Game system and program

Abstract

To provide a game live reporting play distribution control system or the like capable of automatically generating comments suited to various kinds of situations, such as live reporting situations of game live reporting as a viewer's comment during distribution of the game live reporting and invigorating the game live reporting.SOLUTION: A game live reporting distribution server device 30 is configured so as to detect a progress situation of a game during game live reporting play as a game live porting play distribution control process on the basis of acquired game play information, and detect a live reporting situation during game live reporting play on the basis of acquired live reporting situation information, execute an automatically generated input information automatic generation process with viewer input information for composing game viewing information as automatic input information on the basis of situation information for showing a progress situation and a live reporting situation of a detected game, and execute an automatic input information providing process for providing at least a given viewer or distributor with automatically generated automatic input information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a server system, a program, a method for live distribution of game commentary play, and the like.

Background Art

[0002] Letting viewers watch a game played by a skilled player has come to be recognized as entertainment equivalent to watching sports.

[0003] Recently, in video distribution services, a genre of content called game commentary, in which a player plays a game while providing a live commentary of the game play, has also been established.

[0004] Also, during the distribution of such game commentaries, a function to receive comments posted by viewers and display them within the game commentary screen has become widespread. It promotes communication between viewers and the distributor as well as among viewers, and is used not only as a communication tool but also as a function to enhance the willingness to distribute and view, and to enliven the game commentary.

[0005] Particularly recently, regarding the viewer comment function during such game commentaries, in addition to displaying comments posted by viewers, a system that automatically generates comments on behalf of viewers by a system that performs distribution management has also been proposed (for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0006]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0007] However, in systems such as the one described in Patent Document 1, comments are not automatically generated based on the game's progress, the live commentary, and the viewers' viewing status. In many cases, comments that match the actual game commentary situation are not automatically generated, and in such cases, it is often not possible to liven up the game commentary.

[0008] The present invention was made to solve the above problems, and its purpose is to provide a game live streaming control system that can automatically generate comments appropriate to the live streaming status of the game, the progress of the game, or the viewing status of the viewers as comments from viewers during the live streaming of the game, thereby enlivening the game live stream. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] (1) In order to solve the above problems, the present invention is A server system that performs processing on viewer input information, which is an action taken by a viewer during a game commentary while playing a given game, and which constitutes part of the game commentary information, when the game commentary is broadcast by the streamer as game viewing information. A means for acquiring information about the game being played during the aforementioned live gameplay, and for acquiring the situation during the live gameplay as live gameplay information, Based on the acquired gameplay information, the progress of the game during the live gameplay is detected, and based on the acquired live gameplay information, the progress of the game during the live gameplay is detected. A situation detection means for detecting the situation, An automatic generation means that automatically generates the viewer input information constituting the game viewing information as automatically input information, based on the detected status information indicating the game's progress and live commentary status. A providing means that performs a providing process to provide the automatically generated automatically input information to at least a given viewer or the distributor, It has a configuration that includes the following:

[0010] With this configuration, the present invention can automatically generate input information such as comments and stamps that are appropriate for the progress of the game and the live commentary of the gameplay.

[0011] For example, the present invention can automatically generate a predetermined comment ("Congratulations!" from a viewer) to be displayed in the game viewing information as automatically input information when a comment made by a player (such as shouting "Yay!") is detected as part of the live commentary at the timing of a specific event (a lottery event) predetermined as part of the game's progress.

[0012] Therefore, since the present invention can generate automatically input information as the same information as viewer input information, for example, the generated comments can be incorporated into game viewing information as actual viewer information, or the input of automatically generated comments can be suggested to actual viewers.

[0013] As a result, the present invention can generate comments appropriate to the live commentary situation and game progress, or increase the number of comments, even in cases where the actual number of viewers is low or the number of viewer comments is low, which would otherwise make the game commentary less exciting.

[0014] As a result, the present invention can increase the desire of many viewers to watch game live streams, while also invigorating such game live streams regardless of whether there are actual viewers or not.

[0015] The term "given game" includes, for example, competitive games such as fighting games and sports games, battle royale games, RPGs, shooting games, and simulation games.

[0016] Furthermore, while a "streamer" is generally the player who plays the game in a live gameplay video, it may be someone other than the player.

[0017] And the "game play information" includes, for example, game images and game sounds of the game being played during the live broadcast, and information regarding the operation inputs of the player executing the game, etc.

[0018] Furthermore, the "live play information" includes, for example, image information (mainly moving images, but still images may also be acceptable) of the upper body or face of the player executing the live game play or the distributor distributing the live play, voice information of the player, and information regarding effects (effect images and sound effects) for processing these information (production information).

[0019] In addition, the "viewer input information" includes, for example, in addition to comments from viewers on the live game play, fixed-form strings such as "like" or non-fixed-form strings, as well as images such as stamps and emojis expressing the situation at that time, the situation of the viewer, and the mood, sounds such as voices, and various information regarding inputs of effects (including effects such as the movement of characters for viewers) and image effects.

[0020] And the "progress of the game" includes, for example, (A1) Progress change elements that change according to the progress of the game, such as various parameters, (A2) Execution environment elements of the game, such as the setting details of the characters appearing in the game, and (A3) time elements, such as the elapsed time from the start time of the game, etc.

[0021] In addition to the above, the "live situation" includes the emotions (moods) of the player and the distributor, such as the voice, face, and movement (gesture) images of the player or the distributor playing the live game play, and the excitement state, etc. of the live situation of the player or the distributor, as well as comments and stamps sent by the player or the distributor.

[0022] Also, the "situation information" includes both the detected progress of the game and the live situation.

[0023] The "automatically input information" is the same information as the viewer input information. In addition to comments on the viewer's game live play, it includes fixed-form strings such as "like" or non-fixed-form strings, as well as images such as stamps and emojis that express the situation at that time, the situation and mood of the viewer, sounds such as voices, and various information on input instructions for effects and image effects.

[0024] Therefore, the automatically input information has a structure that is indistinguishable in appearance (i.e., in terms of viewing), including the data format, from the viewer input information, except for the difference in whether the viewer input it or it was automatically generated.

[0025] For example, the automatically input information is information that is displayed in the same column (image area) as the viewer input information when it is visualized by the game viewing information in the game live play.

[0026] Furthermore, the "given viewer" includes, for example, all viewers watching the game live play and specific viewers among all these viewers.

[0027] The "providing process" includes, for example, a process for incorporating the game viewing information and allowing the viewer to watch it together with the game live play, and a process for providing the input information to any viewer, such as incorporating the input instruction into the game viewing information when the viewer permits the input instruction.

[0028] (2) Also, the present invention stores in the storage means rising determination condition data in which rising determination conditions are defined for the progress of the game predetermined for the situation where the game becomes lively. The automatic generation means executes a determination process for determining whether or not the detected progress of the game matches the progress of the game in the rising determination condition data. The system has a configuration in which, if the game progress detected by the judgment process is determined to match the game progress of the judgment condition, the system automatically generates the automatic input information based on the status information.

[0029] This configuration allows the present invention to generate and provide input information such as comments to viewers during exciting gameplay scenes, thus enabling the incorporation of exciting effects into live gameplay videos.

[0030] For example, "a situation where the game is exciting" refers to: (B1) In a game where you fight enemy characters, you are fighting the final boss character. (B2) The player character's parameters meet certain conditions, such as their stamina value falling below a certain level (a situation where they are approaching game over). (B3) The situation is that a special event has started. (B4) The situation is such that a given item has been acquired, such as obtaining a rare item, or (B5) In the case of a stage-based game, the given stage has been completed or is in progress. This includes things like:

[0031] Furthermore, "matching the game's progress to the excitement judgment criteria" includes not only cases where the detected game's progress exactly matches the game's progress to the judgment criteria, but also states where it is considered to match.

[0032] For example, if the game progress specified in the judgment conditions is a numerical range, this includes cases where the numerical value indicated by the detected progress is within that range, or where the game progress specified in the judgment conditions is a combination of multiple situations, and a predetermined number of those situations match the detected progress.

[0033] (3) Furthermore, the present invention is A server system that performs processing on viewer input information, which is an action taken by a viewer during a game commentary while playing a given game, and which constitutes part of the game commentary information, when the game commentary is broadcast by the streamer as game viewing information. A means for acquiring the situation during the aforementioned game live commentary as live commentary information, A situation detection means that detects the live commentary status during the game commentary based on the acquired live commentary information, and detects the viewing status of the viewers based on viewer-related information indicating information about each viewer that has been acquired or stored in advance, Based on the status information indicating the live commentary and viewing status of the detected game commentary, an automatic generation means automatically generates the viewer input information that constitutes the game viewing information as automatically input information. A providing means that performs a providing process to provide the automatically generated automatically input information to at least a given viewer or the distributor, It has a configuration that includes the following:

[0034] With this configuration, the present invention can automatically generate input information such as comments and stamps that are appropriate to the game's progress and the viewer's viewing status, and the automatically generated information can be generated as the same information as the viewer's input information.

[0035] Therefore, even in cases where the actual number of viewers is low or the number of viewer comments is low, making the game commentary less exciting, the present invention can generate comments that are appropriate to the commentary situation and the progress of the game, or increase the number of comments, thereby livening up the game commentary.

[0036] Furthermore, "viewing status" includes the number of viewers watching the game playthrough, the number of comments from those viewers, or the average number of viewers, as well as, in games where viewer characters appear, the facial expressions and movements of those viewer characters.

[0037] (4) Furthermore, the present invention is The acquisition means is, Information regarding gameplay during the aforementioned live gameplay is acquired as gameplay information. The aforementioned situation detection means Based on the acquired gameplay information, the progress of the game during the live gameplay is detected, The automatic generation means, The system has a configuration that automatically generates viewer input information based on the situation information, which includes the detected live commentary status and viewer viewing status, and the detected game progress.

[0038] With this configuration, the present invention can automatically generate input information such as comments and stamps that are appropriate to the progress, the viewing status of viewers, and the live gameplay commentary. This increases the desire of many viewers to watch the gameplay commentary, and can enliven the gameplay commentary regardless of whether there are actual viewers or not.

[0039] (5) Furthermore, the present invention is The storage means stores viewer status criteria data in which criteria for generating the automatically input information are predetermined for each viewer's viewing status. The automatic generation means, Determine whether the detected viewer's viewing status meets the criteria of the viewer status criteria data. The system has a configuration that, when it is determined that the viewing status of the detected viewer meets the criteria of the viewer status criteria data, automatically generates the automatically input information based on the status information.

[0040] With this configuration, the present invention can automatically generate input information such as comments to support or encourage the streamer's reactions when it is determined that the game commentary is not gaining momentum, for example, when the number of viewers is less than the number specified in the viewer status criteria data, or when the number of viewer comments is less than the number specified in the viewer status criteria data.

[0041] Therefore, the present invention can liven up game commentary by automatically generated comments and the like.

[0042] The "viewer status criteria data" may include, for example, the number of viewers, the number of comments from viewers, or the average number of viewers per viewer. Furthermore, the viewer status criteria data may be predetermined and fixed, or it may be determined based on the streamer's past game streaming history, such as the number of viewers for past game streams.

[0043] (6) Furthermore, the present invention is The memory means stores assumed commentary data, in which the expected commentary situation at each stage of the game's progress is predetermined as the assumed commentary situation. The automatic generation means, Based on the detected game progress, the assumed commentary data is referenced, and the assumed commentary situation in the detected game progress is identified as the assumed commentary situation. The identified assumed situation and the detected situation, which indicates the detected situation, Determine whether or not they match. The system has a configuration that, if it is determined that the assumed situation and the detected situation do not match, automatically generates the automatic input information based on the situation information.

[0044] With this configuration, the present invention can automatically generate input information such as comments to support or criticize the reactions of a streamer or player when the identified live commentary situation does not match the detected live commentary situation, for example, when a streamer or player makes an inappropriate reaction or takes an unexpected action regarding the progress of a given game.

[0045] Therefore, the present invention can liven up game commentary by automatically generating comments and the like, in response to the game's progress and the reactions of the streamer or player.

[0046] The "assumed commentary data" includes, for example, the commentary status for a game progression indicating that a rare item has been obtained is defined as "excited" and "level 10 (maximum level 10)," and the commentary status for a game progression indicating that the player has lost to the final boss is defined as "frustrated" and "level 6 (maximum level 10)."

[0047] For example, in this case, if the detected streamer's commentary status is "calm" when obtaining a rare item, the comment "Why aren't you excited?" will be automatically generated as automatically input information, regardless of the level. However, if the detected streamer's commentary status is "excited" but the level is "5", the comment "Laugh more!" will be automatically generated as automatically input information.

[0048] (7) Furthermore, the present invention is The automatic generation means, Based on the aforementioned situational information, the system has a configuration that automatically generates the viewer input information by determining at least one element from the content, number, frequency, timing, and display format of the viewer input information.

[0049] With this configuration, the present invention can generate viewer input information such as comments in a way that is appropriate to the situation, in terms of content, number, frequency, timing, or display format. For example, when the streamer (commentator) is excited, many comments are automatically generated, and when there are many viewers, the number of automatically generated comments is reduced. It can also analyze comments from other viewers to determine the type and pattern of comments to be automatically generated.

[0050] (8) Furthermore, the present invention is The aforementioned means of providing, The aforementioned provision process includes an embedded control process that incorporates the automatically generated automatically input information into the game viewing information as viewer input information, and provides the automatically input information to the viewer's terminal device by providing the game viewing information into which the automatically input information has been incorporated.

[0051] This configuration allows the present invention to incorporate automatically generated comments and other information as actual viewer comments into content for streaming gameplay, thereby increasing the viewing interest of many viewers in gameplay and enlivening the gameplay regardless of whether there are actual viewers or not.

[0052] (9) Furthermore, the present invention is The aforementioned means of providing, The provision process includes providing the automatically generated automatically input information to a given viewer's terminal device or the distributor's terminal device as information to be input as viewer input information of the viewer.

[0053] This configuration allows the present invention to incorporate automatically generated comments and other information as actual viewer comments into content for streaming gameplay, thereby increasing the viewing interest of many viewers in gameplay and enlivening the gameplay regardless of whether there are actual viewers or not.

