Information processing device, information processing method, and program

Abstract

To provide a method that enables a plurality of players playing a multi-play game to share information on a visual line.SOLUTION: An information processing device includes an acquisition part for acquiring information on a visual line on a play screen of players playing a multi-play game, and a display control part for displaying information on a visual line of a second player playing the multi-play game with a first player on a play screen of a terminal operated by the first player.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program. [Background Art]

[0002] There exists a technology for tracking a user's gaze point (so-called eye tracking technology). For example, Patent Document 1 describes a technology of varying the degree of change of game parameters in accordance with the length of time that a player gazes at a character that is the target of game play. [Prior Art Document] [Patent Documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent No. 6622832 [Summary of the Invention] [Problem to be Solved by the Invention]

[0004] In existing eye tracking technology, the relationship between the detected gaze point and a player is limited to one-to-one correspondence.

[0005] One object of the present invention is to share information related to the line of sight among a plurality of players playing a multiplayer game. [Means for Solving the Problem]

[0006] One aspect of the present invention is an information processing apparatus comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires information related to the line of sight on a play screen of a player who is playing a multiplayer game; and a display control unit that displays, on the play screen of a terminal operated by a first player, information related to the line of sight of a second player who plays the multiplayer game together with the first player. [Effect of the Invention]

[0007] According to one embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to share information regarding gaze among multiple players playing a multiplayer game. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This figure shows an example configuration of the information processing system according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 2] This figure shows an example of the hardware configuration of an information terminal. [Figure 3] This diagram illustrates gaze detection technology that uses a camera positioned on the same side as the display. (A) shows the player looking towards the left edge of the display, (B) shows the player looking towards the center of the display, and (C) shows the player looking towards the right edge of the display. [Figure 4] This diagram illustrates an example of the functional configuration of the server used in Embodiment 1. [Figure 5] This diagram illustrates some examples of player information data. [Figure 6] This diagram illustrates an example of data related to gaze location information. [Figure 7] This diagram illustrates the relationship between the gameplay screen viewed by Player P1 and Player P2 and their gaze range. (A) shows an example of the gameplay screen displayed on Player P1's information terminal and Player P2's information terminal, and (B) shows the gameplay screen recognized by the server. [Figure 8] This diagram illustrates examples of how the gameplay screen is displayed for different players. (A) is the gameplay screen displayed on player P1's information terminal, and (B) is the gameplay screen displayed on player P2's information terminal. [Figure 9] This diagram illustrates an example of a play screen display based on the second function of the display control unit. (A) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P1, and (B) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P2. [Figure 10] This figure illustrates another example of the display of the play screen based on the second function of the display control unit. [Figure 11]This diagram illustrates an example of a play screen display based on the second function of the display control unit. (A) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P1, and (B) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P2. [Figure 12] This figure illustrates an example of message presentation based on the second function of the display control unit. (A) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P1, and (B) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P2. [Figure 13] This diagram illustrates an example of message display based on the third function of the display control unit. (A) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P1, and (B) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P2. [Figure 14] This diagram illustrates an example of message display based on the fourth function of the display control unit. (A) shows the play screen recognized by the server, and (B) shows the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P2. [Figure 15] This diagram illustrates an example of displaying the gaze range of other players based on the fifth function of the display control unit. (A) shows the play screen recognized by the server, and (B) shows the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P1. [Figure 16] This figure illustrates other display examples of the gaze range of other players based on the fifth function of the display control unit. (A) shows the play screen recognized by the server, and (B) shows the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P1. [Figure 17] This diagram illustrates an example of the display of the player P1's play screen based on the sixth function of the display control unit. (A) shows the play screen recognized by the server, and (B) shows the play screen displayed on the player P1's information terminal. [Figure 18] This diagram illustrates an example of displaying the gaze range of other players based on the seventh function of the display control unit. (A1) and (A2) show the play screen recognized by the server, and (B1) and (B2) show the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P1. [Figure 19]FIG. 12 is a diagram explaining a display example based on an eighth function of a display control unit. (A) shows a play screen recognized by a server, and (B) and (C) show play screens displayed on an information terminal of a player P1. [Figure 20] FIG. 13 is a diagram explaining another display example based on the eighth function of the display control unit. (A) shows a play screen recognized by a server, and (B) and (C) show play screens displayed on an information terminal of a player P1 and an information terminal of a player P2, respectively. [Figure 21] FIG. 14 is a diagram explaining a functional configuration example of a server used in Embodiment 2. [Figure 22] FIG. 15 is a diagram explaining processing functions of an authority transfer unit. (A) shows a play screen recognized by a server, (B) is a play screen displayed on an information terminal of a player P1, and (C) is a play screen displayed on an information terminal of a player P2. [Figure 23] FIG. 16 is a diagram explaining a display example of a play screen provided by the authority transfer unit. (A) and (B) are play screens displayed on an information terminal of a player P1. [Figure 24] FIG. 17 is a diagram explaining a display example of a play screen provided by the authority transfer unit. (A) is a play screen displayed on an information terminal of a viewing user, and (B) is a play screen displayed on an information terminal of a player P1 whose game play has ended in a game over. [Figure 25] FIG. 18 is a diagram explaining a functional configuration example of a server used in Embodiment 3. [Figure 26] FIG. 19 is a diagram explaining a display example of a play screen based on a first function of an area guidance unit. (A) shows a play screen recognized by a server, and (B) is a play screen displayed on an information terminal of a player P3. [Figure 27] FIG. 20 is a diagram explaining an example in which guidance is displayed to a player with a lower score. (A) is a play screen of a player P3 whose gaze range overlaps with that of another player, and (B) is a play screen of a player P4 whose gaze range overlaps with that of another player. [Figure 28]This diagram illustrates an example of displaying a chat window to encourage conversation between players. (A) shows the gameplay screens of players P3 and P4, whose gaze area overlaps with that of other players; (B) shows the gameplay screen of player P3, who is typing text; and (C) shows the gameplay screen of player P4. [Figure 29] This diagram illustrates the ninth function of the display control unit. (A) shows the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P1, and (B) shows the play screen displayed on the information terminal of player P2. [Figure 30] This figure shows an example configuration of the information processing system according to Embodiment 4. [Figure 31] This diagram illustrates an example of the functional configuration of the server used in Embodiment 4. [Figure 32] This diagram illustrates an example of data related to gaze location information. [Figure 33] This diagram illustrates the relationship between the content screens viewed by users U1 and U2 and their gaze ranges. (A) shows an example of the play screen displayed on user U1's and user U2's information terminals, and (B) shows the content screen recognized by the server. [Figure 34] This diagram illustrates examples of how content screens are displayed on the information terminals of the broadcasting user U1 and the viewing user U2. (A) and (B) are the content screens displayed on the information terminal of the broadcasting user U1, and (C) is the content screen displayed on the information terminal of the viewing user U2. [Figure 35] This diagram illustrates other examples of how the content screen is displayed on the information terminals of the broadcasting user U1 and the viewing user U2. (A) and (B) are the content screens displayed on the information terminal of the broadcasting user U1, and (C) is the content screen displayed on the information terminal of the viewing user U2. [Figure 36] This diagram illustrates other examples of how the content screen is displayed on the information terminals of the broadcasting user U1 and the viewing user U2. (A) and (B) are the content screens displayed on the information terminal of the broadcasting user U1, and (C) is the content screen displayed on the information terminal of the viewing user U2. [Figure 37]This diagram illustrates an example of a content screen display that supports the progress of a presentation by streaming user U1. (A) shows the play screen recognized by the server, and (B) shows the play screen displayed on streaming user U1's information terminal. [Figure 38] This diagram illustrates an example of how the gameplay screen is displayed in a collaborative broadcast. (A) shows the content screen recognized by the server, and (B) shows the gameplay screen displayed on the information terminal of broadcaster U2. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The embodiments described later are merely examples of forms for carrying out the present invention, and the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the embodiments described later. Therefore, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the embodiments described later. For example, various modifications or improvements made to the contents described in the embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. The various functional units described later are implemented through the execution of programs by processors such as the CPU (=Central Processing Unit), MPU (=Micro Processing Unit), GPU (=Graphics Processing Unit), DSP (=Digital Signal Processor), and other processors.

[0010] <Terminology> First, let's explain the terminology used in the embodiments. The term "program" is used as a general term for operating systems (OS) and application programs. "Game" refers to a computer game. The virtual space that serves as the setting for the game is called the "game space." The setting of the game space could be, for example, a virtual city or a virtual country. The game space can be either two-dimensional or three-dimensional. "Player" refers to a user who plays a game by operating an information terminal.

[0011] The information terminals operated by players include dedicated machines and general-purpose machines. Dedicated machines include, for example, stationary game machines installed in arcades and similar locations. General-purpose devices include, for example, smart glasses, headsets, and smartphones that can be carried or worn by the player. Smart glasses are glasses-type devices equipped with a small display and a light guide component that focuses the image displayed on the display onto the retina. Other general-purpose devices include notebook, desktop, and tablet computers, and home game consoles. Information terminals only need to be capable of running games.

[0012] The information terminals used to run the game include not only the information terminal operated by the player (hereinafter also referred to as "player's terminal"), but also servers located on the internet or other networks. When a game is run on a server, the player's terminal is used as an input / output device. That is, the player's terminal is used for displaying game-related images and inputting controls. Furthermore, some game data may be stored on an information terminal, and the game may be run using both the data stored on the information terminal and the game data stored on the server. In addition, if all game data is stored on the information terminal, image data related to gameplay may be uploaded from the information terminal to the server, and the server may stream the uploaded image data to other users.

[0013] The "play screen" refers to the image displayed on the player's display device. This display device may be integrated with the player's terminal or it may be a separate component. Generally, the play screen is a moving image. However, this does not prevent the display of a still image as the play screen. In other words, the play screen can also be described as the screen of the game the player is playing. The gameplay screen includes images that are live-streamed during the player's gameplay and images that are streamed at a later date. Streaming is used for broadcasting the gameplay screen. In the following, to distinguish between live-streamed images and time-shifted images, time-shifted images may be referred to as "replay videos." Live-streamed images and replay videos are collectively referred to as "play videos." The gameplay screen (gameplay video) can be viewed not only by the player themselves, but also by other players and viewers. In the following, users other than the player who are watching the gameplay screen (gameplay video) will be referred to as "viewing users," and the information terminal operated by the viewing user will be referred to as "viewing user's terminal." A single viewer can generally only view one gameplay screen at a time. The relationship between the viewer and the gameplay screen (or player) they are currently viewing is managed by the server.

[0014] Some games run on a server store some or all of their game data on the server and can be executed by receiving input from players via information terminals. Social games are games that incorporate elements of SNS (Social Networking Service) and can be played by multiple people. There are two forms of gameplay: solo play by a single player (hereinafter also referred to as "single-player") and play by multiple players in a predetermined relationship (hereinafter also referred to as "multiplayer"). Depending on the game, some may only offer single-player mode, others only multiplayer mode, and some may offer a choice between single-player and multiplayer.

[0015] Multiplayer games include, for example, games in which players compete against each other (hereinafter referred to as "competitive games"), games in which players compete with each other for the outcome of the game (hereinafter also referred to as "competitive games"), and games in which players cooperate to achieve a common objective (for example, clearing the game) (hereinafter also referred to as "cooperative games"). It should be noted that even competitive games may include competitive gameplay against other players. In cooperative games, multiple players may share a single game screen. In cooperative games, multiple players may share a single game space, and each player may be provided with a game screen containing game images captured by a virtual camera set up for each player. Therefore, in cooperative games, the relationship between players and viewers is not one-to-one.

