JP5934964B2 - Game machine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a gaming machine, and more particularly, to a gaming machine capable of inserting an additional effect into a main effect that is an effect of notifying the result of a hit determination.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a gaming machine that notifies a player of a result of a hit determination that is a determination as to whether or not a hit game that is advantageous to the player is executed using a display unit that displays an image is widely known. When the game ball passes through the start port provided on the game board, a hit determination is performed, and an effect pattern is determined according to the determination result. As a result of the hit determination, the display means executes an effect (hereinafter referred to as “main effect”) that is confirmed and displayed after changing the plurality of symbols displayed on the display means. To the player. In this gaming machine, it is necessary to appropriately control the processing timing such as the start / end timing of the production and the start / end timing of the winning game. Furthermore, it is also necessary to synchronize the control timings of the display means, speakers, light emitters, etc. constituting the effect. Therefore, the production time must be grasped as appropriate.

  There is also a gaming machine that performs an additional effect (a so-called “cut-in effect”) that is an effect to be added to the main effect while the main effect is being executed, thereby diversifying the effect. However, if the main effect and the additional effect are executed in parallel, a part of the main effect is blocked by the additional effect, so that there is a problem that the connection of the main effect before and after the additional effect is lost.

  Therefore, a gaming machine has been proposed in which an image of a main effect is temporarily stopped in the middle, an additional effect is inserted in the meantime, and the main effect is resumed after the end of the additional effect (for example, see Patent Document 1). According to this gaming machine, a part of the main effect is not blocked by the additional effect. Therefore, diversification of the effects using the additional effects is realized without impairing the connection of the main effects before and after the additional effects.

JP 2007-44198 A

  However, in the gaming machine described in Patent Document 1, an additional effect cannot be inserted unless a predetermined condition such as start of reach effect is established. Therefore, the player can predict the timing at which the additional effect is executed, and the effect cannot be sufficiently diversified. Further, in order to determine the effect time of the main effect, even if the main effect pattern to be executed is determined, the time of the entire effect changes according to the effect time of the additional effect to be inserted. Therefore, it is difficult to grasp the production time at the start of production, and the timing of various processes cannot be easily synchronized.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and a game that can easily diversify effects by inserting additional effects at various timings during the main effect while synchronizing the timings of various processes. The purpose is to provide a machine.

In order to achieve the above object, the gaming machine according to claim 1 executes a winning game that is advantageous to the player, triggered by a start port provided on the game board and detection of a game ball by the start port. A hit determination means for determining whether or not to perform, a main effect pattern storage means for storing a plurality of main effect patterns which are main effect effects patterns indicating the determination result of the hit determination means, respectively, according to the determination results; Main effect pattern determining means for determining one of a plurality of main effect patterns; and main image data storage means for storing a plurality of main image data as image data of the main effect corresponding to the main effect patterns; In accordance with the main effect pattern, an insertion frequency determining means for determining the number of insertions of the additional effect to be inserted into the main effect, and a plurality of additional image data as image data of the additional effect. Additional image data storage means for storing, additional image data selection means for selecting one or a plurality of the additional image data in accordance with the number of insertions determined by the insertion number determination means, and the additional effect as the main effect. When selecting one or a plurality of insertion timings to be inserted as a base point for inserting the additional image data into the main image data, and when inserting the additional image data into the main image data, Effect control means for inserting the additional image data into the base point selected by the base point selection means among the base points, and the plurality of main image data stored in the main image data storage means An insertion timing at which image data can be inserted is configured to be divided into a plurality of base points, and the plurality of main image data can be divided. The audio data is also divided in the same manner, and the base point selecting means inserts the additional effect when the number of the base points of the main image data is different from the number of insertions of the additional effect. Is determined by lottery, and the number-of-insertion determining means determines that the number of insertions of the additional effect is determined to be a hit for executing the winning game by the hit determining means. It is characterized by determining so that it may increase rather than the case where it is determined that the game is not executed .

  Further, in the gaming machine according to claim 2 of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the invention according to claim 1, the base point selecting means includes the number of the base points of the main image data and the insertion of the additional effect. When the number of times coincides, all the base points are selected as the base points into which the additional image data is inserted.

  A gaming machine according to claim 3 of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the invention according to claim 1 or 2, governs the main control of the game, and at least the hit determination means, the main effect pattern determination means, and An additional effect time determining means for determining an additional effect time that is an effect time of the additional effect to be inserted into the main effect; a main control means for transmitting a signal according to control; at least the main image data storage means; An additional image data storage unit, and an effect control unit, and a sub-control unit that controls execution of the effect by a signal received from the main control unit.

  In addition to the configuration of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 3, the gaming machine according to claim 4 of the present invention includes the additional image data stored in the additional image data storage means, The additional image data is divided into a plurality of pieces of inserted image data that can be inserted into one base point, and each of the divided inserted image data is continuous with the preceding and following inserted image data. When the additional image data is inserted into the plurality of base points, the production control means includes the insertion image data when inserting the insertion image data into each of the base points in order. It inserts in each said base point in order.

  Further, in the gaming machine according to claim 5 of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the invention according to claim 3, the additional effect time determination means is responsive to the number of insertions determined by the insertion number determination means. The additional production time is determined, and the base point selection unit selects the same number of base points as the number of insertions determined by the insertion number determination unit.

  The gaming machine according to claim 6 of the present invention has the above-mentioned upper limit of the number of insertions determined by the insertion number determining means in addition to the configuration of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 5. It differs according to the said main production pattern determined by the outgoing pattern determination means.

  Further, in the gaming machine according to claim 7 of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 6, the insertion number determining means is determined by the main effect pattern determining means. The determination ratio of the number of insertions is changed according to the main performance pattern.

According to the gaming machine of the first aspect, when the hit determination is performed, the main effect pattern for determining the main effect pattern indicating the result of the hit determination is determined according to the result of the hit determination. Then, the number of additional effects to be added to the main effect is determined. One or a plurality of additional image data corresponding to the determined number of insertions of additional effects is selected. One or a plurality of insertion timings at which the additional effect is inserted into the main effect are selected as base points for inserting the additional image data into the main image data. Additional image data is inserted at the selected base point, and images of the main effect and the additional effect are displayed on the display means. Therefore, it is possible to insert additional effects at various timings during the main effect when starting the effect. In addition, since the effect is controlled by combining the main image data and the additional image data, more effects than the number of main effect patterns can be executed. Therefore, since it is not necessary to store the image data of all types of effects separately, the effects can be easily diversified without reducing the storage capacity and increasing the processing load. Further, unlike the case where the main effect and the additional effect are executed in parallel, the additional effect does not block the main effect, so that the player can enjoy all of the series of main effects. The gaming machine of the present invention stores main image data that can be divided into a plurality of pieces based on the insertion timing at which the additional effect is inserted, and inserts the additional effect at the base point. Therefore, when an additional effect is inserted in the middle of the main effect, various effects can be executed only by alternately displaying the divided main image data and the additional image data. That is, unlike the case where the main image is temporarily stopped and the additional image is displayed, it is not necessary to control the display of a plurality of types of images at the same time, so that various effects can be easily controlled. Further, the additional image data is inserted into one or a plurality of base points selected by the base point selection unit among the plurality of base points provided in the main image data. Furthermore, when the number of base points of the main image data is different from the number of insertions of additional effects, the base point selection unit determines a base point for inserting additional image data by lottery. Therefore, it becomes difficult for the player to predict when the additional effect is inserted, and the player can enjoy the effect while always expecting the additional effect to be inserted. Moreover, since an additional effect can be inserted into a plurality of base points, the effect can be further diversified. In addition, when the determination result by the hit determination means is a win, it is determined that the number of additional effects to be inserted is larger than when the determination result is out of order, so that the player inserts a lot of additional effects. You can enjoy the game while expecting.

  Further, in the gaming machine according to claim 2 of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the invention according to claim 1, the base point selecting means matches the number of base points of the main image data and the number of insertions of the additional effect. In this case, it is determined to insert the additional image data at all of the base points. Therefore, it is possible to easily diversify the effects by inserting additional effects at the insertion timing during the main effects.