[0054] (10) Furthermore, the present invention is The system further comprises evaluation detection means for detecting at least the viewer's evaluation of the automatically input information, The automatic generation means, The system has a configuration that automatically generates the automatically input information based on an evaluation of the detected automatically input information, along with the status information indicating the game's progress and commentary status.

[0055] This configuration allows the present invention to improve the accuracy of automatically generated input information such as comments, enabling the automatic generation of input information such as comments and stamps that are suitable for the live commentary situation during gameplay.

[0056] (11) Furthermore, the present invention is A memory control means that stores the viewer input information and the automatically input information as input history information in a memory means, at least according to the progress of the game for each of the aforementioned game live streams, During the aforementioned live gameplay, a monitoring means monitors the input viewing information incorporated into the aforementioned game viewing information, During the aforementioned live gameplay, a comparison means performs a comparison process that compares the input history information of the live gameplay of the same game, the same type of game, or a similar game being played, with the monitored input viewing information, in chronological order. Furthermore, The automatic generation means, The system has a configuration that automatically generates the automatically input information when the result of the comparison process meets predetermined comparison conditions.

[0057] With this configuration, the present invention can determine whether or not to generate automatically input information by referring to the level of excitement of the same game, the same type of game (such as mahjong games, racing games, fighting games, or baseball games), or similar games (such as time trial games or games where players progress through multiple stages).

[0058] Therefore, the present invention can generate automatically input information at a suitable timing for game live streaming, thereby livening up the game live streaming.

[0059] The "comparison conditions" include, for example, the same game, the same type of game, or a similar game, and the number of comments on exciting scenes within a specified time frame being 80% or higher, or the same viewing situation at the same stage of gameplay, or a situation that can be considered to be the same viewing situation.

[0060] In particular, "similar games" refer to games that use the same game space, games that use the same characters, time trial-type games, or games that involve progressing through multiple stages. This refers to games that share the same characters, world setting, structure, or rules as other games.

[0061] (12) Furthermore, the present invention is The storage means stores termination condition data that defines the conditions for ending the generation of the automatic input information. The automatic generation means, The system has a configuration that automatically generates the automatically input information when it is determined that the detected status information meets the conditions specified in the termination condition data.

[0062] This configuration allows the present invention to terminate automatic generation when the game commentary is getting exciting, thereby reducing the processing load.

[0063] The "termination conditions" include having received a specified number of comments and having a specified number of viewers.

[0064] (13) In addition, in order to solve the above problems, the present invention is A program that processes viewer input information, which is an action taken by a viewer in response to a live gameplay commentary while playing a given game, and which constitutes part of the gameplay information, when the gameplay commentary is broadcast by the streamer as game viewing information. A means for acquiring information about the game being played during a live gameplay session, and for acquiring the situation during the live gameplay session as live gameplay information. A situation detection means that detects the progress of the game during live gameplay based on the acquired gameplay information, and detects the live commentary status during live gameplay based on the acquired live gameplay information. An automatic generation means that automatically generates the viewer input information constituting the game viewing information as automatic input information, based on the detected status information indicating the game's progress and live commentary status, and Providing means that perform a provisioning process to provide the automatically generated automatically input information to at least a given viewer or the distributor, It has a configuration that allows it to function as a computer.

[0065] With this configuration, the present invention can automatically generate input information such as comments and stamps that are appropriate to the game's progress and the viewer's viewing status, and the automatically generated information can be generated as the same information as the viewer's input information.

[0066] Therefore, even in cases where the actual number of viewers is low or the number of viewer comments is low, making the game commentary less exciting, the present invention can generate comments that are appropriate to the commentary situation and the progress of the game, or increase the number of comments, thereby livening up the game commentary.

[0067] (14) In addition, in order to solve the above problems, the present invention is A program that processes viewer input information, which is an action taken by a viewer in response to a live gameplay commentary while playing a given game, and which constitutes part of the gameplay information, when the gameplay commentary is broadcast by the streamer as game viewing information. A means for acquiring the situation during the aforementioned game live commentary as live commentary information, Based on the acquired live gameplay information, the system detects the live commentary status during the gameplay and displays viewer-related information indicating information about each viewer that has been acquired or stored in advance. Based on the report, a situation detection means detects the viewing status of the aforementioned viewer. Based on the status information indicating the live gameplay and viewing status of the detected gameplay, a generation means automatically generates the viewer input information constituting the game viewing information as automatically input information, and Providing means that perform a provisioning process to provide the automatically generated automatically input information to at least a given viewer or the distributor, It has a configuration that allows it to function as a computer.

[0068] With this configuration, the present invention can automatically generate input information such as comments and stamps that are appropriate to the game's progress and the viewer's viewing status, and the automatically generated information can be generated as the same information as the viewer's input information.

[0069] Therefore, even in cases where the actual number of viewers is low or the number of viewer comments is low, making the game commentary less exciting, the present invention can generate comments that are appropriate to the commentary situation and the progress of the game, or increase the number of comments, thereby livening up the game commentary.

[0070] (15) In addition, in order to solve the above problems, the present invention is A method for broadcasting live gameplay, in which a given game is played and commented on, is distributed as game viewing information by a broadcaster to terminal devices connected via a network and operated by viewers, from a server device that controls a given game, and the broadcaster performs processing on viewer input information that is input by viewers regarding the live gameplay being watched and constitutes part of the game viewing information. The aforementioned server device A means for acquiring information about the game being played during the aforementioned live gameplay, and for acquiring the situation during the live gameplay as live gameplay information, A situation detection means that detects the progress of the game during the live gameplay based on the acquired gameplay information, and detects the live commentary status during the live gameplay based on the acquired live gameplay information, An automatic generation means that automatically generates the viewer input information constituting the game viewing information as automatically input information, based on the detected status information indicating the game's progress and live commentary status. A providing means that performs a providing process to provide the automatically generated automatically input information to at least a given viewer or the distributor, When equipped, The terminal device receives information regarding the viewer's operation and transmits it to the server device. The system has a configuration that transmits game viewing information from the server device to the terminal device.

[0071] With this configuration, the present invention can automatically generate input information such as comments and stamps that are appropriate to the game's progress and the viewer's viewing status, and the automatically generated information can be generated as the same information as the viewer's input information.

[0072] Therefore, even in cases where the actual number of viewers is low or the number of viewer comments is low, making the game commentary less exciting, the present invention can generate comments that are appropriate to the commentary situation and the progress of the game, or increase the number of comments, thereby livening up the game commentary.

[0073] (16) In addition, in order to solve the above problems, the present invention is A method for broadcasting live gameplay, in which a given game is played and commented on, is distributed as game viewing information by a broadcaster to terminal devices connected via a network and operated by viewers, from a server device that controls a given game, and the broadcaster performs processing on viewer input information that is input by viewers regarding the live gameplay being watched and constitutes part of the game viewing information. The aforementioned server device A means for acquiring the situation during the aforementioned game live commentary as live commentary information, A situation detection means that detects the live commentary status during the game commentary based on the acquired live commentary information, and detects the viewing status of the viewers based on viewer-related information indicating information about each viewer that has been acquired or stored in advance, Based on the status information indicating the live commentary and viewing status of the detected game commentary, a generation means automatically generates the viewer input information that constitutes the game viewing information as automatically input information. A providing means that performs a providing process to provide the automatically generated automatically input information to at least a given viewer or the distributor, When equipped, The terminal device receives information regarding the viewer's operation and transmits it to the server device. The system has a configuration that transmits game viewing information from the server device to the terminal device.

[0074] With this configuration, the present invention can automatically generate input information such as comments and stamps that are appropriate to the game's progress and the viewer's viewing status, and the automatically generated information can be generated as the same information as the viewer's input information.

[0075] Therefore, even in cases where the actual number of viewers is low or the number of viewer comments is low, making the game commentary less exciting, the present invention can generate comments that are appropriate to the commentary situation and the progress of the game, or increase the number of comments, thereby livening up the game commentary. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0076] [Figure 1] This figure shows an example of a system configuration illustrating the configuration of a game live streaming system in one embodiment. [Figure 2] This diagram shows the functional blocks of a game server device according to one embodiment. [Figure 3]This diagram shows the functional block of a terminal device according to one embodiment. [Figure 4] This figure shows the functional blocks of a game live streaming server device according to one embodiment. [Figure 5] This is a diagram (part 1) illustrating a game live streaming control process that includes the generation of automatically input information in one embodiment. [Figure 6] This is a diagram (part 2) illustrating the game live streaming control process, including the process of generating automatically input information, in one embodiment. [Figure 7] This is an example of a screen displayed on a terminal device when game viewing information from one embodiment is converted into an image. [Figure 8] This is an example of viewer input information and automatically input information in one embodiment. [Figure 9] This is an example of viewer information stored in the viewer-related information storage unit of one embodiment, and viewer input information for each game live stream. [Figure 10] This figure illustrates the basic principle of an automatic input information generation process according to one embodiment. [Figure 11] This flowchart shows the operation of a game live streaming control process, including an automatic input information generation process, which is performed in a game live streaming server device according to one embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0077] The following describes this embodiment. Note that the embodiment described below does not unduly limit the scope of the present invention as described in the claims. Furthermore, not all of the configurations described in this embodiment are necessarily essential components of the present invention.

[0078] [1] Game live streaming system First, the overview and general configuration of the game live streaming system 1 of this embodiment will be explained using Figure 1. Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example of the system configuration of the game live streaming system 1 of this embodiment.

[0079] As shown in Figure 1, the game live streaming system 1 of this embodiment is configured to be connectable to the Internet (an example of a network), and includes a game server device 10 that provides game services, terminal devices 20 (for example, terminal devices 20A, 20B, and 20C), and a game live streaming server device 30 that distributes the game execution status (i.e., the content of the live stream) performed by the player to viewers.

[0080] Users (i.e., players or viewers) can play games transmitted from the game server device 10 via the internet by accessing the game server device 10 from the terminal device 20. Users can also communicate with other users by accessing the game server device 10 from the terminal device 20. Furthermore, users can watch live gameplay streams by accessing the game live streaming server device 30 from the terminal device 20, where a specific player is running a specific game while simultaneously providing live commentary on that game.

[0081] The game server device 10 is an information processing device that can provide a service allowing users to play games using terminal devices 20 connected via the internet. The game server device 10 may also function as an SNS server providing communication-type services. Here, an SNS server may be an information processing device that provides services enabling communication among multiple users.

[0082] Furthermore, when the game server device 10 functions as an SNS server, for example, it can provide a game called a social game that is executed using the operating environment of the SNS it provides (API (Application Programming Interface), platform, etc.).

[0083] Furthermore, the game server device 10 may provide browser games that are offered on the web browser of the terminal device 20, or it may provide online games that run on a dedicated platform.

[0084] In particular, when providing browser games, the game server device 10 is designed to provide games (games that can be launched simply by opening the installation site in a web browser) created in various languages ​​such as HTML, FLASH, CGI, PHP, Shockwave, Java® applets, and JavaScript®.

[0085] Social games, unlike existing online games, include games that do not require dedicated client software and can be played using only a web browser and a social networking service (SNS) account.

[0086] Furthermore, when providing online games, the game server device 10 has a configuration that allows it to connect with other users' terminal devices (smartphones, personal computers, game consoles, etc.) 20 via the network and share game progress online.

[0087] On the other hand, the game server device 10 may consist of one (device, processor) or multiple (devices, processors).

[0088] Furthermore, information such as billing information and gameplay information stored in the memory area of ​​the game server device 10 (storage unit 140 described later) may be stored in a database (broadly speaking, a storage device, memory) connected via a network (intranet or internet). Alternatively, when functioning as an SNS server, information such as player information storage unit 146 stored in the memory area may be stored in a database (broadly speaking, a storage device, memory) connected via a network (intranet or internet).

[0089] Specifically, the game server device 10 in this embodiment receives input information based on the operation of the user (i.e., the player running the game) of the terminal device 20, and performs game processing based on the received input information. The game server device 10 then transmits the game processing results to the terminal device 20, and the terminal device 20 performs various processes to provide the game processing results received from the game server device 10 to the terminal device 20 in a viewable format for the user (i.e., the player).

[0090] The terminal device 20 is an information processing device such as a smartphone, mobile phone, PHS, computer, game device, PDA, portable game console, or image generation device, and is a device that can connect to the game server device 10 or the game live streaming server device 30 via a network such as the Internet (WAN) or LAN.

[0091] The communication line between the terminal device 20 and the game server device 10 or the game live streaming server device 30 may be wired or wireless.

[0092] Furthermore, the terminal device 20 is equipped with a web browser capable of viewing web pages (data in HTML format). In other words, the terminal device 20 has a communication control function for communicating with the game server device 10, and performs display control using data (web data, data created in HTML format, etc.) received from the game server device 10 or the game live streaming server device 30.

[0093] The terminal device 20 is equipped with a web browser function and other features that transmit user operation data to the game server device 10 or the game live streaming server device 30, and performs various processes to provide the user with the game screen or screens related to the streamed game live stream, allowing the user to run the game or watch the game live stream. However, the terminal device 20 may also obtain game play information provided by the game server device 10, perform predetermined game processing, and run the game based on the game processing.

[0094] Specifically, when the terminal device 20 requests the game server device 10 to play a predetermined game, it connects to the game site of the game server device 10 and the game starts. In particular, the terminal device 20 has a configuration that allows it to execute a game by using an API as needed to cause the game server device 10, which functions as an SNS server, to perform predetermined processing, or by obtaining the player information storage unit 146 managed by the game server device 10, which functions as an SNS server.

[0095] In particular, terminal device 20 can function as an SNS server by using APIs as needed. The system has a configuration that allows a functioning game server device 10 to perform predetermined processing, or to retrieve player information stored in a player information storage unit 146 managed by the game server device 10, which functions as an SNS server, in order to execute the game.

[0096] On the other hand, when terminal device 20 requests game streaming server device 30 to watch game streaming of a specific game by a specific player, it connects to the viewing website of game streaming server device 30 (hereinafter also referred to as the "viewing site").

[0097] Then, when viewing a game stream begins, the terminal device 20 performs various processes, such as sending and receiving information to the user (viewer) to enable them to watch the game stream.

[0098] The game live streaming server device 30 is an information processing device that performs game live streaming control and management processing, which includes various streaming control processes (hereinafter referred to as "streaming control processes") to allow viewers to view the execution status of a game being played by a specific player, via a terminal device 20 connected to it via the Internet.