[0016] In the embodiment described below, at least one player is a user, but the processor may act as a substitute for at least one player. This form appears to be single-player, but it is a type of multiplayer game. In the embodiments described below, for example, a player who assists another player in a multiplayer game is referred to as the "first player," and the player receiving the assistance is referred to as the "second player."

[0017] The relationship between the first player and the second player may be set before or at the start of the multiplayer game, or it may be set after the start of the multiplayer game. Alternatively, the server may automatically configure settings based on each player's play history, player attributes, etc. In setting player relationships based on play history, the player who has played the target multiplayer game the most times may be designated as the first player, or a player who has previously cleared the same multiplayer game may be designated as the first player, or a player who has achieved a high score or high ranking in past playthroughs of the same multiplayer game may be designated as the first player. In this case, the second player will be any player other than the first player.

[0018] In setting player relationships based on attributes, the first player may be determined based on predetermined rules, focusing on the type of player character (hereinafter referred to as "player character") used by each player in the game, their abilities, HP, skill levels, etc. For example, a player with relatively high HP and skills may be designated as the first player, and a player with relatively low HP and skills may be designated as the second player. In setting up player relationships based on attributes, the second player may be determined based on the similarities and differences in the teams to which each player belongs. For example, a player belonging to the same team as the first player may be set as the second player.

[0019] Note that the relationship between Player 1 and Player 2 is not necessarily unique for all players in a multiplayer game. For example, Player A may be the first player in relation to Player B, but may be the second player in relation to Player C. Similarly, Player B may be the second player in relation to Player A, but may be the first player in relation to Player C.

[0020] In the embodiment described below, the relationship between the first player and the second player is set for each multiplayer game, and the set relationship is reset when the multiplayer game ends. In addition, players who stream their gameplay are sometimes called "streaming users." Furthermore, among the viewing users, those who compete against the streaming users in the game are sometimes called "participating users."

[0021] <Embodiment 1> <System Configuration> Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example configuration of the information processing system 1 according to Embodiment 1. The information processing system 1 shown in Figure 1 consists of a server 10 that runs the game, information terminals 20A, 20B, 20C, 20D, and 20X operated by players and viewers, and a network N that connects them in a way that enables communication.

[0022] Figure 1 shows four players, P1, P2, P3, and P4, as an example of players. The use of four players is for illustrative purposes; in reality, there could be three or fewer players, or even five or more players. On the other hand, the number of viewers can be multiple or zero. In the following, if we do not distinguish between players and viewers, we will simply refer to them as "users."

[0023] In the information processing system 1 shown in Figure 1, the server 10 is connected to the following information terminals via network N: information terminal 20A operated by player P1, information terminal 20B operated by player P2, information terminal 20C operated by player P3, information terminal 20D operated by player P4, and information terminal 20X operated by the viewing user. Hereafter, information terminals 20A, 20B, 20C, 20D, and 20X will be collectively referred to as "information terminal 20". Network N can be, for example, the Internet, a LAN (Local Area Network), or a mobile communication system such as 4G or 5G. Network N can be a wired network, a wireless network, or a hybrid of both.

[0024] Server 10 consists of one or more computers. Server 10 may be an on-premises server or a cloud server. Examples of cloud servers include IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service), PaaS (Platform as a Service), and SaaS (Software as a Service). Server 10 is an example of an information processing device. The information terminal 20 is a terminal operated by users who utilize the distribution service provided by the server 10. Information terminals 20 include, for example, smartphones, tablet devices, notebook computers, desktop computers, and game consoles, as well as head-mounted devices (so-called headsets) and glasses-type devices (so-called smart glasses or AR glasses). Information terminals 20 are equipped with communication functions with network N. Figure 1 shows the case where information terminal 20 is a smartphone.

[0025] <Server Hardware Configuration> Server 10 consists of a processor 11 that controls the operation of the entire terminal, memory 12, auxiliary storage device 13, and communication interface 14. The processor 11 and each device are connected via buses and other signal lines 15. Processor 11 is, for example, a CPU. However, processor 11 may also be an MPU, GPU, DSP, or other type of processor. Memory 12 consists of ROM (Read Only Memory) which stores the BIOS (Basic Input Output System), etc., and RAM (Random Access Memory) which is used as the work area for the processor 11.

[0026] The auxiliary storage device 13 is, for example, a hard disk drive or semiconductor storage. In addition to the game program, the auxiliary storage device 13 stores information such as the game space, information about the players participating in the game, the gameplay screen of each player, information about the viewing users who are watching the gameplay screen, and gameplay videos. Player and viewer user information is linked to accounts and other information that identifies each user. The auxiliary storage device 13 may be externally connected to the server 10 or reside on the network N. The communication interface 14 is a device that enables communication with external terminals such as the information terminal 20. The communication interface 14 is required to have functions that enable communication according to the network N used for communication.

[0027] <Hardware configuration of information terminals> Figure 2 shows an example of the hardware configuration of the information terminal 20. The information terminal 20 consists of a processor 211, memory 212, auxiliary storage device 213, display 214, camera 215, operation buttons 216, and a communication interface 217. The processor 211 and each device are connected by bus and other signal lines. Processor 211 is, for example, a CPU. However, processor 11 may be an MPU, GPU, DSP, or other type of processor.

[0028] Memory 212 consists of ROM, which stores the BIOS and other data, and RAM, which is used as the work area for the processor 211. The auxiliary storage device 213 is, for example, a hard disk drive or semiconductor storage. For example, programs are stored in the auxiliary storage device 213. When the casing of the information terminal 20 is small, such as in a smartphone or smart glasses, semiconductor storage is used for the auxiliary storage device 213.

[0029] The display 214 is a liquid crystal display or an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display used to display gameplay screens and the like. A thin-film touch sensor that does not interfere with viewing the display 214 may be placed on its surface. The touch sensor is an example of an input device. A device that integrates the display 214 and the touch sensor is called a touch panel. The display 214 may be an external monitor attached to the information terminal 20, or it may be a device that projects the game screen in front of the player, such as a projector.

[0030] Camera 215 is a device that optically captures images of a subject. In this embodiment, camera 215 includes at least the eyes of a player playing a game as the target of imaging. Note that there may be multiple cameras 215. Camera 215 does not need to be dedicated to capturing the player's eyes. For example, if the information terminal 20 is a headset or smart glasses, camera 215 may be used to capture the player's gestures. Camera 215 can also be used to capture the eyes of the viewing user. The operation buttons 216 are devices used to input operations for the information terminal 20. Examples of operation buttons 216 include a power button, volume buttons, joystick, gamepad, keyboard, and mouse.

[0031] The communication interface 217 is a device that enables communication with external terminals such as the server 10. The communication interface 217 is required to have functions that enable communication according to the network N used for communication. In addition, the information terminal 20 may be equipped with an inertial sensor, an accelerometer, a magnetic sensor, a microphone, and a speaker.

[0032] When infrared light is used to detect the player's gaze direction, the information terminal 20 is equipped with an infrared LED and an infrared camera. The gaze detection technology using infrared light is also called the corneal reflection method, and it uses the position of the infrared laser irradiation on the cornea as a reference point, and detects the gaze from the positional relationship between this reference point and a moving point (pupil). In addition, when the size of the play screen viewed by the player is large, such as when the play screen is projected by a projector, the direction of the player's gaze may be detected by detecting the orientation of the player's head.

[0033] Figure 3 illustrates gaze detection technology using a camera 215 positioned on the same plane as the display 214. (A) shows the case where the player is looking at the left edge (x1, y1) of the display 214, (B) shows the case where the player is looking at the center (x2, y2) of the display 214, and (C) shows the case where the player is looking at the right edge (x3, y3) of the display 214. The eye area images shown in Figures 3(A), (B), and (C) are images captured by camera 215 of the eye area of ​​a player playing a game while facing display 214. In this embodiment, camera 215 is a visible light camera. When detecting the player's gaze from an image captured by the visible light camera, the outer corner of the eye is used as the reference point, and the outer edge of the pupil or the outer edge of the iris is used as the moving point. In this case as well, the gaze is detected based on the positional relationship of the moving point to the reference point.

[0034] <Server Functional Configuration> Next, we will explain the functional configuration of server 10. Figure 4 illustrates an example of the functional configuration of the server 10 used in Embodiment 1. Note that the functional configuration shown in Figure 4 is an example of a functional unit realized through program execution. Server 10 includes a gaze information acquisition unit 111, a display control unit 112, and a storage unit 120. Of these, the storage unit 120 is realized by memory 12 (see Figure 1) and auxiliary storage device 13 (see Figure 1).

[0035] <Information stored in the memory unit> Before describing the functional units, we will explain an example of the information stored in the memory unit 120. The memory unit 120 shown in Figure 4 stores player information 121, viewer user information 122, game information 123, gaze position information 124, and the like. Player information 121 is information about the players playing the game. In the example in Figure 1, this corresponds to player P1 and player P2.

[0036] Player information 121 includes, for example, a user ID that identifies the player (hereinafter referred to as "player ID"), information that identifies the information terminal 20 that the player operates during gameplay (e.g., an IP address), an ID that identifies the game being played (i.e., a game ID), location information of objects that act in the game space in response to the player's actions (i.e., avatars and player characters) within the game space, points acquired through playing the game, information on granted perks, and information on granted rewards. Perks include, for example, points, experience points, titles, attack power, HP, level-ups for attributes, weapons usable in other games, magic and other abilities, new attributes, etc. Rewards can include, for example, electronic money, cryptocurrencies, in-game currency, fiat currency, and points.

[0037] Figure 5 illustrates a portion of the data example for player information 121. The player information 121 shown in Figure 5 consists of player ID 121A, IP address 121B, game ID 121C, player character location information 121D, co-op player ID 121E, and play status 121F. IP address 121B is an example of information used to identify information terminal 20. A MAC (Media Access Control address) address may be used instead of an IP address. Game ID 121C records the game ID that identifies the game the player is playing. If the player is not playing a game, Game ID 121C will be blank.

[0038] Cooperative Player ID 121E is information that identifies other players who are forming a team with you in a multiplayer game. In Figure 5, a player with player ID "P1001" and a player with player ID "P1002" form a team. Therefore, the co-op player ID 121E of the player with player ID "P1001" is recorded as "P1002", and the co-op player ID 121E of the player with player ID "P1002" is recorded as "P1001". Note that if a player is not part of a team with other players, the co-op player ID 121E will be blank. In Figure 5, the co-op player ID 121E is blank for both the player with player ID "P1003" and the player with player ID "P1004".

[0039] Play Status 121F is information that represents the in-game status of each player. For example, it may show "Playing," "Game Clear," or "Game Over." In Figure 5, the player with player ID 121A, "P1002", has a play status of 121F that is game over; the player with player ID 121A, "P1004", has a play status of 121F that is game cleared; and the other players' play statuses for 121F are in progress.

[0040] Viewer user information 122 is information about the viewer who is watching the gameplay screen. The viewer user information 122 includes, for example, a user ID that identifies the viewer (hereinafter also referred to as "viewer user ID"), information that identifies the information terminal 20 operated by the viewer (e.g., IP address), an ID that identifies the play screen being viewed (e.g., IP address), and a player ID that identifies the player associated with the play screen being viewed. Game information 123 includes a game ID that identifies the game, a quest ID that identifies the quests that make up the game, information about the layout of the game space, information about the game's progress, and information about enemy characters that appear in the quests.

[0041] The gaze position information 124 is information that records the position (i.e., coordinates, etc.) within the gameplay screen that a player is looking at while playing a multiplayer game. The gaze position refers to the location that the player is intentionally focusing on, and is defined as a point or range. As is well known, the human eye has both intentional and unintentional (i.e., unconscious) movements. In the initial stages of gaze detection, unintentional gaze movements by the player are also included.

