GAMING SYSTEM, GAMING DEVICE, AND METHOD PROVIDING ONE OR MORE WILD REEL WAGER OPTIONS

• US 20130150142A1
• Filed: 12/12/2011
• Published: 06/13/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Caputo, Scott A.
• Granted Patent: US 8,814,656 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/20
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3213 Details of moving display elements, e.g. spinning reels, tumbling members
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3265 Influencing the position of stopped moving members to achieve a winning arrangement, e.g. nudging, shuffling, holding

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a gaming system, device, and method providing wild reel wager options for a spinning reel type wagering game. The wagering game includes: a plurality of reels; a plurality of symbols; and one or more wild reel wager options, each of which is associated with one of a plurality of wild reel wager amounts. If a player wagers one of the wild reel wager amounts on a play of the wagering game, the gaming system determines, based on the wild reel wager option associated with that wild reel wager amount, a set of one or more of the reels to be wild reels, and causes each of the determined set of the reels to be wild reels for that play. The gaming system causes each of the reels to spin and display one or more of the symbols, and provides any awards based on the displayed symbols.

Claims

1. A gaming system comprising:

at least one display device;

at least one input device;

at least one processor; and

at least one memory device storing 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 at least one input device to;

(a) display a wagering game including;

(i) a plurality of reels including a plurality of symbols; and

(ii) a plurality of different wild reel wager amounts, each of the wild reel wager amounts being associated with a different one of a plurality of different predetermined sets of the reels, each of the predetermined sets of the reels including at least one of the reels, at least one of the predetermined sets of the reels including two or more of the reels; and

(b) if the player places one of the wild reel wager amounts for a play of the wagering game;

(i) cause each of the reels of the predetermined set of the reels associated with said wagered wild reel wager amount to be a wild reel for said play of the wagering game;

(ii) cause the reels and the wild reels to display a plurality of the symbols;

(iii) determine whether the symbols displayed on the reels and the wild reels form any winning symbol combinations; and

(iv) provide any awards for any displayed winning symbol combinations.

2. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein a plurality of the predetermined sets of the reels each include a plurality of the reels.

3. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein each of the predetermined sets of the reels includes a plurality of the reels.

4. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein a first one of the wild reel wager amounts associated with a first one of the predetermined sets of the reels is associated with a first average expected payback percentage and a second, greater one of the wild reel wager amounts associated with a second one of the predetermined sets of the reels is associated with a second, greater average expected payback percentage.

5. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to cause each of the reels of the predetermined set of the reels associated with said wagered wild reel wager amount to be a wild reel for said play of the wagering game by replacing one or more of the symbols on said reels with a wild symbol.

6. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to cause each of the reels of the predetermined set of the reels associated with said wagered wild reel wager amount to be a wild reel for said play of the wagering game without replacing any bonus symbols on said reels.

7. The gaming system of claim 1, which includes a bonus game, and wherein a frequency of initiation of the bonus game when the player wagers a wager amount that is not one of the wild reel wager amounts is the same as a frequency of initiation of the bonus game when the player wagers one of the wild reel wager amounts.

8. The gaming system of claim 1, which includes a bonus game, and wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor, if the player places one of the wild reel wager amounts for a play of the wagering game, if a play of the bonus game is initiated, to cause each of the reels of the predetermined set of the reels associated with said wagered wild reel wager amount to be a wild reel for said play of the bonus game.

9. A gaming system comprising:

at least one display device;

at least one input device;

at least one processor; and

at least one memory device storing 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 at least one input device to;

(a) display a wagering game including;

(i) a plurality of reels including a plurality of symbols; and

(ii) a plurality of different wild reel wager amounts, each of the wild reel wager amounts being associated with one of a plurality of different designated quantities of the reels, at least one of the designated quantities of the reels being greater than one; and

(b) if the player places one of the wild reel wager amounts for a play of the wagering game;

(i) cause each of the reels of a first set of the reels to be a wild reel for said play of the wagering game, the first set of the reels including a quantity of the reels equal to the designated quantity of the reels associated with said wagered wild reel wager amount;

(ii) cause the reels and the wild reels to display a plurality of the symbols;

(iii) determine whether the symbols displayed on the reels and the wild reels form any winning symbol combinations; and

(iv) provide any awards for any displayed winning symbol combinations.