[0099] In particular, the game live streaming server device 30 acquires various gameplay information in progress, including the operation information of a specific player, from the game server device 10, and information about the image, sound, or both of the specific player when live streaming the game (hereinafter referred to as "live streaming status information") from the game server device 10, the terminal device 20 of the specific player, or both.

[0100] Furthermore, the game live streaming server device 30 has the function of generating game viewing information for viewing game play information and live streaming status information based on instructions from a player performing game live streaming (hereinafter referred to as "game live streaming player") or in accordance with a streaming program, and distributing the generated game viewing information to the corresponding terminal device 20.

[0101] The game live streaming server device 30 may consist of one (device, processor) or multiple (devices, processors).

[0102] Furthermore, the game viewing information stored in the memory area (storage unit 340 described later) of the game live streaming server device 30 may be stored in a database (broadly speaking, a storage device, memory) connected via a network (intranet or the internet), or information such as distribution programs stored in the memory area may be stored in a database (broadly speaking, a storage device, memory) connected via a network (intranet or the internet).

[0103] [2] Game server equipment Next, the game server device 10 of this embodiment will be described using Figure 2. Figure 2 is a diagram showing the functional blocks of the game server device 10 of this embodiment. Furthermore, the game server device 10 of this embodiment may have a configuration in which some of the components (each part) in Figure 2 are omitted.

[0104] The game server device 10 includes an input unit 120 for use by system administrators and others, a display unit 130 for displaying predetermined information, an information storage medium 180 for storing predetermined information, a communication unit 196 for communicating with terminal devices 20 and others, a processing unit 100 for mainly performing processing related to the games provided, and a storage unit 140 for mainly storing various data used for games.

[0105] The input unit 120 is used by system administrators and others to input game-related settings and other necessary settings and data. For example, the input unit 120 in this embodiment can be used with a mouse or keyboard. It is composed of D, etc.

[0106] The display unit 130 displays an operation screen for the system administrator. For example, the display unit 130 in this embodiment is composed of a liquid crystal display or the like.

[0107] The information storage medium 180 (a medium readable by a computer) stores programs, data, etc., and its function is comprised of optical discs (CDs, DVDs), magneto-optical discs (MOs), magnetic discs, hard disks, magnetic tapes, or memory (ROMs).

[0108] The communication unit 196 performs various controls for communicating with external parties (e.g., terminals, other servers, or other network systems), and its functions are comprised of hardware such as various processors or communication ASICs, as well as programs.

[0109] The memory unit 140 serves as the work area for the processing unit 100 and the communication unit 196, and its functions are comprised of RAM (VRAM), etc. The information stored in the memory unit 140 may be managed by a database.

[0110] Furthermore, the storage unit 140 of this embodiment, in addition to the main storage unit 142, (A1) A game data storage unit 144 that stores information related to gameplay during live gameplay as gameplay information, (A2) A player information storage unit 146 that stores player information indicating information about each player and information about the player's game (hereinafter referred to as "player-related information"), It has.

[0111] The game data storage unit 144 stores information about the game field on which the game is played, condition information used for various judgments, information about each object on the game field, information for changing each object, various table information, information about each player's player character, and information about each item used in the game.

[0112] The player information storage unit 146 stores player-related information for each player, (B1) Player's nickname, player ID, and if they belong to a team, the name of the team and its ID (hereinafter referred to as "affiliation information"), (B2) Information regarding individual and team performance, such as current level (player level), score, experience points, energy parameter values ​​(life energy, stamina, and power), rewards earned, or game time (hereinafter also referred to as "performance information"). (B3) Information on the characteristics (presence or absence of abilities and parameters that define each ability) and attributes (including level) of the player character (if there are multiple player characters, information on the characteristics and attributes of each), (B4) Information regarding billing, such as billing history and billing amount. (B5) Item-related information including information on items owned by the player character (hereinafter referred to as "item information") and information on items previously owned. (B6) Information regarding login (access) history (hereinafter referred to as "access history information"). (B7) Information on acquired rewards (hereinafter also referred to as "acquired reward information") (B8) Information regarding the team to which you belong (hereinafter referred to as "team information"), and, (B9) Information about other players who have a certain relationship with the registered friend or follower (hereinafter also referred to as "related players") (hereinafter referred to as "related player information"), These are some of the things that are stored in memory.

[0113] The processing unit 100 performs various processes using the main memory unit 142 within the storage unit 140 as the work area. The functions of the processing unit 100 can be realized by hardware such as various processors (CPU, DSP, etc.) and ASICs (gate arrays, etc.) or by programs.

[0114] The processing unit 100 performs various processes of this embodiment based on the program (data) stored in the information storage medium 180. That is, the information storage medium 180 stores programs that cause the computer to function as each part of this embodiment (programs that cause the computer to execute the processing of each part).

[0115] For example, the processing unit 100 (processor) controls the entire game server device 10 based on the program stored in the information storage medium, and also performs various processes such as controlling the transfer of data between each unit. Furthermore, it performs processes to provide various services in response to requests from the terminal device 20.

[0116] Specifically, the processing unit 100 of this embodiment includes at least a communication control unit 101, a Web processing unit 102, a game management unit 103, a player management unit 104, a timer management unit 109, and an information provision unit 110.

[0117] The communication control unit 101 performs data transmission and reception with the terminal device 20 via the network. In other words, the game server device 10 performs various processes based on the information received from the terminal device 20, etc., by the communication control unit 101.

[0118] In particular, the communication control unit 101 of this embodiment performs the process of transmitting the game screen to the player's terminal device 20 based on a request from the player's terminal device 20.

[0119] Furthermore, the communication control unit 101 performs various processes to receive player instructions input to the terminal device 20.

[0120] The Web processing unit 102 functions as a Web server. For example, the Web processing unit 102 performs the process of sending data in response to a request from a Web browser 211 installed on the terminal device 20 via a communication protocol such as HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol), and the process of receiving data sent by the Web browser 211 on the terminal device 20.

[0121] In this embodiment, the example described is one in which the game server device 10 also functions as an SNS server, but the game server device 10 may be configured as separate servers for games and SNS. Also, the game processing in this embodiment may be partially or entirely performed by the game server device 10, or partially performed by the terminal device 20.

[0122] The game management unit 103 works in conjunction with the terminal device 20 to construct a game space as a virtual space, and based on player operations input via the terminal device 20, executes various game processes related to various competitive games such as battle games, action games, RPGs, music games, or sports games in which multiple players compete against each other in combat or fighting.

[0123] Furthermore, the game management unit 103 executes various game processes based on player instructions transmitted from the terminal device 20.

[0124] In particular, the game management unit 103 controls the movement and actions of each player character within the game space, as well as the actions of other related characters and objects, and various game processes, in response to player inputs received by the terminal device 20.

[0125] Furthermore, the game management unit 103 proceeds with various games for players who have set up the option to acquire bonuses, based on the player's operation instructions and bonus acquisition option information.

[0126] The game management unit 103 may perform various game processes for a single player character or for multiple player characters based on instructions from one player.

[0127] The player management unit 104 registers and manages items owned by the player and rewards acquired as player-related information in the player information storage unit 146, and also manages the player character set by the player during the game or the deck in which that character is set.

[0128] The timer management unit 109 has a timer function and is used to manage the progress of the game. In particular, the timer management unit 109 works in conjunction with the game management unit 103 and outputs the current time and a preset time to each unit. The timer management unit 109 is also used to synchronize with each terminal device.

[0129] The information provision unit 110 generates various game control information and provides it to the terminal device 20 in order to allow the terminal device 20 to process the game.

[0130] Furthermore, when a live gameplay stream is performed, the information provision unit 110 provides the live gameplay server device 30 with information generated based on the game control information, or with gameplay information generated or used in the process of generating the game control information.

[0131] Please note that gameplay information is available at: (A1) Information on parameters that change as the player or player character progresses through the game, such as level and experience points (hereinafter referred to as "game variable parameters"), (A2) Information on the presence or absence of game indicators and states (hereinafter referred to as "game elements") of the player or player character at a given time, such as the cleared stage / task / level, the stage / task / level currently being played, the attributes of the player character, the number and type of items possessed, or the number of members belonging to the same group and the player's role (status), and the type of such game elements, and (A3) Information regarding players' actions in the game (hereinafter referred to as "game actions"), such as whether or not they make in-app purchases, whether or not they have options to acquire rewards such as battle passes, whether or not they have participated in lottery events and the results of those lotteries, or whether or not they have played mini-games and the results of those mini-games. This includes things like:

[0132] [3] Terminal device Next, the terminal device 20 of this embodiment will be described using Figure 3. Figure 3 is a diagram showing the functional blocks of the terminal device 20 of this embodiment. Furthermore, the terminal device 20 of this embodiment may have a configuration in which some of the components (each part) of Figure 2 are omitted.

[0133] The input unit 260 is a device for receiving input information from the player and outputs the player's input information to the processing unit 200. In this embodiment, the input unit 260 includes a detection unit 262 that detects the player's input information (input signal). The input unit 260 can be, for example, a lever, button, steering wheel, microphone, touch panel display, keyboard, mouse, etc.

[0134] The memory unit 270 serves as the work area for the processing unit 200 and the communication unit 296, and its functions can be realized by RAM (VRAM) or the like. In this embodiment, the memory unit 270 includes a main memory unit 271 used as the work area and an image buffer 272 where the final display image and the like are stored. Note that some of these components may be omitted.

[0135] The information storage medium 280 (a medium readable by a computer) stores programs, data, etc., and its function can be realized by optical discs (CDs, DVDs), magneto-optical discs (MOs), magnetic discs, hard disks, magnetic tapes, or memory (ROMs).

[0136] The processing unit 200 performs various processes of this embodiment based on the program (data) stored in the information storage medium 280. The information storage medium 280 can store programs for causing the computer to function as each part of this embodiment (programs for causing the computer to execute the processing of each part).

[0137] In this embodiment, programs and game data for making the computer function as each part of this embodiment, which are stored in the information storage medium 180 and storage unit 140 of the game server device 10 and the game live streaming server device 30, are received via the network, and the received programs and data are stored in the information storage medium 280. The programs and data received from the game server device 10 and the game live streaming server device 30 may also be stored in the storage unit 270. The case in which the network system functions by receiving programs and data in this way is also included within the scope of the present invention.

[0138] The display unit 290 outputs the image generated by this embodiment, and its function can be realized by a CRT, LCD, touch panel display, or HMD (head-mounted display). The sound output unit 292 outputs the sound generated by this embodiment, and its function can be realized by a speaker or headphones. For example, the display unit 290 constitutes the display means of the present invention.

[0139] The communication unit 296 performs various controls for communication with external devices (e.g., other terminals, servers), and its functions can be realized by hardware such as various processors or communication ASICs, or by programs.

[0140] The processing unit 200 (processor) acquires game-related information (i.e., game control information) from the game server device 10 via the communication unit 296, and performs processing such as game processing, display control, image generation processing, or sound generation processing based on input information from the input unit 260 or a program.

[0141] Furthermore, the processing unit 200 executes a process to allow a player to view a specific game live stream using a specific game, based on game viewing information obtained from the game live streaming server device 30 via the communication unit 296.

[0142] This processing unit 200 performs various processes using the main memory unit 271 within the storage unit 270 as the work area. The functions of the processing unit 200 are various processors (CPU, DSP, etc.), ASIC (gate engine). This can be achieved through hardware such as ray generators, or through programming.

[0143] The processing unit 200 includes a communication control unit 210, a web browser 211, a game processing unit 212, a display control unit 213, a drawing unit 220, and a sound processing unit 230. Some of these components may be omitted.

[0144] The communication control unit 210 performs data transmission and reception with either the game server device 10 or the game live streaming server device 30. The communication control unit 210 also performs data storage in the storage unit 270, data analysis, and other control processing related to data transmission and reception.

[0145] Furthermore, the communication control unit 210 may store and manage the server's destination information (IP address, port number) in the information storage medium 280. The communication control unit 210 may also communicate with the game server device 10 or the game live streaming server device 30 when it receives input information from the player to initiate communication.

[0146] In particular, the communication control unit 210 transmits player identification information and operation information to the game server device 10 or the game live streaming server device 30, and processes the reception of game-related information (player information, game card information, player's web page, and game screen, etc.) and game live streaming information from the game server device 10 or the game live streaming server device 30.

[0147] The communication control unit 210 may also transmit and receive data with the game server device 10 or the game live streaming server device 30 at predetermined intervals, or it may transmit and receive data with the game server device 10 or the game live streaming server device 30 when it receives input information from the input unit 260. In particular, the communication control unit 210 in this embodiment processes the reception of the game screen or the game live streaming screen from the game server device 10 or the game live streaming server device 30.

[0148] The web browser 211 is an application program for viewing web pages (game screens and game live streaming screens). It downloads HTML files, image files, etc., from a web server (game server device 10 or game live streaming server device 30), analyzes the layout, and controls the display. The web browser 211 also sends data to the web server (game server device 10 or game live streaming server device 30) using input forms (links, buttons, text boxes, etc.).

[0149] The Web browser 211 of this embodiment can enable the viewing of browser games or live game streaming. For example, the Web browser 211 may execute programs written in JavaScript®, FLASH, Java®, etc., received from a Web server (game server device 10 or live game streaming server device 30).

[0150] The terminal device 20 can display information from a web server specified by a URL via the internet using its web browser 211. For example, the terminal device 20 can display a game screen (data such as HTML) or a game live stream screen received from the game server device 10 or the game live streaming server device 30 using its web browser 211.

[0151] Furthermore, while watching a game live stream, the web browser 211 processes viewer-related information such as the attributes of the user watching (i.e., the viewer) (hereinafter referred to as "viewer-related information") and viewer input information such as comments entered by the viewer via the input unit 260. , is provided to the game live streaming server device 30.

[0152] The game processing unit 212 performs various game calculations. For example, it performs processes to start the game when the game start conditions are met, processes to run the game, and processes to terminate the game when the game end conditions are met.

[0153] The game processing unit 212 may also perform the process of placing various objects (objects composed of primitives such as polygons, freeform surfaces, or subdivision surfaces) that represent display elements such as player characters, buildings, stadiums, cars, trees, pillars, walls, and maps (terrain) into the object space.