[0042] Therefore, in this embodiment, the center coordinates of the range in which the detected position remains for a predetermined time (for example, several tens of milliseconds) or longer are recorded as the "point of focus". In this way, various logs record information at each point in time in units of at least several tens to several hundred milliseconds. Figure 6 illustrates an example of gaze position information 124 data. The gaze position information 124 shown in Figure 6 consists of a game ID 124A, a player ID 124B, and a gaze position log 124C. Player ID 124B here is the same as Player ID 121A (see Figure 5). The gaze position log 124C records the gaze position for each time period.

[0043] <Processing executed in the functional unit> The following describes the basic processing functions performed by the gaze information acquisition unit 111 and the display control unit 112 shown in Figure 4. The detailed processing functions provided in each functional unit will be explained as appropriate, in relation to examples of expected processing operations.

[0044] <Gaze information acquisition unit> The gaze information acquisition unit 111 is a functional unit that acquires information regarding the gaze of a player on the game screen while they are playing a multiplayer game. Here, "information related to gaze" refers to information such as coordinates indicating the point of focus on the gameplay screen. Therefore, information related to viewing areas other than the gameplay screen is excluded. Information regarding gaze may include, for example, gaze positions sampled from the gaze position log 124C at predetermined time intervals (e.g., every second) or the average value of gaze positions calculated at predetermined time intervals (e.g., every second).

[0045] In addition, information regarding the player's gaze may include objects on the game screen that the player is focusing on (e.g., enemy characters, attacks from enemy characters, objects that make up the background and scenery of the game space, items that the player can selectively use such as weapons and vehicles, and menu screens), the length of time a particular object is being viewed, and patterns that appear in the movement of the gaze position (e.g., speed of movement, path of movement, and range of focus). Furthermore, in this context, "multiplayer games" refers to games that are designed to support players using their gaze position. Therefore, games that are not designed to support players using their gaze position are excluded. The gaze information acquisition unit 111 here is an example of an "acquisition unit" in the claims.

[0046] <Display Control Section> The display control unit 112 is a functional unit that displays information regarding the gaze of the second player, who is playing a multiplayer game together with the first player, on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player. Here, "Player 1" refers to a player who, for example, supports the gameplay of other players. "Player 2" refers to a player who, for example, receives support from other players.

[0047] In this embodiment, the first player is assumed to be a player with higher skill levels than the second player playing the same multiplayer game. Note that the second player does not necessarily have to be all players participating in the multiplayer game except the first player. For example, if there are four players playing the same multiplayer game, the second player could be one or two players. Therefore, the display control unit 112 may display one or more pieces of information regarding the second player's gaze on the first player's gameplay screen. In addition, the display control unit 112 may have a function to display information regarding the first player's (i.e., the first player's) gaze on the first player's play screen.

[0048] <Example of gameplay screen display> The following describes an example of the display of the play screen realized by the gaze information acquisition unit 111 (see Figure 4) and the display control unit 112 (see Figure 4).

[0049] <Basic screen> Figure 7 illustrates the relationship between the gameplay screen viewed by player P1 and player P2 and their gaze range. (A) shows an example of the gameplay screen displayed on player P1's information terminal 20A and player P2's information terminal 20B, and (B) shows the gaze range recognized by server 10. The gameplay screen shown in Figure 7 includes the player character controlled by player P1, the player character controlled by player P2, an enemy character, arrows indicating the enemy character's attack, and a gauge for activating special attacks.

[0050] In this context, "special attacks" refer to attacks that deal more damage to enemy characters than standard attacks, or attacks that can be activated on a player-by-player or team-by-team basis once certain conditions are met. The activation gauge in Figure 7 indicates whether the activation conditions are met based on the length of the colored portion. Incidentally, the initial state is when there is no colored portion on the activation gauge, and when the colored portion reaches the right end of the activation gauge (full state), it means that the activation conditions are met.

[0051] In Figure 7, the rightmost part of the colored section of the activation gauge is almost in the center, so the activation condition is not met. The length of the colored section increases when predetermined conditions are met. For example, the length of the colored section increases in proportion to the play time. Also, for example, the length of the colored section increases when the player's attack damages an enemy character.

[0052] The gaze range here assumes that gaze locations are managed as a range rather than as points. The gaze range represents the area that includes gaze locations detected within a certain time period. In Figure 7, the gaze range is represented by a circle. The size of the circle represents the size of the gaze range. In Figure 7, the circle representing the gaze range of player P1 is larger than the circle representing the gaze range of player P2. This means that the range of movement of the gaze position within the same time period is wider for player P1 than for player P2. Incidentally, the shape used to represent the gaze area is arbitrary. In that case, the size of the area of ​​the shape used to represent the gaze area will represent the size of the range that includes the gaze position detected within a certain time period.

[0053] In Figure 7, the gaze range of player P1 is shown with a dotted line, and the gaze range of player P2 is shown with a dashed line. In other words, the lines of the circles representing the attention ranges of player P1 and player P2 are represented by different line types. Incidentally, the difference in line types in Figure 7 is for illustrative purposes only; Server 10 (see Figure 1) identifies the differences in gaze ranges for each player based on the IDs and labels attached to the gaze ranges. In Figure 7, Player P1's character is located on the left side of the screen, while Player P2's character is located on the right side.

[0054] Player P1's field of view includes Player P2's player character, but Player P2's field of view is near the center of the screen and does not include their own player character, Player P1's player character, or enemy characters. Additionally, an arrow indicating the enemy character's attack is displayed pointing towards Player P2's character. The enemy character's attack has the potential to eventually reach Player P2's character, but it has not yet reached it.

[0055] These events can be observed from the display shown in Figure 7. Note that, for explanatory purposes, the other players (i.e., the player characters of Player P3 and Player P4) are not shown in the gameplay screen shown in Figure 7.

[0056] <Example 1> Figure 8 illustrates examples of how the gameplay screen is displayed for different players. (A) is the gameplay screen displayed on the information terminal 20A of player P1, and (B) is the gameplay screen displayed on the information terminal 20B of player P2. Figure 8 is denoted with corresponding reference numerals for parts that correspond to those in Figure 7.

[0057] In Figure 8, the difference from Player P2's play screen is that Player P1's play screen displays Player P2's gaze range. This display of the gaze area is implemented by the display control unit 112 (see Figure 4). This display allows player P1 to know in real time where player P2 is looking on the game screen.

[0058] In the case of Figure 8, player P1 understands that player P2 is not looking at their own (i.e., player P2's) player character. On the other hand, as shown in Figure 7(B), Player P1 is keeping a close eye on Player P2's player character and is aware that attacks from enemy characters are likely to reach Player P2's player character. Based on the above information, Player P1 can realize that Player P2 is unaware that their player character is about to be attacked by an enemy character.

[0059] This judgment is a technical effect achieved by displaying the gaze range of player P2 on player P1's gameplay screen. For example, if Player P1 and Player P2 are next to each other or within a distance where they can talk directly to each other, Player P1 can inform Player P2 of an impending crisis by speaking directly to them.

[0060] <Example Display 2> By the way, players P1 and P2 playing a multiplayer game may not be within a distance where they can communicate with each other. In such cases, communication between information terminals 20 is necessary to transmit information from player P1 to player P2. As one of its functions, the display control unit 112 has a first function that presents candidate guidance information for the second player on the play screen of the information terminal 20 operated by the first player. Furthermore, the display control unit 112 has a second function that notifies the information terminal 20 operated by the second player of the guidance information selected by the first player from among the candidates for guidance information.

[0061] Figure 9 illustrates an example of a play screen display based on the second function of the display control unit 112. (A) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20A of player P1, and (B) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20B of player P2. In Figure 9, parts corresponding to those in Figure 8 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals.

[0062] In Figure 9, the guidance information 300 is displayed in the upper left corner of the player P1's play screen. In Figure 9, the guidance information 300 is titled "Guidance to P2" and displays three possible content options to be presented to player P2. Note that the number of options displayed in the guidance information 300 is not limited to three; it can be one, two, or four or more. If there are many options, a scroll bar may be used to fit them within the display area of ​​guidance information 300.

[0063] When player P1 selects one of these candidates and is instructed to perform a transmission, the selected candidate is sent to player P2's information terminal 20B via server 10. In Figure 9, the third option from the top, "3. Pay attention to your own ship," is enclosed in a rectangle. This rectangle indicates that the option is selected. In Figure 9, the list of selectable options is displayed, but the display format of the options is not limited to a list.

[0064] Figure 10 illustrates another example of the display of the play screen based on the second function of the display control unit 112. Figure 10 is denoted with reference numerals corresponding to the parts that correspond to those in Figure 9. In Figure 10, the guidance information 300A, 300B, and 300C on the play screen switch sequentially as time progresses. Incidentally, the following are suggested options for guidance information 300A: "Danger to the lower right," guidance information 300B: "Avoid!", and guidance information 300C: "Pay attention to your own aircraft."

[0065] Figure 11 illustrates an example of a play screen display based on the second function of the display control unit 112. (A) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20A of player P1, and (B) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20B of player P2. In Figure 11, parts corresponding to those in Figure 9 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. In Figure 11, the first option from the top, "1. The bottom right is dangerous," is enclosed in a rectangle on player P1's play screen. When player P1 sends a message in this state, message 310, corresponding to the selected option, pops up on the play screen of the recipient, player P2. In Figure 11, message 310 is displayed as a pop-up approximately in the center of player P2's play screen.

[0066] The pop-up message 310 attracts the attention of player P2. As a result, player P2 notices the message "The bottom right is dangerous" in message 310 and is able to move their player character to avoid the enemy character's attack. Note that the location where message 310 pops up is not limited to the approximate center of the play screen. For example, message 310 may pop up at a predetermined location on the play screen (such as the four corners of the play screen) or at a randomly determined location. Furthermore, while the examples shown in Figures 9 to 11 describe the case where the candidate content selected by Player P1 is a pre-set phrase (or stamp), it is also possible to display text freely entered by Player P1 as a pop-up on Player P2's play screen.

[0067] By the way, the transmission of information that player P1 instructs to send to player P2 is not limited to displaying it on the gameplay screen. Figure 12 illustrates an example of message presentation based on the second function of the display control unit 112. (A) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20A of player P1, and (B) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20B of player P2. In Figure 12, parts corresponding to those in Figure 9 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. In the case of Figure 12, the message "Danger in the lower right," which player P1 instructed to be transmitted, will be output as voice 320 from the speaker of player P2's information terminal 20B. Instead of voice output here, a melody or buzzer corresponding to the message content may be output, or a vibration corresponding to the message content may be output.

[0068] <Example 3> Display Example 2 emphasizes the pop-up display of message 310, but depending on the size and format of the message 310 display, it may not be noticed by player P2. In particular, if the pop-up display of message 310 is far from player P2's viewing range or if the display size of message 310 is small, there is a risk that player P2 will overlook message 310. Therefore, the display control unit 112 may be provided with a third function that displays guidance information 300 at a position on the play screen related to the information about the user's gaze.

[0069] Figure 13 illustrates an example of the display of a message 310 based on the third function of the display control unit 112. (A) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20A of player P1, and (B) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20B of player P2. In Figure 13, parts corresponding to those in Figure 11 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. In Figure 13, message 310 is displayed as a pop-up in a position that overlaps with player P2's line of sight. Therefore, player P2 is more likely to notice the pop-up of message 310. As a result, player P2 is able to move their controlled character to safety from attacks by enemy characters.

