JP7555093B2 - GAME SCREEN DISPLAY CONTROL SYSTEM, GAME SCREEN DISPLAY CONTROL METHOD, AND COMPUTER PROGRAM - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a display control system for displaying a game screen according to the display environment of a game device.

There is known an information processing device that determines the screen resolution of a display device provided in a game device, selects image data of an object that corresponds to the determined screen resolution, and displays the object based on the selected image data (see Patent Document 1). As an emulator program for executing a game program of a game device with a high screen resolution on another game device with a low screen resolution, an emulator program has also been proposed that thins out part of the original image to generate an image suitable for the low resolution (see Patent Document 2).

Patent No. 4550374 Patent No. 3599728

As a method for differentiating the display content of a game screen depending on the display environment such as screen resolution, for example, a basic area of the game screen is displayed on various game devices regardless of the display environment, and for game devices that are capable of displaying a range wider than the basic area, an extended area outside the basic area of the game screen is displayed in addition to the basic area, thereby attempting to present more information to the user. However, differentiating the display content between game devices creates a difference in the amount of information depending on whether or not the extended area is displayed, which could result in a significant information disparity between users.

The present invention aims to provide a game screen display control system that can reduce or eliminate the information gap and appropriately display a game screen according to the display environment of the game device.

A display control system according to one aspect of the present invention is a game screen display control system including a first display control means for displaying an image corresponding to a basic area of a game screen on a display device of a first game device, and a second display control means for displaying an image corresponding to the basic area of the game screen and an extended area outside the basic area on a display device of a second game device, and further including a specific information display control means for displaying specific information, which is at least a part of the information indicated by the image of the extended area, on the image corresponding to the basic area on the first game device.

A display control method according to one aspect of the present invention is a display control method applied to a display control system for a game screen including a first display control means for displaying an image corresponding to a basic area of a game screen on a display device of a first game device, and a second display control means for displaying an image corresponding to the basic area of the game screen and an extended area outside the basic area on a display device of a second game device, and displays specific information that is at least a part of the information indicated by the image of the extended area on the image corresponding to the basic area on the first game device.

A computer program according to one aspect of the present invention is a computer program applied to a display control system for a game screen, the computer program including a first display control means for causing a display device of a first game device to display an image corresponding to a basic area of a game screen, and a second display control means for causing a display device of a second game device to display an image corresponding to the basic area of the game screen and an extended area outside the basic area, and configured to cause a computer of the display control system to function as a specific information display control means for displaying specific information, which is at least a part of the information indicated by the image of the extended area, on an image corresponding to the basic area of the first game device.

1 is a diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of a game system to which a display control system according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. 1A and 1B are diagrams showing the correspondence between the basic area and extended area of a game screen and the display range on the display surface of a game device. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an image corresponding to a basic region. 11A and 11B are diagrams showing an example of displaying specific information on an image corresponding to a basic region. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a control system of the game device. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure for a type determination process. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure for specific information display processing in a normal type game device. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure for specific information display processing in a high-grade type game device.

An example of an application of a display control system according to one embodiment of the present invention to a game system will be described below with reference to the attached drawings. First, the overall configuration of the game system will be described with reference to FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the game system 1 is configured as a client-server system including a game server 2, and a game device 3 and a user terminal device 4 that are connected to the game server 2 via a network NT (the Internet, for example) and function as clients of the game server 2.

The game server 2 may be configured by appropriately combining a plurality of server units, or may be configured by a single server unit. The game server 2 may be configured as a cloud server using cloud computing technology. The game server 2 provides various services related to the game played on the game device 3 to each of the game device 3 and the user terminal device 4. For example, the game server 2 may provide various services such as storing play data that records the game played by the user in association with user identification information, providing the play data to the game device 3 at the request of the user, or providing a chat function in which the users of the game device 3 and the user terminal device 4 can participate and communicate with each other.

