S4511, where it is determined whether the value of the difference number counter is greater than 2200. If the number of games remaining in the notification mode is greater than 50 and the value of the difference number counter is greater than 2200, the completion flag is set in step S4512, and the transition game number counter is set to 1500 in step S4513. When 1500 games have been played in the advantageous zone, or when the difference number in the advantageous zone reaches 2400, the advantageous zone ends regardless of the game mode at that time. Therefore, if the transition game number counter is set to 1500 when the value of the difference number counter is greater than 2200, the advantageous zone and notification mode will end when the difference number in the advantageous zone reaches 2400. In step S4514, a completion command indicating that the end has been confirmed when the difference number is 2400 is sent to the display control device 81. Thereafter, in step S4508, an interval command is sent, and this process ends.

[0353] If it is determined in step S4509 that the completion flag is set, if it is determined in step S4510 that the number of games remaining in the notification mode is 50 or less, or if it is determined in step S4511 that the value of the difference number counter is 2200 or less, then this processing is terminated after sending an interval command in step S4508.

[0354] This embodiment is characterized by the display effects on the auxiliary display unit 65 when going from the notification mode (advantageous zone) through the normal zone to the chance mode (advantageous zone). Therefore, the various processes performed by the display control device 81 will be explained below in accordance with the flow of the game.

[0355] The process performed by the display control device 81 when the mode is changed from the chance mode to the notification mode will be described.

[0356] 66 is a flowchart showing the section command processing in the notification mode. The section command processing is started when a section command transmitted from main control device 101 is received, and is started after the game ends.

[0357] In step S4601, it is determined whether the current game was a transition game to the notification mode. The RAM of the display control device 81 is provided with a game section memory area for storing information on the game section indicated by the section command. The game section memory area is composed of a first area for storing information indicated by the section command received in the current game and a second area for storing information indicated by the section command received in the previous game. In step S4601, if information indicating the chance mode is stored in the second area and information indicating the notification mode is stored in the first area, it is determined that the current game was a transition game to the notification mode. In step S4602, a start flag is set. In step S4603, a display game number counter provided in the RAM of the display control device 81 is set to 50, and in step S4604, a subsequent notification game number counter provided in the RAM of the display control device 81 is set to 0. Thereafter, in step S4605, a transition notification process is performed, and this process ends. By performing the transition notification process, the auxiliary display unit 65 displays, as shown in Figure 73(a), that the notification mode will start from the next game and that the number of games that can be played in the notification mode is 50.

[0358] 67 is a flowchart showing start command processing in the notification mode. When main control device 101 determines that a start command has been issued (step S206, see FIG. 11), it transmits a start command to display control device 81. The start command processing is initiated when a start command transmitted from main control device 101 is received, and is initiated at the start of a game.

[0359] In step S4701, it is determined whether the start flag is set. If the start flag is set, this means that the current game is the first game in the notification mode. Therefore, in step S4702, the start flag is cleared, and in step S4703, the value of the displayed game number counter is displayed on auxiliary display unit 65, and this processing ends. By performing this processing, as shown in FIG. 73(b), auxiliary display unit 65 displays an image of a young man character strolling along a road and that there are 50 games remaining in the notification mode. Although detailed explanation is omitted, the control for notifying the operation order when the push order bell is won is performed in the lottery result command processing that is activated when the lottery result command is received (step S310, see FIG. 12).

[0360] Next, a process performed by the display control device 81 when a completion command is not received in the notification mode will be described.

[0361] In the section command processing that is started after the end of a game, as shown in the flowchart of Figure 66, if it is determined in step S4601 that the current game is not a transition game to the announcement mode, the process proceeds to step S4606, where it is determined whether or not a finish command has been received. If a finish command has not been received, in step S4610, 1 is subtracted from the value of the number of displayed games counter, and in step S4611 it is determined whether or not the value of the number of displayed games counter has reached 1. If the value of the number of displayed games counter has not reached 1, in step S4613 it is determined whether or not the value of the number of displayed games counter has reached 0, and if the value of the number of displayed games counter has not reached 0, the process terminates.

[0362] If it is determined in step S4611 that the value of the displayed game number counter has reached 1, this means that the next game will be the final game in the notification mode, at least in terms of the number of remaining games displayed in the auxiliary display unit 65. In this case, an end flag is set in step S4612, and this process ends.

[0363] Furthermore, if it is determined in step S4613 that the value of the display game number counter has reached 0, this means that the player won the subsequent notification lottery in any of the games up until the value of the display game number counter reached 0. This is because, when the final game in the notification mode ends, the main control device 101 transmits a section command indicating a normal section rather than a section command indicating the notification mode (see FIG. 65). In such a case, a revival flag is set in step S4614, and the value of the subsequent notification game number counter is set in the display game number counter in step S4615. Note that, when a subsequent notification command indicating a win in the subsequent notification lottery is received, the subsequent notification game number counter is incremented by the additional number of games indicated by the subsequent notification command. Thereafter, the subsequent notification game number counter is set to 0 in step S4616, and this processing ends.

