Strategy based electronic combat game

An electronic strategy and battle game for one to four players including a visual display and audio sound effects. The game has three levels of complexity, namely basic, intermediate and advanced, and also has a self-teaching mode. In each level of play the object to win is to be the only player with remaining energy units. This is achieved by chasing and evading opponents through space and engaging in energy-depleting battles. In the basic level of play each player begins with ten units of energy and the entire game takes place in a combat mode. In the intermediate level of play each player starts with twenty energy units with play taking place on two different scales, one for combat and another for non-combat. In the advanced level of play each player begins with forty units of energy and additional features are added such as sensing scans in the non-combat mode. The advanced level of play also permits invisibility of a player's starship. The display in the preferred embodiment includes a four-by-four matrix with two additional status indicators and a two digit numeric display. The primary control is provided by a microcomputer receiving commands via a keyboard.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates in general to an electronic game of the 
non-video type, and pertains, more particularly, to an electronic strategy 
game involving exploration, pursuit and battle in interplanatary space. 
The electronic game of this invention employs a microcomputer. 
The game of this invention is a privileged information game that may be 
played by two to four players and also includes a special self-play mode 
for one player to enable this player to challenge the game's computer. 
There are three levels of play, namely basic, intermediate, and advanced, 
thus, providing a game that can be played by people of many different ages 
ranging from a game with little or no strategy to a fairly sophisticated 
stragetic game. The players interact with the game and each other through 
an LED display, a keyboard, and sound effects generated by the unit. In 
the privileged information aspect of the game this means that each player 
will have his own secret display which is only displayed during his turn. 
Among the features of this game is that each player is automatically cued 
when it is his turn and is also automatically dropped out of the game when 
his energy has been expended. The keyboard locks out all but the 
acceptable inputs at each stage of play. There are preferably ten 
different sound effects that are used in association with a dynamic LED 
display read-out. 
In playing the game, each player is the commander of a starship who has 
been assigned to secure a new galaxy for a base of operations. Each 
starship starts out with the same number of energy units (fuel). The 
players then engage in various energy consuming maneuvers, battles and 
intelligence (information gathering) operations in an effort to 
"neutralize" their opponents. A player is neutralized when his or her 
energy supply has been depleted. The winning player will be the only 
remaining player whose starship has energy. 
Each player interacts with the game through a command console which 
includes a keyboard and a computer display read-out. The read-out in the 
disclosed embodiment has a display screen comprised of a four-by-four LED 
array, a numeric energy read-out and several status indicators. During 
game play, the hand-held command console is passed from player to player. 
Prior to passing the unit to the next player, the current player turns the 
display area off so that no privileged information is passed to the next 
opponent. 
The basic, intermediate and advanced levels of play allow the game to 
accommodate a wide range of player capabilities while providing an 
interesting and challenging game with respect to the players' 
capabilities. The levels are upward compatible. Each advance in level 
simply adds more player options while maintaining all the play features of 
the lower level. Hence, what was learned at one level can be applied when 
moving up to another level and learning to play the more advanced versions 
can take place in a progressive, fun-filled, step-by-step fashion. The 
game length is keyed to the level through the initial setting of the 
energies. Thus, for the basic level, which is aimed at the younger player, 
the play is relatively quick while for the advanced level the play is 
somewhat longer to allow for more serious strategic play. 
The heart of the game of this invention is a microcomputer which may be the 
Texas Instruments TMS 1100 microcomputer. The keyboard that is used is 
electronically organized in a matrix configuration and is scanned by the 
microcomputer to detect a key depression. In the preferred embodiment the 
display is a four-by-four LED array with at least two additional status 
indicators and a two-digit, seven-segment LED numeric display which 
registers the energy remaining for the particular player.

EXPOSITION In the drawings FIG. 1 shows the command console which includes 
a keyboard section with each of the keys or buttons 10 properly 
identified. The console also includes a display read-out section including 
a four-by-four array 12 which comprises a total of 16 LED indicators, 
status indicators 14, identified as an ALERT indicator and a COMBAT 
DISPLAY indicator. There is further provided in the read-out section a 
numeric display 16 which is a two-digit seven-segment display showing the 
energy remaining for each player during the player's turn. After a 
description of the different levels of play reference will then be made to 
a detailed construction of a system in accordance with the invention. 
The game may be considered as having three modes: 
(1) mutiplayer mode: for two to four players 
(2) self-play mode: a single player vs. the computer 
(3) teaching mode: a dynamic way to learn the game 
as well as the three levels of: 
(1) basic 
(2) intermediate 
(3) advanced 
Hence, the first action taken in starting a new game is to indicate the 
desired mode (row 10A in FIG. 1), the number of players when appropriate 
(key 10B in FIG. 1) and a level of the game (row 10A in FIG. 1). This 
basic game setup takes place in a natural, easy way to remember. A new 
game is to be started only when the unit is alternately flashing a small 
and large square on the display screen. This will be the case when the 
unit is first turned on or at the end of the game. If, for some reason it 
is desired to start a new game when the victory display (flashing small 
and large squares) is not on the display screen, then one simply turns the 
power off for a short period of time subsequently turning it back on. 