The user terminal device 4 is a device provided for daily use by the user, and is an information communication terminal device equipped with an information communication function via the network NT. As an example, a smartphone 4a, a tablet terminal 4b, or a PC (short for personal computer) 4c equipped with a communication and calling function may be used as the user terminal device 4. The user terminal device 4 may be used, for example, to chat with a user of the game device 3, or to play a common game with the user of the game device 3.

As an example, the game device 3 is configured as a commercial game machine that allows users to play games in exchange for paying a play fee. This type of game device 3 is sometimes called an arcade game machine. The game device 3 is installed in a specific facility such as a store, with the main purpose of generating revenue by having many users play games repeatedly. The game device 3 may be capable of playing games of various genres, such as fighting games, fighting games, and shooting games.

The game devices 3 include a normal type game device 3N, which is an example of a first game device, and a high-grade type game device 3H, which is an example of a second game device. Hereinafter, when distinguishing between these game devices 3N, 3H and their components, the suffixes N and H will be added to the reference numerals, and when there is no need to distinguish between them, the suffix will be omitted and they will be referred to as game device 3. In FIG. 1, one each of game devices 3N and 3H is drawn, but the number of each type of game device 3N and 3H may be appropriate.

The normal type game device 3N and the high-grade type game device 3H have different hardware configurations for displaying game screens. For example, the screen resolution of the display device 5H provided in the high-grade type game device 3H is set to be larger than the screen resolution of the display device 5N provided in the normal type game device 3N. As a result, the high-grade type game device 3H can display a wider range of game screens than the normal type game device 3N. The screen resolution means the total number of pixels on the display surfaces 5a, 5b of the display devices 5N, 5H. The display range of the display surfaces 5a, 5b is determined by the total number of pixels and the aspect ratio, but in this embodiment, as an example, the display devices 5N, 5H of both game devices 3N, 3H are differentiated so that they have a common aspect ratio and a different total number of pixels. Furthermore, the size of the display surfaces 5a, 5b is also related to the pixel density (or pixel pitch) and the vertical and horizontal dimensions of the display surfaces 5a, 5b, but in this embodiment, as an example, the pixel density is the same or similar between the two game devices 3N, 3H, and the display surface 5b of the display device 5H of the high-grade game device 3H is set to be larger than the display surface 5a of the display device 5N of the normal type 3N.

Next, an example of display control of the game screen on the display surfaces 5a, 5b of the game devices 3N, 3H will be described with reference to Figures 2 to 4. Figure 2 shows an example of a game screen 100 in a case where the game is configured to ask a quiz to the user and have the user input the answer. The game screen 100 includes a basic area 110 and an extension area 120 that is provided so as to extend left and right and upward from the basic area 110.

The basic area 110 is an area that shows information essential for playing the game. For example, the basic area 110 includes a question section 111 that shows the quiz questions and their answers, an input section 112 that includes a software keyboard or the like for inputting answers, etc., a status display section 113 that shows the user's score, etc., and a member display section 114 that shows users as members who will be playing the game together. The question section 111 first displays the question, and when the time limit for answering has elapsed, the answer is displayed.

The image corresponding to the basic area 110 is displayed commonly on the display surfaces 5a, 5b of game devices 3N, 3H. However, as long as the information is displayed equally, the configuration of the image corresponding to the basic area 110 on game device 3N and the image corresponding to the basic area 110 on game device 3H may differ as appropriate. Whether or not the information is essential for playing the game may be classified as appropriate depending on the content of the game, etc., as long as it is possible to proceed with playing the game using only the information in the basic area 110.