[0364] In the start command processing that is activated at the start of a game, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 67, if it is determined in step S4701 that the start flag is not set, it is determined in step S4704 whether or not the end flag is set. If the end flag is not set, the process proceeds to step S4707, where it is determined whether or not the revival flag is set. If the revival flag is not set, the process proceeds to step S4710, where it is determined whether or not the ending flag is set. If the ending flag is not set, the value of the displayed game number counter is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 in step S4712, and the process ends. By performing this process, the number of remaining games displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 is decreased by one each time a game is played.

[0365] If it is determined in step S4704 that the end flag is set, this means that the current game will be the final game in the notification mode, at least in terms of the remaining number of games displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65. In this case, the end flag is cleared in step S4705, and a process of displaying an end screen on the auxiliary display unit 65 is performed in step S4706, and this process ends. By performing this process, the auxiliary display unit 65 displays, as shown in FIG. 73(c), the fact that the notification mode has ended and the current number of medals won (e.g., 800 medals), i.e., the difference in medals from the end of the previous game. Note that the lottery result command is received after receiving the start command, but if a lottery result command indicating that the push order bell has been won is received, the auxiliary display unit 65 displays the operation sequence for achieving the bell win in addition to displaying the end screen. For example, when a lottery result command is received indicating that the center left and right bells have been won, the auxiliary display unit 65 will display the end of the notification mode, the current number of medals won, and the operation sequence "213", as shown in Figure 73(d).

[0366] If it is determined in step S4707 that the revival flag is set, it means that the subsequent notification lottery has been won, that is, there is an unannounced number of additional games. In such a case, the revival flag is cleared in step S4708, and a revival effect process is performed in step S4709, and this process ends. By performing the revival effect process, the auxiliary display unit 65 displays, as shown in Fig. 73(e), that the notification mode will continue and the number of additional games won in the subsequent notification lottery (for example, 50 games), and then the normal screen in the notification mode shown in Fig. 73(b) is displayed.

[0367] As described above, if a finish command is not received in the notification mode, the end screen is displayed at the start of a game in which the number of remaining games on the auxiliary display unit 65 reaches 0. If the subsequent notification lottery is won, a revival effect is performed at the start of the next game after the end screen is displayed to notify the player that the notification mode will continue.

[0368] Next, the process performed by the display control device 81 when a completion command is received in the notification mode will be described.

[0369] In the section command processing initiated after the end of a game, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 66, if it is determined in step S4601 that the current game is not a transition game to the notification mode, the process proceeds to step S4606, where it is determined whether or not a finish command has been received. If a finish command has been received, this means that the game will end when the difference in coins reaches 2400. In such a case, an ending flag is set in step S4607, and the displayed game number counter is set to 1500 in step S4608. Thereafter, ending notification processing is performed in step S4609, and this processing ends. By performing the ending notification processing, the auxiliary display unit 65 displays a message that the ending video will begin from the next game.

[0370] In the section command processing for the game after the completion command is received, 1 is subtracted from the value of the number of displayed games counter in step S4610, and it is determined in step S4611 whether the value of the number of displayed games counter has reached 1. As described above, in the section command processing when the completion command is received, the number of displayed games counter is set to 1500 in step S4608. Therefore, in the section command processing for the game after the completion command is received, it is determined in step S4611 that the value of the number of displayed games counter has not reached 1. For the same reason, it is also determined in step S4613, which is reached from step S4611, that the value of the number of displayed games counter has not reached 0, and this processing is terminated.

[0371] In the start command process that is activated when the game starts, as shown in the flowchart in Figure 67, it is determined in step S4710 whether or not the ending flag is set. If the ending flag is set, ending execution process is performed in step S4711, and then this process ends. In the ending execution process, a predetermined ending video is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65.

[0372] As described above, when it is determined that the notification mode will end with a difference of 2400 coins, a predetermined ending video is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 from the next game until the notification mode and advantageous zone end.

[0373] The process performed by the display control device 81 when the mode shifts from the notification mode to the normal mode will be described.

[0374] In the section command process that is started after the end of a game, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 68, it is determined in step S4801 whether or not the current game was a transition game to the normal section. More specifically, it is determined whether or not information indicating a notification mode is stored in the second area of ​​the game section storage area and whether or not information indicating a normal section is stored in the first area. If the current game was a transition game to the normal section, the process proceeds to step S4802, where a continued game number counter provided in the RAM of the display control device 81 is set to 1. Thereafter, this process ends. If the current game was not a transition game to the normal section, the value of the continued game number counter is incremented by 1 in step S4803, and this process ends.