The part of the keyboard used during initial setup of the game is concerned 
with row 10A of FIG. 1. The keyboard is preferably color-coded to aid in 
associating the various keys with the game levels. The game keys for the 
basic, intermediate and advanced levels are colored yellow, red and green, 
respectively. The keys uniquely associated with each level are all coded 
with the same color as the start key for that level. Of course, games at 
the higher levels can use all the keys of the lower levels but not 
conversly. The keys in row 10A plus the keys 10C and 10D which are not 
associated with any particular level but are used in the game initial 
setup and starting and terminating a turn, are coded white to indicate 
their universality and independence from the game levels. The game setup 
for the self-play mode is given hereinafter along with the initial setup 
for the teaching mode. For now the discussion is limited to the 
multiplayer mode. 
Thus, to start the multiplayer game and assuming that the victory display 
is flashing on the display screen, the level is first selected, by 
appropriate selection of one of the keys in row 10A, basic, intermediate 
or advanced play. At that time on the numeric display 16 a "PO" with the O 
flashing appears. Next, key 10B is repeatedly depressed to indicate the 
number of players that will be playing. The number of players will appear 
on the display 16. To then start play for the first player the "START 
TURN" button 10C is then selected by the first player. 
Because of the priviledged information design of the electronic game of 
this invention, each player in a multi-player game activates and 
reactivates (buttons 10C and 10D) the command console during his or her 
turn. Both of the keys 10C and 10D are color-coded white. 
During game play, each player assumes a number from one up to four which 
corresponds to the order in which they take their turn following the 
starting of a new game. Thus, the first player to take a turn after 
starting a new game is player number one and so forth. To activate the 
command console, a player hits the "START TURN" key when his number is 
flashing on the energy/player display 16. Players who are out of the game 
because they have no energy left will be automatically skipped. That is, 
their player number will not be displayed, indicating to them that they 
are in fact out of the game. All of this occurs under computer software 
control as discussed in more detail hereinafter. 
After the player commences operation by hitting the button 10C, following 
display of his number, the computer display read-out 12 is activated so as 
to display that particular player's priviledged information. The player 
then proceeds with his turn and is cued that his turn has ended by a 
flashing of the energy read-out 16. At that time, the player then operates 
the "END TURN" button or key 10D to blank the display area and then passes 
the unit to the next active player. If he does not terminate his operation 
within say ten seconds after the end of turn indication, then an 
end-of-turn sound effect is generated to remind the player and at the same 
time also informing the other players of a termination of the player's 
turn. 
BASIC LEVEL OPERATION 
Immediately after activating the console on his/her first turn, the player 
is presented with an animated visual effect accompanied by a battle 
stations siren. This serves to set the tone for the game, that is, one of 
battle which, as we shall see, is the essence of the basic level game. The 
player then strikes the BATTLE STATION key 10L and then the command 
read-out might look as depicted in FIG. 5. The ALERT indicator and also 
the COMBAT DISPLAY indicator are on to indicate to the player that this is 
a combat situation. The energy read-out 16 contains ten units of energy, 
which is the starting energy for the basic game. The player's starship is 
identified in FIG. 5 blinking on the display screen. In this particular 
setup the starship is at location B1 on the four-by-four array. Enemy 
starships and planets also show on the display screen in the combat mode. 
Both the enemy starship and planets are shown as steady LED illuminations 
and therein lies the challenge to the player, that is, to distinguish 
between a planet and a enemy starship as soon as possible so that an 
effective hit can be scored on an enemy ship. In FIG. 5 the locations of 
either the enemy starship or the planet are at B2, C1, D2 and D4. Anywhere 
from one to four planets usually occur in the array during combat. The 
number of planets and their placement is totally random and will vary from 
game to game. The planets do not move and their positions remain fixed for 
the duration of each game. However, the enemy ship, of course, moves. 
The section of the keyboard used in the basic game includes the row 10F and 
also the keys or buttons 10G and 10H. Thus, a player only has two choices 
during his/her turn, that is to move or fire. Each of these constitute a 
turn and a fire costs one unit of energy. 
During combat, a player may move his or her ship about within the display 
sector comprised of the basic four-by-four matrix. These moves are 
accomplished with the use of the move key 10G on the command keyboard, 
when they move anywhere within the sector and even occupy the same 
position as a planet. However, a ship is still vulnerable to the 
opponent's weapons system when inhabiting a cell with a planet. One way of 
explaining a starship and planet occupying the same cell is that the 
starship has landed on the planet. A player cannot, however, occupy the 
same position as an opponent's. An attempted move into a cell occupied by 
another starship will result in the player's ship being randomly relocated 
to a new and different cell within the sector. All maneuvering is 
accomplished through moves to adjacent cells in a horizontal or vertical 
direction. One move constitutes a turn but uses no energy. A move is made 
by first depressing the `MOVE` key 10G followed by a direction key, such 
as key 10K for direction `.fwdarw.`. If a move is attempted outside the 
sector, e.g., to the right when on the righthand edge, the direction key 
will not be accepted. 
In combat, a player tries to score a bit on an opponent's ship by firing 
his ship's weapons system. Firing paths are away from the player's 
position in a horizontal or vertical direction only. A fire path cannot 
pass through a cell occupied by a planet but may extend all the way to the 
edge of the sector unless blocked by a planet or an opponent's ship. 
Successfully hitting an opponent's ship is indicated by a "blast" flash in 
the display screen and accompanying sound effect of an explosion. A ship 
that has been hit is disrupted to a random location within the sector. The 
ship also suffers an energy loss of three units. An unsuccessful firing is 
indicated by the sound effect of the weapons system firing with no other 
response. A firing operation constitutes a turn and uses one unit of 
energy. It is inhibited by first depressing `FIRE` key 10H followed by a 
direction key, e.g., `.fwdarw.` (key 10K). A player can suffer a hit when 
occupying the same cell as a planet even though the fire path is stopped 
by the cell. A player can also fire when inhibiting the same cell as a 
planet. 
