JP5009018B2 - Pinball machine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a pinball machine.

  A pinball machine is called an inclined board surface (play field) with various obstacles and a target to be scored, a ball that rolls down the play field, and a flipper that bounces back so that the ball does not fall last by the player's operation. Parts are provided. There are obstacles (such as bumpers) and targets (such as drop targets) in the play field, and the player keeps the ball from falling in a specific lane provided in the play field while flipping the ball with the flipper and keeping it from falling as long as possible. Score points by passing through or hitting a ball against an obstacle or target.

  In recent pinball machines, in addition to simply adding points by passing a ball to a specific lane or hitting a ball against an obstacle or target, a preset mission (feature) is achieved. As a result, a high score can be obtained dramatically. The mission is defined by, for example, a predetermined combination of specific lanes, obstacles, targets, and the like.

  Patent Document 1 describes an invention for controlling an electric pinball game executed by game software on a computer by providing two buttons on two sides of a keyboard.

Patent Document 2 describes an invention for executing a winning game using an interactive communication system such as the Internet, and describes that a pinball can be selected as a game to be played.
Japanese National Patent Publication No. 11-502042 Special table 2003-500129 gazette

  A conventional pinball machine competes for a score by playing alone, and cannot compete with other players. Darefully, when playing against other players, they had to play in turns on the same pinball machine and competed for the points earned by each.

  Also, depending on the type of pinball machine, the arrangement and number of obstacles and targets provided in the play field, and the mission (combination) vary. For this reason, scoring methods and rules differ depending on the model, so the same type of pinball machine had to be used when playing a match.

In addition, since the pinball machine is a game machine with a long history, the contents of the mission are complicated, and it is necessary to grasp the contents of the mission in advance in order to obtain a high score. Is high. For this reason, it has become a game machine that cannot be easily enjoyed by beginners.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a pinball machine that allows a plurality of players to play at the same time, and even a beginner can easily participate in the game. It is to provide.

The present invention relates to a pinball machine provided with a play field to which a ball launched by a plunger is supplied, communication means for communicating with other pinball machines, and accommodated inside the housing of the pinball machine. A ball supply mechanism that supplies the ball to the play field without being hit by the plunger , a battle setting unit that sets a battle between the other pinball machines that can communicate with the communication unit, and the battle setting Determination means for determining whether or not a preset play condition has been achieved during execution of the battle set by the means, and when the determination means determines that the play condition has been achieved, through the communication means Ball supply requesting means for requesting the supply of the ball to the other pinball machine, and the other through the communication means. When the supply of balls is requested from the pinball machine, a ball supply means for supplying the ball to the play field by the ball supply mechanism, based on the number of balls fallen from the playfield, said other pinball And determining means for determining whether or not a match with the machine is won or lost.

  According to the present invention, a communication means for communicating with another pinball machine, and a ball supply mechanism for supplying a ball from a position different from the plunger to the play field are provided, and any one of the pinballs When a preset play condition is achieved in the machine, a plurality of players can be connected to the pinball machine by allowing additional balls to be supplied in another pinball machine connected by communication. Can play at the same time.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is an external view showing a configuration of a pinball machine 1 in the present embodiment. A pinball machine 1 shown in FIG. 1 is provided with a main housing 10 supported by four leg members, and a sub-housing 12 provided at the rear end of the upper surface of the main housing 10 so as to face the player. It has been.

  An upper surface of the main housing 10 is provided with a play field 20 that is inclined so that the rear end side is high and the front end side (operation side by the player) is low (details are shown in FIG. 2).

  A coin door 21, a start button 22, a battle request button 23, and a plunger 24 are provided on the front surface of the main housing 10. The coin door 21 is provided with an insertion slot and a return slot for the player to insert coins as a play fee. The start button 22 is a button for instructing the start of a game after inserting coins, and the battle request button 23 is a button for instructing a battle request with another pinball machine 1. The plunger 24 is operated by the player during the execution of the game in order to hit the ball on the play field 20.

  Flipper buttons 25 that are operated to move the flippers provided in the play field 20 are provided on both side surfaces of the main housing 10. The flipper button 25 is provided in the vicinity of the upper portion on the front end side so that the player can easily operate it.

  On the other hand, the sub casing 12 is provided with a main display section 30, a sub display section 31, a speaker 32, and the like on the surface facing the player.

  The main display unit 30 and the sub display unit 31 are configured by using, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), an LED (Light Emitting Diode), a lamp, and the like. It is used for display according to the situation and display for notifying the player of the contents of the mission.

  The speaker 32 is used to output sound effects, BGM (back ground music), and messages to the player during the game.

