JP7741582B2 - gaming machines - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to gaming machines such as pachinko machines.

Some gaming machines, such as pachinko machines, have predictive effects.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2023-9877

This type of predictive display is used in a variety of machines to increase the entertainment value of the game, but there is still room for improvement in its control.

The present invention was conceived in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and provides a gaming machine that can further enhance gaming enjoyment by implementing control related to unprecedented predictive effects.

According to the present invention, a gaming machine capable of generating a winning game is capable of executing a first look-ahead performance and a second look-ahead performance, and when a new reserved winning occurs from the time the first look-ahead performance is executed until the end of the pattern change that is the pre-read target of the first look-ahead performance, and the winning game does not occur after the end of the pattern change, execution of the first look-ahead performance, which has the pattern change related to the new reserved winning as the pre-read target, is restricted at least until the end of the pattern change, and when a new reserved winning occurs from the time the second look-ahead performance is executed until the end of the first pattern change that is the pre-read target of the second look-ahead performance, and at a predetermined time when the winning game does not occur after the end of the first pattern change, the second look-ahead performance, which has the second pattern change related to the new reserved winning as the pre-read target, can be executed based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning, and the second look-ahead performance is more likely to generate the winning game than the first look-ahead performance. When the expectation of a winning game occurring is high and a new pending winning occurs between the start of the first look-ahead performance and the end of the pattern change that is the target of the look-ahead of the first look-ahead performance, and the winning game does not occur after the end of the pattern change, the second look-ahead performance can be executed based on the occurrence of the new pending winning , and a specific performance can be executed regarding whether the winning game will occur after the end of the ongoing pattern change, and at the predetermined time, the rate at which the specific performance is executed with the second pattern change differs between a first time when the second look-ahead performance that targets the second pattern change is not executed and the winning game occurs after the end of the second pattern change, and a second time when the second look-ahead performance that targets the second pattern change is executed and the winning game occurs after the end of the second pattern change .
Further, according to the present invention, there is provided a gaming machine capable of generating a winning game, which is capable of executing a first look-ahead performance and a second look-ahead performance, and when a new reserved winning occurs between the execution of the first look-ahead performance and the end of the pattern variation that is the pre-read target of the first look-ahead performance, and when the winning game does not occur after the end of the pattern variation, the execution of the first look-ahead performance, which has the pattern variation related to the new reserved winning as the pre-read target, is restricted at least until the end of the pattern variation, and when a new reserved winning occurs between the execution of the second look-ahead performance and the end of the first pattern variation that is the pre-read target of the second look-ahead performance, and when the winning game does not occur after the end of the first pattern variation, the second look-ahead performance, which has the second pattern variation related to the new reserved winning as the pre-read target, can be executed based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning, and the second look-ahead performance is more likely to cause the winning game to occur than the first look-ahead performance. A gaming machine is provided in which, when the expectation of a technique being executed is high, a new pending winning occurs between the start of the first look-ahead performance and the end of the pattern change that is the pre-read target of the first look-ahead performance, and the winning game does not occur after the end of the pattern change, the second look-ahead performance can be executed based on the occurrence of the new pending winning, with the pattern change related to the new pending winning being the pre-read target, and the winning game includes a first winning game and a second winning game that is more advantageous than the first winning game, and at the specified time, the expectation of the winning game being the second winning game differs between a first time when the second look-ahead performance that pre-reads the second pattern change is not executed and the winning game occurs after the end of the second pattern change, and a second time when the second look-ahead performance that pre-reads the second pattern change is executed and the winning game occurs after the end of the second pattern change.
Further, according to the present invention, there is provided a gaming machine capable of generating a winning game, which is capable of executing a first look-ahead performance and a second look-ahead performance, and when a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the first look-ahead performance is executed and the time when the symbol variation that is the pre-read target of the first look-ahead performance is completed, and when the winning game does not occur after the completion of the symbol variation, the execution of the first look-ahead performance, in which the symbol variation related to the new reserved winning is the pre-read target, is restricted at least until the completion of the symbol variation, and when a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the second look-ahead performance is executed and the time when the first symbol variation that is the pre-read target of the second look-ahead performance is completed, and when the winning game does not occur after the completion of the first symbol variation, the execution of the first look-ahead performance, in which the symbol variation related to the new reserved winning is the pre-read target, is restricted A gaming machine is provided in which the second pre-reading effect can be executed, the second pre-reading effect has a higher expectation of the winning game occurring than the first pre-reading effect, and when a new pending winning occurs between the start of the first pre-reading effect and the end of the pattern change that is the pre-read target of the first pre-reading effect, and the winning game does not occur after the end of the pattern change, the second pre-reading effect can be executed based on the occurrence of the new pending winning, with the pattern change related to the new pending winning as the pre-read target, and which has a first gaming state and a second gaming state that is more advantageous than the first gaming state, and in the second gaming state, the second pre-reading effect with the second pattern change as the pre-read target is not executed, and in the first gaming state, the second pre-reading effect with the second pattern change as the pre-read target can be executed.
Further, according to the present invention, there is provided a gaming machine capable of generating a winning game, which is capable of executing a first look-ahead performance and a second look-ahead performance, and when a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the first look-ahead performance is executed and the time when the symbol variation that is the pre-read target of the first look-ahead performance is completed, and when the winning game does not occur after the completion of the symbol variation, the execution of the first look-ahead performance, which has the symbol variation related to the new reserved winning as the pre-read target, is restricted at least until the completion of the symbol variation, and when a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the second look-ahead performance is executed and the time when the first symbol variation that is the pre-read target of the second look-ahead performance is completed, and when the winning game does not occur after the completion of the first symbol variation, the second look-ahead performance, which has the second symbol variation related to the new reserved winning as the pre-read target, can be executed based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning, and the second look-ahead performance is restricted from executing the first look-ahead performance. a first read-ahead effect in which the probability of the winning game occurring is higher than a read-ahead effect in which the symbol change predicted by the first read-ahead effect is completed, and when a new pending winning occurs between the start of the first read-ahead effect and the end of the symbol change that is the target of the first read-ahead effect, and the winning game does not occur after the end of the symbol change, the second read-ahead effect in which the symbol change related to the new pending winning is the target of the read-ahead effect can be executed based on the occurrence of the new pending winning, and a RAM clear process can be executed, and when the number of times the winning game has been executed since the execution of the RAM clear process is a first number, the second read-ahead effect in which the second symbol change is the target of the read-ahead effect is not executed at least in some cases, and when the number of times the winning game has been executed since the execution of the RAM clear process is a second number that is less than the first number, the second read-ahead effect in which the second symbol change is the target of the read-ahead effect can be executed.

This invention provides a gaming machine that can further enhance gaming enjoyment by implementing unprecedented control related to predictive effects.

FIG. 1 is a front view of the gaming machine. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a pattern display device disposed in the area II shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a bird's-eye view showing the operation buttons and their surroundings arranged in the area III shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a gaming board installed in the gaming machine. FIG. 5 is a rear view of the gaming machine. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the control configuration of the gaming machine. FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the gaming machine. Figure 8(a) is a diagram schematically showing a lottery table for determining whether a special symbol is a hit or not, Figure 8(b) is a diagram schematically showing a lottery table for drawing stopping symbols to be used when a big hit is derived in the determination of whether a special symbol is a hit or not for special symbol 1, Figure 8(c) is a diagram schematically showing a lottery table for drawing stopping symbols to be used when a small hit is derived in the determination of whether a special symbol is a hit or not for special symbol 2, and Figure 8(d) is a diagram schematically showing a lottery table for drawing stopping symbols to be used when a big hit is derived in the determination of whether a special symbol is a hit or not for special symbol 2. Figure 9(a) is a diagram schematically showing a special chart variation pattern lottery table used in the pattern variation related to special chart 1 when in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PA, and Figure 9(b) is a diagram schematically showing a special chart variation pattern lottery table used when the special chart variation pattern HNP is determined in the pattern variation related to special chart 1 when in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PA. Figure 10(a) is a diagram schematically showing a special chart variation pattern lottery table used in the pattern variation related to special chart 2 when the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB is in effect, and Figure 10(b) is a diagram schematically showing a special chart variation pattern lottery table used when the special chart variation pattern HNP is determined in the pattern variation related to special chart 2 when the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB is in effect. Figure 11(a) is a diagram schematically showing a special chart variation pattern lottery table used in the pattern variation related to special chart 2 when the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC is in effect, and Figure 11(b) is a diagram schematically showing a special chart variation pattern lottery table used when the special chart variation pattern HNP is determined in the pattern variation related to special chart 2 when the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC is in effect. Figure 12(a) is a state transition diagram showing the transition of the special chart variation pattern derivation state, and Figure 12(b) is a diagram showing the relationship between the average variation time for each special chart variation pattern derivation state. FIG. 13 is a flow chart of the advance notice effect control process. 14(a) to 14(c) are diagrams that schematically show lottery tables used in the lottery for determining the type of advance announcement effect. 15(a) to 15(c) are diagrams showing specific examples of the symbol pre-reading effect. FIG. 16 shows a flow of the pattern pre-reading effect control process. FIG. 17 is a diagram schematically showing a lottery table used for the lottery relating to the symbol pre-reading effect in the symbol pre-reading effect control process. Figures 18(a) and 18(b) are diagrams showing the flow in which a cut-in effect occurs in an advanced effect, with Figure 18(a) showing the flow in which a cut-in effect related to a weak cut-in occurs, and Figure 18(b) showing the flow in which a cut-in effect related to a strong cut-in occurs. FIG. 19(a) is a diagram showing the flow of the cut-in effect control process, and FIG. 19(b) is a diagram showing a schematic drawing of a lottery table used for the lottery relating to the development effect.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In all drawings, similar components are designated by the same reference numerals, and their description will be omitted where appropriate. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the terms "front,""rear,""left,""right,""upper," and "lower" refer to the gaming machine 10 as viewed from the front (player's side) as shown in FIG. 1 .
In the following explanation, "advantageous (degree of advantage)" refers to an advantage for the player, and further, unless otherwise specified, refers to an advantage in terms of the amount of prize balls (gaming media) obtained (including not only the payout of game balls but also the payout of medals), excluding aspects of presentation such as so-called premium images.

<Features of the present invention>
Before describing the details of the gaming machine 10 in this embodiment, the features of the invention (present invention) described in this embodiment will be described.
In addition, when explaining the features, the configuration in parentheses is an example of the configuration of this embodiment corresponding to the immediately preceding configuration, and the configuration may be described in parentheses for the same purpose in the explanation of the gaming machine 10 that follows this explanation.

The present invention provides
A gaming machine capable of executing a pattern change accompanied by a win/loss judgment, and capable of generating a winning game (small win game, big win game) after the pattern change related to the win/loss judgment is completed based on the result of the win/loss judgment,
It is possible to execute the first pre-reading effect (pattern pre-reading effect) and the second pre-reading effect (pre-announcement effect such as red light emission),
When a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the first pre-reading performance is executed and the time when the pattern change that is the pre-reading target of the first pre-reading performance is finished, and the result of the hit/miss judgment regarding the pattern change is a miss, the execution of the first pre-reading performance that is the pre-reading target of the pattern change regarding the new reserved winning is restricted at least until the pattern change is finished,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the second pre-reading performance is executed and the time when the first pattern change that is the pre-read target of the second pre-reading performance is finished, and the result of the hit/miss judgment regarding the first pattern change is a miss, the second pre-reading performance that is the pre-read target of the second pattern change regarding the new reserved winning can be executed based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning,
The second pre-reading effect has a higher expectation of the winning game occurring than the first pre-reading effect,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the start of the first pre-reading performance and the end of the pattern change that is the pre-read target of the first pre-reading performance, and the result of the hit/miss judgment regarding the pattern change is miss, the second pre-reading performance that pre-reads the pattern change related to the new reserved winning based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning can be executed.
This is a gaming machine characterized by the above.

According to the present invention, the effect of increasing interest in the game by the second pre-reading effect can be enhanced by reducing the frequency of execution of the first pre-reading effect, which has a relatively low expectation of generating a winning game, while not reducing the frequency of execution of the second pre-reading effect, which has a relatively high expectation of generating a winning game.
Furthermore, according to the present invention, the effect of increasing interest in the game through the second pre-reading effect can be further enhanced.

In this invention, restricting the execution of an effect not only means that the effect will not be executed during the target period (the effect will be restricted), but also means that the probability of the effect being executed during the target period will be lower than the probability of the effect being executed during periods other than the target period.

Furthermore, in this invention, as long as the phenomenal aspects of the invention are guaranteed, the control method for realizing said phenomenal aspects is not important.

Furthermore, the gaming machine according to this embodiment, which will be described later, is a pachinko machine that pays out actual gaming balls as prize balls, but the gaming machine according to the present invention may also be a pachinko machine that awards prize balls as electronic data (so-called smart pachinko).

The gaming machine 10 having the above features will be specifically described based on the following embodiment.

<Structure of the gaming machine 10>
First, the structure of the gaming machine 10 will be described with reference to FIGS.
Figure 1 is a front view of the gaming machine 10, Figure 2 is a diagram showing a pattern display device 90 arranged in area II shown in Figure 1, Figure 3 is a bird's-eye view showing a group of operation buttons arranged in area III shown in Figure 1 and their surroundings, Figure 4 is a diagram showing a game board 50 installed within the gaming machine 10, and Figure 5 is a rear view of the gaming machine 10.
1 to 5 are merely examples of components necessary for explaining the gaming machine 10 of this embodiment, and components and functions not shown here may be added to the gaming machine 10. Furthermore, the gaming machine 10 does not necessarily have to include all of the components shown here, and some components or functions may be omitted as long as the effects of the present invention are not impaired.

The gaming machine 10 of this embodiment is a so-called pachinko machine, in which gaming balls are shot into the front area (hereinafter referred to as the "gaming area 50a") of a gaming board 50 on which numerous gaming pegs (not shown) are erected, and a prize ball is awarded when the gaming ball enters a prize slot (e.g., the big prize slot 55, etc.). Note that in the following description, the entry of a gaming ball into a prize slot may be simply referred to as "entering (a prize slot)."

The gaming machine 10 comprises a rectangular outer frame 15 that opens at the front and back, an inner frame 17 that detachably holds the gaming board 50 on the front side of the opening of the outer frame 15, and a front frame 20 that is configured to cover the front side of the gaming board 50.

The middle frame 17 is supported so that it can rotate freely around its left end by a hinge mechanism (not shown) on the same side as the hinge mechanism 21, and can be opened and closed in front of the outer frame 15. The middle frame 17 can be locked and unlocked by a cylinder lock 23 (by inserting a door key into the cylinder lock 23 and turning the door key in the opposite direction (to the right in this embodiment) to the unlocking direction of the front frame 20).

The front frame 20 is supported by a hinge mechanism 21 so as to be rotatable about its left end, and can be opened and closed relative to the middle frame 17. The front frame 20 can be locked and unlocked by a cylinder lock 23 (by inserting a door key into the cylinder lock 23 and turning the door key in the direction opposite to the unlocking direction of the middle frame 17 (left in this embodiment)).
In addition, the front frame 20 is provided with a transparent member 25 arranged to cover the playing area 50a, and the transparent member 25 protects the playing area 50a and the playing board 50 from view.
The front frame 20 also includes an upper ball tray 27 and a lower ball tray 29 for storing game balls, and the upper ball tray 27 and the lower ball tray 29 are spaced apart vertically and are integral with the front frame 20. In this embodiment, a full-tank detection sensor (not shown) for detecting when the lower ball tray 29 is full with discharged game balls is provided upstream of the lower discharge port 30 that discharges game balls into the lower ball tray 29.
In addition, the front frame 20 is provided with an operating handle 31 on the right side of the lower ball tray 29, and by rotating the operating handle 31, the game balls stored in the upper ball tray 27 are launched toward the game area 50a.

1 to 5, the middle frame 17 has a middle frame open door sensor 76 that detects whether the middle frame 17 is in an open state or a closed state relative to the outer frame 15, and a front frame open door sensor 77 that detects whether the front frame 20 is in an open state or a closed state relative to the middle frame 17. In this embodiment, both of these door open sensors are ON in the open state and OFF in the closed state. However, these door open sensors may also be configured to be OFF in the open state and ON in the closed state.
This allows the gaming machine 10 to detect both the open/closed state of the middle frame 17 relative to the outer frame 15 and the open/closed state of the front frame 20 relative to the middle frame 17.

As shown in FIG. 3, a group of operation buttons operated by the player is located on the top surface of the upper ball tray 27. This group of operation buttons includes a main operation unit 39 electrically connected to the main control board 100 (described later), which includes a ball loan button 39a and a return button 39b for accepting prepaid card return operations. The operation units electrically connected to the first sub-control board 200 (described later) include an effect button 37 that can accept player operations to switch effects that occur during play or to obtain various information related to the gaming machine 10, and cursor buttons 38 (up cursor button 38a, down cursor button 38b, left cursor button 38c, right cursor button 38d, center cursor button 38e) for instructing operations up, down, left, and right. Each operation unit is equipped with a sensor for detecting operation, and the connected control board detects the operation of each operation unit by changes in the detection state of the sensor.

In addition, a movable decorative body 22 that operates (vibrates) due to an actuator such as a motor (not shown) is provided on the side of the upper ball tray 27. Furthermore, a lamp made up of a full-color LED is provided inside the movable decorative body 22, and the lamp lights up in accordance with the operation of the actuator, lighting up the movable decorative body 22 and making it easy to recognize that the movable decorative body 22 is operating.
Details will be described later, but in this embodiment, a pre-reading performance is performed using the movable decorative body 22.

A ball ejection mechanism 36 is provided below the lower ball tray 29 to eject game balls stored in the lower ball tray 29 downward. By operating this ball ejection mechanism 36, a bottom opening (not shown) formed on the bottom surface of the lower ball tray 29 opens, and the game balls fall naturally through the bottom opening and are ejected.
Although not shown in the figure, the upper ball tray 27 is provided with a mechanism that, similar to the ball removal mechanism 36, can be operated to move the stored balls to the lower ball tray 29, and by operating both this mechanism and the ball removal mechanism 36, it is possible to discharge the stored balls.

As shown in FIG. 1, a pair of speakers 33 (33a, 33b) are disposed on the left and right sides of the upper frame portion 32 of the front frame 20. The upper frame portion 32 and the left and right side frame portions 34a, 34b of the front frame 20 are formed with light-transmitting covers, inside which are disposed frame lamps 35 (35a, 35b, 35c). The speakers 33 and frame lamps 35 can emit sounds or turn on or off in conjunction with effects and error notifications that occur during gameplay.

The effect display device 80 is composed of a main display unit 81 disposed approximately in the center of the game board 50 and sub-display units 82 disposed around the main display unit 81. The sub-display unit 82 further includes an upper sub-display unit 82a disposed above the main display unit 81, a left sub-display unit 82b disposed on the left side of the main display unit 81, and a right sub-display unit 82c disposed on the right side of the main display unit 81.
Here, the main display unit 81 is a fixed liquid crystal display device, and the upper sub-display unit 82a, the left sub-display unit 82b, and the right sub-display unit 82c are movable liquid crystal display devices operated by actuators such as motors (not shown).

