WO2023033714A1

WO2023033714A1 - Method for substituting text messages in electronic games

Info

Publication number: WO2023033714A1
Application number: PCT/SG2022/050357
Authority: WO
Inventors: Lusha FENG
Original assignee: Garena Online Pte Ltd
Current assignee: Garena Online Pte Ltd
Priority date: 2021-08-30
Filing date: 2022-05-27
Publication date: 2023-03-09
Anticipated expiration: 2024-02-29
Also published as: TW202308740A

Abstract

A method for displaying text messages in electronic games is disclosed. The method comprises receiving, at a server, an input message provided by a first user using a first client device, and determining whether the input message contains a profane word or phrase. In response to determining that the input message contains the profane word or phrase, the method disregards the input message and substitutes the input message with a positive phrase, wherein the positive phrase is randomly selected from a list of positive phrases stored in the server. And displaying the positive phrase as the text message provided by the first user. The method further comprises, in response to determining that the input message does not contain any profane word or phrase, displaying the input message as the text message provided by the first user.

Description

METHOD FOR SUBSTITUTING TEXT MESSAGES IN ELECTRONIC GAMES

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The invention pertains to text messages in electronic games, and in particular, substituting a text message in online games.

BACKGROUND

[0002] Many online games include an in-game chat system to facilitate communication between users during a gaming session. The in-game chat system makes the game experience more enjoyable for users by enabling users to chat about almost anything they like, such as planning strategies or just chatting about their day. An in-game chat system may be text- or voice-based. Most text-based in-game chat systems deploy a profanity filter to censor profane words or phrases to prevent users from ruining the game experience with offensive language and protect users from toxic behaviour. Typically, the profanity filter functions by identifying all the profane words or phrases within a text message, and modifying each profane word or phrase by partially or completely replacing the identified profane words or phrases with one or more non-alphabetical characters such as special characters (e.g., dollar sign), symbols (e.g., asterisk sign), shapes (e.g., heart shape), or the like, to conceal the corresponding profane words or phrases.

[0003] However, the use of non-alphabetical characters to conceal profane words or phrases is more likely to accentuate the toxic behaviour. For example, the use of one or more non- alphabetical characters to modify an offensive text message (containing mostly words or alphabetic characters) creates a visual contrast that may draw the users’ attention to the fact that a profane word or phrase has been used. This may still offend or annoy some users (e.g., users with low tolerance for toxic behaviour), thus leading to a bad game experience. Hence, conventional profanity filters do not effectively protect users from the negative impact of toxic behavior on in-game text chat systems.

[0004] What is thus required is a novel profanity filter for in-game text chat systems which addresses the above problems by identifying a text message containing a profane word or phrase, and substituting the identified text message with a positive word or phrase, thus more effectively negating the effects of offensive messages. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background of the disclosure.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

[0005] According to a first aspect of the present invention, a method for displaying text messages during playing of an online game is described, the method comprising displaying a user interface for the online game on a first client device and on at least one other client device, the user interface including a window portion, the window portion having an active text-based communication area that displays text messages provided by a plurality of users currently active in the online game, wherein the first client device is associated with a first user of the plurality of users and the at least one other client device is associated with a second user of the plurality of users. The method further comprises receiving, at a server, an input message provided by the first user using the first client device, and determining whether the input message contains a profane word or phrase. The method further comprises, in response to determining that the input message contains the profane word or phrase, disregarding the input message and substituting the entire input message with a positive phrase, wherein the positive phrase is randomly selected from a list of positive phrases stored in the server. And displaying the positive phrase as the text message provided by the first user in the window portion of the user interface on the first client device and the at least one other client device. The method further comprises, in response to determining that the input message does not contain any profane word or phrase, displaying the input message as the text message provided by the first user in the window portion of the user interface on the first client device and the at least one other client device.

[0006] Preferably, the input message comprises a plurality of sentences.

[0007] Preferably, the input message comprises a plurality of non-profane words or phrases.

[0008] Preferably, the step of determining whether the input message contains a profane word or phrase comprises parsing the input message to identify a profanity that matches a profanity in a list of profanities stored in the server.

[0009] Preferably, the parsing terminates at a first instance of identifying a profanity in the input message. [0010] Preferably, the parsing terminates prior to the end of the input message.

