Slot machine enhancement
AssigneeRealTime Gaming, Inc.
InventorsMichael Staw, Michael Parker McMain II
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A slot machine enhancement which provides an incentive to users who have lost one or more games to continue playing. A loss counter tracks the number of losses and a user can choose to redeem the losses for at least one prize. Such prizes can include, but are not limited to, one or more free games, one or more guaranteed wining games, one or more guaranteed wining games with a guaranteed minimum payout of an amount greater than the least possible payout, and the like. When the user wins a game, the loss counter is reset to zero.
Claims41
A system for awarding a game participant, comprising:
- a payment acceptor;
- a wager indicator, for indicating the amount of a payment to be wagered on at least one game;
- a game play interface;
- a game outcome determiner, for monitoring game play;
- and
- a payment calculator, wherein the payment calculator is capable of awarding a plurality of additional games based on the outcome of a game.
A game participant award method, comprising:
- setting a loss counter related to a game to zero;
- accepting payment from the participant;
- allowing the participant to set a wager amount for at least one game;
- letting the participant play the at least one game;
- incrementing the loss counter for each game lost by the participant;
- resetting the loss counter to zero for each game won by the participant;
- indicating the current loss counter value to the participant;
- and,
- permitting the participant to cash in their accrued losses, wherein the participant can select from a set of at least one available award based on the loss counter value, wherein the at least one available award includes at least one free game, and wherein the loss counter is decremented by the number of cashed in losses.
A computerized, wager-based game, playable by a player, comprising:
- at least one computing device;
- at least one visual display device;
- at least one user interface element, for allowing the at least one player to interact with the computing device;
- a payment acceptor;
- a wager indicator;
- a game play interface;
- a game outcome determiner;
- a loss counter;
- and,
- a payment calculator, for awarding payment based on the outcome of a game.
A game participant award method, comprising:
- monitoring the number of games in which the participant loses in a loss meter;
- incrementing the loss meter for each game lost by the participant;
- allowing the participant to cash in at least one but less than all of the accrued losses for a prize;
- subtracting the number of losses cashed in by the participant from the loss meter;
- and,
- resetting the loss meter to zero in the event the participant wins a game.
A game participant award method, comprising:
- initiating a game, wherein the game has at least one possible winning outcome;
- determining whether the participant wishes to cash in any losses as represented in a loss meter;
- determining whether the losses qualify for a jackpot prize, if the participant is cashing in any losses;
- awarding the jackpot prize to the participant if the losses qualify for the jackpot prize;
- awarding a first prize if the losses do not qualify for a jackpot prize;
- resetting the loss meter to zero if the participant cashes in any losses;
- allowing the participant to place a bet for a current game;
- playing the game;
- incrementing the loss counter if the participant loses the game;
- awarding a second prize based on the outcome of the game if the participant wins the game;
- and,
- resetting the loss meter to zero if the participant wins the game.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.