Program, information processing device, and game system

Abstract

[Problem] To provide highly amusing matching. [Solution] A program according to the present invention causes a computer that matches players in a matched game in which players compete with each other, to execute first reception processing of receiving a matching request of a player from a communication terminal used by the player, matching processing for matching the player corresponding to the matching request with another player on the basis of the received matching request, and control processing for controlling the player matched in the matching processing, wherein the control processing performs control such that, in the matching processing, a first player corresponding to the matching request is not matched with a second player most recently matched with the first player.

Description

Program, information processing device and game system

[0001] The present invention relates to a program, an information processing device, and a game system, and more particularly to an electronic game that matches opponents online.

[0002] There is an electronic game that matches players together online (Patent Document 1).

[0003] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2022-020788

[0004] However, the game system described in Patent Document 1 mainly matches players using game devices belonging to the same region, so players are repeatedly matched with the same player. While this matching method increases interest in electronic games involving cooperative play, it may not increase interest in electronic games involving competitive play. For example, if there is a difference in playing skill between players or in the performance of game elements used, the competitive game may proceed in a way that favors one player, and repeated matching with the same player may reduce the player's interest in the game.

[0005] The present invention aims to provide a program, an information processing device, and a game system that provide highly interesting matching.

[0006] One aspect of the present invention is a program that causes a computer that matches players for a competitive game in which players compete against each other to execute a first receiving process that receives a matching request from a communication terminal used by the player, a matching process that matches the player corresponding to the matching request with another player based on the received matching request, and a control process that controls the players to be matched in the matching process, wherein the control process controls so that a second player who was most recently matched with the first player is not matched with the first player corresponding to the matching request in the matching process.

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide highly interesting matching.

[0008] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a game system according to an embodiment and a modification of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the hardware configuration of a player terminal 100 according to an embodiment and a modification of the present invention; FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating the hardware configuration of a server 200 according to an embodiment and a modification of the present invention;

[0009] [Embodiment 1] Hereinafter, an embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the following embodiment does not limit the invention according to the claims, and not all combinations of features described in the embodiment are necessarily essential to the invention. Two or more of the features described in the embodiment may be combined arbitrarily. Furthermore, the same reference numerals are used for the same or similar configurations, and redundant explanations will be omitted.

[0010] In the embodiment described below, the present invention is applied to a game system in which a server connected to player terminals (communication terminals or game devices) used by each player matches two players connected at the same time and provides a service (battle service) to realize a battle game in which both players participate. However, the present invention can be applied to a system realized by any device configuration capable of progressing an electronic game in which multiple players participate. Furthermore, in this specification, the term "player" refers to a user who logs in to use the battle service provided by the server 200 in this game system.

[0011] <<Configuration of the Game System>> Figure 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a game system according to this embodiment. As shown in the figure, the game system is configured so that a server 200 and a plurality of player terminals 100 can be connected for communication via a network 300. In this embodiment, the server 200 matches two players of the connected player terminals 100 as players of a competitive game, establishes a communication session for transmitting and receiving various information related to the competitive game, and provides a competitive service that realizes a competitive game in which the two players participate.

[0012] Each player can log in to the battle service by launching a predetermined client application on the player terminal 100 used by that player. The client application allows the player to perform various settings and advance preparations for the battle game to be executed, set a player profile, and play (match, play) the battle game. As will be described in detail below, the battle game (electronic game) that can be played in the battle service of this embodiment is a trading card game (TCG) in which players progress by placing game elements such as cards on a predetermined game field. The player terminal 100 can also be any communication terminal equipped with a communication function, such as a PC or smartphone.

[0013] <Hardware Configuration of Player Terminal> Next, the hardware configuration of the player terminal 100 will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the hardware configuration of the player terminal 100.

[0014] The control unit 101 is a processor such as a CPU, and performs various controls including operational control of each piece of hardware included in the player terminal 100. Specifically, the control unit 101 performs the relevant control by, for example, reading out a necessary program stored in the storage device 102, expanding it into the memory 103, and executing it.

[0015] The storage device 102 is a device capable of permanently storing information, such as a non-volatile memory or HDD. The storage device 102 stores an operating system for operating the player terminal 100 and programs related to various applications, as well as parameter information required to realize various controls and various data used for display and communication functions related to the browser. The memory 103 is a storage device used for temporary data storage, such as a volatile memory. The memory 103 may be used not only as a development area for each program, but also as a storage area for temporarily storing data output during the operation of various hardware and various controls.

[0016] The GPU 104 is a drawing device that executes various drawing processes related to the generation of display screens for the player terminals 100. The GPU 104 also executes drawing processes for game screens during play of a competitive game. The GPU 104 includes a GPU memory (not shown), expands various graphics data read from the storage device 102, and performs predetermined calculations to generate various images, including screens. The screens and images generated by the GPU 104 are presented to the player by being displayed on, for example, a display 110 provided in the player terminal 100. The display 110 is an information display device, such as a liquid crystal display, that is provided in the player terminal 100 or is detachably connected to the player terminal 100. The display 110 displays the screens generated by the GPU 104.

[0017] The operation I / F 105 is a user interface provided in the player terminal 100 and receives operation input. When the operation I / F 105 detects that an operation input has been made, it outputs a control signal corresponding to the operation input to the control unit 101. In one aspect, the operation I / F 105 includes, for example, operation members such as buttons and various sensors provided on the exterior of the player terminal 100. Furthermore, the display 110 provided in the player terminal 100 of this embodiment is configured to be able to detect touch input, and the operation I / F 105 includes a touch input detection sensor provided on the display 110.

[0018] The communication I / F 106 is a communication interface with an external device provided in the player terminal 100. Information communication between the communication I / F 106 and the external device may be performed via a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet, or via a LAN or the like. Information communication performed by the communication I / F 106 will be described as being performed wirelessly, but this does not exclude wired communication.

[0019] The speaker 120 is an audio output interface provided in the player terminal 100. The speaker 120 outputs various types of audio information including audio related to the client application.

[0020] 3 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the server 200 according to this embodiment. In the following description, the hardware configuration that realizes the same functions as the player terminal 100 will be prefixed with the letter "server" to clearly distinguish it from the configuration of the player terminal 100.

[0021] The server control unit 201 is a processor such as a CPU, and performs control related to the realization of various functions, including operational control of each piece of hardware provided in the server 200, player management related to the battle service, a player matching function, and transmission and reception of information about the battle game being executed and information sharing. Specifically, the server control unit 201 performs the relevant control by, for example, reading out necessary programs stored in the server storage device 202, expanding them into the server memory 203, and executing them.

[0022] The server storage device 202 is a device capable of permanently storing information, such as a non-volatile memory or HDD. The server storage device 202 stores an operating system for operating the server 200 and matching-related programs, as well as parameter information required for implementing various controls and various data required for providing the matching function. The server storage device 202 also has a database function for managing information on each player registered as a player of the game system. The server memory 203 is a storage device used for temporary data storage, such as a volatile memory. The server memory 203 may be used not only as a storage area for each program, but also as a storage area for temporarily storing data output during the operation of various hardware and various controls.

[0023] The server communication I / F 204 is a communication interface with an external device provided in the server 200. Information communication between the server communication I / F 204 and the external device may be performed via a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet, or via a LAN or the like. Information communication performed by the server communication I / F 204 may be performed either wired or wirelessly.

[0024] <<Outline of the Battle Game>> Below, an outline of the battle game in which a play experience is provided in the game system of this embodiment will be described.

[0025] <Service Login> When a client application is executed on a player terminal 100, a game window related to service use is displayed on the display 110 of the player terminal 100. A player can perform a service login procedure by, for example, entering a player ID and password in the game window. This procedure causes a service login request to be transmitted from the player terminal 100 to the server 200 together with the input information. Upon receiving the service login request, the server control unit 201 checks the authenticity of the input information, for example, by referring to player information registered in association with the player ID, and if the authenticity is confirmed, manages the player as being in a logged-in state. A player who has entered the logged-in state can use various functions related to playing the competitive game provided by the service via the game window.

[0026] Deck Building: The functionality provided by the Service includes deck building functionality.

[0027] The competitive game is played on a predetermined field set by the game. Each player builds a "deck" by registering a set of game elements for the competitive game, and can play the competitive game using the deck they built.

[0028] To build a deck, a player needs to obtain game elements, for example, through a lottery function that can be used by paying a fee. In other words, the game elements that a player can include in a deck to be built are limited to, for example, game elements that the player has already obtained. Furthermore, the number of decks that a player can build is not limited to one, and a player may be able to build multiple decks that have at least some of the registered game elements that differ.

[0029] Information about game elements that a player has acquired and decks that the player has constructed is managed by being associated with identification information (player ID) that uniquely identifies the player and registered in the server storage device 202. More specifically, the server storage device 202 also functions as a database (DB) that manages various information about each player as player information, and in the player information, which is one record in the DB, the player ID is managed in association with information about game elements that the player has acquired and information about decks that the player has constructed.

