JP2000322591A - Virtual viewpoint control device, controller and game device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Problem] To realize appropriate camera movement according to a game scene. A virtual viewpoint control device according to the present invention provides a virtual viewpoint control device according to a distance between a specific object (31, 29, 30, 35) located in a visual field of a virtual viewpoint (28) and a virtual viewpoint (28). The moving speed of the viewpoint (28) is controlled. The specific object refers to an object that is determined in advance as an object that affects the moving speed control of the virtual viewpoint (28) from various objects arranged in the virtual three-dimensional space.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a technique for controlling a virtual viewpoint set in a virtual three-dimensional space, and more particularly to a technique for controlling a moving speed of a virtual viewpoint in accordance with a situation in the virtual three-dimensional space. . In addition, the present invention relates to a game controller suitable for an arcade game device, and more particularly, to a controller having a fire hose type appearance.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, a shooting game is known as a home or amusement game. The shooting game is a game in which a player (player) places a cursor on an enemy character (enemy character) as an attack target, shoots a bullet by operating a button on a control pad, etc., and competes for a score by attacking the enemy character. . In a normal shooting game, the enemy character moves around the screen, back and forth, left and right,
Attack on the player character. In addition, the enemy character that once disappears from the screen appears again on the screen and attacks. The player can freely control the player character by operating the control pad,
The battle with the enemy character is developed in the virtual three-dimensional space.

In a conventional shooting game,
The moving path of the virtual viewpoint representing the viewpoint of the player, and
The position and number of enemy characters that appear in each game scene,
Since the action pattern, game story, and the like are set in the game program in advance, for example, when forcibly shifting to the next game stage due to occurrence of a specific event during the game, defeat all the enemy characters in the screen. It is possible to move to the next stage even without it. Also,
Even if the enemy character is not destroyed by the attack by the player, it can be erased from the screen for the convenience of the game program (for example, forcibly moving the virtual viewpoint or shifting to the next stage).

[0004]

Under such a background,
The inventor invented a "fire fighting game" with a hint from a shooting game. This firefighting game is a game in which a player controls a player character imitating a firefighter and extinguishes a flame while moving in a building where a fire has occurred. In this case, the "fire hose" held by the player character is a "gun" in the shooting game.
, And “flame” corresponds to “enemy character”.
Therefore, the present fire fighting game has similarities to the shooting game, and can use the algorithm of the shooting game.

However, for the virtual viewpoint control (camera control) in the fire fighting game, the virtual viewpoint control in the conventional shooting game cannot be used as it is. Because the target of the fire in the firefighting game is “flame”, the fire spreads gradually with the lapse of time, but does not move about as quickly as the enemy character in the shooting game. Therefore, the flame displayed on the game scene continues to spread unless it is extinguished. Normally, in the virtual viewpoint control of a shooting game, the virtual viewpoint moves on a predetermined path (moving route) at a predetermined moving speed, so that the virtual viewpoint is controlled in consideration of the number and position of the enemy characters. Controlling the viewpoint was not considered. Therefore,
If this viewpoint control is applied to the virtual viewpoint control in the present fire fighting game, for example, inconveniences such as that the flame cannot be advanced to the next stage unless all the flames displayed on the screen are extinguished occur. In such a state, a beginner will remain on the same game screen forever, and the progress of the game will be extremely slow. The player is mentally stressed, and further, the interest in the game, the sense of presence, and the like are lost. On the other hand, the game program creator has requested that some of the “flames” appearing in the game scene be set to “flames” that cannot be shifted to the next stage without extinguishing the fire.
It is unnatural to inadvertently move the camera despite the presence of a large “flame” at hand.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above problems, it is a first object of the present invention to provide a virtual viewpoint control device which realizes appropriate camera movement according to a game scene.

[0007] With the diversification of video game software, the controllers connected to the controllers are changed from conventional controllers having instruction buttons and cross keys to joystick controllers and gun controllers. Various types are commercially available corresponding to game software. For example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 2686675 discloses a gun-type controller that models a handgun for use in a gun game.

However, in the firefighting game, a controller suitable for such a game, especially a controller having a fire hose shape has not yet been proposed.

Accordingly, a second object of the present invention is to provide a controller suitable for a fire fighting game.

Further, in the conventional shooting game, the player 2 can newly participate in the battle even while the player 1 is playing. In this case, since the game proceeds independently for player 1 and player 2, for example,
When only the player 1 receives damage exceeding a predetermined allowable amount, only the player 1 is over the game, and the player 2 can still proceed with the game. However, in the firefighting game, since "flame" does not attack the player character, if the player 1 and the player 2 simultaneously advance the game, only the player 1 will be over. That is unnatural.