The main display unit 81 can display the changing display of the pattern row that is performed in conjunction with the changing display in the first special pattern display device 91 or the second special pattern display device 92 described below, and can also display various other effects.
In the variable display of the symbol rows (decorative symbols) displayed on the main display unit 81, the displayed decorative symbols form three symbol rows. In this embodiment, the variable display direction of each symbol row is downward, but the direction is not particularly limited. For example, it may be upward, left/right, depthwise, or a combination of these (diagonal direction).
Here, the depth direction refers to the virtual direction perceived by the player in a display mode that uses a method (for example, perspective) that makes the player perceive the pattern row as if it is changing from the back of the main display unit 81 to the front or vice versa, even though it is actually a planar changing display on the display screen of the main display unit 81.
In addition, the decorative symbols in this embodiment include a "1 symbol" imitating the number "1," a "2 symbol" imitating the number "2," a "3 symbol" imitating the number "3," a "4 symbol" imitating the number "4," a "5 symbol" imitating the number "5," a "6 symbol" imitating the number "6," a "7 symbol" imitating the number "7," an "8 symbol" imitating the number "8," and a "9 symbol" imitating the number "9," and these symbols are provided in each symbol row. In the following description, the "1 symbol,""3symbol,""5symbol,""7symbol," and "9 symbol" may be collectively referred to as "odd number symbols," and the "2 symbol,""4symbol,""6symbol," and "8 symbol" may be collectively referred to as "even number symbols."

Each of the sub-display sections 82 is not only provided to mainly display effect images related to the effects, but is also configured to be movable.
The initial positions of the upper sub-display unit 82a are on the upper side relative to the main display unit 81, the left sub-display unit 82b are on the left side relative to the main display unit 81, and the right sub-display unit 82c are on the right side relative to the main display unit 81, and each of the sub-display units 82 is configured to be movable from these initial positions to a position where the entire display area of the sub-display unit 82 overlaps the display area of the main display unit 81. However, even when the sub-display units 82 (particularly the left sub-display unit 82b and right sub-display unit 82c) are in the initial position shown in Fig. 4, approximately the upper half of the display area (the left display area 821 and the right display area 822, which will be described later) is visible to the player.

A plurality of light emitting diodes (hereinafter referred to as "LEDs") are arranged on the lower right side of the main display unit 81, and these LEDs form the display area of the pattern display device 90, which displays special patterns and normal patterns.
In addition, the pattern display device 90 is disposed at a position that is more difficult for the player to see than the main display section 81, and the display area of the pattern display device 90 is smaller than the display area of the main display section 81.
In this embodiment, the arrangement and number of LEDs for the pattern display device 90 are as shown in Figure 2, but this is just one example, and the arrangement and number of LEDs for the pattern display device 90 are not limited to this example.

The special symbols are symbols that are stopped and displayed as a result of a symbol change that determines whether or not to activate a special electric device (for example, special electric device 65). The special symbols in this embodiment include a first special symbol displayed on first special symbol display device 91 and a second special symbol displayed on second special symbol display device 92.
In addition, the special pattern may be abbreviated as "Special Pattern," the first special pattern as "Special Pattern 1," and the second special pattern as "Special Pattern 2."

The normal symbol is a symbol that is stopped and displayed as a result of a symbol change that determines whether or not to activate a normal electric device (for example, the normal electric device 61). The normal symbol in this embodiment is displayed on the normal symbol display device 93.
In addition, normal patterns are sometimes abbreviated as "Fuzu", and normal electric devices are sometimes called "Denchu".

In addition to the above-mentioned display devices, the symbol display device 90 is also provided with a first special symbol reserve lamp 94, a second special symbol reserve lamp 95, and a normal symbol reserve lamp 96.
The first special pattern reserve lamp 94 makes it possible to identify the number of pattern variations relating to reserved special pattern 1, the second special pattern reserve lamp 95 makes it possible to identify the number of pattern variations relating to reserved special pattern 2, and the normal pattern reserve lamp 96 makes it possible to identify the number of pattern variations of reserved normal patterns, and all of them make it possible to identify the number of corresponding pattern variations by the lighting state of the two LEDs (in this embodiment, right always lit only = 1, left and right always lit = 2, right flashing + left always lit = 3, left and right flashing = 4).

In the following explanation, the pattern change in which the first special pattern display device 91 or the second special pattern display device 92 displays a changing special pattern and then stops displaying the special pattern will be referred to as the ``pattern change of the special pattern,'' and in the following explanation, the pattern change in which the normal pattern display device 93 displays a changing special pattern and then stops displaying the normal pattern will be referred to as the ``pattern change of the normal pattern.''
In addition, in the following explanation, the display of the change in the pattern row (decorative pattern) displayed on the main display unit 81 described above may be referred to as "pattern change of decorative pattern" to distinguish it from "pattern change of special pattern" and "pattern change of normal pattern."
In the following explanation, when simply referring to "pattern change," it means the pattern change of the special design unless otherwise specified.

As shown in Figure 4, obstacles such as numerous game pegs (not shown), windmills 52, and decorative elements are placed on the front of the game board 50, thereby defining a game area 50a in which the game balls that are shot out will roll.
Additionally, curved outer and inner rails 51 and 53 are provided on the left and upper sides of the play area 50a to guide the game balls launched by rotating the operating handle 31 to the top of the play area 50a. The outer rail 51 is located outside the inner rail 53 with the center of the play area 50a as the reference point. Here, the pinwheel 52 is a nail-shaped mechanism for changing the direction in which the game balls fall.

The gaming machine 10 allows the strength of the game ball to be varied by the amount of rotation (e.g., rotation angle) of the operating handle 31, and various obstacles are placed in the gaming area 50a to direct the game ball to either the first flow path X (so-called left-handed hit), in which a weaker ball will roll, or the second flow path Y (so-called right-handed hit), in which a stronger ball will roll.

Figure 4 shows the main prize openings: the large prize opening 55, the first start opening 57, the second start opening 59, the gate 63, and the general prize opening 67, but the prize openings shown are only examples, and their number and placement may be changed as appropriate.

The large prize opening 55 is located in the lower right corner of the play area 50a. A large prize opening sensor 72 is attached to the large prize opening 55, and a prize ball is determined to have been won in the large prize opening 55 based on the detection result of the large prize opening sensor 72, and the number of prize balls associated with the large prize opening 55 (15 in this embodiment) is awarded.
In this embodiment, the obstacles are arranged so that more game balls roll toward the large prize opening 55 when rolling from the second flow path Y compared to when rolling from the first flow path X.

A special electric device 65 is disposed above the large prize opening 55. The special electric device 65 is a member that can be switched between an open state, which makes it easy to win a prize in the large prize opening 55, and a closed state, which makes it difficult to win a prize, and is switched to either the open state or the closed state by a special electric device solenoid 66.
More specifically, the special electric device 65 is in an open state during a portion of a jackpot game that starts when a jackpot is determined by the special symbol hit/miss determination described below, or during a portion of a small jackpot game that starts when a small jackpot is determined by the special symbol hit/miss determination, thereby allowing entry into the large prize winning slot 55. In this way, when the special electric device 65 is in an open state, entry into the large prize winning slot 55 becomes easier, so it can be said that jackpot games and small jackpot games, in which the opportunities to win prize balls are greatly increased, are in an advantageous gaming state. Also, as will be described in detail later, the small jackpot game in this embodiment can give rise to a jackpot game.
In a jackpot game, the special electric device 65 is alternately set to an open state and a closed state, and one open state (sometimes referred to as a "round game," and the total number of round games generated by one jackpot may be referred to as the "number of rounds") ends when a predetermined number (10 in this embodiment) of game balls have entered the large prize opening 55, and the special electric device 65 enters a closed state. Furthermore, one open state in a jackpot game also ends when a sufficient time (30 seconds in this embodiment) has elapsed for the predetermined number of game balls to enter the large prize opening 55.
On the other hand, in a small win game, the game ends when the special electric device 65 is in an open state for 1.8 seconds or when 10 game balls enter the large prize opening 55. Therefore, in a small win game, it is less likely that game balls will enter the large prize opening 55 than in a large win game.
In this embodiment, when a big win game or a small win game starts, a start demo that ends over time is set, and when the start demo ends, a round game (small win game in the case of a small win) starts, and when all round games have ended, an end demo that ends over time is set. In other words, in this embodiment, a big win game (including those occurring in small win games) is composed of a start demo, a round game, and an end demo, and the big win game progresses in this order.

The first starting hole 57 is located at the bottom center of the play area 50a. A first starting hole sensor 70 is attached to the first starting hole 57, and a winning entry into the first starting hole 57 is determined based on the detection result of the first starting hole sensor 70, and the number of prize balls associated with the first starting hole 57 (4 in this embodiment) is awarded. In at least some cases where a winning entry into the first starting hole 57 is determined, a pattern change related to special design 1 is performed.
In addition, in the game area 50a of this embodiment, obstacles such as game nails are arranged so that more game balls roll toward the first starting hole 57 when rolling from the first flow path X than when rolling from the second flow path Y.

The second starting hole 59 is located in the lower right corner of the play area 50a. A second starting hole sensor 71 is attached to the second starting hole 59, and a winning ball is determined based on the detection result of the second starting hole sensor 71, and the number of prize balls associated with the second starting hole 59 (1 in this embodiment) is awarded.
In at least some cases where a winning entry into the second starting port 59 is determined, a pattern change related to special chart 2 will be performed.
In addition, in the game area 50a of this embodiment, obstacles such as game nails are arranged so that more game balls roll toward the second starting hole 59 when rolling from the second flow path Y than when rolling from the first flow path X.

A normal electric device 61 is disposed in the flow path connected to the second starting port 59. The normal electric device 61 is a member that can be switched between an open state, which makes it easy for a game ball to enter the second starting port 59, and a closed state, which makes it difficult for the ball to enter, and is switched to either the open state or the closed state by a normal electric device solenoid 62.
More specifically, the normal electric device 61 opens when the result of the normal winning/losing judgment described later is a normal winning (hereinafter, sometimes simply referred to as a "normal winning"), and thus entry into the second starting hole 59 is permitted. In this way, when the normal electric device 61 is open, entry into the second starting hole 59 is possible, so that the opportunity for the pattern variation related to the special symbol 2 to be executed can be greatly increased while suppressing the decrease in game balls due to the prize balls.

Gate 63 is located in the center right of the play area 50a. A gate sensor 74 is attached to gate 63, and the detection results of gate sensor 74 determine whether or not a win has been made at gate 63. In at least some cases where a win has been made at gate 63, the normal symbol pattern will change.

The general winning opening 67 is located in the lower left of the game area 50a. A general winning opening sensor 73 is attached to the general winning opening 67, and a winning ball at the general winning opening 67 is determined based on the detection result of the general winning opening sensor 73, and the number of prize balls associated with the general winning opening 67 (four in this embodiment) is awarded.
In this embodiment, the obstacles are arranged so that more game balls roll toward the general winning opening 67 when rolling from the first flow path X compared to when rolling from the second flow path Y, but the obstacles may be arranged so that more game balls roll toward the general winning opening 67 when rolling from the second flow path Y. Also, a plurality of general winning openings 67 may be provided.

The outlet 69 is located at the bottom of the play area 50a. A game ball that is shot into the play area 50a and does not enter any of the winning holes falls into the outlet 69 and is treated as an out ball.
In this embodiment, an out ball sensor 75 (not shown) is provided for detecting out balls, which are game balls that enter the winning hole and the out hole 69.

In addition to the sensors mentioned above, the game board 50 is also equipped with a magnetic detection sensor for detecting magnetism and a radio wave detection sensor for detecting radio waves (both not shown) to prevent fraudulent acts such as receiving prize balls illegally.

As shown in Figure 5, the back of the game board 50 is equipped with a main control board case 109 housing the main control board 100, a first sub-control board case 209 housing the first sub-control board 200, a second sub-control board case 309 housing the second sub-control board 300, a power supply control board case 509 housing the power supply control board 500, and a payout control board case 409 housing the payout control board 400, and in addition to the back of the first sub-control board case 209 and the second sub-control board case 309, an open/close cover 45 covering part of the back of the main control board case 109 is attached in a removable manner.
The main control board 100 is provided with a RAM clear switch 43 .
The substrate cases and covers that encase each substrate are made of transparent materials, and the corresponding substrates can be seen through each case and cover.

In addition, on the back of the gaming board 50, above the opening and closing cover 45, there is a gaming ball tank 46 that stores gaming balls supplied from the gaming island's ball supply equipment. The gaming ball tank 46 is further connected to a payout passage 49 that leads to the upper ball tray 27 via a tank rail 47 and a payout unit 48, and balls paid out by the payout unit 48 are paid out through the payout passage 49 to the upper ball tray 27.

So far, we have explained the structure of the gaming machine 10 in this embodiment, but this is just one specific example, and the present invention can also be implemented with other configurations.

<Regarding the control configuration of the gaming machine 10>
Next, a control configuration of the gaming machine 10 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 6. Fig. 6 is a block diagram showing the control configuration of the gaming machine 10. Note that the control configuration shown in Fig. 6 is necessary for explaining the gaming machine 10 according to this embodiment, and the gaming machine 10 may also have a control configuration not shown in Fig. 6.

The main control board 100 is equipped with a CPU 101 that performs various calculations related to the game, a ROM 102 that stores data such as control programs and various lottery tables, a RAM 103 that functions as a work area and buffer memory that serves as a temporary storage area, an I/O port 104 that inputs and outputs signals to and from peripheral boards and various devices, and a random number circuit 105 that operates separately from the program processing by the CPU 101 and generates random numbers (hard random numbers), and these are connected to each other via an internal bus.

The CPU 101 reads out various control programs stored in the ROM 102 and performs arithmetic processing to execute various processes related to the main control of the game.
The RAM 103 is backed up by a backup power source generated by a backup power circuit (described later). Specifically, the RAM 103 is configured to back up various information that allows the gaming machine 10 to return to the state it was in immediately before the power outage when power is restored (when the power is turned on). For example, in addition to data such as the stack pointer and various registers held at the time of the power outage, game-related information such as the state of the gaming machine 10 at the time (whether gameplay is stopped or playable) and the current normal symbol lottery status are backed up. This information is cleared (initialized) by a RAM clearing process (described later). Therefore, after the RAM is cleared, a new special symbol variation pattern derivation state PA (low normal symbol probability, described later) is set. Furthermore, when a RAM clearing process is executed, the symbol string associated with the decorative symbol is displayed with the initial symbol combination frozen. This state is also maintained if the RAM clearing process was not executed when the power was turned on and the symbol variation was not in progress at the time of the previous power outage. Furthermore, this initial symbol combination is displayed in a static state only when the power is turned on, and is not displayed in a static state when the symbol variation is performed.

In this embodiment, at least an area in which such game-related information is stored (sometimes referred to as the game-related area of RAM 103) is backed up, as well as an area in which the complement of a checksum and a backup flag related to the game-related area of RAM 103 are stored (sometimes referred to as the game-related backup information area of RAM 103). Then, when power is restored, the gaming machine 10 recovers using the various pieces of information stored in the backed-up game-related area of RAM 103 and the game-related backup information area of RAM 103.
Note that the specific method of backup in this embodiment is not limited in any way. For example, the area of RAM 103 to be backed up may be configured to be able to retain data in a non-volatile manner even in a power outage. As another example, within RAM 103, different hardware may be provided for a first memory configured to retain data in a non-volatile manner even in a power outage and a second memory referenced during operation of the gaming machine 10. In this case, the gaming machine 10 may save the information to be backed up from the second memory to the first memory when power is lost, and recover the saved information from the first memory to the second memory when power is restored.

The main control board 100 is also electrically connected to the first start gate sensor 70, second start gate sensor 71, special prize gate sensor 72, general prize gate sensor 73, gate sensor 74, out ball sensor 75, middle frame open door sensor 76, front frame open door sensor 77, etc., and is configured to be able to input detection signals from these sensors to the CPU 101 via the I/O port 104. Although not shown, in addition to these sensors, the main control board 100 is also electrically connected to a full tank detection sensor, magnetic detection sensor, and radio wave detection sensor, and is configured to be able to input detection signals from these sensors to the CPU 101 via the I/O port 104.

In addition, the main control board 100 is electrically connected to the first special pattern display device 91, the second special pattern display device 92, the normal pattern display device 93, the first special pattern hold lamp 94, the second special pattern hold lamp 95, the normal pattern hold lamp 96, the normal electric role solenoid 62 and the special electric role solenoid 66, and is configured to be able to control these via the I/O port 104.
Similarly, the main control board 100 is electrically connected to the main operation unit 39 and the RAM clear switch 43 , and is configured to be able to detect the operation of the main operation unit 39 .

The main control board 100 and the first sub-control board 200 are connected by eight parallel signal lines and one strobe line, and are connected so that communication is possible in only one direction, from the main control board 100 to the first sub-control board 200, and various performance control commands are sent from the main control board 100 to the first sub-control board 200.
Furthermore, data cannot be transmitted from the first sub-control board 200 to the main control board 100, and the first sub-control board 200 is configured so as not to be able to request the main control board 100 to transmit data.
In addition, in this embodiment, a parallel transmission method is used for transmitting data from the main control board 100 to the first sub-control board 200, but a serial transmission method may also be used.

The first sub-control board 200 comprises a CPU 201 which performs various arithmetic processing related to game presentation based on presentation control commands from the main control board 100, a ROM 202 which stores data such as presentation control programs and various lottery tables, a RAM 203 which functions as a work area or buffer memory that serves as a temporary storage area, and an I/O port 204 which inputs and outputs signals between peripheral boards and each device, and these are connected to each other via an internal bus, and the CPU 201 is configured to execute main control related to game presentation in accordance with the control program stored in ROM 202.
In addition, the first sub-control board 200 is electrically connected to the performance button 37 and the cursor button 38, and is configured to be able to detect operation of these operating sections.

In addition, the first sub-control board 200 generates, through performance control processing based on performance control commands from the main control board 100, image control commands that instruct the image to be displayed on the second sub-control board 300, audio control commands that instruct the audio to be output to the audio control board 310, lamp control data for controlling the lighting of various lamps such as the frame lamp 35, and movement control data for controlling the movement of the sub-display unit 82, etc.
Here, the first sub-control board 200 is connected to the second sub-control board 300 and the audio control board 310 to enable two-way communication, and each control command (image control command, audio control command) is sent from the first sub-control board 200 to the second sub-control board 300 or the audio control board 310, while in response, a response command (ACK command) indicating that the control command was received successfully is sent from each control board (second sub-control board 300, audio control board 310) to the first sub-control board 200.

The first sub-control board 200 is also electrically connected to the frame lamp 35 and the movable decorative body 22, and transmits lamp control data via the I/O port 204. The frame lamp 35 and the movable decorative body 22 are configured so that their lighting is controlled by the lamp control data transmitted from the first sub-control board 200.
Furthermore, the first sub-control board 200 is electrically connected to the movable decorative body 22 and the sub-display unit 82, and transmits movement control data via the I/O port 204. The movable decorative body 22 and the sub-display unit 82 are configured so that their movement is controlled by the movement control data transmitted from the first sub-control board 200.

The second sub-control board 300, although not shown in the figure, is equipped with a CPU that performs various arithmetic processing related to image presentation based on image control commands from the first sub-control board 200, a ROM that stores image control programs and various data, a RAM that functions as a work area or buffer memory that serves as a temporary storage area, and an I/O port that inputs and outputs signals between peripheral boards and each device, and is configured so that the CPU executes the main control related to image presentation in accordance with the control program stored in the ROM.
Furthermore, the second sub-control board 300 is equipped with a VDP that generates image data according to the content of the effect determined by the effect content determination means 225 (described later) based on a control signal received from the CPU, and a sound source IC that generates sound data according to the content of the effect based on a control signal received from the CPU. The VDP is a so-called image processor that reads image data stored in an image ROM in response to instructions from the CPU, processes the image data, and sends the generated image data to the main display unit 81 and the sub-display unit 82. Also connected to this VDP is a high-speed VRAM that is used to expand and process the image data read from the image ROM.