[0070] Furthermore, it is desirable that the area where message 310 is displayed as a pop-up is included in, or partially overlaps with, player P2's gaze range. The positions included in or partially overlapping with player P2's gaze range are examples of positions on the play screen related to gaze information. However, even if there is a gap (no overlap) between the area where message 310 pops up and the player P2's gaze range, it is sufficient if the pop-up display of message 310 is near the player P2's gaze range. This is because if it is near the gaze range, player P2 is more likely to notice the pop-up display of message 310. Note that the vicinity of player P2's gaze range here is also an example of a location on the play screen related to information about the player's gaze.

[0071] <Example 4> In the example display described above, except in environments where player P1 can converse with player P2 while playing, the pop-up display of message 310 to player P2 requires a specific operation by player P1 (for example, selecting a candidate and sending the message). Therefore, the time required for player P1's actions will cause a delay in player P2's actions. Moreover, since player P1 is playing a multiplayer game in real time, the selection and sending of candidates to player P2 may be delayed.

[0072] However, if the time between player P1 noticing player P2's danger and completing the required actions is long, player P2 will be slower to notice their own danger, and in the example mentioned above, player P2's character may take damage from an enemy character's attack. Therefore, if the display control unit 112 detects from the information regarding the gaze of the first player that the first player has observed a predetermined situation of the second player, it may be provided with a fourth function that displays a predetermined message on the play screen of the information terminal 20B operated by the second player.

[0073] Figure 14 illustrates an example of the display of message 310A based on the fourth function of the display control unit 112. (A) shows the play screen recognized by the server 10, and (B) shows the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20B of player P2. In Figure 14, parts corresponding to those in Figures 7 and 13 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. In other words, in the case of Figure 14, message 310A is automatically displayed on player P2's play screen when the gaze range of player P1, the supporting player, includes an attack by an enemy character directed towards player P2, the supported player, as the activation condition (i.e., a predetermined situation).

[0074] Thus, no action from Player P1 is required for message 310A to be displayed on Player P2's screen. Therefore, as soon as Player P1 notices that Player P2's character is in danger, message 310A can be displayed on Player P2's screen. As a result, Player P2 can immediately begin evacuating their character. Furthermore, the automatic display of message 310A does not require the display of player P2's gaze range on player P1's play screen. However, this does not prevent the display of player P2's gaze range on player P1's play screen.

[0075] Incidentally, the aforementioned activation conditions (i.e., predetermined circumstances) may also require that no attacks from enemy characters are included within or near the line of sight of Player P2, who is receiving the support. In other words, the activation condition may be that Player P1 is aware of a crisis or other predetermined circumstances that Player P2 is unaware of. However, the aforementioned activation conditions (i.e., predetermined situations) may also include advantageous gameplay situations, such as an opportunity for the receiving party to score points.

[0076] In the case of display example 4, since message 310A is displayed automatically, player P1 cannot select or input the content of message 310A. However, since the nature of crises and other events varies depending on the player P2's gameplay, the display control unit 112 can simply read a pre-prepared message 310A for a given situation and display it on the player P2's gameplay screen.

[0077] <Example 5> This section explains other conditions under which the gaze range of the player receiving support (Player P2) is displayed on the play screen of the supporting player (Player P1). In the example above, it is assumed that player P2, who will receive support from player P1, is set in advance. However, in Display Example 5, player P1, who will provide support, and player P2, who will receive support, are automatically set based on the attribute information of each player. Therefore, the display control unit 112 is provided with a fifth function that displays information about the gaze of other players associated with predetermined attribute information (e.g., gaze range) on the play screen.

[0078] "Other players associated with the specified attribute information" may include, for example, players who have the same team attributes as the target player. Players who have information about other players' gazes displayed on their screen may be required to have a specific role within their team (e.g., leader), but may not have a specific role within their team. If a specific role within their team is not required, each player belonging to the same team will have information about the gazes of other players belonging to the same team displayed to each other (e.g., gaze range).

[0079] Furthermore, "other players associated with predetermined attribute information" include, for example, players with the attribute of being a student. Players whose gaze information is displayed on the play screen may be required to have, for example, the "Teacher" attribute, the "Leader" attribute, or not have the "Student" attribute. The former is a positive requirement, and the latter is a negative requirement. These roles may be determined among players for each multiplayer game, or they may be player-specific roles determined independently of the multiplayer game.

[0080] Figure 15 illustrates an example of displaying the gaze range of other players based on the fifth function of the display control unit 112. (A) shows the play screen recognized by the server 10, and (B) shows the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20A of player P1. In Figure 15, parts corresponding to those in Figures 7 and 8 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. In Figure 15, there are four players playing the multiplayer game: Player P1, Player P2, Player P3, and Player P4. Therefore, the viewing area for all four players is displayed on the gameplay screen recognized by Server 10.

[0081] In Figure 15, players P1 and P3 belong to Team A. Players P2 and P4 belong to Team B, and this is recorded as an attribute. Players belonging to the same team are considered co-op players. Therefore, the IDs of the players co-oping with each player are recorded in the co-op player ID 121E (see Figure 5) in player information 121 (see Figure 4). Team attributes are an example of attribute information. In Figure 15, they are simply labeled "attributes".

[0082] In Figure 15, the player P1's screen displays the gaze area of ​​player P3, who belongs to the same team as player P1. Thus, the display control unit 112, which has the fifth function, focuses on the attribute information of each player and controls the display of the gaze range of other players. Specifically, it displays the gaze range of other players who have certain attributes on the play screen, and does not display the gaze range of other players who do not have certain attributes on the play screen.

[0083] Therefore, it is not necessary to pre-determine the relationship between Player 1 and Player 2 among all players participating in a multiplayer game. As a result, the effort and time required for player setup before the start of a multiplayer game can be reduced. Note that the focus range of different teams is not displayed on the gameplay screen.

[0084] Figure 16 illustrates another display example of the gaze range of another player based on the fifth function of the display control unit 112. (A) shows the play screen recognized by the server 10, and (B) shows the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20A of player P1. In Figure 16, parts corresponding to those in Figure 15 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. In the case of Figure 16, there are four players playing the multiplayer game: Player P1, Player P2, Player P3, and Player P4. Therefore, the viewing area for all four players is displayed on the gameplay screen recognized by Server 10.

[0085] In Figure 16, Player P1's attribute is "Instructor," Players P2 and P4's attributes are "Student," and Player P3's attribute is "Other." Therefore, the player P1's screen displays the gaze ranges of the players P2 and P4, who are being coached. As a result, player P1 can support the gameplay from the perspective of the gaze ranges of players P2 and P4. Furthermore, the display method of the gaze area may be changed depending on the attribute differences. For example, the display color, brightness, and blinking speed of the gaze area may be changed for "team" and "instructor and student." By changing the display method of the gaze area, player P1 will be able to infer the attribute information used for the display.

[0086] By the way, when there are multiple other players, there are times when you want to support only a specific player's gameplay. For example, when only one of the multiple players is being attacked by an enemy character. In this case, player P1's message 310 (see Figure 11) is meaningful to one specific player but meaningless to other players. In fact, the pop-up display of message 310 (see Figure 13) may even interfere with the gameplay of unrelated players. Therefore, the display control unit 112 is provided with a sixth function that allows the first player (player P1) to select and display on the play screen of the information terminal 20A operated by the first player (player P1) other players who are to be supported based on the gaze information acquired by the gaze information acquisition unit 111.

[0087] Figure 17 illustrates an example of the display of the player P1's play screen based on the sixth function of the display control unit 112. (A) shows the play screen recognized by the server 10, and (B) shows the play screen displayed on the player P1's information terminal 20A. In Figure 17, parts corresponding to those in Figure 16 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. In Figure 17, four players are playing a multiplayer game, with player P1 having the attribute of an instructor, and players P2 and P4 having the attribute of students.

[0088] In Figure 17, the enemy character's attack is directed at Player P2's player character. Therefore, when Player P1's message 310 (see Figure 11) pops up on Player P2's and Player P4's screens, it is a nuisance to Player P4, who is not involved. Therefore, based on the sixth function, the display control unit 112 displays a selection screen 330 on the player P1's play screen, which allows the player to select a candidate player to be supported. This selection screen 330 is displayed only when there are multiple candidates for support, and is not displayed when there is only one person to be supported.

[0089] In Figure 17, there are two candidates for support, Player P2 and Player P4, so "P2" and "P4" buttons are provided on the selection screen 330. If there are three or more candidates for support, the corresponding number of selection buttons will be displayed. The selection screen 330 shown in Figure 17 includes the instruction "Please select a recipient and press OK," as well as an "OK" button.

[0090] When player P1 selects either the "P2" or "P4" button and presses the "OK" button, guidance information 300 (see Figure 9) is then displayed on player P1's play screen, and the content to be notified is selected. However, the selection screen 330 may be displayed after the content to be notified has been selected. However, the content to be notified to the selected player may be automatically determined by the display control unit 112 based on the crisis or other event detected by image recognition.

[0091] It is also possible that you may want to display message 310 (see Figure 11) on both player P2 and player P4. In that case, simply select both the "P2" button and the "P4" button and then press the "OK" button. This sixth function allows player P1 to select the notification destination each time. On the other hand, the display of the selection screen 330 based on the sixth function can also be used when selecting a support recipient in advance.

[0092] <Example 6> Next, we will explain when the gaze range of player P2, who is receiving support, is displayed on the play screen of player P1, who is providing support. In the example above, we described a case where the gaze range of Player P2, who is being supported by Player P1, is always displayed on Player P1's gameplay screen. However, if it is always displayed, it may interfere with Player P1's gameplay.

[0093] Therefore, the display control unit 112 is provided with a seventh function that, if the second player (player P2) does not see a second object that satisfies a predetermined positional relationship with a game object (enemy character's attack) that reduces the parameters of a second object (player character) operated by the second player (player P2) on the play screen, displays information (e.g., guidance display) on the first player's (player P1) play screen to guide the second player in moving the second object. The player character's parameters include, for example, HP, game score, activation gauge, skills, and others.

[0094] Figure 18 illustrates an example of displaying the gaze range of other players based on the seventh function of the display control unit 112. (A1) and (A2) show the play screen recognized by the server 10, and (B1) and (B2) show the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20A of player P1. In Figure 18, parts corresponding to those in Figure 15 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. Figures 18(A1) and (B1) show the case where player P2 is aware of an enemy character's attack on their own player character. In this case, player P1's screen does not display player P2's gaze range, etc.

[0095] On the other hand, Figures 18(A2) and (B2) show the case where player P2 is unaware of the enemy character's attack on their own player character. In fact, player P2 has sight of the vicinity of player P1's player character and is unaware of the enemy character's attack on player P2's own player character. In this case, on player P1's play screen, in addition to the viewing area of ​​player P2, the person receiving support, guidance information 300 is displayed as a pop-up. The content of guidance information 300 is the same as in display example 2.

[0096] However, in the case of display example 2, the gaze range of player P1 included the attacks of player P2's player character and enemy characters, as shown in Figure 7(B). In contrast, the display in display example 6 is executed even when the gaze range of player P1 does not include the attacks of player P2's player character and enemy characters. In other words, in the case of display example 6, the guidance information 300 is displayed even if player P1 is unaware that player P2's character is in danger. Therefore, it does not require the coincidence that player P1 is aware that player P2's character is in danger. As a result, player P1 can concentrate on their own gameplay while still being able to reliably support player P2 if player P2 is in danger.

