Gaming system and method for providing a plurality of chances of winning a progressive award with dynamically scalable progressive award odds

• US 10,325,450 B2
• Filed: 09/21/2016
• Issued: 06/18/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/21/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Hallerbach, Boris, Urmston, Jeffrey
• Primary Examiner(s): Hu, Kang
• Assistant Examiner(s): Blaise, Malina D.
• Application Number:
  US15/271,666
• Publication Number:
  US 20180082533A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,000 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3209 Input means, e.g. buttons, touch screen
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3211 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3258 Cumulative reward schemes, e.g. jackpots
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3262 Player actions which determine the course of the game, e.g. selecting a prize to be won, outcome to be achieved, game to be played
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3267 Game outcomes which determine the course of the subsequent game, e.g. double or quits, free games, higher payouts, different new games

Abstract

The gaming system disclosed herein provides a plurality of chances to win a progressive award with the odds of winning the progressive award in at least one chance being based on the wager amount placed.

Claims

1. A gaming system comprising:

at least one display device;

at least one input device;

a payment acceptor;

at least one processor; and

at least one memory device which stores a plurality of instructions, which when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to;

cause the at least one display device to display a progressive award,

responsive to a physical item being received via the payment acceptor, modify a credit balance based, at least in part, on a monetary value associated with the received physical item,

receive, via the at least one input device, a placement of one of a plurality of different wager amounts on a play of a primary game, wherein;

at least one of the wager amounts is associated with an eligibility to win the displayed progressive award and is not associated with any progressive award additional opportunity sequence, at least one of the wager amounts is associated with the eligibility to win the displayed progressive award and a progressive award additional opportunity sequence, and the received wager amount causes a decrease of the credit balance,

responsive to the received wager amount being associated with the eligibility to win the displayed progressive award, for the play of the primary game;

determine one of a plurality of different outcomes,

cause the at least one display device to display the determined outcome, wherein at least one of the plurality of different outcomes is associated with the progressive award,

determine whether to provide the displayed progressive award, said determination being based on the determined outcome, and

responsive to the determination being not to provide the progressive award and the received wager amount being associated with the progressive award additional opportunity sequence;

determine whether to trigger the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, and

responsive to the determination being to trigger the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, determine whether to provide the displayed progressive award in association with the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, wherein;

 

said determination is based, at least in part, on the received wager amount,

 

a first of the wager amounts associated with the eligibility to win the displayed progressive award and the progressive award additional opportunity sequence is associated with a first probability of providing the displayed progressive award in association with the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, and

 

a second, higher of the wager amounts associated with the eligibility to win the displayed progressive award and the progressive award additional opportunity sequence is associated with a second, higher probability of providing the displayed progressive award in association with the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, and

responsive to a cashout input being received, cause an initiation of any payout associated with the credit balance.

2. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the plurality of instructions cause the at least one processor to determine whether to trigger the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, based at least in part on the determined outcome.

3. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the plurality of instructions cause the at least one processor to automatically determine to trigger the progressive award additional opportunity sequence.

4. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the wager amounts is not associated with any eligibility to win the displayed progressive award.

5. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the wager amounts includes a configurable maximum wager amount.

6. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the progressive award is selected from the group consisting of:

a quantity of monetary credits, a quantity of non-monetary credits, a quantity of promotional credits, a quantity of player tracking points, a quantity of free plays of a game, and a quantity of plays of at least one non-wagering game.

7. A gaming system server comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory device which stores a plurality of instructions, which when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to;

communicate data which results in a display device displaying a progressive award,

receive data associated with a placement of one of a plurality of different wager amounts on a play of a primary game, wherein;

at least one of the wager amounts is associated with an eligibility to win the displayed progressive award and is not associated with any progressive award additional opportunity sequence, at least one of the wager amounts is associated with the eligibility to win the displayed progressive award and a progressive award additional opportunity sequence, the placed wager amount causes a decrease of a credit balance which is increasable via receipt, by a payment acceptor, of a physical item associated with a monetary value, and which is decreasable via a cashout device configured to receive an input to cause an initiation of a payout associated with the credit balance, and

responsive to the received wager amount being associated with the eligibility to win the displayed progressive award, for the play of the primary game;

determine one of a plurality of different outcomes,

communicate data which results in the at least one display device displaying the determined outcome, wherein at least one of the plurality of different outcomes is associated with the progressive award,

determine whether to provide the displayed progressive award, said determination being based on the determined outcome, and

responsive to the determination being not to provide the progressive award and the received wager amount being associated with the progressive award additional opportunity sequence;

determine whether to trigger the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, and

responsive to the determination being to trigger the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, determine whether to provide the displayed progressive award in association with the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, wherein;