  Further, in the gaming machine according to claim 3 of the present invention, the main control means controls the main control of the game, and determines the main effect pattern and the additional effect time which is the effect time of the additional effect. In other words, the main control means determines the time for the production composed of the main production and the additional production. The sub-control unit inserts an additional effect for the additional effect time determined by the main control unit into the main effect corresponding to the main effect pattern determined by the main control unit, and causes the display unit to display an image. Therefore, in addition to the effect of the invention described in claim 1 or 2, the processing load of the main control means that controls the main control of the game can be reduced, and the processing timing can be reduced between the main control means and the sub-control means. The production can be easily diversified while synchronizing.

  The gaming machine according to claim 4 of the present invention is divided into a plurality of pieces of inserted image data that can be inserted at one base point, and each inserted image data is continuous with the preceding and following inserted image data. The divided additional image data which is the additional image data having the property is stored. When the additional image data is inserted into a plurality of base points, the divided inserted image data is sequentially inserted into the base points. Therefore, in addition to the effect of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 3, the additional effect itself can be given continuity, and the player's interest can be more strongly attracted. Also, as additional effects are inserted at a number of base points, continuous additional effects are executed longer, so the player can play a game while expecting additional effects to be inserted at more timings. I can enjoy it.

  In addition to the effects of the invention according to claim 3, the gaming machine according to claim 5 of the present invention determines the additional effect time and selects a base point for inserting the additional effect according to the determined number of insertions. It can be performed. Therefore, processing can be easily performed according to the number of insertions of additional effects.

  Further, in the gaming machine according to claim 6 of the present invention, the number of insertions of the additional effects determined by the number-of-insertions determination unit is determined depending on which is the main effect pattern determined by the main effect pattern determination unit. The upper limit is different. Therefore, in addition to the effect of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 5, the maximum number of additional effects to be inserted can be changed according to the type of main effect to be executed. The content of the main effect (for example, the expected degree of winning) can be estimated from the number of times. Therefore, the player can enjoy the game while paying attention to the number of additional effects inserted.

  Further, in the gaming machine according to claim 7 of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 6, which is the main effect pattern determined by the main effect pattern determining means Accordingly, the determination ratio of the number of insertions can be changed. Accordingly, it is possible to cause the player to guess the content of the main effect (for example, the expected degree of winning) from the number of insertions of the additional effect to be executed. Therefore, the player can enjoy the game while paying attention to the number of additional effects inserted.

1 is a front view of a pachinko machine 1. FIG. 2 is a front view of the game board 2. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the pachinko machine 1. FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing a storage area of a RAM 52 of a main board 41. FIG. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the jackpot relation information storage area 5205 of RAM52. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing a storage area of a ROM 53 of a main board 41. FIG. It is a conceptual diagram showing a main effect pattern determination table stored in a main effect pattern storage area 5305 of ROM53. It is a conceptual diagram showing an additional effect insertion number determination table stored in a determination table storage area 5306 of ROM53. 32 is a conceptual diagram showing a storage area of a CGROM 432 of the effect control board 43. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a part of main image data stored in a CGROM 432; FIG. It is a schematic diagram which shows a part of additional image data which CGROM432 has memorize | stored. 4 is a flowchart of main processing in the main board 41. It is a flowchart of a subroutine of special symbol processing executed in the main processing. It is a flowchart of a subroutine of special symbol processing executed in the main processing. 5 is a flowchart of sub integrated substrate processing in a sub integrated substrate 58. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of the alerting | reporting effect in the pachinko machine 1. FIG. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the production | presentation determination table in the pachinko machine of a modification.

  Hereinafter, a pachinko machine 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, with reference to FIG.1 and FIG.2, the physical structure of the pachinko machine 1 is demonstrated.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a game board 2 is provided in the upper half of the front surface of the pachinko machine 1 to which a game ball launched from a launcher (not shown) flows by operating the launch handle 7. The game board 2 is substantially square (see FIG. 2), and is protected by a front frame 13 holding a transparent glass plate. In the lower part of the game board 2, an upper plate 5 is provided for supplying game balls to the launcher and receiving prize balls. A lower tray 6 that receives a prize ball is provided directly below the upper plate 5, and a launch handle 7 that adjusts the launch of the game ball is provided on the right side of the lower plate 6. Further, speakers 48 are respectively provided on the left and right corners above the front frame 13. The front frame 13 is provided with a large number of lighting lamps for production.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a substantially circular game area 4 surrounded by a guide rail 3 is formed on the front surface of the game board 2. In the approximate center of the game area 4, there is provided a symbol display device 8 having a display screen 28 which is an LCD, effect lamps 31 to 33, LEDs and the like. A normal symbol start gate 12 is provided on the left side of the symbol display device 8. Further, a special symbol starting electric accessory 15 is disposed below the symbol display device 8, and a special prize opening 16 is provided below the special symbol starting electric accessory 15. Further, the normal winning ports 17 and 19 are provided on the left side of the big winning port 16, and the normal winning ports 18 and 20 are provided on the right side. In addition to the above, the game board 2 is provided with various illumination lamps, other illumination LEDs, windmills, and many obstacle nails.

  Next, the symbol display device 8 will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, the symbol display device 8 includes a display screen 28 in the center. Various images such as moving images and messages are displayed on the display screen 28. In order to particularly notify the player of the result of the jackpot determination, the display screen 28 is provided with three demo symbol display portions side by side. . When a game ball wins the special symbol starting electric accessory 15, a jackpot determination is performed, and an effect (hereinafter referred to as “notification effect”) is performed in which three demo symbols are changed and stopped while displaying various images. . By displaying the same demo symbols on the three demo symbol display sections, the player is notified that the result of the jackpot determination is a win.

  In addition, a special symbol display unit 25 configured by two 7-segment LEDs and a normal symbol display unit 24 configured by one LED are provided at the lower right of the display screen 28. The special symbol display unit 25 displays a special symbol composed of alphabets, numerals, or a combination thereof in order to notify the player of the result of the jackpot determination. The timing for starting and confirming the change of the demo symbol described above coincides with the timing for starting and stopping the change of the special symbol. Further, in the normal symbol display section 24, the lighting state indicates a normal winning, the unlit indicates a normal winning loss, and the blinking state indicates that the result of the normal winning determination will be notified from now on. It is said that.

  In addition, a special symbol memory number display LED 60 and a normal symbol memory number display LED 59 constituted by two LEDs are disposed at the lower right of the special symbol display unit 25 and the normal symbol display unit 24. The special symbol memory number display LED 60 displays the number of game balls for which the jackpot determination result has not yet been displayed, that is, the so-called special symbol operation hold ball number, and the normal symbol memory number display LED 59 displays the normal symbol operation hold ball number. . Then, only the lower side of the two LEDs indicates that the number of reserved balls is “1”, that both are “2”, the lower side flashes “3”, and both flashes indicate “4”. In addition, a first effect lamp 31, a second effect lamp 32, and a third effect lamp 33 are arranged in order from the left above the display screen 28.

  Next, the outline | summary of the game and effect in the pachinko machine 1 of this Embodiment is demonstrated. In the pachinko machine 1, when a game ball wins the special symbol start electric accessory 15, a big hit determination is performed on a main board 41 (see FIG. 3) described later. Then, a notification effect for notifying the player of the result of the jackpot determination is executed. If the jackpot is a jackpot game, and if it is off, the next jackpot determination is executed. The player pays attention to the notification effect performed by the display screen 28, the speaker 48, and the like, expecting to be a big hit. Therefore, if the contents of the notification effect are diversified, the player's interest in the game can be more strongly attracted.

  In conventional pachinko machines, notification effect patterns are determined in advance, and a plurality of image data corresponding to each pattern is stored. And according to the result of jackpot determination, the pattern of the notification effect to perform is determined and an image is displayed based on the image data corresponding to the determined pattern. Therefore, in the conventional pachinko machine, the contents of the notification effect are diversified by increasing the number of the notification effect patterns and the number of image data corresponding to the patterns.

