Amusement devices: games – Including means for processing electronic data – In a chance application
Reexamination Certificate
1999-02-26
2003-09-09
O'Neill, Michael (Department: 3713)
Amusement devices: games
Including means for processing electronic data
In a chance application
C273S269000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06616531
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF INVENTION
The present invention relates to playing a game and at least another game, and, in particular, to a method and apparatus for playing one game and using elements from the one game to play at least another game.
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Games in general typically provide a limited number of ways and incentives to play and win. There is a need to continually develop games that provide additional plays, win opportunities, and incentives for the players to make the game or games more fun and exciting.
A number of games and gaming apparatuses and methods exist in the prior art. Various games of skill or chance are used in casinos, gambling halls and by state lotteries. One of these games of skill or chance involve lottery tickets in which a person purchases a lottery ticket in hoping that he/she will win an instant amount or a jackpot amount. Another game of skill or chance is the popular BINGO game. BINGO card or cards are purchased by a player. A caller calls BINGO numbers, and the player hopes to cover the card or cards in the desired pattern and further hopes to be one of the first potential winner(s) to call out “BINGO”.
Lottery tickets that provide instant jackpot wins and lottery tickets that provide progressive jackpot wins are well known in the art. In fact, lottery tickets that combine the potential for a player to win an instant jackpot(s) and a progressive jackpot(s) have been developed to further provide play, incentive, fun, excitement, etc. to the players. U.S. Pat. No. 5,158,293 to Mullins (“Mullins”) discloses an example of such a combination lottery ticket and game. Therefore, there is a continued need and desire to provide a lottery ticket game or such other game that provides further play, incentive, fun, excitement, etc. to the players. Also, there is a need and desire to provide a lottery ticket game or such other game with additional win opportunities based on relatively easy games, especially the opportunities to win jackpots. Play of the game would therefore be further driven by the additional play, win opportunities, incentives, fun, excitement, etc. Without additional win opportunities and incentives, players may become bored and lose interest with the lottery ticket game.
Typically, BINGO cards are simply purchased by players, and the players respectively play the cards. The BINGO game is a relatively easy game that is well known and is able to be played by a number of people. The cards, in themselves, have no potential inherent or win value until the cards are played for the respective BINGO game. The BINGO game is won after a number of BINGO numbers are called. Players have to patiently wait after various BINGO numbers are called until a possible win situation occurs for his/her cards. Those cards that do not reflect a win situation after a calling round of BINGO are useless and valueless to the player and are typically not kept by the player and discarded. The BINGO game does not provide further incentives or win possibilities, such as instant jackpot wins in lottery ticket games, simply based on the purchase of the cards themselves. Therefore, there is a need and desire to integrate the simple general concepts of the BINGO game into other games. There is also a need and desire to generally take the BINGO card concept in providing further win opportunities for players. Without additional win opportunities and incentives, players may become bored and lose interest with the BINGO game. Also, since calling numbers for a BINGO game may be very laborious and time consuming, there is a need and desire to reduce or eliminate the actual calling of BINGO numbers.
The need of providing additional win opportunities and incentives for play of a game continually exists. The need exists for continually providing additional win opportunities and incentives for a lottery ticket game and/or a BINGO game. Therefore, the present invention discloses and provides a method and apparatus for playing one game and using elements from the one game to play at least another game, and the present invention overcomes the problems, disadvantages, and limitations of the prior art.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
Set forth is a brief summary of the invention in order to solve the foregoing problems and achieve the foregoing and other objects, benefits, and advantages in accordance with the purposes of the present invention as embodied and broadly described herein.
It is an object of the invention to provide the ability to play one game and use elements from the one game to play at least another game.
It is another object of the invention to provide the ability to play one game of chance or skill and use elements from the one game of chance or skill to play at least another game.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a number of or additional ways and incentives to play and win a game.
It is still a further object of the invention to provide games that have additional plays, win opportunities, and incentives for the players.
It is still another object of the invention to provide games that provide more fun and excitement to players.
It is another object of the invention to enhance the general concepts, rules, and limitations of a lottery ticket game and expand the play and win opportunities of the lottery ticket game.
It is a further object of the invention to incorporate the general concepts, rules, and limitations of a BINGO game into another game, particularly a lottery ticket game and lottery electronic ticketless game.
The above objects and advantages of the invention are achieved by a method for playing one game and using elements from the one game to play at least another game. Rules and the elements for the one game are defined. The elements for the one game are provided and used, and the one game is played. Rules for at least another game are defined, and at least some of the elements from the one game to play the at least another game are provided and used. The other game(s) is played. The one game and at least another game may be games of chance or skill. The one game may be a lottery ticket game or lottery electronic ticketless game and the at least another game may be a symbol collection game.
The lottery ticket game involves defining symbols for the lottery ticket game, printing the symbols on lottery tickets for the lottery ticket game, and using the symbols to define winning indices for the lottery tickets. The symbol collection game involves using and collecting at least some of the symbols from the lottery ticket game to play the symbol collection game. In particular, BINGO letters and wild symbols may be collected by playing a play of the lottery ticket game. The symbol collection game may further involve collecting and spelling letters or words such as the word TRILOGY. One of the letters of TRILOGY may be collected by collecting all of the BINGO letters from plays of the lottery ticket game. One of the letters of TRILOGY may also be collected by obtaining one of the wild symbols from plays of the lottery ticket game. A jackpot for the symbol collection game is won by collecting all of the letters of TRILOGY. A player may have to call out a win notification when a player has collected all of the letters of TRILOGY in order to win. The game may be set up such that the jackpot is won by only one winning player or split among other winning players. The jackpot may be a fixed prize or a progressive jackpot and may be determined based on sales of the lottery tickets from the lottery ticket game. The game may also be set up where players wager for a table jackpot among other players as to certain elements being collected from the lottery ticket game (i.e. one or more or all of the BINGO letters being collected) after a play of the lottery ticket game or other indices printed on the ticket. The game may also be set up to be played electronically in entirety.
The above objects and advantages of the invention are also achieved by a method for playing one game and using elements from the one game to play at least ano
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