On the other hand, the extension area 120 is provided as an area showing information related to the game. The information shown in the extension area 120 is not essential for playing the game, but may include information that has some effect on playing the game. As an example, the extension area 120 shown in FIG. 2 includes an answer section 121 showing answers to the game, a movie display section 122 showing videos related to the game, a chat section 123 showing chats exchanged between users, an event calendar section 124 showing schedules of events to be held in relation to the game, and a related information section 125 for selecting background music for the game or displaying information on other users who will play the game together. The answer section 121 displays answers in synchronization with the display of answers in the question section 111 of the basic area 110. In FIG. 2, the questions in the question section 111 and the answers in the answer section 121 are shown, but while the questions are displayed in the question section 111, the answers are not displayed in the answer section 121. The chat section 123 displays a plurality of user icons 123a corresponding to a plurality of users who can chat. The user icon 123a is an example of a selection element to be selected based on the instruction of the game user. When the user selects the user icon 123a of the chat partner, the chat partner user is selected, and the user can send a comment to the chat partner user or receive a comment from the chat partner user to proceed with the conversation. The configuration of the expansion area 120 shown in FIG. 2 is an example, and the information displayed in the expansion area 120 may be appropriately selected. The information to be displayed in the expansion area 120 may be selectable based on the instruction of the user. In addition, the display position of the information displayed in the expansion area 120, in other words, the layout of the answer section 121, the movie display section 122, etc., may be changeable based on the instruction of the user. In addition, the display mode of the information in the chat section 123, etc. displayed in the expansion area 120, such as the arrangement, number of user icons 123a, arrangement, and even the amount of information, may be appropriately changeable based on the instruction of the user. The display mode of the information may be changed in both the normal type game device 3N and the high-grade type game device 3H.

The image corresponding to the extension area 120 is displayed only on the display surface 5b of the high-grade type game device 3H, and is not displayed on the display surface 5a of the normal type game device 3N. In other words, only the image corresponding to the basic area 110 is displayed on the display surface 5a of the normal type game device 3N. As a result, a user playing a game on the high-grade type game device 3H can obtain more information from the game screen 100 compared to playing a game on the normal type game device 3N. Therefore, the high-grade type game device 3H can provide more value to the user than the normal type game device 3N. On the other hand, the information essential for playing the game is displayed in the basic area 110, and the image corresponding to the basic area 110 is displayed on all game devices 3 regardless of type. Therefore, even on the normal type game device 3N, the user can play the game without any problems.

However, the information displayed in the basic area 110 may include information that is not essential to playing the game but has some effect on game play. For example, the chat function described above can have a significant effect on game play, such as increasing the interest in playing the game. If this type of function were not provided at all on the normal type game device 3N, a significant information gap would arise between the high-grade type game device 3H and the normal type game device 3N, and there is a risk that the value of the normal type game device 3N would be excessively impaired.

The game system 1 is equipped with a mechanism for reducing or eliminating the information disparity between the two types of game devices 3N and 3H by setting at least a part of the information shown by the image in the expansion area 120 as specific information and displaying the specific information on an image corresponding to the basic area 110 in the normal type game device 3N. For example, information on the chat section 123 for providing the above-mentioned chat function is set as specific information, and an image corresponding to the chat section 123 is also displayed on the normal type game device 3N. Figures 3 and 4 show an example. As shown in Figure 3, a pop-up button 115 is displayed in the basic area 110 of the normal type game device 3N. The display position of the pop-up button 115 may be any position within the image in the basic area 110 that does not affect the display of the question section 111, input section 112, etc. as much as possible.

When the user presses the pop-up button 115, the chat section 116 is displayed so as to overlap the image of the basic area 110 as shown in FIG. 4. In the chat section 116, similar to the chat section 123 in the extended area 120, a plurality of user icons 116a corresponding to a plurality of users with whom chat is possible are displayed. The user can chat with the selected user by selecting the user icon 116a of the person with whom he/she wants to chat. The display mode of the chat section 116, such as the internal configuration, size, or design, may be the same as that of the chat section 123, or may be differentiated from the chat section 123 according to the convenience of the basic area 110. The chat section 116 can be switched to a hidden state by an appropriate operation by the user.

