EVENT-BASED GAMING OPERATION FOR GAMING DEVICE

• US 20120172130A1
• Filed: 12/29/2010
• Published: 07/05/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Acres Technology
• Original Assignee: Patent Investment & Licensing Company
• Inventors: Acres, John F.
• Granted Patent: US 9,721,423 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3223 Architectural aspects of a gaming system, e.g. internal configuration, master/slave, wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3225 Data transfer within a gaming system, e.g. data sent between gaming machines and users
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3258 Cumulative reward schemes, e.g. jackpots
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/326 Game play aspects of gaming systems
• 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

Embodiments of the present invention are directed to gaming devices and gaming systems that are configured to implement event-based gaming operations. Here, a gaming device includes a game event list that has game outcomes associated with each entry in the game event list. The game event list is generated before game play on the gaming device by selecting general game outcome types or specific game outcomes for each of the entries in the game event list. During game play, a game counter is incremented to a next entry in the game event list and an associated game outcome is displayed on the gaming device during the gaming event.

Claims

1. A method of determining a plurality of game outcomes, the method comprising:

initializing a game event list;

associating a pointer with a first entry in the game event list;

selecting a game outcome for the first entry in the game event list;

incrementing the pointer so that it is associated with a second entry in the game list;

selecting a game outcome for the second entry in the game event list; and

finalizing the game event list.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising repeating the steps of incrementing the pointer to a next entry in the game list and selecting a game outcome for the next entry in the game event list for all entries in the game event list.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein initializing a game event list includes erasing previously stored information for each entry in the game event list.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein initializing a game event list includes associating the game event list with an identified player.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein associating the game event list with an identified player includes associating the game event list in a portion of a player database associated with the identified player.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein initializing a game event list includes associating the game event list with a wager size.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second selected game outcomes are game outcome types.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the game outcome types include an indication of a winning game outcome or a losing game outcome.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the game outcome types include at least one of a nudge game outcome, a bonus spin game outcome, and a near win game outcome.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second selected game outcomes are specific game outcomes determined from a base game paytable.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second selected game outcomes are loss frequency values.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the loss frequency values are selected from a predetermined range of values.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the loss frequency values are selected from a list of predefined values.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein selecting game outcomes includes randomly rearranging a predefined list of loss frequency values to establish a list order.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining a distribution count for the selected game outcomes.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising selecting a new game outcome when a previously selected game outcome does not meet the distribution count.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising selecting a new game outcome when a previously selected game outcome does not meet a predefined condition for the game event list.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein finalizing a game event list includes storing the game event list in a game memory.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein finalizing a game event list includes storing the game event list in a portion of a player database associated with an identified player.

20. A method of determining a plurality of game outcomes, the method comprising:

determining a plurality of game outcomes from a base game paytable;

recording the plurality of game outcomes in a game outcome list;

ascertaining if a bonus spin event is to be included in the game outcome list; and

executing a bonus spin routine when it is determined that bonus spin event is to be included in the game outcome list, the bonus spin routine including;

selecting a losing game outcome within the game outcome list, and

replacing the selected losing game outcome with a bonus spin indicator.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein selecting a losing game outcome within the game outcome list includes selecting a losing game outcome that is followed by a winning game outcome in the game outcome list, where the bonus spin indicator instructs a game processor to display a notification to a player that a bonus spin has been received and proceed to the winning outcome in the following game without receiving another wager during game play.

22. A method of operating a gaming device to play a gaming event from a game event list, the method comprising:

receiving an initiating input for a gaming event;

incrementing a game counter to indicate an entry in the game event list;

determining a game outcome type associated with the list entry indicated by the game counter;

determining a game outcome for the gaming event, the game outcome being conditioned to be of a same type as the game outcome type associated with the indicated game event list entry; and

displaying the determined game outcome.

24. A game device comprising:

a player interface panel including at least one game initiation device;

a memory to store a game event list of game outcomes;

a processor configured to determine the game outcomes stored in the game event list prior to receiving a game initiating input, where the processor is further configured to increment a game counter to indicated entries in the game event list responsive to game initiating inputs; and

a game display to show a game outcome when the game counter indicates a game event list entry associated with the game outcome.