[0011] According to a second aspect, the present invention provides a system comprising one or more computers and one or more storage devices storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed by the one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform any of the above-described methods. The same applies to one or more non-transitory computer storage media storing instructions that, when executed by one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform any of the above-described methods. The method can thus be easily transferred to other systems and carried out there.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] The accompanying figures, where like reference numerals refer to identical or functionally similar elements throughout the separate views and which together with the detailed description below are incorporated in and form part of the specification, serve to illustrate various embodiments, by way of example only, and to explain various principles and advantages in accordance with a present embodiment.

[0013] Figure 1 shows a simplified block diagram of a system for delivering text messages in a messaging system, in accordance with certain embodiments.

[0014] Figures 2a - 2b and 3a - 3b show examples of text messages displayed in a messaging system, in accordance with certain embodiments.

[0015] Figure 4 shows a flowchart of a method for delivering and displaying text messages in a messaging system, in accordance with certain embodiments.

[0016] Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been depicted to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the block diagrams or steps in the flowcharts may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help improve understanding of the present embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the invention or the application and uses of the invention. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any theory presented in the preceding background of the invention or the following detailed description.

[0018] It is the intent of certain embodiments to teach a method for displaying text messages during the playing of an online game, the method comprising the step of displaying a user interface for the online game on a client device and on at least one other client device, the user interface including a window portion having an active text-based communication area that displays text messages associated with a plurality of users currently active in the online game. The client device is associated with a first user of the plurality of users and the at least one other client device is associated with a second user of the plurality of users. The method further comprises the step of receiving, at a server, an input message provided by the first user using the first client device, and determining whether the input message contains a profane word or phrase. And in response to determining that the input message contains the profane word or phrase, disregarding the input message and substituting the input message with a positive phrase that is randomly selected from a list of positive phrases stored in the server. The positive phrase is displayed as the text message provided by the first user in the window portion of the user interface on the client device and the at least one other client device. The method further comprises the step of, in response to determining that the input message does not contain any profane word or phrase, displaying the input message as the text message provided by the first user in the window portion of the user interface on the client device and the at least one other client device.

[0019] In essence, the method as described herein parses a text message to determine whether the text message is an offensive message (i.e., a text message containing one or more profane word or phrase), and at the “first instance” of identifying a profane word or phrase, the entire text message is substituted with a randomly selected positive phrase. The disclosed method does not need to parse through the entire offensive message to identify all the profane words or phrases within the message. As compared to conventional processes that are configured to identify each and every profane word or phrase within an offensive message, the method described herein simplifies the process for identifying profane words or phrases in a message, thus reducing the time and computational resources required for identifying offensive messages.

[0020] Similarly, as compared to conventional processes that are configured to modify each and every profane word or phrase in an offensive message without also modifying the nonprofane words or phrase in the offensive message, the method described herein simplifies the process for modifying offensive language by disregarding the textual content (e.g., non-profane text portion) of the offensive message and substituting the offensive message (in its entirety) with a randomly selected positive phrase. Thus, an offensive message containing multiple profane words or phrases can be transformed into an uplifting and cheerful message in one step, thereby fostering a non-toxic in-game communication environment.

[0021] By detecting the “first instance” of the profane word or phrase, and then immediately disregarding the input message, and substituting it with a positive phrase, the disclosed method is advantageously able to implement “profanity-free chat interactions” quickly and efficiently. Obviously, the compromise is that the “meaning” and “context” of the input message may be lost and in essence, disregarded, in favor of speed and the objective of removing all profanities. However, the application of the invention is directed towards in-game text messaging. As such, the purpose and function of sending messages in a game may not be so much on “communicating useful information” per se, but really more as an expressive outlet (e.g., expressing frustration or joy at certain aspects of gameplay) to supplement the gaming experience. Therefore, filtering out profanities in such a “crude” but nevertheless highly efficient manner can be an acceptable compromise. This is in contrast to messaging applications where communicating and conveying the meaning and intention of the users is its sole purpose and is paramount, and therefore disregarding the meaning of the input messages will not be practical and logical for such applications.

[0022] Figure 1 shows a simplified diagram of a system 100 for delivering text messages in a messaging system, in accordance with certain embodiments. The system 100 may include one or more components, which may be implemented using software and/or hardware, optionally across multiple locations or using multiple devices or units. The components (e.g., client devices, server computer) of the system 100 can be connected to each other in any suitable configuration, using any suitable type of connection. The components may be connected directly or over a network 110, which may be any suitable network. For example, one or more portions of network 110 may be an ad hoc network, an intranet, an extranet, a virtual private network (VPN), a local area, network (LAN), a wireless LAN (WLAN), a wide area network (WAN), a wireless WAN (WWAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), a portion of the Internet, a portion of the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), a cellular telephone network, another type of network, or a combination of two or more such networks. [0023] In some embodiments, the system 100 is integrated with, or incorporated within, a computer application (e.g., electronic game) that is installed and running on a client device. For example, the computer application is an online multiuser game (hereinafter “online game”) and the system 100 is an in-game text messaging system of the online game.