Neutralization of a player's ship occurs when the ship's energy supply has 
been depleted (zero energy units) as a result of combat or play. A player 
whose ship is neutralized is dropped from the game. The end of the game is 
arrived at when only one player has remaining energy supplies. When this 
occurs a special visual effect, the victory display, appears on the 
display screen of the winning player and the unit will accept the key 
strokes required to start a new game. 
INTERMEDIATE LEVEL OPERATION 
The intermediate level adds another level to the game, a non-combat mode, 
to augment the combat-only mode of the basic level. The intermediate game 
always starts in the non-combat mode. In this mode, the display screen 
presents a view of the entire galaxy which has been divided into sixteen 
sectors. The non-combat display mode is signaled by the absence of 
illumination of the `COMBAT DISPLAY` indicator 14A. The only object which 
shows on the display screen in this mode is the player's own starship. A 
basic objective in the non-combat mode is to seek out Magna, a special 
energy giving star, to increase the ship's energy supply. As this takes 
place, players may move into sectors which are occupied by an opponent. 
This presents the opportunity to pursue combat. In addition to possible 
encounters with the enemy and excursions to Magna's sector, a player may 
move into a sector with a Black Hole and lose energy. Each player in the 
intermediate level game starts off with twenty units of energy. 
Magna is the energy giving star. Every time a starship enters the sector 
occupied by Magna, the starship gains five units of energy. This is 
accompanied by a sound effect which represents a charging of the 
starship's energy banks. After giving a starship energy, Magna is 
randomized under computer control to some other sector in the galaxy. 
There is only one Magna and it does not show on the display. 
When a starship warps into the same sector as the Black Hole, it loses 
three energy units for that turn. The loss of energy is accompanied by a 
sound representing the energy banks being drained. There is only one Black 
Hole, which is randomly placed at the beginning of each game, and it 
remains in a fixed position for the duration of the game. 
To maneuver in the non-combat mode, a player hits the `MOVE` key 10G 
followed by the desired direction key, e.g., `.uparw.`. Moves cost one 
energy unit in the non-combat mode and terminate the turn. 
When the direction key is entered, the display screen is updated to reflect 
the starship's new sector. Moves can only be made to adjoining sectors in 
a horizontal or vertical direction. A player cannot move out of the 
galaxy, e.g., a move up will not be accepted when the player is in sectors 
A1, A2, A3, or A4. 
Play at the inermediate level uses all the keys of the Basic Level plus the 
following two keys which have been color-coded red. The `BS` (BATTLE 
STATIONS) and `EM` (EVASIVE MANEUVERS) keys 10L and 10E, respectively, are 
used for responding to potential conflict situations. 
If an enemy ship is within one section (horizontal or vertical only) of the 
current player's ship, then a Near Alert condition will be shown by 
flashing the `ALERT` indicator 14B and flashing the current player's ship 
on the display screen. If the current player moves into the same sector as 
another player, then a Red Alert exists (`ALERT` indicator 14B on steady) 
and the current player must either hit `BS` (BATTLE STATIONS) key 10L to 
enter into combat or take EVASIVE MANEUVERS (`EM`) (key 10E) at a cost of 
two energy units. In Red Alert the player's ship flashes on the display 
screen. On entry to a Red Alert condition, a siren sound is generated to 
build excitement, clue the other players on what is happening and prompt 
for a BATTLE STATIONS or EVASIVE MANEUVERS response from the active 
player. 
Combat may occur when two or more players occupy the same sector and is 
signaled by a Red Alert. A player who decides to participate in a combat 
situation must call his ship to Battle Stations. Depressing the `BS` key 
10L changes his display screen to a combat display view of the sector he 
is in. It also allows the use of the weapons system and for maneuvering 
within the sector. A player may choose to avoid or end a combat situation 
by hitting the `EM` button 10E. Use of evasive maneuvers costs two energy 
units. Once in combat, the game play is exactly as in the basic level game 
with the only exception being the use of evasive maneuvers to escape from 
a combat situation. 
When a combat display view of a sector is being displayed on the display 
screen, the `COMBAT DISPLAY` indicator 14A is on. One can think of the 
combat display as being a four times (4X) magnification of the sector in 
which combat is taking place. Hence, objects like the planets and the 
enemy ship, which do not show up in the non-combat display, do show up in 
the magnified combat display. 
A starship's position within a section; that is, its position during combat 
display, is maintained as the starship moves from sector to sector in the 
non-combat mode. The only exception to this rule is the case where a 
starship would end up in the same cell as another ship. In this case, the 
location of the starship moving into the sector is randomized at the 
combat display level, i.e., within the sector. 
ADVANCED LEVEL GAME 
The advanced level game can be considered an extension of the intermediate 
level game making available more options in the play of the game. A new 
space phenomenon, the Space Wrinkle, is added to the non-combat mode along 
with the ability to do information gathering operations through the use of 
Sensor Scans (see FIG. 1 row 10M). The combat mode is enhanced through the 
addition of a "Screen Up" option (see FIG. 1 area 10N). All of the play 
features of the intermediate and basic level games are retained in the 
advanced game. The added keys for the advanced level are color-coded 
green. The starships start off with forty units of energy in the advanced 
game. 