Therefore, a third object of the present invention is to provide a game apparatus configured such that when a plurality of players execute a game, the game end time is the same for each player. .

[0012]

According to the present invention, there is provided a virtual viewpoint control apparatus for solving the above-mentioned first problem, wherein a virtual viewpoint is controlled in accordance with a distance between a virtual object and a specific object located in a visual field of the virtual viewpoint. Virtual viewpoint moving speed control means for controlling the moving speed is provided.

Here, the virtual viewpoint refers to a viewpoint virtually set in a virtual three-dimensional space, and has the same meaning as a viewpoint viewed from a so-called virtual camera. A virtual camera refers to a camera in which the viewpoint and angle of view when drawing computer graphics are compared to a camera. In a real camera, a principal point, which is an optical center point, corresponds to a virtual viewpoint. The setting of the virtual camera is performed by designating the position, the optical axis direction (the direction of the lens), the angle of view (zoom to wide), the twist (the rotation angle around the optical axis), and the like. A virtual camera is understood as virtual view direction determining means for determining the view direction of an image displayed on a display. An object that has been model-transformed from a body coordinate system, which is a coordinate system unique to the object, to a world coordinate system that defines the arrangement of objects in a three-dimensional space is viewed in a view coordinate system determined by (the position and angle of) the virtual camera. It is converted and displayed on the screen.

The specific object refers to an object that is determined in advance as an object that affects the moving speed control of the virtual viewpoint from among various objects arranged in the virtual three-dimensional space. For example, in the firefighting game, “flame” set in the virtual three-dimensional space corresponds to the “flame”.

The virtual viewpoint control technique of the present invention can also be realized by a computer-readable information recording medium in which a program for causing a computer to function as the virtual viewpoint control apparatus of the present invention is recorded. That is, in this specification, "... unit" and "... means" are concepts realized in virtual viewpoint control, and do not always correspond one-to-one to specific hardware or software routines. The same hardware element may realize a plurality of "... units" and "... means", or may realize one "... unit" and "... means" in relation to a plurality of hardware elements. .

Here, the information recording medium is a medium in which information, mainly digital data, programs, and the like are recorded by some physical means, and enables a computer, a dedicated processor, and the like to realize desired functions. What can be done. Therefore, any device may be used as long as it can be downloaded to the computer by some means to realize a desired function. For example, floppy disk (FD), hard disk (HD), CD-ROM, CD-R, DVD-RO
M, DVD-RAM, DVD-R, PD disk, MD
Includes disks, MO disks, etc. Also, the case where data is transferred from a host computer via a wired or wireless communication line (public line, data line, satellite line, etc.) is included. For example, a case where data is transferred from a database of a server via the Internet is included.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a controller comprising: a main body; a holding portion rotatable with respect to the main body;
A signal processing unit that transmits a control signal for changing a form of a specific image displayed on the screen in response to the rotation of the grip unit to the image processing apparatus. It is preferable that the main body (housing) of the controller is formed of a rod-shaped member or a cylindrical member.

Preferably, such a controller is in the form of a fire hose. Further, in order to reproduce a state in which water is jetted from the fire hose, it is preferable to further include a vibration generating mechanism that vibrates in response to the rotation of the grip portion. As an example of the vibration generating mechanism, for example, a rotating mechanism having an eccentric cam is suitable. In addition, the form of the object expressing “water” virtually jetted from the fire hose in the virtual space can be changed in accordance with the rotation of the grip. Note that the vibration generating mechanism may be configured to vibrate the controller in accordance with a state of an image indicating a state in which water is being jetted.

A game device according to the present invention for solving the third problem is a game device which measures a play time from the start of the game and ends the game when a predetermined play time has elapsed. Every time another player participates in the game while playing the game, a predetermined time is added to the play time, and when the added time has elapsed, the games of all the players who are executing the game are simultaneously ended. It is characterized by.

With such a configuration, even if another player participates in the game while a certain player is executing the game, the game can be ended for all players at the same time.

In particular, it is preferable that the length of the predetermined time is set corresponding to the remaining time of the play time. For example, if another player participates in the game when the remaining play time is long (shortly after starting the game), the additional play time is set longer, and the remaining play time is set longer. If another player participates in a short time (when a considerable time has elapsed since the game started)
Shorten the added play time. With such a configuration, there is also an effect that the play time can be extended just before the end of the game and the play time can be prevented from being unnecessarily extended.