[0375] As shown in the flowchart of FIG. 69, the start command process that is initiated at the start of the game determines in step S4901 whether or not the ending flag is set. If the ending flag is set, this means that a predetermined ending video has been displayed in the notification mode. In such a case, the ending flag is cleared in step S4902, and a process is performed in which an ending screen is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 in step S4903. Thereafter, the continuation flag is set in step S4904, and this process is terminated. By performing the above process, the auxiliary display unit 65 displays the fact that the notification mode has ended and the number of medals acquired at the time the notification mode ended.

[0376] If it is determined in step S4901 that the ending flag is not set, the process proceeds to step S4905, where it is determined whether or not the continuation flag is set. If the continuation flag is not set, the continuation flag is set in step S4906, and then the process proceeds to step S4907. If the continuation flag is set, the process proceeds directly to step S4907. In step S4907, a process is performed to continue displaying the ending screen. Thereafter, this process ends. Note that in step S4907, the process of changing and displaying the number of medals acquired is not performed.

[0377] As described above, when the notification mode ends due to a difference of 2400 coins, the notification mode end screen is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 from the first game of the normal interval until the end of the normal interval. When the notification mode ends due to the consumption of the number of transition games, the notification mode end screen is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 from the final game of the notification mode until the end of the normal interval.

[0378] 70 is a flowchart showing lottery result command processing in the normal section. The lottery result command processing is started when a lottery result command transmitted from the main control device 101 is received, and is started at the start of the game.

[0379] In step S5001, it is determined whether or not any winning combination has been achieved in the current game. If any winning combination has been achieved in the current game, this means that the player has won the lottery for transitioning to the chance mode, i.e., the player will transition to the chance mode from the next game, and the process is terminated. On the other hand, if no winning combination has been achieved in the current game, i.e., the normal section will continue into the next game, the process proceeds to step S5002, where it is determined whether or not the value of the continued game counter is less than 6. If the value of the continued game counter is less than 6, a suggestion jewel selection lottery is performed in step S5003. In the suggestion jewel selection lottery, a selection lottery is performed based on the setting status of the slot machine 10 and the random number acquired by the display control device 81. Incidentally, in the suggestion jewel selection lottery, in the case of setting 1 or setting 2, a blue jewel is selected 40% of the time, a yellow jewel is selected 30% of the time, a green jewel is selected 20% of the time, and a red jewel is selected 10% of the time. In the case of setting 3 or setting 4, blue orbs are selected 20% of the time, yellow orbs are selected 30% of the time, green orbs are selected 30% of the time, and red orbs are selected 20% of the time. In the case of setting 5 or setting 6, blue orbs are selected 10% of the time, yellow orbs are selected 20% of the time, green orbs are selected 30% of the time, and red orbs are selected 40% of the time. Note that the selection rates may be different for each of settings 1 to 6. In step S5004, a process is performed to display the selection result of the suggestion orb selection lottery on the auxiliary display unit 65. Then, this process ends. If it is determined in step S5002 that the value of the continued game number counter is 6 or more, the process proceeds to step S5005, where a fixed orb indicating the setting status of the slot machine 10 is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65. Then, this process ends. For example, when the process of displaying the final jewel is performed on the slot machine 10 with the setting 6, the end screen and the jewel marked with 6 are displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 as shown in FIG. 73(f).

[0380] 71 is a flowchart showing the all reels stop completion command processing in the normal section. The all reels stop completion command processing is a process that is started when an all reels stop completion command transmitted from the main control device 101 is received, and is started at the end stage of the game.

[0381] In the all reels stop completion command processing, the suggestion jewel or fixed jewel displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 in step S5101 is hidden, and this processing ends.

[0382] As described above, in the normal section, if the game does not transition to chance mode, suggestion jewels are displayed in the auxiliary display unit 65 until all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R come to a stop in the first five games, and fixed jewels are displayed in the auxiliary display unit 65 until all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R come to a stop in the sixth game and beyond. Here, the probability of not transitioning to chance mode, i.e., the probability of a miss occurring, is approximately 1 in 6.4. Therefore, players who want to guess the setting from the appearance of suggestion jewels or players who want to understand the setting status from the fixed jewels, need to play in a way that increases the number of plays in the normal section.

[0383] Next, the process performed by the display control device 81 when the normal mode is switched to the chance mode will be described.

