Gaming system and method for accumulating and redeeming community game tokens

• US 9,378,618 B2
• Filed: 07/27/2015
• Issued: 06/28/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Nelson, Dwayne R., Wolf, Bryan D.
• Primary Examiner(s): TORIMIRO, ADETOKUNBO OLUSEGUN
• Application Number:
  US14/809,951
• Publication Number:
  US 20150332557A1
• Time in Patent Office: 337 Days
• Field of Search: 463/13, 463/19, 463/20, 463/22, 463/25, 463/40, 463/42
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3204 Player-machine interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3211 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3239 Tracking of individual players
• 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 17/3251 involving media of variable value, e.g. programmable cards, programmable tokens
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3295 Games involving skill, e.g. dexterity, memory, thinking
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/34 depending on the stopping of moving members in a mechanical slot machine, e.g. "fruit" machines

Abstract

A gaming system which displays a community game to one or more participating players. During the community game, the gaming system accumulates one or more community game tokens for one or more participating players. The gaming system subsequently assigns a value to each community game token redeemed by each participating player.

Claims

1. A gaming system comprising:

a housing;

at least one display device supported by the housing;

a plurality of input devices supported by the housing, said plurality of input devices including;

(i) an acceptor, and

(ii) a cashout device;

at least one processor; and

at least one memory device which stores a plurality of instructions, which when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to operate with the at least one display device and the plurality of input devices to;

(a) if a physical item is received via the acceptor, establish a credit balance based, at least in part, on a monetary value associated with the received physical item,

(b) receive a wager amount placed on a play of a first game,

(c) for the play of the first game;

(i) determine a first game outcome,

(ii) display the determined first game outcome,

(iii) determine any first game award associated with the displayed first game outcome, and

(iv) display any determined first game award,

(d) upon an occurrence of a triggering event;

(i) accumulate a quantity of at least one game token, wherein when accumulated, each of the quantity of at least one game token is not associated with any value,

(ii) determine a second game award, wherein said second game award is determined independent of any accumulated game tokens,

(iii) determine, for each accumulated game token, a value associated with said game token, wherein said determination is based on the determined second game award and the accumulated quantity of at least one game token, and

(iv) display the determined value associated with each accumulated game token, and

(e) if a cashout input is received via the cashout device, cause an initiation of any payout associated with the credit balance.

2. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the second game includes a skill-based game.

3. The gaming system of claim 2, wherein the quantity of accumulated game tokens is based, at least in part, on at least one quantifiable skill input made in association with the skill-based game.

4. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the plurality of instructions cause the at least one processor to receive at least one input associated with a redemption of at least one of the accumulated quantity of at least one game token.

5. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the plurality of instructions cause the at least one processor to determine the second game award based on at least one selected from the group consisting of:

at least one player attribute and at least one game attribute associated with the play of the first game.

6. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein at least one of any determined first game award and the determined second game award is at least one selected from the group of:

a quantity of monetary credits, a quantity of non-monetary credits, a quantity of promotional credits, and a quantity of player tracking points.

7. A gaming system server comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory device which stores a plurality of instructions, which when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to;

(a) receiving a wager amount placed on a play of a first game,

(b) for the play of the first game;

(i) determine a first game outcome,

(ii) cause at least one display device to display the determined first game outcome,

(iii) determine any first game award associated with the displayed first game outcome, and

(iv) cause the at least one display device to display any determined first game award, wherein a credit balance is increasable based on any determined first game award, said credit balance being increasable via an acceptor of a physical item associated with a monetary value, and said credit balance being decreasable via a cashout device, and

(c) upon an occurrence of a triggering event;

(i) accumulate a quantity of at least one game token, wherein when accumulated, each of the quantity of at least one game token is not associated with any value, and

(ii) determine a second game award, wherein said second game award is determined independent of any accumulated game tokens,

(iii) determine, for each accumulated game token, a value associated with said game token, wherein said determination is based on the determined second game award and the accumulated quantity of at least one game token, and

(iv) cause the at least one display device to display the determined value associated with each accumulated game token, wherein the credit balance is increasable based on the determined value associated with each accumulated game token.

8. The gaming system server of claim 7, wherein the second game includes a skill-based game.

9. The gaming system server of claim 8, wherein the quantity of accumulated game tokens is based, at least in part, on at least one quantifiable skill input made in association with the skill-based game.

10. The gaming system server of claim 7, wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the plurality of instructions cause the at least one processor to receive at least one input associated with a redemption of at least one of the accumulated quantity of at least one game token.

11. The gaming system server of claim 7, wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the plurality of instructions cause the at least one processor to determine the second game award based on at least one selected from the group consisting of:

at least one player attribute and at least one game attribute associated with the play of the first game.

12. The gaming system server of claim 7, wherein at least one of any determined first game award and the determined second game award is at least one selected from the group of:

a quantity of monetary credits, a quantity of non-monetary credits, a quantity of promotional credits, and a quantity of player tracking points.

13. The gaming system server of claim 7, which transmits and receives data over a data network.

14. The gaming system server of claim 13, wherein the data network is an internet.

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

(a) receiving a wager amount placed on a play of a first game,

(b) for the play of the first game;

(i) causing at least one processor to execute a plurality of instructions to determine a first game outcome,

(ii) causing at least one display device to display the determined first game outcome,

(iii) causing the at least one processor to execute the plurality of instructions to determine any first game award associated with the displayed first game outcome, and

(iv) causing the at least one display device to display any determined first game award, wherein a credit balance is increasable based on any determined first game award, said credit balance being increasable via an acceptor of a physical item associated with a monetary value, and said credit balance being decreasable via a cashout device, and

(c) upon an occurrence of a triggering event;

(i) accumulate a quantity of at least one game token, wherein when accumulated, each of the quantity of at least one game token is not associated with any value,

(ii) causing the at least one processor to execute the plurality of instructions to determine a second game award, wherein said second game award is determined independent of any accumulated game tokens,

(iii) causing the at least one processor to execute the plurality of instructions to determine, for each accumulated game token, a value associated with said game token, wherein said determination is based on the determined second game award and the accumulated quantity of at least one game token, and

(iv) causing the at least one display device to display the determined value associated with each accumulated game token, wherein the credit balance is increasable based on the determined value associated with each accumulated game token.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the second game includes a skill-based game.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the quantity of accumulated game tokens is based, at least in part, on at least one quantifiable skill input made in association with the skill-based game.

18. The method of claim 15, which includes receiving at least one input associated with a redemption of at least one of the accumulated quantity of at least one game token.

19. The method of claim 15, which includes causing the at least one processor to execute the plurality of instructions to determine the second game award based on at least one selected from the group consisting of:

at least one player attribute and at least one game attribute associated with the play of the first game.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein at least one of any determined first game award and the determined second game award is at least one selected from the group of:

a quantity of monetary credits, a quantity of non-monetary credits, a quantity of promotional credits, and a quantity of player tracking points.

21. The method of claim 15, which is operated through a data network.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein said data network is an internet.