As in the intermediate game, Magna, the energy giving star, gives each 
starship entering its sector five units of energy. This is accompanied by 
a sound representing the charging of the starship's energy banks. There is 
only one Magna and it only moves after it gives energy. As was the case in 
the intermediate game, Magna is randomly placed at the beginning of the 
game. 
When a starship moves into the same sector as a Space Wrinkle, it is 
randomized to a sector other than the one intended on the maneuver. A 
playful tone sequence signals that a starship is passing through a Space 
Wrinkle. There are two Space Wrinkles, which are randomly placed at the 
beginning of each game, and they remain in fixed positions for the 
duration of the game. This aspect of the game is essentially not 
controlled by the players via the keyboard. 
Sensor scans introduce a value of information aspect into the game. For the 
cost of one energy unit, a player can do a sensor scan for Magna or to 
locate an enemy ship. The desired sensor scan is activated by depressing 
the key associated with that scan. The readout of the sensor scan is 
through the use of "dynamic crosshairs" on the display screen. After 
several seconds of animated motion the crosshairs stop in a position such 
that the object being scanned for is located at the intersection of the 
row and column crosshairs. The display will remain static in this readout 
position for approximately five seconds and then revert back to the 
original sector display. A sample MAGNA SCAN readout is illustrated in 
FIG. 6 where MAGNA's location is shown to be sector C3. The enemy and 
Magna sensor scans are functional only during the non-combat mode. The 
keys in row 10M control these two functions. Either one or both may be 
activated during a turn and their use does not terminate the turn. 
However, sensor scans must be the first action taken by a player during 
his or her turn. On an enemy scan in a multi-player game, an enemy ship 
causing a Near Alert will always be shown whenever a Near Alert condition 
exists. Otherwise, the enemy ship pointed to is always the player's whose 
turn is next. 
The screen function (area 10N of FIG. 1) is used only during combat and is 
used to make the player's ship invisible on the other players' displays. 
It must be activated each turn by pressing the `SCREEN UP` key at a cost 
of one energy unit. When a player has his screen up, he can only move and 
cannot fire. A player who has his screen up can be hit by another player 
and suffer the usual damage even though the ship was invisible on the 
display. 
The various maneuvers, information reports, and other play actions result, 
for the most part, in the expenditure of energy. The following table 
summarizes the associated energy cost and gains of the different aspects 
of play. 
______________________________________ 
ENERGY CONSUMPTION ENERGY GAIN 
______________________________________ 
Move (non-combat) 1 Magna 5 
Move (combat) .phi. 
Sensor Scan 
Magna 1 
Enemy 1 
Screen Up 1 
Combat 
Battle Stations .phi. 
Evasive Maneuvers 2 
Black Hole 3 
Space Wrinkle .phi. 
Hit (by enemy) 3 
______________________________________ 
SELF PLAY 
A single player takes on an alien robot ship in the self-play mode. The 
robot ship is managed by the unit's micro-computer and is capable of 
executing all of the maneuvering, firing and other operations that are 
available to a "human" player. Games against the robot ship can be played 
at the basic, intermediate and advanced levels. The following keystroke 
sequence illustrates the starting of a self-play game at the intermediate 
level. Initially, the intermediate button in row 10A is selected, followed 
by pressing button 10B once indicating a single player and in turn 
followed by selection of button 10C. This is consistent with the way a 
multiplayer game is set up, i.e., the number of players is simply set to 
one in this case. 
During game play, the player starts and ends his turn through use of the 
`START TURN` and `END TURN` keys 10C and 10D, respectively, in the same 
manner as previously outlined for a multiplayer game. After the player 
hits the `END TURN` key, the computer takes its turn. This is accompanied 
by a sequence of "robot-like" random tones to indicate that the computer 
is taking its turn. The player then starts his next turn through use of 
the `START TURN` key and play continues. The play of the game is exactly 
the same as a multiplayer game. The winner is signaled by the victory 
display. It will either come on during the player's turn, signifying the 
player as the winner, or after the player ends his turn, signifying the 
robot ship as the winner. 
The teach mode can be viewed as a special case of self-play. In this mode 
all of the randomizations are repeatable and predictable. Hence, game 
scenarios which demonstrate the sound effects, visual effects and play of 
the game can be developed and presented in the instruction book. Teaching 
scenarios can be developed for all three game levels--basic, intermediate 
and advanced. The teach mode can be entered whenever the victory display 
is on the screen by hitting the game level key (basic, intermediate or 
advanced) followed by the `START TURN` key 10C. At the time the `START 
TURN` key is hit, the ENERGY/PLAYER display will by displaying `PO` with 
the zero flashing. Thus, the teach mode is set up as if it were a zero 
player game. 
In accordance with the game of this invention, the game can be played 
either with or without charting. However, play of the advanced game is 
enhanced through the use of charting. Players start charting once they 
have some experience and see its utility and at that point the charting 
will become quite natural. A simple version of a chart is a schematic of 
the display screen in the typical four-by-four array. 
With the exception of the basic game, the game play takes place in two 
distinct modes, namely the non-combat and the combat modes. These two 
modes reflect the scale at which space is viewed through the display 
screen and hence can also be thought of as levels of play. In the 
non-combat level, the sixteen sectors which comprise the whole galaxy are 
viewed on the display screen. In the combat level, one of the sectors is 
magnified to a further breakdown of a four-by-four matrix with the single 
sector occupying the whole display screen. Compared to the single level 
approach, this two-level approach provides a more interesting game because 
there can be different types of bodies, phenomena and playing strategies 
at each level. Furthermore, the resulting size of the game tends to start 
action sooner and assures more action during the game. Beside the game 
play advantages, the two-level approach allows for the fabrication of the 
cost effective display screen. 