[0384] In the section command process that is started after the end of a game, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 68, it is determined in step S4801 whether the current game was a transition game to the chance mode. More specifically, it is determined whether information indicating a normal section is stored in the second area of ​​the game section storage area and whether information indicating a chance mode is stored in the first area. If the current game was a transition game to the chance mode, the process proceeds to step S4802, where a continued game number counter provided in the RAM of the display control device 81 is set to 1. Then, this process ends. If the current game was not a transition game to the chance mode, the value of the continued game number counter is incremented by 1 in step S4803, and this process ends.

[0385] In the start command process that is activated at the start of the game, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 72, it is determined in step S5201 whether the continuation flag is set. If the continuation flag is set, this means that the end screen is being displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65. In this case, the continuation flag is cleared in step S5202, and the end screen displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65 is hidden in step S5203. Thereafter, in step S5204, the value of the number of continued games counter is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65, and this process ends. By performing this process, the auxiliary display unit 65 displays an image of the young man character strolling into the distance on the road and the number of games in the chance mode, as shown in FIG. 73(g).

[0386] If it is determined in step S5201 that the continuation flag is not set, the process proceeds to step S5205, where the value of the continued game number counter is displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65, and the process ends. By performing this process, the auxiliary display unit 65 increases the number of games played by one each time a game is played.

[0387] According to the present embodiment described above in detail, the following excellent effects are achieved.

[0388] When the notification mode ends because the difference in coins is 2400, the end screen is displayed in the game following the game in which the difference in coins reached 2400, i.e., the first game of the normal section, and when the notification mode ends because the number of transition games has been exhausted, the end screen is displayed in the final game of the notification mode. In this way, by varying the game in which the end screen is displayed depending on which end condition is met, it is possible to diversify the auxiliary effects, such as by executing auxiliary effects according to the end condition that is met.

[0389] As a result of the above, it is possible to increase interest in the game.

[0390] When the notification mode ends due to a difference of 2400 coins, the end screen is displayed in the game following the game in which the difference of coins reaches 2400. This configuration makes it possible to avoid displaying the end screen across multiple games when the notification mode has not yet ended. It is certainly possible to display the end screen in the game following the game in which the difference of coins reaches 2394 or more. However, with this configuration, an event may occur in which the difference of coins does not reach 2400 and the notification mode does not end, even though the end screen is displayed, in cases such as when the push order bell is not won, or when the push order bell is won but the stop switches 42-44 are not operated in the notified operation sequence. If this event occurs, the end screen will continue to be displayed until the difference of coins reaches 2400 and the notification mode ends.

[0391] If the number of remaining games is greater than 50 and the difference in number of coins is greater than 2200, the value of the transition game counter is changed so that the notification mode ends when the difference in number of coins reaches 2400. This configuration makes it possible to increase the enjoyment of the game from various perspectives.

[0392] First, if the advantageous zone is configured to simply end when the difference in coins reaches 2400, some players may lose interest in playing when the advantageous zone (notification mode) actually ends when the difference in coins reaches 2400, thinking that they could have won even more medals if there was no limit on the number of medals. This is because it is rare for the difference in coins to reach 2400 when the number of remaining games reaches 0. On the other hand, the slot machine 10, which changes the value of the transition game counter when the number of remaining games is greater than 50 and the difference in coins is greater than 2200, allows players to play in the notification mode with the goal of reaching the difference in coins of 2200. Furthermore, since the expected increase in coins per game in the notification mode is approximately 3.5 coins, if the difference in coins exceeds 2200 when the number of remaining games is 57 or less, this is equivalent to winning the bonus lottery. This is because the expected number of games required to increase by 200 coins is 58. As a result of the above, even if an upper limit is set on the difference in the number of coins in the advantageous zone, it is possible to reduce the player's loss of motivation to play, and to increase interest in the game.

[0393] Next, when the notification mode is terminated based on the difference in number of coins, the timing of the termination of the notification mode varies depending on the results of the lottery, as described above. Therefore, in a configuration in which the termination condition of the notification mode is determined by the number of games played, it is difficult to execute an ending effect across multiple games. On the other hand, in the slot machine 10, which changes the value of the transition game counter when the number of remaining games is greater than 50 and the difference in number of coins is greater than 2200, it is possible to determine in advance that the notification mode will end when the difference in number of coins reaches 2400. Therefore, the number of games played from when the value of the transition game counter is changed until the difference in number of coins reaches 2400 can be secured as the number of games required to display the ending video. Therefore, it is possible to execute the ending effect in an optimal manner. Furthermore, the ending effect can notify the player that they have completed the advantageous zone, and it can allow the player to play while feeling a sense of superiority until the difference in number of coins actually reaches 2400. As a result, it is possible to increase the player's interest in the game.

[0394] In addition, when an ending effect is executed, an ending screen is displayed in the first game of the normal section, so the player can enjoy the ending effect until the start of the next game, and can play the next game while immersed in the afterglow of the ending effect. This can increase the player's interest in the game.

