Gaming device having improved award offer bonus scheme

• US 6,506,118 B1
• Filed: 08/24/2001
• Issued: 01/14/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Baerlocher, Anthony J., Kaminkow, Joseph E., Palmer, Gregg J.
• Primary Examiner(s): ONEILL, MICHAEL W
• Application Number:
  US09/682,368
• Time in Patent Office: 508 Days
• Field of Search: 463/25, 463/28, 463/16, 463/20
• 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 17/3262 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 present invention is a gaming device having an improved award offer bonus scheme wherein the player may improve their award during the bonus round. The bonus game enables the player to select an award offer from a plurality of award offers. The gaming device enables the player to modify the selected award offer, creating a subsequent or modified award, with the idea of increasing the award offer to receive a greater or higher award during a bonus game.

Claims

1. A gaming device having a game, said gaming device comprising:

a plurality of potential initial offers;

a plurality of rankings adapted to be obtained by a player in said game;

an offer modifier associated with each ranking;

a plurality of subsequent offers which are based on one of the initial offers and at least one of the offer modifiers associated with said rankings;

a display device for displaying said initial offers, rankings, offer modifiers and subsequent offers to the player;

an offer acceptor associated with at least one of the initial or subsequent offers for enabling the player to accept said offer made to the player; and

a processor for communicating with the display device and said offer acceptor, wherein the processor, display device and offer acceptor are adapted to;

make one of the initial offers to the player, enable the player to obtain at least one of the rankings, make at least one of the subsequent offers to the player which is based on said initial offer and the offer modifier associated with said ranking obtained by the player, and enable the player to accept at least one of said offers or obtain at least one ranking to obtain at least one subsequent offer.

2. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein each subsequent offer is a sum of the initial offer and the offer modifier associated with the ranking obtained by the player.

3. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein at least one of the subsequent offers is based on the initial offer made to the player and a plurality of offer modifiers associated with a plurality of rankings obtained by the player.

4. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein at least one of the subsequent offers is a sum of the initial offer made to the player and a plurality of offer modifiers associated with a plurality of rankings obtained by the player.

5. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein each subsequent offer made to the player is based on the initial offer made to the player and each offer modifier associated with all of the rankings obtained by the player.

6. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein each subsequent offer made to the player is a sum of the initial offer made to the player and each offer modifier associated with all the rankings obtained by the player.

7. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes a plurality of different offer modifiers, wherein one of the different offer modifiers is associated with each of the rankings.

8. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the offer modifiers include positive, negative and zero values.

9. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes means controlled by the processor for enabling the player to determine the initial offer provided to the player from the plurality of potential initial offers.

10. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes a set of a plurality of player selectable selections, wherein the processor associates a plurality of the initial offers with said selections, and the initial offer made to the player is based on the selection picked by the player from said set.

11. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes a plurality of player selectable selections, wherein a plurality of the potential initial offers are associated with the selections, and the initial offer made to the player is the initial offer associated with the selection picked by the player.

12. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes at least one set of a plurality of player selectable selections, wherein a plurality of the rankings are associated with said selections, and each ranking obtained by the player is based on one of the selections picked by the player from one of said sets.

13. The gaming device of claim 12, which includes at least two sets of different player selectable selections, wherein each ranking obtained by the player is based on one of the selections picked by the player from a different set.

14. The gaming device of claim 13, wherein the set from which the player selects is based on a previous ranking obtained by the player.

15. The gaming device of claim 12, which includes at least two sets of player select able selections, wherein an a average value for the rankings associated with the selections in one set is less than an average value for the rankings associated with the selections in another set.

16. The gaming device of claim 12, which includes at least two sets of player selectable selections, wherein one of said sets include more selections than at least one other set.

17. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the rankings are divided into at least two ranges, wherein the offer modifiers associated with the rankings in each range are selected from the group consisting of:

positive values, negative values, and positive and negative values.

18. The gaming device of claim 17, wherein the positive values include zero values.

19. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the rankings are divided into at least two ranges, wherein the offer modifiers associated with the rankings in a first range include positive values and the offer modifiers associated with rankings in a second range include positive and negative values.

20. The gaming device of claim 19, wherein the second range includes zero values.

21. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein rankings are positive, zero and negative points.

22. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the offer modifiers are selected from the group consisting of:

(a) positive values;

(b) positive and zero values;

(c) positive and negative values;

(d) positive, zero and negative values.

23. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein a plurality of the offer modifiers include a value component and a positive or negative component which are determined by the processor.

24. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein a plurality of the offer modifiers include a value component and a positive or negative component which are independently determined by the processor.

25. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the processor enables the player to accept each offer made to the player.

26. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the processor replays the game if a predetermined ranking is obtained by the player.

27. The gaming device of claim 26, wherein the predetermined ranking is a highest ranking.

28. A gaming device having a game, said gaming device comprising:

a plurality of potential initial offers;

a plurality of rankings adapted to be obtained by a player in said game;

an offer modifier associated with each ranking, wherein at least one of the offer modifiers includes a value component and a positive or negative component;

a plurality of subsequent offers which are based on one of the initial offers and at least one of the offer modifiers associated with said rankings;

a display device for displaying said initial offers, rankings, offer modifiers and subsequent offers to the player;

an offer acceptor associated with at least one of the initial or subsequent offers for enabling the player to accept said offer made to the player; and

a processor for communicating with the display device and said offer acceptor, wherein the processor, display device and offer acceptor are adapted to;

make one of the initial offers to the player, enable the player to obtain at least one ranking, make at least one of the subsequent offers to the player, and enable the player to accept at least one of said offers.

29. The gaming device of claim 28, wherein the processor independently determines the value component and the positive or negative component of said modifier.

30. A gaming device comprising:

a plurality of potential initial offers;

a plurality of offer modifiers;

a plurality of subsequent offers which are based on one of the initial offers and at least one of the offer modifiers;

a display device for displaying said initial offers, offer modifiers and subsequent offers to the player;

an offer acceptor associated with at least one of the initial or subsequent offers for enabling the player to accept said offer made to the player; and

a processor for communicating with the display device and said offer acceptor, wherein the processor, display device and offer acceptor are adapted to;

make one of the initial offers to the player, enable the player to obtain one of the offer modifiers, make at least one of the subsequent offers to the player which is based on said initial offer and the offer modifier obtained by the player, and enable the player to accept at least one of said offers or obtain one of the offer modifiers to obtain at least one subsequent offer.

31. The gaming device of claim 30, wherein each subsequent offer is a sum of the initial offer and the offer modifier obtained by the player.

32. The gaming device of claim 30, wherein at least one of the subsequent offers is based on the initial offer made to the player and a plurality of offer modifiers obtained by the player.

33. The gaming device of claim 30, wherein at least one of the subsequent offers is a sum of the initial offer made to the player and a plurality of offer modifiers obtained by the player.

34. The gaming device of claim 30, wherein each subsequent offer made to the player is based on the initial offer made to the player and each offer modifier obtained by the player.

35. The gaming device of claim 30, wherein each subsequent offer made to the player is a sum of the initial offer made to the player and each offer modifier obtained by the player.

36. The gaming device of claim 30, wherein the offer modifiers include positive, negative and zero values.

37. The gaming device of claim 30, which includes means for enabling the player to determine the initial offer provided to the player from the plurality of potential initial offers.

38. The gaming device of claim 30, which includes a set of player selectable selections, wherein the processor associates the initial offers with said selections, and the initial offer made to the player is based on the selection picked by the player from said set.

39. The gaming device of claim 30, which includes a plurality of player selectable selections, wherein a plurality of the potential initial offers are associated with the selections, and the initial offer made to the player is the initial offer associated with the selection picked by the player.

40. The gaming device of claim 30, which includes at least one set of a plurality of player selectable selections, wherein a plurality of the offer modifiers are associated with said selections, and each offer modifier obtained by the player is based on one of the selections picked by the player from one of said sets.

41. The gaming device of claim 40, which includes at least two sets of different player selectable selections, wherein each offer modifier obtained by the player is based on one of the selections picked by the player from a different set.

42. The gaming device of claim 30, wherein the offer modifiers rankings are divided into at least two ranges, wherein the offer modifiers in each range are selected from the group consisting of:

positive values, negative values, and positive and negative values.

43. The gaming device of claim 42, wherein the positive values include zero values.

44. The gaming device of claim 30, wherein the offer modifiers are divided into at least two ranges, wherein the offer modifiers in a first range include positive values and the offer modifiers associated with rankings in a second range include positive and negative values.

45. The gaming device of claim 30, wherein a plurality of the offer modifiers include a value component and a positive or negative component which are determined by the processor.

46. The gaming device of claim 30, wherein the processor enables the player to accept each offer.

47. A gaming device comprising:

a display device; and

a processor which communicates with said display device, wherein said processor and said display device;

(a) provide an initial offer to a player, the initial offer having an initial ranking;

(b) generate a change in the ranking;

(c) determine a new ranking using the initial ranking and the change in the ranking;

(d) determine a new offer, which is an offer associated with the new ranking; and

(e) enable said player to accept or reject the new offer; and

(f) repeat steps (b) to (e) at least once if the player does not accept the new offer.