In accordance with another feature that may be incorporated into the game, 
in the intermediate and advanced levels, the player who is aggressive and 
moves in on another player may be rewarded by an extended-move turn which 
gives that player an edge in combat. In this case the red alert siren 
serves to prompt the player that another entry can be made. This entry can 
be either the function Battle Stations (key 10L) or Evasive Maneuvers (key 
10E). 
The primary display readout in the game of this invention is the display 
screen 12 shown in FIGS. 1, 3, and 4. This is primarily a four-by-four 
array of sixteen cells with each cell position being illuminated by an LED 
indicator. FIG. 1 shows each of these indicators 12A. The display screen 
is used at both non-combat and combat levels of game play, reflecting, of 
course, a change in scale in viewing the galaxy. Each of the cells may be 
identified by the coordinates indicated in FIG. 1. At various points 
during game play the display screen may be animated to lend visual impact 
to the game, cue the player that a change is taking place, and thus 
heightening the sense of excitement in the game. 
In FIG. 1 the combat display indicator 14A essentially illustrates the 
scale factor at which the display screen is operating and hence the level 
of play. 
The readout 16 also shown in FIG. 1 gives the player's energy supply that 
is remaining and is updated to reflect the various actions taken by the 
player and hits sustained. It is also used to indicate the player whose 
turn is next during game play and when starting a new game to display the 
number of players that the game is being set up for. 
The keyboard of this invention is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 3. FIG. 1 
shows the placement of each of the keys while FIG. 3 shows the electrical 
connection of the associated switches in a matrix coupling to certain 
terminals of the microcomputer 24. The keyboard is operated on a "guiding 
keyboard" concept which is built into the computer program. With this 
keyboard, only key depressions which are allowed and make sense are 
accepted at each stage of game play. Hence, wrong key depressions will not 
cause any problems. An added advantage to this approach is that the new 
player will actually learn much about the game play by actually playing. 
This follows from the well accepted teaching principle of positive 
reinforcement. Whenever a keystroke is accepted, a keyboard bleep sound is 
generated to give positive feedback to the player that the keystroke was 
accepted, to serve as a linkage between players to hold their interest 
when the console is not in their position, and also gives audio impact to 
the game. 
The initial placements of the noncombat level space phenomena are computed 
at the start of the game based on random variables. From one game to the 
next these placements will vary in a non-deterministic fashion. The 
initial starting positions of the players are determined at the beginning 
of the game during game setup. Both the noncombat and combat scale 
positions are computed from random variables. Thus, initial starting 
positions for the players will vary from game to game. Player positions 
will be initialized to not coincide with any of the noncombat level space 
phenomena or combat level planet positions. 
Anywhere from one to four planets can occur in a sector when in combat. The 
number of planets occupying each sector and their placement within each 
sector is determined at the start-up of the game. These attributes are 
computed using three independent random variables. Therefore, varying 
configurations are presented from one game to the next. A configuration, 
however, remains constant for the duration of each game. 
With regard to FIGS. 2-4 there is shown the display 20 keyboard 10, and the 
microcomputer 24. These components comprise the main pieces of the system. 
The microcomputer 24 is basically a conventional device having an internal 
read only memory, a random access memory, an arithmetic logic unit, 
preferably all on a single chip which functions according to the read only 
memory program and the system inputs. The arrangement of FIG. 2 shows the 
K and R lines coupling to the keyboard 10. In addition, some of the R 
lines also couple to the display along with the 0 lines. This arrangement 
permits a form of multiplexing allowing display at the same time that 
keyboard data can be accepted from the keyboard 10. 
The display scanning technique of the present invention is now disclosed in 
more detail. It is assumed that the display is a four-by-four matrix with 
locations A3, B3, C3 and D3 being illuminated. The contents of the memory 
in the microprocessor for this situation is depicted in FIG. 7. In a 
conventional scanning approach, there are four drivers associated with a 
four-by-four array and the average current in the selected condition is 
relatively high. However, the approach used in accordance with the present 
invention is different than the conventional approach and is as 
illustrated in FIG. 4 with the same R line signal being tied in common 
with two spaced rows of indicators. As the array is scanned in a 
row-by-row fashion, the contents of even numbered RAM locations 
transferred as a four bit word to the O.sub.0 -O.sub.3 output lines and 
the contents of odd numbered RAM locations are transferred as a four-bit 
word to the O.sub.4 -O.sub.7 output lines. This is accomplished through 
the output programmable logic array of the microcomputer with mapping as 
defined in the following table. 
______________________________________ 
##STR1## 
##STR2## 
##STR3## 
##STR4## 
O.sub.4 = SL .multidot. A1 
O.sub.5 = SL .multidot. A2 
O.sub.6 = SL .multidot. A4 
O.sub.7 = SL .multidot. A8 
______________________________________ 
The status logic (SL) flip-flop in the TMS1100 microcomputer 24 is set to a 
"0" by the program whenever a display row from an even numbered memory 
location is transferred from memory to the accumulator and to a "1" for 
odd numbered memory locations. An R line is active for both transfers of 
the memory location corresponding to that number and the memory location 
corresponding to the R line number minus one. The timing diagram 
illustrates this approach in FIG. 8. 