The display position of the chat section 116 may be set at any suitable position on the image of the basic area 110. For example, the display position may be set at a position that hides as little information in the basic area 110 as possible, such as the background part or empty space in the image of the basic area 110. The display position of the chat section 116 may be changeable based on a user's instruction. The display state of the information in the basic area 110 may be identified, and the display position may be dynamically changed so that the chat section 116 is displayed at a position that does not overlap the information in the basic area 110 as much as possible. The process for displaying the chat section 116 may be executed, for example, by superimposing the image of the chat section 116 on the image of the basic area 110, or by cutting out a part of the image of the basic area 110 and fitting the image of the chat section 116 in that position to synthesize the image. Note that even in the high-grade type game device 3H, an operation section similar to the pop-up button 115 may be displayed, and the display or non-display of the chat section 123, etc. may be switched according to the operation of the operation section. In this case, the operation unit may be displayed in either the basic area 110 or the expansion area 120 displayed on the display surface 5b. When information such as the chat area 123 is displayed in response to the operation of the operation unit, the display position of that information is the expansion area 120.

By controlling the display on the normal type game device 3N as described above, at least a part of the information displayed in the expansion area 120 of the high-grade type game device 3H can also be displayed on the normal type game device 3, thereby reducing or eliminating the information gap between the game devices 3N and 3H. Note that in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the information in the chat section 123 is illustrated as an example of specific information in the expansion area 120, but the specific information may be various information whose display position is set in the expansion area 120. The specific information may be selected based on a user's instruction. The specific information is not limited to examples including a selection element such as the user icon 123a, and may be information displayed only for the purpose of presenting it to the user. For example, at least a part of the user's information displayed in the related information section 125 of the expansion area 120 may be displayed on the image of the basic area 110 as specific information.

Next, with reference to Figures 5 to 8, an example of the control system of the game device 3 and its processing for realizing the above-mentioned game screen display control will be described. Note that the configuration of the control system shown in Figure 5 is common to both the normal type game device 3N and the high-grade type game device 3H, and the processing differs depending on the type. Therefore, the configuration will be described below as the control system of the game device 3. As shown in Figure 5, the game device 3 includes a control unit 10 and a storage unit 11. The control unit 10 is configured as a computer including a CPU and an internal storage device required for its operation. The storage unit 11 is a non-volatile storage device that functions as an external storage device for the control unit 10.

The control unit 10 is connected to an operation device 21 as an input device, and a display device 5 and a speaker device 22 as output devices. The operation device 21 includes, as an example, a touch panel input device arranged on the display surfaces 5a, 5b of the display device 5. In addition to the touch panel device, a physical input device such as a push button switch may also be provided as the operation device 21.

The storage unit 11 records a game program Pg, game data Dg, and play data Dp. The game program Pg is an application program that cooperates with an operating system that controls the basic operations of the control unit 10 to cause the control unit 10 to execute the calculation processing and operation control required for the game. The game data Dg is data that is referenced as appropriate in the control of the game by the control unit 10. For example, the game data Dg includes data on quiz questions and answers posed in the game, data on various image objects required for displaying the game screen 100, and the like. The play data Dp is data that records the user's game play, is updated as appropriate as the game is played, and is stored in the game server 2 at appropriate times.

The control unit 10 is provided with a game control unit 12, a display control unit 13, and a type discrimination unit 14 as a logical device realized by a combination of the computer hardware and the game program Pg. The game control unit 12 executes various calculation processes necessary for playing the game. The display control unit 13 executes calculation processes necessary for drawing a game screen 100 according to the calculation results of the game control unit 12, generates image data for the game screen 100 according to the calculation results, and causes the display device 5 to display an image according to the image data. The type discrimination unit 14 determines whether the game device 3 is a normal type game device 3N or a high-grade type game device 3H.