[0395] When the notification mode ends due to the number of transition games being played, the end screen is displayed in the final game of the notification mode. When the notification mode ends due to the number of transition games being played, the final game of the notification mode will not be delayed due to the results of the lottery for winning combinations, etc. Therefore, it is possible to avoid displaying the end screen for multiple games even when the notification mode has not ended.

[0396] If the player wins the subsequent notification lottery, a revival effect is performed in the next game after the end screen is displayed, and the number of additional games is notified. By adopting this configuration, when the end screen is displayed, the player can operate the start lever 41 to generate a command to start the next game while expecting the notification mode to continue, which can increase the player's interest in the game.

[0397] Here, we consider a case where the end screen is displayed in the next game after the notification mode ends, similar to when the notification mode ends due to a difference of 2400 coins. In this configuration, since the play interval of the game that displayed the end screen is already in the normal interval, even if a rare combination is won in that game, no additional lottery is held, and the notification mode cannot be revived (see Figures 25 and 26). On the other hand, in this slot machine 10, which displays the end screen in the final game of the notification mode, since that game is in the notification mode, if a rare combination is won, an additional lottery and a subsequent notification lottery can be held to perform a revival effect. Therefore, the revival effect can be performed in an optimal manner, which can increase the enjoyment of the game.

[0398] When the notification mode ends due to the number of transition games being played, an end screen is displayed at the start of the final game of the notification mode. This configuration prevents the carefully prepared end screen from going to waste. Furthermore, the player can view the end screen in the final game of the notification mode, and then be notified through a revival effect that the notification mode will continue. This increases the player's sense of satisfaction with the continuation of the notification mode. It is certainly possible to display the end screen and perform the revival effect after all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have stopped. However, players typically play games continuously, and in the notification mode, where virtual medals are stored and stored, direct insertion of medals is not required, so the game interval is generally shorter. For this reason, if the end screen is displayed after all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have stopped, the player may start the next game without checking the end screen, which could lead to an incident where the player realizes from the revival effect that the previous game was the final game of the notification mode. This not only leads to the end screen that has been painstakingly prepared being wasted, but also leads to a loss of satisfaction from the continuation of the notification mode. On the other hand, the slot machine 10, which displays the end screen at the start of the final game, can suitably resolve the above concerns.

[0399] The end screen is displayed during the first game in the normal section. This allows the player to play the first game in the normal section while basking in the excitement of the notification mode. Furthermore, if the end screen is displayed across two games, this confirms that the game is not in a favorable section and that no revival effects will be performed. Therefore, it is possible to provide new gameplay features using the end screens that have been available for some time, thereby increasing the enjoyment of the game.

[0400] Furthermore, in a configuration such as the present slot machine 10 in which a lottery for transitioning to the notification mode is not conducted during the normal period, there is a concern that players may prefer playing in the chance mode rather than the normal period and avoid playing slot machines in the normal period. Therefore, the present slot machine 10 is configured such that if the end screen is displayed across two games, it is confirmed that the game is not in a favorable period and that a revival effect will not be performed. In this configuration, if a player who has played in the notification mode displays the end screen in the final game of the notification mode, they will issue a command to start the next game in the hope of a revival effect. Therefore, if the favorable period has ended, it is possible for the player who played in the notification mode to play the first game in the normal period. Even if the player ends their game at this time, the end screen will still be displayed on the auxiliary display unit 65. Therefore, it is possible for other players other than the player to start playing the second game in the normal period while hoping for a revival effect to be performed. Therefore, it is possible to prevent players from avoiding playing on the slot machines 10 that are in the normal zone, and it is possible to prevent a decrease in the operating rate of the slot machines 10.

[0401] The ending screen is continuously displayed until the game transitions from the normal mode to the chance mode. By using this configuration, it is possible to reduce the number of auxiliary effects executed in the normal mode, and it is possible to suppress an increase in memory capacity.

[0402] If a winning combination is achieved during three-coin play, the game transitions from the normal section to chance mode, with a loss occurring only with a probability of approximately 1 in 6.4. By configuring the game so that the probability of transitioning to chance mode is higher than the probability of not transitioning, it is possible to reduce the number of games spent in the normal section. As a result, it is possible to reduce the chances of the end screen being displayed continuously for a long period of time, and it is also possible to reduce the chances that a player will end the game while the end screen is still displayed.

[0403] Even if the probability of transitioning to the chance mode is higher than the probability of not transitioning, as described above, an event may occur in which the player remains in the normal zone without transitioning to the chance mode. Furthermore, if the end screen is continuously displayed for a long period of time, there is a concern that gameplay in the normal zone may become monotonous. Therefore, the slot machine 10 is configured to display a suggestion jewel or a fixed jewel when the player does not transition from the normal zone to the chance mode. This configuration can encourage players to try to guess the setting based on the appearance of the suggestion jewel or to hope that the normal zone will continue until the fixed jewel is displayed. As a result, it is possible to prevent players from avoiding playing the slot machine 10 while they are in the normal zone, and it is also possible to prevent gameplay in the normal zone from becoming monotonous.