[0022]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIGS. 1 to 3 show the appearance of the game apparatus. FIG. 1A is a front view, FIG. 1B is a rear view, FIG. 2 is a right side view, FIG. FIG. 3B is a rear view. Since the left side view is symmetrical to the right side view, it is omitted.

The game apparatus 1 is configured for amusement, and has a large monitor 50 on the front. A fire hose-type controller 2 is connected to the game apparatus 1. The player operates the controller 2 to extinguish a virtual “flame” (object) displayed on the monitor 50. Around the monitor 50, a total of ten light emitting elements 52a to 52j are arranged. As will be described later, a light receiving element is attached to the tip side (nozzle side) of the controller 2, and the game apparatus 1 calculates the position, angle, and the like of the controller from the amount of light received from each of the light emitting elements 52a to 52j. A cursor is displayed on the monitor 50. This cursor indicates a fire extinguishing position on the screen, and water is jetted to the cursor position by operation of the controller 2. An operation panel 5 on which a start button and the like are arranged is attached to the front side of the game apparatus 1. The game device 1 can enjoy simultaneous play by two players. The entry into the game by the player 2 can also be made during the play of the player 1.

FIG. 4 shows the appearance of the controller 2. The controller 2 mainly includes an outer cylinder 3, a gripper 4, a nozzle 5, and a hose 6. The outer cylinder 3 is processed by aluminum die-casting and has the same appearance and texture as a real fire hose. The hose 6 is made of a flexible material, and the other end is connected to the game device 1. The player has a gripping part 4 and a part slightly rearward (hose side) from the center of the outer cylinder 3, and controls a cursor displayed on the screen by pointing the nozzle 5 to the monitor 50. A light receiving element 9 is attached to the tip side of the nozzle 5, and each light emitting element 52a
Irradiation light from .about.52j is received. A switch 7 is attached to a substantially central portion of the outer cylinder 3, and the player controls the timing of jetting water virtually jetted from the nozzle 5 by pressing the switch 7. Further, the gripper 4 is rotatably attached to the outer cylinder 3, and is a “switch” for switching the form of water virtually jetted from the nozzle 5 (for example, water column jet and mist jet). Take the role of.

FIG. 10 shows an example of a game screen displayed on the monitor 50. For example, FIG.
7, a timer 38, a flame 39 and the like are displayed. As described above, the cursor 37 indicates the fire extinguishing position, and the timer 38 indicates the remaining time of the game. Numeral 39 is a flame burning around the room, and it is assumed that the player intends to extinguish the flame 39 now. In order to extinguish the flame 39 by water columnar injection, the water 40 is injected in a columnar shape at the position of the cursor 37 by pressing the switch 7 (FIG. 4B). On the other hand, when it is desired to extinguish the flame 39 by mist spraying, the mist-like water 41 is sprayed by turning the gripping part 4 and turning on the water spraying mode switch (see FIG. C)). As described above, according to the controller 2 of the present embodiment, it is possible to arbitrarily control the water injection timing, the water injection shape, and the like.

Further, as shown in FIG.
An eccentric cam 8 is mounted substantially inside the center of the outer cylinder 3. Although water is virtually injected from the controller 2 when the switch 7 is pressed, the eccentric cam 8 is provided substantially in the center of the outer cylinder 3 in order to more realistically reproduce the situation where water is being injected from the hose. By driving the eccentric cam 8 at the same time as the mounting and pressing of the switch 7, vibration occurs in the controller 2, and a feeling as if water is being sprayed can be obtained. However, as long as the device has a mechanism for generating vibration, not only the eccentric cam but also various vibrators can be applied.

FIG. 5 shows a block diagram of the game apparatus 1. As shown in FIG.
In the present game device, two CPUs are provided to perform high-speed rendering processing on a model generated by a large number of polygons and to move the model at high speed. As shown in FIG. 1, the CPU 10 and the CPU 11 are connected to the bus bridge 12 and the bus bridge 13 via the CPU bus 42 and the CPU bus 43, respectively, and perform image processing in computer graphics, for example, modeling into the world coordinate system. Conversion, view conversion to virtual viewpoint,
It performs three-dimensional clipping processing, hidden line processing, texture mapping processing, shading processing, display priority processing, and the like at high speed.

