Variable payout wager games

• US 9,129,483 B2
• Filed: 12/27/2013
• Issued: 09/08/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/12/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cork Group Trading Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Cork Group Trading Ltd.
• Inventors: Naicker, Theo
• Primary Examiner(s): Chan, Allen
• Application Number:
  US14/141,526
• Publication Number:
  US 20140106870A1
• Time in Patent Office: 620 Days
• Field of Search: 463 16- 22, 463/25, 463/26, 463/29, 463 39- 43
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 17/329 Regular and instant lottery, e.g. electronic scratch cards

Abstract

A central gaming server communicates with a gaming workstation over a network, such as a local area network or wide area computer network. The gaming server makes an initial determination of payout percentage for an instance of a game engaged in by the workstation, and generates results of turns of the game in accordance with the initial payout percentage. In one embodiment, the payout percentage is dynamically changed by the gaming server, and it generates additional results of turns of the game using the new payout percentage. Triggers for determining a new payout percentage could be that a predetermined number of turns of play at the initial payout percentage have occurred, the elapsing of a certain amount of time, or the player logging off the game and then logging back on. In further embodiments, the gaming workstation includes a processor and instructions for locally determining an initial payout percentage, the results of play, and dynamically changing the payout percentage without requiring communication with a central gaming server.

Claims

1. A method performed by a first gaming workstation that includes a processing unit, a memory, and a display, wherein the memory and the display are connected to the processing unit, and wherein the first gaming workstation communicates with a gaming server by way of a computer network, the method comprising:

storing, at the memory, an application for execution by the processing unit; and

executing, by the processing unit, the application, to perform a set functions, wherein the set of functions includes;

transmitting, from the first gaming workstation to the gaming server, a first datagram indicating a selected variable payout game;

receiving, by the first gaming workstation from the gaming server, a first set of datagrams containing a respective outcome of a turn of playing a first instance of the selected variable payout game, wherein each respective outcome of the turn of playing the first instance of the selected variable payout game is in accordance with a first, randomly selected, payout percentage, and wherein each received datagram of the first set of datagrams contains an outcome of a turn of playing the selected variable payout game at each of one or more other gaming workstations;

displaying, simultaneously by the display, the outcome of the turn of playing the first instance of the selected variable payout game and each outcome of the turn of playing the selected variable payout game at each of one or more other gaming workstation that are received in the same datagram of the first set of datagrams;

providing, by the first gaming workstation to the gaming server, data indicating an occurrence of an event at the first gaming workstation that warrants determining a second, randomly selected, payout percentage for a second instance of the selected variable payout game to be launched after completion of the first instance of the variable payout game;

receiving, by the first gaming workstation from the gaming server, a second set of datagrams containing a respective outcome of a turn of playing the second instance of the selected variable payout game launched in response to the occurrence of the event, wherein each respective outcome of the turn of playing the second instance of the selected variable payout game is in accordance with the second, randomly selected, payout percentage, and wherein each received datagram of the second set of datagrams contains an outcome of a turn of playing the selected variable payout game at each of one or more other gaming workstations; and

displaying, simultaneously by the display, the outcome of the turn of playing the second instance of the selected variable payout game and each outcome of the turn of playing the selected variable payout game at each of one or more other gaming workstation that are received in the same datagram of the second set of datagrams.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the data indicating the occurrence of the event includes data selected from the group consisting of (i) an elapsed time of play of the variable payout game, (ii) a number of consecutive instances of play of the variable payout game occurring using the first gaming workstation, (iii) a length of time elapsed since an instance of play last occurred on the first gaming workstation, and (iv) a log-on or log-off event occurring on the first gaming workstation.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first, randomly selected, payout percentage is different than the second, randomly selected, payout percentage.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first, randomly selected, payout percentage is identical to the second, randomly selected, payout percentage.