Figure 6 shows an example of the procedure of the type determination process executed by the type determination unit 14. The process of Figure 6 is executed when the game device 3 first starts operation. However, the process of Figure 6 may be executed at an appropriate timing even after the game device 3 starts operation. When the type determination unit 14 starts the process of Figure 6, it first acquires information necessary for specifying the screen resolution of the display device 5 (step S101). For example, the screen resolution information may be acquired based on the hardware information held by the display device 5. Next, the type determination unit 14 determines whether the game device 3 is a normal type game device 3N or not based on the acquired information (step S102). If it is determined that the game device 3 is a normal type game device 3N, the type determination unit 14 sets the display mode of the display control unit 13 to the normal mode (step S103), and then ends the process of Figure 6. On the other hand, if it is determined that the game device 3 is not a normal type in step S102, the type determination unit 14 sets the display mode of the display control unit 13 to the extended mode (step S104), and then ends the process of Figure 6.

When the normal mode is set by the processing of FIG. 6, the display control unit 13 causes the display device 5 to display an image corresponding to the basic area 110 of the game screen 100 in accordance with the calculation result of the game control unit 12. As a result, the display control unit 13 functions as an example of a first display control means. On the other hand, when the extended mode is set by the processing of FIG. 6, the display control unit 13 causes the display device 5 to display images corresponding to each of the basic area 110 and the extended area 120 of the game screen 100 in accordance with the calculation result of the game control unit 12. As a result, the display control unit 13 functions as an example of a second display control means.

In addition, the display control unit 13 changes the procedure of the process related to the display of specific information depending on whether the normal mode or the extended mode is set. FIG. 7 shows an example of the procedure of the specific information display process when the normal mode is set. The process of FIG. 7 is repeatedly executed in accordance with the period in which the display of the game screen 100 is updated. When the display control unit 13 starts the process of FIG. 7, it first determines whether the display related to the specific information is on, that is, whether the display of the specific information is instructed by the user (step S121). For example, when the pop-up button 115 of FIG. 3 is operated, it is determined that the display is on. If the display is on, the display control unit 13 obtains the state of the specific information to be displayed at the present time from the game control unit 12 (step S122), and displays the obtained information at a predetermined position in the basic area 110 (step S123). For example, the chat unit 116 of FIG. 4 may be displayed in the basic area 110. After that, the display control unit 13 ends the process of FIG. 7. If the display is off in step S121, that is, if the display of specific information has not been instructed, the display control unit 13 skips the processing from step S122 onwards and ends the processing in FIG. 7.

On the other hand, when the extended mode is set, the display control unit 13 executes the process of FIG. 8 instead of the process of FIG. 7. The process of FIG. 8 is executed repeatedly in accordance with the period in which the display of the game screen 100 is updated, as part of the process for the display control unit 13 to display an image corresponding to the extended area 120. When the display control unit 13 starts the process of FIG. 8, it acquires the state of specific information to be displayed at the current time from the game control unit 12 (step S131), and displays the acquired information at a predetermined position in the extended area 120 (step S131). For example, the chat section 123 of FIG. 3 or the like may be displayed at a predetermined position in the extended area 120. The display control unit 13 then ends the process of FIG. 8.

According to the above process, the specific information is displayed in the basic area 110 on the normal type game device 3N, and the specific information is displayed in the extended area 120 on the high-grade type game device 3H. This realizes the display control of the specific information described in Figures 2 to 4, and makes it possible to appropriately display the game screen according to the display environment while reducing or eliminating the information gap between the normal type game device 3N and the high-grade type game device 3H.

In the above embodiment, the display control unit 13 functions as an example of a specific information control means by executing the processes of steps S121 to S123 in FIG. 7, and the type discrimination unit 14 functions as an example of a discrimination means by executing the processes of steps S101 to S104 in FIG. 6.