  In addition, since the main board of the pachinko machine is responsible for the main control of the game, it is necessary to perform accurate and quick processing. Therefore, it is not desirable to increase the processing load on the main board, and the upper limit of the processing capacity of the main board is actually set by the rules regarding gaming machines. Therefore, in a conventional pachinko machine, the contents of jackpot determination and notification effect are determined on the main board, the determined contents are notified to the sub board, and processing such as image display control is performed on the sub board. This reduces the processing burden on the main board.

  However, even if the processing is shared between the main board and the sub board, if the number of notification effect patterns and the number of image data is increased, the processing burden on both the main board and the sub board will increase. Conventionally, only the same number of notification effects as the number of stored image data can be executed, which is inefficient. Further, when the main substrate and the sub substrate are used, it is necessary to synchronize the processing performed by the main substrate and the processing performed by the sub substrate. In order to reduce the possibility of fraud on the main board, transmission of information from the sub board to the main board is restricted. Therefore, in order to synchronize, the sub board must follow the production time and the production content determined in advance by the main board. Under these restrictions, it is difficult to efficiently diversify the production while synchronizing the processing between the main board and the sub board.

  In the pachinko machine 1, the notification effect is configured by combining the main effect and the additional effect. The main effect is an effect indicating the result of the jackpot determination. An additional effect (a so-called “cut-in effect”) is an effect executed in the middle of the main effect. In the pachinko machine 1, the main board 41 determines the pattern of the main effect, the time of the main effect, and the time of the additional effect, and notifies the determined content to the sub integrated board 58 (see FIG. 3). The sub-integrated board 58, the effect control board 43, and the lamp driver board 46 execute various combinations of the main effects and the additional effects based on the notified contents while synchronizing the processing with the main board 41. be able to. Thereby, production can be diversified easily. Details of this will be described later.

  Next, the electrical configuration of the pachinko machine 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 40 includes a main board 41, a power supply board 42, an effect control board 43, a payout control board 45, a lamp driver board 46, a relay board 47, and a sub-integrated board 58. This control part 40 is provided in the back side (back side) of the pachinko machine 1 (refer FIG. 1).

  First, the main substrate 41 will be described. The main board 41 that performs main control of the pachinko machine 1 is provided with a main board CPU unit 50 that performs various processes according to a program. The main board CPU unit 50 includes a CPU 51 for performing various arithmetic processes, a RAM 52 for temporarily storing values of data generated during the arithmetic processes, an initial control program, various data, and other boards. And a ROM 53 that stores commands and the like for instructing these, and these are integrally molded as one LSI. An interrupt signal generation circuit 57 is connected to the main board CPU unit 50, and the CPU 51 stores a control program stored in the ROM 53 every time an interrupt signal is input from the interrupt signal generation circuit 57. Execute.

  Further, the main board 41 is provided with an I / O interface 54, and sub-boards such as a sub-integrated board 58, a payout control board 45, and a relay board 47, and a game ball that has won a prize for the special symbol starting electric machine 15. Is connected to a start port switch 70 for detecting Further, the I / O interface 54 of the main board 41 is connected to an output port 55 for outputting information of the pachinko machine 1 to a game hall management computer (not shown).

  Next, the payout control board 45 and the relay board 47 will be described. The payout control board 45 incorporates a CPU 45 a, an input interface (not shown), a RAM and a ROM, and is connected to a prize ball payout device 49. Then, according to the command transmitted from the main board 41, the prize ball payout device 49 is controlled. The relay board 47 has a normal symbol operation switch 71 for detecting the passing of the game ball to the normal symbol start gate 12, a special winning opening opening solenoid 72 for opening / closing the opening / closing member of the special winning opening 16, and a special symbol starting. An electric accessory opening solenoid 73 for opening / closing the opening / closing member of the electric accessory 15, a big prize opening switch 75 for detecting a gaming ball won in the big prize opening 16, and a game ball winning in the normal prize opening 17 to 20 Are connected to a normal symbol opening switch 76, a normal symbol display unit 24, a special symbol display unit 25, a normal symbol memory number display LED 59, and a special symbol memory number display LED 60. The relay board 47 relays wiring of switches and solenoids and relays from the main board 41 to a display unit or the like that is directly controlled. In addition, when a game ball wins the special symbol starting electric accessory 15, the big winning opening 16, and the normal winning openings 17 to 20, a predetermined number of gaming balls are paid out.

  Next, the sub integrated board 58, the effect control board 43, and the lamp driver board 46 will be described. The sub integrated board 58 is provided with a CPU 581, a RAM 582, and a ROM 583, and is connected to the effect control board 43, the lamp driver board 46, and the speaker 48. Then, in accordance with a command transmitted from the main board 41, comprehensive control such as production is performed. The effect control board 43 includes a CPU 431, a CGROM 432 for storing image data, a ROM, a RAM (not shown), and the like, and controls the display screen 28. The lamp driver board 46 incorporates a CPU 46a, an input interface (not shown), RAM and ROM, and three effect lamps 31 to 33 are connected thereto. And based on the command transmitted from the sub integration board | substrate 58, light emission of the production lamps 31-33 is controlled.

  Next, the power supply substrate 42 will be described. The power supply board 42 is connected to the main board 41 and the game ball launching device 37, and supplies DC stabilized power to each board and the game ball launching device 37. The game ball launching device 37 includes a launching motor (not shown), a touch sensor provided on the launching handle 7, a launching device stop switch, a firing strength adjustment volume, and the like. The game ball launching device 37 has a fixed interval (in this embodiment, 0.6 seconds). ) Launch one game ball into the game area 4 every time.

  Next, the storage area of the RAM 52 of the main board 41 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, in the RAM 52, it is determined whether or not a game ball has won a prize in each winning opening such as a counter storage area 5201 for storing various counters, a normal symbol start gate 12, a special symbol start electric accessory 15 and the like. A winning ball flag storage area 5202 for storing a flag to indicate, a normal hit relation information storage area 5203 for storing a random number acquired when a game ball passes through the normal symbol start gate 12, and a normal number for storing a normal symbol operation reserved ball number Symbol actuated ball number storage area 5204, jackpot relation information memory area 5205 for storing random numbers acquired when winning a game ball to the special symbol starting electric player 15, special symbol actuated hold for storing the number of special symbol actuated balls Control commands output to the ball number storage area 5206, the main board 41, the sub-integrated board 58, the payout control board 45, the relay board 47, etc. Command relation storage area 5207 to the flag relation storage area 5208 for storing various flags. Further, the RAM 52 is provided with various storage areas not shown.

  Next, each counter stored in the counter storage area 5201 of the RAM 52 will be described. The counter stored in the RAM 52 includes a random number acquisition counter for acquiring a random number, a timer counter for measuring time, a winning ball counter for counting the number of winning balls, and the like.

  First, the random number acquisition counter will be described. Examples of the random number acquisition counter include a normal hit determination counter, a big hit determination counter, a big hit special symbol determination counter, a main effect pattern determination counter, an insertion number determination counter, and the like. The values of these counters are determined at regular intervals (for example, in the counter update process of the main process (S12, see FIG. 12)) that is executed based on the interrupt signal from the interrupt signal generation circuit 57 (see FIG. 3). , A predetermined amount (for example, “1”) is added every 2 ms which is an interval of interrupt signal generation. Each counter has a minimum value (lower limit value) and a maximum value (upper limit value), and is configured to circulate in a numerical value in a range from the minimum value to the maximum value. Then, every time the value is rounded to the same value as the initial value by the update, a new initial value is acquired, and “1” is added to the initial value. For the determination of the new initial value, a random number generated by an initial value random number process for generating a random number by a predetermined algorithm is used. These random number acquisition counters are used in the normal symbol processing (S16, see FIG. 12) and special symbol processing (see FIG. 13 and FIG. 14) of the main process described later.

  Next, the timer counter will be described. The timer counter is a counter used for measuring time, and a predetermined value is stored as an initial value at the start of time measurement. For example, when measuring 1 second, “500” is stored as an initial value. Then, “1” is subtracted by “1” in the counter update process (S12, see FIG. 12) performed every 2 ms, which is the interval of interrupt signal generation. If the value is not “0”, the value is “ It is determined that the predetermined time has passed by becoming “0”.