The audio control board 310 is equipped with a CPU 311 that performs various calculations related to audio effects based on audio control commands from the first sub-control board 200, a ROM 312 that stores audio control programs, audio data, etc., a RAM 313 that functions as a work area or buffer memory that serves as a temporary storage area, and an I/O port 314 that inputs and outputs signals to and from peripheral boards and each device. The CPU 311 is configured to execute main control related to audio effects in accordance with the control program stored in ROM 312. Therefore, the audio control board 310 reads audio data stored in ROM 312 in response to audio control commands received from the first sub-control board 200, synthesizes the read audio data, and transmits the final synthesized audio data to the speaker 33 via an amplifier, allowing the speaker 33 to output audio.

The dispensing control board 400 is mainly composed of a CPU, ROM and RAM (all not shown).
In addition, the payout control board 400 is connected to the main control board 100 so as to be able to communicate in both directions, and performs control to drive the payout unit 48 to pay out game balls based on a payout control command from the main control board 100, and also controls the launch of game balls by synchronously driving the ball feeding mechanism and the launching mechanism based on the amount of operation of the operating handle 31.

The power supply control board 500 is composed of a normal power supply circuit 501 that generates normal power to be supplied to electronic and electrical components such as the control board mentioned above based on the primary power supply supplied from the game island's power supply equipment, a backup power supply circuit 502 that generates backup power, and a power interruption detection circuit 503 that detects power interruption (when the voltage supplied by the normal power supply drops to a specified voltage).
In addition, a power switch 40 is connected to the power supply control board 500, and assuming that primary power is supplied from the game island's power supply equipment, when the power switch 40 is turned ON, normal power is generated in the normal power supply circuit 501 of the power supply control board 500, and power is supplied to electronic and electrical components including the above-mentioned control boards (main control board 100, first sub-control board 200, second sub-control board 300, and payout control board 400).
In addition, when a power outage is detected by the power outage detection circuit 503, the power supply control board 500 sends a power outage signal (NMI signal) to each of the main control board 100, the first sub-control board 200, and the dispensing control board 400.
In addition, the backup power supply circuit 502 is configured to be charged when power is supplied to the gaming machine 10 from the gaming island's power supply equipment.
In addition, the backup power supply circuit 502 may be provided on the dispensing control board 400, and the power interruption detection circuit 503 may not be provided on the power supply control board 500, but may be provided on each of the main control board 100, the first sub-control board 200, and the dispensing control board 400.

<Functional Configuration of Gaming Machine 10>
Next, the functional configuration of the gaming machine 10 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Figure 7. Figure 7 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the gaming machine 10. Note that the functional configuration shown in Figure 7 is necessary for explaining the gaming machine 10 according to this embodiment, and the gaming machine 10 may also have functional configurations that are not shown in Figure 7. Furthermore, when explaining the functional configuration, reference will be made to Figures 8 to 11 as necessary.

As shown in Figure 7, the main control board 100 is equipped with a ball entry determination means 110, a main random number generation means 115, a main hold control means 120, a preliminary determination means 125, a special symbol lottery means 130, a regular symbol lottery means 135, a jackpot game control means 140, a symbol display control means 145, an electric device control means 150, a game status control means 155, a main information storage means 160, a main error control means 165, a main command management means 170, a power restoration processing execution means 175, and a power interruption processing execution means 180. These means are functional representations of the functions realized by the control configurations on the main control board 100 described using Figure 6.

First, the main information storage means 160 is a means for temporarily storing data read by the means provided in the main control board 100, data derived by calculations in said means, etc., in the corresponding storage areas. In particular, the data (performance control commands) stored in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160 is transmitted by the command transmission means to the sub-command management means 270 of the first sub-control board 200, which will be described later, after being stored.

The ball entry determination means 110 determines whether a ball has been entered into each winning hole based on the detection results of the sensors provided at each winning hole.
In addition, when the ball entry determination means 110 determines that a game ball has entered a prize hole using a sensor installed in a prize hole such as the large prize hole sensor 72, it generates a presentation control command (prize entry command) that includes information that can identify the type of sensor related to the prize, and stores the command in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160.

The main random number generating means 115 can generate multiple types of random numbers with different update ranges depending on the random number circuit 105, and when a win is determined to have been made at a winning slot, it obtains (latches) one or more random numbers corresponding to that winning slot from the random number circuit 105.
More specifically, when it is determined that a prize has been won at the first start gate 57 or the second start gate 59, the main random number generating means 115 acquires a random number for determining whether a special symbol has been won, a random number for drawing a special symbol stop symbol pattern, and a random number for drawing a special symbol variation pattern, which will be described later. When it is determined that a prize has been won at gate 63, the main random number generating means 115 stores the random number for determining whether a normal symbol has been won, a random number for drawing a normal symbol stop symbol pattern, and a random number for drawing a normal symbol variation pattern, which will be described later, in corresponding storage areas of the main information storage means 160.

The main reserve control means 120 controls the reservation of the pattern change related to the special chart and the reservation of the pattern change related to the normal chart. Regarding the special chart 1, the random number for determining whether the special chart is a hit or not, the random number for drawing the special chart stop pattern, and the random number for drawing the special chart change pattern, which are acquired upon winning the first starting port 57, are reserved (stored) as operation reservation information for the special chart 1.
More specifically, the main hold control means 120 is provided with a hold counter (hereinafter referred to as the "special chart 1 hold counter") which is incremented by 1 each time the activation hold information of special chart 1 is held and decremented by 1 each time the activation hold information of special chart 1 is used (used in the lottery by the special chart lottery means 130), and stores the activation hold information in a storage area corresponding to the current special chart 1 hold counter of the main information storage means 160 until the value of the special chart 1 hold counter reaches an upper limit value (4 in this embodiment), and clears the used activation hold information each time the activation hold information is used, and controls the remaining activation hold information to be moved (shifted) from the current storage area to a storage area corresponding to a special chart 1 hold counter which is 1 less than the current special chart 1 hold counter, in order from the smallest special chart 1 hold counter.
In addition, the main hold control means 120 performs the same control as described above for special drawing 2 and regular drawing separately from special drawing 1, and the hold counter for special drawing 2 is called the special drawing 2 hold counter, and the upper limit value of the special drawing 2 hold counter in this embodiment is 4.
In addition, in the following explanation, "holding of operation hold information" may be expressed as "holding of pattern change" or simply as "holding."
In addition, when the main hold control means 120 updates (adds or subtracts) the operation hold information (hold counter) of special chart 1 or special chart 2, it generates a performance control command (hold command) including the special chart 1 hold counter and the special chart 2 hold counter, and stores the command in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160.
In this embodiment, when both the activation pending information corresponding to special chart 1 and the activation pending information corresponding to special chart 2 are reserved, a priority variation is performed in which the activation pending information corresponding to special chart 2 is used preferentially. However, instead of this priority variation, a winning order variation in which the activation pending information is used in the order in which it is reserved, regardless of whether it corresponds to special chart 1 or special chart 2, or a simultaneous variation in which the activation pending information corresponding to special chart 1 and the activation pending information corresponding to special chart 2 are simultaneously used when both the activation pending information corresponding to special chart 1 and the activation pending information corresponding to special chart 2 are reserved may be adopted.

The advance judgment means 125 performs advance judgment for a pre-reading performance targeting the pending activation information in at least some cases where the pending activation information of a special chart is pending at a predetermined advance judgment timing.
More specifically, the preliminary judgment means 125 reads each random number of the currently reserved operation pending information and performs preliminary judgment for each of the following: special symbol win/loss judgment, special symbol stop symbol lottery, and special symbol change pattern lottery, which will be described later. Each preliminary judgment uses a lottery table (not shown) that is the same as or equivalent to the lottery table used for the lottery corresponding to each preliminary judgment. Therefore, the results of these preliminary judgments will be the same as the results of the lottery that will be executed later.
Furthermore, the advance determination means 125 generates a performance control command (advance determination command) including the result of the derived advance determination, and stores the command in a transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160. In particular, the advance determination command includes a random number used to determine whether or not a special symbol will be selected, a random number used to draw a special symbol stop pattern, and a random number used to draw a special symbol change pattern, and these random numbers are referenced in the advance notice performance control process and the symbol pre-reading performance control process, which will be described later.
Since the pre-determination command is transmitted (generated and stored in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160) at least part of the timing of the predetermined pre-determination, it will be transmitted following the above-mentioned hold command. Here, the predetermined timing of the pre-determination is, for example, the timing when the activation hold information of the special pattern is held. Note that in this embodiment, if the activation hold information of special pattern 1 is held during the high probability of the normal pattern described below, the pre-determination is restricted, and therefore the transmission of the pre-determination command corresponding to that pre-determination is also restricted. On the other hand, if the activation hold information of special pattern 2 is held during the low probability of the normal pattern described below, the pre-determination may or may not be restricted.

The special chart lottery means 130 includes a special chart success/failure determination means 131, a special chart stop pattern lottery means 132, and a special chart variation pattern derivation means 133, and executes processing by each means in the order of the special chart success/failure determination means 131, the special chart stop pattern lottery means 132, and the special chart variation pattern derivation means 133. When the special chart variation start condition is satisfied, the special chart lottery means 130 reads out the earliest activation pending information from the activation pending information reserved in the main information storage means 160.
In addition, "the conditions for starting the change of the special chart are satisfied" means, for example, that all of the following conditions are satisfied: the game is not in progress of a jackpot, neither special chart 1 nor special chart 2 is currently changing the pattern (including when the pattern change related to special chart 1 or special chart 2 is stopped and displayed), and there is pending activation information on at least one of special chart 1 and special chart 2.

8 to 11 are diagrams that schematically show lottery tables used in the main control board 100, and will be referred to as necessary in the following description.
In addition, in lotteries using lottery tables, including those other than these, the lottery values stored in the lottery table are sequentially added to the read random number in a predetermined order (if there is only one target lottery value, the addition is performed once), and the result corresponding to the lottery value that has generated a carry (overflow) is derived as the result of the lottery. Similarly, in the explanation of the lottery tables, names are given to the lottery tables for convenience of explanation, but it is sufficient that the data, such as the lottery values, contained in the lottery tables corresponding to the names are identifiable and stored in each ROM, and these names do not specify the area in which the data is stored. In the illustrated lottery tables, items listed for convenience of explanation or lottery values such as "-" and "0" may be listed, but these do not necessarily indicate the data stored in each ROM. Furthermore, results with lottery values of "-" and "0" will not result in a win. Furthermore, if the lottery table contains a lottery value that is identical to the random number range used in the lottery (the number of random numbers that can be obtained within that range), the result will be derived 100%, so there is no need to perform a lottery. Also, if the total value of the lottery values used in one lottery matches the random number range used in the lottery, a carry will always occur when adding the last lottery value, so there is no need to perform the addition, and in that case, the lottery value used for the addition itself becomes unnecessary.

The special symbol hit/miss judgment means 131 reads out a random number for the special symbol hit/miss judgment for each pattern change, and executes the special symbol hit/miss judgment by lottery using the read out random number and a lottery table for the special symbol hit/miss judgment to judge whether the winning is a big hit, a small hit, or a miss.
8(a) is a diagram showing a schematic drawing of a lottery table for determining whether a special drawing is a hit or a miss. The lottery table differs between special drawing 1 and special drawing 2, and the range of random numbers used in these determinations is 0 to 65535. Therefore, in the special drawing hit or miss determination for special drawing 1, a jackpot is derived with a probability of 205/65536 (approximately 1/320), and any other result is a miss, and no small hit is derived. On the other hand, in the special drawing hit or miss determination for special drawing 2, a jackpot is derived with a probability of 205/65536 (approximately 1/320), and a small hit is derived with a probability of 1820/65536 (approximately 1/36.0), and any other result is a miss.
In this embodiment, as will be described later, a jackpot game can occur via a small jackpot, so the probability of a jackpot being derived in the special chart hit/miss determination is set to the single probability described above.

When the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment is a big hit or a small hit, the special chart stop pattern lottery means 132 determines the special chart stop pattern by lottery using a random number (in this embodiment, in the range of 0 to 999) for special chart stop pattern lottery and a lottery table for special chart stop pattern lottery.
Specifically, as shown in Figure 8(b), which is a diagram that schematically shows a lottery table for lottery of stopping symbols used when a jackpot is derived in the judgment of whether the special symbol is a hit or miss related to special symbol 1, when a jackpot is derived in the judgment of whether the special symbol is a hit or miss related to special symbol 1, symbol A is determined as the stopping symbol with a probability of 100/1000 (1/10), and symbol B is determined with a probability of 900/1000 (approximately 1/1.11).
Here, whether pattern A or pattern B is selected, the game will transition to a normal high probability game after the jackpot game corresponding to these stopped patterns ends, as described below. However, the number of pattern changes during which the normal high probability game continues (hereinafter referred to as the "prescribed number of times related to the normal high probability game") is 80 times after the jackpot game ends when pattern A is selected, and 40 times after the jackpot game ends when pattern B is selected. Furthermore, the number of rounds of the jackpot game corresponding to pattern A is 10, while the number of rounds of the jackpot game corresponding to pattern B is 4. Therefore, it can be said that pattern A is more advantageous than pattern B in terms of both the number of rounds and the prescribed number of times related to the normal high probability game.

As shown in Figure 8(c), which is a diagram that schematically shows a lottery table for drawing the stopping pattern used when a small win is derived in the judgment of whether the special pattern is a hit or miss for special pattern 2, when a small win is derived in the judgment of whether the special pattern is a hit or miss for special pattern 2, pattern a is determined as the stopping pattern with a probability of 700/1000 (approximately 1/1.43), and pattern b is determined with a probability of 300/1000 (approximately 1/3.33).
Here, symbol a is a stopping symbol that results in 10 rounds of jackpot play during a small jackpot game related to that symbol, and results in a normal high probability after the jackpot game ends, with the specified number of times for that normal high probability being 80. Symbol b is a stopping symbol that results in 4 rounds of jackpot play during a small jackpot game related to that symbol, and results in a normal high probability after the jackpot game ends, with the specified number of times for that normal high probability being 80. Therefore, it can be said that symbol a is more advantageous than symbol b in terms of both the number of rounds and the specified number of times for that normal high probability.
In addition, when a jackpot game occurs in a small hit game, the number of rounds in the jackpot game is the number calculated by counting the small hit game as one round. Furthermore, in the following explanation, a jackpot game that occurs in a small hit game related to symbol a may be referred to as a "jackpot game related to symbol a," and a jackpot game that occurs in a small hit game related to symbol b may be referred to as a "jackpot game related to symbol b."

As shown in Figure 8(d), which is a schematic diagram of the lottery table for selecting the stopping symbols used when a jackpot is determined in the special symbol hit/miss determination for special symbol 2, when a jackpot is determined in the special symbol hit/miss determination for special symbol 2, symbol c is determined as the stopping symbol with a probability of 1000/1000 (1/1). In particular, symbol c is a stopping symbol for which the number of rounds of the jackpot game corresponding to that stopping symbol is 10, and which results in a normal symbol with high probability after the jackpot game ends; the specified number of times for that normal symbol with high probability is 80, which is the same as for the jackpot game for symbol a.

In addition, the special chart stop pattern lottery means 132 determines pattern C as the stop pattern if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for special chart 1 is a miss, and determines pattern d as the stop pattern if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for special chart 2 is a miss (both not shown).

As such, in the above-described embodiment, a jackpot game that occurs during a pattern change related to special pattern 2 tends to be more advantageous than a jackpot game that occurs during a pattern change related to special pattern 1. Therefore, interest in the game can be further increased by transitioning from the special pattern change pattern derivation state PA, which will be described later, to another special pattern change pattern derivation state (special pattern change pattern derivation state PB or special pattern change pattern derivation state PC, which will be described later).

The special pattern variation pattern derivation means 133 has a plurality of types of special pattern variation pattern lottery tables to be referenced when determining the special pattern variation pattern, and selects one special pattern variation pattern lottery table for determining the current special pattern variation pattern based on the current special pattern variation pattern derivation state and the result of the current special pattern hit/miss judgment, determines one special pattern variation pattern using the selected special pattern variation pattern lottery table and a random number for special pattern variation pattern lottery, and determines a variation time based on the determined special pattern variation pattern. Here, the variation time refers to the time from when the pattern variation related to the special pattern (special pattern 1 or special pattern 2) starts to when the pattern variation ends.
Although details of the transition conditions etc. will be described later, in this embodiment, there are three special pattern variation pattern derivation states: a special pattern variation pattern derivation state PA, a special pattern variation pattern derivation state PB, and a special pattern variation pattern derivation state PC. The above-mentioned method of determining the special pattern variation pattern is adopted for the pattern variation related to special pattern 1 in the special pattern variation pattern derivation state PA, and for the pattern variation related to special pattern 2 in the special pattern variation pattern derivation state PB and the special pattern variation pattern derivation state PC.
On the other hand, in the pattern change related to the other special chart (the special chart for which the above-mentioned method of determining the special chart change pattern is adopted) in each special chart change pattern derivation state, a predetermined special chart change pattern is determined depending on the result of the special chart success/failure judgment. In particular, in this embodiment, in the pattern change related to special pattern 2 in the special pattern change pattern derivation state PA, if the result of the special pattern hit/miss judgment related to the pattern change is a miss, and if the result of the special pattern hit/miss judgment related to the pattern change is a jackpot, a fluctuation pattern with a fluctuation time of 1000 ms is determined, and in the pattern change related to special pattern 1 in the special pattern change pattern derivation state PB or special pattern change pattern derivation state PC, if the result of the special pattern hit/miss judgment related to the pattern change is a miss, and if the result of the special pattern hit/miss judgment related to the pattern change is a jackpot, a fluctuation pattern with a fluctuation time of 2000 ms is determined, and if the result of the special pattern hit/miss judgment for the pattern change is a miss, a fluctuation pattern with a fluctuation time of 2000 ms is determined (the same applies to small hits).

