Wagering game and system for its implementation

• US 6,386,975 B1
• Filed: 05/08/2000
• Issued: 05/14/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kimberly Trebing
• Original Assignee: Peterson, Vernon J.
• Inventors: Peterson, Vernon J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Harrison, Jessica
• Assistant Examiner(s): HOTALING, JOHN M
• Application Number:
  US09/566,762
• Time in Patent Office: 736 Days
• Field of Search: 463/16-20, 463/25, 463/29, 463/22, 463/23, 463/42
• US Class Current: 463/16
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2003/00167 with a jackpot
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 3/00157 Casino or betting games horse races A63F3/00082

Abstract

Multi-round game played on survivor principle. Survivor of each round enters succeeding round until one survivor remains. Retirees from each round may enroll in subsidiary game, the number of such games being defined by the number of positions in the set of symbols with which the games is played, e.g., a five-position set of symbols allows one primary game and four subsidiary games, all of which are governed by the same symbol-selection sequence. Each symbol-set which is active to the final selection is eligible to enroll in a summary game, in which a single winning symbol-set may receive a major jackpot, or all players may share in division of the jackpot. Implementation of the game involves data processing means for game-hosting and accounting purposes; and varied communication means for interaction between all parties.

Claims

1. A wagering game in which a player enrolls in a predefined manner and, upon enrolling, is assigned a unique set of symbols (symbol-set), said symbol-set consisting of a combination of commonly-recognized unique indicia such as;

numerals, alphabetical characters, animal figures, names of precious metals or gems, colors or their names, household objects or other common unique indicia subject to differential characterization,

said symbol-sets ordered in a predetermined progression determined by a position, such as numerals in the first position, alphabetical characters in the second position, then animal figures in the third position, and so forth;

the wagering game proceeding by addressing, one position at a time, each position in the predetermined progression, and selecting, by predetermined means, said unique indicia one at a time from a collection of unique indicia assigned to that position until only one unique indicia remains unselected in each position, thereby identifying said unique indicia from the symbol-set assigned to the player which has survived the selection process; and

whereby the player assigned said unique indicia is identified as a winner of the wagering game for the first position, the winner being eligible to continue playing the wagering game in the next position of the predetermined progression.

2. The wagering game of claim 1 wherein the unique indicia utilized to construct the symbol-sets consist of one or more unique indicia of a specific class, such as numerals or alphabetical characters, and which may be repeated as necessary to populate a predetermined number of positions;

whereby a defined plurality of unique indicia, such as the numerals “

0”

through “

9”

, serves as the basis for an unlimited number of symbol-sets, and thus enables an unlimited number of players to participate in the wagering game.

3. The wagering game of claim 1 wherein the wagering game may comprise adjustment means for the symbol-set assigned to the player by adding one or more positions to an extant sequence, and by assigning a symbol, selected by predetermined means, to each position so added;

the adjustment means enabling the following actions;

whereby an unlimited number of players are enabled, under specified conditions, to enroll in a wagering game in progress which may be expanded to accommodate their participation;

whereby two or more wagering games in progress may be combined;

the symbol-sets in the expanded or combined wagering games may be adjusted by the adjustment means so as to avoid duplication of symbol-sets in the combined or adjusted wagering games.

4. The wagering game of claim 1 where the symbol-sets which include the selected unique indicia are not eligible to continue to participate in the wagering game, become eligible to participate in a secondary derivative wagering game in which the player'"'"'s assigned symbol-set, less the selected unique indicia, may be enrolled;

and which is played simultaneous with the initial wagering game, with the unique indicia selection proceeding on the next position of the predetermined progression of the symbol-set, and with the effect that the unique indicia selection for the second position in the initial game also constitutes the unique indicia selection for the first position of the secondary derivative game;

this same process continuing by resolving the surviving unique indicia each by the unique indicia selection for each position in the predetermined progression, with the symbol-sets characterized by the selected unique indicia qualifying for derivative games—

tertiary, quartiary, and so on, until the unique indicia selection for the final position for the initial wagering game;

thereby resolving the initial and all derivative wagering games by identifying the surviving symbol-set for each game, and thus identifies the players assigned the surviving symbol-sets as the winners of the wagering games in which those symbol-sets are finally enrolled.

5. The wagering game of claim 4 in which all symbol-sets which are enrolled through final symbol selection are eligible to enroll in a summary wagering game, in which the technique of player polling is utilized to select a surviving unique indicia for each position, one position at a time, until the poll for the final position completes the identification of the surviving symbol-set, and thus identifies the player assigned that symbol-set as the winner of the summary wagering game;

where players who persist in their enrollment throughout the course of the wagering game receive the opportunity to participate in the summary wagering game.

6. The wagering game of claim 5 in which the symbol-set selected by the defined player-polling technique is not assigned to an enrolled player, resulting in a predefined payout being divided among the enrolled players in predetermined proportions;

whereby players may pursue a strategy in which each player seeks to participate in the summary game payout, rather than seek a singular win-or-lose result of the wagering game or the derivative games.