From the above we note that only two current sinking drivers are required 
as contrasted to four in the conventional case. Also, we see that the 
average current on any 0 line in this worst case situation is slightly 
less than 50% of the peak current on that line. This allows for better 
matching to the microcomputer's maximum ratings since it is specified with 
an average current of 50% of peak current on the 0 output lines. 
In summary then, the technique used for driving the four by four LED array 
in the game allows for a better matching to the output characteristics of 
the TMS1100 microcomputer. 
The following tables A and B show the ROM memory map as far as the program 
counter sequence is concerned in accordance with the concepts of this 
invention. The instructional manual with the microcomputer readily teaches 
one to program the microcomputer to operate in accordance with the 
invention. Many standard operations of the computer are employed to 
control the display in accordance with information inputted to the 
computer from the keyboard. The addressing scheme to the keyboard and to 
the display takes advantage of multiplexing between these units so as to 
operate in effective and efficient manner. Inputs from the keyboard, for 
example, are compared with stored information in the computer 
representative of fixed information such as the position of planets on the 
display or alterable information such as the position of enemy starships. 
The computer, of course, takes care of any coincidence between the 
player's starship, planets and the enemy starships and also controls where 
certain starships are relocated. 
In FIG. 2 the resistors in the 0 lines coupling between the computer and 
the display are normal limiting resistors. The circuit 25 associated with 
the computer 24 is an oscillator circuit coupled to the clock input of the 
computer. There are also provided drivers 21 in some of the R lines 
between the computer and the display. FIG. 2 also shows the speaker 23 
which is used for certain sound effects associated with the game. The 
speaker 23 is controlled basically from the R9 and R10 outputs of the 
computer 24. 
TABLE A 
__________________________________________________________________________ 
CHAPTER .phi. 
ROM MEMORY MAP 
(Program Counter Sequence) 
__________________________________________________________________________ 
0000=0F 
23 47 40 3E 07 0C 0C 4D 27 26 8A 0D 05 0C 20 
0010=03 
27 9D 38 27 7C 98 18 4B 9D 07 0C EA 0F 38 21 
0020=22 
9C 49 05 21 80 A7 49 34 77 4B 3D 27 4D 80 B2 
0030=07 
A5 0B AD 24 08 8F 39 02 3B 4F 43 A2 28 0D 0A 
0040=40 
0C 6C 2A 08 4B 2E 4F 45 0C 7C 10 41 4E 2C 39 
0050=13 
27 8E 43 BB BF 80 A8 21 12 0C 0D BC 42 34 90 
0060=A5 
47 20 E9 23 87 27 DE 80 9B 78 1A 24 A4 3F AE 
0070=28 
15 7E 10 04 AC 0E 77 30 43 07 2E 28 03 7F 28 
0080=2D 
40 FF 21 21 7F 38 2F 4E 2F 80 77 0B 95 04 46 
0090=13 
60 14 27 10 7B 35 03 60 1F 17 34 11 8E F2 60 
00A0= 9C 
19 47 95 2C 83 30 41 F2 F9 9B 4A 28 4E 04 10 
00B0=2C 
AA 78 37 38 BC 2C BC 50 4F 18 3B 2E 47 81 0B 
00C0=2B 
40 38 21 27 97 0B 46 44 8E 0B 3D 3D 59 C0 27 
00D0=14 
36 9B FF 42 89 98 49 04 9C 84 93 46 2E E4 0F 
00E0=BA 
44 0F FD 2E B6 0B E4 62 15 2C 3A 04 07 27 3B 
00F0=21 
0B 3B 3B 0B 0F DD 4B 1D 2D 44 6C 48 DD 80 0B 
0100=69 
6F 8E BC 4F 4D 39 60 66 15 68 65 98 D9 3C 68 
0110=A4 
7F 2C 8D A1 0F 3F 21 3D 2D 60 29 A1 47 A1 AF 
0120=00 
18 2A 27 44 68 1F 03 14 9A 3D 4B A6 B6 7E 77 
0130=85 
4B 4D 06 51 AA 24 63 7E 41 3F 61 21 AF 62 68 
0140=6E 
3E 2C 94 27 45 3A 27 FD 2C 86 21 14 9A 38 0F 
0150=24 
C2 D0 46 25 16 32 4D 34 2E 44 41 28 AB 03 38 
0160=8F 
F9 06 84 10 39 21 78 3E 4C 80 27 43 A9 22 40 
0170=10 
3C 42 8E 21 AC 23 28 0F A7 27 21 3A 4E 2F 86 
0180=2A 
4F 13 38 97 98 2C 89 80 28 2C 1B 66 9F 21 10 
0190=14 
10 AD 48 39 4A 4A 3A 9B 66 BF 13 39 2E 2E FD 
01A0=AF 
BD 0B 80 38 0F 60 4A F0 3A 17 82 3F 80 84 B4 
01B0=14 
79 60 2C 17 3F 3A 3F BD 8B 46 4E 3F 21 46 2C 
01C0=42 
28 70 7F 6F AD 6D 24 9A 62 14 70 6E 6B 40 50 
01D0=19 
6E 6F 42 2A 39 92 84 91 6F 66 77 86 FD 3F 81 
01E0=80 
8D B4 6F 77 0F 2C F5 4F 93 AB 7E 70 66 70 0F 
01F0=78 
9A 60 4A 60 28 91 21 70 8E 4E 22 B3 29 41 0F 
0200=42 
39 22 99 60 28 60 2D 42 43 91 21 8E 72 3F 40 
0210=14 
1E 1E 68 A6 4A 4E 2C B8 1E 6E 28 27 EB FF 22 
0220=AE 
27 C1 99 FA 41 18 4E 27 60 3F 2C 3F 6C 45 19 
0230=4D 
75 D3 2F 2F 8F 4A 2F 0F 60 15 9F 40 19 B7 3A 
0240=11 
38 23 A6 A6 0F 2F 2E A2 2B 86 40 4F 21 98 80 
0250=15 
A6 2D FE 21 2B 33 6C 31 07 2F 2D EB 70 04 2B 
0260=80 
32 3B 6A 38 77 2D 70 46 A6 41 82 82 22 11 B9 
0270=82 
4F 25 96 00 30 4F 7C 2D 73 A1 42 B7 28 21 40 
0280=27 
20 FE 51 0A 2B 60 A1 04 0F 44 46 2E 34 28 2C 
0290=1E 
88 77 43 0D 61 9E 07 17 4F 11 2E 2C 48 18 4E 
02A0=81 
19 7F 45 92 2C 68 64 60 23 45 BA 37 27 80 B9 
02B0=B0 
62 33 46 B1 5A 42 3B 44 30 6F AC 8E 38 9E 3A 
02C0=40 
68 27 6C 27 B9 40 02 06 86 2F 00 38 07 40 83 
02D0=94 
40 FA 2E 25 48 05 9C 27 8A 93 27 04 22 77 2B 
02E0=B2 
40 22 66 0B A4 4B 2F 56 0B 21 22 B1 3D B9 C1 
02F0=23 
2B 14 F2 18 8B 20 1A BA 10 50 42 9F C1 10 0B 
0300=7E 
8F A3 42 62 3B 46 BB 64 7D 42 9C 20 1B DA 46 
0310=00 
66 2A A3 86 60 60 3D 3A 21 B4 3A F7 14 33 BB 
0320=00 
70 6B 2E 48 2C 72 10 00 B4 18 43 9D 39 9C 43 
0330=92 
AA B7 0F 37 28 A9 28 1C 25 BC 23 45 4F B5 7E 
0340=37 
4A 17 31 10 F0 B0 16 17 F2 A2 45 2A 27 78 B3 
0350=8D 
A8 28 10 C1 4D C9 0C 62 1A A9 2E 16 9C 21 44 
0360=A2 
BA 0C F0 43 77 C9 B0 73 36 1A 16 43 3A B0 4A 
0370=14 
17 C1 7C 35 82 4E 2C C9 9B 7C C0 7C 1E 87 62 
0380=7D 
8A 21 70 10 3D 19 AC 27 C9 34 77 22 FE 3A 70 
0390=37 
10 23 45 8C 36 BB 24 87 24 95 F0 82 AB 4A 9E 
03A0=8A 
42 F2 4A 45 BB 28 22 35 42 15 36 11 7B 50 BA 
03B0=28 
2C 92 40 28 BB BB 14 0F 2D 32 0F 6F FE 19 4A 
03C0=4E 
2A B2 0D 74 55 2C 08 77 2D 3E 8C 18 4B 2E 70 
03D0=15 
84 84 1D 72 75 15 40 41 8E 2D 6E 47 FF B7 4F 
03E0=9B 
3D 9A 33 30 8C 80 C0 27 6C A8 28 93 9B 21 04 
03F0=22 
A4 50 FF 4A FF 5E 26 77 28 2D 23 0F 09 BF 24 
__________________________________________________________________________ 
TABLE B 
__________________________________________________________________________ 
CHAPTER 1 
ROM MEMORY MAP 
(Program Counter Sequence) 
__________________________________________________________________________ 
0000=2C 
4B BA 21 99 30 95 06 27 77 91 BA 70 78 39 BF 
0010=16 
21 9A 3F BA 0B 0B 7D 28 06 03 95 4C 85 48 BB 
0020=A8 
39 70 38 48 56 99 A1 35 56 14 2C 0F 48 A8 83 
0030=89 
4A 25 7E 05 49 28 50 62 4F 21 25 21 05 30 04 
0040=C9 
37 06 23 90 41 21 41 14 2D B7 27 0F 24 EF 29 
0050=11 
E0 9A 40 C0 35 4F 33 49 39 06 59 3E 40 40 27 
0060=80 
47 38 30 0F 11 22 2F A5 5B 1B 2B 06 03 35 21 
0070=27 
4B 95 C9 25 21 8D 2B 27 0F 2F 20 27 27 40 33 
0080=80 
60 30 2D 93 B7 32 7B 00 B8 38 7C B8 83 41 BF 
0090=83 
99 B8 3A B8 B8 41 9B 00 78 A4 7D 9B 2F 0F 72 
00A0= 0B 
4E 38 25 74 A8 99 83 23 A4 3A 21 22 B4 00 4E 
00B0=8B 
46 00 8E 00 40 7D 2F 23 38 27 BC 20 00 40 70 
00C0=2E 
49 23 21 80 2B A5 2B 1D 12 2B 4E BC 2B 4E 46 
00D0=21 
FB 89 8C 33 4E 2D 27 82 23 0F 4E 2F 27 05 06 
00E0=BE 
BE 59 00 46 7F 00 23 20 A4 03 BE 38 7E 20 22 
00F0=2B 
40 8E A6 3D 00 21 41 21 51 AD B5 04 50 04 27 
0100=23 
46 2B 2B 27 40 2D 27 2D 0F CF 06 2E 38 20 20 
0110=1D 
22 2B 1B FF 93 7F 27 2E 4E 04 BC 21 B6 82 21 
0120=8C 
21 2B 9A 21 16 BB 81 40 B1 13 B6 82 21 2F 21 
0130=49 
00 32 00 50 22 2F 2F 4A 40 46 47 23 BA 00 40 
0140=47 
2F 2D 21 8C 45 C0 40 41 45 87 3A 00 18 38 2F 
0150=48 
05 47 27 21 49 2D B4 22 91 98 DD 14 80 2F 06 
0160=AA 
27 5B 38 06 7F AE 32 87 21 2E 9E 40 1B 0F 45 
0170=2F 
11 92 2D 2F 51 48 9E E0 BA 04 38 00 43 2D 27 
0180=4A 
23 60 46 22 91 7A BE 93 0F 3E 27 27 8C 27 48 
0190=15 
74 20 7F 9B 7A 8B 4E 60 23 93 79 46 23 37 23 
01A0=8C 
22 4E 06 07 20 A2 79 0B 7E AD 07 77 07 21 03 
01B0=4E 
22 7E 8B 23 20 26 0F 03 3C 7E 27 22 06 29 4E 
01C0=11 
CC 4E 39 26 31 90 B4 4E 77 0F 29 2D 23 4C F4 
01D0=11 
33 60 03 0B 35 77 6C 70 34 23 CC 60 03 2D 31 
01E0=91 
03 4D 3D 35 20 20 2E AB 4A 1F 98 B0 AA 46 22 
01F0=4C 
EF 7E 33 2E 59 31 AA 16 20 22 7E 37 21 4E 2B 
0200=2D 
40 45 22 18 3A 4E 39 9C FE 0F B6 29 32 AB BB 
0210=1E 
23 1B 12 18 23 39 49 1A 41 31 0F 13 1F F1 31 
0220=AA 
2D 2D 2C D9 2D FB 00 FE C0 7E CC 9C ED 36 3B 
0230=E5 
37 22 40 16 A7 1B CC A4 FF 0B 0F 13 32 4A 2E 
0240=40 
2B 40 21 0F 34 21 2E 03 40 4F 36 40 40 12 48 
0250=8C 
3D 48 E4 80 21 2F 03 A9 E4 1A 03 36 82 DE 03 
0260=C7 
2F 03 4A 2E 2C A1 21 7C 21 7E 48 3C C7 34 1D 
0270=21 
27 80 48 90 96 3D 0F 3C D2 45 03 5D 05 03 04 
0280=2E 
40 3A 6F 2D 98 0B 63 A5 30 2D 1B 2C BD 38 4C 
0290=B1 
38 8C 1B A4 4A 38 BC 1B 21 7B 4C 2D BA 19 60 
02A0=00 
48 A4 1C 19 A4 9E 4B 1F 39 33 4B A1 4B 4A B5 
02B0=80 
80 75 2D 91 2D 21 38 3A AB AB 4E 3A 21 40 2F 
02C0=45 
22 8B 5E 1F 4D 12 90 58 D3 60 0F 27 70 38 2F 
02D0=17 
90 17 12 15 60 7E 5D 7C 2E 80 98 3E 96 3B 40 
02E0=AA 
70 45 95 AE 60 AA 77 9C 88 0B 85 96 0B 90 2E 
02F0=96 
70 4A 3D 5B 8B 1C 49 1A 8E 7C 21 B3 2B BB 7B 
0300=5D 
91 8B 2F A6 BB 2F 4E 8C 1D 1E 40 1F 21 7E 3F 
0310=23 
78 CF 90 70 3D 20 00 20 93 4E 2C A4 20 B3 B8 
0320=80 
38 70 20 40 EF 47 98 9A 16 BF 98 BB 27 A3 56 
0330=0F 
21 16 38 31 39 40 23 46 BB 7E 05 40 22 40 2D 
0340=2C 
4E 49 30 98 3A 43 2E ED ED 4B 88 C0 3A 1A 4A 
0350=0F 
33 32 31 90 30 8E 45 16 41 2E AD 89 C0 C0 36 
0360=A1 
2D 4C AD A1 2D 16 35 34 0F 02 38 44 36 3A 93 
0370=DF 
3A 21 C9 46 E0 BB 1F 4D 18 14 4F C7 D6 12 0F 
0380=18 
C9 43 3A B2 9C 2E B1 A3 70 70 5B BC 4B 4D C6 
0390=41 
C6 80 1B 0B 80 1B AA 20 7B 91 0F 1F 9C 18 38 
03A0=21 
8B 38 91 7B 1B 70 CF 8E 53 18 98 9E 3A 4B BA 
03B0=56 
39 79 16 20 57 13 5C 93 33 20 20 C9 BA 3A 98 
03C0=7D 
8F 70 37 33 B4 4D 32 3A 95 A4 55 4D 1D B5 7F 
03D0=13 
A6 A8 23 21 29 22 90 88 25 22 3E 4E 17 42 29 
03E0=B2 
80 4E 80 4A 70 2E 07 4E AE 41 41 78 15 2C 2E 
03F0=74 
18 0F 4D 55 1D A2 61 33 86 90 2B 39 27 25 46 
__________________________________________________________________________