Amusement devices: games – Including means for processing electronic data – Suspension or restoration
Reexamination Certificate
2002-05-02
2004-11-02
Hotaling, II, John M. (Department: 3713)
Amusement devices: games
Including means for processing electronic data
Suspension or restoration
C463S016000, C463S017000, C463S018000, C463S019000, C463S020000, C463S021000, C463S022000, C463S023000, C463S029000, C463S042000, C463S043000, C273S459000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06811486
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains generally to casino gaming systems. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus enabling a player to keep and restore specific game enhancing changes, called transferable game play states, between game sessions and between games.
2. The Prior Art
2.1 Prior Art Gaming Machines And Game Play
Casino gaming machines, typically slot machines, have been in use for many years.
FIG. 1
shows one general style of prior art gaming or slot machine, called a slant-top machine (the other most popular style is the upright). Shown is a front view
100
and a side view
116
. Candle
102
lights when there is a machine fault (including a machine running out of tokens or coins to pay a cash-out), or a monetary prize over a certain amount to be awarded. Area
104
is typically art for the game, and is usually passive. There is a monetary input slot
106
, which is typically a bill acceptor. Monetary input slot
106
may be, or may include, a coin acceptor. Coin acceptors are typically found on older machines or machines having lower-end betting amounts (“penny” or “nickel” slots). Slot area
110
typically comprises a glass cover having opaque art applied, with windows
108
through which a player views individual reels. Alternately, slot area
110
and slot windows
108
may together be a video screen, showing simulated reels and reel spins. Finally there are a set of player input devices, typically simple buttons, shown as buttons
114
. Side view
116
shows the slanted portion of the machine (thus the general name “slant top”), which has the game viewing area
110
and slot viewing windows
108
(or video screen) and monetary input device(s)
106
. On newer machines, there will typically be either one or two small numerical displays, shown as
118
. One display shows the player the number of game credits they have, the other (if present) may show some kind of bonus point number, progressive jackpot amount, or may simply have simple scrolling letters advertising the casino. These displays may be found almost anywhere on a gaming machine that is visible to a player.
Game play and underlying game functionality for prior art slot (and other) gaming machines, such as that described above, is well known. A description of play and internal functionality may be found in such books as: “The Slot Machine Answer Book: How They Work, How They've Changed and How to Overcome the House Advantage” by John Grochowski, ISBN #1566251206; “The Casino Answer Book” by John Grochowski, ISBN #1566251079; and, “Break The One-Armed Bandits!” by Frank Scoblete, ISBN #1566250013. These books are incorporated herein by reference.
There are several common aspects to the game play and internal functionality of gaming machines currently in use. One common aspect is that the outcome of each “game”, that is, one handle pull or a touch of the “play” or “spin” button (depending on the game), or one spin of the physical or virtual reels, is based on a random event. In modern gaming machines containing microelectronics, there is a random number generator (RNG) which generates sequences of random numbers, upon which the visual display of reel outcomes (or other play, such as poker cards) and the results of the play (a player's winnings, including no win) is based. Also involved are the pay tables of the machine, as further described in the above referenced books. Each game play or game sequence is a unique event, having no relationship between one play and the next (i.e., they are independent events from a probabilistic standpoint).
Basic game play has been enhanced in several ways over the years. Those enhancements fall into two categories. The first is a bonus game, event, or winning; the other is the progressive jackpot. Each is briefly described below.
The bonus games fall into two subcategories: a single-event bonus game or bonus win; and, the investment-style bonus game. In the single-event bonus game or bonus win, upon the occurrence of a specified event in the primary game a bonus win or bonus game is invoked. Whatever the bonus is (i.e., spinning a wheel, picking a fisherman who “reels in a bonus”, a scatter pay bonus, etc.), the extra play is finished and awarded (typically a multiplier of a base winning amount in the base or primary game) in a single sequence and the player is returned to the base game. Once the player is back to the base or primary game, the only effect of the bonus play is the addition of more credits on the credit meter. The bonus play and any award (winnings) is a singular event, ending with any additional credits being awarded.
An gaming machine having an investment bonus is characterized by having way of storing, in the machine, a counter corresponding to the occurrence of specified events from the primary game. After the counter reaches a specified count, the current player is awarded a bonus (additional game credits). Typically, the counter is shown to the player in a graphical form. An example of an investment bonus game is Bally's® Blazing 7's®. As the player plays and 7's appear in various positions on the virtual reels, a 7's counter is incremented. The 7's counter is presented to the player as a string of 7s in a row towards the top of the player viewing area. The player wins a bonus when the specified number of 7's is reached. This is shown to the player as “filling up” a row of 7s.
The bonus game is independent of who is playing. Thus, a common player strategy is to find an investment bonus game already having a significant amount of the bonus count in place, having been won or built-up by other players (see, for example, “The Slot Machine Answer Book: How They Work, How They've Changed and How to Overcome the House Advantage” pages 115-120). The smart player will get the extra bonus sooner than playing a game with no previous bonus count; alternatively, leaving a bonus count to be taken over by another player is frustrating to the player leaving the game.
The other general type of bonus is a jackpot that builds over time, funded by taking a small portion of each bet (play). Called a progressive jackpot, it may be funded and awarded on a single machine or may be funded and awarded within a pool of machines. Having a pool of machines contribute to a progressive is most common, as it enables the progressive jackpot to get significantly larger than would otherwise be possible (due to the larger number of individual machines making percentage-of-play contributions).
There are severe limitations with both types of game enhancements. One important limitation is that a player cannot continue any type of on-going bonus count accumulation that spans more than one specific gaming machine, or spans more than one non-sequential set of game plays on one or more specific gaming machines. Another problem is that there is no way to restore a secondary game or bonus game to a specified configuration. The prior art enables a secondary or bonus game to be in one of two configurations: (i) the base or starting state; or, (ii) an “as-found” state or configuration, being the result of some amount of previous play from previous players, the previous player(s) having incremented some type of bonus counter or having partially completed a bonus game such as Bally's Blazing 7s (otherwise the bonus game would be in its initial or base starting state).
Recently there have been some additional enhancements over the older prior art, one such improvement being to enable a player to save prize credits (credits usable for prize redemption rather than game play). A player can save prize credits to a read/write media, and the re-insert the media into a gaming device enabled to recognize the data on the read/write media and the prize credit meter (a counter, being a display showing a number to the player) will be set to the number (amount) of prize credits that were on the read/write media. Prize credit saving can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 6,007,42
Cherubin Yveste
Hotaling II John M.
Marsden Russ F.
Sierra Design Group
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