The CPU buses 42 and 43 have RAMs respectively.
14 and 15 are connected. The bus bridge 12 and the bus bridge 13 are connected to a PCI (Peripheral Component Inter
connect) bus (or AGP (Accelerated Graphics I)
cascade via a bus 46). The bus bridge 12 is connected to an expansion RAM 16 for expanding the functions of the game device. The video processing unit 17 is connected to the bus bridges 12 and 13 via the PCI buses (or AGP buses) 44 and 45, performs polygon rendering processing and the like, and outputs the data to the D / A converter 18. A game screen is displayed on the monitor 50 based on the video signal from the D / A converter 18.

The one-way bus buffer 19 is a bus bridge 1
3, an address decoder 21, an address decoder 21, a ROM board 22, an I / O unit 23, and a communication board 2.
4 and the sound board 25. The address decoder 21 supplies a device selection signal to the ROM board 22, the I / O unit 23, the communication board 24, and the sound board 25 according to the supplied address signal. The bidirectional bus buffer 20 is a part of a PCI bus (or AGP bus) 45 (AD (address data) bus, CBE (command bi
t enable) connected to the bus bridge 13 by bus)
Data signals are transmitted and received among the address decoder 21, the ROM board 22, the I / O unit 23, the communication board 24, and the sound board 25.

The bus bridges 12, 13 are respectively CP
The address signals supplied from U10 and U11 are converted according to a predetermined rule, so that the boot program in ROM board 22 can be executed. In addition, a game program, polygon data, and the like are stored in the ROM board 22 in advance. To secure the storage area in the ROM board 22, the boot program can be stored in a dedicated boot ROM.

The I / O unit 23 receives an operation signal from the controller 2 and supplies an externally input interrupt signal to the CPUs 10 and 11. The CPUs 10 and 11 execute the game program based on the operation signal. Communication board 24
Is configured to be connectable to the host computer 26, and can play a communication game with a plurality of game devices, for example. The sound board 25 is connected to the speaker 27,
It outputs various sound signals such as game sound effects and BGM sounds.

In this game device, in order to execute image processing by computer graphics at high speed,
A plurality of (three or more) CPUs can be connected in cascade via a bus bridge. With such a configuration, image processing of flame, smoke, water column, water fog, and the like, which was difficult to express with the processing capability of a conventional computer, can be expressed with higher definition.

Next, the virtual viewpoint control technique of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The figure shows a state in which the virtual viewpoint 28 advances along a path (virtual viewpoint moving path) 36 predetermined by the game program. Pass 3
In the vicinity of 6, flames 29, 30,... Of various sizes are set at predetermined positions. Among the flames set in the virtual three-dimensional space, the flame that cannot proceed to the next unless the player extinguishes the fire is particularly referred to as “target”. The targets are 29, 30, 31, 32 and 35 in the flame shown in FIG.
Since the flames 33 and 34 are relatively small flames, they do not become targets. The positions of these flames, the speed of the spread of the fire, and whether or not the flame is a target are set in advance by the game program. The target flame is a virtual viewpoint 28
It is used for the parameter calculation which affects the moving speed control of the vehicle.

However, the virtual viewpoint 28 is programmed so that the moving speed changes according to a predetermined pattern in accordance with the shape of the path 36 and the game scene regardless of the presence or absence of the target. For example, in a path on a straight line, the virtual viewpoint 28
Is large, the maximum value of the moving speed of the virtual viewpoint 28 is small on or near the curve, and so on. Points A, B, C shown in FIG.
Points D, E, and F represent speed change points virtually set on the path 36. FIG. 7 shows sections AB, BC,
, Etc., the maximum value (m
axspd). in this way,
In the present invention, the virtual viewpoint 28 is changed according to the shape of the path.
In addition to controlling the moving speed of the virtual viewpoint 28, the moving speed of the virtual viewpoint 28 is controlled by using the above-mentioned target for the parameter calculation of the moving speed of the virtual viewpoint 28.

The control of the moving speed of the virtual viewpoint 28 according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG. A series of steps shown in the figure are executed for each frame (for example, every 1/60 second). First, a camera matrix is set (step S1). As shown in FIG. 6, the setting of the camera matrix includes conversion from the body coordinate system of the object in the virtual three-dimensional space to the world coordinate system (scaling, rotation, translation, etc. on the body coordinate system), and the world coordinate system. From the viewpoint coordinate system (translation of the origin of the world coordinate system to the virtual viewpoint, rotation of the Z axis, etc.), hidden line processing of objects, clipping processing, and the like. The dashed line shown in the figure is the angle of view (viewing angle)
represents the visual field of the virtual viewpoint 28 set to θ.
The angle of view angle θ is set as appropriate according to the zoom to wideness of the screen.