7. The wagering game of claim 1 in which players may exercise defined options during the course of play which options allow players to pursue preferred strategies or to wager on specific unique indicia or symbol-sets which they may not have been assigned during the enrollment process including;

the player may increase his wager on the symbol-set assigned to him, by a predetermined amount, at designated points in the game;

whereby a player may seek a larger return for a wager on a preferred symbol-set;

the player may retire a symbol-set from the wagering game, in exchange for receiving a specified multiple of his enrollment fee for that symbol-set, said multiple increasing as the game progresses;

the player may accept a fixed return rather than risk an uncertain result;

the player may offer other players equity in his assigned symbol-set, by auction or direct negotiation, at specified points in the progress of the wagering game;

the player may allow other players the opportunity to share prospective winnings;

the player may participate in pari-mutuel wagering on predefined events in the wagering game, such as;

the likelihood that a specific unique indicia will be selected at a specified point in the selection process;

the likelihood that the specific unique indicia will not be selected, and thus will survive to become pert of the symbol-set which wins the wagering game;

the likelihood that a specific symbol-set will not be selected, and thus will win the wagering game.

8. The wagering game of claim 1 wherein the means for unique indicia selection is by polling of the enrolled players (player-polling), in which each player designates the unique indicia to be selected for each position, or for a designated position such as the final position, acting in the knowledge that the selected unique indicia will be retired from the game;

whereby each player directly influences the outcome of the game, by affecting the likelihood that certain unique indicia will be retired while others unique indicia will survive.

9. The wagering game of claim 1 in which said game is hosted on a device such as a

digital computer, the physical location of which is not relevant to play of the game, nor necessarily known to the players, and thus is known as a “

virtual wagering game”

; and

in which a plurality of communications means may be employed to link players with said virtual wagering game, such communications means including all publicly accessible modalities, from the group consisting of pagers, satellite terminals, telephones, wireless phones, internet and e-mail; and

such predefined private modalities as the players may elect to utilize;

whereby a geographically-diverse corpus of players may participate in the wagering game without constraints of location, cultural communications preferences, or local technology limitations.

10. The wagering game of claim 1 in which players may select, from a predetermined set of potential choices, a sequence of choices which permit the wagering game to be played for the player by a third party or by an automaton such as a computer program, said third party or automaton executing each pre-selected choice at the appropriate point in the wagering game;

whereby players can participate in said wagering game without being either physically or virtually present at any particular site, or without being in direct communication with any party to the wagering game, during the course of the game.

11. The wagering game of claim 1 in which players from multiple and diverse jurisdictions are enabled to participate in the wagering game by establishing a game currency account, in which said players may deposit local currencies, or other acceptable items of economic value, which are convert ed to game currency at predetermined or negotiated rates;

and players may utilize the game currency balance in said game currency account to enroll and otherwise participate in said wagering game;

whereby players in any place of residence or location, permanent or transient, are enabled to participate in the wagering game.

12. The wagering game of claim 1 in which symbol-sets not otherwise assigned, may be enrolled by players who may seek to be assigned symbol-sets containing or comprised of certain unique indicia or unique indicia combinations preferred by the players;

whereby players are enabled to hold a multiplicity of symbol-sets in a particular game, and to enroll additional symbol-sets in order to pursue preferred strategies for participation in the wagering game.

13. I claim a wagering game with the following:

means to enable players to enroll with a defined game-host;

means to assign unique indicia, selected by predefined means from predefined universes of unique indicia, to enrolled players, and to array assigned unique indicia in a symbol-set in a predetermined order such that each unique indicia occupies a position in the array reserved for that universe of unique indicia;

means to select unique indicia, position by position, retiring each unique indicia selected, until one unique indicia remains unselected per position, the totality of unselected unique indicia defining the surviving symbol-set, the player assigned that surviving symbol-set being the winner of the wagering game;

means to utilize symbol-sets enrolled in the wagering game, but retired by virtue of having a unique indicia selected, are utilized to create a derivative secondary wagering game, played in like manner; and

symbol-sets retired from the secondary wagering game utilized to create a derivative tertiary game, played in like manner;

with this process of derivative game creation continuing until identification of the final surviving unique indicia of the first wagering game is accomplished; and

wherein such final unique indicia identification resolves the original wagering game and all of the wagering games derived from it;

means to communicate predetermined types of information between and among enrolled players, and between players and the host of the wagering game, including a set of instructions promulgated before the wagering game begins, by use of which a designated agent of the enrolled player may, by adhering to the set of instructions, play the game as a proxy for the enrolled player;

means to enroll players in a summary wagering game, for participation in which players will have qualified by persisting in the original wagering game or any of the derivative wagering games through final unique indicia identification in those games, and in which the summary wagering game is resolved by polling the enrolled players to select unique indicia to be retired, such selection proceeding position by position, with the unique indicia receiving the fewest votes being the surviving unique indicia for each position, the symbol-set so defined being the winning symbol-set for the summary game;

means to distribute the payout for the summary game to the enrolled players, in predetermined proportions, in the event that the surviving symbol-set is not assigned to an enrolled player;

means for players to exercise predetermined options during the course of the initial and derivative games, from the group consisting of;

increasing wagers on assigned symbol-sets, agreeing to retire assigned symbol-sets in return for a specific and predetermined multiple of the fee paid to enroll said symbol-sets, auctioning all or part of the equity in an assigned symbol-set to other parties, and pari-mutuel wagering on predefined eventualities which might occur dining the course of the wagering games.