[0154] Here, object space refers to a virtual space that includes both 2D and 3D spaces. 2D space is, for example, the space in which objects are placed in 2D coordinates (X,Y), while 3D space is, for example, the space in which objects are placed in 3D coordinates (X,Y,Z).

[0155] Furthermore, the game processing unit 212 controls the transmission and reception of various information during login, executes game processing based on player operations when the game is run in real time in conjunction with the game server device 10, and performs game processing including playback of received automatic calculation data when the game is run by automatic calculation.

[0156] Furthermore, the display control unit 213 performs the processing to display on the display unit 290. For example, the display control unit 213 may use a web browser 211 for display.

[0157] The drawing unit 220 performs drawing processing based on various processes (for example, game processing) performed by the processing unit 200, thereby generating an image, which is then output to the display unit 290 by the display control unit 213. The image generated by the drawing unit 220 may be a so-called two-dimensional image or a so-called three-dimensional image.

[0158] The sound processing unit 230 performs sound processing based on the results of various processes performed by the processing unit 200, generates game sounds such as background music, sound effects, or voices, and outputs them to the sound output unit 292.

[0159] [4] Game streaming server equipment Next, the game live streaming server device 30 of this embodiment will be described using Figure 4. Figure 4 is a diagram showing the functional blocks of the game live streaming server device 30 of this embodiment. Furthermore, the game live streaming server device 30 of this embodiment may have a configuration in which some of the components (each part) in Figure 4 are omitted.

[0160] The game live streaming server device 30 includes an input unit 320 for use by streamers and other inputs, a display unit 330 for displaying predetermined information, an information storage medium 380 for storing predetermined information, a communication unit 396 for communicating with terminal devices 20 and others, a processing unit 300 that mainly performs processing related to the distribution of live gameplay, and a storage unit 340 that mainly stores various data used when distributing live gameplay.

[0161] The input unit 320 is used by streamers and others to input settings and other necessary settings and data related to game live streaming. For example, the input unit 320 in this embodiment is composed of a mouse, keyboard, etc.

[0162] The display unit 330 displays an operation screen for the system administrator. For example, the display unit 330 in this embodiment is composed of a liquid crystal display or the like.

[0163] Information storage media 380 (a medium readable by a computer) is used to store programs, data, etc., and its function is comprised of optical discs (CDs, DVDs), magneto-optical discs (MOs), magnetic discs, hard disks, magnetic tapes, or memory (ROMs).

[0164] The communication unit 396 performs various controls for communicating with external parties (e.g., terminals, other servers, or other network systems), and its functions are comprised of hardware such as various processors or communication ASICs, as well as programs.

[0165] The memory unit 340 serves as the work area for the processing unit 300 and the communication unit 396, and its functions are comprised of RAM (VRAM), etc. The information stored in the memory unit 340 may be managed in a database.

[0166] Furthermore, the storage unit 340 of this embodiment, in addition to the main storage unit 342, (A1) A game viewing information storage unit 344 stores game viewing information to be distributed to the viewer's terminal device (hereinafter referred to as "viewer's terminal device") 20 when each game live stream is performed, (A2) A viewer management information storage unit 346 that stores information for managing viewers and game commentators, (A3) A game commentary-related information storage unit 347 stores information about previously streamed game commentaries, including input information such as comments entered by viewers (hereinafter referred to as "viewer input history information") for each game commentary stream, (A4) A viewer-related information storage unit 348 stores viewer-related information related to each viewer, including viewer input information such as comments entered by each viewer, (A5) An automatic generation data storage unit 349 that stores various data used to generate viewer input information (hereinafter referred to as "automatic input information"), and which includes information used to automatically generate viewer input information. It has the characteristics of the present invention and constitutes the storage means of the present invention.

[0167] Game viewing information is stored in association with the game commentary ID assigned to each game commentary. Furthermore, each game viewing information may also be stored in association with gameplay information used to generate the viewing information (original information not processed for commentary) and commentary status information such as audio and images transmitted by the game commentator.

[0168] The processing unit 300 performs various processes using the main memory unit 342 within the storage unit 340 as the work area. The functions of the processing unit 300 can be realized by hardware such as various processors (CPU, DSP, etc.) and ASICs (gate arrays, etc.) or by programs.

[0169] The processing unit 300 performs various processes of this embodiment based on the program (data) stored in the information storage medium 380. That is, the information storage medium 180 stores programs that cause the computer to function as each part of this embodiment (programs that cause the computer to execute the processing of each part).

[0170] For example, the processing unit 300 (processor) controls the entire game live streaming server device 30 based on the program stored in the information storage medium, and also performs various processes such as controlling the transfer of data between each part. Furthermore, it performs processing to provide various game live streaming services in response to requests from the terminal device 20.

[0171] Specifically, the processing unit 300 of this embodiment includes a communication control unit 301, a Web processing unit 302, It includes at least a game live streaming control unit 303, a viewer management unit 304, a status detection unit 305, an automatic input information generation unit 306, an evaluation detection unit 307, an input information management unit 308, and a timer management unit 309.

[0172] For example, the game live streaming control unit 303 in this embodiment constitutes the acquisition and provision means of the present invention, and the evaluation detection unit 307 constitutes the status detection means of the present invention. Furthermore, the automatic input information generation unit 306 in this embodiment constitutes the automatic generation means of the present invention, and the evaluation detection unit 307 constitutes the evaluation detection means of the present invention. In addition, the input information management unit 308 in this embodiment constitutes the memory control means, monitoring means, and comparison means of the present invention.

[0173] The communication control unit 301 performs processing to send and receive data with the terminal device 20 via the network. In other words, the game live streaming server device 30 performs various processing based on the information received from the terminal device 20, etc., by the communication control unit 301.

[0174] In particular, the communication control unit 301 of this embodiment performs the process of transmitting various information for displaying images related to game live gameplay to the terminal devices 20 of the game live stream player and the viewer, based on requests from the terminal devices 20 of the game live stream player and the viewer.

[0175] Furthermore, the communication control unit 301 performs various processes to receive player instructions input to the terminal device 20.

[0176] The Web processing unit 302 functions as a Web server. For example, the Web processing unit 302 performs the process of sending data in response to a request from a Web browser 211 installed on the terminal device 20 via a communication protocol such as HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol), and the process of receiving data sent by the Web browser 211 on the terminal device 20.

[0177] The game live streaming control unit 303 works in conjunction with the game server device 10 and the terminal device 20 to manage the streaming of game live gameplay for each viewer who wishes to watch the stream, for games provided by the game server device 10.

[0178] In particular, the game live streaming control unit 303 acquires information about the game being played live (i.e., gameplay information) and live streaming status information from the player, and based on the acquired gameplay information and live streaming status information, it generates game viewing information for viewers to watch the live gameplay, while incorporating viewer input information such as comments.

[0179] The game live streaming control unit 303 then provides the generated game viewing information or the automatically input information generated by the automatic input information generation unit 306 to the terminal device 20, such as a viewer.

[0180] The viewer management unit 304 manages viewing information such as comments entered by each viewer while watching a live gameplay stream, and manages the viewers watching each live gameplay stream for each streamed live gameplay stream.

[0181] In particular, the viewer management unit 304 acquires viewer-related information, such as viewer attributes, transmitted from the viewer's terminal device 20 via the communication control unit 301 and the Web processing unit 302.

[0182] The situation detection unit 305 detects situation information indicating the progress of the game for generating automatic input information (hereinafter referred to as "game progress information"), situation information indicating the live commentary status of the game play (hereinafter referred to as "live commentary status information"), and situation information indicating the viewing status of viewers (hereinafter referred to as "viewing status information").

[0183] The automatic input information generation unit 306 automatically generates information that is considered identical to viewer input information, such as comments, as automatic input information, based on the situation information detected as described above, such as game execution.

[0184] The automatic input information generation unit 306 then provides the generated automatic input information to the game live streaming control unit 303.

[0185] The evaluation detection unit 307 detects the viewer's evaluation when the automatically input information generated by the automatic input information generation unit 306 is incorporated into the game viewing information and viewed by the viewer, and stores the result in the automatically generated data storage unit 349.

[0186] The input information management unit 308 stores viewer input information and automatically input information entered according to the game's progress for each live gameplay session as input history information in the game live gameplay-related information storage unit 347.

[0187] Furthermore, the input information management unit 308 performs various processes to generate automatically input information based on already stored input history information during live gameplay.

[0188] The timer management unit 309 has a timer function and is used to manage the status of live game commentary. In particular, the timer management unit 109 works in conjunction with the game management unit 103 and outputs the current time and a preset time to each unit. The timer management unit 109 is also used to synchronize with each terminal device 20.

[0189] [5] Method of this embodiment [5.1] Overview Next, an overview of the game live streaming distribution control process (hereinafter referred to as "game live streaming distribution control process"), including the automatic generation process of viewer input information (i.e., the automatic input information generation process) of this embodiment, will be explained using Figures 5 and 6.

[0190] Figures 5 and 6 are diagrams illustrating the game live streaming control process, including the automatic input information generation process (hereinafter simply referred to as the "automatic input information generation process") in this embodiment.

[0191] The game live streaming server device 30 of this embodiment is a server device that works in conjunction with the game server device 10, the viewer terminal device 20, and the game live streaming player terminal device 20 to execute game live streaming distribution control processing that controls the distribution of game live gameplay of the game provided by the game server device 10.

[0192] In other words, the game live streaming server device 30 of this embodiment performs game live streaming distribution control processing to distribute the game execution status of the game played by the game live streaming player in order to allow viewers to watch the game being played by the game live streaming player.

[0193] Furthermore, the game live streaming server device 30 of this embodiment has a configuration that, when the live gameplay is not generating much excitement, automatically generates input information such as viewer comments, and streams the live gameplay as if many viewers were watching.

[0194] Specifically, the game live streaming server device 30 of this embodiment distributes game live streaming information, where a given game is played and the game is streamed, as game viewing information. When a message is sent, the system has a configuration that performs processing on viewer input information, which is an action taken by the viewer in response to the live gameplay being watched and constitutes part of the game viewing information.

[0195] Then, as shown in Figure 5, the game live streaming server device 30 performs game live streaming control processing, (A1) A process to acquire information about gameplay during live gameplay as gameplay information, and to acquire the situation during live gameplay as live commentary status information for viewers to see. (A2) A process to detect the progress of the game during live gameplay based on acquired gameplay information (hereinafter referred to as the "progress detection process"), and a situation detection process to detect the live commentary status during live gameplay based on acquired live commentary status information (hereinafter referred to as the "live commentary status detection process"), (A3) Based on the detected game progress and live commentary status information, an automatic input information generation process automatically generates viewer input information that constitutes game viewing information, and (A4) Automatic input information provision process that provides automatically generated automatically input information to at least a given viewer or broadcaster. It has a configuration that executes this.

[0196] In particular, as shown in Figure 5, the game live streaming server device 30 has a configuration that, as a game live streaming control process, executes a game viewing information generation process that generates game viewing information consisting of game play information and live streaming status information, including automatically generated input information, and incorporates viewer input information (including automatically generated information), such as viewer comments, into a part of its display area.

[0197] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 5, the game live streaming server device 30 of this embodiment has a configuration that performs a process to distribute the generated game viewing information to each terminal device 20 as an automatic input information provision process (hereinafter referred to as the "game viewing information distribution process").

[0198] On the other hand, the game live streaming server device 30 of this embodiment, instead of the above-mentioned game live streaming control processing, performs the following, as shown in Figure 6: (B1) A process to acquire information about the game's status during live gameplay as live commentary status information, and to acquire information about each viewer from the viewer's terminal device as viewer-related information. (B2) A situation detection process that detects the situation of live gameplay based on acquired live commentary information, and a situation detection process that detects the viewing status of viewers based on acquired viewer-related information (hereinafter also referred to as the "viewing status detection process"), (B3) An automatic input information generation process that automatically generates viewer input information constituting game viewing information as automatic input information based on the situation information indicating the live commentary and viewing status of the detected live gameplay, and (B4) An automated input information provision process that performs a provision process to provide automatically generated automated input information to at least a given viewer or broadcaster. It has a configuration that executes this.

[0199] In particular, the game live streaming server device 30 has a configuration that, similar to the game live streaming control process described above, executes a game viewing information generation process to generate game viewing information, which consists of game play information and live streaming status information, including the automatically generated input information, and incorporates viewer input information (including automatically generated information), such as viewer comments, into a part of its display area, as shown in Figure 6.

[0200] Furthermore, the game live streaming server device 30 of this embodiment has a configuration, as shown in Figure 6, that performs a game viewing information distribution process as an automatic input information provision process, which distributes the generated game viewing information to each terminal device 20, similar to the game live streaming control process described above.

[0201] In this case, the game live streaming server device 30 of this embodiment may, similar to the game live streaming control process described above, detect the live streaming status and the viewer's viewing status during game live streaming, as well as the game's progress, and execute an automatic input information generation process that automatically generates automatic input information based on the detected live streaming status, viewing status, and game's progress.

[0202] Figures 5 and 6 illustrate the processes involved in generating automatically input information along with viewer input information such as comments, and providing viewers with game viewing information that incorporates this information, when a live gameplay stream is performed and viewers watch the gameplay.

[0203] In particular, Figure 5 shows an example in which, when game viewing information is generated and distributed based on game play information transmitted from the game server device 10 and live commentary status information transmitted from the game commentator's terminal device 20, while incorporating input information based on viewer instructions, the game commentary distribution server device 30 generates automatic input information based on the game play information and live commentary status information at a given timing, and incorporates the generated automatic input information into the game viewing information being distributed and provides it to the viewer.

[0204] Furthermore, Figure 6 shows an example in which, when game viewing information is generated and distributed based on game play information transmitted from the game server device 10 and live commentary status information transmitted from the game commentary player's terminal device 20, while incorporating input information based on the viewer's instructions, the game commentary distribution server device 30 generates automatic input information based on viewer status information and live commentary status information at a given timing, and incorporates the generated automatic input information into the game viewing information being distributed and provides it to the viewer.

[0205] The game live streaming server device 30 and the game live streaming system 1 including it in this embodiment, by having such a configuration, can automatically generate input information such as comments and stamps that are appropriate to the progress of the game and the live streaming status of the game play. This makes it possible to incorporate the automatically generated comments and other automatically input information into the game viewing information as actual viewers, or to suggest to viewers that they input the automatically generated comments and other automatically input information as viewer information.