Figure 9(a) is a diagram schematically showing a special chart variation pattern lottery table used for pattern variation related to special chart 1 during the special chart variation pattern derivation state PA, and the range of random numbers used in the lottery is 0 to 999.
As shown in Figure 9 (a), in the pattern change related to special chart 1 during the special chart change pattern derivation state PA, special chart change pattern HNP to special chart change pattern ASP-C can be determined.
Specifically, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in the pattern change related to the special chart 1 during the special chart change pattern derivation state PA is a miss, the special chart change pattern HNP occurs with a probability of 900/1000 (approximately 1/1.11), the special chart change pattern HRP occurs with a probability of 52/1000 (approximately 1/19.2), the special chart change pattern HSP1-A occurs with a probability of 13/1000 (approximately 1/76.9), and the special chart change pattern HS occurs with a probability of 11/1000 (approximately 1/90.9). P1-B, 9/1000 (approximately 1/111) probability of special chart fluctuation pattern HSP2-A, 7/1000 (approximately 1/143) probability of special chart fluctuation pattern HSP2-B, 5/1000 (1/200) probability of special chart fluctuation pattern HSP3-A, 3/1000 (approximately 1/333) probability of special chart fluctuation pattern HSP3-B is determined, and in this case, special chart fluctuation pattern ASP1-A to special chart fluctuation pattern ASP-C are not determined. Details will be described later using Figure 9 (b), but when the special chart fluctuation pattern HNP is determined, the special chart fluctuation pattern is further specified using the value of the special chart 1 pending counter at the start of this pattern fluctuation.
On the other hand, when the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in the pattern fluctuation related to the special chart 1 during the special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PA is a jackpot, the probability of the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP1-A is 90/1000 (approximately 1/11.1), the probability of the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP1-B is 110/1000 (approximately 1/9.09), the probability of the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP2-A is 135/1000 (approximately 1/7.41), and the probability of the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP3-B is 165/1000 (approximately 1/6.09). Special chart variation pattern ASP2-B is determined with a probability of 1/1000 (approximately 1/5.56), special chart variation pattern ASP3-A with a probability of 180/1000 (approximately 1/5.56), special chart variation pattern ASP3-B with a probability of 220/1000 (approximately 1/4.56), and special chart variation pattern ASP-C with a probability of 100/1000 (1/10), and in such cases, special chart variation pattern HNP to special chart variation pattern HSP3-B will not be determined.
In this way, in this embodiment, when the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in the pattern fluctuation related to the special chart 1 in the special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PA is a miss, any one of the special chart fluctuation patterns HRP to HSP3-B is determined at a rate of 100/1000 (1/10), and the special chart fluctuation pattern HNP is determined at a rate of 900/1000 (approximately 1/1.11). Furthermore, when the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in the pattern fluctuation related to the special chart 1 in the special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PA is a jackpot, any one of the special chart fluctuation patterns ASP1-A to ASP-C is determined at a rate of 1000/1000 (1/1).
Here, in the explanation of the special chart fluctuation pattern of this embodiment, when two special chart fluctuation patterns are described with "~" in between, the description of the special chart fluctuation pattern that exists between the special chart fluctuation pattern described earlier and the special chart fluctuation pattern described later is omitted in accordance with the order described in the drawing related to the special chart fluctuation pattern lottery table for each special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state. Also, in the explanation of the special chart fluctuation pattern of this embodiment, regardless of whether the corresponding fluctuation time is described or not, if the names of the special chart fluctuation patterns are different, it means that the different special chart fluctuation patterns are different.

Figure 9(b) is a diagram schematically showing a special chart variation pattern lottery table used when a special chart variation pattern HNP is determined in the pattern variation related to special chart 1 during the special chart variation pattern derivation state PA, and the range of the random numbers used in this lottery (different from the random numbers used in the lottery related to the special chart variation pattern lottery table shown in Figure 9(a)) is 0 to 999.
As shown in Figure 9 (b), the special chart fluctuation patterns HNP that can be determined in the pattern fluctuation related to special chart 1 during the special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PA include special chart fluctuation pattern HNP-A with a fluctuation time of 3200 ms (milliseconds), special chart fluctuation pattern HNP-B with a fluctuation time of 5600 ms, special chart fluctuation pattern HNP-C with a fluctuation time of 8000 ms, and special chart fluctuation pattern HNP-D with a fluctuation time of 11200 ms, in this order of increasing fluctuation time.
Specifically, if the special pattern 1 reserved counter = 3 at the start of this pattern change, the special pattern change pattern HNP-A is determined with a probability of 1000/1000 (1/1). Similarly, if the special pattern 1 reserved counter = 2 at the start of this pattern change, the special pattern change pattern HNP-A is determined with a probability of 150/1000 (approximately 1/6.67), and the special pattern change pattern HNP-B is determined with a probability of 850/1000 (approximately 1/1.18). If the special pattern 1 reserved counter = 1 at the start of this pattern change, the special pattern change pattern HNP-A is determined with a probability of 50/1000 (1/20), and the special pattern change pattern HNP-B is determined with a probability of 150/1000 (approximately 1/6.67). The special pattern variation pattern HNP-B is determined with a probability of 800/1000 (1/1.25), and the special pattern variation pattern HNP-C is determined with a probability of 800/1000 (1/1.25). If the special pattern 1 reserved counter = 0 at the start of this pattern variation, the special pattern variation pattern HNP-B is determined with a probability of 50/1000 (1/20), the special pattern variation pattern HNP-C is determined with a probability of 100/1000 (1/10), and the special pattern variation pattern HNP-D is determined with a probability of 850/1000 (approximately 1/1.18). In the following explanation, if the value of the referenced special pattern reserved counter is 3, it will be referred to as "protected 3", if the value of the special pattern reserved counter is 2, it will be referred to as "protected 2", if the value of the special pattern reserved counter is 1, it will be referred to as "protected 1", and if the value of the special pattern reserved counter is 0, it will be referred to as "protected 0".
In this way, when the special pattern variation pattern HNP is determined in the special pattern variation pattern derivation state PA, the special pattern variation pattern (variation time) that is likely to be determined depends on the value of the special pattern 1 reserved counter at the start of the current pattern variation. More specifically, the smaller the value of the special pattern 1 reserved counter at the start of the current pattern variation, the more likely it is that a special pattern variation pattern with a longer variation time will be determined (the larger the value of the special pattern 1 reserved counter at the start of the current pattern variation, the more likely it is that a shorter variation time will be determined).
In addition, such special chart variation pattern HNP (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "basic special chart variation pattern") also exists in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB and the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC, and in these special chart variation pattern derivation states, the reserved counter referenced is different from that in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PA, and in both cases the value of the special chart 2 reserved counter is referenced.

Figure 10(a) is a diagram showing a schematic diagram of a special chart variation pattern lottery table used for the pattern variation related to special chart 2 when in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB, and the range of random numbers used in the lottery is 0 to 999.
As shown in Figure 10 (a), in the pattern change related to special chart 2 during the special chart change pattern derivation state PB, special chart change pattern HNP to special chart change pattern ASP-F can be determined.
Specifically, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in the pattern change related to the special chart 2 during the special chart change pattern derivation state PB is a miss, the special chart change pattern HNP is determined with a probability of 960/1000 (approximately 1/1.04), the special chart change pattern HSP-D is determined with a probability of 20/1000 (1/50), the special chart change pattern HSP-E is determined with a probability of 15/1000 (approximately 1/66.7), and the special chart change pattern HSP-F is determined with a probability of 5/1000 (1/200). In this case, the special chart change pattern ASP-D to the special chart change pattern ASP-F are not determined. Details will be described later using FIG. 10 (b), but when the special chart change pattern HNP is determined, the special chart change pattern is further specified using the value of the special chart 2 pending counter at the start of this pattern change. The method of determining the special chart variation pattern using this special chart 2 pending counter is also the same in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB described later.
On the other hand, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in the pattern change related to special chart 2 during the special chart change pattern derivation state PB is a big hit or a small hit, special chart change pattern ASP-D is determined with a probability of 500/1000 (1/2), special chart change pattern ASP-E with a probability of 350/1000 (approximately 1/2.86), and special chart change pattern ASP-F with a probability of 150/1000 (approximately 1/6.67), and in such cases, special chart change pattern HNP to special chart change pattern HSP-F will not be determined.

Figure 10(b) is a diagram schematically showing a special chart variation pattern lottery table used when a special chart variation pattern HNP is determined in the pattern variation related to special chart 2 during the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB, and the range of the random numbers used in this lottery (different from the random numbers used in the lottery related to the special chart variation pattern lottery table shown in Figure 10(a)) is 0 to 999.
As shown in Figure 10 (b), the special chart fluctuation patterns HNP that can be determined in the pattern fluctuation related to special chart 2 in the special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PB include special chart fluctuation pattern HNP-E with a fluctuation time of 3000 ms and special chart fluctuation pattern HNP-F with a fluctuation time of 15000 ms.
Specifically, if the special pattern 2 reserved counter = 3 at the start of the current pattern change, if the special pattern 2 reserved counter = 2 at the start of the current pattern change, or if the special pattern 2 reserved counter = 1 at the start of the current pattern change, the special pattern change pattern HNP-E is determined with a probability of 1000/1000 (1/1), and in these cases, the special pattern change pattern HNP-F is not determined. On the other hand, if the special pattern 2 reserved counter = 0 at the start of the current pattern change, the special pattern change pattern HNP-F is determined with a probability of 1000/1000 (1/1), and in these cases, the special pattern change pattern HNP-E is not determined.
In addition, the special chart variation pattern HNP-E and the special chart variation pattern HNP-F are different from either the special chart variation pattern that can be determined when the special chart variation pattern HNP is determined in the pattern variation related to the special chart 1 in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PA described above, or the special chart variation pattern that can be determined when the special chart variation pattern HNP is determined in the pattern variation related to the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC described below.

Figure 11 (a) is a diagram showing a schematic diagram of a special chart variation pattern lottery table used for the pattern variation related to special chart 2 when the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC is in, and the range of random numbers used in the lottery is 0 to 999.
As shown in Figure 11 (a), in the pattern change related to special chart 2 when the special chart change pattern derivation state PC is in, special chart change pattern HNP to special chart change pattern ASP-I can be determined.
Specifically, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in the pattern change related to special chart 2 during the special chart change pattern derivation state PC is a miss, special chart change pattern HNP will be determined with a probability of 950/1000 (approximately 1/1.05), special chart change pattern HSP-G with a probability of 25/1000 (1/40), special chart change pattern HSP-H with a probability of 15/1000 (approximately 1/66.7), and special chart change pattern HSP-I with a probability of 10/1000 (1/100), and in such cases, special chart change pattern ASP-G to special chart change pattern ASP-I will not be determined.
On the other hand, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in the pattern change related to special chart 2 during the special chart change pattern derivation state PC is a big hit or a small hit, regardless of the number of spins in the special chart change pattern derivation state PC, special chart change pattern ASP-G will be determined with a probability of 500/1000 (1/2), special chart change pattern ASP-H with a probability of 350/1000 (approximately 1/2.86), and special chart change pattern ASP-I with a probability of 150/1000 (approximately 1/6.67), and in such cases, special chart change pattern HNP to special chart change pattern HSP-I will not be determined.

Figure 11(b) is a diagram schematically showing a special chart variation pattern lottery table used when a special chart variation pattern HNP is determined in the pattern variation related to special chart 2 when the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC is in, and the range of the random numbers used in this lottery (different from the random numbers used in the lottery related to the special chart variation pattern lottery table shown in Figure 11(a)) is 0 to 999.
As shown in Figure 11 (b), the special chart variation patterns HNP that can be determined in the pattern variation related to special chart 2 when the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC is in include special chart variation pattern HNP-G with a variation time of 2000 ms and special chart variation pattern HNP-H with a variation time of 10000 ms.
Specifically, if the special pattern 2 reserved counter = 3 at the start of the current pattern change, if the special pattern 2 reserved counter = 2 at the start of the current pattern change, or if the special pattern 2 reserved counter = 1 at the start of the current pattern change, the special pattern change pattern HNP-G is determined with a probability of 1000/1000 (1/1), and in these cases, the special pattern change pattern HNP-H is not determined. On the other hand, if the special pattern 2 reserved counter = 0 at the start of the current pattern change, the special pattern change pattern HNP-H is determined with a probability of 1000/1000 (1/1), and in these cases, the special pattern change pattern HNP-G is not determined.
In addition, the special chart variation pattern HNP-G and the special chart variation pattern HNP-H are different from both the special chart variation pattern that can be determined when the special chart variation pattern HNP is determined in the pattern variation related to special chart 1 in the above-mentioned special chart variation pattern derivation state PA, and the special chart variation pattern that can be determined when the special chart variation pattern HNP is determined in the pattern variation related to special chart 2 in the above-mentioned special chart variation pattern derivation state PB.

In addition, at the start of the pattern change, the special symbol change pattern derivation means 133 generates a performance control command (change start command) that includes the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment, the determined special symbol stop symbol, and the determined special symbol change pattern, and stores this command in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160.

The regular map lottery means 135, like the special map lottery means 130, reads out the earliest pending activation information from the pending activation information stored in the main information storage means 160 when the regular map pattern is not changing, and uses the read random number to perform a regular map validity judgment to determine whether the regular map is valid or invalid, and determines various parameters related to the regular map (regular map change time, regular map stop display time, etc.) based on the result of the regular map validity judgment and information such as the current special map change pattern derivation state.
In the normal drawing hit/miss judgment, there are two states where the normal drawing lottery state is a high probability state (sometimes abbreviated as "normal drawing high probability") and a low probability state (sometimes abbreviated as "normal drawing low probability"). Although the illustration of the lottery table is omitted, in this embodiment, in the normal drawing high probability state, the normal drawing hits with a probability of 65535/65536, and the remaining probability of 1/65536 is a miss, while in the normal drawing low probability state, the normal drawing hits with a probability of 1/65536, and the remaining probability of 65535/65536 is a miss. Note that in the normal drawing low probability state, the normal drawing may not be a hit (65536/65536 is a miss).

At the start of a jackpot game, the jackpot game control means 140 generates a presentation control command (start demo command) including information related to the jackpot game (the required time for the start demo, the number of rounds, and the subsequent special chart variation pattern derivation state) and stores it in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160, and at the end of the start demo, generates a presentation control command (round start command) and stores it in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160. Furthermore, at the end of the round game, a presentation control command (end demo command) including the required time for the end demo of the jackpot game is generated and stored in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160.
Furthermore, these commands are also the same in a jackpot game caused by a small jackpot game. Specifically, at the start of a small jackpot game, the jackpot game control means 140 generates a start demo command and stores it in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160, and at the end of the start demo, generates a round start command and stores it in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160, and generates an end demo command and stores it in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160.

Furthermore, if the result of the special symbol hit/miss determination is a small hit, the jackpot game control means 140 starts the small hit game, and if the game ball passes through the V winning area (not shown) located within the large winning opening 55 during the small hit game, the jackpot game corresponding to the small hit can be started after the small hit game ends. Therefore, in this embodiment, the small hit game functions as a trigger for the jackpot game. Note that if the game ball does not pass through the V winning area during the small hit game, the jackpot game will not start after the small hit game ends.

The pattern display control means 145 causes the first special pattern display device 91 to variably display the special pattern 1 in accordance with the variation time corresponding to the determined special pattern variation pattern of the special pattern 1, and causes the special pattern 1 to be stopped and displayed with the stop pattern determined by the special pattern stop pattern lottery after the variation time has elapsed. Similarly, the second special pattern display device 92 causes the special pattern 2 to variably display the special pattern 2 in accordance with the variation time corresponding to the determined special pattern variation pattern of the special pattern 2, and causes the special pattern 2 to be stopped and displayed with the stop pattern determined by the special pattern stop pattern lottery after the variation time has elapsed. Here, the stop display time (interval) of the pattern change related to the special chart refers to the time from when the special chart is stopped and displayed until the pattern change of the next special chart can start (if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment is a miss), or the time from when the pattern change of the special chart ends until the big hit game or small hit game starts (if the result of the normal chart hit/miss judgment is a normal hit), and in this embodiment the stop display time of the pattern change related to the special chart is a uniform 300 ms regardless of the type of special chart or the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment.
In addition, the pattern display control means 145 has a special pattern game timer for managing the time (variation time, stop display time) related to the display of special pattern 1 and special pattern 2, and when the special pattern is stopped for display (at the timing when the value of the special pattern game timer becomes "0"), it generates a presentation control command (variation stop command) for requesting the fixed stop display of the decorative pattern, and stores the command in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160.
Here, the "confirmed stop display of a decorative pattern" refers to the final stop display of a decorative pattern in the pattern change, and is different from the provisional stop display of a decorative pattern that may occur during the pattern change. In the provisional stop display of a decorative pattern, the decorative pattern displayed as stopped is accompanied by a small up and down movement (so-called "swaying movement"), while in the confirmed stop display of a decorative pattern, the decorative pattern displayed as stopped is not accompanied by a swaying movement. Therefore, the player can recognize whether the decorative pattern displayed as stopped is a confirmed stop display or a provisional stop display.

Furthermore, the pattern display control means 145 causes the normal map to be displayed on the normal pattern display device 93 in a variable manner according to a variable time corresponding to the determined normal map variable pattern, and after the variable time has elapsed, causes the normal map to be displayed in a stopped state with the determined stopping pattern.
In addition, the pattern display control means 145 has a regular pattern game timer for managing the time related to the regular pattern (regular pattern change time, regular pattern stop display time, etc.).

During the above-mentioned big win game and small win game, the electric device control means 150 outputs a control signal to the special electric device solenoid 66, causing the special electric device 65 to open according to an opening pattern corresponding to the special symbol.

The game state control means 155 controls the normal symbol lottery state. Specifically, the game state control means 155 sets the normal symbol to low probability at the start of a jackpot game regardless of the stopped symbol of the special symbol related to the jackpot game, and when a specified condition such as the end of the jackpot game is met, sets the normal symbol to high probability until the specified number of symbol changes related to the high normal symbol probability are performed, and sets the normal symbol to low probability when the specified number of symbol changes related to the high normal symbol probability are completed. Here, as will be described later, in this embodiment, the number of symbol changes used to determine whether the specified number of symbol changes related to the high normal symbol probability has been reached is the number of symbol changes related to special symbol 2, but the number of symbol changes used to determine this may be the number of symbol changes related to special symbol 2 plus the number of symbol changes related to special symbol 1.
In addition, in this embodiment, during the small win game, the normal lottery state is maintained in the pattern variation that caused the small win game. However, as with the start of the big win game, the normal lottery state may be low when the small win game starts.

Such a normal drawing state changes in conjunction with the above-mentioned special drawing variation pattern derivation state, and the transition of the special drawing variation pattern derivation state is managed by the game state control means 155. The transition of the special drawing variation pattern derivation state will be explained below with reference to Figures 12(a) and 12(b). Note that Figure 12(a) is a state transition diagram showing the transition of the special drawing variation pattern derivation state, and Figure 12(b) is a diagram showing the relationship between the average variation time for each special drawing variation pattern derivation state.
As shown in Figure 12 (a), in the special chart variation pattern derivation state, there is a special chart variation pattern derivation state PA as a special chart variation pattern derivation state corresponding to a normal chart low probability, and there are a special chart variation pattern derivation state PB and a special chart variation pattern derivation state PC as special chart variation pattern derivation states corresponding to a normal chart high probability, and one of these special chart variation pattern derivation states is set except during a jackpot game. And, there are transition conditions (i) to (v) for the transition conditions between the special chart variation pattern derivation state PA and the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC.

Specifically, transition condition (i) is the end of a jackpot game related to pattern B, transition condition (ii) is the end of a jackpot game related to pattern A, transition condition (iii) is the end of a jackpot game related to pattern a, pattern b, or pattern c, transition condition (iv) is the end of a pattern change in which the number of pattern changes related to special pattern 2 executed without a jackpot game in a normal high probability state reaches 40 (the specified number of times related to a normal high probability state in special pattern change pattern derivation state PB), and transition condition (v) is the end of a pattern change in which the number of pattern changes related to special pattern 2 executed without a jackpot game in a normal high probability state reaches 80 (the specified number of times related to a normal high probability state in special pattern change pattern derivation state PC).
In addition, if a jackpot game involving pattern a, pattern b, or pattern c occurs in the special pattern variation pattern derivation state PC, the state will transition back to the special pattern variation pattern derivation state PC after the jackpot game ends, and the number of pattern variations involving special pattern 2 that can be performed up to the specified number of times relating to the high probability of normal patterns in the special pattern variation pattern derivation state PC will be reset.
Also, although not shown in the figures, in a small win game that occurs in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB and the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC, if the game ball does not pass through the V winning area and a big win game does not occur, the end of the small win game triggers the end of the current special chart variation pattern derivation state and transition to the special chart variation pattern derivation state PA.

