Gaming device having a multi-trigger bonus

• US 20040043815A1
• Filed: 08/30/2002
• Published: 03/04/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Kaminkow, Joseph E.
• Granted Patent: US 8,157,633 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/25
• 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 17/34 depending on the stopping of moving members in a mechanical slot machine, e.g. "fruit" machines

Abstract

A gaming device having one or more primary games. The primary games may be played simultaneously. Each primary game has a triggering event which corresponds to an award or bonus game. If multiple triggering events occur in the same play, the player receives a multi-trigger bonus or bonus game.

Claims

1. A gaming device comprising:

a first primary game having at least a first triggering event;

a second primary game having at least a second triggering event; and

at least one multi-trigger bonus provided to a player upon the occurrence of the first triggering event in the first primary game and the second triggering event in the second primary game in the same play of the first primary game and the second primary game.

2. The gaming device as in claim 1, wherein the first primary game and the second primary game are the same type of game.

3. The gaming device as in claim 1, wherein the first primary game and the second primary game are different types of games.

4. The gaming device as in claim 1, wherein the first triggering event and the second triggering event are the same.

5. The gaming device as in claim 1, wherein the first triggering event and the second triggering event are different.

6. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes a first bonus award opportunity provided to the player upon the occurrence of the first triggering event.

7. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes a second bonus award opportunity provided to the player upon the occurrence of the second triggering event.

8. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes a first bonus award opportunity provided to the player upon the occurrence of the first triggering event, and a second bonus award opportunity provided to the player upon the occurrence of the second triggering event, wherein the first bonus award opportunity and the second bonus award opportunity are not provided to the player when the multi-trigger bonus is provided to the player.

9. The gaming device of claim 8, wherein the first bonus award opportunity and the second bonus award opportunity are the same.

10. The gaming device of claim 8, wherein the first bonus award opportunity and the second bonus award opportunity are different.

11. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes a first bonus award opportunity provided to the player upon the occurrence of the first triggering event, and a second bonus award opportunity provided to the player upon the occurrence of the second triggering event, wherein the first bonus award opportunity and the second bonus award opportunity are additionally provided to the player when the multi-trigger bonus is provided to the player.

12. The gaming device of claim 11, wherein the first bonus award opportunity and the second bonus award opportunity are the same.

13. The gaming device of claim 11, wherein the first bonus award opportunity and the second bonus award opportunity are different.

14. A gaming device comprising:

a plurality of base games;

at least one triggering event in each base game; and

at least one multi-trigger bonus provided to a player upon the occurrence of at least one triggering event in at least two of the base games in the same play of said base games.

15. The gaming device of claim 14, wherein each base game is the same type of game.

16. The gaming device of claim 14, wherein each base game is a different type of game.

17. The gaming device of claim 14, wherein at least two base games are the same type of game and are different from at least one other base game.

18. The gaming device of claim 14, wherein the triggering events for each base game are the same.

19. The gaming device of claim 14, wherein the triggering events for each base game are different.

20. The gaming device of claim 14, wherein the triggering events are the same for at least two base games and are different from the triggering events for at least one other base game.

21. The gaming device of claim 14, wherein a different multi-trigger bonus is provided for each combination of triggering events.

22. The gaming device of claim 14, wherein the same multi-trigger bonus is provided for each combination of triggering events.

23. The gaming device of claim 14, wherein the same multi-trigger bonus is provided for two or more combinations of triggering events and a different multi-trigger bonus is provided for at least one other combination of triggering events.

24. The gaming device of claim 14, which includes at least one bonus award opportunity provided to the player corresponding to each triggering event when each triggering event occurs in addition to when the multi-trigger bonus is provided to the player.

25. The gaming device of claim 24, wherein the bonus award opportunities are the same.

26. The gaming device of claim 24, wherein the bonus award opportunities are different.

27. The gaming device of claim 24, wherein at least two bonus award opportunities are the same and are different from at least one other bonus award opportunity.

28. The gaming device of claim 14, which includes at least one bonus award opportunity provided to the player corresponding to each triggering event when each triggering event occurs but not when the multi-trigger bonus is provided to the player.