  Next, the winning ball counter will be described. The winning ball counter is used to count the number of game balls that have won the big winning opening 16 while the big winning opening 16 performs one opening / closing operation. The initial value of this counter is “0”, and is incremented by “1” every time a winning is detected in a switch reading process (S11, see FIG. 12) of the main process described later. Then, it is initialized when the special winning opening 16 is closed.

  Next, the jackpot relation information storage area 5205 will be described with reference to FIG. This jackpot relation information storage area 5205 is used in a special symbol process (see FIGS. 13 and 14) of the main process described later. As shown in FIG. 5, the jackpot relation information storage area 5205 is provided with a determination area and first to fourth storage areas. In the first to fourth memory areas, random numbers acquired by the game balls (special symbol operation holding balls) that have won the special symbol starting electric accessory 15 and have not yet been notified of the result of the jackpot determination are stored. . The determination area stores information on the result of the jackpot determination that is currently being performed and random numbers that are the basis of the jackpot game.

  In each of the determination area and the first to fourth storage areas, a jackpot random number field in which the value of the jackpot determination counter is stored, a jackpot special symbol determination random number field in which the value of the jackpot special symbol determination counter is stored, and a main effect pattern A main effect pattern determination random number column in which the value of the determination counter is stored, and an insertion number determination random number column in which the value of the insertion number determination counter is stored are provided. Then, when the game ball passes through the special symbol starting electric accessory 15, each value is stored in a storage area corresponding to the value of the special symbol operation reserved ball number storage area 5206 of the RAM 52, and the jackpot determination, jackpot is based on this value Are determined, the main effect pattern is determined, and the number of additional effects to be inserted is determined. Then, when the processing for the value stored in the determination area is completed, the value stored in the first storage area is shifted to the determination area, and processing such as the next jackpot determination is performed based on this value. Accordingly, each value in the second to fourth storage areas is shifted to a young storage area with one number. Here, the number of storage areas is four. In other words, the number of game balls that have won the special symbol starting electric accessory 15 can store a random number and can hold the operation is four. Accordingly, the upper limit of the number of special symbol operation reserved balls is four, and the value of the special symbol operation reserved ball number storage area 5206 does not take a value larger than “4”. In the ordinary hit relation information storage area 5203 of the RAM 52, similarly, a determination area and first to fourth storage areas are provided so that information on four game balls can be held.

  Next, the storage area of the ROM 53 of the main board 41 will be described with reference to FIG. The ROM 53 has an initial setting storage area 5301 for storing initial values stored in the respective storage areas when the pachinko machine 1 is reset, and a control program for storing various programs for the CPU 51 to control the pachinko machine 1. A storage area 5302, a control command table storage area 5303 for storing a table of control commands output from the main board 41 to each sub-board, and a special symbol combination pattern storage area for storing a combination of special symbols to be displayed on the special symbol display unit 25 5304, a main effect pattern storage area 5305 for storing information such as a table related to a main effect pattern of a demo symbol, a jackpot determination, a normal hit determination, a determination of a special symbol, a determination of the number of insertions of an additional effect, etc. Judgment table storage area for storing various tables 306 and the like are provided. Further, the ROM 53 is provided with various storage areas not shown.

  Next, the main effect pattern determination table stored in the main effect pattern storage area 5305 of the ROM 53 will be described with reference to FIG. The main effect pattern is a pattern for determining the effect time of the main effect during the notification effect and the operation of the display screen 28 and the speaker 48 during the main effect. The main board 41 determines the main effect pattern by the main effect pattern determination table. Further, according to the determined main effect pattern, the additional effect insertion number determination table (see FIG. 8) is referred to, and the number of additional effect insertions inserted during the main effect is determined. The main effect pattern determination table includes a table used during the normal state and a table used during the time reduction state. However, since the main parts of these configurations are the same, only the main effect pattern determination table used in the normal state will be described below. The short-time state is a gaming state in which the number of jackpot determinations made per unit time is greater than that in the normal state.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the main effect pattern determination table includes two tables depending on the result of jackpot determination (big hit or miss). In each table, the value of the main effect pattern determination random number and the main effect pattern are associated with each other. The main effects of the present embodiment include a reach effect in which two of the three demo symbols are the same symbol (reach state), and a reach non-establishment that stops a symbol that is not in a reach state and that shows a detachment as it is. Is provided. When the determination result is a big hit, the reach effect is always executed. Further, in the case of a big hit, random numbers are associated so that the executed ratio becomes higher in the order of “normal reach”, “long reach”, “super A”, “super B”, “super C”. . On the contrary, the execution rate is set so that “Super C” is lower. Thereby, when each main performance is performed, the ratio (the expectation degree of the jackpot) which becomes a big hit is changed for every main production, and the player's interest is attracted. The production time of the main production is predetermined for each main production pattern.

  Next, the additional effect insertion number determination table stored in the determination table storage area 5306 of the ROM 53 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 8, the additional effect insertion frequency determination table includes a plurality of tables corresponding to the main effect pattern. In each table, the value of the insertion number determination random number is associated with the number of insertions of additional effects. Thereby, the upper limit and the lower limit of the number of additional effect insertions and the determination ratio of the number of insertions are set for each main effect pattern.

  For example, when the determination result is a big hit, the lower limit of the number of insertions of additional effects in “long reach” is “0”, the upper limit is “1”, and the lower limit of the number of insertions in “Super C” is “1”. The upper limit is “3”. The ratio of jackpots is higher when “Super C” is executed than when “Long Reach” is executed. Therefore, the player can enjoy the effect in expectation that more additional effects will be inserted, and can also estimate the degree of expectation of jackpot from the number of additional effects. For “Super A”, the upper limit of the number of insertions is “3” only in the case of a big hit. Therefore, the player can recognize that it is a big hit when the additional effect is inserted three times into the main effect of “Super A”.

  In addition, when “long reach” is executed, if the determination result is a big hit, the rate at which the additional effect is inserted is 3/4, but if the determination result is out of order, the additional effect is inserted. The ratio is a quarter. In the present embodiment, the random number and the number of additional effect insertions are associated with each other so that the number of additional effect insertions increases in the case where it is determined that the other main effect pattern is a big hit. Thereby, the expectation degree which becomes a big hit can be estimated from the frequency | count of insertion of an additional effect. The player can enjoy the game while expecting many additional effects to be inserted.

  Next, the image data stored in the CGROM 432 of the effect control board 43 will be described with reference to FIGS. The CGROM 432 of the effect control board 43 is a storage medium that stores image data. As shown in FIG. 9, the CGROM 432 includes a main image data storage area 4311 and an additional image data storage area 4312. The main image data storage area 4311 stores image data of a main image (hereinafter referred to as “main image data”) that is a main effect image. In the additional image data storage area 4312, image data of an additional image that is an additional effect image (hereinafter referred to as “additional image data”) is stored.

  In the main image data storage area 4311, as shown in FIG. 10, main image data corresponding to each main effect pattern is stored. For example, when the main board 41 is determined to execute the “normal reach” main effect, the determined content is notified to the sub-integrated board 58 and further to the effect control board 43. The effect control board 43 displays an image on the display screen 28 based on the main image data (1) of “normal reach”. As a result, on the display screen 28, the demo symbols enter the reach state through the high speed fluctuation and the low speed fluctuation, the normal reach effect is performed, and the combination of the demo symbols indicating the jackpot determination result is confirmed and displayed.

  The main image data includes divided main image data divided into a plurality of points based on the insertion timing at which the additional effect is inserted. For example, the main image data (2) is divided into an image “A” that is an image before the base point “1” and an image “B” that is an image after the base point “1”. It is data. The main image data (2) constitutes a series of effects by the images “A” and “B”, and when no additional effects are inserted, a series of “long reach” effects are executed as they are. An additional effect can also be inserted into “1”.

  The main image data (3) corresponding to “Super A” is divided into four images “A” to “D”, and the base point between the images “A” and “B” is the base point “1”. ”,“ B ”, and“ C ”are base points“ 2 ”, and“ C ”and“ D ”are base points“ 3 ”. Although details will be described later, the sub integrated board 58 determines the base point for inserting the additional effect by lottery when the number of insertions of the additional effect is smaller than the number of base points, determines the display order of the image data, The effect control board 43 is notified. The effect control board 43 displays the divided main image data and additional image data on the display screen 28 in the notified display order.