[0030] For example, for game elements acquired by a player, an element ID that uniquely identifies the game element and the number of the element IDs are included in the player information, thereby making it possible to manage how many of the game elements the player owns.Furthermore, for example, for a deck constructed by a player, identification information for the deck (deck ID) and the element IDs of the game elements included in the deck are included in the player information, thereby managing the information on the deck constructed by the player (deck information).

[0031] As described above, the competitive game that the competitive service of this embodiment provides a play experience with is a TCG, and the game elements that are given to players and can be registered in their decks and used are cards (virtual cards that can be owned in an electronic game). In the competitive game of this embodiment, the cards that players can use are classified into two types: leader cards and member cards, which have different roles in the competitive game, and decks are required to include one leader card. In other words, a deck is constructed from one leader card and multiple (one or more) member cards. Each card has a cost that is determined, for example, according to the degree to which it provides an advantage in the competitive game, and the player must register a group of cards to be included in the deck so that the total cost of the deck reaches a specified value.

[0032] Here, the leader card and the member card are cards that have different roles in the battle game, and have the following differences, for example.

[0033] Leader cards have the aspect of restricting the member cards that can be included in a deck, and determine the direction of the deck (the strategic direction to be taken to win a competitive game). In other words, including one leader card in a deck determines to some extent how a competitive game using that deck will unfold. On the other hand, member cards do not generally restrict the other cards that can be included in a deck.

[0034] The game is played in turns, and during each player's turn, the player places cards registered in the deck they are using on the field in order. Leader cards are placed on the field at the start of the game and remain on the field throughout the game. Member cards, on the other hand, are randomly added to a player's hand from the deck and are placed on the field at the player's discretion during each turn. In other words, leader cards and member cards differ in whether their placement on the field is mandatory or optional.

[0035] Here, in the competitive game, a predetermined value of life (a parameter indicating the number of attacks that can be made against the leader card) is set for each player's leader card at the start of the competitive game. In the competitive game of this embodiment, to ensure fairness between players, the life of each leader card is set to a fixed value of 8. The competitive game ends when either player's leader card's life reaches 0, or when either player's deck (hand, deck, and member cards on the field) reaches 0 cards. That is, a player can win against an opponent by reducing the life of the opponent's leader card to 0 or by first reducing the opponent's deck to 0 cards. A player loses to an opponent by reducing the life of their own leader card to 0 or by first reducing their deck to 0 cards.

[0036] Each card is assigned an effect that occurs when it is placed on the field in the competitive game, but a member card is assigned a single effect that does not change depending on the progression parameters of the competitive game. In contrast, a leader card differs from a member card in that it is assigned multiple effects that change depending on the progression parameters of the competitive game. Here, the progression parameter of the competitive game may be, for example, the life of the leader card, and it may be set so that halving the life can activate an effect that gives the player an advantage in the progression of the competitive game.

[0037] Therefore, when a player selects the "Build a New Deck" or "Edit an Existing Deck" menu related to the deck building function, the system enters a state in which one deck is being edited, and a list of cards managed as being available to the player is displayed in the game window. The player can select cards to be registered in the deck to be edited by performing an operation input to select a desired card from the list. Specifically, the identification information (card ID) of the card selected to be registered in the deck is added to the deck information for the deck to be edited. The deck information for the deck to be edited is temporarily stored, for example, in memory 103 of the player terminal 100, and is updated each time a card to be registered is selected.

[0038] Here, when the "Build a New Deck" menu is selected, new deck information is generated and stored in memory 103 as deck information for the deck to be edited. On the other hand, when the "Edit an Already Constructed Deck" menu is selected, deck information for the corresponding deck is downloaded from server 200 to player terminal 100 and stored in memory 103 as deck information for the deck to be edited.

[0039] Then, in response to an operation input related to the completion of construction, deck information related to the deck to be edited is uploaded from the player terminal 100 to the server 200, and is managed as part of the player information related to the player. At this time, if the deck is a new deck, the server 200 assigns a new deck ID to the player, associates the deck ID with the uploaded deck information, and adds it to the player's player information. Also, if the deck is an already constructed deck, a deck ID is already associated with the deck information related to the deck to be edited, and therefore, deck information of the player's player information that has the same deck ID as the uploaded deck information is updated based on the uploaded deck information.

[0040] In order to avoid DB storage area being occupied by deck information that does not have any cards registered being included in player information, the uploading of deck information for the deck to be edited is performed on the condition that one or more cards have been registered at the time the operation input for completion of deck construction is made. In other words, completion of deck construction does not necessarily require that the deck be in a state that can be used in a competitive game; for example, a player can save the deck information as completed construction even if one or more cards that are temporarily being considered for use have been registered.

[0041] <Matching> Players can play the battle game by using decks constructed using the deck construction function. In the battle game of this embodiment, two players compete against each other, so at the start of gameplay, the players must transmit a matching request from their player terminals 100 to the server 200. Upon receiving the matching request, the server control unit 201 performs processing to match the two players to compete against each other from among logged-in players who have simultaneously made matching requests.

[0042] Therefore, the client application is provided with a game play function, and is configured to receive a request from a player to start playing a competitive game when using this function. For a (subsequent) competitive game, the player can select one of the decks they have constructed as a battle deck, thereby making it possible to perform an operational input related to the play start request. As will be described in detail later, the game system of this embodiment matches opponents with consideration given to the deck used by the player in order to enhance the entertainment value of the competitive game. Therefore, when an operational input related to the play start request is performed, the control unit 101 transmits a matching request including information about the battle deck to the server 200 via the communication I / F 106.

[0043] The matching request includes, for example, the player ID of the player and information indicating the battle deck used by that player. The information indicating the battle deck can be, for example, a deck ID, and the server control unit 201 can refer to deck information related to the battle deck from the corresponding player information based on the player ID and deck ID, and can identify cards registered in the battle deck.

[0044] As described above, how a battle game unfolds depends on the battle deck used by the player, and in particular, on the leader card included in the battle deck. The characteristics associated with each leader card are primarily determined by the effects that can be activated by that leader card, but to allow for a variety of play styles, advantageous and disadvantageous compatibility exists between characteristics. For this reason, if a player is repeatedly matched with other players using decks with which the player has disadvantageous compatibility, the player's interest in the battle game may decrease. Therefore, in the game system of this embodiment, information about the battle deck is included in the matching request and is referenced in the matching process, described below, performed by the server control unit 201.

[0045] However, constructing a battle deck that will allow for optimal game development requires consideration of the effects and costs set for each leader card and member card, which takes time. Furthermore, the matching process for providing a highly engaging battle game experience and matching a player who has made a matchmaking request with a suitable opponent can also take time depending on the time of day, etc. In other words, if a request to start playing a battle game were to be accepted only after a battle deck has been constructed, it could take a long time for a player who has logged in to the service to begin playing the battle game.

[0046] For this reason, the game system of this embodiment is configured to accept a request to start play using a deck as a battle deck, provided that at least a leader card is registered in that deck. In other words, a matching request is sent from the player terminal 100 to the server 200, provided that the deck selected as the battle deck contains at least one leader card.

[0047] Therefore, in the game window of the client application, the player can display and check the contents of the battle deck even after performing an operation input related to a play start request, and the battle deck can also be edited. Here, the deck to be edited is limited to the battle deck. Furthermore, as will be described in detail later, in response to a matching request, the server 200 executes a matching process based on the information of the leader card of the battle deck. Therefore, after a play start request is made, only the parts of the battle deck other than the leader card, i.e., the member cards, can be edited. Editing of the battle deck in this manner is controlled so as to be possible only for the period until the opponent matching is completed.

[0048] (Matching Process) Hereinafter, an outline of the matching process executed by the server 200 related to matching will be described.

[0049] Since the competitive game provided by the game system of this embodiment is a TCG in which two players compete against each other, when the server control unit 201 receives a matching request for one player from the player terminal 100, it executes a matching process to determine the other player (opponent) who will compete against the one player. The matching process is a process of matching players who are logged in and who have submitted matching requests at the same time. In order to provide a highly interesting playing experience, the matching process of this embodiment sets multiple types of matching criteria and extracts players to be used as opponents based on the criteria. Each matching criterion specifies the conditions for players to be extracted as opponents, and the server control unit 201 extracts players who meet the conditions from among players who have submitted matching requests at the same time and selects one of the players as the opponent. A priority order is set for each of the multiple types of matching criteria, and the server control unit 201 basically extracts players who satisfy the conditions related to all of the matching criteria and selects one player from among them as the opponent, but if there is no player who satisfies all the conditions, the server control unit 201 repeats the process of extracting players by excluding matching criteria with lower priority in order.

[0050] The first matching criterion in the matching process of this embodiment relates to the frequency of matching with the same player. Winning or losing in a competitive game is influenced by factors such as the player's experience and playing skill, as well as the cards the player possesses. In particular, playing skill is dependent on the number of times the competitive game has been played. Therefore, when there is a clear difference between players, the player with the higher playing skill is likely to win even in consecutive matches. As a result, the player with lower playing skill is more likely to suffer consecutive losses, which may reduce the player's interest in the competitive game. Furthermore, in a situation where the same players are repeatedly matched, for example, by repeatedly playing the game during times when there are fewer logged-in players, it is possible to intentionally match with the same player. For example, one player may intentionally repeatedly declare defeat, thereby unfairly manipulating the other player's win rate.