29. The gaming device of claim 28, wherein the bonus award opportunities are the same.

30. The gaming device of claim 28, wherein the bonus award opportunities are different.

31. The gaming device of claim 28, wherein at least two bonus award opportunities are the same and are different from at least one other bonus award opportunity.

32. The gaming device of claim 14, wherein each base game has at least one bonus award opportunity triggering event, and which includes at least one bonus award opportunity associated with each bonus award opportunity triggering event, wherein the bonus award opportunity is provided to the player upon the occurrence of each bonus award opportunity triggering event but not when the multi-trigger bonus is provided to the player.

33. The gaming device of claim 32, wherein the bonus award opportunity triggering events are different from the triggering events.

34. The gaming device of claim 32, wherein the bonus award opportunity triggering events are the same as the triggering events.

35. The gaming device of claim 32, wherein at least one bonus award opportunity triggering event is different from at least one triggering event and at least one bonus award opportunity triggering event is the same as at least one triggering event.

36. The gaming device of claim 32, wherein the bonus award opportunities for each bonus award opportunity triggering event are the same.

37. The gaming device of claim 32, wherein the bonus award opportunities for each bonus award opportunity triggering event are different.

38. The gaming device of claim 32, wherein at least two bonus award opportunities are the same and are different from at least one other bonus award opportunity.

39. The gaming device of claim 14, wherein each base game has at least one bonus award opportunity triggering event, and which includes at least one bonus award opportunity associated with each bonus award opportunity triggering event, wherein the bonus award opportunity is provided to the player upon the occurrence of each bonus award opportunity triggering event in addition to the multi-trigger bonus when the multi-trigger bonus is provided to the player.

40. The gaming device of claim 39, wherein the bonus award opportunity triggering events are different from the triggering events.

41. The gaming device of claim 39, wherein the bonus award opportunity triggering events are the same as the triggering events.

42. The gaming device of claim 39, wherein at least one bonus award opportunity triggering event is different from at least one triggering event and at least one bonus award opportunity triggering event is the same as at least one triggering event.

43. The gaming device of claim 39, wherein the bonus award opportunities for each bonus award opportunity triggering event are the same.

44. The gaming device of claim 39, wherein the bonus award opportunities for each bonus award opportunity triggering event are different.

45. The gaming device of claim 39, wherein at least two bonus award opportunities are the same and are different from at least one other bonus award opportunity.

46. A gaming device comprising:

at least two primary games;

at least one triggering event in each primary game; and

at least one multi-trigger bonus provided to a player upon the occurrence of at least two triggering events in the same play of the primary games.

47. The gaming device of claim 46, wherein each primary game is the same type of game.

48. The gaming device of claim 46, wherein each primary game is a different type of game.

49. The gaming device of claim 46, wherein at least two primary games are the same type of game and are different from at least one other primary game.

50. The gaming device of claim 46, wherein the triggering events for each primary game are the same.

51. The gaming device of claim 46, wherein the triggering events for each primary game are different.

52. A gaming device, comprising:

a first display device displaying a first primary game having at least one triggering event;

a second display device displaying a second primary game having at least one triggering event;

at least one multi-trigger bonus; and

a processor operable with the first display device and the second display device to provide at least one triggering event in each primary game in the same play of said first primary game and said second primary game, and to provide the multi-trigger bonus to a player when at least one triggering event occurs in the first primary game and the second primary game in the same play of said primary games.

53. The gaming device of claim 52, wherein the first primary game and the second primary game are the same type of game.

54. The gaming device of claim 52, wherein the first primary game and the second primary game are different types of games.

55. The gaming device of claim 52, wherein the triggering events for each primary game are the same.

56. The gaming device of claim 52, wherein the triggering events for each primary game are different.

57. The gaming device of claim 52, wherein a different multi-trigger bonus is provided for each combination of triggering events.

58. The gaming device of claim 52, wherein the same multi-trigger bonus is provided for each combination of triggering events.

59. The gaming device of claim 52, wherein the same multi-trigger bonus is provided for two or more combinations of triggering events and a different multi-trigger bonus is provided for at least one other combination of triggering events.

