Wagering game having game assets with multiple levels of enhancement

A gaming system for playing a wagering game having a basic game providing access to a community bonus game, the gaming system comprising:

• an input device for receiving a wager input for playing the wagering game;
• one or more display devices;
• one or more processors;
• and
• one or more memory devices including instructions that, when executed by at least one of the one or more processors, cause the gaming system to:
• provide, via at least one of the one or more processors and during play of the basic game, a player with a bonus-game asset usable in the community bonus game, the bonus-game asset having a current enhancement level and a next enhancement level, the next enhancement level providing a higher enhancement to an award in the community bonus game than the current enhancement level;
• in response to a bonus-game triggering condition, conduct a first play of the community bonus game using the bonus-game asset at the current enhancement level, the first play comprising:
• determining, via at least one of the one or more processors and based on a randomly determined outcome, that the bonus-game asset is available for use in a second play of the community bonus game triggered by a subsequent bonus-game triggering condition, and
• altering, via at least one of the one or more processors, the bonus-game asset from the current enhancement level to the next enhancement level for use in the second play of the community bonus game.

A computer-implemented method of conducting a wagering game having a basic game providing access to a community bonus game, comprising:

• receiving, via at least one input device, an input indicative of a first wager in the basic game;
• providing, via at least one of one or more processors and during the basic game, a player with a bonus-game asset usable in the community bonus game, the bonus-game asset having a current enhancement level and a next enhancement level, the next enhancement level providing a higher enhancement to an award in the community bonus game than the current enhancement level;
• in response to a bonus-game triggering condition occurring during the basic game, conducting a first play of the community bonus game using the bonus-game asset at the current enhancement level, the first play comprising:
• determining, via at least one of the one or more processors and based on a randomly determined outcome, that the bonus-game asset is available for use in a second play of the community bonus game triggered by a subsequent bonus-game triggering condition, and
• altering, via at least one of the one or more processors, the bonus-game asset from the current enhancement level to the next enhancement level for use such that the bonus-game asset is usable in the second play of the community bonus game at the second level;
• receiving, via the at least one input device, an input indicative of a second wager in the basic game;
• and
• in response to the subsequent bonus-game triggering condition, conducting the second play of the community bonus game using the bonus-game asset at the next enhancement level.

A machine-readable, non-transitory storage medium including instructions which, when executed by at least one of one or more processors, cause a gaming system to perform a method comprising:

• receiving, via at least one input device, an input indicative of a wager from a player to initiate the basic game on one of one or more gaming machine of a group of gaming machines;
• providing, during the basic game, the player with a bonus-game asset usable in a community bonus game, the bonus-game asset having a current enhancement level and a next enhancement level, the next enhancement level providing a higher enhancement to an award in the community bonus game than the current enhancement level;
• in response to a bonus-game triggering condition occurring during the basic game, conducting a first play of the community bonus game using the bonus-game asset in the current enhancement level, the first play comprising:
• determining, based on a randomly selected outcome, that the bonus-game asset is available for use in a second play of the community bonus game triggered by a subsequent bonus-game triggering condition, and
• altering the enhancement level of the bonus-game asset from the current enhancement level to the next enhancement level for use in the second play of the community bonus game.