[0206] Furthermore, the game live streaming server device 30 and the game live streaming system 1 including it in this embodiment can liven up a game live stream even when the actual number of viewers is small or the number of viewer comments is small, thus increasing the desire of many viewers to watch the game live stream and livening up the game live stream regardless of whether there are actual viewers or not.

[0207] In this embodiment, the given games include, for example, fighting games, sports games, battle royale games, RPGs, shooting games, and simulation games.

[0208] [5.2] Various data and information [5.2.1] Game viewing information Next, the game viewing information of this embodiment will be explained using Figure 7. This is an example of a screen displayed on the terminal device 20 when the game viewing information of the embodiment is converted into an image.

[0209] Game viewing information consists of gameplay information and live commentary information, and a portion of the display area incorporates viewer input information such as viewer comments.

[0210] In particular, game viewing information is information used to generate images displayed on the terminal device 20, as shown in Figure 7.

[0211] Specifically, the game viewing information is streaming information, generated by the game live streaming control unit 303, provided to each terminal device 20, and stored in the game live streaming related information storage unit 347.

[0212] For example, game viewing information is recorded for each game playthrough. (A1) Game commentary play ID, (A2) Gameplay information, (A3) Live commentary information, and, (A4) Viewer input information It consists of.

[0213] Gameplay information is information that includes player operation information during live gameplay, and is information related to the execution control of the game for displaying or outputting various images such as moving images and still images (i.e., game screen) and various sounds such as music and voices (i.e., game sound) related to the game being played live.

[0214] The gameplay information includes control data for displaying the game screen and game sounds related to the execution of the game during live gameplay on each terminal device 20 or outputting them from each terminal device 20.

[0215] For example, gameplay information includes information such as resolution, color information (including saturation and brightness), display area (size), or additional data (player information such as player ID, player nickname, player character characteristics, player score, level, and experience points), and information for outputting this information, which is information for providing each player with a game screen and game sound.

[0216] Furthermore, the live commentary information includes moving and still images of the upper body or face of the game commentator, including various effects; background music or the voice and sound of the game commentator; and performance information including various sound and visual effects.

[0217] Furthermore, viewer input information includes viewer ID, viewer nickname, and comments on the viewer's game playthrough, as well as standardized or non-standardized strings such as "likes." It also consists of information such as stamps and emojis that express the situation, the viewer's situation and feelings at the time, sounds such as audio, and input instructions for various effects (including character movements for viewers) and image effects.

[0218] Figure 7 shows an example of how game viewing information for a mahjong game is displayed on the viewer's terminal device 20. In particular, Figure 7 shows an example of a screen for viewing live gameplay, which includes areas where information for the game information, the commentary information, and the viewer input information is displayed.

[0219] On the other hand, the automatically entered information is generated automatically by a BOT (automation program) or the like, and while the viewer ID and nickname are included with appropriate information, it basically has the same data structure and configuration as the viewer input information.

[0220] In other words, the automatically entered information is the same as the viewer input information, and in addition to comments from viewers on the game live stream, it includes standardized or non-standardized strings such as "likes," as well as images such as stamps and emojis that express the situation, the viewer's situation or feelings at the time, sounds such as audio, and input instructions for various effects and visual effects.

[0221] Therefore, the automatically entered information has a structure that is visually (i.e., in terms of viewing) identical to viewer-entered information, including the data format, except for whether it is entered by the viewer or automatically generated.

[0222] For example, as shown in Figure 7, automatically entered information is displayed in the same field (image area) as the viewer input information when the game is visualized using game viewing information in a live gameplay video, similar to viewer input information.

[0223] In particular, Figure 7 shows an example where the word "Congratulations" and a heart-shaped emoji are displayed in an image area of ​​viewer input information similar to viewer input information, using a virtual viewer ID "DBC".

[0224] [5.2.2] Viewer input information and automatically entered information Next, the viewer input information and automatic input information of this embodiment will be explained using Figure 8. Note that Figure 8 is an example of the viewer input information and automatic input information of this embodiment.

[0225] As described above, viewer input information is generated based on the instructions of each viewer, and this generated viewer input information is incorporated into the game viewing information and stored in the viewer-related information storage unit 348 as history information for each viewer.

[0226] In particular, the viewer input information stored in this way includes the viewer ID, the viewer's nickname, and comments on the viewer's gameplay, as well as standardized or non-standardized strings such as "likes." It also consists of information such as images like stamps and emojis that express the situation, the viewer's situation and feelings at the time, sounds such as audio, and input instructions for various effects (including character movements for viewers) and image effects.

[0227] For example, viewer input information is provided for each viewer. (A1) Viewer ID, (A2) Viewer's nickname, (A3) Types of viewer information, and (A4) Contents of viewer information, Includes.

[0228] Furthermore, as mentioned above, the automatically entered information is automatically generated by a viewer input information BOT (automation program), and the viewer ID and nickname are simply incorporated with appropriate information, while basically having the same data structure and configuration as the viewer input information.

[0229] For example, each time the automatically entered information is generated, (B1) Virtual viewer ID, (B2) Nickname of the virtual viewer, (B3) The type of automatically entered information generated, and (B4) Contents of the automatically entered information generated, Includes.

[0230] The virtual viewer ID and its nickname may be predetermined, or they may be newly assigned when the automatically entered information is generated.

[0231] [5.2.3] Viewer-related information Next, the viewer-related information of this embodiment will be described using FIG. 9. Note that FIG. 9 is an example of information regarding viewer information stored in the viewer-related information storage unit 348 of this embodiment and viewer input information for each game live play.

[0232] The viewer-related information includes information about each viewer who watches the distributed game live play (hereinafter referred to as "viewer information") and information about viewer input information and automatic input information according to the progress of the game for each distribution of the game live play (that is, input history information).

[0233] Also, the viewer-related information is basically input by the viewer via the terminal device 20 and registered (acquired) in the viewer-related information storage unit 348.

[0234] In particular, as shown in FIG. 9A, for each viewer, the viewer information is associated with the ID of each viewer and includes (A1) Information on attributes such as the gender, age, or residential area of each viewer (hereinafter referred to as "viewer attribute information"), and (A2) Information on the history of each viewer, including the viewing time of each viewer, attributes such as the type of game live play (such as sports game, battle game, or table game), date and time, and information related to billing (hereinafter referred to as "viewer history information"). is included.

[0235] Note that the viewer history information may include information related to the history of login (access) to the network service that provides the distribution of the game live play (hereinafter referred to as "access history information").

[0236] As shown in FIG. 9B, the input history information is associated with the game live play ID for each game live play and includes (B1) The game ID of the game targeted by the game live play, (B2) The type of the game (hereinafter referred to as "game type"), (B3) The history of the progress, and (B4) History of input information including viewer input history and automatic input history, It includes.

[0237] Furthermore, the history information is managed by the input information management unit 308 for each game live stream and stored in the viewer-related information storage unit 348.

[0238] [5.3] Game live streaming control processing including game viewing information generation processing Next, the basic principles of the game live streaming control process, including the game viewing information generation process, which is performed by the game live streaming server device 30 of this embodiment, will be explained.

[0239] (Basic principles of game live streaming control processing) The game live streaming control unit 303 performs game live streaming control processing to allow viewers to watch the game being played by the game live stream player (i.e., the game provided by the game server device 10).

[0240] In particular, the game live streaming control unit 303 executes a game viewing information generation process that generates game viewing information consisting of game images of the game being streamed, various information related to gameplay including game sounds such as background music, sound effects, and character voices (i.e., gameplay information), and live streaming status information such as the voice and facial image of the player streaming the game.

[0241] Furthermore, the game live streaming control unit 303 incorporates viewer input information, such as comments from viewers watching the live gameplay, into the game viewing information generated in this manner, and provides the game viewing information incorporating the game viewer information to the corresponding viewer's terminal device 20 or the like.

[0242] Specifically, the game live streaming control unit 303 sequentially acquires game play information from the game server device 10 based on the operation information of the game live streaming player, via the communication control unit 301, while the game live streaming is in progress.

[0243] Similarly, the game live streaming control unit 303 sequentially acquires live streaming status information, such as images and audio from the game live streaming player, from the game live streaming player's terminal device 20 via the communication control unit 301 while the game live streaming is in progress.

[0244] Then, the game live streaming control unit 303 executes a game viewing information generation process that generates streaming game viewing information based on the acquired game play information and live streaming status information until the game live stream ends.

[0245] At this time, if the game live streaming control unit 303 receives a command from the viewer's terminal device 20 to generate viewer input information entered by the viewer, it executes a process to incorporate the viewer input information into the game viewing information being streamed (hereinafter referred to as the "viewer input information incorporation process").

[0246] Details of the viewer input information integration process, which incorporates viewer input information into the game viewing information of this embodiment, will be described later.

[0247] Furthermore, the game live streaming control unit 303 distributes the generated game viewing information (including game viewing information incorporating viewer input information) to each viewer's terminal device 20 in streaming format.

[0248] For example, the game streaming control unit 303, as part of its game viewing information generation process, divides one screen into two, generating images to display the video of the game currently running on one screen and the video of the upper body or face of the game streaming player on the other screen. It also mixes and edits the game's sound and the game streaming player's voice to generate streaming game viewing information that can be displayed on the viewer's terminal device 20 and that allows simultaneous output of the game's sound and the game streaming player's voice.

[0249] In addition, the game live broadcast control unit 303 executes game live play distribution control processing to distribute game viewing information generated in a predetermined format such as a streaming format to the terminal devices 20 of one or more viewers registered in advance or to the terminal devices 20 of viewers who have made viewing requests during the game live play.

[0250] (Viewer input information incorporation process) During the distribution of game viewing information, when the game live broadcast control unit 303 receives a generation instruction for viewer input information input by a viewer from the terminal device 20 of the viewer, the game live broadcast control unit 303 generates viewer input information based on the generation instruction and incorporates the generated viewer input information into the game viewing information.

[0251] Specifically, when the game live broadcast control unit 303 receives a generation instruction for viewer information (specifically, a write display instruction) from the terminal device 20 of the viewer, the game live broadcast control unit 303 determines the viewer ID of the viewer who input the viewer input information, the nickname of the viewer, or both from the content information (information indicating the content itself such as a comment, or information indicating that a "like" has been input or specific image information indicating an image to be displayed in place of a comment such as an "emoji" or "stamp") and the information regarding the viewer (i.e., viewer information) that constitutes the content of the viewer input information included in the received generation instruction.

[0252] Then, the game live broadcast control unit 303 incorporates the received content information and the identified viewer ID, etc. into the game viewing information, and distributes the game viewer information incorporating the viewer information to the terminal device 20 of the viewer as described above.

[0253] For example, when the game live broadcast control unit 3 is distributing game viewing information generation processing, when a viewer accesses a specific URL by the terminal device 20, the game live broadcast control unit 303 acquires the viewer information of the viewer while distributing the generated game viewing information to the terminal device in a streaming format.

[0254] Then, when the game live streaming control unit 303 receives a command to generate viewer input information (a command to write and display information) while game viewing information is being distributed in streaming format, it acquires the content information (for example, "Good luck!") transmitted along with the generation command, and identifies the viewer's nickname or ID (for example, nickname "Passerby") from the viewer information of the terminal device 20 acquired at that time or in advance.

[0255] The game live streaming control unit 303 then generates viewer input information based on the acquired content information and the identified nickname or ID, and distributes game viewer information, which incorporates this viewer information so that it can be displayed in the bulletin board, to the viewer's terminal device 20.

[0256] The game live streaming control unit 303 incorporates the generated viewer input information into the game viewing information in real time, and then distributes the game viewing information incorporating the viewer input information to the corresponding terminal device 20 in streaming format.

[0257] Furthermore, as described above, the input information management unit 308 stores the generated viewer input information as input history information in the game commentary-related information storage unit 347.

[0258] Specifically, the input information management unit 308 associates the game ID of the game being streamed with the game type of that game, and stores the progress history and viewer input history as input history information in the game streaming-related information storage unit 347.

[0259] (Automatic input information integration process) The game live streaming control unit 303, as with viewer input information, performs embedded control processing as an automatic input information provision process, which incorporates the automatically generated automatic input information, as described later, into the game viewing information, treating it as viewer input information.

[0260] The game live streaming control unit 303 then provides the automatically inputted information to the viewer's terminal device 20 by providing game viewing information that incorporates the automatically inputted information.

[0261] Since the automatically input information has the same format and data structure as the viewer input information, the game live streaming control unit 303 incorporates it into the game viewing information using the same processing and procedure. Therefore, the process of incorporating the automatically input information into the game viewing information is the same as the process of incorporating the viewer input information, and thus its explanation is omitted.

[0262] As described above, the input information management unit 308 stores the generated automatically input information as input history information in the game live commentary related information storage unit 347.

[0263] Specifically, the input information management unit 308 associates the game ID of the game being streamed with the game type of that game, and stores the progress history and the history of automatically entered information as input history information in the game streaming-related information storage unit 347.

[0264] [5.4] Situation detection process [5.4.1] Game progress detection process Next, we will describe the game progress detection process of this embodiment, which is a prerequisite for the automatic input information generation process.

[0265] The status detection unit 305, which detects the game status, receives (acquires) gameplay information transmitted from the game server device 10 during live gameplay, and based on the acquired gameplay information, detects the gameplay status during gameplay as the progress status of the game.

[0266] In other words, the situation detection unit 305 detects, based on the acquired gameplay information, the rankings including the determination of which player is in a superior or inferior position and the battle situation, comparisons with enemy players, parameter values ​​such as health, experience points, and points for each player or player character at the time of detection, items and abilities possessed by each player or player character, and the status of each object in the game space.

[0267] Furthermore, if game viewing information is being delivered via streaming, the status detection unit 305 detects the game's progress at a given time based on the gameplay information transmitted and received from the game server device 10.

[0268] Specifically, the situation detection unit 305 determines the game's progress as follows: (A1) Game progression elements that change as the game progresses, such as game scenes and various game parameters. (A2) The type of game, the character settings of the characters appearing in the game, and elements of the game's execution environment such as the characters' dialogue, (A3) Time elements such as the elapsed time from the start of the game, and (A4), these combinations, Based on this, the game's progress at a given time is detected.