[0404] When all reels 32L, 32M, and 32R have stopped, the displayed suggestive jewels or fixed jewels are hidden. This configuration makes it possible to configure the suggestive jewels and fixed jewels so that they cannot be seen unless the player actually plays, allowing players who want to guess the setting to play in the normal interval. As a result, it is possible to prevent the operation of the slot machine 10 from decreasing due to the normal interval.

[0405] From the sixth game onwards in the normal section, a fixed jewel indicating the setting status of the slot machine 10 is displayed. This configuration can reduce the player's loss of motivation to play even if the normal section does not transition to the chance mode. This is because if the player can understand the setting status through the fixed jewel, it becomes a major factor in deciding whether or not to continue playing.

[0406] When the game transitions to the chance mode, the number of games played in the chance mode is displayed. This configuration allows the player to understand the maximum number of games required before transitioning to the notification mode and the number of games remaining in the advantageous zone, thereby increasing the player's motivation to play. However, since the number of games played in the normal zone is unrelated to the number of games played in the advantageous zone and the chance mode, if the number of games played is displayed after the end of the advantageous zone, for example, a game number that does not update until transitioning to the chance mode, such as "-G," would have to be displayed. This could lead to the player perceiving play in the normal zone as meaningless and reducing their motivation to play. However, in a configuration like the present slot machine 10 where the end screen is continuously displayed for each game in the normal zone, the end screen can be switched to display the number of games played in the chance mode, reducing the visual discomfort. As a result, the above concerns can be effectively resolved.

[0407] When the end screen is displayed, the system is configured to display the end of the notification mode and the current number of medals won. Furthermore, when the end screen continues to be displayed, i.e., when the end screen is displayed in the normal section, the displayed number of medals won is not changed. This configuration makes it possible to accurately notify the player of the number of medals won by the player in the advantageous section, even when the end screen is displayed in the normal section. Furthermore, since there is no need for processing to update the number of medals won displayed on the end screen, it is possible to suppress an increase in storage capacity.

[0408] (Sixth embodiment)

[0409] In the first embodiment, the probability of winning the push order bell is set so that the probability of winning the bell is equal when the left stop switch 42 is operated first, when the middle stop switch 43 is operated first, and when the right stop switch 44 is operated first. However, the probability of winning the push order bell may be set so that the probability of winning the bell varies depending on which stop switch 42 to 44 is operated first. Therefore, the following will explain this configuration in detail. Note that the basic configuration is the same as the first embodiment, so only the differences will be explained below.

[0410] FIG. 74 is a diagram showing the arrangement of symbols on the left reel 32L, the center reel 32M, and the right reel 32R.

[0411] There are ten types of symbols: a "bell" symbol (e.g., the 19th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "replay" symbol (e.g., the 18th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "bar" symbol (e.g., the 17th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "white star" symbol (e.g., the 16th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "watermelon" symbol (e.g., the 15th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "blue star" symbol (e.g., the 12th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "cherry" symbol (e.g., the 11th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "white 7" symbol (e.g., the 7th symbol on the left reel 32L), a "red 7" symbol (e.g., the 6th symbol on the left reel 32L), and a "red star" symbol (e.g., the 2nd symbol on the left reel 32L). As shown in Figure 74, the number and arrangement order of the various symbols are completely different on each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R.

[0412] Each of the display windows 26L, 26M, and 26R is formed so that only three of the 20 symbols on the corresponding reel are visible in their entirety. Therefore, when each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R is stopped, 3 x 3 = 9 symbols are visible through the display windows 26L, 26M, and 26R.

[0413] In the slot machine 10, a total of five combination lines are set, three parallel lines in the horizontal direction and two diagonally crossing lines, connecting the positions where these nine symbols are visible. More specifically, as shown in Fig. 75(a), the horizontal combination lines are set as follows: an upper line L1 connecting the upper symbols of each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R; a middle line L2 connecting the middle symbols of each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R; and a lower line L3 connecting the lower symbols of each of the reels 32L, 32M, and 32R. In addition, diagonal combination lines are set, including a line L4 that slopes downward to the right connecting the upper symbols on the left reel 32L, the middle symbols on the middle reel 32M, and the lower symbols on the right reel 32R, and a line L5 that slopes upward to the right connecting the lower symbols on the left reel 32L, the middle symbols on the middle reel 32M, and the upper symbols on the right reel 32R. When symbols stop in a predetermined combination on an activated combination line, i.e., an activated line, a win is achieved, and a bonus is awarded in which a predetermined number of medals serving as game media are paid out, or a bonus is awarded in which the game state is changed.