Next, targets existing in the visual field are obtained and sorted in order of distance from the virtual viewpoint 28 (step S2). This step will be described with reference to FIG. 6. In the visual field of the virtual viewpoint 28, targets 29, 30, 3
Although 1 and 35 exist, the target 32 does not exist in the visual field area, and thus is not a processing target in this step. The distances L ₁ , L ₂ , L ₃ and L ₄ from the virtual viewpoint 28 are determined for the targets 29, 30, 31 and 35. Since L is _{3 ≦ L 1 ≦ L 2 ≦} L 4, they are sorted in order of the target 31,29,30 and 35.

Next, it is determined whether or not the number of targets existing in the visual field is equal to or greater than a predetermined number (step S3). If there is more than the specified number, $ Len / N is substituted for the parameter AveLen (step S4). The parameter AveLen is an average value of the distance between each target and the virtual viewpoint 28 sorted by the designated number in ascending order of the distance from the virtual viewpoint 28. Len represents the distance between the virtual viewpoint 28 and each target, and N represents the designated number. ΣLen is the total value of N Len values. In the case of this example, assuming that the designated number is 3, ΣLen / N = (L ₃ + L ₁ + L ₂ ) / 3. On the other hand, if the number of targets is less than the specified number N, MinLen is substituted for the parameter AveLen (step S8). MinLen is the minimum distance between the target existing in the virtual viewpoint 28 and the viewing area, in this example, the value of L ₃ corresponds.

Next, a parameter rat indicating how far the maximum distance and the average distance from the virtual viewpoint 28 are from the specified number of targets existing in the visual field is calculated (step S5). The parameter rat is obtained by calculating the value of (MaxLen-AveLen) / MaxLen and substituting this value. Ma
xLen is the maximum distance from the virtual viewpoint 28, in this example, the value of _{L 2} corresponds.

Next, the moving speed camsp of the virtual viewpoint 28
d is obtained (step S6). The moving speed Camspd _n of the virtual viewpoint 28 at time _{n, camspd n-1 - (} maxspd / rat-cam
spd _n-1 ) SPDCHG It is obtained by substituting the value of RATE. Where maxspd
Is the maximum value of the moving speed of the virtual viewpoint 28 set for each predetermined section on the path 36 as described above. SPDC
HG RATE is a constant and represents the rate of change of the moving speed. As the value of this parameter, for example, 0.02
63 is set. Virtual viewpoint 2 by each of the above steps
8 is obtained, and then the screen is displayed (step S).
7).

As described above, according to the present invention, the moving speed of the virtual viewpoint is adjusted in real time in consideration of the position (or distance), number, and the like of the target “flame”, and the “flame” that does not become the target is set. Does not affect the moving speed of the virtual viewpoint, natural camera movement can be realized, and a state in which the game progresses unnecessarily slow can be avoided. Furthermore, it is possible to avoid the monotony of the game that occurs when the moving speed of the virtual viewpoint is fixed in advance, and the unnaturalness of moving forward despite the presence of “flame” at hand.

In the present invention, a value obtained by multiplying the distance between the virtual viewpoint and the target by a weight coefficient previously assigned to the target can be used in the calculation of the parameter AveLen. For example, utilizing the movement speed control of the virtual viewpoint by substituting the value of _{(Len 1 C 1 + Len 2} C 2 + ... Len N C N) / N to the parameters AveLen. Len _j is the distance between the j-th target and the virtual viewpoint when the distance from the virtual viewpoint is shorter, and C _j is the weighting factor assigned to the target. By setting a small value of the weighting factor for a “flame” that must be extinguished in the game (for example, a large flame or a flame near the exit), such a “flame”
In the vicinity of, the moving speed of the virtual viewpoint becomes slow, so that appropriate camera movement can be realized.