[0097] <Example 7> In the example shown above, the relationship was that the first player (Player P1) only provided support, and the second player (Player P2) only received support. However, if the attention ranges of both players meet certain conditions, benefits may be granted to both Player P1 and Player P2. The special effects mentioned here could include, for example, special attacks. Special attacks could mean attacks that are more powerful than the normal attacks of Player P1 or Player P2, or attacks that involve cooperative play. The power level could mean, for example, dealing more damage to enemy characters than a normal attack, or damaging a larger number of enemy characters than a normal attack.

[0098] Therefore, the display control unit 112 is provided with an eighth function that, when the gaze information (gaze range) acquired from the first player (player P1) and the gaze information (gaze range) acquired from the second player (player P2) satisfy predetermined conditions, presents candidate guidance for performing a predetermined operation on a predetermined area of ​​the play screen.

[0099] Figure 19 is a diagram illustrating an example of a display based on the eighth function of the display control unit 112. (A) shows the play screen recognized by the server 10, and (B) and (C) show the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20A of the player P1. In Figure 19, parts corresponding to those in Figure 7 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. In Figure 19(A), there is an overlap between the gaze range of player P1 and the gaze range of player P2. This overlap between the gaze ranges of player P1 and player P2 is an example of a case where "a predetermined condition is met."

[0100] However, at the point shown in Figure 19(A), the special attack activation gauge is not full, so the special attack will not be activated. Therefore, the gameplay screen shown in Figure 19(B) displays a message 340 prompting player P1 to make eye contact with player P2. The message 340 here reads, "A special attack can be activated when the two players make eye contact." Note that the activation gauge in Figure 19(B) is longer than the activation gauge in Figure 19(A). The display control unit 112 may also display message 340 on the player P2's play screen.

[0101] Eventually, when the special attack activation gauge reaches full capacity, the display control unit 112 displays a notification 350 on the player P1's play screen indicating that the special attack can be activated. In Figure 19(C), the notification 350 contains the text "Do you want to activate the special attack?" and includes a "YES" button and a "NO" button. Pressing the "YES" button means activating the special attack, while pressing the "NO" button means postponing the activation of the special attack. Incidentally, the "YES" button is an example of a "prescribed operation." Therefore, notification 350 is an example of "guidance for performing a prescribed operation."

[0102] By the way, in the case of Figure 19, the player P1's screen displays the gaze range of player P2. Therefore, player P1 can efficiently increase the length of the special attack activation gauge by targeting and tracking the displayed gaze range of player P2. However, in this method, player P1 is simply following player P2's gaze range unilaterally, and player P2 does not contribute to increasing the length of the special attack activation gauge.

[0103] Figure 20 illustrates another display example based on the eighth function of the display control unit 112. (A) shows the play screen recognized by the server 10, and (B) and (C) show the play screens displayed on the information terminal 20A of player P1 and the information terminal 20B of player P2. In Figure 20, parts corresponding to those in Figure 19 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals.

[0104] In Figure 20, the play screen displays a target 360 for players P1 and P2 to align their gazes. Additionally, the play screen in Figure 20 displays a note 370. This note reads, "Align your gaze with the mark to activate a special attack." Target 360 and Annotation 370 are also displayed on the play screens of Player P1 and Player P2. Therefore, Player P1 and Player P2 can increase the length of the special attack activation gauge in a cooperative game-like manner.

[0105] <Embodiment 2> Next, we will describe the information processing system 1 according to Embodiment 2. The system configuration and other aspects are basically the same as in Embodiment 1. The following describes the processing operations and functions that differ from Embodiment 1. In the aforementioned Embodiment 1, the player P2 receiving support had to avoid dangers and other threats that were approaching their player character by following messages from player P1. However, if Player P2 is a beginner, they might be surprised by a sudden message and be unable to operate correctly. Also, they might not even notice the message from Player P1 in the first place.

[0106] Figure 21 is a diagram illustrating an example of the functional configuration of the server 10 used in Embodiment 2. Figure 21 is denoted with reference numerals corresponding to the parts that correspond to those in Figure 4. The server 10 shown in Figure 21 has an added authority transfer unit 113. The authority transfer unit 113 is a functional unit that, based on information regarding the gaze of the first player (player P1), detects that the first player (player P1) has observed a predetermined situation of the second player (player P2), and then transfers the authority to operate the second object (player character) operated by the second player (player P2) to the first player (player P1) while the predetermined situation is occurring.

[0107] A "predetermined situation" might include, for example, a case where Player P1 is aware of an attack coming from an enemy character towards Player P2's character, but Player P2 is unaware of it. Furthermore, the "specified situation" may include situations where Player P1 notices an attack from an enemy character directed towards Player P2's player character, or where Player P2 is unaware of an attack from an enemy character directed towards Player P2's player character. As mentioned above, the "specified situation" basically refers to a situation where player P2's gameplay is at a disadvantage, but it may also include situations that are advantageous to the player, such as a chance for the player to score points.

[0108] Incidentally, in this embodiment, the authority transfer unit 113 takes as a prerequisite that a predetermined situation occurs within the view range of player P1, who is the recipient of the support. Therefore, even if player P2 is aware of the predetermined situation, the transfer of operational authority will be performed. Furthermore, since this is a transfer of control authority, once the authority is transferred, the second player (Player P2) will no longer be able to control their own player character. Furthermore, the transfer of authority is limited to the occurrence of the specified conditions. Therefore, once the specified conditions are resolved through actions such as proxy operations by Player P1, the authority to control the second player's character is transferred from Player P1 to Player P2. In other words, the authority to control the player character is returned to Player P2.

[0109] Figure 22 is a diagram illustrating the processing functions of the authority transfer unit 113. (A) shows the play screen recognized by the server 10, (B) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20A of player P1, and (C) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20B of player P2. In Figure 22, parts corresponding to those in Figure 15 are indicated with corresponding numerals. In Figure 22, Server 10 recognizes the gaze range of Player P1 and Player P2 on the gameplay screen. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 22(A), Server 10 detects that the player character controlled by Player P2 is within the player P1's gaze range and is in the path of an attack from an enemy character.

[0110] In this case, Server 10 automatically transfers the authority to control Player P2's player character to Player P1. As a result, a notification 400 indicating that control has been transferred pops up on player P1's play screen, as shown in Figure 22(B). In Figure 22(B), the notification 400 shows a graphic of player P2's player character and the words "You can now control it!". While this message 400 is displayed, Player P1 can control Player P2's character.

[0111] Meanwhile, on player P2's play screen, a notification 410 appears as a pop-up, indicating that control has been transferred, as shown in Figure 22(C). In Figure 22(C), the notification 410 reads, "P1 is currently in control." This notification 410 allows player P2 to understand why their actions are not being reflected in the player character's movements. Note that even if guidance 410 is displayed, it does not necessarily mean that player P1 is actually controlling player P2's character.

[0112] Player P1, to whom control has been transferred, is now able to control both their own player character and Player P2's player character. However, even if both player characters are controllable, if player P1 doesn't know which character their actions control, it could actually confuse them. Therefore, we will allow player P1 to select the target of the operation.

[0113] Figure 23 illustrates an example of the display of the play screen by the authority transfer unit 113. (A) and (B) are the play screens displayed on the information terminal 20A of player P1. In Figure 23, parts corresponding to those in Figure 22 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. In Figure 23(A), the top left corner of the play screen displays a shape of player P2's character and the explanation "Tap to control!" 420.

[0114] In other words, in the case of Figure 23(A), when player P2 taps the player character on the play screen, subsequent actions by player P1 will be recognized as actions by player P2's player character. If Player P1 wants to return to controlling their own character, they should tap their character on the screen.

[0115] Incidentally, tapping is only possible if a touch sensor is located on the surface of the display 214 (see Figure 2) of the information terminal 20A. In other words, tapping the play screen is only valid as a selection operation if the display screen is composed of a touch panel. Therefore, if a touch sensor is not located on the surface of the display 214 (see Figure 2) of the information terminal 20A, or if tapping is difficult due to the distance between the player and the display 214, the selection of the target of operation can be made by combining it with other operations. For example, the target of operation can be switched by operating a specific key on the keyboard, or by operating a soft key (not shown) displayed on the play screen.

[0116] In Figure 23(B), the controller icon 430 is displayed next to the player character of player P2 on the play screen, indicating that the controller icon 430 is displayed while it is being accepted as a control of the player character of player P2. In this case, when player P1 performs a specific switching operation, the controller icon 430 on the play screen may be removed from the screen or switched to a grayed-out display. The controller icon 430 may be displayed in a manner that allows it to be actually operated as a virtual controller. The virtual controller is displayed on the play screen at a size that allows it to be operated by player P1.

[0117] Figure 24 illustrates an example of the display of the play screen by the authority transfer unit 113. (A) is the play screen displayed on the viewing user's information terminal 20X, and (B) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20A of player P1 who has completed the game. In Figure 24, parts corresponding to those in Figure 23 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. The aforementioned display examples all assume that player P1, playing a multiplayer game, is controlling player P2's character while simultaneously controlling their own character. However, in some multiplayer games, simultaneous control may be difficult. Figures 24(A) and 24(B) illustrate this scenario.

[0118] The display shown in Figure 24(A) represents the gameplay screen of viewer user X, who has agreed that they may be asked to perform proxy operations based on prior designation or prior lottery. While Figure 24(A) is displayed, viewer user X can acquire permission to control player P2's player character and control player P2's player character on behalf of player P2. As a result, the burden on player P1 can be reduced. The display shown in Figure 24(B) is the gameplay screen of player P1, who has either a game over or game clear and no longer has any objects to control. In Figure 24(B), player P1 has finished playing, so player P1's character is not displayed on the gameplay screen.

[0119] <Embodiment 3> Next, the information processing system 1 according to Embodiment 3 will be described. The system configuration and other aspects are basically the same as in Embodiment 1. The following describes the processing operations and functions that differ from Embodiment 1. In the aforementioned Embodiment 1, it is assumed that player P1 provides support to player P2, who is the target of the support, in a way that is either advantageous or disadvantageous to the player's gameplay. However, in cooperative play, there may be situations where support is needed to give an advantage to the entire team participating in the multiplayer game, or to mitigate any disadvantages.

[0120] Figure 25 is a diagram illustrating an example of the functional configuration of the server 10 used in Embodiment 3. Figure 25 is denoted with reference numerals corresponding to the parts that correspond to those in Figure 4. The server 10 shown in Figure 25 has an additional area guidance unit 114. The area guidance unit 114 is a functional unit that, when the areas (gaze ranges) viewed by the second player (player P2) and the third player (player P3) overlap, guides the information terminal 20 operated by at least one of the second player and the third player to view other areas that are not being viewed by anyone. Note that the area guidance unit 114 is an example of a "guidance unit" in the claims.

[0121] The area guidance unit 114 assumes a scenario where there are multiple players belonging to the same team as player P1. For the purpose of explaining the function of the area guidance unit 114, one of the multiple players is designated as player P2 and another as player P3. In some multiplayer games, enemy characters may attack from various points on the game screen. In this case, it is desirable that the gaze areas of multiple players belonging to the same team be distributed as far across the entire game screen as possible in order to quickly detect enemy characters and prepare for attacks. In other words, if the gaze areas of multiple players overlap, a function is needed to guide them to look at other areas. The area guidance unit 114 is a function that provides this purpose.

[0122] Figure 26 illustrates an example of a play screen display based on the first function of the area guidance unit 114. (A) shows the play screen recognized by the server 10, and (B) shows the play screen displayed on the player P3's information terminal 20C. In Figure 26, parts corresponding to those in Figure 17 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. In Figure 26, we assume that four players are playing a multiplayer game and that all four are on the same team. Therefore, it is in the best interest of the entire team if the attention spans of players P1, P2, P3, and P4 are distributed across the entire play screen.