[0414] In the slot machine 10, only the upward-to-right line L5 is set as an activated line, as shown in Figure 75(b). The four lines of the upper line L1, middle line L2, lower line L3, and downward-to-right line L4 are not activated.

[0415] 76 to 78 are diagrams showing the correspondence between the names of condition devices, winning symbol combinations, and the benefits awarded when a winning combination is achieved.

[0416] BB is a condition device that provides a bonus for transitioning to a gaming state when a winning combination is achieved.

[0417] If the "white star" symbol on the left reel 32L, the "red star" symbol on the center reel 32M, and the "white 7" symbol on the right reel 32R stop on an active line, a BB win will be achieved. When a BB win is achieved, the game state will transition to the BB state.

[0418] The condition devices that provide a replay privilege when a winning combination is achieved include replay 1 to replay 11.

[0419] To explain some winning patterns, for example, if the "white 7", "bar", "red star" or "blue star" symbol on the left reel 32L, the "replay" symbol on the middle reel 32M, and the "watermelon" symbol on the right reel 32R stop on an active line, a replay 1 win will be achieved. When a replay 1 win is achieved, the "replay" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R will stop on the center line L2.

[0420] When the "watermelon" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R stop on an active line, a replay 7 win is awarded. When the "replay" symbol on the left reel 32L, the "watermelon" symbol on the center reel 32M, and any of the "red 7," "bar," "red star," and "blue star" symbols on the right reel 32R stop on an active line, a replay 8 win is awarded. When a replay 8 win is achieved, the "watermelon" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R stop on the downward-sloping right line L4. In other words, in this embodiment, when the "watermelon" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R stop on any of the active lines, a replay bonus is awarded instead of a medal payout bonus.

[0421] If the "White 7", "BAR", "Red Star", or "Blue Star" symbol on the left reel 32L and the "Replay" symbol on the center reel 32M and right reel 32R stop on an active line, or if the "White 7", "BAR", "Red Star", or "Blue Star" symbol on the left reel 32L and the "Watermelon" symbol on the center reel 32M and right reel 32R stop on an active line, you will win Replay 9. If the "Replay" symbol on the left reel 32L, the "Watermelon" symbol on the center reel 32M, and the "White 7" or "Cherry" symbol on the right reel 32R stop on an active line, you will win Replay 10. When the "watermelon" symbols on the left reel 32L and the center reel 32M and the "bell" symbol on the right reel 32R stop on an active line, a replay 11 win is awarded. When the replay 9 win to the replay 11 win are established, the winning combination is a chance combination in this embodiment.

[0422] As a condition device that gives a medal payout privilege when a winning is established, there are small winnings 1 to 32.

[0423] Minor win 1 is a conditional device that causes the "bell" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R to stop on the upper line L1 when a win is achieved. Minor win 2 is a conditional device that causes the "bell" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R to stop on the downward-sloping line L4 when a win is achieved. Minor win 3 is a conditional device that causes the "bell" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R to stop on the middle line L2 when a win is achieved. Minor win 4 is a conditional device that causes the "bell" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R to stop on the upward-sloping line L4 when a win is achieved. Minor win 5 is a conditional device that causes the "bell" symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R to stop on the lower line L3 when a win is achieved. Small win 6 is a condition device that stops the "bell" pattern of each reel 32L, 32M, 32R in a small mountain shape (lower, middle, lower) when a win is achieved. When small win 1 to small win 6 are achieved, 8 medals are paid out.

[0424] In this embodiment, small winning combinations 7 to 27, small winning combinations 31, and small winning combinations 32 function as supplementary combinations, and one medal is paid out when a winning combination is achieved.

[0425] In this embodiment, the small winning combinations 28 to 30 function as cherry winning combinations, and three medals are paid out when a winning combination is achieved.

[0426] Figure 79 is a diagram showing a lottery table selected in a BB non-internal state where the BB winning flag of "Setting 3" is not carried over. In the lottery table, index values ​​IV are set, and each index value IV is uniquely associated with a winning combination and a point value PV is set. In addition to the correspondence between the winning combination, the index value IV, and the point value PV, Figure 79 also lists the condition devices that constitute the winning combination, the winning combination number of the winning flag that is set when the combination is won, and the group number, which will be described later.

