Gaming machine with interactive scorecard

• US 8,002,629 B2
• Filed: 12/14/2007
• Issued: 08/23/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Aristocrat Technologies Australia PTY Limited (Aristocrat Leisure Limited)
• Original Assignee: Aristocrat Technologies Australia PTY Limited (Aristocrat Leisure Limited)
• Inventors: Bryant, Natalie, Graham, Philippa, Bennett, Nicholas Luke
• Primary Examiner(s): Suhol; Dmitry
• Assistant Examiner(s): RADA, ALEX P
• Application Number:
  US11/957,130
• Publication Number:
  US 20080096640A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,348 Days
• Field of Search: 463 12- 13, 463 16- 18, 463 22- 20, 463 25- 29, 273/138.1, 273/139, 273/292
• US Class Current: 463/20
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3211 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3213 Details of moving display elements, e.g. spinning reels, tumbling members

Abstract

A gaming machine (10) includes a controller for controlling operation of the machine (10), a primary display (16) is provided on which a game to be played is displayed. A secondary display (18) is also provided on which a scorecard (22), indicating prizes to be paid upon a winning game being achieved, is displayed. The game and the scorecard (22) are controlled by the controller and the scorecard (22) is a dynamic scorecard (22) with the relationship between combinations of symbols constituting a winning game and the prizes awarded by the scorecard (22) for that particular game changing from game to game.

Claims

1. A gaming machine comprising:

a controller for controlling operation of the machine;

a primary display on which a game to be played is displayed;

a secondary display on which a scorecard, indicating prizes to be paid upon a winning game being achieved, is displayed, the game and the scorecard being controlled by the controller; and

a dynamic scorecard with a combination of symbols indicated by the scorecard as constituting a prizewinning combination of symbols, said symbols randomly changing from game to game without player intervention, and

wherein the dynamic scorecard is configured to indicate a plurality of prizes corresponding to a respective combination of symbols and wherein the prize corresponding to a plurality of combinations of symbols is changed by shuffling the correspondence between prizes and respective combinations of symbols from game to game.

2. The gaming machine of claim 1, and in which the combination of symbols of said scorecard changes depending on the result of a game played.

3. The gaming machine of claim 1, and in which the scorecard affects the result of the game.

4. The gaming machine of claim 1, and in which changes in the scorecard affects the result of the game.

5. The gaming machine of claim 1, and further including an animated character, said animated character being displayed on said second display and indicates changes to the scorecard.

6. The gaming machine of claim 1, and in which the game and the scorecard are displayed on a single screen of the gaming machine.

7. The gaming machine of claim 1, and in which the game is displayed on one screen with the scorecard being displayed on a second screen.

8. The gaming machine of claim 7 in which the second screen is arranged in a top box of the gaming machine.

9. The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein the dynamic scorecard is configured to indicate a plurality of prizes corresponding to a respective combination of symbols and wherein the prize values corresponding to respective combinations of symbols is not determined according to a relative likelihood of each combination of symbols arising in the game.

10. The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein the dynamic scorecard is configured to indicate a plurality of prizes corresponding to a respective combination of symbols and wherein the prize values corresponding to respective combinations of symbols is not determined according to a relative rank of each combination of symbols.

11. The gaming machine of claim 1, and wherein the dynamic scorecard includes a reel configured to indicate at least one part of a prize corresponding to a combination of symbols.

12. The gaming machine of claim 11 wherein the dynamic scorecard includes a plurality of reels configured to a indicate a prize corresponding to a combination of symbols.

13. The gaming machine of claim 11 wherein the dynamic scorecard is configured to indicate a plurality of prizes corresponding to a respective combination of symbols and wherein a prize value associated with a first combination of symbols having a corresponding rank is displayed on a first group of one or more reels, and a prize value associated with a second combination of symbols having a corresponding rank is displayed on a second group of one or more reels, wherein the second combination of symbols has a higher rank than the first group of symbols and the second group of reels includes more reels than the first group of reels.

14. A gaming machine comprising:

a controller for controlling operation of the machine;

a primary display on which a game to be played is displayed;

a secondary display on which a scorecard, indicating prizes to be paid upon a winning game being achieved, is displayed, the game and the scorecard being controlled by the controller; and

a dynamic scorecard with a combination of symbols indicated by the scorecard as constituting a prizewinning combination of symbols, said symbols randomly changing from game to game without player intervention, and

wherein the dynamic scorecard is configured to indicate a plurality of prizes corresponding to a respective combination of symbols and wherein the prize corresponding to a plurality of combinations of symbols is changed by shuffling the correspondence between prizes and respective combinations of symbols from game to game.

15. A gaming machine of claim 14, and

wherein said change from game to game is implemented by an animated display feature.

16. The gaming machine of claim 15 wherein the animated display feature is implemented using one or more animated spinning reels.

17. The gaming machine of claim 15 wherein the prize indicated by the scorecard for a particular combination of symbols is not related to prize value for a given symbol combination as calculated on the basis of the size of a possible prize pool.

18. The gaming machine of claim 15 wherein the animated display feature is implemented by an animated character.

19. The gaming machine of claim 14 wherein the dynamic scorecard is configured to indicate a plurality of prizes corresponding to a respective combination of symbols and wherein the prize values corresponding to respective combinations of symbols is not determined according to a relative likelihood of each combination of symbols arising in the game.

20. The gaming machine of claim 14 wherein the dynamic scorecard is configured to indicate a plurality of prizes corresponding to a respective combination of symbols and wherein the prize values corresponding to respective combinations of symbols is not determined according to a relative rank of each combination of symbols.

21. The gaming machine of claim 14, and wherein the dynamic scorecard includes a reel configured to indicate at least one part of a prize corresponding to a combination of symbols.

22. The gaming machine of claim 21 wherein the dynamic scorecard includes a plurality of reels configured to a indicate a prize corresponding to a combination of symbols.

23. The gaming machine of claim 21 wherein the dynamic scorecard is configured to indicate a plurality of prizes corresponding to a respective combination of symbols and wherein a prize value associated with a first combination of symbols having a corresponding rank is displayed on a first group of one or more reels, and a prize value associated with a second combination of symbols having a corresponding rank is displayed on a second group of one or more reels, wherein the second combination of symbols has a higher rank than the first group of symbols and the second group of reels includes more reels than the first group of reels.

24. The gaming machine of claim 14, and wherein the prize indicated by the scorecard for a particular combination of symbols is not related to prize value for a given symbol combination as calculated on the basis of the size of a possible prize pool.