[0024] The system 100 may include a first client device 122, a second client device 124, and a third client device 126. Each of the client devices (122, 124, 126) can be any manner of computer or computing device with, for example, local memory and processor. A memory may be volatile or non-volatile types of non-transitory computer-readable media, such as magnetic media, optical media, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), removable media, or any other suitable local or remote memory unit. The memory can include digital data that can be accessed by the processor. A processor may be any type of device, or multiple devices, capable of manipulating or processing information from a non-transitory computer-readable media (e.g., a memory). For example, a processor includes a central processing unit (CPU) for processing computer-executable program instructions to perform one or more processes.

[0025] Various types of portable and/or non-portable computing devices may serve as a client device. The client devices (122, 124, 126) may include, for example, a processor, a memory, a network communication connector, and a display screen. In some embodiments, the term “client device” as used herein is a mobile computing device, such as a smartphone, tablet computer, or laptop. Although the client devices (122, 124, 126) are illustrated as smartphones in Figure 1, it is appreciated that any computing device that has a user interface may be used to implement the systems and methods described herein. For example, a client device may also include a personal computer (PC), a workstation, a computer station, a network computer, a kiosk, PDAs (personal digital assistants), or portable media users.

[0026] Each of the client devices (122, 124, 126) may be associated with a currently active (i.e., online) user of the online game. The online game is, for example, installed and running on each of the client devices (122, 124, 126). In some embodiments, the online game includes a messaging component that enables an active user to communicate (e.g., chat) with other active users of the online game. For example, the messaging component provides the active users with the capability to communicate in real-time (or near real-time) via text messages (hereinafter “messages”) sent and received by the client devices. The users may exchange messages using their client devices at any time during rounds (or sessions) of games of the same type.

[0027] In some embodiments, the messaging component includes a chat user interface that is presented on the display screen of the client devices (122, 124, 126), as described below and depicted with respect to Figures 2a - 2b and 3a - 3b. The chat user interface is configured for the active users to interact (or interface) with the system 100 using the client device associated to the particular user. For example, the first client device 122 is associated with a first active user 132, the second client device 124 is associated with a second active user 134, and the third client device 126 is associated with a third active user 136. Although Figure 1 illustrates a particular number of client devices and users in the system 100, it is appreciated that the system 100 may include any suitable number of client devices and users.

[0028] In some embodiments, the system 100 includes a chat server 140. The server computer 140 illustrated in Figure 1 may represent multiple computing devices in communication with each other to perform the actions of a server computer (e.g., cloud computing). Alternatively, the chat server 140 may represent a single computing device. The chat server 140 provides backend support for the messaging component and is configured to process the messages provided by the users using the chat user interface of the messaging component.

[0029] In some embodiments, messages provided by the users (hereinafter “input message”) using the chat user interface are received at the messaging component. The messaging component is, for example, in communication with the chat server 140. Input messages received at the messaging component are transmitted from the associated client devices to the chat server 140 for processing. The chat server 140 processes each input message by parsing the message to identify a profane word or phrase that matches a profane word or phrase stored in the chat server 140. For example, a list of profane words and/or phrases (or profanities) are stored in the chat server 140 for text-matching. When it is determined that an input message contains a profane word or phrase matching a profanity stored in the server, the parsing terminates and the server process substitutes (or replaces) the input message with a positive phrase randomly selected from a list of positive phrases stored in the server 140. For example, the server process disregards the textual content of the input message and substitutes the entire input message with a positive phrase. The processed message corresponding to the positive phrase is then sent to two or more client devices in the system 100, including the client device associated with the message sender, for display by the messaging component.

[0030] In some embodiments, the server process may parse through the entire input message without identifying a profane word or phrase matching a profanity stored in the server. In this case, the server process ends without substituting or modifying the input message. The processed message corresponding to the input message is then sent from the server 140 to two or more client devices in the system 100, including the client device associated with the message sender, for display by the messaging component.

