Patent ID: 8360876
Filing Date: 2013-01-29
Classification: G07F

Abstract:
1. A game machine provided with a display device which displays an image including an object, and an operating device which permits a primary player to specify and manipulate a desired object, said game machine being configured to carry out a competitive game by transmitting and receiving operational information through communications to and from another game machine having an operating device operated an opponent player, said game machine comprising: a game progress controller for advancing the competitive game by accepting operational information entered from said operating device operated by the primary player as well as operational information entered from the other game machine operated by the opponent players and thereby obtaining a successively specified object for each player, respectively; a first display controller for defining an arrangement zone where the specified object for each player is arranged in a plurality of regions within a main screen area of said display device, displaying the specified object for each player in such a manner that a pattern of the object is visually recognizable, and varying the on-screen appearance of the specified objects as the respective players gain the objects during the progress of the competitive game; a supplementary information generator for generating supplementary information regarding the specified object of the primary player that is displayed in such a manner that the pattern is visually recognizable from gained object information regarding the specified object acquired by said game progress controller; a second display controller for displaying the supplementary information in a sub-screen area located adjacent to the main screen area; and a communication device for receiving the operational information regarding operations entered through the operating device of the other game machine; and wherein said first display controller displays objects obtained by all players at the beginning of the competitive game in such a manner that the respective patterns of the obtained objects are visually recognizable; wherein said first display controller displays an object which has been gained and substituted for another object of the opponent player during the progress of the competitive game in such a manner that the pattern of the gained object is visually unrecognizable; wherein said first display controller displays the object obtained by the primary player at the beginning of the competitive game in the main screen area in a first presentation mode of displaying said primary player obtained object in a visually recognizable fashion, and displays an object subsequently gained by the primary player during the progress of the competitive game in the main screen area in a second presentation mode, different from the first presentation mode, of displaying the subsequently gained object in the visually recognizable fashion; wherein the supplementary information generator generates supplementary information including information concerning the first and second presentation modes for the primary player, the supplementary information showing how the primary player obtained object is displayed on the main screen area of the game machine of the opponent player; and wherein said secondary display controller allows based on the supplementary information the pattern of the primary player obtained object that is displayed in the first presentation mode in the main screen area to be displayed in the sub-screen area in such a manner that the pattern of the primary player obtained object is visually recognizable, and allows the pattern of the subsequently gained object that is displayed in the second presentation mode in the main screen area to be displayed in the sub-screen area in such a manner that the pattern of the subsequently gained object is visually unrecognizable.