Patent ID: 8241129
Filing Date: 2012-08-14
Classification: A63F,G07F,H04L

Abstract:
1. A system for playing a multi-player computer-based game, comprising: a service having a database that collects information about a plurality of players each playing a game program executing locally on a separate computing device and information about a plurality of different game programs that each player played by executing the game program locally on the computing device; an input device coupled to said service for receiving from a game initiating player a selection of one of the plurality of different game programs and configuration settings for the selected game program; an input device coupled to said service for accepting a game completed message from a plurality of computing devices where each computing device ended play of one of the plurality of different game programs wherein said message contains information indicative of the configuration settings; and an output device coupled to said service for outputting a start message to a plurality of computing devices wherein said computing devices are selected as a function of the plurality of players and the one of the plurality of different game programs, the function automatically giving higher priority to a first player of the plurality of players when the first player has received positive feedback from the game initiating player, the priority given to the first player being lower than the priority given to a second player of the plurality of players when the second player is a member of a friends list of the game initiating player, wherein said message contains information indicative of the configuration settings such that all of the computing devices that are executing a game program locally are configured to start the one of the plurality of different game programs substantially simultaneously.