 

said determination is based, at least in part, on the received wager amount,

 

a first of the wager amounts associated with the eligibility to win the displayed progressive award and the progressive award additional opportunity sequence is associated with a first probability of providing the displayed progressive award in association with the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, and

 

a second, higher of the wager amounts associated with the eligibility to win the displayed progressive award and the progressive award additional opportunity sequence is associated with a second, higher probability of providing the displayed progressive award in association with the progressive award additional opportunity sequence.

8. The gaming system server of claim 7, wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the plurality of instructions cause the at least one processor to determine whether to trigger the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, based at least in part on the determined outcome.

9. The gaming system server of claim 7, wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the plurality of instructions cause the at least one processor to automatically determine to trigger the progressive award additional opportunity sequence.

10. The gaming system server of claim 7, wherein at least one of the wager amounts is not associated with any eligibility to win the displayed progressive award.

11. The gaming system server of claim 7, wherein at least one of the wager amounts includes a configurable maximum wager amount.

12. The gaming system server of claim 7, wherein the progressive award is selected from the group consisting of:

a quantity of monetary credits, a quantity of non-monetary credits, a quantity of promotional credits, a quantity of player tracking points, a quantity of free plays of a game, and a quantity of plays of at least one non-wagering game.

13. A method of operating a gaming system, said method comprising:

displaying, by at least one display device, a progressive award,

receiving a placement of one of a plurality of different wager amounts on a play of a primary game, wherein;

at least one of the wager amounts is associated with an eligibility to win the displayed progressive award and is not associated with any progressive award additional opportunity sequence, at least one of the wager amounts is associated with the eligibility to win the displayed progressive award and a progressive award additional opportunity sequence, and the placed wager amount causes a decrease of a credit balance which is increasable via receipt, by a payment acceptor, of a physical item associated with a monetary value, and which is decreasable via a cashout device configured to receive an input to cause an initiation of a payout associated with the credit balance, and

responsive to the received wager amount being associated with the eligibility to win the displayed progressive award, for the play of the primary game;

determining, by at least one processor, one of a plurality of different outcomes,

displaying, by the at least one display device, the determined outcome, wherein at least one of the plurality of different outcomes is associated with the progressive award,

determining, by the at least one processor, whether to provide the displayed progressive award, said determination being based on the determined outcome, and

responsive to the determination being not to provide the progressive award and the received wager amount being associated with the progressive award additional opportunity sequence;

determining, by the at least one processor, whether to trigger the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, and

responsive to the determination being to trigger the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, determining, by the at least one processor, whether to provide the displayed progressive award in association with the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, wherein

said determination is based, at least in part, on the received wager amount,

a first of the wager amounts associated with the eligibility to win the displayed progressive award and the progressive award additional opportunity sequence is associated with a first probability of providing the displayed progressive award in association with the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, and

a second, higher of the wager amounts associated with the eligibility to win the displayed progressive award and the progressive award additional opportunity sequence is associated with a second, higher probability of providing the displayed progressive award in association with the progressive award additional opportunity sequence.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising determining, by the at least one processor, whether to trigger the progressive award additional opportunity sequence, based at least in part on the determined outcome.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising automatically determining, by the at least one processor, to trigger the progressive award additional opportunity sequence.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein at least one of the wager amounts is not associated with any eligibility to win the displayed progressive award.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein at least one of the wager amounts includes a configurable maximum wager amount.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein the progressive award is selected from the group consisting of:

a quantity of monetary credits, a quantity of non-monetary credits, a quantity of promotional credits, a quantity of player tracking points, a quantity of free plays of a game, and a quantity of plays of at least one non-wagering game.