Method and apparatus for relating messages and actions in interactive computer games

An apparatus, used to translate a message to be communicated to a player of an interactive computer game at the occurrence of a predefined action in the game, the apparatus comprising:

• a computer system having a display screen, memory containing a code file and a message file, and an input device,
• software code, stored in the code file, for controlling the apparatus,
• a visual display produced by the software code and displayed on the display screen when the apparatus is used,
• a first area within the visual display where the message is displayed,
• a translation area within the visual display where a translation of the message may be produced by inputing the translation through the input device, and
• instructions within the software code for assigning an identifier to the message and to the translation.

An interactive computer game designed for play on a computer system having a display screen, an input device and a cursor displayed on the display screen and controlled at least in part by the input device, the game comprising:

• memory containing a code file and a message file separate from the code file,
• software code which defines the play of the game, which causes objects to be displayed graphically on the display screen, which defines operations a game player may perform during the game, which allows the game player to perform a predefined action in the game by selecting an operation, positioning the cursor adjacent an object on the display screen and then inputing a predetermined signal through the user input device to perform the selected operation on the object, and which is stored in the code file,
• a message, stored in the message file, to be communicated to a game player at the performance of the predefined action, where the message communicates information concerning the object associated with the predefined action, and
• an identifier assigned to the message to distinguish the message from other messages and to relate the message to the predefined action, where the identifier is stored in the message file or in the title to the message file and incorporated in the software code instead of the message itself,
• where the software code further includes instructions to retrieve the message from the message file and communicate the message to the game player at the performance of the predefined action in the game by retrieving and communicating the message to which the identifier incorporated in the code is assigned.

A computer-implemented method of creating an interactive computer game designed for play on a computer system having a display screen, an input device, and a cursor displayed on the display screen and controlled at least in part by the input device, the method comprising:

• providing software code which defines the play of the game, which defines an action a game player may perform during the game, and which allows the player to perform the action in the game by audibly voicing sounds identifying the action, where the user input device receives and recognizes the sounds and triggers the action,
• incorporating in the software code the assigned identifier instead of the message itself,
• providing memory accessible by the computer system, where the memory includes a code file and a message file which is separate from the code file,
• storing the software code in the code file,
• producing a message to be communicated to the game player at the occurrence of the action in the game,
• assigning an identifier to the message to distinguish the message from other messages and to relate the message to the action,
• storing the message in the memory in the message file and storing the message's assigned identifier in a location in the memory that is related to the message and is separate from the code file, and
• inserting into the software code instructions to produce the message from the message file and communicate the message to the game player at the occurrence of the action in the game by retrieving and communicating the message to which the identifier incorporated in the code is assigned.