[0123] In Figure 26(A), the gaze areas of players P1, P2, P3, and P4 are biased towards the lower half or right side of the play screen. Furthermore, the gaze areas of players P3 and P4 overlap. Note that overlapping viewing areas refer to cases where they overlap for a predetermined period of time (e.g., 1 second) or longer. This is because overlaps of a few milliseconds, for example, can be considered accidental. Furthermore, as a condition for determining whether gaze ranges overlap, it may be additionally required that each player's gaze range remain nearly stationary on the play screen for a predetermined time (e.g., 1 second) or longer. This is because, for players who frequently move their gaze within the play screen, the overlap of their gaze range with another player's for a predetermined time or longer is relatively likely to be a temporary occurrence.

[0124] Upon detecting the situation shown in Figure 26(A), the area guidance unit 114 displays a pop-up guidance 500 instructing the user to change their gaze range to either player P3 or player P4, whose gaze ranges overlap, as shown in Figure 26(B). In Figure 26(B), the area guidance unit 114 displays a pop-up message on the play screen of the information terminal 20C operated by player P3, requesting that the player P3 look at the area that none of the four players are looking at (i.e., the center and left side of the upper half of the play screen). In Figure 26(B), the message 500 reads, "No one is looking here. Look here."

[0125] The pop-up notification 500 makes it more likely that player P3, upon receiving the notification, will change their gaze direction accordingly, resulting in fewer areas of the play screen that are not visible compared to before the notification 500 was displayed. Furthermore, since the notification 500 is displayed to only one of players, rather than both players P3 and P4 whose gaze areas overlap, the risk of players P3 and P4's gazes overlapping in the area notified by the notification 500 is avoided. In Figure 26(B), the guidance message 500 is displayed as a pop-up on the play screen of player P3, one of the two players P3 and player P4. However, the player on whom the guidance message 500 is displayed may be determined randomly.

[0126] By the way, the player that displays the guidance 500 as a pop-up may be determined according to predetermined rules. For example, the area guidance unit 114 may be provided with a first function that guides the player with the lower parameter in the multiplayer game (either the second player or the third player) to other areas. The parameters used here include, for example, the score at the time the event occurred, as well as the HP level, ability scores, number of enemies defeated, and amount of damage dealt to enemies of the player character controlled by each player.

[0127] Figure 27 illustrates an example of displaying a guide of 500 to the player with the lower score. (A) is the gameplay screen of player P3, whose gaze area overlaps with that of another player, and (B) is the gameplay screen of player P4, whose gaze area overlaps with that of another player. In Figure 27, Player P3's score is 1000, while Player P4's score is 100. Therefore, the guidance "500" is displayed on the play screen of Player P4, who has the lower score.

[0128] The first function described above focuses on the scores of multiple players whose gaze areas overlap, but the player whose gaze is shifted may be determined through conversation (or consultation) between the players involved. Therefore, the area guidance unit 114 may be provided with a second function that outputs conversational guidance to the terminals operated by the second player and the third player to determine which player is viewing the other area. Figure 28 illustrates an example of displaying a chat window 510 to encourage conversation between players. (A) shows the gameplay screens of players P3 and P4, whose gaze areas overlap with those of other players; (B) shows the gameplay screen of player P3 while text input is in progress; and (C) shows the gameplay screen of player P4. Figure 28 is denoted with corresponding symbols for parts that correspond to those in Figure 27.

[0129] In Figure 28(A), Server 10, having detected overlapping gaze areas, displays a chat box 510 prompting conversation on the play screens of Player P3 and Player P4. In Figure 28(A), the chat box 510 contains the messages, "No one is looking here" and "Discuss with P3 and P4." Note that the chat box 510 is only visible to the target player, and the text entered in the chat box 510 is shared only among the players who see the chat box 510. In Figure 28(B), a text input pad 520 is displayed below the chat field 510, and the string being typed by player P3 is displayed in the input field. Here, only "P4-san" has been entered.

[0130] In the chat field 510 of Figure 28(C), the string entered and confirmed by player P3 has been added. Additionally, an icon associated with player P3's account, indicating the person who entered the message, is displayed. The display in Figure 28(C) is the same as that of a typical chat application. Therefore, players P3 and P4 can consult with each other and decide which of them will change the gaze area. This allows multiple players whose gaze areas overlap to decide on their own division of labor.

[0131] The above-mentioned display examples described cases where the area guidance unit 114 determines which player changes the gaze range and where the player changes the gaze range through conversation between players. However, player P1, who assists with the game, may also determine which player changes the gaze range. Therefore, the display control unit 112 may be provided with a ninth function that, when the areas viewed by the second player and the third player overlap, displays information on the first player's information terminal 20A to guide at least one of the second player and the third player to view other areas that are not being viewed by anyone.

[0132] Figure 29 is a diagram illustrating the ninth function of the display control unit 112. (A) shows the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20A of player P1, and (B) shows the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20C of player P3. In Figure 29, corresponding parts in Figures 13 and 15 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. The pop-up display of inquiry 530 in Figure 29(A) is executed not only when the gaze ranges of multiple players overlap, as in the area guidance unit 114, but also when a single block of area without any gaze ranges is detected on the play screen. A single block of area refers to, for example, an area whose area is above a threshold.

[0133] Since the conditions for the pop-up display do not require overlapping viewing areas, this will be described as a function of the display control unit 112, but it may also be included as a function of the area guide unit 114. In Figure 29(A), the display control unit 112, which has detected an overlap in the gaze ranges of multiple players, displays inquiry 530 as a pop-up on the play screen of player P1, who is assisting other players. Inquiry 530 displays the text, "Nobody is watching this," and "Do you want to request P3?", along with "YES" and "NO" buttons. In Figure 29(A), player P3, whose gaze area overlaps with that of player P4, is selected as a candidate.

[0134] If the "YES" button is pressed, a request 540 will pop up as a candidate for inquiry 530, as shown in Figure 29(B). In Figure 29(B), request 540 states, "We have received a request from P1 to look here." On the other hand, if the "NO" button is pressed, the options for inquiry 530 will change. For example, the options may change to "Shall we request P4?". If the "NO" button is pressed again, the display may switch to other unshown options or already shown options, or the display of inquiry 530 may be hidden. In this case, an area that no one is looking at will remain. However, since the player's attention range is constantly changing according to the progress of the multiplayer game, it is not necessary to repeatedly display the same options.

[0135] <Embodiment 4> While embodiments 1 to 3 described above assumed players playing multiplayer games, this embodiment describes a case where the user's attention range is displayed on the streamer's control screen when streaming videos other than games. Figure 30 shows an example of the configuration of the information processing system 1A according to Embodiment 4.

[0136] The information processing system 1A shown in Figure 30 consists of a server 10A that distributes moving images, user-operated information terminals 20 (20A, 20B, 20C, 20D, 20E), and a network N that connects them in a way that enables communication. The basic configuration of information processing system 1A is the same as that of information processing system 1 described in Embodiment 1.

[0137] The video and image content used here can be any content delivered to an information terminal 20 that supports multiple users. For example, it could be presentation materials, images of lectures or meetings, or images of concerts. In Figure 30, user U1 is the broadcasting user, while the other users U2, U3, U4, and U5 are viewers. Note that there may be multiple users involved in the distribution. For example, user U2 may collaborate with user U1 to distribute a video. The hardware configuration of server 10A is the same as that of server 10 described in Embodiment 1.

[0138] Figure 31 is a diagram illustrating an example of the functional configuration of server 10A used in Embodiment 4. Figure 31 is denoted by reference numerals corresponding to parts in Figure 4. Note that the functional configuration shown in Figure 31 is an example of a functional unit realized through program execution. Server 10A includes a gaze information acquisition unit 111, a display control unit 112, and a storage unit 130. This configuration is the same as in Embodiment 1. Note that the processing functions of the gaze information acquisition unit 111 and the display control unit 112 that are not related to the game are also valid in this embodiment. In that case, "player" should be read as "user."

[0139] The difference between this embodiment and the previously described embodiment lies in the content of the information stored in the storage unit 130. In this embodiment, since it does not assume a multiplayer game, the concept of a "player" does not exist. For this reason, the memory unit 130 stores the following: distribution user information 131, viewing user information 132, distribution content 133, gaze position information 134, etc. The streaming user information 131 and the viewing user information 132 both record the user ID, the IP address of the information terminal 20 used to connect to the server 10A, and the streaming status, etc. For example, users with a streaming status of "Yes" are streaming users, and users with a streaming status of "No" are viewing users.

[0140] The distributed content 133 is information that identifies the video (content) to be distributed. The distributed content 133 includes, for example, information indicating the file name and storage location of the file to be distributed, as well as user IDs, affiliations, and other conditions that permit the distribution and viewing of the video. Figure 32 illustrates an example of gaze position information 134 data. The gaze location information 134 shown in Figure 32 consists of a content ID 134A, a user ID 134B, and a gaze location log 134C. Here, User ID 134B corresponds to Player ID 124B in Embodiment 1 (see Figure 6), and the gaze position log 134C corresponds to the gaze position log 124C in Embodiment 1 (see Figure 6).

[0141] <Basic screen> Figure 33 illustrates the relationship between the content screens viewed by users U1 and U2 and their gaze ranges. (A) shows an example of a content screen displayed on user U1's information terminal 20A and user U2's information terminal 20B, and (B) shows a content screen recognized by server 10A. The content screen shown in Figure 33 is an example of presentation materials. Rectangular illustrations A, B, and C are arranged at the top of the content screen, and three lines of text are placed at the bottom. In Figure 33, the gaze range of user U1 is shown by a dotted line, and the gaze range of user U2 is shown by a dashed line.

[0142] <Example 1> Figure 34 illustrates examples of content screen displays on the information terminal 20A of the distribution user U1 and the information terminal 20B of the viewing user U2. (A) and (B) are the content screens displayed on the information terminal 20A of the distribution user U1, and (C) is the content screen displayed on the information terminal 20B of the viewing user U2. In Figure 34, corresponding parts with those in Figure 33 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. Upon reviewing Figure 34(A), the broadcasting user U1 can notice that the viewing user U2 is looking at illustration C. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 33(B), broadcasting user U1 is intently focusing on the three lines of text.

[0143] However, even if the streaming user U1 does not notice the mismatch in the viewing range with that of the viewing user U2, the display control unit 112 displays the inquiry 600 as shown in Figure 34(B). In Figure 34, the inquiry 600 displays the text "Shall I direct you to U2?", along with a "YES" button and a "NO" button. In this embodiment, when the "YES" button is pressed by the distribution user U1, the display control unit 112 notifies the viewing user U2 of the discrepancy with the viewing range of the distribution user U1, as shown in Figure 34(C).

[0144] Specifically, in addition to simply notifying the user of a mismatch in their gaze range, a guide 610 indicating the area corresponding to the gaze range of the broadcasting user U1 is displayed as a pop-up on the content screen of the viewing user U2. The pop-up display of guide 610 allows viewing user U2 to notice the area being explained by broadcasting user U1. Furthermore, broadcasting user U1 can directly inform viewing user U2 of the areas they want them to pay attention to. In response to this, if the distribution user U1 presses the "NO" button, the display control unit 112 maintains the display of the content screen for the viewing user U2.

[0145] According to this display example 1, the display control unit 112 can confirm the area that viewer user U2 is viewing on its own content screen. Furthermore, if the broadcasting user U1 wants to inform viewer user U2 of a discrepancy with their own viewing range, they can do so simply by tapping the "YES" button on the inquiry 600 that automatically pops up on their content screen. In particular, in display example 1, the inquiry 600 clearly indicates the processing action to be performed by tapping the "YES" button, enabling broadcasting user U1 to perform the intended action with certainty.