As shown in Figure 12 (b), the average fluctuation time for each of the special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PA, special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PB, and special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PC becomes shorter in the order of special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PA, special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PB, and special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PC. This is due to the length of the fluctuation time for the basic special chart fluctuation pattern that is most likely to be determined in each special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state. Here, the average fluctuation time refers to the sum of the fluctuation times derived by multiplying the occurrence rate (the probability that can occur in any pattern fluctuation, derived by multiplying the probability that the result of the special chart success/failure judgment is derived by the probability of that special chart success/failure judgment being derived by the probability of that special chart fluctuation pattern being selected) for each of the fluctuation times for the special chart fluctuation pattern that can be selected in a certain special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state. However, in this embodiment, when there is only one special chart fluctuation pattern that can be selected in that certain special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state, the fluctuation time for that special chart fluctuation pattern is treated as the average fluctuation time.

In this way, in this embodiment, from the perspective of the specified number of times related to the high probability of a normal symbol, it can be said that the special symbol fluctuation pattern derivation state PC is a more advantageous gaming state than the special symbol fluctuation pattern derivation state PB. Also, from the perspective of the time efficiency of winning prize balls due to the average fluctuation time, it can be said that the special symbol fluctuation pattern derivation state PC is a more advantageous gaming state than the special symbol fluctuation pattern derivation state PB.

In addition, when a transition occurs between the normal drawing state and the special drawing variation pattern derivation state, the game state control means 155 generates a presentation control command (game state designation command) including the state after the transition, and stores the command in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160.
Furthermore, the game state control means 155 counts the number of times that a pattern change related to a transition to another special pattern change pattern derivation state is executed in each special pattern change pattern derivation state, and generates a presentation control command including the number of times that the pattern change is counted each time a pattern change is started, and stores the command in a transmission command area of the main information storage means 160. Note that the information included in the presentation control command may be included in the above-mentioned change start command.

As described above, the main information storage means 160 is a means for temporarily storing data read by each means and data derived by calculations, etc., in the corresponding storage areas.

The main error control means 165 monitors the input information of the I/O port 104 and determines whether the gaming machine 10 is in an error state. If an error state is determined, a presentation control command (error command) containing information that can identify the error state is stored in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160.

When a performance control command is stored in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160, the main command management means 170 transmits the performance control command to the first sub-control board 200.
In principle, each performance control command is transmitted in the order in which it is stored in the transmission command storage area of the main information storage means 160.

The power restoration processing execution means 175 includes a recovery state setting means 176 and a playable state transition means 179.

The recovery state setting means 176 executes a recovery state setting process to set a recovery state based on whether or not there is an abnormality in the RAM 103 when power is restored, the state at the time of power outage immediately before the power restoration, the state of the RAM clear switch 43 when power is restored, and the state of the inner frame door open sensor 76 when power is restored. The recovery states set by this process include a game-stopped state and a game-enabled state (which may or may not involve the execution of a RAM clear process).
Specifically, if there is an abnormality in RAM 103 when power is restored, a game-stopped state is set regardless of the state of RAM clear switch 43 and the state of middle frame door open sensor 76 when power is restored. Also, if there is no abnormality in RAM 103 when power is restored and RAM clear switch 43 is ON (pressed state) when power is restored, RAM clear processing is executed and a playable state is set on the condition that middle frame door open sensor 76 is ON when power is restored (if middle frame door open sensor 76 is OFF when power is restored, the RAM clear processing is not executed and the playable state is set), and if there is no abnormality in RAM 103 when power is restored and RAM clear switch 43 is OFF (not pressed state) when power is restored, the RAM clear processing is not executed and the playable state is set.
Here, the game stop state is a return state in which game progress is disabled by not executing processing according to the detection results of the sensors installed at each winning slot (the detection results of the sensors themselves do not need to be viewed). On the other hand, the playable state is a return state in which game progress is enabled by executing processing according to the detection results of the sensors installed at each winning slot. In particular, if the RAM clear process is not executed when power is restored, the game returns to the playable state at the time of the previous power outage. For example, if a jackpot game or a small jackpot game was being executed at the time of the previous power outage, the game returns to the jackpot game or small jackpot game that was being executed, and if a pattern change was being executed at the time of the previous power outage, the game returns to the pattern change that was being executed.

Whether or not there is an abnormality in RAM 103 is determined by performing a RAM abnormality check at the beginning of the recovery state setting process on the game-related area of RAM 103. (Specifically, this check determines whether or not a backup flag is stored (whether or not the backup flag is ON) in the backup information area related to the target area, and if the backup flag is stored (if the backup flag is ON), derives a checksum of the target area and the complement stored in the backup information area related to that area, and if the calculation result is 0, determines that the target area is normal; otherwise, determines that the target area is abnormal.)

The playable state transition means 179 executes a playable state transition process for transitioning to a playable state when the playable state is set.
More specifically, in the process of transitioning to a playable state, if the security signal output is ON, a process of turning the security signal output OFF and initial setting of the device are executed.
In addition, during the initial setting of the device, processes such as sending a launch permission command to the payout control board 400 to allow the launch of game balls, setting the state in which balls will be valid when they enter each winning slot, and setting data to activate the random number circuit 105 are performed.

The power cutoff process execution means 180 executes the power cutoff process based on receiving a power cutoff signal from the power supply control board 500 .
Specifically, for the area of RAM 103 related to gaming, the checksum of that area is derived, the complement of that checksum is stored in the backup information area of RAM 103 related to gaming, and a backup flag indicating that power has been cut off for that area is turned ON (the backup flag is stored in the backup information area of RAM 103 related to gaming).

As shown in Figure 7, the first sub-control board 200 is equipped with a sub-random number generating means 210, a normal performance control means 220, a sub-error control means 230, a lamp control means 240, a movable role control means 245, a sub-information storage means 260, and a sub-command management means 270, and these means are functional representations of what is realized by each control configuration on the first sub-control board 200 described using Figure 6.
Here, the sub-information storage means 260 is a means for temporarily storing data read by the means provided in the first sub-control board 200, data derived by calculations in said means, etc., in the corresponding storage areas. Also, the performance control command transmitted from the main command management means 170 is stored by the sub-command management means 270 in a received command storage area of the sub-information storage means 260. In the following explanation, the storage of the performance control command transmitted from the main command management means 170 in the received command storage area of the sub-information storage means 260 by the sub-command management means 270 may be simply referred to as "receiving a performance control command."

The sub-random number generation means 210 is capable of generating random numbers (software random numbers) that are updated by the CPU 201 through program processing, and obtains random numbers at the timing when each lottery (details will be described later) is executed by the normal performance control means 220.

The normal presentation control means 220 includes a presentation mode control means 221, a presentation route determination means 222, a sub-hold control means 223, a pre-reading presentation control means 224, a presentation content determination means 225, a decorative pattern control means 226, and a jackpot presentation control means 227.

When the presentation mode control means 221 receives a game state designation command, it controls the transition of the presentation mode in a manner that is consistent with the special chart variation pattern derivation state managed on the main control board 100 side.
The presentation modes in this embodiment are broadly divided into normal mode, challenge mode, and RUSH mode, with normal mode corresponding to the special chart variation pattern derivation state PA, challenge mode corresponding to the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB, and RUSH mode corresponding to the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC.

When the presentation route determination means 222 receives a preliminary determination command, it determines (sets) a presentation route corresponding to the currently reserved pattern change based on the result of the preliminary determination included in the command (in this embodiment, the special pattern change pattern). Note that if the special pattern change pattern corresponding to the pattern change is the above-mentioned special pattern change pattern HNP, the presentation route determination means 222 does not determine a presentation route when the preliminary determination command is sent, but determines a presentation route based on the special pattern change pattern included in the change start command at the start of the pattern change (for example, in the special pattern change pattern derivation state PA, special pattern change pattern HNP-A to special pattern change pattern HNP-D).
Here, the presentation route is the presentation from the start to the end of the pattern change, and specifies the process of the presentation that notifies the result of the special pattern judgment in the pattern change, and the content of the presentation executed in the pattern change will be determined by the presentation content determination means 225 described later in accordance with the presentation route corresponding to the pattern change.

The presentation route in this embodiment is roughly divided into a miss presentation route that notifies that the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment in the current symbol change is a miss (the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment in the current symbol change is neither a big hit nor a small hit), and a big hit presentation route that notifies that the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment in the current symbol change is a big hit or a small hit. Furthermore, the miss presentation route includes a non-development miss presentation route in which the development presentation is not executed, and a development miss presentation route in which the development presentation is executed. Note that, as will be described later, when the big hit presentation route is determined, the development presentation is executed unless otherwise explained.
Here, the development effect is an effect that is executed after the decorative symbols reach a reach state (a state in which all decorative symbols except one symbol row are displayed statically, and the remaining symbol rows are displayed in a variable manner), and at the end of the effect, it is announced whether the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment in the current symbol change is a big hit or a small hit. Therefore, in the development effect corresponding to the development miss effect route, a series of effects corresponding to the development effect is executed, and at the end of the effect, it is announced that the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment in the current symbol change is neither a big hit nor a small hit. On the other hand, in the development effect corresponding to the big hit effect route, a series of effects corresponding to the development effect is executed, and at the end of the effect, it is announced that the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment in the current symbol change is a big hit or a small hit. As will be described in detail later, a cut-in effect can be executed during the execution of the development effect in this embodiment.
Also, as will be described later, in this embodiment, in one presentation mode, each determined special chart variation pattern corresponds to a different presentation route. Therefore, in the following description, the presentation route for the special chart variation pattern may be simply expressed as a special chart variation pattern. However, multiple presentation routes may be associated with one special chart variation pattern, and in this case, one presentation route may be determined from multiple presentation routes corresponding to the determined special chart variation pattern.
Below, we will explain the contents of the presentation route corresponding to each special chart change pattern determined in each presentation mode.

First, the presentation routes corresponding to the special chart variation patterns HNP-A to HNP-D and the special chart variation pattern HRP, which are determined normally (special chart variation pattern derivation state PA), correspond to the non-development miss presentation route described above.
Specifically, special pattern variation patterns HNP-A to HNP-D correspond to a presentation route that notifies the user that the result of the special pattern hit/miss judgment in this pattern change is a miss when the decorative patterns are not in a reach state and are displayed as a barrage (a state in which all pattern rows are displayed as stopped and the same decorative pattern is not displayed as stopped in each pattern row). Here, the same decorative pattern refers to a decorative pattern that resembles the same number, and the parts other than the numbers that make up the decorative pattern may be different. Similarly, different decorative patterns refer to decorative patterns that resemble different numbers.
The special symbol variation pattern HRP corresponds to a presentation route in which the decorative symbols reach a reach state without pseudo-variation, and then the decorative symbols stop and display in a scattered pattern without executing the development presentation described below, thereby announcing that the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment for this symbol variation is a miss. Here, pseudo-variation refers to a period before the development presentation begins, which is bounded by the stopping of decorative symbols based on certain rules (for example, the stopping of decorative symbols in a pattern where the same decorative symbols stop in the middle and right symbol rows, such as "5 symbols - 6 symbols - 6 symbols"). Therefore, it can be said that a pseudo-variation only occurs when the number of pseudo-variations is two. In other words, if the decorative symbols only change once before the reach state is reached, it can be said that a pseudo-variation does not occur, and in such a case, it can be said that one pseudo-variation is executed. Note that, although the maximum number of pseudo-variations in this embodiment is three, the maximum number of pseudo-variations is not limited to this, and any number greater than two can be used.

The special chart fluctuation patterns HSP1-A to HSP3-B correspond to the above-mentioned development miss performance route.
Specifically, for the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP1-A and the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP1-B, the decorative symbol reaches a reach state without pseudo-fluctuation, and then a development effect is executed to notify that the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in this pattern fluctuation is a miss, and after the development effect ends, the decorative symbol is displayed with a scattered pattern. Note that the types of development effects corresponding to each special chart fluctuation pattern are different from each other, and the development effect HEA corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP1-A, and the development effect HEB corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP1-B.
The special chart fluctuation pattern HSP2-A and the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP2-B correspond to a performance route in which the decorative pattern reaches a reach state through two pseudo-fluctuations, and then a development performance is executed to notify that the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in this pattern fluctuation is a miss, and after the development performance ends, the decorative pattern is displayed stopped with a spread. Note that, like the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP1-A and the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP1-B, the types of development performance corresponding to each special chart fluctuation pattern are different from each other, and the development performance HEA corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP2-A, and the development performance HEB corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP2-B.
The special chart fluctuation pattern HSP3-A and the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP3-B correspond to a performance route in which the decorative pattern reaches a reach state through three pseudo-fluctuations, and then a development performance is executed to notify that the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in this pattern fluctuation is a miss, and after the development performance ends, the decorative pattern is displayed stopped with a spread. Note that, like the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP1-A and the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP1-B, the types of development performance corresponding to each special chart fluctuation pattern are different from each other, and the development performance HEA corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP3-A, and the development performance HEB corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP3-B.

The special chart change pattern ASP1-A and the special chart change pattern ASP1-B correspond to the jackpot presentation route described above.
Specifically, for the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP1-A and the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP1-B, the decorative pattern reaches a reach state without pseudo-fluctuation, and then a development effect is executed to notify that the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in this pattern fluctuation is a jackpot, and after the development effect ends, the decorative pattern is displayed in a pattern alignment (a state in which all pattern rows are stopped and the same decorative pattern is stopped and displayed in each pattern row). Note that the types of development effects corresponding to each special chart fluctuation pattern are different from each other, and the development effect HEA corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP1-A, and the development effect HEB corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP1-B.
For the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP2-A and the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP2-B, the decorative pattern reaches a reach state through two pseudo fluctuations, and then a development effect is executed to notify that the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in this pattern fluctuation is a jackpot, and after the development effect ends, the decorative pattern stops and is displayed in a pattern alignment. As with the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP1-A and the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP1-B, the types of development effects corresponding to each special chart fluctuation pattern are different from each other, and the development effect HEA corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP2-A, and the development effect HEB corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP2-B.
The special chart fluctuation pattern ASP3-A and the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP3-B correspond to a performance route in which the decorative pattern reaches a reach state through three pseudo-fluctuations, and then a development performance is executed to notify that the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in this pattern fluctuation is a jackpot, and after the development performance ends, the decorative pattern stops and is displayed with the pattern aligned. Note that, like the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP1-A and the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP1-B, the types of development performance corresponding to each special chart fluctuation pattern are different from each other, and the development performance HEA corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP3-A, and the development performance HEB corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP3-B.
The special pattern variation pattern ASP-C corresponds to a performance route in which the decorative pattern reaches a reach state without pseudo-variation, and then a development performance HEC is executed to notify that the result of the special pattern hit/miss judgment in this pattern variation is a jackpot, and after the development performance ends, the decorative pattern is displayed stopped with the pattern aligned.

In this way, in this embodiment, by matching the same development performance, the performance route corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP1-A corresponds to the performance route corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP1-A, the performance route corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP1-B corresponds to the performance route corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP1-B, the performance route corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP2-A corresponds to the performance route corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP2-A, the performance route corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP2-B corresponds to the performance route corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP2-B, the performance route corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP3-A corresponds to the performance route corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP3-A, and the performance route corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP3-B corresponds to the performance route corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP3-B. As a result, the contents of the performances of the matched performance routes will match from the start to the end (the timing when the result of the special chart success/failure judgment is shown by the development performance related to the performance route). Therefore, in the pattern change in which the development effect HEA and the development effect HEB are executed, the player can have a sense of expectation of winning a jackpot. Also, the above-mentioned special symbol change pattern, which determines the presentation route in which the development effect HEA and the development effect HEB are executed, can be said to be a special symbol change pattern that makes the player expect a jackpot. This also applies to other presentation modes described later.
In addition, there is no corresponding development miss presentation route for the special chart variation pattern ASP-C. Therefore, when the development presentation HEC is executed in the pattern variation, the player can be made to recognize with certainty that he has won the jackpot. Therefore, it can be said that the presentation route corresponding to the special chart variation pattern is a presentation route that determines the jackpot win, and the special chart variation pattern can also be said to be a special chart variation pattern that determines the jackpot win.

Next, the presentation route corresponding to the basic special chart variation patterns (special chart variation patterns HNP-E and HNP-F) that can be determined in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB corresponds to the non-development miss presentation route described above. Specifically, the special chart variation pattern HNP-E and special chart variation pattern HNP-F correspond to a presentation route in which the decorative pattern does not enter a reach state and the decorative pattern stops and is displayed with a spread pattern, thereby announcing that the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for this pattern change is a miss. This is also true for the basic special chart variation patterns in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC, which will be described later, so an explanation of this special chart variation pattern derivation state will be omitted.

The special chart fluctuation patterns HSP-D to HSP-F correspond to the above-mentioned development miss performance route.
Specifically, for special chart fluctuation patterns HSP-D to HSP-F, the decorative symbol reaches a reach state without pseudo-fluctuation, and then a development effect is executed to notify that the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in this pattern fluctuation is a miss, and after the development effect ends, the decorative symbol is displayed stopped with a spread pattern. Note that the types of development effects corresponding to each special chart fluctuation pattern are different from each other, and the development effect HED corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP-D, the development effect HEE corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP-E, and the development effect HEF corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP-F.
In addition, the special chart fluctuation patterns ASP-D to ASP-F correspond to the jackpot performance route described above.
Specifically, for special chart fluctuation patterns ASP-D to ASP-F, the decorative pattern reaches a reach state without pseudo-fluctuation, and then a development effect is executed to notify that the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in this pattern fluctuation is a big hit or a small hit, and after the development effect ends, the decorative pattern is displayed stopped with the pattern aligned. Note that the types of development effects corresponding to each special chart fluctuation pattern are different from each other, and the development effect HED corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP-D, the development effect HEE corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP-E, and the development effect HEF corresponds to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP-F.

In addition, the special chart fluctuation patterns HSP-G to HSP-I that can be determined in the special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PC correspond to the above-mentioned development miss performance route. Specifically, the special chart fluctuation patterns HSP-G to HSP-I correspond to a performance route in which the decorative pattern reaches a reach state without pseudo-fluctuation, and then a development performance is executed to notify that the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in this pattern fluctuation is a miss, and after the development performance ends, the decorative pattern is displayed stopped with a spread pattern. Note that the types of development performance corresponding to each special chart fluctuation pattern are different, with the development performance HEG corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP-G, the development performance HEH corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP-H, and the development performance HEI corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern HSP-I.
In addition, the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP-G to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP-I correspond to the above-mentioned jackpot performance route. Specifically, the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP-G to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP-I correspond to a performance route in which the decorative pattern reaches a reach state without pseudo-fluctuation, and then a development performance is executed to notify that the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment in this pattern fluctuation is a jackpot, and after the development performance ends, the decorative pattern is displayed stopped with the pattern aligned. Note that the types of development performance corresponding to each special chart fluctuation pattern are different from each other, with the development performance HEG corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP-G, the development performance HEH corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP-H, and the development performance HEI corresponding to the special chart fluctuation pattern ASP-I.