10. The gaming system of claim 9, wherein a plurality of the designated quantities of the reels are each greater than one.

11. The gaming system of claim 9, wherein each of the designated quantities of the reels is greater than one.

12. The gaming system of claim 9, wherein a first one of the wild reel wager amounts associated with a first one of the designated quantities of the reels is associated with a first average expected payback percentage and a second, greater one of the wild reel wager amounts associated with a second one of the designated quantities of the reels is associated with a second, greater average expected payback percentage.

13. The gaming system of claim 9, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to cause each of the reels of the first set of the reels to be a wild reel for said play of the wagering game by replacing one or more of the symbols on said reels with a wild symbol.

14. The gaming system of claim 9, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to cause each of the reels of the first set of the reels to be a wild reel for said play of the wagering game without replacing any bonus symbols on said reels.

15. The gaming system of claim 9, which includes a bonus game, and wherein a frequency of initiation of the bonus game when the player wagers a wager amount that is not one of the wild reel wager amounts is the same as a frequency of initiation of the bonus game when the player wagers one of the wild reel wager amounts.

16. The gaming system of claim 9, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to randomly determine which of the plurality of reels to include in the first set of the reels.

17. The gaming system of claim 9, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to determine which of the plurality of reels to include in the first set of the reels based on a weighted probability table.

18. The gaming system of claim 9, which includes a bonus game, and wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor, if the player places one of the wild reel wager amounts for a play of the wagering game, if a play of the bonus game is initiated, to cause each of the reels of the first set of the reels to be a wild reel for said play of the bonus game.

19. A gaming system comprising:

at least one display device;

at least one input device;

at least one processor; and

at least one memory device storing 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 at least one input device to;

(a) display a wagering game including;

(i) a plurality of reels including a plurality of symbols; and

(ii) a wild reel wager amount; and

(b) if the player places the wild reel wager amount for a play of the wagering game;

(i) determine one of a plurality of quantities of one or more of the reels;

(ii) cause each of the reels of a first set of the reels to be a wild reel for said play of the wagering game, the first set of the reels including a quantity of the reels equal to the determined one of the quantities of the reels;

(iii) cause the reels and the wild reels to display a plurality of the symbols;

(iv) determine whether the symbols displayed on the reels and the wild reels form any winning symbol combinations; and

(v) provide any awards for any displayed winning symbol combinations.

20. The gaming system of claim 19, wherein a plurality of the quantities of the reels are each greater than one.

21. The gaming system of claim 19, wherein each of the quantities of the reels is greater than one.

22. The gaming system of claim 19, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to cause each of the reels of the first set of the reels to be a wild reel for said play of the wagering game by replacing one or more of the symbols on said reels with a wild symbol.

23. The gaming system of claim 19, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to cause each of the reels of the first set of the reels to be a wild reel for said play of the wagering game without replacing any bonus symbols on said reels.

24. The gaming system of claim 19, which includes a bonus game, wherein a frequency of initiation of the bonus game when the player wagers a wager amount that is not the wild reel wager amount is the same as a frequency of initiation of the bonus game when the player wagers the wild reel wager amount.

25. The gaming system of claim 19, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to randomly determine one of the quantities of the reels.

26. The gaming system of claim 19, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to randomly determine which of the plurality of reels to include in the first set of the reels.

27. The gaming system of claim 19, which includes a bonus game, and wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor, if the player places the wild reel wager amount for a play of the wagering game, if a play of the bonus game is initiated, to cause each of the reels of the first set of the reels to be a wild reel for said play of the bonus game.

28. The gaming system of claim 19, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to simultaneously determine, based on a weighted paytable:

(a) one of the quantities of one or more of the reels, and (b) which of the plurality of the reels to include in the first set of the reels.