  The additional image data storage area 4312 stores a plurality of additional image data divided into three as shown in FIG. Each divided additional image data becomes insertion image data inserted between main image data. Each additional effect is composed of three steps, and the three steps are continuous. The content of this continuity can be set as appropriate. For example, continuity in which one story is formed in three steps may be used, or continuity in which a character grows as the next step is advanced. In the present embodiment, the additional image data is classified into one of a plurality of groups, and the additional image data in the same group is related to each other. Specifically, a plurality of additional image data in the same group has regularity such as the commonality of stories and the use of the same pattern / character image, etc., and changes in time series. It is also possible. In this embodiment, the production time of one step is all 3 seconds, and is inserted during the main production in the order of a, b, and c.

  Next, details of the operation of the main board 41 of the pachinko machine 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. The control of the pachinko machine 1 is performed by a control program stored in the control program storage area 5302 of the ROM 53. The main process of the control program is executed by the CPU 51 when the CPU 51 senses an interrupt signal generated by the interrupt signal generation circuit 57 (see FIG. 3). Since the interrupt signal is generated at regular intervals (2 ms in the present embodiment), the main process is repeatedly executed every 2 ms. Hereinafter, each step of the flowchart is abbreviated as “S”.

  First, main processing performed on the main board 41 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 12, when the main process is started by sensing an interrupt signal, first, a command output process is performed (S10). In this command output process, a control command is output to the sub-integrated board 58, the payout control board 45, the relay board 47, etc. via the I / O interface 54. The control command includes a command for instructing the determined main effect pattern, a command for instructing the number of insertions of the determined additional effect, a command for instructing the timing to stop the special symbol, a command for informing the start of the jackpot game, etc. There are many commands. The control command output here is a control command stored as an output command in the command relation storage area 5207 of the RAM 52 in the main process executed last time.

  Next, a switch reading process is performed (S11). In this switch reading process, a process for detecting a winning of a game ball in the normal symbol starting gate 12, the special symbol starting electric accessory 15, the normal winning ports 17 to 20, and the big winning port 16 is performed. Specifically, it is determined whether or not a game ball is detected by each switch (see FIG. 3) provided at these winning openings, and if a game ball is detected, a winning ball flag storage area of the RAM 52 is detected. A flag corresponding to each switch stored in 5202 is turned ON. Further, the number of game balls won during one opening of the big winning opening 16 is counted by a winning ball counter. At the start of the switch reading process, all the flags in the winning ball flag storage area 5202 are reset.

  Next, a counter update process is performed (S12). As described above, in this counter update process, each value of the random number acquisition counter stored in the counter storage area 5201 of the RAM 52 is added by a predetermined amount, and each value of the timer counter is subtracted by a predetermined amount.

  Next, special electric accessory processing is performed (S13). In the special electric accessory process, a command for instructing the opening / closing operation of the big prize opening 16 is performed during the big hit game. Also, at the end of the jackpot game, processing of a flag (short / middle flag) for causing a time-short state is performed according to the type of special symbol that is the basis of the jackpot game.

  Next, special symbol processing is performed (S14). In this special symbol processing, processing such as jackpot determination, determination of main effect pattern, instruction, determination of the number of insertions of additional effects (effect time of additional effects), instruction, instructions for start and end of symbol variation, and the like are performed. This special symbol process will be described later with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS.

  Next, ordinary electric accessory processing is performed (S15). In this ordinary electric accessory process, when a normal hit is achieved, a process for facilitating winning a game ball by opening the opening / closing member of the special symbol starting electric accessory 15 for a predetermined time is performed. It should be noted that the opening time of the special symbol starting electric member 15 once is longer in the short time state than in the normal state.

  Next, normal symbol processing is performed (S16). In the normal symbol process, when the game ball passes through the normal symbol start gate 12, the value of the normal hit determination counter is acquired as a normal hit random number. Then, a normal hit determination is performed based on the acquired random number, and a process of displaying the determination result on the normal symbol display unit 24 is performed. In addition, the fluctuation time of the normal symbol displayed on the normal symbol display unit 24 is shorter in the short time state than in the normal state.

  Next, a payout process (S17) for paying out prize balls and an error check (S18) are performed. If an error has occurred in the pachinko machine 1, an error is displayed on the display screen 28 or an error sound is generated on the speaker 48. Therefore, an error command to be transmitted to the sub-integrated board 58 in the command output process of S10 is stored in the command relation storage area 5207 of the RAM 52. Next, in the information output process (S19), various kinds of information such as jackpot information, starting information, etc. of the pachinko machine 1 are output via the output port 55 to a game hall management computer (not shown). When the information output process ends, the main process ends. When the interrupt signal is received from the interrupt signal generation circuit 57, the main process is executed again from the beginning.

  Next, details of the special symbol process (S14) of the main process will be described with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. As described above, in the special symbol processing, processing such as jackpot determination, determination of main production pattern, instruction, determination of the number of insertions of additional production (production time of additional production), instruction, instructions for start and end of variation of design, etc. Is done.

  First, the flags used in the special symbol process will be described. In the flag-related storage area 5208 of the RAM 52, a special symbol display state flag, a jackpot gaming state flag, a short time flag, and the like are stored. The special symbol display state flag is a flag indicating the state of the special symbol display unit 25, and is “1” when the special symbol display unit 25 is fluctuating (fluctuating), and when it is stopped (during stop display). ) Stores “2”, and “0” is stored when the state is neither variable nor stopped. The special symbol change and stop display timings displayed on the special symbol display unit 25 coincide with the demo symbol change and stop display timings. In the jackpot game state flag, “1” is stored and “ON” during the jackpot game. Then, “1” is stored in the time reduction flag during the time reduction state, and is set to “ON”.

  As shown in FIG. 13, when the special symbol process of the main process is started, it is determined whether or not a game ball is won in the special symbol starting electric accessory 15 (S21). In the switch reading process (S11, see FIG. 12), when the winning of the game ball to the special symbol start electric accessory 15 is not detected (S21: NO), the process proceeds to S26 as it is.

  When a winning of a game ball to the special symbol starting electric accessory 15 is detected (S21: YES), a process for obtaining a random number for the game ball is performed. However, the number of special symbol actuated balls that can acquire and store random numbers is “4”. Therefore, it is determined whether or not the value of the special symbol operation reserved ball number storage area 5206 in the RAM 52 is “4” (S22). If it is “4” (S22: YES), this game ball Since the random number cannot be stored, the process proceeds to S26.

  When the number of special symbol operation reservation balls is “0” to “3” (S22: NO), “1” is added to the value of the special symbol operation reservation balls number storage area 5206 (S23). . Then, a random number is stored in the storage area of the number corresponding to the value of the special symbol operation reserved ball number storage area 5206 in the jackpot relation information storage area 5205 (see FIG. 5) (S24). Specifically, the value of the jackpot determination counter is in the jackpot random number column, the value of the jackpot special symbol determination counter is in the jackpot special symbol determination random number column, and the value of the main effect pattern determination counter is in the main performance pattern determination random number column. The value of the insertion number determination counter is stored in the insertion number determination random number column.

  Next, it is determined whether or not the game state is a jackpot gaming state (S26). When it is a jackpot game state, the jackpot determination and the notification of the determination result are not performed. Therefore, when the jackpot gaming state flag is “ON” and it is determined that the jackpot gaming state is set (S26: YES), the process directly returns to the main process.

  When the jackpot gaming state flag is “OFF” (S26: NO), since it is not the jackpot gaming state, processing relating to the control of the special symbol display unit 25 and the notification effect is performed. First, it is determined whether or not the special symbol display unit 25 is changing based on the special symbol display state flag (S27). If the special symbol display state flag is not “1” and is not changing (S27: NO), it is determined whether or not the special symbol is being stopped (S28). If the special symbol display state flag is not “2” and the special symbol displayed on the special symbol display unit 25 is not being stopped (S28: NO), a big hit determination is performed.