When the sub-hold control means 223 receives a hold command (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as the occurrence of a hold win), it sets performance data for displaying the number of hold images corresponding to the special symbol 1 hold counter and the number of hold images corresponding to the special symbol 2 hold counter in the hold display area (not shown) of the main display unit 81 based on the information on the special symbol 1 hold counter and the special symbol 2 hold counter contained in the command. The hold images are images that are the subject of a hold pre-reading performance that changes into various forms to indicate the degree of advantage, such as the likelihood of a jackpot game occurring.

When the pre-reading effect control means 224 receives a pre-determination command, it determines the content of the so-called pre-reading effect based on the result of the pre-determination included in the command.
The pre-reading effect is a performance that suggests the expectation level for the result of the judgment on whether the special symbol will be selected or not in the pattern change of the pre-read target, and the content of the performance that will be executed in the pattern change of the pre-read target, before the pattern change of the pre-read target begins, with the aim of increasing interest in the game.
In particular, the predictive effects in this embodiment include advance notice effects using movable decorative bodies 22 and pattern predictive effects using combinations of decorative patterns that are displayed in a stopped state (both of which will be described in detail later), and these predictive effects are executed in the normal high probability state (special pattern variation pattern derivation state PB, special pattern variation pattern derivation state PC).
The pattern change to be predicted above refers to the pattern change related to the main special pattern (special pattern 1 in special pattern change pattern derivation state PA, and special pattern 2 in special pattern change pattern derivation state PB and special pattern change pattern derivation state PC), and refers to the pattern change that is reserved in states Hold 1 to Hold 3.

When the effect content determining means 225 receives a variation start command, it determines the content of the effect to be executed in the current pattern variation according to the effect route already determined by the effect route determining means 222.
More specifically, the effect content determination means 225 determines the effect pattern lottery table to be referenced for the effect content (effect pattern) for each effect execution timing in the pattern variation based on the effect route determined by the effect route determination means 222, and determines the effect content by lottery using the determined effect pattern lottery table. In particular, by doing so, it is possible to change the effect content related to (executed according to) the determined effect route, and also to provide a connection between the effects in one pattern variation.

When the decorative pattern control means 226 receives a variation start command, it determines the final (determined stopped display) combination of decorative patterns (left pattern, middle pattern, right pattern) based on the stopped pattern of the determined special pattern.
Specifically, in the pattern variation related to special symbol 1, a pattern matching related to decorative symbols including a pattern matching related to symbol 7 is determined for symbol A, and any pattern matching related to decorative symbols excluding symbol 7 is determined for symbol B. Therefore, in this embodiment, the number of rounds of the jackpot game to occur and the subsequent (after the jackpot game ends) presentation mode (special symbol variation pattern derivation state) can be estimated depending on the type of pattern matching related to the decorative symbols corresponding to the jackpot game.
In the pattern variation related to special chart 2, one of the pattern combinations related to decorative patterns including the 7 symbol is determined for pattern a and pattern c, and one of the pattern combinations related to decorative patterns excluding the 7 symbol is determined for pattern b. Therefore, in this embodiment, when a pattern combination related to the 7 symbol is stopped and displayed, it is determined that the jackpot game is related to the stopped pattern (pattern a or pattern c) excluding pattern b. This makes it easier to estimate the number of rounds related to the jackpot game that occurs depending on the type of pattern combination related to the decorative pattern corresponding to the jackpot game, just like the pattern variation related to special chart 1.

When the jackpot presentation control means 227 receives a presentation control command related to a jackpot game (start demo command, round start command, end demo command), it determines the content of the presentation during the jackpot game based on the type of the presentation control command and the information contained in the presentation control command.
In addition, the effects that occur during jackpot play include a start demo effect that is executed based on the reception of a start demo command and notifies the player that a jackpot play has begun, a round effect that is executed based on the reception of a round start command and notifies the player that a round play is in progress, and an end demo effect that is executed based on the reception of an end demo command and notifies the player that a jackpot play has ended.

The normal performance control means 220 reads out performance data for each device corresponding to each performance at the execution timing of that performance, in accordance with the content of the performance determined by the above-mentioned means provided in the first sub-control board 200. If the read-out performance data includes performance data related to images, it generates image control commands based on that performance data and stores those commands in a transmission command storage area of the sub-information storage means 260. Furthermore, if the read-out performance data includes performance data related to sounds, it generates audio control commands related to sounds based on that performance data and stores those commands in a transmission command storage area of the sub-information storage means 260.
Furthermore, if the restored state upon power restoration is a playable state following the execution of a RAM clear process, the normal presentation control means 220 reads presentation data for announcing that the playable state has been achieved following the execution of a RAM clear process, and if the restored state upon power restoration is a playable state without the execution of a RAM clear process, the normal presentation control means 220 reads presentation data for announcing that the playable state has been achieved without the execution of a RAM clear process. Furthermore, if a game-stop state is achieved, the normal presentation control means 220 reads presentation data for announcing that the game has been stopped and that a RAM clear process needs to be performed. Note that while details of these notifications are omitted, it is preferable that they continue to be executed for a certain period of time (e.g., 30 seconds) after execution has begun, and the presentation device that executes the notification does not matter.

When an error command is sent, the sub-error control means 230 determines an error notification pattern and reads performance data for executing the error notification according to that error notification pattern.

The lamp control means 240 holds lamp control data for controlling the lighting of various lamps, such as the movable decorative body 22 and the frame lamp 35. For example, if the performance data read by the normal performance control means 220 contains performance data corresponding to a lamp, the lamp control means 240 reads the lamp control data based on the performance data and transmits the read lamp control data to the lamp to be executed.

If the performance data read by the normal performance control means 220 contains performance data corresponding to a movable role object, the movable role object control means 245 reads movement control data from ROM 202 based on the performance data to control the movement of the movable decorative body 22 and sub-display unit 82, and transmits the read movement control data to the movable decorative body 22 and sub-display unit 82 to control the movement of the movable decorative body 22 and sub-display unit 82.

As described above, the sub-information storage means 260 is a means for temporarily storing data read by the means provided in the first sub-control board 200, data derived by calculations in said means, etc., in the corresponding storage areas.

The sub-command management means 270 receives performance control commands transmitted from the main control board 100 and stores the received performance commands in the received command storage area of the sub-information storage means 260. Furthermore, if an image control command is stored in the transmission command storage area of the sub-information storage means 260, the sub-command management means 270 transmits the image control command to the second sub-control board 300. Furthermore, if an audio control command or volume adjustment command is stored in the storage area, the sub-command management means 270 transmits these commands to the audio control board 310. In principle, these commands are transmitted in the order in which they are stored in the transmission command storage area of the sub-information storage means 260.

As explained above, the gaming machine 10 according to this embodiment is capable of executing advance notice effects using the movable decorative body 22 and advance pattern effects using a combination of decorative patterns that are displayed in a stopped state as advance pattern effects.
Here, in the conventional control related to the execution of the look-ahead effect, once the look-ahead effect is executed (started), the execution of a new look-ahead effect is restricted until the symbol variation of the look-ahead target of the look-ahead effect is finished. This contributes to reducing confusion for the player by making it easier to confirm which symbol variation (reserved) of the look-ahead target of the executed look-ahead effect is among the reserved symbol variations, but since the frequency of execution of the look-ahead effect is low, there is room for improvement in terms of increasing the interest in the game.
In contrast, the present invention has a function for improving the above-mentioned problems, and the details of this function will be explained below.

<About the advance announcement performance>
First, the advance notification effect according to this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 13 and 14. FIG.
Figure 13 shows the flow of the advance notice effect control processing, and this processing is executed by the advance notice effect control means 224 upon receiving a pre-determination command regarding the entry of a game ball into the second starting hole 59 in the special chart change pattern derivation state PB or the special chart change pattern derivation state PC.
14(a) to 14(c) are diagrams showing the lottery tables used in the lottery for the advance notice effect mode, and the range of random numbers used in the lottery is 0 to 999.

As described above, the advance notice performance in this embodiment is a pre-reading performance using the movable decorative body 22, and when it is decided to execute the advance notice performance, it is executed when the game ball enters the second starting hole 59, which triggers the execution of the advance notice performance control process.
In particular, there are three types of advance notice performance (performance modes): white light emission, in which the movable decorative body 22 does not vibrate and emits white light; red light emission, in which the movable decorative body 22 vibrates and emits red light; and red light emission + frame lamp light emission, in which the movable decorative body 22 vibrates and emits red light and the frame lamp 35 lights up red. All modes of advance notice performance end after 2000 ms. In the following explanation, when referring to "advance notice performance such as red light emission," this refers to both red light emission and red light emission + frame lamp light emission. In addition, when executing an advance notice performance, a performance may be performed using a device other than the movable decorative body 22, such as by outputting sound effects corresponding to each of the above-mentioned modes from the speaker 33.

As shown in FIG. 13, in step S202, which is the first step of the advance notice effect control process that controls the execution of the advance notice effect, it is determined whether the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC, and if the condition is satisfied, the process proceeds to step S204, and if the condition is not satisfied, the process proceeds to step S206.
In step S204, it is determined whether or not the restriction flag is set to ON. If the condition is met, the process proceeds to step S214, and if the condition is not met, the process proceeds to step S206.
Here, the restriction flag is a flag that is set to ON when a symbol pre-reading effect described later is executed, or when a pre-announcement effect such as red light is executed. In this embodiment, the restriction flag that was in the ON state is set to OFF when the symbol change (the symbol change that is the pre-reading target) that triggered the setting of the restriction flag to ON ends, or when a winning game (a small winning game, a big winning game) occurs.

In step S206, a lottery for the type of advance announcement effect is executed.
As shown in Figures 14(a) to 14(c), in the lottery for the type of advance notice effect, the results of the preliminary judgment (the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment, the result of the special symbol stop symbol lottery, and the result of the special symbol change pattern lottery) regarding the pattern change related to special symbol 2 that triggered the execution of this advance notice effect control process (hereinafter referred to as "this time's hold") are referenced, as well as the current special symbol change pattern derivation state, the state of the restriction flag, and whether or not an advance notice effect of red light emission + frame lamp illumination has been executed previously. Here, "an advance notice effect of red light emission + frame lamp illumination is executed previously" refers to the type of advance notice effect that triggered the setting of the current restriction flag (which is assumed to be ON) being red light emission + frame lamp illumination. Similarly, "an advance notice effect such as red light emission is executed previously" refers to the type of advance notice effect that triggered the setting of the current restriction flag (which is also assumed to be ON) being red light emission or red light emission + frame lamp illumination.
Specifically, as shown in Figure 14 (a), when the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB and the restriction flag is OFF, or when the special chart variation pattern derivation state is PC (in this case, the restriction flag is OFF from the judgment of step S202), if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for this hold is a hit (small hit, big hit), and the number of rounds of the big hit game related to the hit is 10, then white light will be emitted with a probability of 50/1000 (1/20), red light will be emitted with a probability of 450/1000 (approximately 1/2.22), and red light + frame lamp will be emitted with a probability of 500/1000 (1/2).
When the current special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state is the special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PB and the restriction flag is OFF, or when the special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state is PC, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for this hold is a hit and the number of rounds of the jackpot game related to that hit is 4, then, as in the case where the number of rounds of the jackpot game described above is 10, white light will be emitted with a probability of 50/1000 (1/20), red light will be emitted with a probability of 450/1000 (approximately 1/2.22), and red light + frame lamp light will be emitted with a probability of 500/1000 (1/2).
When the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB and the restriction flag is OFF, or when the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for this reservation is a miss and a special chart variation pattern for executing a development performance is determined, white light will be emitted with a probability of 400/1000 (1/2.5), red light will be emitted with a probability of 500/1000 (1/2), and red light + frame lamp light will be emitted with a probability of 100/1000 (1/10).
When the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB and the restriction flag is OFF, or when the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for this reservation is a miss and a special chart variation pattern in which no development performance is executed is determined, white light emission is determined with a probability of 1000/1000 (1/1), and red light emission and red light emission + frame lamp light emission are not determined.
In addition, in the lottery for the type of advance notice effect using the lottery table shown in Figure 14 (a), it does not matter whether the advance notice effect of red light emission + frame lamp emission has been executed previously.

As shown in Figure 14 (b), when the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB, the restriction flag is ON, and the advance notice effect of red light emission + frame lamp illumination has not been executed previously, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for the current hold is a hit, and the number of rounds of the jackpot game related to the hit is 10, then white light emission will be determined with a probability of 200/1000 (1/5), red light emission will be determined with a probability of 400/1000 (approximately 1/2.22), and red light emission + frame lamp illumination will be determined with a probability of 400/1000 (1/2.5).
When the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB, the restriction flag is ON, and the advance notice effect of red light emission + frame lamp illumination has not been executed previously, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for the current hold is a hit, and the number of rounds of the jackpot game related to the hit is 4, then white light emission will be determined with a probability of 50/1000 (1/20), red light emission will be determined with a probability of 450/1000 (approximately 1/2.22), and red light emission + frame lamp illumination will be determined with a probability of 500/1000 (1/2).
When the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB, the restriction flag is ON, and the advance notice effect of red light emission + frame lamp illumination has not been executed previously, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for this pending event is a miss, and a special chart variation pattern in which a development effect is executed is determined, white light emission will be determined with a probability of 400/1000 (1/2.5), red light emission will be determined with a probability of 500/1000 (1/2), and red light emission + frame lamp illumination will be determined with a probability of 100/1000 (1/10).
When the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB, the restriction flag is ON, and the advance notice effect of red light emission + frame lamp emission has not been executed previously, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for this pending event is a miss, and a special chart variation pattern in which no advanced effect is executed is determined, white light emission is determined with a probability of 1000/1000 (1/1), and red light emission and red light emission + frame lamp emission are not determined.

As shown in Figure 14 (c), when the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB, the restriction flag is ON, and a pre-announcement effect of red light + frame lamp light has been executed previously, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for this pending event is a hit, and the number of rounds of the jackpot game related to the hit is 10, then there is a 200/1000 (1/5) probability of white light emission, a 600/1000 (approximately 1/1.67) probability of red light emission, and a 200/1000 (1/5) probability of red light emission + frame lamp light emission.
When the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB, the restriction flag is ON, and a pre-announcement effect of red light + frame lamp light has been executed previously, if the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for this pending event is a hit, and the number of rounds of the jackpot game related to that hit is 4, then there is a 50/1000 (1/20) probability of white light, a 650/1000 (approximately 1/1.54) probability of red light, and a 300/1000 (approximately 1/3.33) probability of red light + frame lamp light.
If the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB, the restriction flag is ON, and a pre-announcement effect of red light + frame lamp light has been executed previously, and the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for this pending event is a miss, and a special chart variation pattern for executing a development effect is determined, then white light will be emitted with a probability of 400/1000 (1/2.5), red light will be emitted with a probability of 550/1000 (approximately 1/1.82), and red light + frame lamp light will be emitted with a probability of 50/1000 (1/20).
If the current special chart variation pattern derivation state is the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB, the restriction flag is ON, and a pre-announcement effect of red light + frame lamp light has been executed previously, and the result of the special chart hit/miss judgment for this pending event is a miss, and a special chart variation pattern in which no advanced effect is executed is determined, white light will be determined with a probability of 1000/1000 (1/1), and red light or red light + frame lamp light will not be determined.

13, in step S208, the effect data for the advance notice effect of the mode determined by the advance notice effect mode lottery is set, and the advance notice effect of the mode determined by the advance notice effect mode lottery is executed.
In step S210, it is determined whether the type of the determined advance notice effect is other than white light emission, i.e., whether the determined advance notice effect is an advance notice effect such as red light emission, and if the condition is met, the process proceeds to step S212, and if the condition is not met, the advance notice effect control process is terminated.
In step S212, the restriction flag is set to ON, and then the advance notification effect control process is terminated. In particular, in step S212, even if the restriction flag is already ON, the restriction flag is updated to ON again. Therefore, the state of the restriction flag after the update is linked to the current hold.
In step S214, the effect data relating to the white light-emitting advance notice effect is set, and then the advance notice effect control process is terminated.

In this embodiment, in the special symbol variation pattern derivation state PB, when the restriction flag is ON, that is, during the period from when the advance notice effect such as red light emission is executed to when the pattern variation (miss variation) of the advance notice effect for the advance notice effect ends, a new advance notice effect such as red light emission can be executed (see the flow from step S202 to step S206 in FIG. 13). This also applies when the restriction flag is set ON by executing the pattern advance notice effect described later.
The invention described below relates to advance notice effects such as red light emission. Therefore, the advance notice effect of white light emission itself may be eliminated, provided that the content related to the advance notice effects such as red light emission described above is maintained.

As mentioned above, the jackpot games that can be generated by the pattern fluctuations related to Special Chart 2 include a jackpot game with four rounds and a jackpot game with ten rounds.
Here, as shown in the "4R Hit" column in Figures 14(a) to 14(c), in the advance notice performance type lottery, if a jackpot game with 4 rounds occurs in the current hold, white light will be emitted with a probability of 50/1000 (1/20) regardless of the state of the restriction flag.
On the other hand, as shown in the "10R Hit" column in Figure 14(a), in the lottery for the advance notice effect, if a jackpot game with 10 rounds occurs in the current reservation and the restriction flag is OFF, white light emission is determined with a probability of 50/1000 (1/20). Furthermore, as shown in the "10R Hit" column in Figures 14(b) and 14(c), in the lottery for the advance notice effect, if a jackpot game with 10 rounds occurs in the current reservation and the restriction flag is ON, white light emission is determined with a probability of 200/1000 (1/5). Then, in this embodiment, if a white light emission advance notice effect is not determined, a red light emission advance notice effect or the like is executed.
According to this, in the special pattern change pattern derivation state PB, when the restriction flag is ON, that is, during the period from when an advance notice effect such as red light is executed to when the pattern change (missing change) that is the target of the advance notice effect ends, if a jackpot game occurs with a pattern change for which an advance notice effect such as white light is executed (a pattern change for which an advance notice effect such as red light is not executed), the percentage of jackpot games with the number of rounds being 10 is higher than the percentage of jackpot games with the number of rounds being 10 when a jackpot game occurs with a pattern change for which an advance notice effect such as red light is executed during that period.

14(a) to 14(c), in this embodiment, when a red light emitting + frame lamp emitting advance notice effect is executed, the expectation of a jackpot game occurring due to the pattern variation of the pre-read target of the advance notice effect is higher than the expectation of a jackpot game occurring due to the pattern variation of the pre-read target of the advance notice effect when a red light emitting advance notice effect is executed. In other words, it can be said that the frame lamp emitting light is an effect with a high expectation of a jackpot game occurring.
Furthermore, in the special chart change pattern derivation state PB, when an advance notice effect such as red light emission is executed during the period from when an advance notice effect accompanied by frame lamp illumination (red light emission + frame lamp illumination) is executed until the pattern change (missing change) of the predicted target related to the advance notice effect ends, the advance notice effect is more likely to be red light emission than to be red light emission + frame lamp illumination (see Figures 14(b) and 14(c)).

Furthermore, as shown in the flow from step S202 to step S204 in Figure 13, in the special symbol variation pattern derivation state PC, the restriction flag is ON, that is, during the period from when a pre-announcement effect such as red light is executed to when the pattern variation (miss variation) targeted for the pre-reading related to that pre-announcement effect ends, new pre-announcement effects such as red light are not executed.