  In the pinball machine 1 in the present embodiment, the ball can be supplied from the component hole 40 to the play field 20 in addition to supplying the ball by the plunger 24. The component hole 40 is used, for example, when supplying a ball in response to a request from an opponent during a battle with another pinball machine 1. The component hole 40 discharges the ball conveyed upward from the lower part to the play field 20 by an elevator 41 (elevator mechanism) mounted inside the main housing 10. An inner lane 42 communicates with a ball introduction port provided at the lower part of the elevator 41. The inner lane 42 connects the ball introduction port of the elevator 41 and an outhaul 44 (described later) provided in the lower part of the play field 20 and is attached so as to guide the ball that has entered the outhaul 44 to the ball introduction port. It has been.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the play field 20 of the pinball machine 1 according to the present embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 2, a plunger lane is provided on the right side of the play field 20, and a plunger 24 is provided on the lower end thereof. The plunger 24 can launch a ball discharged near the tip at a predetermined timing during the game in response to a user operation. The play field 20 includes lanes such as a top lane, a ramp, a return lane, and an out lane, as well as large and small bumpers, drop targets, sling shots, and the like.

  In addition, the play field 20 is provided with a kick-out hole 45 for temporarily holding the ball and an component hole 40 that can supply the ball to the play field 20 from a position different from the ball that has passed through the plunger lane. Yes. In the example of the play field 20 shown in FIG. 2, the ball can be supplied by an component hole 40 provided near the center of the left side.

  The ball supplied to the play field 20 is flipped up by the flipper. In response to the player's operation on the flipper button 25, the flipper moves upward so that one end thereof rebounds the ball.

  At the lower part of the play field 20, an outhole 44 is provided for collecting the balls that have not been flipped up by the flipper. The balls collected by the outhole 44 are distributed to the plunger 24 side or the inner lane 42 side. The balls distributed to the plunger 24 side are held immediately before reaching the plunger lane, and are discharged near the tip of the plunger 24 at a predetermined timing. The balls distributed to the inner lane 42 reach the elevator 41 through the inner lane 42.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining an installation situation of the pinball machine 1 (1-1, 1-2, 1-3).
The pinball machine 1 in the present embodiment can compete with other pinball machines 1 and is connected to each other via a communication cable 50 as shown in FIG. 3, for example. In FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, the communication cable 50 is used for connection, but it may be configured to be connected to each other by wireless communication.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control function provided in the pinball machine 1.
As shown in FIG. 4, a control unit 60 for controlling the entire pinball machine 1 is provided. The control unit 60 includes a main display unit 30, a sub display unit 31, a speaker 32, buttons 61 including a start button 22 and a battle request button 23, and obstacles (such as bumpers) provided in the play field 20 and the like. Sensors 62 including sensors for detecting contact of a ball with a target (such as a drop target) and passage of a lane, an elevator drive unit 63 for driving the elevator 41 shown in FIG. 1, and other pinball machines 1 And a communication interface 64 for connection via the communication cable 50 is connected.

  The control unit 60 is provided with a control unit 70, a display control unit 71, an audio control unit 72, an elevator control unit 73, and a communication control unit 74.

  The control unit 70 controls each unit to execute the pinball game, and is a functional unit realized by executing a program stored in the memory by the processor. The control unit 70 realizes the functions of the game control unit 70a, the battle setting unit 70b, the ball supply determination unit 70c, the ball supply request unit 70d, and the ball supply unit 70e by the pinball game program.

  The game control unit 70a controls the pinball game, and executes mission change, score calculation, and the like. When the battle setting unit 70b sets a battle with a different type of pinball machine 1 from the game model setting unit 70b, the game control unit 70a executes a game according to the number of other pinball machines that are opponents of the battle. To do. For example, in the case of a one-on-one battle, control is performed so as to execute a two-game continuous battle (medley battle). In addition, when a battle is performed using three different types of pinball machines 1, control is performed so that a three-game continuous battle is executed. In the case of playing with different types of pinball machines 1, the pinball machine 1 used by each player is changed every time one game is finished in order to eliminate differences such as differences in the play field 20. Therefore, for example, in the case of a battle with three different types of pinball machines 1, one player executes a battle with each of the three pinball machines 1. When executing a medley match, the game control unit 70a manages game results (win / loss, score, etc.) of each game as data for different players, and determines a winner after the medley match is over. .

  In addition, when a ball is supplied from the component hole 40 to the play field 20 during execution of the battle, the game control unit 70a changes the game content as before. For example, in a 1-ball play state, a battle mission is set to calculate a score for 1-ball play. In a multi-ball play state, a multi-ball mission is set to Score calculation is performed. In the score calculation for multi-ball play, for example, as the number of balls increases, the score obtained from the same obstacle or target is set to be lower than that during one-ball play.