The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and may be embodied in an appropriate modified or altered form. For example, in the above embodiment, the same game program Pg is implemented in each of the normal type game device 3N and the high-grade type game device 3H, and the type of the game device 3 is determined by the type determination unit 14 to switch the mode of the display control unit 13. However, by separately preparing a game program suitable for the normal type game device 3N and a game program suitable for the high-grade type game device 3H and implementing these programs, the display control unit 13 of the normal type game device 3N may display specific information according to the processing of FIG. 7, and the display control unit 13 of the high-grade type game device 3H may display specific information according to the processing of FIG. 8. In this case, the type determination unit 14 is not necessary.

In the above embodiment, the game device 3 is classified into a normal type or a high-grade type according to the screen resolution of its display device 5 to differentiate the display of the game screen 100, but whether to display only the basic area 110 of the game screen 100 or to display the game screen 100 including the extended area 120 does not necessarily have to be related to the screen resolution. For example, even if game devices have the same screen resolution, the present invention can be applied to a case where a game device with a relatively small vertical and horizontal dimension of the display surface is classified into a normal type and a game device with a relatively large vertical and horizontal dimension is classified into a high-grade type, and the image of the basic area is displayed on the display surface of the high-grade type by pixel interpolation according to the screen resolution, and the image of the basic area is displayed on the display surface of the normal type by pixel interpolation according to the screen resolution. In addition, when a game device suitable for displaying only the basic area is set as the first game device and a game device suitable for displaying both the basic area and the extended area is set as the second game device according to the display environment of the game device, specific information of the extended area may be displayed on the image of the basic area of the first game device according to the present invention.

In the above embodiment, the control unit 10 of each of the game devices 3N and 3H is provided with a display control unit 13 and a type determination unit 14, but at least a part of these processes may be executed by the game server 2. For example, the game system 1 may be configured to generate image data for the game screen 100 on the game server 2 side, and transmit the obtained image data to the game devices 3N and 3H for display.

In the above embodiment, the first and second game devices are both commercial game machines, but the present invention is not limited to commercial game machines and can be applied to game devices that use dedicated stationary game machines, PCs, mobile terminals, and other information and communication devices.

Various aspects of the present invention derived from each of the above-mentioned embodiments and modifications are described below. In the following description, the corresponding components shown in the attached drawings are noted in parentheses to facilitate understanding of each aspect of the present invention, but this does not limit the present invention to the illustrated forms.

The display control system according to one aspect of the present invention is a game screen display control system including a first display control means (13: normal mode) for displaying an image corresponding to a basic area (110) of a game screen (100) on a display device (5N) of a first game device (3N), and a second display control means (13: extended mode) for displaying an image corresponding to the basic area of the game screen and an extended area (120) outside the basic area on a display device (5H) of a second game device (3H), and is equipped with a specific information display control means (13, S121 to S123) for displaying specific information, which is at least a part of the information indicated by the image of the extended area, on an image corresponding to the basic area in the first game device.

A display control method according to one aspect of the present invention is a display control method applied to a display control system for a game screen including a first display control means (13: normal mode) for displaying an image corresponding to a basic area (110) of a game screen (100) on a display device (5N) of a first game device (3N), and a second display control means (13: extended mode) for displaying an image corresponding to the basic area of the game screen and an extended area (120) outside the basic area on a display device (5H) of a second game device (3H), and displays specific information that is at least a part of the information indicated by the image of the extended area on an image corresponding to the basic area on the first game device.

A computer program according to one aspect of the present invention is a computer program (Pg) applied to a display control system for a game screen including a first display control means (13: normal mode) for displaying an image corresponding to a basic area (110) of a game screen (100) on a display device (5N) of a first game device (3N), and a second display control means (13: extended mode) for displaying an image corresponding to the basic area of the game screen and an extended area (120) outside the basic area on a display device (5H) of a second game device (3H), and configured to cause a computer (10) of the display control system to function as a specific information display control means (13, S121 to S123) for displaying specific information, which is at least a part of the information indicated by the image of the extended area, on an image corresponding to the basic area of the first game device.