5. The method of claim 1,

wherein the first payout percentage and the second payout percentage are payout percentages among a given number of predetermined payout percentages, randomly selectable, for the variable payout game,

wherein each payout percentage of the given number of predetermined payout percentages is associated with a weighting factor,

wherein a probability of the first payout percentage being randomly selected for the variable payout game is based, at least in part, on a weighting factor associated with the first payout percentage, and

wherein a probability of the second payout percentage being randomly selected for the variable payout game is based, at least in part, on a weighting factor associated with the second payout percentage.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the first gaming workstation from the gaming server, a datagram containing an outcome of a turn of playing a third instance of the selected variable payout game, wherein the outcome of the turn of playing the third instance of the selected variable payout game is in accordance with a third, randomly selected, payout percentage; and

displaying, by the display of the first gaming workstation, the outcome of the turn of playing the third instance of the selected variable payout game.

7. The method of claim 1,

wherein the data indicating the occurrence of the event indicates a number of consecutive instances of play of the variable payout game occurring using the first gaming workstation, and

wherein the number of consecutive instances of play is conditioned on the first, randomly selected, payout percentage.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first gaming workstation and the one or more other workstations are part of a group of workstations for playing the selected variable payout game and for observing actions occurring substantially simultaneously on other workstations of the group.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying, simultaneously by the display when displaying the outcome of the turn of playing the first instance of the selected variable payout game and each outcome of the turn of playing the selected variable payout game at each of one or more other gaming workstation that are received in the same datagram of the first set of datagrams, a set of reels for a gaming workstation without an active player.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the selected variable payout game comprises a video slots game or an electronic scratch ticket game.

11. A method comprising:

initiating, by a gaming server, a new group of gaming work stations to carry out single-player variable payout games, wherein the new group includes up to a predetermined number of gaming work stations, and wherein the predetermined number of gaming work stations includes at least a first gaming workstation and a second gaming work station;

selecting, randomly by the gaming server, a first payout percentage for a variable payout game to be played at the first gaming workstation;

transmitting, by the gaming server to the first gaming workstation, a first datagram comprising a first outcome and a second outcome, wherein the first outcome is for an instance of play of the variable payout game at the first gaming workstation in accordance with the first payout percentage, and the second outcome is for an instance of play of the variable payout game at the second gaming workstation in accordance with a second payout percentage selected randomly by the gaming server for the variable payout game to be played at the second gaming workstation;

selecting, randomly by the gaming server, a third payout percentage, wherein the third payout percentage is for the variable payout game to be played at the first gaming workstation; and

transmitting, by the gaming server to the first gaming workstation, a second datagram comprising a third outcome and a fourth outcome, wherein the third outcome is for an instance of play of the variable payout game at the first gaming workstation in accordance with the third payout percentage, and the fourth outcome is for an instance of play of the variable payout game at the second gaming workstation in accordance with the second payout percentage or a fourth payout percentage selected randomly by the gaming server for the variable payout game to be played at the second gaming workstation.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving, by the gaming server from the gaming workstation, data to trigger the random selection of the third payout percentage for the variable payout game to be played at the first gaming workstation.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the data to trigger the random selection of the third payout percentage is selected from the group consisting of (i) an elapsed time of play of the variable payout game, (ii) a number of consecutive instances of play of the variable payout game occurring using the gaming workstation, (iii) a length of time elapsed since an instance of play last occurred on the gaming workstation, and (iv) a log-on or log-off event occurring on the gaming workstation.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the first, randomly selected, payout percentage is different than the second, randomly selected, payout percentage.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the first, randomly selected, payout percentage is identical to the second, randomly selected, payout percentage.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

selecting, randomly by the gaming server, a fifth payout percentage, wherein the fifth payout percentage is for the variable payout game to be played at the first gaming workstation;

transmitting, by the gaming server to the first gaming workstation, a third datagram containing a fifth outcome, wherein the fifth outcome is for an instance of playing the variable payout game in accordance with the fifth payout percentage.