  The battle setting unit 70 b sets a battle with another pinball machine 1 that is connected by the communication cable 50 via the communication interface 64 and capable of communication. The battle setting unit 70b sets a battle with another pinball machine 1 for a predetermined time when the battle execution button 23 instructs the player to perform the battle. In the present embodiment, a battle can be set not only between the same type of pinball machines 1 but also between different types of pinball machines 1.

  The ball supply determination unit 70c determines whether or not a preset play condition has been achieved during execution of the battle set by the battle setting unit 70b, that is, whether or not to additionally supply the ball to the opponent's pinball machine 1. judge. For example, when a predetermined battle mission is achieved or when a predetermined score is reached, it is determined that a preset play condition has been achieved.

  When the ball supply determining unit 70c determines that a preset play condition has been achieved during execution of the battle set by the battle setting unit 70b, the ball supply requesting unit 70d passes the communication control unit 74. The other pinball machine 1 set as the opponent is requested to supply the ball.

  The ball supply unit 70 e drives the elevator drive unit 63 by the elevator control unit 73 when a supply of a ball is requested from another pinball machine 1 as an opponent through the communication control unit 74. The elevator drive unit 63 moves the elevator 41 and supplies the ball from the component hole 40 to the play field 20.

  Note that the ball supply unit 70e may operate the elevator 41 to supply the ball in the same manner when a predetermined time has elapsed during the battle game under the control of the control unit 70. For example, in any of the pinball machines 1 that are competing, the ball is supplied when a certain period of time elapses when the play condition that can supply the ball to the opponent is not achieved. At this time, the ball may be supplied only to a specific pinball machine 1 among a plurality of pinball machines 1 in a battle. For example, the communication control unit 74 sends and receives the points acquired in each pinball machine 1 to supply the ball only to the pinball machine 1 with the highest score, or to supply the ball at random The ball machine 1 may be determined.

  The display control unit 71 controls display on the main display unit 30 and the sub display unit 31 under the control of the control unit 70.

The sound control unit 72 controls sound output from the speaker 32 under the control of the control unit 70.
The elevator control unit 73 drives the elevator drive unit 63 under the control of the control unit 70. The elevator drive unit 63 moves the elevator 41, carries the ball conveyed through the inner lane 42 upward, and discharges it from the component hole 40 to the play field 20.

  The communication control unit 74 controls communication with another pinball machine 1 connected via the communication cable 50 by the communication interface 64 under the control of the control unit 70. The communication control unit 74 controls communication for setting a battle, requesting ball supply to the opponent's pinball machine 1 during the battle, and the like.

Next, the operation of the pinball machine 1 in this embodiment will be described.
In the battle by the pinball machine 1 in the present embodiment, the ball is not simply dropped instead of competing for a high score by clearing a complicated mission (role) so that even a beginner can participate easily. To be collected by the hall 44). It is assumed that the game ends (spoils) in the pinball machine 1 when a prescribed number of balls fall into the outhole 44. It is determined that the player of the pinball machine 1 who has not dropped the ball to the end wins. In a medley match where a match between different types of pinball machines 1 is executed, the final winner is determined based on the game results of a plurality of games (for example, the number of game wins, the number of points earned, etc. are considered).

Hereinafter, the operation of the pinball game process by the pinball machine 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.
First, when a coin for play is inserted and the start button 22 is pressed, the control unit 70 determines that it is a normal pinball game execution request (step A1, No), and performs normal game processing. Execute. That is, a high score can be obtained by achieving various missions set in advance.

  On the other hand, when the battle request button 23 is pressed (step A1, Yes), the control unit 70 causes the battle setting unit 70b to perform battle setting. First, the battle setting unit 70 b transmits a battle request to another pinball machine 1 through the communication interface 64 by the communication control unit 74. As a result, when there is no other pinball machine 1 waiting for a battle request, the game is in a battle request waiting state from another pinball machine 1.

  The battle setting unit 70b waits for a certain period of time (for example, 20 seconds) until a battle request from another pinball machine 1 is received through the communication interface 64 and the communication control unit 74. If a match request is not received from another pinball machine 1 after a certain period of time (step A3, Yes), the control unit 70 starts a normal game process (step A2).

  On the other hand, when a battle request is received from another pinball machine 1 within a certain time (step A4, Yes), the battle setting unit 70b transmits the other pinball machine 1 that has transmitted this battle request. Set up a match against.