[0427] In this embodiment, the game can only be started with three coins, and when the winning combination is determined using the lottery table shown in Figure 79, the winning probability for each combination is as follows: The probability of winning the first replay is approximately 1 in 9.1, the probability of winning the second replay is approximately 1 in 94, the probability of winning the third replay is approximately 1 in 6600, the probability of winning the first watermelon is approximately 1 in 160, the probability of winning the second watermelon is approximately 1 in 200, the probability of winning the first chance is approximately 1 in 410, the probability of winning the second chance is approximately 1 in 820, and the probability of winning the third chance is approximately 1 in 820. The probability of winning Left-Center-Right Bell 1, Left-Center-Right Bell 2, Left-Center-Right Bell 1, Left-Center-Right Bell 2, Left-Center-Right Bell 1, Left-Center-Right Bell 2, Left-Center-Right Bell 1, Left-Center-Right Bell 2, Right-Center-Left Bell 1, Right-Center-Left Bell 2, Right-Center-Left Bell 1, Right-Center-Left Bell 2, Right-Center-Left Bell 1, Right-Center-Left Bell 2 is approximately 1 in 33. The probability of winning the 1st Special Bell, 2nd Special Bell, 3rd Special Bell, and 4th Special Bell is approximately 1 in 16. The probability of winning a Common Bell is approximately 1 in 54, the probability of winning a Strong Bell is approximately 1 in 2200, the probability of winning a 1-piece role is approximately 1 in 260, the probability of winning a Weak Cherry is approximately 1 in 82, the probability of winning a Strong Cherry is approximately 1 in 300, the probability of winning a Duplicate BB is approximately 1 in 4.8, and the probability of winning a Single BB is approximately 1 in 16,000. When not inside a BB, there are no winning events during replays inside the BB, and there are no losing events where no winning role is won.

[0428] Although not shown in the figure, the lottery table selected during the BB internal period when the BB winning flag is carried over differs from the above-mentioned non-BB internal period lottery table in the point value PV of the internal internal replay (IV=4) and the point value PV of the single BB (IV=32). Specifically, the point value PV of the internal internal replay is set to 4, and the point value PV of the single BB is set to 0. Therefore, during the BB internal period, there is a probability of about 1 in 16,000 that a duplicate replay will be a win, and a single BB will not be won. Since the winning probability of other roles is the same as during non-BB internal periods, no losing events will occur even during the BB internal period.

[0429] Here, the relationship between the lottery result of the winning combination and the reel stopping result will be explained.

[0430] In this embodiment, the condition device for forming the winning combination and the symbol arrangement of each reel 32L, 32M, 32R are set so that when a combination other than the single BB is won, some kind of winning combination is always achieved. For example, when the second watermelon is won, regardless of the operation order and operation timing of the stop switches 42 to 44, one of the replays 7 or 8 is won, and a replay bonus is awarded. Similarly, when the strong cherry is won, regardless of the operation order and operation timing of the stop switches 42 to 44, one of the small combinations 28 to 30 is won, and three medals are paid out. When a single BB is won, if the stop switches 42 to 44 are operated at a timing that allows the BB symbols on each reel 32L, 32M, and 32R, i.e., the "white star" symbol on the left reel 32L, the "red star" symbol on the middle reel 32M, and the "white 7" symbol on the right reel 32R, to stop on the active line, the upward-sloping right line L5, a BB win will be achieved, but if the stop switches 42 to 44 are operated at any other timing, the BB win will not be achieved and the BB win flag will be carried over.

[0431] Furthermore, when both the BB and the small combination are won, the main control device 101 sets and changes the stop information so that the small combination win takes priority. When both the BB and the replay win a...

Claims

[Claim 1] a plurality of cyclic display means for cyclically displaying a plurality of types of pictures; A start operation means that is operated to start the cyclical display of the images; A lottery means for drawing lots for a role; a plurality of stop operation means that are operated to individually stop the cyclical display of the pictures; A bonus awarding means for awarding a bonus to a player when a winning combination obtained by the lottery for the winning combination is achieved; In a gaming machine equipped with a control means for controlling the plurality of cyclic display means so that, when the lottery result of the role becomes a specific result, if the plurality of stop operation means are operated in a specific operation method, a specific winning is established, and if the plurality of stop operation means are operated in an operation method other than the specific operation method, the specific winning is not established; an award determination means for determining whether or not to award a special benefit; a special benefit granting means for granting the special benefit when the granting determination means determines that the special benefit should be granted; Equipped with The award determination means is configured to determine whether or not to award the special award by a predetermined lottery during the game in which the lottery result for the role becomes the specific result after the lottery result for the role becomes the specific result and before the operation of the plurality of stop operation means becomes effective, and if it is determined that the special award will not be awarded, determine whether or not to award the special award based on whether or not the specific winning has been achieved after all of the circulating display of the pictures has stopped, This gaming machine is characterized in that even if the award determination means determines that the special benefit will not be awarded by the predetermined lottery, the special benefit will be awarded if the specific winning is achieved.

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