System and method for communicating game session information

• US 7,874,914 B2
• Filed: 08/07/2003
• Issued: 01/25/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Jorasch, James A., Sparico, Thomas M., Fincham, Magdalena M., Santisi, Steven M., Gelman, Geoffrey M., Walker, Jay S., Gilman, Norman C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vo; Peter DungBa
• Assistant Examiner(s): McCulloch; William H
• Application Number:
  US10/636,520
• Publication Number:
  US 20040147308A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,728 Days
• Field of Search: 463/17, 463/29, 463/42, 463/20, 463/25
• US Class Current: 463/25
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3232 wherein the operator is informed
• 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

Abstract

According to one or more embodiments of the present invention, a contract is established for a session comprising two or more plays of at least one gaming device. Information about the game play session, such as outcomes generated at the at least one gaming device, is communicated to a player device. The information is presented to a player via the player device.

Claims

1. A method of operating a gaming system, said method comprising:

causing at least one gaming device to generate a plurality of different random outcomes of a wagering game, wherein;

(a) each of the plurality of different random outcomes is associated with a wager amount and is generated prior to a player viewing any of the plurality of different random outcomes, and

(b) the plurality of different random outcomes is generated in accordance with at least one player price parameter selected by the player for a gaming session defined by the plurality of different random outcomes, the at least one player price parameter including at least one game related variable other than a quantity of the plurality of different random outcomes to be generated, the at least one player price parameter defining, at least in part, a session price providable in exchange for the gaming session which is less than a sum of the wager amounts associated with all of the plurality of different random outcomes; and

causing a second device different from the at least one gaming device to output each of the plurality of different random outcomes to the player upon receiving a value corresponding to the session price.

2. The method of claim 1, which includes:

storing an indication of each of the plurality of different random outcomes on a tangible medium; and

providing the tangible medium to the player in exchange for the player providing the value corresponding to the session price, wherein the tangible medium is readable by the second device such that upon reading the tangible medium, the second device displays a graphical representation of the plurality of different random outcomes.

3. The method of claim 2, which includes storing the indication of each of the plurality of different random outcomes on the tangible medium after all of the plurality of different random outcomes have been generated.

4. The method of claim 2, said tangible medium including a disc readable by a Digital Video Disc (DVD) player and the second device including a television in communication with the DVD player, wherein said second device is configured to display said graphical representation on the television in response to the disc being inserted in the DVD player.

5. The method of claim 1, which includes enabling the player to provide the value corresponding to the session price using at least one input device of the second device.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein at least one of the plurality of different random outcomes is not displayed on a display device of the at least one gaming device which generated said at least one of the plurality of different random outcomes.

7. The method of claim 1, which includes causing the second device to output the plurality of different random outcomes in a second order different from a first order in which the at least one gaming device generated the plurality of different random outcomes.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

causing the at least one gaming device to determine a net payout associated with the plurality of different random outcomes; and

causing the second device to provide the determined net payout to the player after outputting each of the plurality of different random outcomes.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request from the player to generate the plurality of different random outcomes; and

causing the at least one gaming device to generate the plurality of different random outcomes in response to receiving said request from the player.

10. A method of operating a gaming system, said method comprising:

causing at least one gaming device to determine a different payout associated with each of a plurality of game plays of a play session, the play session encompassing the plurality of game plays, wherein;

(a) each of the plurality of game plays is associated with a wager amount, and

(b) the different payouts associated with each of the plurality of game plays are determined in accordance with at least one player price parameter selected by a player for the play session, the at least one player price parameter including at least one game related variable other than a quantity of the plurality of game plays to be generated and defining, at least in part, a session price associated with the play session, the session price being less than a sum of the wager amounts associated with all of the plurality of game plays;

determining a net payout for the play session, the net payout comprising a sum of the payouts associated with each of the plurality of game plays minus the session price;

storing an indication of the net payout on a tangible medium;

storing a graphical representation of each of the plurality of game plays on the tangible medium such that the player may discern at least one of the different payouts associated with at least one of the game plays by viewing the graphical representation; and

selling the tangible medium to the player in exchange for the player providing a value corresponding to the session price.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the tangible medium is readable by a second device different from the at least one gaming device, and wherein the second device is configured to display the graphical representation stored on the tangible medium.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising receiving, from the player, an indication of a selection of the play session from among a plurality of different available play sessions.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the play session is the selected play session, and which includes receiving the indication of a the selected play session before causing the at least one gaming device to determine the payout associated with each of the plurality of game plays of the play session.