<About the pattern pre-reading performance>
Next, the details of the symbol pre-reading effect will be described with reference to FIGS.
15(a) to 15(c) are diagrams showing specific examples of the symbol pre-reading effect.
16 is a flow chart of the symbol pre-reading effect control process, and this process, like the advance notice effect control process, is executed by the pre-reading effect control means 224 upon receiving a pre-determination command related to the entry of a gaming ball into the second starting hole 59 in the special symbol variation pattern derivation state PB or the special symbol variation pattern derivation state PC. In particular, the symbol pre-reading effect control process is executed after the advance notice effect control process.
FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a schematic drawing of a lottery table used for the lottery relating to the symbol pre-reading effect in the symbol pre-reading effect control process, and the range of random numbers used in the lottery is 0 to 999.

As shown in Figures 15(a) to 15(c), the pattern pre-reading effect is a pre-reading effect that is realized using a combination of decorative patterns that are stopped and displayed in the display area related to the main display unit 81, and there are three types of this form (performance form).
Specifically, there is a mode in which, in each of one or more pattern fluctuations (in this example, the Nth rotation to the N+2th rotation) that lead to the pattern fluctuation to be predicted ahead (the rotation to be predicted ahead), a spread pattern consisting of even numbered symbols is displayed stopped (the mode shown in FIG. 15(a) , hereinafter referred to as "even numbered symbols"); a mode in which, in each of the one or more pattern fluctuations, a spread pattern consisting of odd numbered symbols excluding the 7 symbol is displayed stopped (the mode shown in FIG. 15(b) , hereinafter referred to as "normal odd numbered symbols"); and a mode in which, in each of the one or more pattern fluctuations, a spread pattern consisting of odd numbered symbols including the 7 symbol is displayed stopped (the mode shown in FIG. 15(c) , hereinafter referred to as "special odd numbered symbols").
In this example, in each mode, the scattered symbols that are displayed in a stopped state in each of the multiple pattern variations that lead to the pattern variation that is the target of the predicted display are combinations of decorative symbols that are different from each other, but as long as the rules for scattered symbols in each mode are observed, the combinations of decorative symbols may match in some or all of the multiple pattern variations.

Next, as shown in FIG. 16, in step S302, which is the first step of the pattern pre-reading effect control process that controls the execution of the pattern pre-reading effect, it is determined whether the restriction flag is ON, and if the condition is met, the pattern pre-reading effect control process is terminated, and if the condition is not met, the process proceeds to step S304.
As described above, in this embodiment, the symbol pre-reading effect control process is executed after the advance notice effect control process. Therefore, there may be a case where the state of the restriction flag changes from OFF to ON in the advance notice effect control that is executed in response to the reception of the previous (common) advance determination command. In this case, exceptionally, the condition related to step S302 is not satisfied, and the process proceeds to step S304.

In step S304, a lottery for the symbol pre-reading effect is executed.
As shown in Figure 17, in the lottery for the pattern pre-reading performance, the results of the preliminary judgment (the result of the special pattern hit/miss judgment and the result of the special pattern change pattern lottery) regarding the pattern change related to special pattern 2 (hereinafter referred to as the ``current hold'') that triggered the execution of the current pattern pre-reading performance control process are referenced.
Specifically, if the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment for this reserved symbol is a hit (small hit, big hit), there is a 200/1000 (1/5) probability that an even number spread will be executed, a 300/1000 (approximately 1/3.33) probability that a normal odd number spread will be executed, a 100/1000 (1/10) probability that a special odd number spread will be executed, and there is a 400/1000 (1/2.5) probability that the symbol pre-reading effect will not be executed.
If the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment for this reserved symbol is a miss and the development effect is executed, the execution of the even number barake eye is determined with a probability of 350/1000 (approximately 1/2.86), the execution of the normal odd number barake eye is determined with a probability of 150/1000 (approximately 1/6.66), and the pattern pre-reading effect is not executed with a probability of 500/1000 (1/2). In this case, the execution of the special odd number barake eye is not determined.
If the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment for this reservation is a miss and the development effect is not executed, the execution of the even number barrage is determined with a probability of 50/1000 (1/20), and the pattern pre-reading effect is not executed with a probability of 950/1000 (approximately 1/1.05). In this case, the execution of the normal odd number barrage and the special odd number barrage is not determined.
Furthermore, taking into consideration these lottery values and the lottery values shown in Figures 14(a) to 14(c), it can be said that the expectation of a winning game occurring when a pre-announcement effect such as red light is executed is higher than the expectation of a winning game occurring when a pattern pre-reading effect (including all aspects) is executed.

Returning to FIG. 16, in step S306, it is determined whether or not it has been decided to execute the pattern pre-reading effect, and if the condition is met, the process proceeds to step S308, and if the condition is not met, the pattern pre-reading effect control process is terminated.
In step S308, effect data relating to the symbol pre-reading effect whose execution has been determined is set, whereby the symbol pre-reading effect is executed.
In step S310, the restriction flag is set to ON, and then the symbol pre-reading effect control process is terminated.

In this way, in this embodiment, in the special pattern change pattern derivation state PB, when the restriction flag is ON, that is, during the period from the start of the pattern pre-reading performance to the end of the pattern change (missing change) that is the target of the pre-reading related to the pattern pre-reading performance, the execution of a new pattern pre-reading performance is restricted (see step S302 in Figure 16).
On the other hand, as for advance notice effects such as red light emission, as described above, in the special chart change pattern derivation state PB, a new advance notice effect such as red light emission can be executed during the period from when an advance notice effect such as red light emission is executed until the pattern change (missing change) of the pre-read target related to the advance notice effect ends.
Furthermore, the expectation of a winning game occurring when a pre-announcement effect such as red light is executed is higher than the expectation of a winning game occurring when a pattern pre-reading effect is executed.
According to this, by reducing the frequency of execution of the pattern pre-reading effect, which has a relatively low expectation of causing a winning game, while not reducing the frequency of execution of the advance notice effect, such as red light emission, which has a relatively high expectation of causing a winning game, the effect of increasing interest in the game by the advance notice effect, such as red light emission, can be enhanced.
In order to achieve this effect, on the premise that the expected probability of a winning game related to the symbol pre-reading effect is maintained, during the period from when the symbol pre-reading effect starts to when the symbol variation of the pre-read target related to the symbol pre-reading effect ends, a new symbol pre-reading effect may be executed (in place of the symbol pre-reading effect that has already been executed) with a lower probability than the execution probability of the symbol pre-reading effect outside of this period. In other words, to achieve this effect, it is sufficient that the execution of the symbol pre-reading effect is limited during this period.
Furthermore, the restriction on the execution of a new pattern pre-reading performance is not limited to the period from the start of the pattern pre-reading performance to the end of the pattern change that is the pre-read target for that pattern pre-reading performance, but the execution of a new pattern pre-reading performance may be restricted for a certain period from that period in addition to that period, such as from the end of that period until a predetermined number of pattern changes (for example, 20 spins) have been executed.
In addition, although there are three types of pattern pre-reading performances in this embodiment, the remaining two types of performances may be eliminated, provided that the above-mentioned content regarding the even number scatter is maintained.
In addition, in this embodiment, the relationship between the advance notice effect such as red light emission and the pattern pre-reading effect is limited to the special symbol variation pattern derivation state PB, but the target game state (special symbol variation pattern derivation state) does not matter. This also applies to the following inventions unless otherwise specified.

Therefore, in the gaming machine 10, it is possible to execute a first look-ahead effect (a pattern look-ahead effect) and a second look-ahead effect (a pre-announcement effect such as red light emission), and when a new reserved winning occurs between the time the first look-ahead effect is executed and the time the pattern change that is the pre-read target of the first look-ahead effect has ended, and the result of the hit/miss judgment for the pattern change is a miss, execution of the first look-ahead effect, which has the pattern change related to the new reserved winning as its pre-read target, is restricted at least until the time the pattern change has ended, and when a new reserved winning occurs between the time the second look-ahead effect is executed and the time the first pattern change that is the pre-read target of the second look-ahead effect has ended, and the result of the hit/miss judgment for the first pattern change is a miss, a second look-ahead effect, which has the second pattern change related to the new reserved winning as its pre-read target, can be executed based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning, and it can be said that the second look-ahead effect has a higher expectation of resulting in a winning game than the first look-ahead effect.
In this embodiment, the symbol pre-reading effect corresponding to the first pre-reading effect is executed each time a symbol change is executed during the period from when the symbol change of the pre-reading target is suspended until the symbol change begins. However, this is not limited to this. The first pre-reading effect may be executed for a certain period of time when the symbol change of the pre-reading target is suspended and not executed thereafter, or may be started once and continue until the symbol change of the pre-reading target begins. In other words, the first pre-reading effect may be started during the period from when the symbol change of the pre-reading target is suspended until the symbol change begins. Furthermore, the end timing of the first pre-reading effect may be any timing before the symbol change of the pre-reading target begins, or may arrive during the execution of the symbol change of the pre-reading target. The same applies to the second pre-reading effect.
Furthermore, when these variations are adopted, there may arise a case where a pre-reading effect relating to a new reserved winning is started while a pre-reading effect is being executed, and in this case, it is sufficient to configure the pre-reading effect relating to the new reserved winning to be started in place of the previously executed pre-reading effect (by stopping the previously executed pre-reading effect). However, when starting a new pre-reading effect in place of the previously executed pre-reading effect, it is preferable that the new pre-reading effect be started after an interval period has elapsed since the previously executed pre-reading effect ended.

In particular, in this embodiment, in the special pattern change pattern derivation state PB, a pre-announcement effect such as a new red light emission can be executed during the period from when the pattern pre-reading effect is executed to when the pattern change (missing change) of the pre-announcement target related to the pre-announcement effect ends.
This can further enhance the effect of increasing interest in the game through the advance notice effects such as the red light emission described above.

In other words, in the gaming machine 10, if a new reserved winning occurs between the start of the first pre-reading effect (pattern pre-reading effect) and the end of the pattern change that is the pre-read target of the first pre-reading effect, and the result of the win/loss judgment related to that pattern change is a miss, a second pre-reading effect (a pre-announcement effect such as red light) can be executed based on the occurrence of that new reserved winning, with the pattern change related to that new reserved winning being the pre-read target.

Furthermore, as described above, in the special symbol variation pattern derivation state PB, during the period from when a pre-announcement effect such as red light is executed to when the pre-read target symbol variation (missing variation) related to the pre-announcement effect ends, the percentage of jackpot games with 10 rounds when a jackpot game occurs with a symbol variation for which a pre-announcement effect such as red light is not executed during that period is higher than the percentage of jackpot games with 10 rounds when a jackpot game occurs with a symbol variation for which a pre-announcement effect such as red light is executed during that period. That is, in this embodiment, the former percentage and the latter percentage are different.
This provides new gameplay with regard to the execution of the pre-reading effect (advance notice effect) during the period in question, thereby increasing the interest in the game.
In this embodiment, the ratio of the former is higher than the ratio of the latter, but the ratio of the latter may be higher than the ratio of the former to achieve the effect.

Therefore, in the gaming machine 10, the winning games include a first winning game (a jackpot game with four rounds) and a second winning game (a jackpot game with ten rounds), which is more advantageous than the first winning game, and in other words, at the above-mentioned specified time, the expectation that the winning game will be a second winning game differs between the first time when the second pre-reading effect (pre-announcement effect such as red light emission) that pre-reads the second pattern change is not executed and a winning game is generated by the second pattern change, and the second time when the second pre-reading effect that pre-reads the second pattern change is executed and a winning game is generated by the second pattern change.
In addition, the difference in the degree of advantage of the winning game is not limited to that caused by the difference in the number of rounds as in this embodiment, but may also be caused by a difference in the degree of advantage related to the game state set after the winning game ends (for example, a difference in the specified number of times related to the high probability of a normal game, or a difference in the probability of the winning game itself occurring).

In particular, in this embodiment, the former rate is higher than the latter rate.
This makes it possible to increase the player's sense of anticipation even if the advance notice effect such as red light emission is not executed during the period from when the advance notice effect such as red light emission is executed until the pattern change (missing change) of the predicted target related to the advance notice effect ends.

Therefore, in other words, in the gaming machine 10, the expectation that the winning game caused by the second symbol variation will be a second winning game (a jackpot game with 10 rounds) is higher in the first case than in the second case.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, as described above, when an advance notification effect of red light emission + frame lamp emission is executed, the expectation that the pattern change of the predicted target of the advance notification effect will result in a jackpot game is higher than the expectation that the pattern change of the predicted target of the advance notification effect will result in a jackpot game when an advance notification effect of red light emission (without frame lamp emission) is executed, and based on this premise, in the special pattern change pattern derivation state PB, when an advance notification effect such as red light emission is executed during the period from when an advance notification effect with frame lamp emission (red light emission + frame lamp emission) is executed to when the pattern change of the predicted target related to the advance notification effect (missing change) ends, the rate at which the advance notification effect is red light emission is higher than the rate at which the advance notification effect is red light emission + frame lamp emission.
This increases the effect of increasing interest in the game through the advance notice effect of red light due to the presence of the frame lamp light, while also increasing the player's sense of anticipation during the period in question regardless of whether the frame lamp light is on or not.
In order to achieve this effect, the former ratio may be set to zero.
In addition, in the advance notification effect of red light emission + frame lamp emission in this embodiment, the red light emission of the movable decorative body 22 and the lighting of the frame lamp 35 start at the same timing, but there may be a difference in the start timing of these effects to the extent that the player can recognize that the trigger for executing these effects is the same, and in that case, it is preferable that the red light emission of the movable decorative body 22 be executed first.
Furthermore, in this embodiment, the frame lamp illumination is a part of the advance notice effect, but the frame lamp illumination may be a different effect from the advance notice effect as long as the relationship of the execution ratios described above is maintained. Here, the "different effect from the advance notice effect" means that whether or not to execute the effect is determined independently of the advance notice effect.

Therefore, in the gaming machine 10, the second look-ahead effect (a red-illuminated advance notification effect) can be executed in conjunction with a predetermined effect (a frame lamp illuminates), and the expected probability of a winning game occurring due to the symbol change that is the pre-read target of the second look-ahead effect executed with the predetermined effect is higher than the expected probability of a winning game occurring due to the symbol change that is the pre-read target of the second look-ahead effect executed without the predetermined effect; in the second case where the second look-ahead effect that pre-reads the first symbol change is executed with the predetermined effect, the rate at which the second look-ahead effect that pre-reads the second symbol change is executed without the predetermined effect is higher than the rate at which the second look-ahead effect that pre-reads the second symbol change is executed with the predetermined effect, or in other words, the second look-ahead effect that pre-reads the second symbol change is executed without the predetermined effect.

Furthermore, as described above, unlike the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB, in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC, a new advance notice effect such as red light emission is not executed during the period from when an advance notice effect such as red light emission is executed until the pattern variation (missing variation) of the pre-read target related to the advance notice effect ends.
According to this, by enhancing the effect of increasing interest in playing by advance notice effects such as red light emission in the relatively unfavorable special chart variation pattern derivation state PB, the difference in motivation to play can be reduced between the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB and the relatively favorable special chart variation pattern derivation state PC.

Therefore, the gaming machine 10 has a first gaming state (special symbol change pattern derivation state PB) and a second gaming state (special symbol change pattern derivation state PC) that is more advantageous than the first gaming state, and in the second gaming state, a second pre-reading effect (pre-notification effect such as red light emission) that predicts the second symbol change is not executed, while in the first gaming state, a second pre-reading effect that predicts the second symbol change can be executed, so that both the first and second times can occur.
Regarding the factors that cause the difference in the degree of advantage between the first gaming state and the second gaming state, the factors according to this embodiment include, but are not limited to, the number of specified times related to the normal high probability and the time efficiency of winning balls due to the average fluctuation time of the normal high probability. In other words, the factors may be anything that causes a difference in the degree of advantage related to the gaming state, such as the probability of a winning game occurring or the presence or absence of a normal high probability itself.

Although different from this embodiment, the number of times a winning game is executed starting from the execution of the RAM clear process may be counted, and control relating to the execution of the advance notice effect in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC described above may be applied when the number of times the game is executed is a certain number (for example, 5 times or more), and control relating to the execution of the advance notice effect in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB described above may be applied when the number of times the game is executed is less than the certain number (for example, less than 5 times).
This increases the effect of increasing interest in the game through predictive effects such as red light emission in situations where the number of winning games played after RAM clearing is relatively low (situations where the game has just started), making it easier to continue playing thereafter.
In order to achieve this effect, it is not necessary to apply the control relating to the execution of the advance notice effect in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC described above to the former case described above. For example, when the number of times of execution of the winning game starting from the execution of the RAM clear process reaches the above-mentioned certain number of times, a lottery is held, and if the lottery is won, the control relating to the execution of the advance notice effect in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC described above is applied, and if the lottery is not won, the control relating to the execution of the advance notice effect in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC described above is not applied (the control relating to the execution of the advance notice effect in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB is applied), etc., to some of the former cases described above, the control relating to the execution of the advance notice effect in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC described above may be applied.
Furthermore, the "certain number of times" and the "number of times less than the certain number of times" may each be composed of a plurality of times or a single number of times. In addition, when these numbers are composed of a plurality of times, it is preferable that the plurality of times be consecutive numbers of times.

Therefore, in the gaming machine 10, it is possible to execute a RAM clear process, and at least in some cases when the number of times a winning game has been executed since the execution of the RAM clear process is a first number, the second pre-reading effect (pre-announcement effect such as red light emission) in which the second symbol change is the pre-read target is not executed, but when the number of times a winning game has been executed since the execution of the RAM clear process is a second number, which is less than the first number, the second pre-reading effect in which the second symbol change is the pre-read target can be executed, and in other words, both the first time and the second time can occur.

<About cut-in effects>
Next, using Figures 18 to 19, we will explain in detail the cut-in effects that can be executed in the development effects in the special chart variation pattern derivation state PB and the special chart variation pattern derivation state PC.
Figures 18(a) and 18(b) are diagrams showing the flow in which a cut-in effect occurs in an advanced effect, with Figure 18(a) showing the flow in which a cut-in effect related to a weak cut-in occurs, and Figure 18(b) showing the flow in which a cut-in effect related to a strong cut-in occurs.
19(a) is a diagram showing the flow of the cut-in effect control process, and this process is executed by the effect content determination means 225 upon receiving a change start command in the special chart change pattern derivation state PB and the special chart change pattern derivation state PC. FIG. 19(b) is a diagram showing a schematic drawing of a lottery table used for the lottery related to the development effect, and the range of random numbers used in the lottery is 0 to 999.

A cut-in effect is an effect that is executed by operating the effect button 37 at the end of a development effect, and as shown in Figures 18(a) and 18(b), there are two types of cut-ins: a weak cut-in and a strong cut-in.
More specifically, when a cut-in effect is executed, a button image bg that prompts the user to operate the effect button is displayed in the display area of the main display unit 81, along with a meter image mg that indicates the acceptance period (valid period) for that operation. The meter image is displayed entirely in black when the display starts, and is configured so that the area (length) of the black area decreases over time, and the area of the black area indicates the acceptance period for the operation on the effect button.

As shown in FIG. 18( a ), in the cut-in effect related to the weak cut-in, the main display unit 81 displays a weak cut-in image kg1 saying “Chance!” and the speaker 33 outputs the voice saying “Chance.”
As shown in Figure 18 (b), in the cut-in performance related to a strong cut-in, the main display unit 81 displays a strong cut-in image kg2 saying "Super hot!", and the speaker 33 outputs the voice saying "Super hot" (a voice different from the voice related to a weak cut-in).
In this embodiment, the button image bg itself is always displayed at the end of the development performance, and although not shown in the illustration, if it has not been decided that a cut-in performance will be performed, the cut-in performance will not be performed even if the performance button 37 is operated within the reception period.