[0051] Therefore, the first matching criterion is that the opponent to be matched with the player who has made the matching request must not be an opponent in a predetermined number of most recent competitive games played by the player. To facilitate understanding of the invention, this embodiment will describe an embodiment in which the predetermined number is set to one, so as to avoid consecutive battles with the same player. That is, hereinafter, the first matching criterion is set as a condition that the opponent must not be a player who was most recently matched with the player who made the matching request. However, the implementation of the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a player who has been matched once may not be matched with another player until the player has played a predetermined number of competitive games against other players, two or more times.

[0052] The second matching criterion in the matching process of this embodiment relates to the frequency of matching with players using decks containing the same leader card. As described above, the game development of a competitive game may depend on the leader card included in the deck. Therefore, if consecutive battles against decks containing the same leader card were allowed, the player would be repeatedly provided with a competitive game play experience with similar game developments, which could result in the player becoming bored with the gameplay. In particular, if a player is forced to play consecutive battles against decks containing leader cards with unfavorable compatibility, the player would be forced into a game development that is difficult to recover from, which could cause the player to lose interest in the competitive game.

[0053] Therefore, the second matching criterion requires that the leader card of an opponent to be matched with a player who has made a matching request must be different from the deck used by the opponent in a predetermined number of most recent competitive games played by the player. To facilitate understanding of the invention, in this embodiment, the predetermined number of times is described as one, so as to avoid consecutive battles with players using decks containing the same leader card. In other words, the second matching criterion below requires that the leader card of the player who made the matching request must be different from the deck used in the most recent match. However, the implementation of the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a leader card that has been used once in an opponent's deck may not be matched until the opponent has played a predetermined number of competitive games using a deck containing a different leader card, two or more times.

[0054] The third matching criterion for the matching process of this embodiment is that the opponent must use a deck containing a different leader card than the player who made the matching request. Each player builds a deck taking into account the characteristics of the leader card, but when playing against a deck containing the same leader card, it is difficult to make use of those characteristics, and the game may become monotonous. Therefore, the third matching criterion is that the opponent to be matched with the player who made the matching request must use a deck containing a different leader card than the battle deck used by that player.

[0055] The server control unit 201 determines other players to be matched with a player who has made a matching request based on these three types of matching criteria. The priority of the matching criteria is set so that the first matching criterion is the lowest, followed by the second matching criterion and then the third matching criterion. The server control unit 201 extracts players by appropriately combining these matching criteria in order to determine an opponent from among players who have made matching requests at the same time.

[0056] For example, in a mode in which player A most recently played against player B, who used a deck including leader card b, and will use a battle deck including leader card a in the next battle game, the server control unit 201, upon receiving a matching request from player A, first extracts players who meet all of the matching criteria. That is, the server control unit 201 extracts players who are different from player B (first matching criterion) and who use decks including leader cards other than leader card a and leader card b (second and third matching criterion). At this time, if there are players who meet all of the matching criteria (one or more players have been extracted), the server control unit 201 determines an opponent from among those players. On the other hand, if there are no players who meet all of the matching criteria, the server control unit 201 excludes the matching criterion with the lowest priority (in this case, the third matching criterion) and again extracts players who meet the criteria. Specifically, the server control unit 201 extracts players who are different from player B (first matching criterion) and who use decks including leader cards other than leader card b (second matching criterion). If the server control unit 201 is unable to extract a player who meets the conditions, it further relaxes the conditions (by excluding the second matching criterion) and performs extraction again.

[0057] In this way, the server control unit 201 extracts players based on predetermined conditions to provide a suitable playing experience, and while relaxing the conditions as necessary, determines an opponent to be matched with the person who has made the matching request. Note that if there is no player that meets only the first matching criterion, the server control unit 201 may, for example, randomly select one player as the opponent from among players who have made matching requests around the same time, or may extend the search period until a predetermined timeout period has elapsed and search again for a player who meets the matching criteria.

[0058] When the player matching is complete, the server control unit 201 establishes a communication session for transmitting and receiving various information related to the competitive game in which the two matched players will participate. Information about the communication session is transmitted to the player terminals 100 used by each of the two players, together with, for example, information about the matching result. When the control unit 101 of the player terminal 100 receives the information about the communication session, it starts processing for connecting to the communication session.

[0059] <Game Play> When the player terminals 100 of the players competing in the communication session are connected, game play of the competitive game in which the two matched players are participating can begin. When the player terminals 100 of both players connect to the communication session, the client application running on each player terminal 100 starts processing related to playing the competitive game and displays a game screen.

[0060] Here, the competitive game is executed on the condition that the battle deck contains one leader card and one or more member cards, and when the processing related to playing the competitive game begins, the battle deck is controlled so that it cannot be edited to ensure fairness. Therefore, if the battle deck used by the player does not contain any member cards before the processing related to playing the competitive game begins, control may be exercised to accept an operation input related to the selection of at least one member card, and once the member card has been added and the deck information has been updated, the processing related to playing the competitive game may be executed.

[0061] In the processing related to playing the competitive game executed on each player terminal 100, various pieces of information for game progress are constructed based on operation inputs made by the players in relation to the competitive game, and transmitted to the server 200. The server 200 manages various pieces of information for game progress for each communication session, and performs processing to transmit (share) information received from a player terminal 100 to other player terminals 100 participating in the communication session. In the processing related to playing the competitive game, when game progress information related to an opponent is received from the server 200, display control of the game screen is performed based on that information. In this way, the game system can provide a playing experience in which players in remote locations compete against each other via the server 200.

[0062] <<Client Processing>> The following describes specific client processing executed in relation to a client application in the player terminal 100 of this embodiment, using the flowchart in Fig. 4. The processing corresponding to this flowchart can be realized by the control unit 101 reading out a corresponding processing program stored in, for example, the storage device 102, and expanding and executing it in the memory 103. Note that this client processing will be described as being initiated, for example, when the client application is executed in the player terminal 100 and service login of the player is completed. Furthermore, in the description of this client processing, a player who has logged in for service using the player terminal 100 that is executing this processing will be referred to as the "target player."

[0063] In S401, the control unit 101 determines whether or not an operation input related to the use of the deck building function has been made. If the control unit 101 determines that an operation input related to the use of the deck building function has been made, the control unit 101 proceeds to S402, and if it determines that an operation input related to the use of the deck building function has not been made, the control unit 101 proceeds to S403.

[0064] In S402, the control unit 101 executes processing related to the deck building function. In this embodiment, details of the processing related to the deck building function will be omitted, but as described above, by using the deck building function, deck information can be added / updated to the player information related to the target player.

[0065] In S403, the control unit 101 determines whether or not an operation input related to a request to start playing the competitive game has been made. If the control unit 101 determines that an operation input related to a request to start playing has been made, the control unit 101 proceeds to S404, and if it determines that an operation input related to a request to start playing has not been made, the control unit 101 proceeds to S411.

[0066] In S404, the control unit 101 accepts the selection of a deck (battle deck) that the target player will use in the battle game. The selection of a battle deck is made based on an operation input to select one of the decks constructed in association with the target player. Prior to this selection, the control unit 101 obtains deck information registered in association with the player from the server 200, and displays the corresponding decks on the display 110 so that they can be selected.

[0067] In S405, the control unit 101 determines whether a leader card is registered in the deck selected in S404. If the control unit 101 determines that a leader card is registered in the selected deck, it proceeds to S406, and if it determines that a leader card is not registered, it returns to S404. In the latter case, the server control unit 201 may, for example, display a notification on the display 110 instructing the user to select a deck in which a leader card is registered.

[0068] In S406, the control unit 101 transmits a matching request including the deck ID of the deck selected in S404 as the deck ID of the battle deck to the server 200. In response to this matching request, a matching process is executed in the server 200, and an opponent player (hereinafter referred to as the opponent player) is determined.

[0069] In S407, the control unit 101 determines whether or not an opponent player has been matched. The determination in this step can be made based on whether or not information on the matching result has been received from the server 200. If the control unit 101 determines that an opponent player has been matched, it proceeds to S408, and if it determines that an opponent player has not been matched, it repeats the processing in this step.

[0070] In S408, the control unit 101 establishes a communication connection with the communication session via the communication I / F 106 based on the information of the communication session of the connection destination included in the information of the matching result.

[0071] In S409, the control unit 101 executes processing related to playing the competitive game.

[0072] In S410, the control unit 101 determines whether the processing related to the playing of the competitive game that started in S409 has been completed. Here, the processing related to the playing of the competitive game ends when the termination conditions for the played competitive game are satisfied and the match result is determined. If the control unit 101 determines that the processing related to the playing of the competitive game has been completed, it proceeds to S411, and if it determines that the processing has not been completed, it repeats the processing of this step.

