Gaming device having multiple pay slots

• US 20030207710A1
• Filed: 05/01/2002
• Published: 11/06/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/01/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Cregan, Karen M., Rodgers, Paulina
• Granted Patent: US 7,037,191 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/20
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3244 Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3286 Type of games

Abstract

The gaming device provides a number of selections. When the player chooses a selection, the gaming device randomly generates a value and randomly places the value into one of a number of adjacent slots. When the bottom of each slot is covered with values, the game removes the values and provides an award to the player. In one embodiment, the award includes a value from each slot and in a preferred embodiment the award includes the smallest value from the slots. The gaming device subtracts the lowest value from the remaining values and the player chooses another selection. The process continues until one of a plurality of possible endings occurs.

Claims

1. A gaming device comprising:

a display device;

a plurality of groups displayed by the display device, wherein each group has a plurality of ranks;

a plurality of values, at least two of said values being different, the values sequentially displayed the by the display device, wherein each value is associated with at least one of the ranks of one of the groups; and

an award provided to the player when a designated rank in each of said groups has an associated value.

2. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the award is based on at least one of the values associated with the designated rank.

3. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the award is based on each of the values associated with the designated rank.

4. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein values associated with the groups are chronologically ranked.

5. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the designated rank is the first rank filled when one of the values is associated with one of the groups.

6. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the designated rank is the visually lowest rank.

7. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the award is based on a portion of at least one of the values associated with the designated rank, wherein the remaining portion of the value remains associated with the rank.

8. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the award is based on a portion of at least one of the values associated with the designated rank, the portion being equal to the smallest value associated with the designated rank of each of the groups, wherein the remaining portion of the value remains associated with the rank.

9. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the values are associated with a plurality of player selectable selections and which includes a game terminator associated with at least one selection.

10. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes a game sequence that terminates further player choices when each of the ranks of one of the groups has an associated value.

11. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes a plurality of selections, said values associated with the selections and a game termination which occurs upon the picking of all of the selections by the player.

12. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes a plurality of selections, said values associated with the selections, and a number of player choices of the selections, the number based on a gaming event selected from the group consisting of:

a preliminary bonus game outcome, a base game outcome, a wager amount and a wager component.

13. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes a plurality of selections, said values associated with the selections including a plurality of values associated with at least one of the selections.

14. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes at least one of the values associated with a plurality of the groups.

15. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes means for enabling the player select the group to which the value is associated.

16. The gaming device of claim 1, which is accessible via a data network.

17. The gaming device of claim 16, wherein the network is an internet.

18. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the groups are non-equally weighted such that at least one value is more likely to be associated with one of the groups than at least one other group.

19. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein at least one of the values in one of the groups changes rank when the award is provided to the player.

20. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the ranks of the groups become sequentially filled with values as the values are sequentially displayed by the display device

21. A gaming device comprising:

a display device;

a plurality of values displayed by the display device; and

a first award provided to the player based on one of the values, wherein at least one other value is mathematically altered by the value that the award is based upon; and

a second award provided to the player based on said mathematically altered value.

22. The gaming device of claim 21, wherein the award is also based on a portion of the at least one mathematically altered value.

23. A gaming device comprising:

a display device;

a plurality of values displayed by the display device, each value associated with at least one of a plurality of areas displayed by the display device; and

an award provided to the player when each area has an associated value, the award based on one of the values associated with one of the areas, wherein at least one other value associated with one of the other areas is mathematically altered by the value that the award is based upon.

24. The gaming device of claim 23, wherein the award is also based on a portion of the at least one mathematically altered value.

25. The gaming device of claim 23, wherein the value that the award is based upon is disassociated with the area displayed by the display device when the award is provided to the player.

26. The gaming device of claim 23, which includes a plurality of values associated with the same area, and wherein the value associated with the area for the greatest amount of time is the value that the award is based upon.

27. The gaming device of claim 23, which includes a plurality of values associated with the same area, and wherein the value associated with the area for the greatest amount of time is the value that is mathematically altered by the selected value.

28. The gaming device of claim 23, wherein each area includes a ranking, and wherein a value second in the ranking in one of the areas becomes first in the ranking when the award is based on the value first in the ranking.

29. The gaming device of claim 23, wherein one of the values is associated with a plurality of the areas.

30. The gaming device of claim 23, wherein the award is a first award and a second award is provided to the player if each area has an associated value after the first award is provided to the player.

31. A gaming device comprising:

a display device;

a plurality of selections displayed by the display device;

a plurality of values associated with the selections and displayed by the display device when the player chooses the selections, each value associated with at least one of a plurality of areas displayed by the display device; and

an award provided to the player when each area has an associated value, the award based on one of the values associated with one of the areas, wherein at least one other value associated with one of the other areas is mathematically altered by the value that the award is based upon.