  Therefore, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 14, it is determined whether or not there is a game ball for which a jackpot determination is to be made (S31). If the value in the special symbol operation reserved ball number storage area 5206 in the RAM 52 is not equal to or greater than “1” (S31: NO), there is no game ball to be subjected to the jackpot determination, and the process directly returns to the main process. If it is “1” or more (S31: YES), there is a game ball for which a jackpot determination is to be made, and therefore the value of the special symbol actuated holding ball number storage area 5206 is subtracted by “1” (S32), and the jackpot relation information is stored. The value stored in area 5205 (see FIG. 5) is shifted. That is, the random number stored in the first storage area is shifted to the determination area, the random number stored in the second to fourth storage areas is shifted to the storage area one number lower, and the value in the fourth storage area Is cleared (S33).

  Next, the jackpot determination table is referred to, and the jackpot determination is performed based on the value of the jackpot random number column (S35). When it is determined that the jackpot is determined to be a jackpot (S39: YES), the jackpot special stored in the special symbol combination pattern storage area 5304 of the ROM 53 is based on the value stored in the jackpot special symbol determination random number column. One of the symbols is determined (S40). Then, the jackpot table in the main effect pattern determination table (see FIG. 7) is referred to, and one of the jackpot main effect patterns is determined based on the value of the main effect pattern determination random number field (S41). Furthermore, the table corresponding to the determined main effect pattern (big hit) is referred to in the additional effect insertion number determination table (see FIG. 8), and the main effect pattern is determined based on the value of the insertion number determination random number field. The number of additional effects “N” is determined (S42).

  If the jackpot is not determined to be a jackpot (S39: NO), a special symbol ("-" in the present embodiment) indicating a loss is determined (S44). Then, a table of outliers in the main effect pattern determination table is referred to, and one of the main effect pattern determination random numbers is determined based on the value in the main effect pattern determination random number field (S45). In addition, the table corresponding to the determined main effect pattern (displacement) in the additional effect insertion number determination table is referred to, and the number of additional effect insertions corresponding to the main effect pattern is determined based on the value of the insertion number determination random number field. “N” is determined (S46).

  Next, the effect time of the additional effect is calculated (S48). As described above, the effect time of the additional effect is 3 seconds for one insertion. Therefore, the effect time of the additional effect is calculated by multiplying the determined number of insertions “N” by 3 seconds, which is the time required for one insertion. Then, the sum of the calculated effect time of the additional effect and the determined effect time of the main effect pattern is calculated, and the variation time of the special symbol, that is, the effect time of one notification effect as a whole is calculated ( S49).

  Next, the calculated variation time is stored in the special symbol variation time counter (S50). Next, a main effect pattern designation command for designating the determined main effect pattern and instructing the start of the notification effect is stored in the command relation storage area 5207 of the RAM 52 (S51). At the same time, the special symbol display unit 25 starts to change. Then, an insertion number designation command for designating the determined number of additional effects to be inserted is stored (S52), and "1" indicating that the special symbol is changing is stored in the special symbol variation state flag ( S53), the process returns to the main process.

  Further, in the determination of S27 shown in FIG. 13, when “1” is stored in the special symbol display state flag and it is determined that the special symbol display unit 25 is changing (S27: YES), the change is made. It is determined whether time has passed (S71). When the value of the special symbol variation time counter set in S50 (see FIG. 14) becomes “0”, the variation time has elapsed (S71: YES), so the special symbol is stored in the command related storage area 5207 of the RAM 52. A stop command is stored (S72). This special symbol stop command is a command for instructing the special symbol display unit 25 to stop changing the special symbol and to end the notification effect performed by the display screen 28 or the like. Then, a predetermined stop display time is stored in the special symbol stop time counter (S73), and “2” indicating that the special symbol is being stopped is stored in the special symbol display state flag (S74). Return to. On the other hand, if the value of the special symbol variation time counter is not “0” and the variation time has not yet elapsed (S71: NO), the variation of the special symbol is continued. Therefore, the special symbol process is terminated as it is, and the process returns to the main process.

  If it is determined in S28 that “2” is stored in the special symbol display state flag and the special symbol display unit 25 is in a stop display (S28: YES), the stop display time is set. It is determined whether or not it has elapsed (S75). If the value of the special symbol stop time counter set in S73 is not “0” (S75: NO), the special symbol process is terminated as it is, and the process returns to the main process. On the other hand, when the counter value is subtracted to “0” in the counter update process (S12, see FIG. 12), the stop display time has elapsed (S75: YES), so that the special symbol display unit 25 “0” indicating that neither stop display nor change is stored in the special symbol display state flag (S76). Then, a short / medium flag process is performed (S77). In the pachinko machine 1, the short time state that occurs after the end of the hit game ends when the big hit determination is performed 100 times. Therefore, in the process of S77, when the jackpot determination is made 100 times during the non-probability fluctuation time-saving state, the processing for setting the time-shortage flag to “0” is performed.

  Next, when it is determined that the jackpot is made in the previous jackpot determination (S78: YES), “1” indicating the jackpot gaming state is stored in the jackpot gaming state flag and is set to “ON” ( In step S79, a jackpot game start command for notifying the sub-integrated board 58 of starting the jackpot game is stored (S80), and the process returns to the main process. On the other hand, if it is not determined to be a big hit (S78: NO), the process directly returns to the main process.

  Next, sub-integrated substrate processing performed on the sub-integrated substrate 58 will be described with reference to FIG. The sub integrated substrate processing is executed by the CPU 581 according to the program stored in the ROM 583. First, it is determined whether or not a main effect pattern designation command has been received (S101). If received (S101: YES), the main effect pattern specified by the command is stored in the RAM 582 (S102). Then, the insertion number designation command transmitted together with the main effect pattern designation command is received, and the number of insertions of the additional effect designated by the command is stored (S103).

  Next, it is determined whether or not the designated number of insertions is 1 or more (S105). When the number of insertions is “0”, that is, when no additional effect is inserted (S105: NO), a process for executing only the main effect as a notification effect according to the designated main effect pattern is performed (S111). ). For example, when the designated main effect pattern is “super A”, the main image data (3) shown in FIG. 10 is directly used as the image “A”, the image “B”, the image “C”, and the image “D”. The commands to be displayed in this order are transmitted to the effect control board 43 that controls the display screen 28. Then, the speaker 48 and the illumination lamp are controlled according to the main effect pattern. Thereby, only the main effect of “Super A” is executed by the display screen 28, the speaker 48, and the like as a notification effect for notifying the result of one jackpot determination. Thereafter, the process returns to the determination in S101.

  When the number of insertions of the designated additional effect is 1 or more (S105: YES), an additional image to be inserted is determined from a plurality of additional images (S106). Then, it is determined whether or not the number of base points of the designated main production pattern matches the designated number of insertions (S107). If they do not match, that is, if the number of insertions is less than the number of base points (S107: NO), a lottery is performed to select a base point for inserting an additional image from a plurality of base points (S108). For example, when three base points from the base point “1” to the base point “3” are provided and the number of insertions is 2, the base points “1” and “2”, the base points “2” and “3”, One of the base points “1” and “3” is selected by lottery. If the number of base points matches the number of insertions (S107: YES), all base points are selected as they are as base points for inserting additional images.

  Next, the display order of the images is determined so that the additional image is inserted at the selected base point (S110). In the present embodiment, the additional image is divided into three, a, b, and c (see FIG. 11), and the additional image is inserted in the order of a, b, and c at the selected base point. The display order of the images is determined. Therefore, when the number of insertions is 1, only the image a is inserted, and when the number of insertions is 2, the images a and b are sequentially inserted at the base point of the main effect. And the process which starts the notification effect according to the determined display order is performed (S111), and a process returns to judgment of S101.

  Note that the sound data of the notification effect stored in the sub-integrated board 58 is also divided in the same manner as the main image data and the additional image data. The CPU 581 of the sub-integrated board 58 causes the speaker 48 to output sound in order according to the determined display order. In addition, the sub-integrated board 58 transmits a command for lighting the first effect lamp 31 to the lamp driver board 46 at the start of displaying the additional image “a”. Further, the second effect lamp 32 is turned on when the display of the additional image “b” is started, and the third effect lamp 33 is turned on when the display of the additional image “c” is started. Thereby, it is possible to give continuity to the additional effect divided and executed during the notification effect, and to attract the player's interest in the additional effect.