[0073] In S411, the control unit 101 determines whether an operation input related to the termination of the client application has been made. If the control unit 101 determines that an operation input related to the termination of the client application has been made, the control unit 101 completes this client processing, and if the control unit 101 determines that an operation input related to the termination of the client application has not been made, the process returns to S401.

[0074] <<Matching Process>> Next, specific processing of the matching process executed by the server 200 of this embodiment will be described using the flowchart in Fig. 5. The processing corresponding to this flowchart can be realized by the server control unit 201 reading out a corresponding processing program stored in, for example, the server storage device 202, and deploying and executing it in the server memory 203. Note that this matching process will be described as being started, for example, when a matching request is received from one of the player terminals 100. In addition, in the description of this matching process, the player who receives the matching request will be referred to as the "target player," other players who are making matching requests at the same time will be referred to as "waiting players," and players who will be matched with the target player will be referred to as the "opponent player."

[0075] In S501, the server control unit 201 acquires information (extraction information) for extracting an opponent player. In this embodiment, the server control unit 201 acquires, as the extraction information, the player ID of the player most recently matched with the target player (hereinafter referred to as the previous player), the card ID of the leader card related to the previous player in the most recent battle game, and the card ID of the leader card of the target player's battle deck. Here, various pieces of information related to the previous player may be acquireable from, for example, battle history information included in the player information of the target player.

[0076] In S502, the server control unit 201 determines, based on the extraction information, whether or not a player who meets all of the matching criteria is present among the waiting players. That is, the server control unit 201 sets three types of matching criteria as extraction conditions and attempts to extract a player who meets the extraction conditions from the waiting players. If the server control unit 201 determines that a player who meets all of the matching criteria is present among the waiting players, it proceeds to S505; if it determines that a player who meets all of the matching criteria is not present, it proceeds to S503.

[0077] In S503, the server control unit 201 sets new extraction conditions by excluding the matching criterion with the lowest priority from among the matching criteria set in the current extraction conditions.

[0078] In S504, the server control unit 201 determines, based on the extraction information, whether or not a player who meets the new extraction conditions is present among the waiting players. If the server control unit 201 determines that a player who meets the new extraction conditions is present among the waiting players, it proceeds to S505, and if it determines that a player who meets the new extraction conditions is not present, it returns to S503. Note that if no conditions related to any matching criteria are set as extraction conditions, the server control unit 201 determines that all waiting players meet the new extraction conditions.

[0079] In S505, the server control unit 201 extracts players who meet the extraction conditions from the waiting players and determines one of these players as the opponent player. Here, the opponent player may be determined by, for example, a lottery process. The server control unit 201 returns the player ID of the determined opponent player to the player terminal 100 used by the target player as matching result information, and completes the matching process. At this time, the server control unit 201 also transmits matching result information to the player terminal 100 used by the opponent player, indicating that the opponent player has been matched with the target player.

[0080] As described above, the communication terminal of this embodiment allows players to easily start a competitive game. Furthermore, the information processing device of this embodiment can provide highly interesting matching.

[0081] [Variation 1] In the above-described embodiment, the first matching criterion is described as being that the target player is not an opponent in a predetermined number of recent competitive games played by the target player. However, the implementation of the present invention is not limited to this. For example, if the difference in playing skill between the target player and the opponent player is small, it is difficult to imagine a situation in which the game will unfold one-sidedly even if these players rematch. In other words, if the difference in playing skill between the target player and the opponent player is large, the game may unfold in a similar manner even if these players rematch within a short period of time. However, it is highly likely that the game will not unfold in a similar manner between players with a small difference in playing skill.

[0082] Therefore, in a mode in which attribute information such as game level, number of plays, and rank based on game results is included and managed as player information, the predetermined number of plays required to match a target player with an opponent player may be increased or decreased based on the attribute information of the target player and the attribute information of the opponent player. For example, multiple ranges may be set for the difference in number of plays between players, and the predetermined number of plays may be changed depending on which range the difference falls within. In this case, the predetermined number of plays may be determined to be larger for larger ranges of differences.

[0083] [Modification 2] In the above-described embodiment and modification, a condition for matching a target player with an opponent player with whom the target player has played once is that the target player has not been matched with the opponent player in a predetermined number of competitive games played by the target player, i.e., a condition for matching between the same players is the number of competitive games played. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a condition may also be that a predetermined time has elapsed.

[0084] [Variation 3] In the above-described embodiment and variation, the battle deck can be edited only for member cards even after the matching request is sent. However, the present invention is not limited to this. In one variation, the battle deck can be configured to be complete (e.g., the difference between the total cost and the upper cost limit is within a threshold) at the time the matching request is sent, and editing of the battle deck can be prevented after the matching request is sent. This variation is expected to be used to optimize evaluations in game modes that are based on so-called serious competition between players, such as those that evaluate and rank players based on their performance in a competitive game.

[0085] [Embodiment 2] In the above-described embodiment 1, in response to receiving a matching request, the server control unit 201 selects one player from among players who have simultaneously made matching requests and matches the player related to the matching request. That is, the game system of the above-described embodiment employs a matching method in which a predetermined number of players to compete in a competitive game are determined by a matching process executed by the server 200 without the player's consent. However, matching methods for online competitive games are not limited to methods in which the server control unit 201 forcibly determines opponents. For example, there is also a matching method in which some players are placed in a standby state to accept challenges, and other players who are not in a standby state select a desired player from among the standby players and apply to the challenge. In this matching method, players who are not in a standby state can challenge a desired player, thereby achieving matching based on the player's will, unlike embodiment 1. In this embodiment, a method for achieving highly interesting matching in this matching method will be described.

[0086] <<Matching>> In the game play function of the client application of this embodiment, when a request to start playing a competitive game is accepted, the game play function also accepts a selection of whether to wait for a challenge from another player (hereinafter referred to as a challenge waiting request) or to make a challenge to another player who is waiting (hereinafter referred to as a challenge request). Whichever request is selected, the client application then accepts the selection of a battle deck, as in the first embodiment, and a matching request is sent from the player terminal 100 to the server 200.

[0087] In the game play function of this embodiment, the timing of sending a matching request differs depending on whether the target player has selected an application waiting request or an application request.

[0088] Specifically, if the target player selects the application standby request, when a battle deck is subsequently selected, a matching request including the player ID of the target player, the deck ID of the battle deck, and the application standby request is transmitted from the player terminal 100 to the server 200. Upon receiving the matching request, the server control unit 201 adds the target player to the waiting players who are waiting for battle applications and manages them.

[0089] On the other hand, if the target player selects the application request, when a battle deck is subsequently selected, a "candidate acquisition request" including the target player's player ID, the battle deck's deck ID, and the application request is transmitted from the player terminal 100 to the server 200. Upon receiving the candidate acquisition request, the server control unit 201 returns information on matching candidates including a plurality of waiting players to the player terminal 100, so that the target player can select a player to apply for a battle. Upon receiving the information on matching candidates, an application screen is displayed in the game window related to the client application on the player terminal 100 used by the target player, displaying each of the matching candidate players in a manner that allows them to accept a battle application.

[0090] FIG. 6 shows an example of the configuration of an application screen. In the example of FIG. 6, the application screen 600 is configured such that three waiting players included in the matching candidate information are arranged as matching candidates 601a-c, and a battle application to the corresponding waiting player can be accepted by, for example, performing an operation input in each area. That is, the matching candidates 601a-c show matching candidates with which the target player can be matched, and in response to the target player performing an operation input to select one of the matching candidates, a matching request including the player ID of the waiting player of that matching candidate is transmitted to the server 200. Upon receiving the matching request, the server control unit 201 executes processing to match the waiting player identified by the player ID included in the matching request with the target player.

[0091] Although details will be described later, the matching candidates 601 do not display all waiting players who are simultaneously waiting for a challenge, but rather display waiting players that are equal to or less than the upper limit (3) of players that will accept a challenge from the target player, selected by the server control unit 201. By limiting the number of players displayed as the matching candidates 601 in this way, it is possible to prevent the target player from being confused about which waiting player to challenge, thereby preventing the matching time from being prolonged.

[0092] On the other hand, limiting the number of waiting players displayed as matching candidates 601 may give the target player the impression that there are only a few players interested in the competitive game. For this reason, in addition to matching candidates 601a-c, non-candidate players 602a-g are displayed on the application screen 600 as entertainment elements, as shown in the figure. Therefore, when returning information about matching candidates to the player terminal 100, the server control unit 201 also transmits information about players to be displayed as non-candidate players 602.

[0093] Here, the players displayed as non-candidate players 602 are just for entertainment purposes, and so may be selected, for example, from waiting players who were not selected as matching candidates, or may be selected from logged-in players based on a predetermined rule, or may be selected from all players including logged-out players.

[0094] The matching candidates 601 and non-candidate players 602 differ in that the former are displayed in a state where the target player can apply for a match, while the latter are displayed in a state where the target player cannot apply for a match, on the application screen 600. As shown in the figure, the former are displayed in a larger size than the non-candidate players 602. Furthermore, to help the target player select a waiting player from the matching candidates 601 to apply for a match, the information on the matching candidates includes detailed information about each waiting player, such as player name, battle record, and attribute information. Therefore, the matching candidates 601a-c each display a detailed display icon 603a-c, which allows detailed information about the corresponding waiting player to be displayed in response to an operation input to the icon, and thus differ from the non-candidate player 602. That is, as shown in the figure, the detailed display icon 603 is not displayed on the non-candidate players 602a-g, preventing the target player from viewing detailed information.