[0269] For example, the situation detection unit 305 detects elements of progression change, such as the performance of the game player and player character, parameters that change as the game progresses, such as health and ability scores, and elements of the game space, including the position and characteristics of each character, including the player character, and each object that constitutes the game space, as well as elements for composing characters within that game space.

[0270] Furthermore, for example, the situation detection unit 305 detects execution environment elements such as the type and level of the characters appearing, the player's level and attributes (gender and age), the type of terminal device, and the type of country or region. It detects the language type, etc.

[0271] Furthermore, for example, the situation detection unit 305 detects time elements such as the total time played since the game started, and the elapsed time from a predetermined timing (such as the timing when a predetermined stage was started).

[0272] On the other hand, the situation detection unit 305 may detect the game's progress at regular intervals, or, in the case of games where the order of play is predetermined, such as mahjong, games where players build decks and compete, or games where offense and defense alternate, such as fighting games, it may detect the game's progress turn by turn.

[0273] For example, when the situation detection unit 305 recognizes the progress of a game based on gameplay information, such as in a mahjong game or a card game, it detects the progress of the game at a given time based on the received gameplay information.

[0274] Furthermore, for example, when the situation detection unit 305 detects the progress of a game, including progression-changing elements such as the health value in a fighting game, it recognizes the type and techniques of the player character and enemy character, as well as the action history up to that point, based on the received gameplay information, and detects the progress at the time of detection.

[0275] Then, when the situation detection unit 305 detects the progress of the game by comparing the values ​​of the progress change elements at a given timing with pre-stored reference values, it detects a "game commentator's advantage" play status and adds it to the detection results if the recognition criteria indicating that the progress change elements, such as the player's acquired points and stamina, have reached a predetermined disadvantageous reference value or advantageous reference value are met.

[0276] Furthermore, when a special event occurs, such as when a rare item is acquired or when a lottery is performed, the status detection unit 305 detects the result as the game's progress, with the time of the event being performed being a given timing.

[0277] Furthermore, the situation detection unit 305 may detect the game's progress based on the statements (including both voice and text) made by the game commentator character.

[0278] In this case, the situation detection unit 305 compares the content spoken by the game execution character with the speech dictionary data of the reference data and identifies the progress status pre-associated with the matching speech dictionary data as the progress status at a given time.

[0279] For example, if the situation detection unit 305 detects keywords such as "this is bad," "this is bad," or "I failed," it will detect the corresponding gameplay situation, such as "the game commentator made a mistake" or "is the game commentator in trouble!?"

[0280] On the other hand, the situation detection unit 305 may detect the progress of the game by performing image analysis on game images at predetermined timings, either in place of or in conjunction with game play information.

[0281] [5.4.2] Live situation detection process Next, we will describe the real-time situation detection process of this embodiment, which is a prerequisite for the automatic input information generation process.

[0282] The status detection unit 305, which detects the game status, receives (acquires) live commentary status information transmitted from the game commentator's terminal device 20 during live gameplay, and detects the live commentary status of the game commentator based on the acquired live commentary status information.

[0283] In other words, the situation detection unit 305 detects, based on the acquired live commentary situation information, the live commentary situation, such as the live commentary player's emotions ("excited," "joyful," "sad," or "angry") and the level of each emotion (for example, 1 to 10), based on the voice, facial expressions, and movements (gestures) of the live commentary game player.

[0284] Furthermore, if game viewing information is distributed via streaming, the status detection unit 305 detects the live commentary status information of the game commentator at a given timing based on the live commentary status information transmitted and received from the game commentator's terminal device 20.

[0285] Specifically, the situation detection unit 305 provides real-time situation information as follows: (A1) Image information of the upper body or face of the game commentator (primarily the same image, but a still image is also acceptable). (A2) Audio information of the game commentator, and Information regarding the effects (effect images and sound effects) for processing (A3)(A1) or (A2) (hereinafter referred to as "effect information"), Obtain it.

[0286] The situation detection unit 305 then determines the live commentary situation based on the voice of the live game player, images of their face and movements (gestures), etc. (B1) The emotions of the commentator playing the game, (B2) The presence or absence of an excited state, or the level of such excited state, or (B3)(B1) and (B2), This is detected as the live situation.

[0287] Furthermore, the live commentary information may include comments and stamps sent by the game commentator, and the live commentary status of the game commentator may be detected by analyzing such comments or stamps.

[0288] For example, in this case, if the situation detection unit 305 detects a positive comment or a smiling stamp, it detects the emotion as "fun" and the "level" of that emotion, which is defined for each type of stamp, as the actual situation.

[0289] [5.4.3] Viewer detection process including viewer management Next, we will describe the viewing status detection process, which includes viewer management, and is a prerequisite for the automatic input information generation process in this embodiment.

[0290] (Viewer management) The viewer management unit 304 works in conjunction with the viewer's terminal device 20 to manage the viewers watching each live game stream using the viewer ID for each live game stream.

[0291] In particular, when the viewer management unit 304 watches a game commentary video that a viewer has watched, it registers the viewer's viewer ID in association with the game commentary ID attached to that game commentary video.

[0292] For example, the viewer management unit 304 can handle new logins or registrations to a designated website. When a viewer's terminal device 20 receives a request to watch a specific game live stream, such as by logging in using an existing account, a new viewer ID is assigned, or the viewer ID is identified from the IDs already registered based on the login.

[0293] The viewer management unit 304 then associates the newly assigned viewer ID and the identified viewer ID with the game commentary ID and registers them in the viewer management information storage unit 346 to manage each viewer.

[0294] (Viewer status detection process) The viewer management unit 304 works in conjunction with the viewer's terminal device 20 and performs a viewing status detection process for each game live stream to detect the viewing status of each viewer during each game live stream.

[0295] The viewer management unit 304 then associates the detected viewing status with the corresponding viewer ID and registers it in the viewer management information storage unit 346.

[0296] In particular, the viewer management unit 304 detects the number of viewers watching the game playthrough, the number of comments from those viewers, or the average number of viewers, as well as, in games where viewer characters appear, the facial expressions and movements of those viewer characters.

[0297] Specifically, the viewer management unit 304, during live gameplay, will monitor the viewing status as follows: (A1) The viewing time and time period of each viewer of the game live stream distributed by the game server device 10, (A2) Content of each game (the game stage the player watching is currently playing, the battle scene (battle scene, goal scene), and the content of the mini-game or lottery scene, etc.) (A3) Viewing environment such as terminal devices 20 and platforms used by viewers, (A4) Whether or not standardized or non-standardized comments such as "likes" are provided, their type, and the number of times, etc., regarding viewer actions related to watching the game (hereinafter referred to as "viewer actions") (however, if the distribution system allows for the registration or recognition of such comments), (A5) The number of viewers watching the game being distributed (number of people at a specified time, number of people who have registered to watch, or total number of viewers who have watched), (A6) Viewer attributes (membership type, gender, age group), presence or absence of options (e.g., reward acquisition options), or viewer types based on whether or not there is a charge during viewing and the amount of that charge, and (A7) Control information indicating the motion control status, such as facial expression control information and motion control information of the viewer character. These are some of the things that are detected.

[0298] For example, when the viewer management unit 304 detects viewing time as part of the viewing status, it obtains the viewing start time or game commentary start time based on the viewer's operation, and the viewing end time or game commentary end time based on the viewer's operation from the viewer's terminal device 20, and calculates (i.e., detects) the viewing time based on each of the obtained timings.

[0299] Furthermore, for example, when the viewer management unit 304 detects viewing content as viewing status, it detects the viewing start time and viewing end time, and also detects events that occurred between the viewing start time and viewing end time of the game live stream.

[0300] [5.5] Automatic input information generation process (Basic principle) Next, the basic principle of the automatic input information generation process of this embodiment will be explained using Figure 10. Figure 10 is a diagram illustrating the basic principle of the automatic input information generation process in this embodiment.

[0301] The automatic input information generation unit 306 is: (A1) Situation information (Situation Information 1) that shows both the game progress detected by the game progress detection process and the live commentary status detected by the live commentary status detection process. (A2) Situation information (Situation Information 2) that shows both the live broadcast situation and the viewer's viewing situation detected by the viewer situation detection process, or (A3) Situational information (Situational Information 3) showing the three situations: the live commentary situation, the progress of the game, and the viewing situation. Based on this, an automatic input information generation process is executed, which automatically generates viewer input information as automatically generated information that constitutes part of the game viewing information.

[0302] In particular, the automatic input information generation unit 306 determines at least one element from the content, number, frequency, timing, and display format of the viewer input information based on the combination of each situation information (i.e., defined as situation information 1, 2, or 3), and then automatically generates viewer input information based on the determined element.

[0303] In other words, the automatic input information generation unit 306 identifies a specific combination of situations from among the situation information 1 (a combination of multiple situation information), multiple situation information 2 (a combination of multiple situation information), or multiple situation information 3 (a combination of multiple situation information) stored in the automatic generation data storage unit 349, and uses the automatic generation standard data which defines the content as the identified situation viewing information.

[0304] Then, the automatic input information generation unit 306 refers to the automatic generation reference data based on the combination of detected situation information, identifies content such as comments (i.e., content), and generates the automatic input information as described above using the identified content.

[0305] Furthermore, while distributing game viewing information, the game streaming control unit 303 incorporates the automatically generated input information into the game viewing information, similar to viewer input information, and distributes the game viewing information with the incorporated automatic input information to the viewer's terminal device 20 so that it can be viewed.

[0306] Specifically, the automatic input information generation unit 306 uses automatic generation reference data, such as table data, in which content is defined in correspondence with each combination of game progress and commentary status in situation information 1, each combination of commentary status and viewing status in situation information 2, or each combination of game progress, commentary status and viewing status in situation information 3.

[0307] Furthermore, the automatic input information generation unit 306 determines whether or not there is a combination in the automatically generated reference data based on each detected situation (i.e., situation information).

[0308] At this time, if the detected combination of situational information is defined in the automatic generation standard data, the automatic input information generation unit 306 identifies content that is defined in the automatic generation standard data and corresponds to the detected combination of situational information, such as comments (strings), stamps, or emojis, as virtual viewer input information.

[0309] The automatic input information generation unit 306 then incorporates a virtual viewer ID and nickname into the identified content and generates automatic input information in the same format and with the same data structure as the viewer input information.

[0310] For example, as shown in Figure 10, in the case of situation information 1, the automatically generated data storage unit 349 assumes that, as the execution criteria for the automatic input information generation process, comments are generated as content of the automatically input information according to the game's progress and the live commentary situation, and that the timing of the occurrence of a lottery event as a specific event (game progress) is associated with a level of joy or higher (live commentary situation), and that the content of the automatically input information at that time is defined as the comment "Congratulations".

[0311] Furthermore, in this case, as shown in Figure 10, it is assumed that the automatic input information generation unit 306 detects the timing of the occurrence of a lottery event as a specific event in the game's progress, and also detects that the game commentator shouted "Yay!" as part of the live commentary situation.

[0312] In this case, the automatic input information generation unit 306 identifies the emotion "joy" and its level "3" in the detected live situation based on the image of the comment "Yay!" and a predetermined dictionary or other reference data.

[0313] The automatic input information generation unit 306 then generates the automatic input information by assigning a predetermined comment ("Congratulations!", a viewer's comment) to be posted within the game viewing information as the content of the automatic input information, along with a randomly determined nickname and a virtual viewer ID.

[0314] The automatic input information generation unit 306 generates automatic input information with different comments as content depending on the game's progress or execution status. However, it may also generate many comments when the game commentator is excited, reduce the number of comments generated when there are many viewers, and analyze comments from other viewers to determine the type and pattern of comments to generate, thereby generating automatic input information with a number, frequency, timing, or display format appropriate to the situation.

[0315] In other words, the automatic input information generation unit 306 determines at least one element from the content, number, frequency, timing, and display format of the automatic input information based on the situation information, and automatically generates the automatic input information based on the determined element.

[0316] For example, if the automatic input information generation unit 306 detects that the game is in a stage where the player is fighting an enemy boss character, and that the game commentator is in a "trouble" situation based on the execution status, it refers to the automatic generation reference data, identifies the comment "Keep going" as content, and generates automatic input information associated with multiple virtual viewer IDs every minute.

[0317] Furthermore, for example, if the automatic input information generation unit 306 detects that the final stage has been cleared as part of the game's progress, or that the game commentator is shouting loudly as part of the execution status, it refers to the automatic generation reference data, identifies it as a smiling emoji content, and generates automatic input information associated with multiple virtual viewer IDs 10 times in a row.

[0318] (Application Example 1: Automatic generation of input information using excitement level detection processing / Situation information 1 and 3) The automatic input information generation unit 306 may perform an automatic input information generation process using data containing defined elevation determination conditions (i.e., elevation determination condition data) stored in the automatic generation data storage unit 349.

[0319] In other words, the automatically generated data storage unit 349 stores excitement determination condition data that defines predetermined game progress states for situations in which the game becomes exciting, and the automatically input information generation unit 306 generates data for each situation in situation information 1 (game progress and game execution state). Automatic input information may be automatically generated based on the live commentary situation in the league and the excitement level determination condition data.

[0320] Specifically, the automatic input information generation unit 306 is: (A1) A determination process (hereinafter referred to as the "excitement determination process") is executed to determine whether the detected game progress matches the game progress of the excitement determination condition data. (A2) In the excitement determination process, if it is determined that the detected game progress matches the game progress of the excitement determination conditions, automatic input information is automatically generated based on the situation information 1.

[0321] In particular, if the automatic input information generation unit 306 determines that the game progress detected by the excitement determination process matches the game progress of the excitement determination conditions, it automatically generates automatic input information based on the situation information 1 and the automatic generation reference data, as described above.

[0322] For example, the data for determining excitement levels includes: (B1) In a game where you fight enemy characters, you are in a situation where you are fighting the final boss character. (B2) The player character's parameters meet certain conditions, such as their stamina value falling below a certain level (a situation where they are approaching game over). (B3) The situation is that a special event has started. (B4) The situation is such that a given item has been acquired, such as obtaining a rare item, or (B5) In the case of a stage-based game, the given stage is either completed or in progress. This is stipulated.

[0323] Specifically, the automatic input information generation unit 306 determines whether the detected game progress meets the conditions for determining excitement.