  If the main effect pattern designation command has not been received (S101: NO), it is determined whether a special symbol stop command has been received (S113). If it has been received (S113: YES), the notification effect that has been executed is terminated, a process of confirming and displaying the demo symbols on the display screen 28 is performed (S114), and the process returns to the determination of S101.

  If a special symbol stop command has not been received (S113: NO), it is determined whether a jackpot game start command has been received (S116). If it is received (S116: YES), processing for starting the effect during the jackpot game is performed (S117), and the process returns to the determination of S101. If the jackpot game start command has not been received (S116: NO), it is determined whether another command has been received (S119), and if received (S119: YES), depending on the received command Various processes are performed (S120), and the process returns to the determination of S101. If no command has been received (S119: NO), the process directly returns to the determination in S101.

  Next, an example of the processing for the notification effect performed by the pachinko machine 1 and the content of the notification effect will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 16 shows a notification effect when the additional image data (1) (see FIG. 11) is inserted twice into the main image data (3) (see FIG. 10) of “Super A” and the jackpot is shown. Yes.

  When a game ball wins the special symbol start electric accessory 15, the main board 41 is determined to be a big hit by determining a big hit. Then, “Super A” is determined from the main effect pattern of the jackpot. The upper limit of the number of insertions of additional effects for “Super A” is “3”, and the lower limit is “0”, and “2” is determined as the number of insertions. Next, the effect time of the additional effect (2 times × 3 seconds = 9 seconds) is calculated, and the variation time (main effect time 90 seconds + addition effect time 9 seconds = 99 seconds) is calculated, and the determined main effect pattern And the number of insertions are designated for the sub-integrated board 58. Moreover, the main board | substrate 41 starts the fluctuation | variation of the special symbol display part 25 simultaneously with designating the main production | presentation pattern. Special symbols vary for 99 seconds.

  When receiving the designation of the main effect pattern and the number of insertions, the sub integrated board 58 determines the additional image to be inserted because the number of insertions is 1 or more. Next, since the number of base points of “Super A” is 3 (see FIG. 10) and is larger than the number of insertions, two of the three base points are selected as base points for inserting additional images. Then, the display order of the images is determined based on the selection result. In the example illustrated in FIG. 16, the base points “1” and “3” among the base points “1”, “2”, and “3” are selected as the insertion base points. In this case, the display order of the images “A” to “D” of “Super A” and the images “a” and “b” of the additional image data (1) are “A”, “a”, “B”, “C”, “b”, and “D” are determined. Then, a command for displaying images in the determined display order is transmitted to the effect control board 43.

  The effect control board 43 displays images according to the display order designated from the sub-integrated board 58. Then, as shown in FIG. 16, after the demo symbol has reached the reach state through the low speed fluctuation and the high speed fluctuation (image “A”), the additional effect of step 01 is performed (image “a”). While the additional effect is being executed, the main effect is not executed, and when the additional effect in step 01 ends, the image “B” that is a continuation of the image “A” is displayed. Therefore, unlike the case where the main effect and the additional effect are advanced simultaneously, the main image is not blocked by the additional image. In addition, the effect control board 43 only performs a process of reproducing an image in accordance with a designated display order, and it is not necessary to simultaneously process a plurality of image data. That is, it is possible to insert an additional effect more easily than when displaying one image is stopped and the other image is displayed therebetween.

  When the display of the image “B” is finished, the additional effect is not inserted and the image “C” is displayed as it is. When the display of the image “C” is finished, the additional effect of step 02 is performed (image “b”). . Then, at the end of the image “D”, the demo symbol indicating the big hit is confirmed and displayed, and the notification effect is ended.

  As described above, according to the pachinko machine 1 of the present embodiment, the time of the notification effect is grasped at the time when the notification effect is started, and the timing of various processes performed by the plurality of boards is synchronized while the main effect is being performed. Additional effects can be inserted at various timings. In other words, it is possible to produce effects by combining the main image data and the additional image data in various ways while synchronizing the processes. Therefore, various types of notification effects can be executed rather than the number of main effect patterns, and the effects can be easily diversified without pressing the storage capacity and increasing the processing load. Further, unlike the case where the main effect and the additional effect are executed in parallel, the additional effect does not block the main effect, so that the player can enjoy all of the series of main effects.

  Further, the main board 41 determines the main effect pattern and the effect time of the additional effect. The sub control board (the sub integrated board 58 and the effect control board 43) inserts the added effect for the determined effect time into the main effect corresponding to the determined main effect pattern, and displays an image on the display screen 28. Let Therefore, it is possible to easily diversify the notification effect while reducing the processing burden of the main board 41 that controls the main control of the game and synchronizing the processing timing between the main board 41 and the sub-control board. . The effect control board 43 displays the divided main image data and additional image data in order according to instructions from the sub-integrated board 58. That is, unlike the case where the main image is temporarily stopped and the additional image is displayed, it is not necessary to control the display of a plurality of types of images at the same time, so that various effects can be easily controlled.

  Further, the sub-integrated board 58 can select a base point for inserting an additional effect from a plurality of base points provided in the divided main image data. That is, there are a plurality of base points at which an additional effect can be inserted, and it is difficult for the player to predict when the additional effect is inserted. Therefore, the player can enjoy the production while always expecting the additional production to be inserted. In addition, since a plurality of additional effects can be inserted during one notification effect, the effects can be further diversified.

  Moreover, the sub integrated board | substrate 58 inserts the divided | segmented insertion image data in each base point in order, when inserting the additional effect in multiple times in one alerting | reporting effect. The divided inserted image data has continuity with the preceding and following inserted image data. Therefore, continuity can be given to the additional effect itself, and the player's interest can be more strongly attracted. Also, as additional effects are inserted at a number of base points, continuous additional effects are executed longer, so the player can play a game while expecting additional effects to be inserted at more timings. I can enjoy it.

  Moreover, the main board | substrate 41 determines the frequency | count of insertion of an additional effect, when a main effect pattern is determined. Then, the effect time of the additional effect is calculated from the determined number of insertions. Further, the sub-integrated board 58 performs processing such as determination of the display order of images based on the number of times of adding additional effects notified from the main board 41. Therefore, various processes regarding the notification effect can be easily executed based on the number of insertions of the additional effect.

  Further, the upper and lower limits of the number of insertions of additional effects and the determination ratio of the number of insertions differ depending on which of the determined main effects is. Therefore, the content of the main effect (for example, the degree of expectation that is a big hit) can be estimated from the number of insertions of the additional effect. Therefore, the player can enjoy the game while paying attention to the number of additional effects inserted.

  Note that the special symbol start electric accessory 15 in the present embodiment corresponds to the “start opening” of the present invention. The CPU 51 of the main board 41 that performs jackpot determination in S35 of FIG. 14 functions as a “hit determination unit”. The main effect pattern storage area 5305 of the ROM 53 of the main board 41 corresponds to “main effect pattern storage means”. The CPU 51 of the main board 41 that determines the main effect pattern in S41 and S45 of FIG. 14 functions as “main effect pattern determination means”. The CPU 51 of the main board 41 that determines the effect time of the additional effect in S48 of FIG. 14 functions as “additional effect time determining means”. The main image data storage area 4311 of the CGROM 432 of the effect control board 43 corresponds to “main image data storage means”, and the additional image data storage area 4312 corresponds to “additional image data storage means”. The CPU 581 of the sub-integrated board 58 that determines the display order of images in S110 of FIG. 15 and the effect control board 43 that displays the main image and the additional image on the display screen 28 according to the determined display order are “effect control means”. Function.

  The main board 41 corresponds to “main control means”, and the sub integrated board 58 and the effect control board 43 correspond to “sub control means”. The CPU 581 of the sub-integrated board 58 that selects the base point for inserting the additional effect in S108 in FIG. 15 functions as the “base point selection unit”. The CPU 51 of the main board 41 that determines the number of insertions of additional effects in S42 and S46 of FIG. 14 functions as “insertion number determination means”.