32. The gaming device of claim 31, wherein the award is also based on a portion of the at least one mathematically altered value.

33. The gaming device of claim 31, wherein the value that the award is based upon is disassociated with the area displayed by the display device when the award is provided to the player.

34. The gaming device of claim 31, which includes a plurality of values associated with the same area, and wherein the value associated with the area for the greatest amount of time is the value that the award is based upon.

35. The gaming device of claim 31, which includes a plurality of values associated with the same area, and wherein the value associated with the area for the greatest amount of time is the value that is mathematically altered by the selected value.

36. The gaming device of claim 31, wherein each area includes a ranking, and wherein a value second in the ranking in one of the areas becomes first in the ranking when the award is based on the value first in the ranking.

37. The gaming device of claim 31, wherein one of the values is associated with a plurality of the areas.

38. The gaming device of claim 31, wherein the award is a first award and a second award is provided to the player if each area has an associated value after the first award is provided to the player.

39. A gaming device comprising:

a display device;

a processor that communicates with the display device;

a plurality of selections displayed by the display device;

a plurality of values associated with the selections and displayed by the display device when the player chooses the selections, at least two of the values being different, each value randomly associated by the processor with one of a plurality of areas displayed by the display device; and

an award provided to the player when each area has an associated value, the award based on one of the values associated with one of the areas, wherein at least one other value associated with one of the other areas is mathematically altered by the value that the award is based upon.

40. The gaming device of claim 39, wherein the award is also based on a portion of the at least one mathematically altered value.

41. The gaming device of claim 39, wherein the value that the award is based upon is disassociated with the area displayed by the display device when the award is provided to the player.

42. The gaming device of claim 39, wherein the areas are non-equally weighted such that at least one value is more likely to be associated with one of the areas than at least one other area.

43. The gaming device of claim 39, which includes a plurality of values associated with the same area, and wherein the value associated with the area for the greatest amount of time is the value that the award is based upon.

44. The gaming device of claim 39, which includes a plurality of values associated with the same area, and wherein the value associated with the area for the greatest amount of time is the value that is mathematically altered by the selected value.

45. The gaming device of claim 39, wherein each area includes a ranking, and wherein a value second in the ranking in one of the areas becomes first in the ranking when the award is based on the value first in the ranking.

46. The gaming device of claim 39, wherein one of the values is associated with a plurality of the areas.

47. The gaming device of claim 39, wherein the award is a first award and a second award is provided to the player if each area has an associated value after the first award is provided to the player.

48. A gaming device comprising:

a display device;

a processor that communicates with the display device, the processor operating with the display device to;

sequentially display a plurality of symbols and rank each of the symbols in one of a plurality of areas on the display device;

provide a first award to a player when each of the plurality of areas has one of the symbols associated with a designated rank;

remove at least one of the symbols from its respective area and move a second symbol associated said area if the second symbol has a rank adjacent to the rank of the moved symbol; and

provide a second award to a player if each of the plurality of areas continues to have one of the symbols associated with the designated rank.

49. The gaming device of claim 48, wherein the plurality of symbols are displayed as a result of an event selected from the group consisting of:

a random selection by the player and a random generation by the processor.

50. The gaming device of claim 48, which includes a value associated with each symbol, wherein the first award is based on at least one of the values associated with the symbols of the designated rank.

51. The gaming device of claim 48, which includes a separate value associated with each symbol, wherein the second award is based on each of the remaining values associated with the symbols of the designated rank, wherein at least one of the remaining values has been mathematically altered by a value used to determine the first award.

52. A gaming device comprising:

a plurality of player picks;

a plurality of values;

a plurality of slots displayed to a player on a display device, each slot adapted to receive at least one of the values; and

a processor that;

(i) randomly generates at least one of the values upon each of the player picks;

(ii) randomly associates the generated values with the slots;

(iii) displays the values in the slots on the display device; and

(iv) provides an award to the player when each slot has at least one associated value arranged in a predetermined order on the display device.

53. The gaming device of claim 52, wherein the award is based on at least part of one of the values associated with each slot.

54. A gaming device comprising:

a display device;

at least three symbols displayed by the display device; and

at least three different values individually associated with the at least three symbols, wherein the visual size of each of the symbols is related to an amount of the value.

55. The gaming device of claim 54, wherein the size of the symbols is proportional to the amount of the values.

56. The gaming device of claim 54, wherein the size of the symbols is linearly proportional to the amount of the values.