  At this time, when the battle setting unit 70b receives a battle request from a plurality of other pinball machines 1 within a certain period of time, the battle setting unit 70b sets a battle with the other pinball machine 1 that has requested each battle. For example, when a battle request is received from three pinball machines 1 within a certain time, a simultaneous battle by three pinball machines 1 is set.

  In addition, the battle setting unit 70b transmits / receives data for identifying the type of the pinball machine 1 to / from another pinball machine 1 that has received the battle request. As a result, when it is determined that a battle request is received from a different type of pinball machine 1, a medley battle according to the number of units is set.

  When a battle is set by the battle setting unit 70b, the game control unit 70a starts a battle pinball game. At this time, it is assumed that all the pinball machines 1 that compete are simultaneously started to compete. The controller 70 discharges the ball to the plunger lane so that it can be launched by the plunger 24. It is assumed that the ball must be launched into the play field 20 within a certain time (for example, within 3 seconds) after the ball is discharged during the battle.

  After the ball has been launched, if there is a lane passing through the scoring target of the play field 20, contact with an obstacle such as a bumper, or hitting a drop target, the game control unit 70a The determined points are added (steps A6 and A7).

  Here, the ball supply determination unit 70c determines whether or not a predetermined score set as a play condition capable of supplying the ball to the opponent has been reached. If the predetermined score has not been reached (step A8, No), the game is continued as it is.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the predetermined score has been reached by adding the score (Yes in Step A8), the ball supply request unit 70d receives another pinball set as an opponent through the communication control unit 74. The machine 1 is instructed to supply the ball (step A9). Here, when a plurality of opponents are set, it is assumed that the ball supply to each pinball machine 1 is instructed.

  In the flowchart shown in FIG. 5, only a case where a predetermined score is reached is shown for the other pinball machine 1 of the opponent, but when other preset play conditions are achieved. Similarly, it is possible to instruct the other pinball machines 1 to supply the balls. For example, the supply of the ball may be instructed when a specific mission set for the battle is achieved (or a normal mission may be used). It is assumed that the mission set for the battle has contents that can be easily grasped even by beginners.

  When the supply of the ball is instructed from the other pinball machine 1 by the communication control unit 74 during the battle (step A10, Yes), the ball supply unit 70e drives the elevator drive unit 63 by the elevator control unit 73. The elevator drive unit 63 operates the elevator 41 to supply a ball from the component hole 40 to the play field 20.

  Thereby, in addition to the ball supplied by the plunger 24, a multi-ball play state including the ball supplied from the component hole 40 is set. In the battle in the present embodiment, the game is lost when a predetermined number of balls fall into the outhaul 44. Therefore, the difficulty increases as the number of balls increases. In addition, although the number of scoring opportunities increases as the number of balls increases, the game control unit 70a sets a lower score, for example, when hitting the same bumper than when playing a single ball in a multi-ball play state. Therefore, the ball is not advantageous by increasing the number of balls.

  In the multi-ball state, when a score is added and a predetermined score is reached (or when a specific mission is achieved), additional balls can be supplied to the opponent's pinball machine 1 in the same manner as described above. Yes (steps A6, A7, A8).

  In this way, a plurality of pinball machines 1 that are competing against each other can be fed into each other and driven into an unfavorable situation. Opponents must not only drop a plurality of balls into the outhaul 44, but must score points or complete a mission, and can enjoy the fun of the battle.

  Since the number of balls has increased due to an instruction from the opponent, the game ends when a prescribed number of balls have fallen into the outhole 44 (step A12, Yes). In other words, you lose in the match. When the game is played by three or more pinball machines 1, the player of the pinball machine 1 who has not dropped a specified number of balls until the end wins.

  When a medley battle is being executed, the pinball game process of steps A5 to A12 is executed in the same manner after one game is over. This is executed in accordance with the number of pinball machines 1 that are competing (for example, three times in the case of a match with three pinball machines 1).

  Each player exchanges the pinball machine 1 to be used every time the game ends. As a result, each player battles with each of all different types of pinball machines 1, and the battle conditions are the same.

  The game control unit 70a stores the game results (win / loss, score, etc.) of each game as game results by different players. Then, when all the games are finished, the final winner is determined in consideration of each game result. For example, when the player with the largest number of winning games is the winner and there are a plurality of players with the largest number of winning games, the player with the highest score is determined as the winner.

  In this way, by performing a medley battle, it is possible to play against other pinball machines 1 having different specifications such as the configuration of the play field 20 under fair conditions.

