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  Game developmentRelated Patent Categories: Amusement Devices: Games, Including Means For Processing Electronic Data (e.g., Computer/video Game, Etc.), Perceptible Output Or Display (e.g., Tactile, Etc.)Game development description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20070191095, Game development. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
RELATED APPLICATION DATA [0001] This application claims priority from United Kingdom Patent Application No. 0602873.2, filed 13 Feb. 2006 and from United Kingdom Patent Application No. 0624204.4, filed 4 Dec. 2006, all herein incorporated by reference. TECHNICAL FIELD [0002] The present invention relates to tools and methods for the analysis, interpretation and modification of games, and for the development, design and construction of new games. In particular, embodiments of the present invention utilise a visual aid to represent a number of the structural elements of gameplay. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] There are many individual characteristics of a game that contribute to the overall experience of playing that game. In the way that a piece of music has a number of structural elements, such as the rhythm, pitch, key, dynamics and speed, which dictate the sound characteristics of the work when it is performed, it is possible to consider that a game comprises a number of structural components that govern the overall experience of playing that game. [0004] The design of a game is an established process beginning with a concept for a new game. Conventionally, the concept is captured by the designer as a script, with ideas and objectives being expressed in terms of lengthy statements or broad generalities. The game design is therefore represented as a collection of documents which become a manual to which the designer must refer during the implementation of the design. The practical implementation of a game design involves a number of choices to be made about the structural components of the game including, amongst other things, the governing rules of the game, the objectives of the game, the style and speed of play, the design of the play space, the ways in which objects of the game can move within the play space or interact with other objects and the intended difficulty level for achieving certain objectives of the game. Thus, turning an initial concept into a practical reality involves numerous decisions to be made about various structural variables which will critically affect the experience of playing the game once it is implemented. As the creation of a new game evolves, numerous documents are compiled which record information about the designers ideas, choices and decisions. With no means of notating this information, it is all too often that some of the original concepts, and intended psychological response to playing the game, are lost. [0005] In view of this complexity, it is common practice for game designers to approach the creation of a new gaming experience by modifying or improving an existing game. However, even in approaching game design in this way, it is still very difficult for the designer to fully appreciate how the various structural elements of the game impact on the gameplay experience and, thus, how these elements could be varied to accomplish a new game experience. [0006] The problem is particularly apparent in the field of computer games which are highly complex systems involving numerous structural elements each contributing, to a greater or lesser extent, to the resulting technical properties of the game. [0007] There is therefore a significant need for tools and methods which would assist in the process of analysing and interrogating existing games, with a view to deriving an understanding about their structure. There is also a need for tools, methods and products which could aid the development of new games. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0008] The present invention seeks to provide tools and methods for facilitating the analysis, interpretation and modification of games, and for the development and construction of new games. In particular, but not exclusively, embodiments of the present invention are intended to be applicable to the development, modification and analysis of computer games. [0009] The inventors have identified four main structural features which are considered to have the most significant impact on the experience of game play. [0010] These are: [0011] 1) Topology--this relates to the arrangement and connectivity of significant/important points that are present in a given unit of gameplay or a collection of units of gameplay. By significant/important points is meant an abstract or physical space containing the probability of an event such as a conflict or challenge, an abstract or physical place of interest such as a region for improving or discovering abilities, a physical space or an abstract space with a probability of becoming a physical or an abstract space containing another player/participant/character/object/item in the game. In considering the topology of a unit of gameplay, each of these points may be conveniently considered to be a "node" of the game. The selection of important points to be considered as nodes in the intended topology may be performed according to a particular level of abstraction or complexity, for example, such that points of similar importance or of a similar type may be selected to be nodes. [0012] Classically, topology is concerned only with the way objects are connected, and not with the actual shapes or physical locations of the objects themselves. This attribute is useful in the context of computer games, for example, since there can be certain times during the game where the character travels within the virtual world without encountering significant challenge points or conflicts. Thus, in considering the topology of such a scene, we show only the points of interest and how these are connected together, rather than how the player reaches them or how long it takes to move between them. Most usefully, topologies can advantageously be used to allow a vast majority of play spaces to be represented, whether the game design is 1D, 2D or 3D in nature. [0013] Further, we are also interested in any constraints which may be placed on the connections. FIG. 1 shows a representation of a scene in a game where the goal of the game is to manipulate a character so that it reaches the top of the highest platform 3 in order to obtain a reward. The possible movements of the character between nodes n.sub.1 to n.sub.6 of the scene are shown by the arrows in FIG. 1. It can be seen that the arrows connecting n.sub.6 with nodes n.sub.5 and n.sub.7 are single ended, indicating that the character is constrained from travelling to and from node 6 if it is at node 7 or 5. If we were to remove the platforms from the diagram and just retain the graph of the connections between the nodes, the resultant topology would still inform us of every possible move at any point in the scene without needing knowledge of the real geometry of the scene. [0014] 2) Rhythm--the rhythm of a game is determined by the so-called "time-step" or frequency of play, the number of players and the time for each action within a game. These characteristics are often informed by the rules of the game. For example, a game may be turn based, meaning that each player must take turns to participate in the game, or it may be a game which allows more than one of the players to participate at the same time. If the game is turn based, there may be time restrictions on how long a player may spend before the right to participate switches to another player. For example, the game of chess is a turn-based game for two players, and the amount of time allowed to play each chess piece can be infinite. [0015] 3) Actions--Embodiments of the present invention are particularly concerned with the number of actions that a player may make in order to affect the element of chance or the route through topology in the game, i.e. the probability that a certain outcome will be achieved. For example, the ability of a virtual character to "shoot" or "run" or "fly" will each be classified as an action of the game provided that the performance of these actions alters the probability that the objective is attained. It should be appreciated that actions may not only effect the probability in a positive way, but may also introduce a greater element of risk. For example, if a player is manipulated to run at high speed, there is a greater risk that the character may fall from, or collide with, another object of the game and consequently fail to achieve the objective. [0016] Operations which may be performed on game entities which do not alter the probability or change the route through topology in any way are not considered to be "actions" within the context of the present invention. For example, the ability of a character to dance may be provided purely for visual effect, with the performance of the "dance" operation having no impact on the outcome of probability. [0017] 4) Probability--the probability is the characteristic of a game which defines the chance of a certain result (e.g. success or failure) being obtained in any particular circumstance. [0018] The first aspect of the present invention relates to techniques for schematically representing a unit of gameplay. Thus, according to an embodiment of the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of generating a schematic representation of a unit of gameplay, wherein said method comprises generating a representation of each of a plurality of structural element properties of said unit of gameplay, and wherein said structural elements include: [0019] i) the topology of selected points of interest comprised in said unit of gameplay; [0020] ii) the rhythm of said unit of gameplay; Continue reading about Game development... Full patent description for Game development Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Game development patent application. ###  How KEYWORD MONITOR works... a FREE service from FreshPatents1. Sign up (takes 30 seconds). 2. Fill in the keywords to be monitored. 3. Each week you receive an email with patent applications related to your keywords. Start now! - Receive info on patent apps like Game development or other areas of interest. ### Previous Patent Application: Method and apparatus for employing flat rate play Next Patent Application: Game apparatus, game progressing method, program, and recording medium Industry Class: Amusement devices: games ### FreshPatents.com Support Thank you for viewing the Game development patent info. 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