60. The gaming device of claim 52, wherein the processor and the first display device and the second display device are operable to provide at least one bonus award opportunity associated with each triggering event when each triggering event occurs.

61. The gaming device of claim 52, wherein the processor and the first display device and the second display device are operable to provide at least one bonus award opportunity associated with each triggering event when each triggering event occurs but not when the multi-trigger bonus is provided to the player.

62. The gaming device of claim 52, wherein the first primary game has at least one bonus award opportunity triggering event;

the second primary game has at least one bonus award opportunity triggering event; and

the processor and the first display device and the second display device are operable to provide at least one bonus award opportunity upon the occurrence of each bonus award opportunity triggering event.

63. The gaming device of claim 52, wherein the first primary game has at least one bonus award opportunity triggering event;

the second primary game has at least one bonus award opportunity triggering event; and

the processor and the first display device and the second display device are operable to provide at least one bonus award opportunity upon the occurrence of each bonus award opportunity triggering event but not when the multi-trigger bonus is provided to the player.

64. A gaming device comprising:

at least one display device;

at least two primary games;

at least one triggering event in each primary game; and

a processor operable with the display device to provide at least one triggering event in at least two primary games in the same play of said primary games, and provide at least one multi-trigger bonus to a player when the triggering event occurs in at least two primary games in the same play of said primary games.

65. The gaming device of claim 64, wherein each primary game is the same type of game.

66. The gaming device of claim 64, wherein each primary game is a different type of game.

67. The gaming device of claim 64, wherein at least two primary games are the same type of game and are different from at least one other primary game.

68. The gaming device of claim 64, wherein the triggering events for each primary game are the same.

69. The gaming device of claim 64, wherein the triggering events for each primary game are different.

70. The gaming device of claim 64, wherein the triggering events are the same for at least two primary games and are different from the triggering events for at least one other primary game.

71. The gaming device of claim 64, wherein a different multi-trigger bonus is provided for each combination of triggering events that occurs.

72. The gaming device of claim 64, wherein the same multi-trigger bonus is provided for each combination of triggering events that occurs.

73. The gaming device of claim 64, wherein the same multi-trigger bonus is provided for two or more combinations of triggering events that occur and a different multi-trigger bonus is provided for at least one other combination of triggering events.

74. The gaming device of claim 64, wherein the processor and the display device are operable to provide at least one bonus award opportunity upon the occurrence of each triggering event.

75. The gaming device of claim 64, wherein the processor and the display device are operable to provide at least one bonus award opportunity upon the occurrence of each triggering event but not when the multi-trigger bonus is provided.

76. The gaming device of claim 64, wherein each primary game has at least one bonus award opportunity triggering event and the processor and the display device are operable to provide at least one bonus award opportunity upon the occurrence of each bonus award opportunity triggering event.

77. The gaming device of claim 64, wherein each primary game has at least one bonus award opportunity triggering event and the processor and the display device are operable to provide at least one bonus award opportunity upon the occurrence of each bonus award opportunity triggering event but not when the multi-trigger bonus is provided.

78. A method for playing a gaming device, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) displaying a plurality of primary games;

(b) enabling a player to play the primary games; and

(c) providing at least one multi-trigger bonus to the player upon an occurrence of at least one triggering event in each of at least two of said primary games in a same play of said primary games.

79. The method of claim 78, which includes the step of providing to the player at least one bonus award opportunity upon the occurrence of each triggering event.

80. The method of claim 78, which includes the step of providing to the player at least one bonus award opportunity upon the occurrence of each triggering event but not when the multi-trigger bonus is provided to the player.

81. The method of claim 78, which includes the step of providing to the player at least one bonus award opportunity upon the occurrence of each bonus award opportunity triggering event.

82. The method of claim 78, which includes the step of providing to the player at least one bonus award opportunity upon the occurrence of each bonus award opportunity triggering event but not when the multi-trigger bonus is provided to the player.

83. The method of claim 78, which includes the step of operating the primary games through a data network.

84. The method of claim 83, wherein the data network is an internet.