[0324] At this time, the automatic input information generation unit 306 basically determines whether the detected game progress completely matches the game progress of the determination conditions for the excitement determination process. However, if the game progress defined in the excitement determination conditions is within a numerical range, the automatic input information generation unit 306 may determine that the detected game progress meets the excitement determination conditions if the detected game progress matches the game progress of the determination conditions for the excitement determination process.

[0325] Then, if the detected game progress meets the conditions for determining excitement, the automatic input information generation unit 306 automatically generates automatic input information based on the situation information 1 and the automatic generation reference data, as described above. If the conditions for determining excitement are not met, the automatic generation of automatic input information is not performed.

[0326] Furthermore, the automatic generation of automatic input information by the automatic input information generation unit 306 when the detected game progress meets the conditions for determining excitement is the same as described in the basic principles section, so that explanation will be omitted.

[0327] Furthermore, when the automatic input information generation unit 306 uses the situation information 3, the detected game When the progress reaches a certain level and the criteria for judgment are met, the system automatically generates input information based on the status information 3 and the automatically generated reference data, as described above.

[0328] (Application Example 2: Automatic generation of input information using assumed real-time conditions / Situation Information 1 and 3) The automatic input information generation unit 306 may perform an automatic input information generation process using data (i.e., assumed commentary data) that defines assumed commentary situations indicating expected commentary situations according to the progress of the game, which are stored in the automatic generation data storage unit 349.

[0329] In other words, the automatically generated data storage unit 349 has predetermined expected commentary situations according to the progress of the game, and the automatically input information generation unit 306 may automatically generate automatically input information based on each situation in the situation information 1 (the progress of the game and the commentary situation of the game execution player) and the expected commentary situation data.

[0330] Specifically, the automatic input information generation unit 306 is: (A1) Based on the detected game progress, the expected commentary data is referenced, and the expected commentary situation in the detected game progress is identified as the expected commentary situation. (A2) A process is performed to determine whether the identified assumed situation matches the detected situation (hereinafter referred to as the "situation determination process"), (A3) In the live situation determination process, if it is determined that the assumed live situation and the detected live situation do not match, automatic input information is automatically generated based on situation information 1.

[0331] In particular, if the automatic input information generation unit 306 determines, through the live commentary situation determination process, that the identified assumed live commentary situation does not match the live commentary situation of the detected game commentator, it automatically generates automatic input information based on the situation information 1 and the automatic generation reference data, as described above.

[0332] For example, the assumed real-time situation data includes: (B1) In a game where you fight enemy characters, you are in a situation where you are fighting the final boss character. (B2) The player character's parameters meet certain conditions, such as their stamina value falling below a certain level (a situation where they are approaching game over). (B3) The situation is that a special event has started. (B4) The situation is such that a given item has been acquired, such as obtaining a rare item, or (B5) In the case of a stage-based game, the given stage is either completed or in progress. Corresponding to the progress of the game, the game commentator's state of "excitement," "joy," "sadness," or "anger," along with its level (for example, 1 to 10), is defined as the intended commentary state.

[0333] The automatic input information generation unit 306 then identifies the expected commentary situation based on the detected game progress and determines whether or not it matches the commentary situation of the detected game commentator.

[0334] In this case, if the specified assumed execution status and the detected execution status do not match, the automatic input information generation unit 306 automatically generates automatic input information based on the status information 1 and the automatic generation reference data, as described above. If the specified assumed execution status and the detected execution status do match, the automatic input information generation unit does not perform the automatic generation.

[0335] Furthermore, the automatic input information generation unit 306 detects the commentary status of a game commentator, for example, by using the audio of the game commentator, using reference data such as a dictionary. Based on the live commentary information, the emotions of the game commentator and their level are identified, and the live commentary situation is judged using the identified emotions and their levels.

[0336] Furthermore, the automatic generation of automatically input information when the identified hypothetical live commentary situation matches the live commentary situation of the detected game commentator is the same as explained in the basic principles section, so that explanation will be omitted.

[0337] Furthermore, when the automatic input information generation unit 306 uses the situation information 3, if the detected game progress meets the conditions for determining excitement, it automatically generates automatic input information based on the situation information 3 and the automatic generation reference data, as described above.

[0338] (Application Example 3: Automatic generation of input information using viewer status determination process / Status information 2 and 3) The automatic input information generation unit 306 may perform an automatic input information generation process using data (i.e., viewer status criterion data) in which the criteria for generating the automatic input information are predetermined for each viewer's viewing status stored in the automatic generation data storage unit 349.

[0339] In other words, the automatically generated data storage unit 349 specifies whether or not to perform the automatic generation process for each viewing status of viewers watching a live gameplay stream, and the automatic input information generation unit 306 may automatically generate automatic input information based on each status of the status information 2 (live commentary status and viewing status of the game execution player) and the viewer status reference data.

[0340] Specifically, the automatic input information generation unit 306 is: (A1) A determination process (hereinafter referred to as the "viewer status determination process") is executed to determine whether the viewing status of each detected viewer or the viewing status of all viewers meets the criteria specified in the viewer status criteria data. (A2) In the viewer status determination process, if it is determined that the detected viewer's viewing status meets the criteria of the viewer status criteria data, automatic input information is automatically generated based on status information 2.

[0341] In particular, if the automatic input information generation unit 306 determines that the viewer status detected by the viewer status determination process matches the criteria of the viewer status criteria data, it automatically generates automatic input information based on the status information 2 and the automatic generation criteria data, as described above.

[0342] For example, viewer status criteria data includes the following as criteria for executing the automatic input information generation process: (B1) For example, the number of viewers must be below a certain number, such as 50 people or less. (B2) For example, the number of comments from a specified number of viewers must be less than or equal to 20 comments. (B3) For example, the average number of viewers is less than or equal to a predetermined number, such as 30 viewers per minute or less, (B4) These combinations, This includes things like:

[0343] Furthermore, the viewer status criteria data may be predetermined and fixed, or it may be determined based on the streaming history of the game streamer's past game streams, such as the number of viewers for the game streamer's past game streams.

[0344] The automatic input information generation unit 306 then determines whether the detected viewer status includes viewer status reference data.

[0345] At this time, if the detected viewer status meets the criteria value of the viewer status criteria data, the automatic input information generation unit 306 automatically generates automatic input information based on the status information 2 and the automatic generation criteria data, as described above, and if it does not meet the criteria value, Automatic generation of automatically entered information will not be performed.

[0346] Furthermore, regarding the automatic generation of automatic input information by the automatic input information generation unit 306 when the detected viewer status includes viewer status reference data, the explanation is the same as that described in the basic principles section, so that explanation will be omitted.

[0347] Furthermore, when the automatic input information generation unit 306 uses the situation information 3, if the detected viewer situation meets the criteria for the viewer situation criteria data, it automatically generates automatic input information based on the situation information 3 and the automatic generation criteria data, as described above.

[0348] [5.6] Variant (Variation 1: Another example of server device configuration) In the game live streaming system 1 of this embodiment, the game server device 10 and the game live streaming server device 30 are separate and independent of each other, but they may also be implemented using a single server device that has both functions.

[0349] (Variation 2: Recipient of automatically entered information) In this modified example, instead of providing the automatically inputted information to each viewer who is watching the game execution, as in the above embodiment, the process of providing automatically inputted information to the viewer is implemented by providing the generated automatically inputted information to the viewer as a candidate for viewer input information that will be generated according to the viewer's instructions.

[0350] Specifically, the game live streaming control unit 303 may, as part of the automatic input information provision process, provide the automatically generated automatic input information to a predetermined viewer terminal device 20 as a candidate for input as viewer input information of that viewer.

[0351] For example, in this case, the game live streaming control unit 303 provides the automatically generated input information generated in the automatically generated input information generation process to a terminal device 20 of a predetermined viewer who has requested to acquire automatically generated input information.

[0352] In this case, the game live streaming server device 30 performs the process of distributing the game viewing information generated by the game viewing information generation process to the viewer's terminal device 20 as an automatic input information provision process.

[0353] (Variation 3: Evaluation of automatically entered information) In this embodiment, it is also possible to evaluate the automatically input information incorporated into the game viewing information or provided as a candidate to viewers or game commentators, and to optimize the automatically input information generated in subsequent instances based on that evaluation.

[0354] In particular, in this case, model data is used as reference data for automatic generation to identify the content of automatically input information based on the contextual information, by outputting the content of the automatically input information when each contextual information is input.

[0355] For example, in this case, model data formed by machine learning to evaluate the output of content from automatically input information such as artificial intelligence (AI) is pre-generated and stored in the automatically generated data storage unit 349.

[0356] Furthermore, when the automatically input information generated by the automatic input information generation unit 306 is incorporated into the game viewing information and viewed by the viewer, the evaluation detection unit 307 detects the evaluations entered by each viewer. The value is detected, and the model data is updated based on the result.

[0357] The automatic input information generation unit 306 then automatically generates automatic input information based on the detected status information indicating the game's progress and live commentary status, and the model data.

[0358] In other words, in this case, the automatic input information generation unit 306 automatically generates automatic input information based on the stored evaluation of automatic input information (model data), along with the detected situation information indicating the game's progress and commentary status.

[0359] The evaluation detection unit 307 detects the evaluations (for example, the number of "likes" or "dislikes" clicks from each viewer) of the automatically input information incorporated into the game viewing information for each game live stream (each game viewing information), and updates the model of the automatically generated reference data stored in the automatically generated data storage unit 349 based on each detected evaluation (number of evaluations).

[0360] (Variation 4: Termination of automatic input information generation process) In this embodiment, the automatic input information generation process may be terminated when the game commentary becomes exciting, for example.

[0361] For example, in a live gameplay stream, the automatic input information generation process terminates when predetermined termination conditions are met, such as when a predetermined number of comments viewable by each viewer have been incorporated into the game viewing information and distributed, or when a predetermined number of viewers have started watching.

[0362] In this case, termination condition data, which specifies the conditions for ending the generation of the automatic input information, is pre-stored in the automatic generation data storage unit 349.

[0363] Then, if the automatic input information generation unit 306 determines that the detected status information meets the conditions specified in the termination condition data, it automatically generates automatic input information.

[0364] (Variation 5: Automatic input information generation process based on other game playthroughs) In this embodiment, the process of generating automatic input information for a specific game live stream may be performed by referring to viewer input information and automatic input information from other game live streams of the same game, the same type of game, or a similar game.

[0365] Specifically, as described above, the input information management unit 308 manages viewer input information and automatically input information as historical information such as viewer input information (Figure 9B) for each live game play session, at least according to the progress of the game, and stores it in the viewer-related information storage unit 348.

[0366] Furthermore, the input information management unit 308 monitors the input viewing information embedded in the game viewing information for each live game play session, and performs a comparison process during the live game play session to compare the input history information of the same game, the same type of game, or a similar game during the live game play session with the monitored input viewing information in chronological order, for example, depending on the progress of the game.

[0367] In particular, the input information management unit 308 compares input history information during live gameplay with monitored input viewing information in chronological order for games that are identical in terms of characters, game worldview, game structure, or rules, such as games that use the same game space, games that use the same characters, time trial games, or games that progress through multiple stages in stages.

[0368] Furthermore, the input information management unit 308 uses the following as comparison conditions: for example, the same game, the same type The system detects when the number of comments during a scene in a game or a similar game that is generating excitement exceeds 80% within a specified time frame, or when the situation is considered to be the same live commentary situation in the same game's progress.

[0369] Furthermore, if the automatic input information generation unit 306 determines that the game is the same, the same type of game, or a similar game, and is in the same progress but not the same viewing situation, or determines that the situation is not considered to be the same viewing situation, it may execute the automatic input information generation process based on the automatic generation reference data.

[0370] [6] Operation in this embodiment Next, using Figure 11, the operation of the game live streaming control process, including the automatic input information generation process, executed in the game live streaming server device 30 of this embodiment will be described.

[0371] Figure 11 is a flowchart showing the operation of the game live streaming control process, including the automatic input information generation process, which is executed in the game live streaming server device 30.

[0372] In this operation, it is assumed that the game streaming player's terminal device 20 is already running the game in conjunction with the game server device 10, and that the game server device 10 and the game streaming server device 30 are connected and operating in conjunction via a communication line.

[0373] Furthermore, in this operation, it is assumed that terminal devices 20 that distribute game viewing information have already been registered (i.e., viewers who watch live gameplay are registered in association with viewer IDs), and that each terminal device 20 is connected to a communication line.

[0374] Furthermore, this operation is the operation when an automatic input information provision process is realized by executing a game live streaming control process that distributes game viewing information incorporating automatically input information to each terminal device 20.

[0375] First, when the game live streaming control unit 303 receives a game live streaming start instruction transmitted from the terminal device 20 of the game live streaming player via the communication control unit 101 in a game provided by the game server device 10 (step S101), it starts a game viewing information generation process that generates game viewing information for viewers to watch the game live streaming, and a game live streaming distribution control process that distributes the generated game viewing information (step S102).

[0376] Specifically, in the process of step S102, the game live streaming control unit 303 works in conjunction with the game server device 10 to start receiving gameplay information for a specific game based on the operation information of the game live streaming player from the game server device 10, and also starts receiving live streaming status information from the terminal device 20 of the game live streaming player.

[0377] The game live streaming control unit 303 then starts generating game viewing information based on the received game play information and live streaming status information, and continues generating the game viewing information until the game live stream ends.

[0378] Furthermore, once the game streaming control unit 303 starts distributing game viewing information, it continues to distribute the game viewing information to the corresponding viewer's terminal device 20 until the game streaming ends.

[0379] Furthermore, when the game streaming control unit 303 receives a request to stream game viewing information from a viewer's terminal device 20 that has not yet registered for streaming after the start of streaming of game viewing information, it registers the corresponding viewer's terminal device 20 as a streaming-enabled terminal device and, at the time of receiving the streaming request... We will distribute game viewing information from [platform name].

[0380] Furthermore, if the game live streaming control unit 303 receives a command from the viewer's terminal device 20 to generate viewer input information while game viewing information is being streamed, it generates viewer input information and incorporates the generated viewer input information into the game viewing information.

[0381] Next, the game live streaming control unit 303 determines whether or not it has received a streaming termination instruction from the game live streaming player (step S103).