According to the above aspect, by displaying at least a portion of the information displayed in the expansion area of the second game device as specific information on an image corresponding to the basic area of the first game device, it is possible to reduce the information gap between the first and second game devices or eliminate the information gap while appropriately displaying the game screen according to the respective display environments of the first and second game devices.

The computer program according to one aspect of the present invention may be provided in a state stored in a storage medium. By using this storage medium, for example, the computer program according to the present invention can be installed in a computer and executed, thereby realizing the system of the present invention using the computer. The storage medium storing the computer program may be a non-transitory storage medium such as a CD-ROM.

In the above aspect, the screen resolution of the display device in the first game device may be set lower than the screen resolution of the display device in the second game device. This allows a basic area to be set according to the screen resolution of the first game device, while an extended area can be allocated to a range of screen resolution that exceeds the display range of the basic area, allowing more information to be displayed on the second game device. By displaying at least a portion of the information displayed in the extended area as specific information on an image corresponding to the basic area in the first game device, it is possible to reduce or eliminate the information disparity between game devices.

In the above aspect, the game device (3) equipped with the control means (10) for displaying the game screen may be equipped with a discrimination means (14, S101 to S104) for discriminating whether the game device is the first game device or the second game device, and the control means of the game device may function as the first display control means and the specific information display control means when the game device is discriminated as the first game device, and may function as the second display control means when the game device is discriminated as the second game device. According to this, by discriminating whether the game device is the first game device or the second game device, and by making the control means of the game device function as either the first display control means or the second display control means according to the discrimination result, and by making the control means of the first game device further function as the specific information display control means, it is possible to realize the display control system of the present invention by sharing the hardware configuration of the control system in the first and second game devices while differentiating their functions.

The first display control means and the second display control means may each display an image showing information essential for playing the game as an image corresponding to the basic area, and the second display control means may display an image showing information related to the game as an image corresponding to the expansion area. In this way, information essential for playing the game can be presented to the user by the images corresponding to the basic areas of the first and second game devices, while the second game device can present further information to the user by utilizing the expansion area. Furthermore, by displaying at least a portion of the information in the expansion area as specific information on the first game device as well, the information gap can be reduced or eliminated.

The specific information display control means may be provided so as to be able to switch between displaying and not displaying the specific information. In this way, the specific information can be displayed on the image corresponding to the basic area of the first game device as required, and when not required, can be hidden to ensure visibility of the image of the basic area.

The specific information may include a number of selection elements (123a, 116a) to be selected based on an instruction from a user of the game. In this way, when the expansion area is used to provide a user with an opportunity to select a selection element, it is possible to provide that opportunity to the user of the first game device as well.

The display mode of the specific information (116) by the first display control means may be differentiated from the display mode of the specific information (123) by the second display control means. This makes it possible to adjust the display mode of the specific information to suit the convenience of each game device, such as setting the display mode of the specific information to match the extended area on the second game device, while setting the display mode of the specific information on the first game device in consideration of the constraint of displaying it on an image corresponding to the basic area.

1 Game system 2 Game server 3 Game device 3N Normal type game device (first game device)
3H High-grade type game device (second game device)
4 User terminal device 5N, 5H Display device 10 Control unit (control means)
13 Display control unit (first display control means, second display control means, specific information display control means)
14 Type discrimination unit (discrimination means)
100 Game screen 110 Basic area 116 Chat section (specific information)
116a User icon (selection element)
120 Extended area 123 Chat section (specific information)
123a User icon (selection element)