[0031] The system 100 as described in Figure 1 filters out offensive messages by replacing the entire input message with a positive phrase at the first instance of identifying a profane word or phrase within the input message. This is especially beneficial for processing offensive messages containing multiple profanities as the process for replacing all the profanities in the message is simplified. For example, the system 100 can quickly and easily replace one or more profanities in one step, thus reducing the computational resources required for filtering offensive language in text messages. This leads to a smoother server process.

[0032] Figures 2a - 2b shows an example of text messages displayed in a messaging system, in accordance with certain embodiments. The text messages may display using a messaging component of an online game that is installed and running on a client device. In particular, Figures 2a - 2b show an exemplary illustration of a chat user interface 200 that can be presented on the display screen of two or more client devices during some implementations of the system 100 described in Figure 1.

[0033] In some embodiments, the chat user interface 200 includes a window portion having an active text-based communication area 202 and a message input field 210. As shown, messages can be displayed in the active text-based communication area 202 (hereinafter “communication area”). In some embodiments, the communication area 202 displays messages associated with a plurality of active users of an online game. The communication area 202 may correspond to a public or private chat room where two or more users can exchange messages. The messages are, for example, presented in a text bubble. Other types of message containers can also be used to present the messages. In some embodiments, the text bubble identifies the user who sent the message (or message sender). For example, the text bubble includes the name of the message sender for an incoming message received by a user, and displays “You” for an outgoing message sent by the user. For the avoidance of doubt, the term “incoming message” refers to messages sent by other chat participants (e.g., second user 134 and/or third user 136) and received by a user (e.g., first user 132), and the term “outgoing message” refers to messages sent by the user (e.g., first user 132) to the other chat participants (e.g., second user 134 and/or third user 136) in the system 100. Incoming messages may be aligned to the left side of the communication area 202 and outgoing messages may be aligned to the right side of the communication area 202. The incoming and outgoing messages may be presented according to the order or sequence in which the messages were sent using the messaging component. For example, the messages may be presented according to the particular instance of time the message was received at the messaging component. Other methods for displaying the messages in the communication area 202 may also be useful.

[0034] In a specific implementation of the system 100 described in Figure 1, Figure 2a shows the chat user interface 200 from the viewpoint of the first user 132. As shown, the first user 132 receives an incoming message from the second user 134, and composes an input message in the message input field 210 to respond to the message received, as shown in Figure 2a. The input message contains a profane word or phrase (denoted by the dotted rectangle 230). When the first user 132 operates the send button 212, the input message containing the profanity is received at the messaging component and sent to the chat server 140 for processing. The server process parses the input message and identifies the profanity 230, whereupon parsing terminates and the server process automatically substitutes (or replaces) the input message with a randomly selected positive phrase. The term “positive phrase” as used herein refers to any phrase, slogan, quote, or the like, which can positively impact chat interactions. For example, a positive phrase can be any group of words used to express positive affirmation, give encouragement and compliment, convey a positive attitude, and/or reflect a positive state of mind.

[0035] In one example, the positive phrase “You have style” is randomly selected (from a list of positive phrases stored in the chat server 140) to replace the input message provided by the first user 132. The randomly selected positive phrase is then sent to all the chat participants in the communication area 202. As shown in Figure 2b, the chat participants in the communication area 202 includes the first and second users (132 and 134). For example, the selected positive phrase is received at the client devices (e.g., client devices 122 and 124) of the first and second users (132 and 134) and displayed in the communication area 202 as the text message provided by the first user instead of the input message.

[0036] It is to be understood that the server process of the chat server 140 is configured to replace any length of input message containing a profanity with a positive phrase, as will be described in more detail below.

[0037] Figures 3a - 3b show examples of text messages displayed in a messaging system, in accordance with certain embodiments. In particular, Figures 3a - 3b show exemplary illustrations of a chat user interface 200 as described in Figures 2a - 2b. In the interest of brevity, elements having the same reference numerals may not be described in detail.

[0038] In another specific implementation of the system 100 described in Figure 1, a second input message is composed by the first user 122, as shown in Figure 3a. The second input message, for example, contains a first instance of a profane word or phrase (denoted by the dotted rectangle 332), a second instance of a profane word or phrase (denoted by the dotted rectangle 334), and a plurality of non-profane words. As shown, the second input message may contain multiple sentences spread over multiple lines, and include a line break. When the first user 132 operates the send button 212, the second input message containing the plurality of profanities is received at the messaging component and sent to the chat server 140 for processing. The server process parses the second input message and identifies the first profanity 332, whereupon the parsing terminates (without identifying the second profanity 334) and the server process automatically substitutes (or replaces) the second input message with a randomly selected positive phrase.