[0095] The game system of this embodiment is configured to enable players from various geographical locations to compete against each other. Therefore, the server 200 may be configured not only as a single server, but also as a group of multiple servers working together. In this configuration, to create the impression that the target player can compete against players from various regions, the application screen 600 displays a map image resembling the Earth as a background image 604. The center position of the map image in the background image 604 may be changed based on geographical information associated with the player terminal 100 (e.g., geographical location information of the player terminal 100). That is, when a player from Japan requests a candidate acquisition, the map image in the background image 604 is displayed with Japan at its center, whereas when a player from the United States requests a candidate acquisition, the map image in the background image 604 is displayed with the United States at its center.

[0096] It should be noted that, since the competitive game in which the game system of this embodiment provides a play experience is a TCG, in the example of Figure 6, the matching candidates 601 and non-candidate players 602 arranged on the application screen 600 are both displayed in card form, but it should be easily understood that the implementation of the present invention is not limited to this.

[0097] To ensure that a competitive game with favorable game development is implemented, the server control unit 201 extracts matching candidate players from among the waiting players based on multiple types of matching criteria, as in the first embodiment. When extracting matching candidate players, the server control unit 201 sets extraction information based on information included in the candidate acquisition request. In this embodiment, the server control unit 201 acquires and sets, as the extraction information, the player ID of the previous player who was most recently matched with the target player, the card ID of the leader card associated with the previous player in the most recent competitive game, and the card ID of the leader card in the target player's battle deck. Then, the server control unit 201 extracts the maximum number (three) of waiting players based on the extraction information and three types of matching criteria. The process related to this extraction may be performed in the same manner as S501 to S505 in the matching process of embodiment 1, but differs in that instead of determining one of the extracted players as the opponent player, a maximum number of players from the extracted players are determined as matching candidates, and information about the matching candidates is returned to the player terminal 100.

[0098] In this case, if the maximum number of players includes players extracted because they meet different combinations of matching criteria, the matching candidate information may be configured to include information identifying players who meet more of the matching criteria, and to display them in a distinguishable manner on the application screen. That is, for example, if there are two players who meet all types of matching criteria, and the remaining player is extracted from players who meet two types of matching criteria in order to ensure the maximum number of matching candidates, the former two players are deemed to have the potential to lead to a more interesting game development, and are displayed in a different manner from the remaining player on the application screen 600.

[0099] To facilitate understanding of the invention, the game system of this embodiment will be described as matching a match candidate with a target player when a match request is submitted to the match candidate, but the implementation of the present invention is not limited to this. For example, in the event that a waiting player loses communication while waiting for a match request, or in the event that a waiting player declines a match request in a mode in which the waiting player can choose whether to accept the match request, the application screen 600 may be controlled to continue displaying until the matching is completed (information on the matching result is received) and terminated upon completion of the matching. In this case, to prevent duplicate match requests from being sent, the application screen 600 may be controlled so that an operation input to select a match candidate 601 is not accepted after the match request is sent.

[0100] Note that because matching requests may be received from multiple player terminals 100 at the same time, the waiting players change from moment to moment. Therefore, the server control unit 201 may update the information about the matching candidates, for example, at predetermined time intervals, and periodically transmit the information to the player terminals 100. When the player terminal 100 used by the target player receives information about new matching candidates, the display content of the application screen 600 is updated. Here, if the target player is displaying detailed information about one of the matching candidates when receiving the information about the matching candidates, it is presumed that the target player is considering a match with that matching candidate, and therefore the control unit 101 may retain the information about the matching candidates that was previously received, and may perform control so as not to change the display content of the application screen 600.

[0101] [Variation 4] In the above-described second embodiment, similar to the first embodiment, candidate players are extracted based on matching criteria based on the most recent players and the leader card of the deck. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, in an embodiment in which player information is managed by including attribute information such as game level, number of plays, and player rank based on game results, matching criteria related to the similarity of attribute information with the target player may be further included. The matching criteria require that the attribute information of a player who is a candidate for the target player is similar to the attribute information of the target player. Here, whether the attribute information is similar may be determined by, for example, whether the difference in game level, number of plays, or rank is below a predetermined threshold. This configuration increases opportunities for players with similar playing skills to compete against each other, thereby increasing player interest in competitive games.

[0102] In such an aspect, to facilitate a favorable game development for a target player who voluntarily requests a match, the information on matching candidates may be configured to include waiting players of the same rank as the target player or waiting players of a lower rank than the target player. Alternatively, the information on matching candidates may include waiting players of a higher rank than the target player, but the information on matching candidates may be configured so that there are more waiting players of a lower rank than the target player compared to the number of waiting players of the higher rank and the same rank.

[0103] [Embodiment 3] In the above-described embodiment and modified examples, a matching process was mainly described that targets all logged-in players. However, since players use the service at various times and have different playing styles (play frequency and playing time periods) for competitive games, differences in playing skill among players are bound to occur. Therefore, in a game mode that performs matching processing targeting all players, if a significant difference in playing skill exists between players, this may reduce interest in the competitive game, especially among players with lower playing skill. For this reason, the competitive game of this embodiment includes a rank matching mode, which realizes more engaging matching and makes it easier to match players with similar playing skill levels.

[0104] <Class Match Mode> In the class match mode, players are awarded class points based on their performance in the match game, and the player's class is determined based on the accumulated number of points awarded. The match game in the class match mode is basically configured to match players classified in the same class with each other. In other words, in the class match mode, players are separated by class, and the matching process is controlled to match players within the same class.

[0105] In one embodiment, six ranks are provided, for example, in descending order of rank: bronze, silver, gold, platinum, master, and god. Each rank has a set number of rank points (point threshold: minimum number of points for each rank) required to be classified into that rank, with higher ranks having higher required rank points. That is, a player's rank is determined by identifying the maximum point threshold that the player's cumulative number of awarded rank points exceeds, and then determining the rank corresponding to that maximum point threshold. For example, in an embodiment in which the bronze point threshold is set to 0, the silver point threshold is set to 10,000, the gold point threshold is set to 30,000, the platinum point threshold is set to 50,000, the master point threshold is set to 70,000, and the god point threshold is set to 90,000, a player with 55,000 cumulative awarded rank points will be ranked platinum.

[0106] When a player wins a competitive game, the server control unit 201 determines whether to award a fixed number of rank points to the player and updates the attribute information of the player information. At this time, the server control unit 201 compares the cumulative number of rank points awarded after the update with the threshold value for each rank and determines the new rank to which the player will be classified. On the other hand, if the player loses or draws in the competitive game, the server control unit 201 does not award rank points to the player, and does not update the attribute information of the player information.

[0107] Therefore, in the rank matching mode, players who win more competitive games are generally awarded more rank points, and the accumulated number of rank points increases, resulting in the player being classified into a higher rank. In other words, ranks in the rank matching mode correspond to parameters that evaluate the playing skill of each player. Rank information in the rank matching mode may be managed by including it as attribute information in the player information for each player, and the server control unit 201 acquires the rank information and determines opponents in the matching process related to the rank matching mode. This configuration makes it easier for players with high playing skills to be classified into higher ranks, thereby providing a competitive game experience that is more interesting and ensures fairness.

[0108] <Bet Function> In a mode in which a fixed number of rank points are awarded for winning a competitive game, a player needs to play and win a considerable number of competitive games before being classified into an appropriate rank (a rank in which many players with similar playing skills exist). In other words, in this mode, the more skilled a player is, the more wins and plays are required before being classified into an appropriate rank. However, because the amount of time available for game play varies depending on the player's environment, it may not be possible to guarantee a suitable playing experience for some players.

[0109] For this reason, the competitive game of this embodiment provides a betting function in the rank match mode as a mechanism for making it easier for players to be classified into appropriate ranks regardless of the number of times they have played. The betting function allows players to earn additional rank points as an additional reward if they win a competitive game. More specifically, the betting function allows a player to bet at least a portion of the rank points currently associated with the target player on the target player's own victory in a competitive game executed based on the target player's matching request. The betting function awards the target player rank points (also known as a payout) based on the number of rank points bet (also known as a bet amount / chips, hereinafter referred to as a bet element) if the target player wins the competitive game, in addition to the fixed number of rank points. In other words, the more rank points the target player bets as a bet element, the greater the additional reward the target player can receive if they win a competitive game. Therefore, by actively using the betting function, players with high playing skills can more quickly increase their accumulated rank points and more easily reach an appropriate rank.

[0110] Here, in order to ensure fairness between players, bets on bet elements using the bet function are accepted only until matching is performed in the matching process. Furthermore, if a target player loses a competitive game, the rank points bet as bet elements will no longer be awarded to the target player. In other words, in a competitive game using the bet function, the bet elements related to the target player are associated with the target player but are temporarily managed as being held by the server 200, and the treatment of the association changes depending on the outcome of the competitive game.

