Nintendo Patents the Easy Button

[modeps]

Gamasutra (http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=21803) has a report that Nintendo (specifically Shiggy himself) filed a patent in the middle of last year, that just became visible recently. What this patent does, is allow users to activate in-game walkthroughs... you know, just in case you can't figure something out the game will tell you what to do.

The patent hinges on a form of automated gameplay -- likely sequences pre-recorded by a game's developer -- that users can turn on, described as "digest moving image." For example, it could show a game's character navigating a level to reveal its solutions to stuck players -- or simply to allow players to experience it without investing the time for an entire playthrough.

It appears there are a few sub-sections of the system, with one mode revealing pop-up gameplay hints throughout play and another allowing players to watch a play-through. Through a third "scene menu" option, players can choose specific segments of gameplay to view without relying on existing save data.

The system doesn't appear to allow players to actually bypass gameplay or save progress made by the automated playthrough. Specifically, the patent refers also to the method for storing pre-played gameplay data that doesn't interfere with the user's own gameplay saves.

Puzzle too tough, just hit that easy button. Staples: THAT WAS EASY!

[lost]

Next they will patent just not unwrapping a game and putting it in your machine!

[riposte101]

Alone in the Dark did a few of these things already. Like being able to skip portions. In addition to what Alone in the Dark already did, this sounds like you can just sit back and watch somebody else play the game for you and save the progress like a movie.

[Meatgortex]

Fuck software patents. Everything mentioned here has existing in prior games in some form or another.

PoP:SoT basically did this every time you entered a new area, showing you a flash of what you needed to do to get past that location. It wasn't player triggered but it was the same general concept.

Hell many of the Infocom text adventures had player triggered hint systems built in that you could look at to get past difficult puzzles taking a hit to your score.

[Ph00p]

Next they will patent just not unwrapping a game and putting it in your machine!

Thats called the THP w/some sorta homebrew app.

[Froggy]

Nintendo patents:

1. The act of hiring a small boy to play through difficult sections for you.

2. The entire gamefaqs website when viewed through players in virtual worlds through virtual computers connected to the virtual internet.

3. Not playing the game at all. In any way.

[JazGalaxy]

This is actually a fantastic idea and I've wanted to see it in games for a very very very long time.

My hoped for result is the complete opposite of what you guys are joking about.

Now, maybe, instead of a stupid fairy telling you "HEY GO HERE AND DO THIS!" every second, developers can design games to be hard with the ability for a gamer to make it easy for themselves at any point with a walkthrough easily available to them.

(When I originally had this idea it was to place someone like an Oracle in the zelda universe who would always tell you the answer to a problem with the caveat being that you had to travel to him. An in-game strategy guide guide for all intents and purposes.)

[the Jack]

Did Nintendo just patent YouTube?

[vallor]

I suspect there is too much similar Prior Art to make this patent enforcible even if it is granted.

Heck, 15 years ago 7th Guest had a book you could read to get hints to puzzles or have the puzzle solved for you. The visual playback of the puzzle solving may not be enough to make it unique and patent worthy. Of course with the incompetence at the Patent office and the retardation of our laws, who knows any more.

[vherub]

games can learn some featuresets from dvds, definitely

[MojoJojo]

Next they will patent just not unwrapping a game and putting it in your machine!
It's called Steam.

[lost]

It's called Steam.

Hah, you win!

[BloodPack]

I really hope this doesn't actually go through, I am working on a business idea and if they actually implement this it will probably kill it....fuck