14. The method of claim 12, which includes receiving the indication of the selected play session is after storing the indication of the net payout and the graphical representation of each of the plurality of game plays on the tangible medium.

15. The method of claim 10, which includes selling the tangible medium after causing the at least one gaming device to determine the payout associated with each of the plurality of game plays of the play session.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein at least one payout associated with at least one of the plurality of game plays of the play session is not displayed to the player prior to said at least one payout being stored on the tangible medium, such that the outcome is first viewable by the player after the player purchases the tangible medium.

17. The method of claim 10, further comprising enabling a credit meter balance associated with the at least one gaming device to indicate a negative number prior to causing the at least one gaming device to determine the payout associated with at least one of the plurality of game plays of the play session.

18. A method of operating a gaming system, said method comprising:

causing at least one gaming device to determine a plurality of different random outcomes, wherein the plurality of different random outcomes is generated in accordance with at least one player price parameter selected by a player for a gaming session defined by the plurality of different random outcomes, the at least one player price parameter comprising a game related variable other than a quantity of the different random outcomes to be generated, the at least one player price parameter defining, at least in part, a session price providable in exchange for the gaming session, the session price being less than a sum of a plurality of wager amounts associated with all of the plurality of different random outcomes;

causing the at least one gaming device to produce a graphical representation of each of the plurality of different random outcomes for display on a second device, the second device different and remotely located from the gaming device; and

enabling the player to view the graphical representation of the plurality of different random outcomes on the second device in exchange for the player providing the value corresponding to the session price.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising sending an indication of each of the plurality of different random outcomes to the second device.

20. The method of claim 19, which includes causing the at least one gaming device to send the indication of each of the plurality of different random outcomes to the second device.

21. The method of claim 19, which includes causing, the at least one gaming device to produce the graphical representation of each of the plurality of different random outcomes based on the received indication of each of the plurality of different random outcomes.

22. The method of claim 21, which includes:

causing the graphical representation of the plurality of different random outcomes to be stored on a tangible medium readable by the second device, the graphical representation of the plurality of different random outcomes being one from which the player may discern at least one of the plurality of different random outcomes by viewing the graphical representation of the plurality of different random outcomes; and

selling the tangible medium to the player in exchange for the player providing the value corresponding to the session price.

23. The method of claim 18, which includes enabling, the player to view the graphical representation of each of the plurality of different random outcomes after the at least one gaming device has generated each of the plurality of different random outcomes.

24. The method of claim 18, wherein the second device includes a television.

25. A method of operating a gaming system, said method comprising:

receiving a request from a player to receive a payout associated with a set of different random outcomes previously generated by a gaming device, the set of different random outcomes associated with a code and having been generated in accordance with at least one player price parameter selected by the player for a gaming session defined by the set of different random outcomes, the at least one player price parameter including a game related variable other than a quantity of the plurality of different random outcomes to be generated, the at least one player price parameter defining, at least in part, a session price providable in exchange for the gaming session which is less than a sum of a plurality of wager amounts associated with all of the plurality of different random outcomes;

causing a second device to receive an identifier and an indication of the set of different random outcomes from the player, the second device different from a first device at which the request to receive the payout was received;

determining whether the code associated with the set of different random outcomes matches the indication of the set of different random outcomes; and

providing the payout associated with the set of different random outcomes to the player if the determination is that the code matches the indication of the set of different random outcomes.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the identifier includes a unique code associated with the set of different random outcomes provided to the player upon the player having provided the value corresponding to the session price.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein the identifier uniquely identifies the player.