[0146] <Example Display 2> In the case of the aforementioned display example 1, the display control unit 112, upon detecting a mismatch in the gaze area, automatically displays a pop-up inquiry 600 on the content screen of the distribution user U1. However, if the inquiry 600 pops up every time a mismatch is detected, it can interfere with the distribution user's operations. This can happen, for example, if the frequency of the inquiry 600 pop-up is high. In addition, there may be cases where the distribution user only wants to ask the viewing user U2 to change their gaze area at points they deem important.

[0147] Therefore, the display control unit 112 may be provided with a function to notify the viewing user U2 of the viewing range of the distribution user U1 only when it receives a specific operation from the distribution user U1. Figure 35 illustrates other examples of content screen displays on the information terminal 20A of the distribution user U1 and the information terminal 20B of the viewing user U2. (A) and (B) are content screens displayed on the information terminal 20A of the distribution user U1, and (C) is a content screen displayed on the information terminal 20B of the viewing user U2. In Figure 35, corresponding parts with those in Figure 34 are indicated by corresponding reference numerals.

[0148] The content screen shown in Figure 35(A) is the same as the content screen shown in Figure 34(A). In the case of Figure 35, when the distribution user U1 taps the content screen, the display control unit 112 displays a notification 610 on the content screen of the viewing user U2, informing the distribution user U1 of the viewing area. Note that the display position of the guidance 610 will be prioritized based on the location tapped by the distribution user U1. In most cases, the tap location is expected to coincide with the viewing range of the distribution user U1.

[0149] Figure 36 illustrates other display examples of the content screen on the information terminal 20A of the distribution user U1 and the information terminal 20B of the viewing user U2. (A) and (B) are the content screens displayed on the information terminal 20A of the distribution user U1, and (C) is the content screen displayed on the information terminal 20B of the viewing user U2. In Figure 36, parts corresponding to those in Figure 35 are indicated with corresponding reference numerals. In Figure 36, the display format for viewer user U2 differs from that in Figure 35. In Figure 35(C), the guidance 610 was displayed overlapping the viewing area of ​​the broadcasting user U1, but in Figure 36(C), the viewing area of ​​broadcasting user U1 is indicated by an arrow and explanatory text 620. In this display case, viewing user U2's viewing area is not obstructed.

[0150] <Example 3> The aforementioned display example emphasizes notifying viewer user U2 of the viewing range of broadcaster user U1. However, discrepancies in viewing ranges can occur due to problems with broadcaster user U1's explanation style or reading speed. Therefore, the display control unit 112 may be provided with a function that, when a mismatch is detected between the viewing range of the viewing user U2 and the viewing range of the distribution user U1, displays advice regarding the distribution user U1's progress on the content screen of the distribution user U1.

[0151] Figure 37 illustrates an example of a display of a play screen that supports the progress of a presentation by the streaming user U1. (A) shows the gaze range recognized by the server 10A, and (B) is the play screen displayed on the information terminal 20A of the streaming user U1. In Figure 37, parts corresponding to those in Figure 34 are indicated with corresponding numerals. As shown in Figure 37(A), when the display control unit 112 detects a mismatch in the gaze range between the streaming user U1 and the viewing user U2, it analyzes the cause of the mismatch.

[0152] In Figure 37(A), viewer U2 is viewing an area that delivery user U1 has already finished explaining. One possible cause of this is that delivery user U1 is explaining too quickly. However, the cause of the discrepancy can be considered not only in terms of the relative positions of the viewing areas, but also in terms of comparing the reading speed of delivery user U1 with the recommended reading speed. Therefore, in Figure 37(B), the advice 630 "Let's explain this a little more slowly" is displayed on the content screen of the delivery user U1.

[0153] On the other hand, if viewer U2 is viewing an area that delivery user U1 has not explained, it is possible that delivery user U1 is explaining too slowly. In this case, the display control unit 112 displays advice 630 on delivery user U1's content screen saying, "Let's explain a little faster." Furthermore, the advice in advice 630 is not limited to the speed of explanation; it can also include advice on the order of explanation.

[0154] <Example 4> The aforementioned example assumes differences in the viewing ranges of streaming user U1 and viewing user U2, but it can also be applied to differences in the viewing ranges of streaming user U1 and streaming user U2, who are co-streaming users. For example, if an explanation by user U2 is scheduled after an explanation by user U1, it is desirable for user U2's attention range to be close to that of user U1's around the time of the explanation transition, in order to ensure a smooth transition between explanations.

[0155] Therefore, the display control unit 112 may be provided with a function that, when multiple distribution users are giving explanations in turn, displays advice regarding the progress of distribution user U1 on the content screen of distribution user U1 if the gaze range of the next distribution user U2 to be explained does not match the gaze range of the distribution user U1 currently giving the explanation.

[0156] Figure 38 illustrates an example of how a content screen is displayed in the case of collaborative distribution. (A) shows the content screen recognized by server 10A, and (B) shows the content screen displayed on the information terminal 20B of distribution user U2. In Figure 38, parts corresponding to those in Figure 33 are indicated with corresponding numerals. In Figure 38(A), the focus area of ​​user U1 is the three lines of text on the content screen, while the focus area of ​​user U2 is the area of ​​illustration C, resulting in a mismatch in focus areas. In particular, if user U1's focus area is the area immediately before the handover, the mismatch in focus areas may hinder a smooth handover of the explanation.

[0157] Therefore, in Figure 38(B), guidance messages such as "Check this out" 610 are automatically displayed without any special action from the distribution user U1.

[0158] <Other Embodiments> The embodiments of the invention are not limited to those described above. For example, elements of each embodiment can be combined as appropriate. Combinations here also include the deletion of elements from each embodiment. (1) For example, in the embodiment described above, an information terminal 20 was described in which a camera 215 used to detect the player's line of sight and a display 214 on which the play screen is displayed are integrally arranged on the same housing surface, but they do not necessarily have to be arranged on the same housing surface. For example, the camera 215 used to detect the player's line of sight may be configured as a separate device attached externally to the information terminal 20.

[0159] (2) Furthermore, the above-described embodiment assumes that there is only one player (for example, player P1) who is visually observing the predetermined situation of another player. In other words, it assumes that there is only one player supporting a particular player's play. However, it is also possible that there are multiple players supporting a particular player's play. In this case, if there are no restrictions, there is a possibility that the support provided by multiple players to a particular player will overlap. In such cases, only a predetermined message from one of the multiple players acting as supporters may be displayed on the supporter's screen.

[0160] This feature prevents duplicate or contradictory messages (for example, conflicting statements or statements that might confuse the receiving player) from being displayed as designated messages on the player's screen. Furthermore, this display may be based on a first-come, first-served basis. For example, if a predetermined message is displayed to a player, the same message received by other players later can be canceled to avoid duplicate displays.

[0161] (3) Furthermore, if there are multiple other players supporting the player receiving support (e.g., player P2), the player who displays the gaze range of the player receiving support may be limited to one of the multiple players. By executing this function, the number of other players who can check the gaze range of the player receiving support (e.g., player P2) can be limited to one, thus enabling the same control as in the embodiment described above.

[0162] Furthermore, methods to limit the number of other players who can check the gaze range of the player receiving support (e.g., player P2) to one include, for example, limiting it to one player based on attributes set before or at the start of the multiplayer game, limiting it to the player whose character is closest in game space to the player receiving support's character, limiting it to other players whose character is within the play screen of the player receiving support in the multiplayer game space, limiting it to players whose multiplayer game has not yet ended, and limiting it to players whose multiplayer game has ended.

[0163] (4) In the above-described embodiment, the case in which the gaze range of the other player receiving support is displayed on the play screen of the player in play was explained. However, the play screen that displays the gaze range of the other player receiving support may also be displayed on the replay video that is played back after the play ends. With this type of function, the display of the gaze range on the play screen during past play can be used to plan strategies for the next play. Furthermore, with this type of function, the display of the gaze range on the play screen during past play can be used as material for education and instruction.

[0164] (5) In the embodiments described above, a multiplayer game in which the actions of each player are reflected in real time is assumed, but a multiplayer game in which the right of operation is passed to each player in turn may also be assumed. In this case, the results of the analysis process (e.g., statistical processing) of the gaze position log 124C of each player acquired during the time it is the turn of the player to operate may be used as "information related to gaze".

[0165] (6) In the embodiments described above, the case in which each player controls one player character was explained, but each player may control multiple player characters. That is, it can also be applied when a player plays using a deck composed of multiple player characters. In this case, the results of evaluating the amount of gaze concentration (e.g., gaze time) of each player character may be displayed as "information related to gaze," or the results of evaluating the amount of gaze concentration as a whole of multiple player characters may be displayed as "information related to gaze." In addition, information that supports the operation of each player character may be displayed.

[0166] <Summary> The main features of the information processing device, information processing method, and program described in the embodiments are shown below. [General tasks] One of the objectives of this invention is to enable operation using the gaze of other users.

[0167] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 1] One of the objectives of the present invention is to enable the sharing of information regarding gaze between multiple players playing a multiplayer game. [Note 1] An information processing device comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires information regarding the gaze of a player on the play screen while playing a multiplayer game; and a display control unit that displays the aforementioned information of a second player who plays the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of a terminal operated by the first player. This information processing device allows for the sharing of gaze information among multiple players playing a multiplayer game.

[0168] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 2] One of the objectives of the present invention is to enable support based on shared gaze information of a second player. [Note 2] The display control unit is an information processing device as described in Appendix 1, which displays candidate guidance information for the second player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player. This enables support based on shared gaze information from the second player.

[0169] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 3] One of the objectives of the present invention is to notify the second player of the details of the support provided by the first player. [Note 3] The information processing device described in Appendix 2, wherein the display control unit notifies the terminal operated by the second player of the guidance information selected by the first player from among the candidates of the guidance information. This allows the second player to be notified of the support provided by the first player.

[0170] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 4] One of the objectives of the present invention is to make it easier for the supported actions to be executed by a second player. [Note 4] The information processing device according to Appendix 3, wherein the display control unit displays the guidance information at a position on the play screen related to the information regarding the gaze of the second player. This makes it easier for the second player to implement the support provided.

[0171] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 5] One of the objectives of the present invention is to display a predetermined message on the terminal of the second player in response to the first player visually confirming a predetermined situation. [Note 5] The information processing device according to Appendix 1, wherein, based on the information of the first player, the display control unit detects that the first player has observed a predetermined situation of the second player, and displays a predetermined message on the play screen of the terminal operated by the second player. This allows a predetermined message to be displayed on the second player's terminal when the first player observes a predetermined situation.

[0172] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 6] One of the objectives of the present invention is to make it possible to play a second object instead of a second player. [Note 6] The information processing device according to Appendix 1, further comprising, if the information of the first player detects that the first player has observed a predetermined situation of the second player, a power transfer unit that transfers to the first player the power to operate a second object operated by the second player while the predetermined situation is occurring. This allows a second object to be played instead of the second player.

[0173] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 7] One of the objectives of this invention is to distribute the screens viewed by multiple players. [Note 7] The information processing apparatus according to Supplementary Note 1, further comprising a guidance unit that, when the regions visually recognized by a second player and a third player overlap, guides the terminal operated by at least one of the second player and the third player to visually recognize another region that is not visually recognized by any player. This enables dispersion of screens visually recognized by a plurality of players.

