Player-side Cache for Reducing Game Data Transmission Time
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing video game technologies face significant time and cost delays due to the extensive data transmission required for rendering virtual environments, especially in sophisticated games accessed remotely over networks.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that utilize caching and version identification to efficiently manage virtual world data transmission by storing initial game data locally and transmitting only differences when updates occur, allowing for reduced data transfer and faster game access.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If virtual world data is transmitted from server to player's appliance, then the player can play the game, but significant time delay and cost occur due to extensive data transmission
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by transmitting and storing the complete virtual world data initially when the player first accesses the game. This initial data transfer ensures that all necessary game assets, textures, and world data are available locally on the player's appliance before actual gameplay begins, eliminating repeated large data transmissions during subsequent play sessions.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a local copy of the virtual world data on the player's appliance instead of continuously transmitting data from the server. This cached copy allows the player to access game resources locally without repeated network transfers, significantly reducing both time delay and transmission cost during ongoing play.
2Reliability
If complete virtual world data is transmitted for each game session, then the player has all necessary data, but transmission cost increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs the complete data transmission and storage action during the initial game setup phase. By completing the data transfer beforehand when the player first selects a game, the system ensures data completeness for that session without requiring repeated complete transmissions for subsequent sessions.
Solution Approach 2:
The system discards the need for repeated complete data transmissions by maintaining a local cache of the virtual world data. Instead of re-transmitting all data for each game session, the system recovers and reuses the previously transmitted data from the player's appliance storage, significantly reducing ongoing transmission costs.
3Adaptability or versatility
If data is transmitted for every game selection, then the player gets updated data, but time delay increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system maintains a local copy of the virtual world data on the player's appliance that can be updated independently of continuous network transmission. This cached copy serves as the base version, allowing the player to access game data immediately without waiting for server updates, while still maintaining adaptability through selective updates when changes occur.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements dynamic data management where the cached data can be selectively updated when server changes occur. Instead of static repeated transmissions, the system dynamically updates only necessary portions of the cached data, balancing adaptability to server changes with minimal time delay through efficient update mechanisms.
Data Source
AI summary
A method includes steps of opening a link between a player's appliance and a network-connected server providing games, selecting a game to play by the player through an interface provided to the player's appliance by the server, transmitting virtual world data by the server to the player's appliance, along with a version identification, storing the virtual world data and associated version identification in a cache at the player's appliance, playing the game by the player using the player's appliance, and suspending play of the game by the player.