[0039] In one example, the positive phrase “Wishing you a great day” is randomly selected (from a list of positive phrases stored in the chat server 140) to replace the second input message provided by the first user 132. The selected positive phrase is then sent to all the chat participants in the communication area 202. As shown in Figure 3b, the chat participants in the communication area 202 includes the first and second users (132 and 134). For example, the selected positive phrase is received at the client devices (e.g., client devices 122 and 124) associated with the first and second users (132 and 134) and displayed in the communication area 202 as the second text message provided by the first user instead of the second input message. [0040] By detecting the “first instance” of the profane word or phrase, and then immediately disregarding the input message, and substituting it with a positive phrase, the chat server 140 is advantageously able to implement “profanity-free chat interactions” quickly and efficiently. The tradeoff is the original meaning of the input message may be sacrificed to quickly and efficiently achieve the objective of removing all profanities from a message. However, the application of the invention is directed towards in-game text messaging. As such, the focus of sending messages in a game may not be so much on “communicating useful information” per se, but more as an expressive outlet (e.g., expressing frustration or joy at certain aspects of gameplay) to supplement the gaming experience. Therefore, filtering out profanities in such an aggressive but highly efficient manner can be an acceptable compromise. This is in contrast to messaging applications where communicating and conveying the meaning and intention of the users is its sole purpose and is paramount, and therefore disregarding the meaning of the input messages will not be practical and logical for such applications.

[0041] Figure 4 shows a flowchart describing a method for substituting messages in a messaging system, in accordance with certain embodiments. The method is explained in conjunction with the system 100 as described earlier through the previous figures of the disclosure and same or similar processes and elements may not be described in detail. The steps identified in Figure 4 are exemplary and may include various alternatives, equivalents, or derivations thereof including but not limited to the order of execution of the same. The steps of Figure 4 (and its various alternatives) may be embodied in hardware or software including a computer-readable storage medium including instructions executable by the likes of a processor in a computing device.

[0042] In step 402, an input message provided by a first user 132 of an online game is received at a chat server for processing.

[0043] Proceeding further to step 404, the chat server 140 parses the input message to determine whether the input message contains a profanity. In some embodiments, the chat server parses the textual content of the input message to identify a word or phrase that matches a profane word or phrase (or profanity) stored in the chat server. For example, a list of profanities is stored in the chat server for text-matching. The parsing may be terminated at the first instance of identifying a word or phrase that matches profanity stored in the chat server. In some embodiments, the parsing is terminated prior to the end of the input message (i.e., without analysing the entire input message). For example, the parsing may be terminated in the beginning or middle of the input message once a profanity is identified.

[0044] In other embodiments, the parsing continues to the end of the input message and terminates when a profanity is identified at the end of the input message. Alternatively, the parsing continues to the end of the input message and terminates when no profanity is identified (e.g., input message does not contain a profanity). In some embodiments, the method continues to step 406 if it is determined that the input message contains a profanity. In alternative embodiments, the method continues to step 416 if it is determined that the input message does not contain a profanity.

[0045] Proceeding further to step 408, in response to determining that the input message contains a profanity, the input message is disregarded and a positive phrase is randomly selected from a list of positive phrases stored in the chat server. The input message is then substituted with the randomly selected positive phrase. For example, the entire input message is swapped with the randomly selected positive phrase. The process continues to step 408.

[0046] In step 408, the chat server 140 sends the positive phrase to all the chat participants in the communication area 202. For example, the positive phrase is sent to two or more client devices in the system 100, including the client device 122 associated with the first user 132. The positive phrase is displayed as the text message provided by the first user 132 in the window portion of the chat user interface 200 displayed on the client device 122 and at least one other client device.

[0047] In step 416, when it is determined that the input message does not contain a profanity, the chat server 140 sends the input message to all the chat participants in the communication area 202. For example, the input message is sent to two or more client devices in the system 100, including the client device 122 associated with the first user 132. The input message is displayed as the text message provided by the first user in the window portion of the chat user interface 200 displayed on the client device 122 and at least one other client device.