[0382] At this time, if the game live streaming control unit 303 determines that it has received a viewing termination instruction from the game live streaming player, it terminates this operation. If it determines that it has not received a viewing termination instruction from the game live streaming player, it proceeds to the processing in step S104.

[0383] Next, the situation detection unit 305 determines whether or not it is time to detect situation information (step S104).

[0384] At this point, if the status detection unit 305 determines that it is time to detect status information, it proceeds to the process in step S105; otherwise, it returns to the process in step S103.

[0385] Next, if the situation detection unit 305 determines that it is time to detect situation information, it detects situation information (for example, the progress of the game and the commentary status of the game commentator) (step S105).

[0386] Next, the automatic input information generation unit 306 determines whether or not there is automatic input information based on the automatic generation reference data, the detected game progress, and the game commentator's commentary status (step S106).

[0387] Specifically, at this time, the automatic input information generation unit 306 determines whether or not the detected combination of status information is specified in the automatic generation standard data.

[0388] Then, if the automatic input information generation unit 306 determines that the detected combination of situation information is not specified in the automatic generation standard data, it returns to the process in step S103. If it determines that the detected combination of situation information is specified in the automatic generation standard data, it proceeds to the process in step S107.

[0389] Next, if the automatic input information generation unit 306 determines that the detected combination of situational information is specified in the automatic generation reference data, it executes an automatic input information generation process to automatically generate viewer input information that constitutes game viewing information as automatic input information (step S107).

[0390] Specifically, the automatic input information generation unit 306 identifies content that is defined in the automatic generation standard data and corresponds to the situation information of the detected combination, such as comments (strings), stamps, or emojis, as virtual viewer input information. It then incorporates a virtual viewer ID and nickname into the identified content to generate automatic input information that is in the same format and has the same data structure as viewer input information.

[0391] Finally, the game live streaming control unit 303 executes an automatic input information integration process (step S108) to incorporate the generated automatic input information into the game viewing information, and then proceeds to the process in step S103.

[0392] [7] Others The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible. For example, terms cited as broad or synonymous in the specification or drawings may be replaced with broad or synonymous terms in other descriptions in the specification or drawings.

[0393] In this embodiment, each game may be provided to the terminal device 20 by a single game server device 10, or a server system may be constructed by linking multiple game server devices 10 together to provide each game to the terminal device.

[0394] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the game provided by the game server device 10 is executed by the terminal device 20. However, except for the operation input, the game server device 10 may execute each function of the processing unit 200 of the terminal device 20 and the execution of the game program, and the terminal device 20 may realize the above game by performing operation input and image display via streaming.

[0395] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the system may be implemented using a single game device equipped with the functions of the game server device 10, that is, a standalone device that operates independently without relying on other devices such as server devices. In this case, multiple input terminal devices are sufficient.

[0396] Furthermore, it is possible to connect multiple such game terminal devices via wired or wireless connections, with one game device functioning as a game server device 10, and to implement this using multiple game devices.

[0397] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the game live streaming system of the present invention is applied to a game server device 10 that operates in conjunction with a terminal device 20 via a network. However, it can also be applied to tablet-type information terminal devices, personal computers, or game devices installed in amusement parks.

[0398] The present invention includes configurations that are substantially identical to those described in the embodiments (for example, configurations with the same function, method, and result, or configurations with the same purpose and effect). The present invention also includes configurations in which non-essential parts of the configurations described in the embodiments are replaced. Furthermore, the present invention includes configurations that produce the same effects or achieve the same purpose as those described in the embodiments. Finally, the present invention includes configurations that add known technology to the configurations described in the embodiments.

[0399] As described above, embodiments of the present invention have been explained in detail, but it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that many modifications are possible without substantially departing from the novel aspects and effects of the present invention. Therefore, all such modifications are included within the scope of the present invention. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0400] 1: Game live streaming system 20: Terminal device 30: Game live streaming server device 100: Processing Unit 101: Communication Control Unit 102: Web Processing Unit 103: Game Management Department 104: Player Management Department 109: Timer Management Department 110: Information provision department 120: Input section 130: Display section 140: Storage section 142: Main memory 144: Game data storage unit 146: Player Information Storage Unit 180: Information storage medium 196: Communications Department 200: Processing Unit 210: Communication Control Unit 211: Web browser 212: Game Processing Unit 213: Display Control Unit 220: Drawing section 230: Sound Processing Unit 260: Input section 262: Detection unit 270: Storage section 271: Main memory 272: Image buffer 280: Information storage medium 290:Display section 292: Sound output section 296: Communications Department 300: Processing Unit 301: Communication Control Unit 302: Web Processing Unit 303: Game Live Streaming Control Department 304: Viewer Management Department 305: Situation detection unit 306: Automatic input information generation unit 307: Evaluation detection unit 308: Input Information Management Department 309: Timer Management Department 320: Input section 330: Display section 340: Storage section 342: Main memory 344: Game viewing information storage unit 346: Viewer Management Information Storage Unit 347: Game commentary and gameplay related information storage unit 348: Viewer-related information storage unit 349: Automatically generated data storage unit 380: Information storage medium 396: Communications Department

Claims

1. A server system that performs processing on viewer input information, which is an action taken by a viewer during a game commentary while playing a given game, and which constitutes part of the game commentary information, when the game commentary is broadcast by the streamer as game viewing information. A means for acquiring information about the game being played during the live gameplay, and for acquiring the situation during the live gameplay as live gameplay information, A situation detection means for detecting the progress of the game during the live gameplay and the live commentary status corresponding to the progress of the game during the live gameplay, based on the acquired gameplay information and the live commentary information. An automatic generation means that automatically generates, as automatic input information, the viewer input information that constitutes the game viewing information based on the detected status information indicating the game's progress and live commentary status, and whose content corresponds to the combination of the game's progress and live commentary status. A providing means that performs a providing process to provide the automatically generated automatically input information to at least a given viewer or the distributor, Equipped with, The server system is characterized in that the live gameplay information includes information for detecting the status of the player or the streamer during the live gameplay, or the content transmitted by the player or the streamer.

2. A server system that performs processing on viewer input information, which is an action taken by a viewer during a game commentary while playing a given game, and which constitutes part of the game commentary information, when the game commentary is broadcast by the streamer as game viewing information. A means for acquiring information about the game being played during the live gameplay, and for acquiring the situation during the live gameplay as live gameplay information, Based on the acquired gameplay information and the live commentary information, the progress of the game during the live commentary and the progress of the game during the live commentary are as follows: A situation detection means for detecting the corresponding real-time situation, An automatic generation means that automatically generates, as automatic input information, the viewer input information that constitutes the game viewing information based on the detected status information indicating the game's progress and live commentary status, and whose content corresponds to the combination of the game's progress and live commentary status. A providing means that performs a providing process to provide the automatically generated automatically input information to at least a given viewer or the distributor, Equipped with, The server system is characterized in that the live gameplay information includes image information, audio information, or information related to the effects used to process the image information or audio information of the player or streamer during the live gameplay.

3. In the server system according to claim 1 or 2, The aforementioned situation detection means A server system that performs the following: (a) a process to detect the progress of the game during live gameplay based on the acquired gameplay information; and (b) a process to detect the state of the player or the broadcaster during live gameplay, or the meaning or emotional state of the content transmitted by the player or the broadcaster, as the live commentary status during live gameplay, based on the acquired live gameplay information.

4. In the server system described in claim 3, The memory means stores excitement determination condition data, which defines excitement determination conditions that specify the progress of the game in which the game becomes exciting. The automatic generation means, A determination process is executed to determine whether the detected game progress matches the game progress of the excitement determination condition data. A server system that, when it is determined by the determination process that the game progress detected matches the game progress of the excitement determination condition, automatically generates the automatic input information based on the status information.

5. In the server system according to claim 3 or 4, The memory means stores, for each stage of the game's progress, predefined data of anticipated commentary situations, in which the anticipated commentary situation at each stage of the game, or the meaning or emotional state corresponding to that commentary situation, is defined as the anticipated commentary situation. The automatic generation means, Based on the detected game progress, the assumed commentary data is referenced, and the assumed commentary situation, or the meaning or emotional state corresponding to that commentary situation, is identified as the assumed commentary situation. It is determined whether the identified assumed situation and the detected situation, which indicates the detected situation, match. A server system that, when it is determined that the assumed situation and the detected situation do not match, automatically generates the automatically input information based on the situation information.

6. In the server system according to claim 3 or 4, The automatic generation means, A server system that, based on the aforementioned situational information, determines at least one element from the content, number, frequency, timing, and display format of the viewer input information and automatically generates the viewer input information.

7. In the server system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, The aforementioned means of providing, A server system that, as part of the provisioning process, performs embedded control processing to incorporate the automatically generated automatically input information into the game viewing information as viewer input information, and provides the automatically input information to the viewer's terminal device by providing the game viewing information into which the automatically input information has been incorporated.

8. In the server system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, The aforementioned means of providing, A server system that, as part of the provision process, provides the automatically generated automatically input information to a given viewer's terminal device or the distributor's terminal device as information to be input as viewer input information of the viewer.

9. In the server system according to claim 3 or 4, The system further comprises evaluation detection means for detecting at least the viewer's evaluation of the automatically input information, The automatic generation means, A server system that automatically generates the automatically input information based on an evaluation of the detected automatically input information, along with status information indicating the game's progress and live commentary status.

10. A server system that, when a game commentary is broadcast by a broadcaster as game viewing information, performs processing on viewer input information that is input by a viewer regarding the game commentary being watched and which constitutes part of the game viewing information, wherein the game commentary is broadcast by the broadcaster as game viewing information, A means for acquiring information about the game being played during the live gameplay, and for acquiring the situation during the live gameplay as live gameplay information, An automatic generation means that automatically generates the viewer input information constituting the game viewing information as automatic input information, based on the situation information having the acquired gameplay information and the live commentary information. A providing means that performs a providing process to provide the automatically generated automatically input information to at least a given viewer or the distributor, A memory control means that stores the viewer input information and the automatically input information as input history information in a memory means, at least according to the progress of the game for each of the aforementioned game live streams, During the aforementioned live gameplay, a monitoring means monitors the input viewing information incorporated into the aforementioned game viewing information, During the aforementioned live gameplay, a comparison means performs a comparison process that compares the input history information of the live gameplay of the same game, the same type of game, or a similar game being played, with the monitored input viewing information, in chronological order. Equipped with, The aforementioned live gameplay information includes information for detecting the status of the player or streamer during the live gameplay, or the content transmitted by the player or streamer. The automatic generation means, A server system characterized by automatically generating the automatically input information when the result of the comparison process meets predetermined comparison conditions.

11. A server system that, when a game commentary is broadcast by a broadcaster as game viewing information, performs processing on viewer input information that is input by a viewer regarding the game commentary being watched and which constitutes part of the game viewing information, wherein the game commentary is broadcast by the broadcaster as game viewing information, A means for acquiring information about the game being played during the live gameplay, and for acquiring the situation during the live gameplay as live gameplay information, An automatic generation means that automatically generates the viewer input information constituting the game viewing information as automatic input information, based on the situation information having the acquired gameplay information and the live commentary information. A providing means that performs a providing process to provide the automatically generated automatically input information to at least a given viewer or the distributor, A memory control means that stores the viewer input information and the automatically input information as input history information in a memory means, at least according to the progress of the game for each of the aforementioned game live streams, During the aforementioned live gameplay, a monitoring means monitors the input viewing information incorporated into the aforementioned game viewing information, During the aforementioned live gameplay, a comparison means performs a comparison process that compares the input history information of the live gameplay of the same game, the same type of game, or a similar game being played, with the monitored input viewing information, in chronological order. Equipped with, The aforementioned live gameplay information includes image information, audio information, or information related to the effects used to process the image information or audio information of the player or streamer during the live gameplay. The automatic generation means, A server system characterized by automatically generating the automatically input information when the result of the comparison process meets predetermined comparison conditions.

12. In the server system according to any one of claims 1 to 11, The storage means stores termination condition data that defines the conditions for ending the generation of the automatic input information. The automatic generation means, A server system that, when it determines that the detected status information meets the conditions specified in the termination condition data, terminates the automatic generation of the automatic input information.

13. In the server system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, The aforementioned means of providing, The automatically generated automatic input information is treated as viewer input information in the game viewing information, and an embedded process is executed to incorporate it: A server system that provides the embedded game viewing information to the viewer's terminal device or the broadcaster's terminal device as part of the aforementioned provision process.

14. A program that processes viewer input information, which is an action taken by a viewer in response to a live gameplay commentary while playing a given game, and which constitutes part of the gameplay information, when the gameplay commentary is broadcast by the streamer as game viewing information. A means for acquiring information about the game being played during a live gameplay session, and for acquiring the situation during the live gameplay session as live gameplay information. A situation detection means that detects the progress of the game during the live gameplay and the live commentary status corresponding to the progress of the game during the live gameplay, based on the acquired gameplay information and the live commentary information. An automatic generation means that automatically generates, as automatic input information, the viewer input information that corresponds to the combination of the game's progress and commentary status, based on the detected status information indicating the game's progress and commentary status, and, Providing means that perform a provisioning process to provide the automatically generated automatically input information to at least a given viewer or the distributor, To make the computer function as, The program is characterized in that the live gameplay information includes information for detecting the status of the player or the streamer during the live gameplay, or the content transmitted by the player or the streamer.

15. A program that processes viewer input information, which is an action taken by a viewer in response to a live gameplay commentary while playing a given game, and which constitutes part of the gameplay information, when the gameplay commentary is broadcast by the streamer as game viewing information. A means for acquiring information about the game being played during a live gameplay session, and for acquiring the situation during the live gameplay session as live gameplay information. A situation detection means for detecting the progress of the game during the live gameplay and the live commentary status corresponding to the progress of the game during the live gameplay, based on the acquired gameplay information and the live commentary information. An automatic generation means that automatically generates, as automatic input information, the viewer input information that corresponds to the combination of the game's progress and commentary status, based on the detected status information indicating the game's progress and commentary status, and, Providing means that perform a provisioning process to provide the automatically generated automatically input information to at least a given viewer or the distributor, To make the computer function as, The program is characterized in that the live gameplay information includes image information, audio information, or information related to the effects used to process the image information or audio information of the player or streamer during the live gameplay.

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