Gaming system, gaming device, and method for providing a game in which players position selectors within a field of selections based on values masked by the selections

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10482706-B2
Application number	US-201615341702-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 2, 2016
Priority date	Nov 11, 2009
Publication date	Nov 19, 2019
Grant date	Nov 19, 2019

Abstract

A gaming system displays a plurality of spaced-apart selections each associated with a masked award. One or more selectors are each associated with one or more players, and are visible to each player. The selectors are moveable amongst the spaced-apart selections based on a plurality of player inputs. For a play of the game, the players provide inputs to move the selectors amongst the spaced-apart selections. During such movement, the gaming system temporarily reveals the award associated with any spaced-apart selection in the vicinity of any selector to at least one player, such as the player whose selector is near the selection. After the play of the game has ended (e.g., based on an amount of elapsed time), the gaming system provides awards to the players based on the ending positions of the one or more selectors with respect to the plurality of spaced-apart selections.

First claim

The invention is claimed as follows:

1. A gaming system comprising:
a controller programmed to operate with a first gaming device and a second gaming device,
the first gaming device configured to establish a first credit balance responsive to receipt, via a first acceptor of the first gaming device, of a first physical item associated with a first monetary value, the first gaming device configured to, responsive to receipt of a first wager input, place a first wager on a play of a game and cause the first credit balance to decrease based on the placed first wager, the first gaming device configured to, responsive to an actuation of a cashout input associated with the first gaming device, initiate a payout associated with the first credit balance,
the second gaming device configured to establish a second credit balance responsive to receipt, via a second acceptor of the second gaming device, of a second physical item associated with a second monetary value, the second gaming device configured to responsive to receipt of a second wager input, place a second wager on the play of the game and cause the second credit balance to decrease based on the placed second wager, the second gaming device configured to, responsive to an actuation of a cashout input associated with the second gaming device, initiate a payout associated with the second credit balance,

the controller programmed to operate with the first claming device and the second gaming device to:
associate a first selector with the first gaming device and a second selector with the second gaming device;
cause a display of a field including a plurality of spaced-apart selections, and
for the play of the game in which a first player at the first gaming device and a second player at the second gaming device are participating:
until a game expiration event for the play of the game occurs for the first gaming device:
receive data indicative of a first device game input from said first gaming device,
cause the first selector to be displayed at the first gaming device and the second gaming device as moving within the field of selections based on the first device game input, and
if the first selector has a designated spatial relationship with any selection, cause the first gaming device but not the second gaming device to temporarily reveal the value associated with said spatially related selection,

until the game expiration event for the play of the game occurs for the second gaming device:
receive data indicative of a second device game input from said second gaming device,
cause the second selector to be displayed at the first gaming device and the second gaming device as moving within the field of selections based on the second device game input, and
if the second selector has the designated spatial relationship with any selection, cause the second gaming device but not the first gaming device to temporarily reveal the value associated with said spatially related selection,

when the game expiration event for the play of the game occurs for said first gaming device:
determine if the first selector has the designated spatial relationship with any selection,
if the first selector has the designated spatial relationship with any selection, cause a first award to be provided to the first player, the first credit balance being increasable by the first award, and

when the game expiration event for the play of the game occurs for said second gaming device:
determine if the second selector has the designated spatial relationship with any selection,
if the second selector has the designated spatial relationship with any selection, cause a second award to be provided to the second player, the second credit balance being increasable by the second award.

2. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is programmed to determine whether the game expiration event occurs for either the first gaming device or the second gaming device based on a passage of a designated amount of time.

3. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is programmed to determine whether the game expiration event occurs for either the first gaming device or the second gaming device based on an occurrence of a quantity of try cycles.

4. The gaming system of claim 3 , wherein each try cycle spans a designated amount of time.

5. The gaming system of claim 3 , wherein when each of the quantity of try cycles has ended for one of the gaming devices, the bonus game expiration event occurs for that gaming device.

6. The gaming system of claim 3 , wherein for each try cycle for the first gaming device, the first gaming device enables the first player to provide at least one input indicative of a desired movement of the first selector and to provide an input indicative of redeeming a selection.

7. The gaming system of claim 6 , wherein if the first player provides the input indicative of redeeming the selection for one of the try cycles, the try cycle ends.

8. The gaming system of claim 6 , wherein if a designated amount of time passes prior to the first player providing the input indicative of redeeming the selection for one of the try cycles, that try cycle ends.

9. The gaming system of claim 6 , wherein if the first selector is in the designated spatial relationship with any selection and if the first player provides the input indicative of redeeming the selection, the controller is programmed to operate with the first gaming device and the second gaming device to cause a display of an indication that said selection was redeemed at both the first gaming device and the second gaming device.

10. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is programmed to operate with the first gaming device and the second gaming device to change a value masked by one of the plurality of spaced-apart selections if an award has not been provided based on the spaced-apart selection being in the designated relationship with any selector for a designated regeneration time period.

11. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the first gaming device and the second gaming device are located in a same gaming establishment.

12. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the first gaming device and the second gaming device are located physically remotely from each other.

13. The gaming system of claim 12 , wherein at least one of the first gaming device and the second gaming device is located physically remotely from the controller.

14. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein if a first award is provided because the first selector is in the designated spatial relationship with a first selection, the controller is programmed to operate with the first gaming device and the second gaming device to provides a subsequent second award to the second player based on the second selector thereafter having the designated spatial relationship with the first selection, the subsequent second award being smaller than the first award.

15. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the data indicative of the first input and the data indicative of the second input is provided over a network.

16. The gaming system of claim 15 , wherein the network is an internet.

17. A gaming system comprising:
a housing;
at least one display device supported by the housing;
a plurality of input devices supported by the housing, the plurality of input devices including an acceptor; and
at least one processor programmed to operate with the at least one display device and the plurality of input devices, for a play of a game, to:
establish a credit balance responsive to receipt, via the acceptor,

Assignees

• Igt Reno Nev

Inventors

• Nicely Mark C
• Caputo Scott A

Classifications

• G07F17/3244

  Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes · CPC title

• G07F17/34

  depending on the stopping of moving members {in a mechanical slot machine}, e.g. "fruit" machines · CPC title

• G07F17/3267

  Game outcomes which determine the course of the subsequent game, e.g. double or quits, free games, higher payouts, different new games · CPC title

• G07F17/3213 Primary

  Details of moving display elements, e.g. spinning reels, tumbling members · CPC title