[0048] The method as described in Figure 4 beneficially simplifies the process for identifying and replacing profane words or phrases, thus reducing the time and computational resources required for filtering offensive language in text messages. By substituting an offensive input message (i.e., input message having one or more profane word or phrase) with a randomly selected positive phrase, the process for replacing profane words or phrases is simplified because the positive phrase can be selected without any consideration to meaning of the identified profane word or phrase (or the context of the input message). This also ensures that the in-game messages can be send and received quickly by the users for smoother messaging experience (e.g., minimizing delay between sending and receiving a message).

[0049] It is contemplated that the content of in-game messages are usually unimportant or trivial in comparison to standalone messaging applications (e.g., Short Message Service), which are often used to deliver useful information, such as reservation details, event reminders, emergency broadcasts, and the like. Therefore, users of in-game chat systems would favor a non-toxic chat environment over the precise censorship of offensive content in a message. Accordingly, maintaining a profanity-free chat environment by sacrificing the non-profane portions of an offensive message can be an acceptable compromise for users of in-game text messaging.

[0050] The present invention may be implemented in a game that may be operable using a variety of devices or game systems. For example, a device may be a personal computer, a home entertainment system, a portable gaming device, or a mobile computing device. The present methodologies described herein are fully intended to be operable on a variety of devices or game systems. Any hardware platform suitable for performing the methodologies described here is suitable for use with the invention. Computer-readable storage media refer to any medium or media that participate in providing instructions to a CPU for execution. Such media can take many forms, such as but not limited to, non-volatile and volatile media including optical or magnetic disks and dynamic memory, respectively. Common forms of computer- readable media include, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, a hard disk, magnetic tape, any other magnetic medium, a CD- ROM disk, digital video disk (DVD), any other optical medium, RAM, PROM, EPROM, a FLASHEPROM, any other memory chip or cartridge.

[0051] Various forms of transmission media may be involved in carrying one or more sequences of one or more instructions to a CPU for execution. A bus carries the data to system RAM, from which a CPU retrieves and executes the instructions. The instructions received by system RAM can optionally be stored on a fixed disk either before or after execution by a CPU.

[0052] Unless specifically stated otherwise, and as apparent from the following, it will be appreciated that throughout the present specification, discussions utilizing terms such as “receiving”, “identifying”, ‘initiating”, “tagging”, “transmitting”, “running”, “incrementing”, “determining”, “assigning”, “approving”, “selecting”, “sending”, “calculating”, “determining”, “replacing”, “generating”, “initializing”, “outputting”, or the like, refer to the action and processes of a computer system, or similar electronic device, that manipulates and transforms data represented as physical quantities within the computer system into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computer system or other information storage, transmission or display devices.

[0053] In the application, unless specified otherwise, the terms "comprising", "comprise", and grammatical variants thereof, intended to represent "open" or "inclusive" language such that they include recited elements but also permit inclusion of additional, non-explicitly recited elements.

[0054] It will be apparent that various other modifications and adaptations of the application will be apparent to the person skilled in the art after reading the foregoing disclosure without departing from the spirit and scope of the application and it is intended that all such modifications and adaptations come within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method for displaying text messages during playing of an online game, the method comprising: displaying a user interface for the online game on a first client device and on at least one other client device, the user interface including a window portion, the window portion having an active text-based communication area that displays text messages provided by a plurality of users currently active in the online game, wherein the first client device is associated with a first user of the plurality of users and the at least one other client device is associated with a second user of the plurality of users; receiving, at a server, an input message provided by the first user using the first client device; determining whether the input message contains a profane word or phrase; wherein in response to determining that the input message contains the profane word or phrase, disregarding the input message and substituting the entire input message with a positive phrase, wherein the positive phrase is randomly selected from a list of positive phrases stored in the server, and displaying the positive phrase as the text message provided by the first user in the window portion of the user interface on the first client device and the at least one other client device; and wherein in response to determining that the input message does not contain any profane word or phrase, displaying the input message as the text message provided by the first user in the window portion of the user interface on the first client device and the at least one other client device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the input message comprises a plurality of sentences.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the input message comprises a plurality of nonprofane words or phrases.

4. The method of any one of claims 1 - 3, wherein the step of determining whether the input message contains a profane word or phrase comprises parsing the input message to identify a profanity that matches a profanity in a list of profanities stored in the server.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the parsing terminates at a first instance of identifying a profanity in the input message.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the parsing terminates prior to the end of the input message.

7. A system comprising one or more computers and one or more storage devices storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed by the one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform one or more operations according to the method of any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. One or more non-transitory computer storage media storing instructions that, when executed by one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform one or more operations according to the method of any one of claims 1 to 6.