Further, in this firefighting game, a plurality of players can play at the same time. In this firefighting game, unlike a shooting game, the game does not end when the player receives damage. Therefore, a play time (for example, 5 minutes) is set in advance, and the game is automatically over after the play time has elapsed. here,
With reference to the flowchart of FIG. 9, a game ending procedure when two players execute the game will be described. When the power of the game device is turned “on”, the game device enters an input waiting state (step T1). Player 1
When a game is entered by operating a button on the operation panel 5 (step T2: YES), a timer is activated and a play time is measured (step T3). When the player 2 enters the game during the play of the player 1 (step T4: YES), a predetermined time is added to the play time (step T5). The predetermined time may be a predetermined length of time, but may be set in accordance with the remaining play time as described above. And
After the lapse of the added play time (step T6: YE
S), the game execution of player 1 and player 2 ends simultaneously. On the other hand, when the player 2 does not enter the game during the play of the player 1 (step T4: N
O), after the play time has elapsed (step T8: YES),
The game for player 1 is ended (step T9). By adopting such a game ending procedure, the game ending time is set for a plurality of players at the same time even if another player enters the game while one player is playing the game. be able to.

In the above description, the case where the game of two players is ended at the same time has been described. However, the number of players is not limited to two, and the present invention can be applied to the number of players who can play simultaneously. .

[0044]

According to the virtual viewpoint control apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to appropriately control the viewpoint movement in accordance with the distance between a specific object located in the virtual three-dimensional space and the virtual viewpoint.

According to the controller of the present invention, a controller suitable for a fire fighting game can be provided.

According to the game device of the present invention, for a game device in which a game is over due to a time limit, even if a certain player is executing a game and another player enters the game, the game is ended for all players at the same time. Can be done.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view and a rear view of a game device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the game device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan view and a back view of the game device of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an external view of a controller according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a game device of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of virtual viewpoint control according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a table in which the maximum value of the moving speed of the virtual viewpoint is registered for each predetermined section on the path of the virtual viewpoint.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of virtual viewpoint control according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart for defining the end of the game according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of a fire fighting game screen.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Game apparatus, 2 ... Controller, 3 ... Outer cylinder, 4 ... Grip part, 5 ... Nozzle, 6 ... Hose, 7 ... Switch, 8 ... Eccentric cam, 28 ... Virtual viewpoint, 36 ... Pass

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Taishi Yasuda 1-2-2 Haneda, Ota-ku, Tokyo F-term in SEGA Enterprises Co., Ltd. (Reference) 2C001 AA00 AA14 AA16 AA17 BB00 BB04 BB07 BC00 BC03 BC05 BC10 BD00 BD07 CA00 CA04 5B050 AA10 BA08 EA24 EA27 EA28 FA02 FA09 FA10 9A001 BB04 DD11 HH26 HH34 JJ76 KK60 KK62

Claims (13)

[Claims] An apparatus for displaying, on a screen, a state of a field of view captured from a virtual viewpoint moving in a virtual three-dimensional space, wherein a distance between a specific object located in a visual field of the virtual viewpoint and the virtual viewpoint A virtual viewpoint control device comprising control means for controlling a moving speed of the virtual viewpoint in accordance with the following. 2. The virtual viewpoint control device according to claim 1, wherein the specific object is located substantially fixed at a predetermined coordinate in the virtual three-dimensional space. 3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the control unit calculates a change rate of a moving speed of the virtual viewpoint based on an average value of distances between the plurality of objects existing in the visual field and the virtual viewpoint. The virtual viewpoint control device according to claim 1 or 2. 4. The virtual viewpoint control device according to claim 1, wherein the virtual viewpoint moves on a predetermined route. 5. The virtual viewpoint control device according to claim 1, wherein the specific object is an object expressing a virtual “flame”. 6. An image processing apparatus, comprising: a main body; a grip portion rotatable with respect to the main body; and a control signal for changing a form of a specific image displayed on a screen in response to the rotation of the grip portion. And a signal processing unit for transmitting to the controller. 7. The controller according to claim 6, further comprising a vibration generating mechanism that vibrates in response to the rotation of the grip. 8. The controller according to claim 7, wherein said vibration generating mechanism is a rotating mechanism having an eccentric cam. 9. The controller according to claim 6, wherein the controller has a shape of a fire hose. 10. The controller according to claim 9, wherein the specific image is an object expressing “water” virtually jetted from a fire hose. 11. A game apparatus for measuring a play time from the start of a game and terminating the game when a predetermined play time has elapsed, wherein a player is playing a game while another player is playing the game. Each time the player participates in the game, a predetermined time is added to the play time, and the game of all the players who are executing the game is ended simultaneously when the added time elapses. 12. The system according to claim 11, wherein the predetermined time is set in accordance with a remaining time of the play time.
A game device according to claim 1. 13. A computer-readable information recording medium in which a program for causing an image processing device to function as the virtual viewpoint control device according to claim 1 is recorded.