Patent ID: 7674166

Claim:
A server device for net games, which is communicably connected to a plurality of terminal devices used by users via a network, for managing a game played in a game space by the users using said terminal devices, the server device comprising: game watching information transmitting means for transmitting game watching information to the terminal devices of at least two other users who are spectators of said game to watch a game played by still other users who are game players using other ones of said terminal devices; communicating means for receiving a message transmitted from the terminal device of one of said spectators and transmitting the received message to the terminal device or at least another one of said spectators; privilege granting means for granting a predetermined privilege to a game player playing said game according to a degree of cheering based on participation of said spectators who are watching said game being played by said game player, said predetermined privilege including an improvement of an ability parameter wherein: the game character is controlled by input of said player, said ability parameter is other than a right to play said game, said ability parameter is improved during ongoing playing of the game and is an ability parameter of the game character in the game, and the ability parameter is used in control of the game character in addition to the input of the player during ongoing playing of the game; and said improvement of the ability parameter is effected by said privilege granting means in response to said degree of cheering reaching a predetermined level; and a spectator number determination device which determines a number of spectators who are watching according to a number of spectators to whom the game watching information is transmitted; wherein said privilege granting means determines the degree of cheering based on the number of said spectators who are watching said game and adjusts the predetermined privilege in accordance with the number of said spectators who are watching said game such that the greater the number of the spectators, the larger the predetermined privilege to be granted to each of said game players.