[0111] More specifically, if the target player wins the competitive game, the bet element is returned to the target player's granted state while maintaining its association with the target player, and the target player is further awarded additional reward rank points. On the other hand, if the target player loses the competitive game, the bet element is released from association with the target player, the target player is placed in a state where no bet element is granted (a state where the bet element has been lost), and no additional reward rank points are granted. Note that if the target player draws in the competitive game, the bet element is returned to the target player's granted state while maintaining its association with the target player, and no additional reward rank points are granted.

[0112] The rank points of the additional reward are set to an amount smaller than the bet elements so as to prevent the number of players classified into higher ranks from increasing too much. Preferably, the ratio (dividend rate) of the amount of rank points awarded as the additional reward to the amount of bet elements may be set to be smaller as the amount of bet elements increases.

[0113] Since the cumulative number of awarded rank points for a target player may change depending on the process of awarding or associating these rank points related to a fighting game using the betting function, the server control unit 201 determines the rank into which the target player should be classified when there is a change in the cumulative number of awarded ranks. That is, if the target player wins a fighting game using the betting function, more rank points will be awarded, and the target player may be classified (promoted) into a higher rank than the current rank. On the other hand, if the target player loses a fighting game using the betting function, some rank points will be lost, and the target player may be classified (demoted) into a lower rank than the current rank.

[0114] In other words, although the betting function requires the target player to take a risk, it makes it easier for the target player to reach an appropriate rank and can provide an exciting and entertaining playing experience of a competitive game.

[0115] In the battle game of this embodiment, the number of rank points that each player can bet using the betting function is described as being configured to be selectable from a predetermined amount or a predetermined unit of options, rather than being able to specify an arbitrary value by the player. The betting screen that accepts the specification of bet elements can be configured to allow selection from options 701a-f, including not betting, as shown in FIG. 7 . In the example of FIG. 7 , if the target player's cumulative points are currently 85,000 and 5,000 points are bet on the selected option 701a, a win in the battle game will grant the target player 1,000 fixed points upon victory and an additional reward of 4,000, bringing the cumulative points to 90,000 and the player's rank to God. Furthermore, a loss will result in the loss of the 5,000 bet element, bringing the cumulative points to 80,000.

[0116] Here, the options that can be specified as the amount of rank points to be bet will be described as changing depending on the rank into which the target player is classified in order to ensure game balance and prevent rank fluctuations. That is, in the example of Figure 7, options 701a-e are shown because the target player's rank is Master. However, for example, option 701a may not be selectable or may be controlled not to be displayed for Platinum, the next lower rank. Furthermore, to prevent the cumulative number of awarded points from becoming negative, the designation of a bet element is controlled to be acceptable only if the target player has already been awarded the amount of rank points that is being designated.

[0117] (Display of bet details) When matching is completed for players using the betting function, bet elements are displayed in a manner that allows all players participating in the competitive game to see them on a game start screen that notifies two competing players, as shown in Fig. 8. Displaying such bet elements can serve as an indicator of each player's enthusiasm for the competitive game, thereby increasing players' motivation for playing the game and enhancing its enjoyment.

[0118] In addition, depending on the total amount of bet elements of the two players in a competitive game, the display effects on the game start screen and the game screen during the competitive game may be varied by adding cheers or confetti, etc., to increase the excitement of the competitive game.

[0119] In this embodiment, details of the matching process will be omitted, but from the perspective of utilizing the effect of increasing interest depending on the number of such bet elements, in a matching method such as that of embodiment 1, for example, for a matching request related to a player who has a bet element with a predetermined amount of rank points or more, such as a so-called high-value bet, the matching process can be configured to use matching criteria for matching players who are betting under similar conditions.

[0120] <Rank Determination Process> The rank determination process executed in the server 200 of this embodiment in the rank match mode will be specifically described below using the flowchart in Figure 9. The process corresponding to this flowchart can be realized by the server control unit 201 reading out a corresponding processing program stored in, for example, the server storage device 202, and deploying and executing it in the server memory 203. Note that this rank determination process will be described as being initiated when, for example, a termination condition for a competitive game played in the rank match mode in one of the communication sessions is satisfied. In addition, in the description of this rank determination process, the competitive game for which the termination condition is satisfied will be referred to as the "target game."

[0121] In S901, the server control unit 201 selects, as a target player, one player who has participated in the target game and whose new rank after the target game has not yet been determined.

[0122] In S902, the server control unit 201 determines whether or not the target player has used the betting function related to the target game. If the server control unit 201 determines that the target player has used the betting function, it proceeds to S903, and if it determines that the target player has not used the betting function, it proceeds to S905.

[0123] In S903, the server control unit 201 determines rank points as an additional reward to be awarded to the target player based on the match result of the target player in the target game and the bet element related to the opposing player. If the match result of the target player is a win, the server control unit 201 determines an additional reward in an amount corresponding to the bet element and awards it to the target player. That is, the server control unit 201 executes processing to update the player information of the target player and changes the cumulative number of awarded rank points to a value obtained by adding the amount of the additional reward. Furthermore, if the match result of the target player is a draw or a loss, the server control unit 201 determines the additional reward to be 0. In this case, since the cumulative number of awarded points of the target player remains unchanged, the server control unit 201 only determines that the additional reward is 0 and does not need to execute processing to update the player information of the target player.

[0124] In S904, the server control unit 201 determines and executes the treatment of the bet elements that have been in a held state for the target player based on the match result of the target player in the target game. If the match result of the target player is a win or a draw, the server control unit 201 maintains the association of the bet elements with the target player and changes the bet elements from a held state to an awarded state for the target player. At this time, since there is essentially no change in the cumulative awarded number of the target player, the server control unit 201 may only perform processing to cancel the held state and not update the player information of the target player. Furthermore, if the match result of the target player is a loss, the server control unit 201 cancels the association of the bet elements with the target player and puts the target player in a state where they have lost the bet elements. That is, the server control unit 201 performs processing to update the player information of the target player and changes the cumulative awarded number of rank points to a value obtained by subtracting the bet elements.

[0125] In S905, the server control unit 201 determines rank points as a normal reward based on the match result of the target player in the target game. If the match result of the target player is a win, the server control unit 201 awards the target player with a normal reward (a fixed value of rank points). That is, the server control unit 201 executes processing to update the player information of the target player and changes the cumulative number of awarded rank points to a value obtained by adding a fixed value. Furthermore, if the match result of the target player is a draw or a loss, the server control unit 201 determines the normal reward to be 0. In this case, since the cumulative number of awarded ranks of the target player remains unchanged, the server control unit 201 simply determines that the normal reward is 0, and does not need to execute processing to update the player information of the target player.

[0126] In S906, the server control unit 201 determines a new rank to which the target player will be classified based on the cumulative number of rank points currently awarded to the target player. More specifically, the server control unit 201 compares the cumulative number of rank points awarded to the target player with a point threshold to determine a new rank to which the target player will be classified. After determining a new rank to which the target player will be classified, the server control unit 201 updates the player information of the target player.

[0127] In S907, the server control unit 201 determines whether new ranks for all players who participated in the target game have been determined after the target game. If the server control unit 201 determines that new ranks have been determined for all players, it completes this rank determination process, but if it determines that no ranks have been determined, i.e., if there are any players for whom a rank has not been determined, it returns the process to S901.

[0128] As described above, the information processing device of this embodiment can provide a suitable game playing experience regardless of the number of times a player has played. That is, a player with high playing skill can more easily be promoted to an appropriate rank where he or she can compete against players with similar playing skill, thereby avoiding the occurrence of matches with players of different playing skill levels in lower ranks.

[0129] [Variation 5] In the above-described third embodiment, when a target player loses a competitive game using a betting function, the target player's rank may be demoted in response to the deduction of rank points. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Demotion is undesirable for players, and players in lower ranks such as silver and gold may lose motivation to play the game. For this reason, demotion due to the deduction of rank points may be performed only if the target player's rank is higher than a predetermined rank, such as master or higher. In other words, for a player in a rank below platinum, for example, even if the deduction of rank points causes the player's rank to fall below the point threshold for that rank, the player may maintain his or her current rank rather than being demoted to a lower rank.

[0130] In the third embodiment, when a target player wins a competitive game using the betting function, the player is immediately promoted if the increased rank points exceed a point threshold associated with a higher rank. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Regarding promotion, if the player exceeds a point threshold, the target player may be granted the right to challenge a promotion battle to determine whether or not he or she can be promoted to the corresponding rank, and may be promoted if his or her performance in the promotion battle satisfies the promotion conditions. Promotion battles may be competitive games against players of the same rank, for example, and the target player may be promoted if he or she wins more than half of a predetermined number of competitive games. Here, the predetermined number of times may vary depending on the rank, and may be adjusted so that the higher the rank, the greater the predetermined number of times, and the more difficult it is to achieve the promotion conditions.