  It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described in detail above, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

  Here, a modification of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 17 is a conceptual diagram showing an effect determination table used in a modified pachinko machine. In the effect determination table shown in FIG. 17, the main effect pattern and the number of insertions of the additional effect are associated with each value of the main effect pattern determination random number. Accordingly, by referring to the effect determination table corresponding to the result of the jackpot determination, it is possible to determine both the main effect pattern and the number of additional effects to be inserted. As described above, the method of determining the main effect pattern and the number of insertions of the additional effect can be changed as appropriate.

  In addition, various other modifications can be made to the above embodiment. In the additional effect insertion number determination table (see FIG. 8) of the above embodiment, a table for determining the number of insertions is provided separately for all main effect patterns. However, a common table may be provided for a plurality of main performance patterns. For example, a table used in common for the three main production patterns of “Super A”, “Super B”, and “Super C” indicating the jackpot may be provided. Thereby, a storage capacity and a processing burden can be reduced.

  In the above-described embodiment, the number of insertions of the additional effect is determined, and the effect time of the additional effect is determined based on the determined number of insertions. This makes it easy to process the production time. However, the number of insertions may not be determined, and only the effect time of the additional effect may be determined alone. In this case, instead of performing the process of S48 of FIG. 14, the time of the additional effect is determined according to the main effect in S42 and S46. In step S52, the sub integrated board 58 is notified of the effect time, not the number of insertions. As a result, as in the above-described embodiment, the effects can be diversified while the processing is synchronized between the main board 41 and the other boards.

  Then, the sub-integrated board 58 notified of the time of the additional effect from the main board 41 may perform processing so that the additional effect is inserted only for the notified effect time. For example, a plurality of additional effects such as 1 second, 2 seconds, and 3 seconds are provided. The sub integrated board 58 may determine one or a plurality of additional effects to be executed so that the total time of the additional effects is the same as the effect time notified from the main board 41. In this case, the sub integrated board 58 notified of the additional effect time of 6 seconds can be set to 3 seconds for the first time, 3 seconds for the second time, 1 second for the first time, 2 seconds for the second time, and 3 seconds for the third time. You can also That is, the number of insertions of additional effects can be varied on the sub-integrated board 58 side, and variations of effects are rich. As a result, even when additional effects of the same time are inserted, additional effects can be inserted at various times and in order, so that the player's sense of expectation for the jackpot can be changed, and the player's willingness to play is increased. Can last.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the time of one additional effect inserted is all fixed to 3 second, the time of additional effect does not need to be fixed. For example, the time of the additional effect inserted at the first time is 1 second, the second time is 3 seconds, and the third time is 5 seconds. In this case, if the number of insertions is 1, the additional effect time is 1 second, 4 seconds if the number of insertions is 2, and 9 seconds if the number of insertions is 3. As described above, the method of calculating the additional effect time from the number of insertions of the additional effect can be changed as appropriate.

  A plurality of additional image data may be inserted at one base point in the main image data. Specifically, a number of base points smaller than the number of insertions notified from the main board 41 is selected in S108 of FIG. In step S110, the display order is determined so that a plurality of additional image data is inserted at the selected base point. Thereby, for example, even if no additional effect is inserted until the latter half of the notification effect, a long-time additional effect may be inserted at the end of the notification effect. Therefore, it is possible to keep the player expecting a long-time additional effect to be inserted until the end of the notification effect. It is also possible to attract a player's interest by inserting a long-time additional effect at an early stage.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the maximum number of base points provided in the divided main image data is “3”, and the maximum number of additional effects inserted in one main effect is also “3”. However, the number of base points of the divided main image data can be increased more than the maximum number of times that the additional effect is inserted. This makes it more difficult to estimate the timing at which the additional effect is inserted. Therefore, the player can enjoy the game while always expecting the additional effect to be inserted. Needless to say, the insertion timing of the additional effect (the position of the base point in the divided main image data) is not limited to the middle of the main effect, and may be before or after.

  Further, the determination of the additional image in S106 of FIG. 15 may be performed according to the designated main effect pattern. For example, the determination ratio of the additional image may be changed between a case where a main effect pattern that is easy to select in the case of a big win is designated and a case that a main effect pattern that is easy to select in the case of a loss is designated. Similarly, regarding the selection of the insertion base point in S108 of FIG. 15, a lottery may be performed according to the main effect pattern.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the notification effect performed using the display screen 28 or the like is an effect indicating the result of the jackpot determination, but the present invention is applied to the notification effect indicating the result of another winning determination such as the normal hit determination. Of course, it can be applied. Also, the electrical configuration shown in FIG. 3, the configuration of the main effect pattern determination table shown in FIG. 7, the configuration of the image data shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, and the like can be changed as appropriate.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Pachinko machine 2 Game board 15 Special symbol start electric accessory 25 Special symbol display part 41 Main board 43 Production control board 48 Speaker 51 CPU
52 RAM
53 ROM
58 Sub-integrated board 70 Start port switch 431 CPU
432 CGROM
581 CPU
582 RAM
583 ROM
4311 Main image data storage area 4312 Additional image data storage area 5305 Main effect pattern storage area

Claims (7)

A start opening provided on the game board;
A hit determination means for determining whether or not to execute a winning game that is advantageous to the player, triggered by detection of the game ball by the start port,
Main effect pattern storage means for storing a plurality of main effect patterns, which are effect patterns of main effects indicating the determination result of the hit determination means, respectively, according to the determination results;
Main effect pattern determining means for determining one of a plurality of main effect patterns;
Main image data storage means for storing a plurality of main image data, which is image data of the main effect, in association with the main effect pattern;
In accordance with the main effect pattern, an insertion number determination means for determining the number of insertions of the additional effect to be inserted into the main effect,
Additional image data storage means for storing a plurality of additional image data as image data of the additional effect;
Additional image data selection means for selecting one or more additional image data according to the number of insertions determined by the insertion number determination means;
Base point selection means for selecting one or more insertion timings for inserting the additional effect into the main effect as a base point for inserting the additional image data into the main image data;
When the additional image data is inserted into the main image data, the effect control means for inserting the additional image data at the base point selected by the base point selection means among the base points of the main image data,
The plurality of main image data stored in the main image data storage means is configured to be divided into a plurality of parts using the insertion timing at which the additional image data can be inserted as the base point, and is divided into the plurality of main image data. Corresponding audio data is also divided in the same way,
The base point selection means, when the number of the base points of the main image data is different from the number of insertions of the additional effect, determine the base point to insert the additional effect by lottery ,
In the case where the number of insertions of the additional effect is determined to be a hit for executing the winning game by the hit determining means, the insertion number determining means is more likely not to execute the hit game by the hit determining means. A gaming machine, characterized in that it is determined to be larger than the case where it is determined .   The base point selection means selects all the base points as the base points into which the additional image data is inserted when the number of base points of the main image data matches the number of insertions of the additional effect. The gaming machine according to claim 1. Controlling the main control of the game, comprising at least the hit determining means, the main effect pattern determining means, and an additional effect time determining means for determining an additional effect time that is an effect time of the additional effect to be inserted into the main effect. Main control means for transmitting a signal according to
At least the main image data storage means, the additional image data storage means, and the effect control means, and a sub-control means for controlling the execution of the effect by a signal received from the main control means. The gaming machine according to claim 1 or 2. The additional image data stored in the additional image data storage means is divided into a plurality of pieces of inserted image data that can be inserted into one base point, and each of the divided inserted image data is The divided additional image data that is the additional image data having continuity with the inserted image data is included,
The game according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein when the additional image data is inserted into a plurality of base points, the effect control means inserts the inserted image data into each of the base points in order. Machine. The additional effect time determining means determines the additional effect time according to the number of insertions determined by the insertion number determining means,
The gaming machine according to claim 3, wherein the base point selection unit selects the same number of base points as the number of insertions determined by the insertion number determination unit.   6. The upper limit of the number of insertions determined by the insertion number determining means is different according to the main effect pattern determined by the main effect pattern determining means. Gaming machine.   The said insertion frequency determination means changes the determination ratio of the said insertion frequency according to the said main production pattern determined by the said main production pattern determination means. Gaming machine.

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