  In this way, in the pinball machine 1 according to the present embodiment, a plurality of players can battle at the same time, instead of playing by alternating play with the same model. At this time, the game situation in which each player is playing, that is, when the preset play conditions are achieved, it is possible to influence the supply of the ball to the opponent, making the match with the pinball game more interesting Can be. In addition, it is not a battle by achieving a complicated mission, but a battle is performed according to simple and clear rules such that a specified number of balls are not dropped into the outhaul 44, so even beginners can easily enter the game. It becomes possible to participate.

  In the above description, the ball is supplied from the component hole 40 when a ball addition request is notified from another pinball machine that is an opponent. For example, in any pinball machine, If the prescribed play conditions cannot be achieved within a predetermined time, the difficulty level can be increased by adding a ball from the component hole 40, and the situation of the battle can be changed. At this time, the ball may be supplied to all the pinball machines in the battle, or the ball may be supplied only to a specific pinball machine determined by the score at that time. For example, it is possible to supply a ball to the play field 20 only to a pinball machine that has obtained the highest score, or to supply a ball to a randomly selected pinball machine. Thereby, a change can be given to the game content in battle | competition.

  In the above description, the ball is supplied from the component hole 40 when a battle is executed between the plurality of pinball machines 1, but the play condition is determined in advance even during normal operation. In this case, it is also possible to supply an additional ball from the component hole 40 instead of from the plunger 24. Thus, in the conventional pinball machine, multiball play cannot be performed unless the ball is held in the kickout hole 45. However, in the pinball machine 1 in the present embodiment, the ball is held in the kickout hole 45. Multi-ball play is possible not only by the case but also by supply from the component hole 40. For example, when a predetermined prescribed mission is achieved or a prescribed score is reached, by adding a ball from the component hole 40 to the play field 20 to execute multiball play, It becomes possible to improve the property.

  Further, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments as they are, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. In addition, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of components disclosed in the embodiment. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment. Furthermore, constituent elements over different embodiments may be appropriately combined.

The external view which shows the structure of the pinball machine 1 in this embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the play field 20 of the pinball machine 1 in this embodiment. The figure explaining the installation condition of the pinball machine 1 (1-1, 1-2, 1-3). FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of control functions provided in the pinball machine 1. The flowchart for demonstrating operation | movement of the pinball game process by the pinball machine.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 (1-1, 1-2, 1-3) ... Pinball machine, 10 ... Main housing | casing, 12 ... Sub housing | casing, 20 ... Play field, 21 ... Coin door, 22 ... Start button, 23 ... Battle request button , 24 ... Plunger, 30 ... Main display section, 31 ... Sub display section, 32 ... Speaker, 40 ... Component hall, 41 ... Elevator, 42 ... Inner lane, 44 ... Outhaul, 45 ... Kickout hall, 50 ... Communication cable , 60 ... control unit, 61 ... buttons, 62 ... sensors, 63 ... elevator drive unit, 64 ... communication interface, 70 ... control unit, 70a ... game control unit, 70b ... match setting unit, 70c ... ball supply determination unit 70d ... Ball supply request unit, 70e ... Ball supply unit, 71 ... Display control unit, 72 ... Audio control unit, 73 ... Elevator control unit, 4 ... communication control unit.

Claims (6)

In a pinball machine provided with a play field to which a ball launched by a plunger is supplied,
Communication means for communicating with other pinball machines;
A ball supply mechanism for supplying a ball housed in the housing of the pinball machine to the play field without being hit by the plunger;
Match setting means for setting a match with the other pinball machine capable of communicating by the communication means;
Determining means for determining whether or not a preset play condition has been achieved during execution of the battle set by the battle setting means;
A ball supply requesting means for requesting supply of the ball to the other pinball machine through the communication means when it is determined by the determination means that the play condition has been achieved;
Ball supply means for supplying a ball to the play field by the ball supply mechanism when supply of a ball is requested from the other pinball machine through the communication means ;
A pinball machine comprising: determining means for determining a win / loss of a match with the other pinball machine based on the number of balls dropped from the play field .   The pinball machine according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines that the play condition has been achieved when a predetermined combination is achieved or a predetermined score is reached.   The pinball machine according to claim 1, wherein the ball supply means causes the ball supply mechanism to supply a ball when a predetermined time has elapsed.   The ball supply means causes the ball supply mechanism to supply a ball when a predetermined condition is satisfied, in addition to a request for supply of the ball from the other pinball machine. The pinball machine according to 1. Game control means for executing a game according to the number of the other pinball machines to be opponents of the battle set by the battle setting means;
Game result storage means for storing a game result of each game executed by the game control means;
2. The pinball machine according to claim 1, further comprising match result determination means for determining a match result based on a game result of each game stored by the game result storage means.   2. The pinball machine according to claim 1, further comprising game control means for changing a game content when a ball is supplied from the ball supply mechanism to the play field.

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