[0131] [Variation 6] In the above-described third embodiment, a configuration was described in which the designation of the number of rank points to be used as a bet element was accepted from among options of a predetermined amount or a predetermined unit, but the implementation of the present invention is not limited to this. For example, if the total number of rank points awarded to the target player is less than the minimum amount that can be designated as a bet element by the player, all of the rank points awarded to the target player may be designated as a bet element (so-called all-in). Alternatively, to increase the player's interest, the all-in option may be designated regardless of the total number of rank points awarded.

[0132] [Variation 7] In the above-described third embodiment and variation, an aspect in which rank points can be designated as a bet element has been described, but the implementation of the present invention is not limited to this. For example, in an aspect in which a player is awarded other types of game elements in addition to rank points, or in an aspect in which a player is awarded other types of game elements instead of rank points, the betting function may be configured to allow the player to designate these other types of game elements as bet elements. In such an aspect, the types of game elements that a player can designate as bet elements may change depending on the rank to which the player is classified. Furthermore, in an aspect in which the types of game elements that can be designated as bet elements change depending on the rank, the higher the player's classified rank, the more game elements that are set to have a higher value in the competitive game can be designated as bet elements, and the more interesting the competitive game can be by configuring the game elements to be obtainable by, for example, winning.

[0133] [Variation 8] In the above-described embodiment and variation, various aspects have been described regarding the multiple types of matching criteria used to match a target player who has made a matching request or to extract a player as a matching candidate. However, it goes without saying that these matching criteria may be used in different combinations, and the priority of each matching criterion may also be changed as appropriate based on other factors such as the content of the competitive game or rank.

[0134] One embodiment of such a combination is shown in Figure 10. The table shown in Figure 10 illustrates multiple types of matching criteria and their priorities that are referenced in the matching process for the above-mentioned ranking match mode battle game. Each row in the table indicates, for one matching criterion, the extraction conditions associated with that matching criterion, the prerequisites for applying that matching criterion, and the priority of that matching criterion among multiple types of matching criteria. As shown in the figure, the matching criterion shown in the upper row has a higher priority, and is a matching criterion that is more likely to meet the conditions when extracting a waiting player associated with the target player.

[0135] In the example of Figure 10, the top priority condition is that players who have faced the target player in the last 10 matches will not be matched, and conditions related to the target player's rank, bet elements, and the leader card in the deck are also set.

[0136] The conditions related to the target player's rank are set differently depending on whether the target player is classified as God, the highest rank, or any other rank. More specifically, if the target player's rank is God, the matching criteria with a lower priority are set so that the target player is matched with waiting players ranked ±50th from the target player's rank, but if no such waiting players exist, the criteria are relaxed to waiting players ranked ±200th, and then waiting players with a God rank. On the other hand, if the target player's rank is other than God, the matching criteria with a lower priority are set so that the target player is matched with waiting players of the same rank, but if no such waiting players exist, the criteria are relaxed to waiting players classified as ±1, and then waiting players classified as ±2.

[0137] Furthermore, the matching criteria for the deck's leader card, such as that it must not be the same leader card as the deck used by the player most recently played against the target player, or the same leader card as the target player's battle deck, are based on the premise that the target player's rank must be other than God. This is because, at God, the highest rank, battles between players of that rank involve a great deal of strategy, and individual playing skills are considerable, so exchanges can unfold that are not based on advantages or disadvantages in deck compatibility.

[0138] Furthermore, the conditions for the bet element are set as a prerequisite that the bet element bet by the target player must be equal to or greater than a predetermined amount. This not only increases the interest of the competitive game by pitting players who have placed so-called high bets against each other, but also produces the following effects: For example, even if a player with high playing skills attempts to engage in gameplay (so-called smurfing) by repeatedly placing high bets using a sub-account in order to fraudulently manipulate the results or accumulated awards, such behavior can be deterred by configuring the system to match players with waiting players in a higher rank who are more likely to place high bets.

[0139] [Summary of the Embodiments] The above-described embodiments disclose at least the following programs, information processing devices, and game systems.

[0140] (1) A program that causes a computer that matches players in a competitive game in which players compete against each other to execute the following: a first receiving process that receives a matching request of the player from a communication terminal used by the player; a matching process that matches the player corresponding to the matching request with another player based on the received matching request; and a control process that controls players to be matched in the matching process, wherein the control process controls so that a second player who was most recently matched with the first player is not matched with the first player corresponding to the matching request in the matching process.

[0141] (2) The program described in (1), wherein the control process controls so that the first player and the second player can be matched again, on the condition that a player other than the second player has been matched with the first player a predetermined number of times after matching with the second player.

[0142] (3) The program according to (2), wherein attribute information is associated with each player, and the predetermined number of times is determined based on the attribute information associated with the first player and the attribute information associated with the second player.

[0143] (4) The program described in (3), wherein the attribute information includes a numerical value that changes as the competitive game is played, and the predetermined number of times is determined to be a value that increases as the difference between the attribute information associated with the first player and the attribute information associated with the second player increases.

[0144] (5) The program described in any one of (1) to (4), wherein the control process controls the first player and the second player so that they can be matched again, on the condition that a predetermined time has elapsed since the second player was matched.

[0145] (6) The program described in any one of (1) to (5), wherein the competitive game progresses using game elements for the competition registered for each player, the game elements including a first type of game element and a second type of game element; the matching request includes information on the game elements for the competition registered for the player corresponding to the matching request; and the control process controls to execute the matching process based on the matching request, on condition that information on the first type of game element is included in the matching request as information on the game elements for the competition.

[0146] (7) The program according to (6), wherein the game elements for the battle include one game element of the first type and a plurality of game elements of the second type.

[0147] (8) The program according to (6) or (7), wherein the control process performs control so that players whose matching requests include information about different first type game elements are matched with each other with priority.

[0148] (9) The program according to any one of (1) to (8), further causing the computer to execute a second receiving process for receiving a service login request from a player for a service related to the competitive game; a management process for managing the player corresponding to the service login request as being in a logged-in state in response to receiving the service login request; and a sending process for sending player information about another player in the logged-in state different from the logged-in player to a communication terminal used by the logged-in player, wherein the matching request includes specification information for specifying one of the other players included in the player information as an opponent, and in the matching process, the player specified by the specification information is matched with the player corresponding to the matching request, and the control process controls the sending process so that the player information including information about a first type of player that can be matched with the first player is sent to the communication terminal used by the first player.

[0149] (10) The program described in (9), wherein the control process controls the transmission process so that the player information, including information on the first type of player and information on a second type of player that cannot be matched with the first player, is transmitted to a communication terminal used by the first player, and the identification information identifies one of the first type of players.

[0150] (11) The program according to (10), wherein the player information includes detailed information about the first type of player but does not include detailed information about the second type of player.

[0151] (12) The program according to any one of (9) to (11), wherein attribute information is associated with each player, and the first type of player is a player associated with the attribute information similar to that of the first player.

[0152] (13) The program described in (12), wherein the attribute information includes rank information indicating a player's rank that changes as the player plays the competitive game, and the first type of player is a player associated with the rank information indicating a rank that is the same as or lower than that of the first player.

[0153] (14) The program described in (12), wherein the attribute information includes rank information indicating a player's rank that changes as the competitive game is played, and the control process controls the transmission process so that the player information is transmitted so that the first type of player information includes a larger number of players associated with rank information indicating a rank lower than that of the first player than the number of players associated with rank information indicating a rank higher than that of the first player.

[0154] (15) The program according to any one of (9) to (14), wherein the control process controls the transmission process so that the player information updated at predetermined time intervals is transmitted.

[0155] (16) An information processing device that matches players for a competitive game in which players compete against each other, comprising: a receiving means that receives a matching request of a player from a communication terminal used by the player; a matching means that executes a matching process that matches the player corresponding to the matching request with another player based on the matching request received by the receiving means; and a control means that controls players to be matched in the matching process, wherein the control means controls the first player corresponding to the matching request so that a second player who was most recently matched with the first player is not matched with the first player in the matching process.

[0156] (17) A game system including a communication terminal used by a player and an information processing device that matches players for a competitive game in which players compete against each other, wherein the communication terminal comprises: a first transmission means that transmits a player matching request; and an execution means that executes the competitive game, and the information processing device comprises: a first reception means that receives a player matching request from the communication terminal; a matching means that executes a matching process that matches a player corresponding to the matching request with another player based on the matching request received by the first reception means; and a control means that controls players to be matched in the matching process, and the control means controls so that a second player who was most recently matched with the first player is not matched with the first player corresponding to the matching request in the matching process.

[0157] (18) The information processing device further includes: a second receiving means for receiving a player's service login request from the communication terminal for a service related to the competitive game; a management means for managing the player corresponding to the service login request as being in a logged-in state in response to the second receiving means receiving the service login request; and a second transmitting means for transmitting player information related to another player in the logged-in state different from the logged-in player to the communication terminal used by the logged-in player, wherein the first transmitting means transmits the matching request including identification information identifying one of the other players included in the player information as an opponent, and the matching means matches the player identified by the identification information with the player corresponding to the matching request in the matching process, and the control means controls the second transmitting means to transmit the player information including information of a first type of player that can be matched with the first player to the communication terminal used by the first player.

