Community gaming experience

• US 9,489,801 B2
• Filed: 12/06/2012
• Issued: 11/08/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/06/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Crivelli, Franco E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Deodhar, Omkar
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lee, Wei
• Application Number:
  US13/707,504
• Publication Number:
  US 20140162761A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,433 Days
• Field of Search: 463/13, 463/20, 463/25, 463/42
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3211 Display means
• 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 17/3272 Games involving multiple players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/329 Regular and instant lottery, e.g. electronic scratch cards
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3293 Card games, e.g. poker, canasta, black jack
• 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 environment may provide a user with a community gaming experience by providing, via a first interface at a first gaming machine, a display of a wagering game to a first player; determining an initial game outcome for a play of the wagering game by the first player, wherein the initial game outcome is a losing game outcome; based on the losing game outcome by the first player, receiving, from a second player, a selection of an option to wager on a final game outcome, the final game outcome being based in part on the losing game outcome; displaying, via a second interface at a second gaming machine, the final game outcome to the second player; and providing an award to the second player based on the final game outcome.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method configured to provide a community gaming experience, said method comprising:

(a) causing a first interface of a first gaming machine to display a play of a wagering game to a first player;

(b) determining an initial game outcome of the play of the wagering game;

(c) causing the first interface of the first gaming machine to display the determined initial game outcome to the first player; and

(d) if the determined initial game outcome is a losing game outcome, thereafter;

(i) enabling a second, different player at a second, different gaming machine to place a wager on a final game outcome of the play of the wagering game,

(ii) causing a second interface of the second gaming machine to display the final game outcome to the second player, wherein the displayed final game outcome is at least partially based on the displayed initial losing game outcome and the displayed final game outcome includes at least a portion of the displayed initial losing game outcome, and

(iii) providing an award to the second player based on the displayed final game outcome, wherein a credit balance associated with the second player is increasable based on the award, and said credit balance associated with the second player is increasable via an acceptor of a physical item which indicates a monetary value, and decreasable via a cashout device configured to receive an input to cause an initiation of a payout associated with the credit balance.

2. The method of claim 1, which includes:

providing an award to the first player.

3. The method of claim 1, which includes

receiving permission from the first player to enable the second player to place the wager on the final outcome.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the award is shared between the first player and the second player based on a wager amount placed by each player.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the wagering game includes at least one of:

a slot wagering game, a poker wagering game, a blackjack wagering game, a keno wagering game, a baccarat wagering game, and a bingo wagering game.

6. The method of claim 1, which includes enabling the second player to place an initial wager to be enabled to place the wager on the final game outcome.

7. The method of claim 1, which includes enabling the second player to place the wager on the final outcome based on a player profile of the second player.

8. The method of claim 1, which includes enabling the second player to place the wager on the final game outcome in association with a selection of an icon.

9. The method of claim 1, which includes enabling the second player to place the wager on the final game outcome based on an elapsed time from a previous wager.

10. The method of claim 1, which includes enabling the first player to select the second player to wager on the final game outcome.

11. A gaming system controller comprising:

a processor; and

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

(a) cause a display to a first player, via a first interface at a first gaming machine, of a play of a wagering game;

(b) determine an initial game outcome for the play of the wagering game;

(c) cause a display to the first player, via the first interface of the first gaming machine, of the determined initial game outcome; and

(d) if the determined initial game outcome is a losing game outcome, thereafter;

(i) enabling a second, different player, via a second interface of a second, different gaming machine, to place a wager on a final game outcome of the play of the wagering game,

(ii) cause a display to the second player, via the second interface of the second gaming machine, the final game outcome, wherein the displayed final game outcome is at least partially based on the initial game outcome and the displayed final game outcome includes at least a portion of the displayed initial game outcome, and

(iii) cause an award based on the final game outcome to be provided to the second player, wherein a credit balance associated with the second player is increasable based on the award, and said credit balance associated with the second player is increasable via an acceptor of a physical item which indicates a monetary value, and decreasable via a cashout device configured to receive an input to cause an initiation of a payout associated with the credit balance.

12. The gaming system controller of claim 11, wherein when executed by the processor, the plurality of instructions cause the processor to cause an award to be provided to the first player.

13. The gaming system controller of claim 11, wherein when executed by the processor, the plurality of instructions cause the processor to receive permission from the first player to enable the second player to placed the wager on the final outcome.

14. The gaming system controller of claim 11, wherein the award is shared between the first player and the second player based on a wager amount placed by each player.

15. The gaming system controller of claim 11, wherein the wagering game includes at least one of:

a slot wagering game, a poker wagering game, a blackjack wagering game, a keno wagering game, a baccarat wagering game, and a bingo wagering game.

16. The gaming system controller of claim 11, wherein when executed by the processor, the plurality of instructions cause the processor to enable the second player to place an initial wager to be enabled to place the wager on the final game outcome.

17. The gaming system controller of claim 11, wherein when executed by the processor, the plurality of instructions cause the processor to enable the second player to place the wager on the final game outcome based on a player profile of the second player.

18. The gaming system controller of claim 11, wherein when executed by the processor, the plurality of instructions cause the processor to enable the second player to place the wager on the final game outcome in association with a selection of an icon.

19. The gaming system controller of claim 11, wherein when executed by the processor, the plurality of instructions cause the processor to enable the second player to place the wager on the final game outcome based on an elapsed time from a previous wager.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having machine instructions stored therein, the instructions being executable by a processor to cause the processor to perform operations comprising:

(a) causing a display to a first player, via a first interface of a first gaming machine, of a play of a wagering game;

(b) determining an initial game outcome for the play of the wagering game;

(c) causing a display to the first player, via the first interface at the first gaming machine, of the determined initial game outcome; and

(d) if the determined initial game outcome is a losing game outcome, thereafter;

(i) enabling a second, different player at a second, different gaming machine to place a wager on a final game outcome of the play of the wagering game,

(ii) causing a display to the second player, via a second interface of the second gaming machine, of the final game outcome, wherein the displayed final game outcome is at least partially based on the displayed initial losing game outcome and the displayed final game outcome includes at least a portion of the displayed initial game outcome, and

(ii) providing an award to the second player based on the displayed final game outcome, wherein a credit balance associated with the second player is increasable based on the award, and said credit balance associated with the second player is increasable via an acceptor of a physical item which indicates a monetary value, and decreasable via a cashout device configured to receive an input to cause an initiation of a payout associated with the credit balance.