Claims (10)

a first display control means for causing a display device of the first game device to display an image corresponding to a basic area of the game screen;
a second display control means for causing a display device of a second game device to display an image corresponding to the basic area of the game screen and an extended area outside the basic area, wherein the display device of the first game device and the display device of the second game device have a common aspect ratio,
a specific information display control means for displaying specific information, which is at least a part of information represented by an image of the expansion area, on an image corresponding to the basic area in the first game device ;
A display control system , wherein a screen resolution of the display device in the first game device is set lower than a screen resolution of the display device in the second game device . a first display control means for causing a display device of the first game device to display an image corresponding to a basic area of the game screen;
a second display control means for causing a display device of a second game device to display an image corresponding to the basic area of the game screen and an extended area outside the basic area, wherein the display device of the first game device and the display device of the second game device have a common aspect ratio,
a specific information display control means for displaying specific information, which is at least a part of information represented by an image of the expansion area, on an image corresponding to the basic area in the first game device;
A display control system in which each of the first display control means and the second display control means displays an image corresponding to the basic area, the image indicating information essential for playing a game, and the second display control means displays an image corresponding to the expansion area, the image indicating information related to the game. a determination means for determining whether a game device having a control means for displaying the game screen is the first game device or the second game device,
The display control system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control means of the game device functions as the first display control means and the specific information display control means when it is identified as the first game device, and functions as the second display control means when it is identified as the second game device. 4. The display control system according to claim 1, wherein the specific information display control means is provided so as to be able to switch between displaying and not displaying the specific information. 5. The display control system according to claim 1, wherein the specific information includes a plurality of selection elements to be selected based on an instruction from a user of a game. The display control system according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein a display mode of the specific information by the first display control means is differentiated from a display mode of the specific information by the second display control means. A display control method applied to a display control system for a game screen, comprising: a first display control means for causing a display device of a first game device to display an image corresponding to a basic area of a game screen; and a second display control means for causing a display device of a second game device to display an image corresponding to the basic area of the game screen and an extended area outside the basic area, wherein the display device of the first game device and the display device of the second game device have a common aspect ratio, and a screen resolution of the display device of the first game device is set lower than a screen resolution of the display device of the second game device,
A display control method for a game screen, which displays specific information, which is at least a part of information indicated by an image in the expansion area, on an image corresponding to the basic area in the first game device. A display control method applied to a display control system for a game screen, the method including: a first display control means for causing a display device of a first game device to display an image corresponding to a basic area of a game screen; and a second display control means for causing a display device of a second game device to display an image corresponding to the basic area of the game screen and an extended area outside the basic area, the display device of the first game device and the display device of the second game device having a common aspect ratio,
displaying specific information, which is at least a part of the information indicated by the image of the expansion region, on an image corresponding to the basic region in the first game device;
A display control method for a game screen, in which an image indicating information essential for playing a game is displayed on each of the first display control means and the second display control means as an image corresponding to the basic area, and an image indicating information related to the game is displayed on the second display control means as an image corresponding to the expansion area. A computer program applied to a display control system for a game screen, comprising: a first display control means for causing a display device of a first game device to display an image corresponding to a basic area of a game screen; and a second display control means for causing a display device of a second game device to display an image corresponding to the basic area of the game screen and an extended area outside the basic area, wherein the display device of the first game device and the display device of the second game device have a common aspect ratio, and a screen resolution of the display device of the first game device is set lower than a screen resolution of the display device of the second game device,
A computer of the display control system,
A computer program configured to function as a specific information display control means for displaying specific information, which is at least a part of the information indicated by the image of the expansion area, on an image corresponding to the basic area in the first game device. A computer program applied to a display control system for a game screen, the computer program comprising: a first display control means for causing a display device of a first game device to display an image corresponding to a basic area of a game screen; and a second display control means for causing a display device of a second game device to display an image corresponding to the basic area of the game screen and an extended area outside the basic area, the display device of the first game device and the display device of the second game device having a common aspect ratio,
A computer of the display control system,
a specific information display control means for displaying specific information, which is at least a part of information indicated by the image of the expansion area, on an image corresponding to the basic area in the first game device;
A computer program configured to cause each of the first display control means and the second display control means to display, as an image corresponding to the basic area, an image indicating information essential for playing a game, and to cause the second display control means to display, as an image corresponding to the expansion area, an image indicating information related to the game.

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