[0158] (19) The game system described in (18), wherein the player information includes information of multiple players, the communication terminal further includes: a display control means for displaying the information of the multiple players included in the player information on a display means; and a selection means for accepting a selection of an opponent from among the multiple players displayed on the display means, and the first transmission means transmits the matching request including the identification information identifying the player selected as the opponent by the selection means.

[0159] (20) The game system described in (19), wherein the control means controls the second transmission means so that the player information, including information on the first type of player and information on a second type of player who cannot be matched with the first player, is transmitted to a communication terminal used by the first player; the display control means displays the first type of player and the second type of player on the display means in different display modes; and the selection means accepts a selection of an opponent from among the first type of player.

[0160] (21) The game system according to (20), wherein the display control means causes the display means to display the second type of player in a smaller size than the first type of player.

[0161] (22) The game system described in (20) or (21), wherein the player information includes detailed information about the first type of player but does not include detailed information about the second type of player, and the display control means causes the display means to display detailed information about the first type of player in response to an operation input, but does not cause the display means to display detailed information about the second type of player in response to an operation input.

[0162] (23) The game system described in (22), wherein the control means controls the second transmission means so that the updated player information is transmitted at predetermined time intervals, and the display control means, when receiving the updated player information, changes the display content of the display means based on the updated player information.

[0163] (24) The game system described in (23), wherein the display control means does not change the display content of the display means when updated player information is received during a period in which detailed information about the first type of player is displayed on the display means.

[0164] (25) The game system according to any one of (19) to (24), wherein the display control means terminates the display of the plurality of players based on the player information on the condition that matching has been achieved by the matching means.

[0165] (26) The game system described in any one of (19) to (25), wherein the communication terminal further includes means for acquiring geographic information associated with the communication terminal, and the display control means displays the plurality of players based on the player information against a background of a map image corresponding to the geographic information.

[0166] Other Embodiments The invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and variations are possible within the scope of the gist of the invention.

[0167] 100: Player terminal, 101: Control unit, 102: Storage device, 103: Memory, 104: GPU, 105: Operation I / F, 106: Communication I / F, 110: Display, 120: Speaker, 200: Server, 201: Server control unit, 202: Server storage device, 203: Server memory, 204: Server communication I / F, 300: Network

Claims

1. A program that causes a computer that matches players in a competitive game in which players compete against each other to execute the following: a first receiving process that receives a matching request from a communication terminal used by the player; a matching process that matches the player corresponding to the matching request with another player based on the received matching request; and a control process that controls players to be matched in the matching process, wherein the control process controls so that a second player who was most recently matched with the first player corresponding to the matching request is not matched in the matching process.

2. The program according to claim 1, wherein the control process controls so that the first player and the second player can be matched again on the condition that a player different from the second player has been matched with the first player a predetermined number of times after the first player has been matched with the second player.

3. The program described in claim 2, wherein each player is associated with attribute information, and the predetermined number of times is determined based on the attribute information associated with the first player and the attribute information associated with the second player.

4. The program described in claim 3, wherein the attribute information includes a numerical value that changes as the competitive game is played, and the predetermined number of times is determined to be a value that increases as the difference between the attribute information associated with the first player and the attribute information associated with the second player increases.

5. The program according to claim 1, wherein the control process controls the first player and the second player so that they can be matched again, provided that a predetermined time has elapsed since the second player was matched.

6. The program of claim 1, wherein the competitive game is progressed using game elements for the competition registered for each player, the game elements including a first type of game element and a second type of game element, the matching request includes information on the game elements for the competition registered for the player corresponding to the matching request, and the control process controls to execute the matching process based on the matching request, on the condition that information on the first type of game element is included in the matching request as information on the game elements for the competition.

7. The program according to claim 6, wherein the game elements for the battle include one game element of the first type and a plurality of game elements of the second type.

8. The program according to claim 6, wherein the control process controls so that players whose matching requests contain information about different first type game elements are matched with each other with priority.

9. The program further causes the computer to execute the following processes for receiving a service login request from a player for a service related to the competitive game: a second receiving process for receiving a service login request from the player; a management process for managing the player corresponding to the service login request as being in a logged-in state in response to receiving the service login request; and a transmission process for transmitting player information about another player in the logged-in state different from the logged-in player to a communication terminal used by the logged-in player; the matching request includes specific information for identifying one of the other players included in the player information as an opponent; in the matching process, the player specified by the specific information is matched with the player corresponding to the matching request; and the control process controls the transmission process so that the player information including information about a first type of player that can be matched with the first player is transmitted to the communication terminal used by the first player.

10. The program described in claim 9, wherein the control process controls the transmission process so that the player information, which includes information on the first type of player and information on a second type of player that cannot be matched with the first player, is transmitted to a communication terminal used by the first player, and the identification information identifies one of the first type of players.

11. The program of claim 10, wherein the player information includes detailed information about the first type of player but does not include detailed information about the second type of player.

12. The program according to claim 9, wherein attribute information is associated with each player, and the first type of player is a player associated with attribute information similar to that of the first player.

13. The program described in claim 12, wherein the attribute information includes rank information indicating a player's rank that changes as the competitive game is played, and the first type of player is a player associated with rank information indicating a rank that is the same as or lower than that of the first player.

14. The program described in claim 12, wherein the attribute information includes rank information indicating a player's rank that changes as the competitive game is played, and the control process controls the transmission process so that the player information is transmitted so that the number of players associated with rank information indicating a rank lower than that of the first player is greater than the number of players associated with rank information indicating a rank higher than that of the first player.

15. The program according to claim 9, wherein the control process controls the transmission process so that the updated player information is transmitted at predetermined time intervals.

16. An information processing device that matches players for a competitive game in which players compete against each other, comprising: a receiving means that receives a matching request from a player from a communication terminal used by the player; a matching means that executes a matching process that matches the player corresponding to the matching request with another player based on the matching request received by the receiving means; and a control means that controls players to be matched in the matching process, wherein the control means controls the information processing device so that a second player who was most recently matched with the first player corresponding to the matching request is not matched with the first player in the matching process.

17. A game system including a communication terminal used by a player and an information processing device that matches players for a competitive game in which players compete against each other, wherein the communication terminal comprises: a first transmission means that transmits a player matching request; and an execution means that executes the competitive game, and the information processing device comprises: a first reception means that receives a player matching request from the communication terminal; a matching means that executes a matching process that matches a player corresponding to the matching request with another player based on the matching request received by the first reception means; and a control means that controls players to be matched in the matching process, wherein the control means controls the matching process so that a second player who was most recently matched with the first player corresponding to the matching request is not matched with the first player.

18. The information processing device further comprises: second receiving means for receiving a player's service login request from the communication terminal for a service related to the competitive game; management means for managing the player corresponding to the service login request as being in a logged-in state in response to the second receiving means receiving the service login request; and second transmitting means for transmitting player information regarding other players in the logged-in state different from the logged-in player to the communication terminal used by the logged-in player, wherein the first transmitting means transmits the matching request including identification information specifying one of the other players included in the player information as an opponent, and the matching means matches the player specified by the identification information with the player corresponding to the matching request in the matching process, and the control means controls the second transmitting means so that the player information including information on a first type of player that can be matched with the first player is transmitted to the communication terminal used by the first player.

19. The game system described in claim 18, wherein the player information includes information on a plurality of players, the communication terminal further comprises: a display control means for displaying the information on the plurality of players included in the player information on a display means; and a selection means for accepting a selection of an opponent from among the plurality of players displayed on the display means, and the first transmission means transmits the matching request including the identification information identifying the player selected as the opponent by the selection means.

20. The game system described in claim 19, wherein the control means controls the second transmission means so that the player information, including information on the first type of player and information on a second type of player who cannot be matched with the first player, is transmitted to a communication terminal used by the first player; the display control means displays the first type of player and the second type of player on the display means in different display modes; and the selection means accepts a selection of an opponent from among the first type of players.

21. A game system according to claim 20, wherein said display control means causes said display means to display said second type of player in a smaller size than said first type of player.

22. A game system as described in claim 20 or 21, wherein the player information includes detailed information about the first type of player but does not include detailed information about the second type of player, and the display control means causes the display means to display detailed information about the first type of player in response to an operation input, but does not cause the display means to display detailed information about the second type of player in response to an operation input.

23. A game system as described in claim 22, wherein the control means controls the second transmission means so that the updated player information is transmitted at predetermined time intervals, and the display control means, upon receiving the updated player information, changes the display content of the display means based on the updated player information.

24. A game system as described in claim 23, wherein the display control means does not change the display content of the display means when updated player information is received during the period in which detailed information about the first type of player is displayed on the display means.

25. A game system according to claim 19, wherein the display control means terminates the display of the plurality of players based on the player information on the condition that matching has been achieved by the matching means.

26. A game system as described in claim 19, wherein the communication terminal further comprises means for acquiring geographic information associated with the communication terminal, and the display control means displays the plurality of players based on the player information against a background of a map image corresponding to the geographic information.

Images