[0174] Problem corresponding to [Supplementary Note 8] One object of the present invention is to limit to one player the player who changes the visually recognized game region. [Supplementary Note 8] The information processing apparatus according to Supplementary Note 7, wherein the guidance unit guides said another region to the player having a lower in-game parameter among the second player and the third player. This enables limiting to one player the player who changes the visually recognized game region.

[0175] Problem corresponding to [Supplementary Note 9] One object of the present invention is to limit to one player the player who changes the visually recognized region. [Supplementary Note 9] The information processing apparatus according to Supplementary Note 7, wherein the guidance unit outputs, to the terminals operated by the second player and the third player, guidance for conversation to determine which player will visually recognize said another region. This enables limiting to one player the player who changes the visually recognized region.

[0176] Problem corresponding to [Supplementary Note 10] One object of the present invention is to facilitate support for other players by a first player. [Supplementary Note 10] The information processing apparatus according to Supplementary Note 1, wherein, when the regions visually recognized by the second player and the third player overlap, the display control unit displays, on the terminal of the first player, information for guiding at least one of the second player and the third player to visually recognize another region that is not visually recognized by any player. This enables facilitating support for other players by the first player.

[0177] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 11] One of the objectives of this invention is for a supporter to select other players to support. [Note 11] The information processing device described in Appendix 1, wherein the display control unit presents, on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, a selectable list of other players to be supported based on the information acquired by the acquisition unit. This allows supporters to choose other players to support.

[0178] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 12] One of the objectives of the present invention is to support other players associated with predetermined attribute information. [Note 12] The information processing apparatus according to Appendix 1, wherein the display control unit displays the information of other players associated with predetermined attribute information on the play screen. This allows for support of other players associated with specific attribute information.

[0179] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 13] One of the objectives of the present invention is for the first player to assist the second player when the parameters of the second object being operated by the second player are decreasing. [Note 13] If the second player does not see a game object that decreases the parameters of a second object operated by the second player on the play screen and that satisfies a predetermined positional relationship with the second object, the display control unit displays information on the first player's play screen to guide the second player in moving the second object, as described in Appendix 1. This allows the first player to assist the second player when the parameters of the second object controlled by the second player decrease.

[0180] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 14] One of the objectives of the present invention is to provide guidance to multiple players that a predetermined operation has become possible. [Note 14] The information processing device according to Appendix 1, wherein the display control unit presents a candidate for guidance to perform a predetermined operation on a predetermined area of ​​the play screen when the information obtained from the first player and the information obtained from the second player satisfy predetermined conditions. This allows you to inform players that a specific operation can now be performed on multiple players.

[0181] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 15] One of the objectives of the present invention is to enable the sharing of information regarding gaze between multiple players playing a multiplayer game. [Note 15] An information processing method comprising: a process in which the processor obtains information regarding the gaze of a player on the play screen while playing a multiplayer game; and a process in which the processor displays the aforementioned information of a second player who is playing the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of a terminal operated by the first player. This information processing method allows for the sharing of gaze information among multiple players playing a multiplayer game.

[0182] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 16] One of the objectives of the present invention is to enable the sharing of information regarding gaze between multiple players playing a multiplayer game. [Note 16] A program that causes a processor to acquire information regarding the gaze of a player on the game screen while they are playing a multiplayer game, and to cause the processor to display the aforementioned information of a second player who is playing the multiplayer game with the first player on the game screen of a terminal operated by the first player. This program allows for the sharing of line-of-sight information among multiple players playing a multiplayer game.

[0183] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 17] One object of the present invention is to enable processing execution and user operations that utilize the line of sight of another user. [Supplementary Note 17] An information processing apparatus comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires information related to lines of sight on a shared screen from a plurality of users who are viewing the shared screen; and a display control unit that displays, on a screen of a terminal operated by a distribution user, information related to the line of sight of a viewing user who is viewing the shared screen together with the distribution user. This information processing apparatus enables processing execution and user operations that utilize the line of sight of another user.

[0184] Problem corresponding to [Supplementary Note 18] One object of the present invention is to support guidance provided by a distribution user to viewing users. [Supplementary Note 18] The information processing apparatus according to Supplementary Note 17, wherein the display control unit presents candidates of guidance information for a viewing user on a screen of a terminal operated by the distribution user. With this, guidance provided by a distribution user to a viewing user can be supported.

[0185] Problem corresponding to [Supplementary Note 19] One object of the present invention is to support viewing of a distributed image by a viewing user. [Supplementary Note 19] The information processing apparatus according to Supplementary Note 17, wherein when information related to the line of sight of the distribution user and information related to the line of sight of a second user satisfy a predetermined condition, the display control unit displays a predetermined message on a screen of a terminal operated by the viewing user. With this, viewing of a distributed image by a viewing user can be supported.

[0186] Problem corresponding to [Supplementary Note 20] One object of the present invention is to support distribution by a distribution user. [Supplementary Note 20] The information processing apparatus according to Supplementary Note 17, wherein when information related to the line of sight of the distribution user and information related to the line of sight of a second user satisfy a predetermined condition, the display control unit displays a predetermined message on a screen of a terminal operated by the distribution user. This allows us to support streaming by streaming users.

[0187] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 21] One of the objectives of this invention is to enable the execution of processes and user operations that utilize the gaze of other users. [Note 21] An information processing method comprising: a process in which the processor obtains information about the gaze of multiple users viewing a common screen; and a process in which the processor displays information about the gaze of viewing users who are viewing the same screen as the streaming user on the screen of the terminal operated by the streaming user. This information processing method makes it possible to perform processing using the gaze of other users and to control user actions.

[0188] Issues corresponding to [Appendix 22] One of the objectives of this invention is to enable the execution of processes and user operations that utilize the gaze of other users. [Note 22] A program that causes a processor to acquire information about the gaze of players on the game screen while they are playing a multiplayer game, and then causes the processor to display information about the gaze of viewers who are viewing the same screen as the streamer on the screen of the terminal operated by the streamer. This program makes it possible to perform processes and control user actions by utilizing the gaze of other users. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0189] 1, 1A... Information processing system, 10, 10A... Server, 11, 211... Processor, 12, 212... Memory, 13, 213... Auxiliary storage device, 14, 217... Communication interface, 15... Signal line, 20, 20A, 20B, 20C, 20D, 20E, 20X, ... Information terminal, 111... Eye-tracking information acquisition unit, 112... Display control unit, 113... Authority transfer unit, 114... Area guidance unit, 120, 130... Storage unit

Claims

1. An acquisition unit that acquires information regarding the gaze of a player on the game screen while playing a multiplayer game, A display control unit that displays the aforementioned information of the second player who plays the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, An information processing device having, If, based on the information of the first player, it is detected that the first player has observed a predetermined situation of the second player, The display control unit displays a predetermined message on the play screen of the terminal operated by the second player. Information processing device.

2. An acquisition unit that acquires information regarding the gaze of a player on the game screen while playing a multiplayer game, A display control unit that displays the aforementioned information of the second player who plays the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, An information processing device having, If the information of the first player detects that the first player has observed a predetermined situation of the second player, the system further includes a power transfer unit that transfers to the first player the power to operate the second object operated by the second player while that predetermined situation is occurring. Information processing device.

3. An acquisition unit that acquires information regarding the gaze of a player on the game screen while playing a multiplayer game, A display control unit that displays the aforementioned information of the second player who plays the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, An information processing device having, If the areas viewed by the second player and the third player overlap, the system further includes a guidance unit that guides the terminal operated by at least one of the second and third players to view other areas that are not being viewed by anyone. Information processing device.

4. An acquisition unit that acquires information regarding the gaze of a player on the game screen while playing a multiplayer game, A display control unit that displays the aforementioned information of the second player who plays the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, An information processing device having, If the areas viewed by the second player and the third player overlap, the display control unit displays information on the first player's terminal to guide at least one of the second player and the third player to view other areas that are not being viewed by anyone. Information processing device.

5. An acquisition unit that acquires information regarding the gaze of a player on the game screen while playing a multiplayer game, A display control unit that displays the aforementioned information of the second player who plays the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, An information processing device having, The display control unit presents, on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, a list of other players to be supported based on the information acquired by the acquisition unit, allowing the player to select one. Information processing device.

6. The processor performs a process to obtain information about the player's gaze on the game screen while they are playing a multiplayer game, The processor performs the process of displaying the aforementioned information of the second player who is playing the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, This is an information processing method that performs the following: If the processor detects from the information of the first player that the first player has observed a predetermined situation of the second player, it further executes a process to display a predetermined message on the play screen of the terminal operated by the second player. Information processing methods.

7. The processor performs a process to obtain information about the player's gaze on the game screen while they are playing a multiplayer game, The processor performs the process of displaying the aforementioned information of the second player who is playing the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, This is an information processing method that performs the following: If the processor detects from the information of the first player that the first player has observed a predetermined situation of the second player, it further executes a process to transfer to the first player the authority to operate the second object operated by the second player while that predetermined situation is occurring. Information processing methods.

8. The processor performs a process to obtain information about the player's gaze on the game screen while they are playing a multiplayer game, The processor performs the process of displaying the aforementioned information of the second player who is playing the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, This is an information processing method that performs the following: If the areas viewed by the second player and the third player overlap, the processor further performs a process to guide the terminal operated by at least one of the second and third players to view other areas that are not being viewed by anyone. Information processing methods.

9. The processor performs a process to obtain information about the player's gaze on the game screen while they are playing a multiplayer game, The processor performs the process of displaying the aforementioned information of the second player who is playing the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, This is an information processing method that performs the following: If the areas viewed by the second player and the third player overlap, the processor further performs the process of displaying information on the first player's terminal to guide at least one of the second player and the third player to view the other areas that are not being viewed by anyone. Information processing methods.

10. The processor performs a process to obtain information about the player's gaze on the game screen while they are playing a multiplayer game, The processor performs the process of displaying the aforementioned information of the second player who is playing the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, This is an information processing method that performs the following: The processor further performs a process that presents, on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, a selectable list of other players to be supported based on the acquired information. Information processing methods.

11. The processor is instructed to acquire information about the player's gaze on the game screen while they are playing a multiplayer game. The processor is instructed to display the aforementioned information of the second player who is playing the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player. It is a program that executes a process. If the processor detects from the information of the first player that the first player has observed a predetermined situation of the second player, it will cause a predetermined message to be displayed on the play screen of the terminal operated by the second player. program.

12. The processor is instructed to acquire information about the player's gaze on the game screen while they are playing a multiplayer game. The processor is instructed to display the aforementioned information of the second player who is playing the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player. It is a program that executes a process, If the processor detects from the information of the first player that the first player has observed a predetermined situation of the second player, it will transfer to the first player the authority to operate the second object operated by the second player while that predetermined situation is occurring. program.

13. The processor is instructed to acquire information about the player's gaze on the game screen while they are playing a multiplayer game. The processor is instructed to display the aforementioned information of the second player who is playing the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player. It is a program that executes a process, The processor instructs the terminal operated by at least one of the second and third players to view other areas that are not being viewed by anyone, if the areas viewed by the second and third players overlap. program.

14. The processor is instructed to acquire information about the player's gaze on the game screen while they are playing a multiplayer game. The processor is instructed to display the aforementioned information of the second player who is playing the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player. It is a program that executes a process, The processor instructs the first player's terminal to display information to guide at least one of the second and third players to view other areas that are not being viewed by anyone, if the areas being viewed by the second and third players overlap. program.

15. The processor is instructed to acquire information about the player's gaze on the game screen while they are playing a multiplayer game. The processor is instructed to display the aforementioned information of the second player who is playing the multiplayer game together with the first player on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player. It is a program that executes a process, The processor is instructed to display, on the play screen of the terminal operated by the first player, a selection of other players to be supported based on the acquired information. program.

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