Next, as shown in Figure 19(a), in step S402, which is the first step in the cut-in effect control process that controls the execution of the cut-in effect, a determination is made as to whether or not a development effect will be executed in the pattern change related to the change start command that triggers the execution of the cut-in effect control process (hereinafter referred to as the "current pattern change"). If the condition is met, the process proceeds to step S404; if the condition is not met, the cut-in effect control process ends.

In step S404, a lottery for a cut-in effect is executed.
As shown in Figure 19 (b), in the lottery for the cut-in effect, in addition to the result of determining whether or not the special symbol will be selected for the current pattern change, whether or not a pre-announcement effect such as red light emission will be executed to predict the current pattern change is also referenced.
Specifically, as shown in Figure 19 (b), if the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment for the current pattern change is a hit (small hit, big hit), and if no advance notice effect such as red light is executed to predict the current pattern change, a weak cut-in will be determined with a probability of 200/100 (1/5), a strong cut-in will be determined with a probability of 500/100 (1/2), and the cut-in effect will not be executed with a probability of 300/1000 (approximately 1/3.33).
If the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment for this pattern change is a hit and a pre-announcement effect such as red light emitting is executed to predict this pattern change, a weak cut-in is determined with a probability of 300/100 (approximately 1/3.33), a strong cut-in is determined with a probability of 200/100 (1/5), and the cut-in effect is not executed with a probability of 500/1000 (1/2).
If the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment for the current symbol change is miss, the cut-in effect is not executed regardless of whether or not a pre-announcement effect such as red light emission that predicts the current symbol change has been executed.

Returning to Figure 19 (a), in step S406, it is determined whether or not a decision has been made to execute a cut-in effect, and if the condition is met, the process proceeds to step S408, and if the condition is not met, the cut-in effect control process is terminated.
In step S408, the effect data for the cut-in effect that has been decided to be executed is set, and the cut-in effect is then executed.

In this way, in this embodiment, the cut-in effect is executed when the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment for the current symbol change is a hit, and is not executed when the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment for the current symbol change is a miss. Furthermore, if a pre-announcement effect such as red light emission that is the pre-read target of the current symbol change is not executed, the cut-in effect is executed with a higher probability than if a pre-announcement effect such as red light emission that is the pre-read target of the current symbol change is executed.
In other words, in this embodiment, assuming that the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment for the current pattern change is a hit, the probability of a cut-in effect being executed when a pre-announcement effect such as red light emission that predicts the current pattern change is not executed is different from the probability of a cut-in effect being executed when a pre-announcement effect such as red light emission that predicts the current pattern change is executed.
In this embodiment, a new advance notification effect such as red light emission can be executed during the period from when the advance notification effect such as red light emission is executed until the pattern change (missing change) of the pre-read target related to the advance notification effect ends.
This provides new gameplay with regard to the execution of the predictive effects during that period, thereby increasing the enjoyment of the game.
In this embodiment, the execution probability of the former is higher than the execution probability of the latter, but to achieve this effect, the execution probability of the latter may be higher than the execution probability of the former.

Accordingly, the gaming machine 10 is capable of executing a specific effect (cut-in effect) related to the result of a win/loss determination for the ongoing symbol change, and at the above-mentioned specified time, the rate at which the specific effect is executed for the second symbol change differs between the first time when a second pre-reading effect (pre-announcement effect such as red light) that pre-reads the second symbol change is not executed and a winning game is triggered by the second symbol change, and the second time when a second pre-reading effect that pre-reads the second symbol change is executed and a winning game is triggered by the second symbol change.

In particular, in this embodiment, the execution probability of the former is higher than the latter.
According to this, if an advance notice effect such as red light emission is not executed during the period from when the advance notice effect such as red light emission is executed until the pattern change (missing change) of the predicted target related to the advance notice effect ends, the game during the pattern change can be made more exciting.

Therefore, in other words, the rate at which a specific effect is executed with the second symbol variation in the gaming machine 10 is higher in the first case than in the second case.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, regardless of the type of cut-in effect (whether it is a weak cut-in or a strong cut-in), the result of the special symbol hit/miss judgment for this pattern change is confirmed to be a hit (small hit, big hit).
Furthermore, if a pre-announcement effect such as red light emitting that predicts the current pattern change is not executed, a strong cut-in is likely to be determined as the type of cut-in effect (a weak cut-in is unlikely to be determined as the type of cut-in effect), and if a pre-announcement effect such as red light emitting that predicts the current pattern change is executed, a weak cut-in is likely to be determined as the type of cut-in effect (a strong cut-in is unlikely to be determined as the type of cut-in effect).
According to this, the content of the effect in the pattern change of the pre-read target related to the new pre-reading effect such as red light emission can be changed depending on whether or not there is a new pre-reading effect such as red light emission during the period from when the pre-reading effect such as red light emission is executed to when the pattern change (missing change) of the pre-read target related to the pre-reading effect ends.

<Other Modifications>
Modifications not mentioned in the above description are listed below.

First, in this embodiment, the form of the advance notice performance is the same when executed in the special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PB and when executed in the special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PC, but is not limited to this. Specifically, if there is something equivalent to the above-mentioned advance notice performance form (white light emission, red light emission, red light emission + frame lamp light emission) in these special chart fluctuation pattern derivation states, by changing the vibration form (vibration strength, vibration time, etc.) or light emission form (light emission color, lighting pattern such as flashing, brightness, etc.) of the movable decorative body 22, some or all of the form of the advance notice performance in the special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PB may be made different from the form of the advance notice performance in the special chart fluctuation pattern derivation state PC.
Similarly, in this embodiment, the performance mode of the pattern pre-reading performance is the same when it is executed in the special pattern variation pattern derivation state PB and when it is executed in the special pattern variation pattern derivation state PC, but is not limited to this. Specifically, if there is something equivalent to the above-mentioned pattern pre-reading performance mode (even numbered scattered eyes, normal odd numbered scattered eyes, special odd numbered scattered eyes) in these special pattern variation pattern derivation states, by changing the display mode (shape, color, etc.) of the decorative pattern that constitutes the pattern pre-reading performance or the display mode (shape, color, etc.) of the effect surrounding the decorative pattern, some or all of the pattern pre-reading performance mode in the special pattern variation pattern derivation state PB may be made different from the pattern pre-reading performance mode in the special pattern variation pattern derivation state PC.

Furthermore, the various controls shown in the figures and other figures in the inventions according to this embodiment are one means for realizing the above-mentioned inventions, and do not limit the specific control content of each invention. In other words, the above-mentioned inventions merely describe the phenomena, and various methods may be used for the control to realize these inventions.

In addition, the gaming machine 10 according to this embodiment is a so-called one-type two-type hybrid machine that can derive both a big hit and a small hit that can result in a big hit game in determining whether the special chart is a hit or not, but it is not limited to this, and it is also possible to use one that can derive only a so-called two-type hit.
Furthermore, the special chart change pattern derivation state PB and the special chart change pattern derivation state PC in this embodiment are game states in which a pattern change related to special chart 2 is executed, but these game states may also be game states in which a pattern change related to a normal chart is executed (so-called normal chart RUSH).

Furthermore, in this embodiment, as long as the relationship between the probability, rate, frequency, and number of times is ensured, the smaller value may be 0, and the larger value may be the maximum value. In particular, as long as the phenomenon aspect is ensured, the control for realizing the rate is not important.
Furthermore, each lottery value in the lottery table illustrated in this embodiment is an example, and as long as the magnitude relationship between the lottery tables is maintained, each lottery value may adopt any value within the range.

In addition, in the above explanation, the recovery state upon power restoration is determined by referring to the state of the RAM clear switch 43 upon power restoration, but it is also possible to refer to whether the time the RAM clear switch 43 has been in the ON state since power restoration exceeds a specified time (e.g., 3 seconds). In this way, the occurrence of erroneous RAM clear processing can be further reduced.

In addition, in the above explanation, the state of the middle frame door open sensor 76 (open/closed state of the middle frame 17) was referenced when determining the recovery state upon power restoration, but the recovery state may be set without reference to this state. In this case, the recovery state upon power restoration may be uniformly set according to the case when the middle frame door open sensor 76 is ON (the middle frame 17 is open).

The present invention described above is not limited to the above description, and includes various modifications, improvements, and other aspects as long as the objectives of the present invention are achieved.

<Additional Notes>
The present embodiment encompasses the following technical idea.
(1)
A gaming machine capable of executing a symbol variation accompanied by a win/loss judgment, and capable of generating a winning game after the symbol variation relating to the win/loss judgment is completed based on the result of the win/loss judgment,
The first pre-reading effect and the second pre-reading effect can be executed,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the first pre-reading performance is executed and the time when the pattern change that is the pre-reading target of the first pre-reading performance is finished, and the result of the hit/miss judgment related to the pattern change is a miss, the execution of the first pre-reading performance that is the pre-reading target of the pattern change related to the new reserved winning is restricted at least until the pattern change is finished,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the second pre-reading performance is executed and the time when the first pattern variation that is the pre-reading target of the second pre-reading performance is finished, and the result of the hit/miss judgment related to the first pattern variation is a miss, the second pre-reading performance that is the pre-reading target of the second pattern variation related to the new reserved winning can be executed based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning,
The second pre-reading effect has a higher expectation of the winning game occurring than the first pre-reading effect,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the start of the first pre-reading performance and the end of the pattern change that is the pre-read target of the first pre-reading performance, and the result of the hit/miss judgment related to the pattern change is a miss, the second pre-reading performance can be executed based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning, with the pattern change related to the new reserved winning being the pre-read target.
A gaming machine characterized by:
(2)
The gaming machine according to (1) above,
It is possible to execute a specific effect related to the result of the winning/losing judgment in the ongoing pattern change,
At the predetermined time, the rate at which the specific effect is executed by the second pattern variation differs between a first time when the second pre-reading effect, which is a pre-reading target of the second pattern variation, is not executed and the winning game is generated by the second pattern variation, and a second time when the second pre-reading effect, which is a pre-reading target of the second pattern variation, is executed and the winning game is generated by the second pattern variation.
A gaming machine characterized by:
(c)
The gaming machine according to (2) above,
Regarding the rate at which the specific effect is executed in the second pattern variation, the rate at which the specific effect is executed in the first case is higher than the rate at which the specific effect is executed in the second case.
A gaming machine characterized by:

10 Gaming machine 15 Outer frame 17 Middle frame 20 Front frame 21 Hinge mechanism 22 Movable decorative body 23 Cylinder lock 25 Transparent member 27 Upper ball tray 29 Lower ball tray 31 Operation handle 32 Upper frame portion 33 (33a, 33b) Speaker 34a, 34b Left and right side frame portions 35 (35a, 35b, 35c) Frame lamp 36 Ball ejection mechanism 37 Performance button 38 Cursor button 38a Up cursor button 38b Down cursor button 38c Left cursor button 38d Right cursor button 38e Middle cursor button 39 Main operation unit 39a Ball loan button 39b Return button 40 Power switch 43 RAM clear switch 45 Opening and closing cover 46 Game ball tank 47 Tank rail 48 Payout unit 49 Payout passage 50 Game board 50a Game area 51 Outer rail 52 Windmill 53, inner rail 54, protective member 55, large prize opening 57, first start opening 59, second start opening 61, normal electric role 62, normal electric role solenoid 63, gate 65, special electric role 66, special electric role solenoid 67, normal prize opening 69, outlet opening 70, first start opening sensor 71, second start opening sensor 72, large prize opening sensor 73, normal prize opening sensor 74, gate sensor 75, outlet ball sensor 76, middle frame door open sensor 77, front frame door open sensor 80, performance display device 81, main display unit 82, sub-display unit 82a, upper sub-display unit 82b, left sub-display unit 82c, right sub-display unit 90, pattern display device 91, first special pattern display device 92, second special pattern display device 93, normal pattern display device 94, first special pattern hold lamp 95, second special pattern hold lamp 96, normal pattern hold lamp 100, main control board 101, CPU
102 ROM
103 RAM
104 I/O port 105 Random number circuit 109 Main control board case 110 Ball entry determination means 115 Main random number generation means 120 Main hold control means 125 Advance determination means 130 Special symbol lottery means 131 Special symbol win/loss determination means 132 Special symbol stop symbol lottery means 133 Special symbol variation pattern derivation means 135 Regular symbol lottery means 140 Big win game control means 145 Symbol display control means 150 Electric role control means 155 Game state control means 160 Main information storage means 165 Main error control means 170 Main command management means 175 Power restoration processing execution means 176 Recovery state setting means 179 Playable state transition means 180 Power cut processing execution means 200 First sub-control board 201 CPU
202 ROM
203 RAM
204 I/O port 209 First sub-control board case 210 Sub-random number generation means 220 Normal presentation control means 221 Presentation mode control means 222 Presentation route determination means 223 Sub-hold control means 224 Pre-reading presentation control means 225 Presentation content determination means 226 Decorative pattern control means 227 Big win presentation control means 230 Sub-error control means 240 Lamp control means 245 Movable role control means 260 Sub-information storage means 270 Sub-command management means 300 Second sub-control board 309 Second sub-control board case 310 Sound control board 311 CPU
312 ROM
313 RAM
314 I/O port 400 Dispensing control board 409 Dispensing control board case 500 Power supply control board 501 Normal power supply circuit 502 Backup power supply circuit 503 Power interruption detection circuit 509 Power supply control board case bg Button image mg Meter image kg1 Weak cut-in image kg2 Strong cut-in image X First flow path Y Second flow path

Claims (4)

A gaming machine capable of generating a winning game,
The first pre-reading effect and the second pre-reading effect can be executed,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the first pre-reading performance is executed and the time when the pattern variation that is the pre-reading target of the first pre-reading performance is completed, and the winning game does not occur after the completion of the pattern variation, the execution of the first pre-reading performance that pre-reads the pattern variation related to the new reserved winning is restricted at least until the completion of the pattern variation,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the second pre-reading performance is executed and the time when the first pattern variation that is the pre-reading target of the second pre-reading performance is completed, and when the winning game does not occur after the first pattern variation is completed , the second pre-reading performance that pre-reads the second pattern variation related to the new reserved winning based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning can be executed,
The second pre-reading effect has a higher expectation of the winning game occurring than the first pre-reading effect,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the start of the first pre-reading performance and the end of the pattern variation that is the pre-read target of the first pre-reading performance, and when the winning game does not occur after the end of the pattern variation, the second pre-reading performance can be executed based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning, with the pattern variation related to the new reserved winning being the pre-read target ,
It is possible to execute a specific effect relating to whether or not the winning game occurs after the end of the ongoing pattern variation,
At the predetermined time, the rate at which the specific effect is executed with the second pattern change differs between a first time when the second pre-reading effect, which is a pre-reading target of the second pattern change, is not executed and the winning game occurs after the second pattern change has ended, and a second time when the second pre-reading effect, which is a pre-reading target of the second pattern change, is executed and the winning game occurs after the second pattern change has ended.
A gaming machine characterized by: A gaming machine capable of generating a winning game,
The first pre-reading effect and the second pre-reading effect can be executed,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the first pre-reading performance is executed and the time when the pattern variation that is the pre-reading target of the first pre-reading performance is completed, and the winning game does not occur after the completion of the pattern variation, the execution of the first pre-reading performance that pre-reads the pattern variation related to the new reserved winning is restricted at least until the completion of the pattern variation,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the second pre-reading performance is executed and the time when the first pattern variation that is the pre-reading target of the second pre-reading performance is completed, and when the winning game does not occur after the first pattern variation is completed , the second pre-reading performance that pre-reads the second pattern variation related to the new reserved winning based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning can be executed,
The second pre-reading effect has a higher expectation of the winning game occurring than the first pre-reading effect,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the start of the first pre-reading performance and the end of the pattern variation that is the pre-read target of the first pre-reading performance, and when the winning game does not occur after the end of the pattern variation, the second pre-reading performance can be executed based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning, with the pattern variation related to the new reserved winning being the pre-read target ,
The winning games include a first winning game and a second winning game that is more advantageous than the first winning game,
At the predetermined time, the expectation that the winning game will be the second winning game differs between a first time when the second pre-reading performance, which is a pre-reading target of the second pattern variation, is not executed and the winning game occurs after the second pattern variation has ended, and a second time when the second pre-reading performance, which is a pre-reading target of the second pattern variation, is executed and the winning game occurs after the second pattern variation has ended.
A gaming machine characterized by: A gaming machine capable of generating a winning game,
The first pre-reading effect and the second pre-reading effect can be executed,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the first pre-reading performance is executed and the time when the pattern variation that is the pre-reading target of the first pre-reading performance is completed, and the winning game does not occur after the completion of the pattern variation, the execution of the first pre-reading performance that pre-reads the pattern variation related to the new reserved winning is restricted at least until the completion of the pattern variation,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the second pre-reading performance is executed and the time when the first pattern variation that is the pre-reading target of the second pre-reading performance is completed, and when the winning game does not occur after the first pattern variation is completed , the second pre-reading performance that pre-reads the second pattern variation related to the new reserved winning based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning can be executed,
The second pre-reading effect has a higher expectation of the winning game occurring than the first pre-reading effect,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the start of the first pre-reading performance and the end of the pattern variation that is the pre-read target of the first pre-reading performance, and when the winning game does not occur after the end of the pattern variation, the second pre-reading performance can be executed based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning, with the pattern variation related to the new reserved winning being the pre-read target ,
a first gaming state and a second gaming state that is more advantageous than the first gaming state;
In the second gaming state, the second pre-reading effect in which the second symbol variation is the pre-reading target is not executed,
In the first gaming state, the second pre-reading effect in which the second symbol variation is a pre-reading target may be executed.
A gaming machine characterized by: A gaming machine capable of generating a winning game,
The first pre-reading effect and the second pre-reading effect can be executed,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the first pre-reading performance is executed and the time when the pattern variation that is the pre-reading target of the first pre-reading performance is completed, and the winning game does not occur after the completion of the pattern variation, the execution of the first pre-reading performance that pre-reads the pattern variation related to the new reserved winning is restricted at least until the completion of the pattern variation,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the time when the second pre-reading performance is executed and the time when the first pattern variation that is the pre-reading target of the second pre-reading performance is completed, and when the winning game does not occur after the first pattern variation is completed , the second pre-reading performance that pre-reads the second pattern variation related to the new reserved winning based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning can be executed,
The second pre-reading effect has a higher expectation of the winning game occurring than the first pre-reading effect,
When a new reserved winning occurs between the start of the first pre-reading performance and the end of the pattern variation that is the pre-read target of the first pre-reading performance, and when the winning game does not occur after the end of the pattern variation, the second pre-reading performance can be executed based on the occurrence of the new reserved winning, with the pattern variation related to the new reserved winning being the pre-read target ,
RAM clear processing can be performed,
In at least a part of the time when the number of times of execution of the winning game starting from the execution of the RAM clear process is the first number of times, the second pre-reading performance in which the second symbol variation is the pre-reading target is not executed,
When the number of times of execution of the winning game starting from the execution of the RAM clear process is a second number which is less than the first number, the second pre-reading effect in which the second symbol variation is a pre-reading target may be executed.
A gaming machine characterized by: