Patent ID: 8162753

Claim:
A method for playing a video game on a video game client, the video game client including a display output configured to produce a video signal for outputting a video game display that, when viewed, provides a viewer with a view of a simulated game environment, and user input devices for obtaining user input, the method comprising: executing a video game program on the video game client; selecting one or more audio files from a plurality of audio files using a first user input device; compositing the selected audio files into a song and creating an alphanumeric encoded string representative of the song, the alphanumeric encoded string including one or more of identifying names of the selected audio files in the song, locations of the selected audio files in the song, and instructions for assembling the song from the audio files; and exchanging the alphanumeric encoded string with another video game client to enable the other video game client to independently recreate the song without requiring the song itself to be transmitted to the other video game client determining, at least in part, an animation of one or more game characters, based upon one or more attributes of the song and one or more attribute of the one or more game characters; and animating a simulated environment including the one or more game characters, wherein animating the simulated environment includes producing a display output signal output via the display output.