Ascending Bonus Award Sequencing in Gaming Systems
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Gaming machines often present short bonus games with small, non-accumulating awards, leading to diminished player interest and reduced usage due to the lack of guaranteed increasing awards and short duration of bonus games.
Innovation Solution
Implement a system that determines bonus play trigger conditions, executes free spins, and sorts outcomes in ascending order to display consecutively ascending award amounts, allowing for longer bonus games with potential for larger payouts, adaptable to player preferences through dynamic game adjustments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If traditional bonus games are implemented with fixed short duration, then the game structure is simple to operate, but player engagement decreases due to lack of accumulating awards
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic bonus games where the number of free spins and award amounts are not fixed but determined by random outcomes. Each bonus game can vary in duration and payout potential, creating an dynamic experience that maintains player engagement while keeping the base game structure simple.
Solution Approach 2:
The system pre-determines the number of free spins and potential award amounts before the bonus game begins. This preliminary action allows the game to present accumulating awards throughout the bonus sequence, building player anticipation and engagement without requiring complex real-time calculations during gameplay.
2Loss of time
If bonus games present small non-accumulating awards, then the game can be completed quickly, but the total win amount remains limited reducing player interest
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements bonus games with multiple free spins that present awards in a continuous sequence rather than a single outcome. Each free spin can award additional credits or trigger re-spins, creating a continuous flow of potential winnings that accumulates throughout the bonus game duration.
Solution Approach 2:
The bonus game structure allows for nested outcomes where free spins can trigger additional free spins or bonus features. This nesting creates accumulating award potential within the bonus game framework, where each level can build upon previous outcomes to increase total win amounts.
3Productivity
If bonus games offer guaranteed increasing awards, then player engagement increases, but the game complexity and computational requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system determines and stores the number of free spins and potential award amounts before the bonus game begins. This preliminary determination simplifies the control logic during gameplay, as the system only needs to present pre-determined outcomes in sequence rather than making complex real-time decisions about award accumulation.
Solution Approach 2:
The bonus game is segmented into discrete free spin outcomes that are determined independently but presented in a sequential accumulating format. Each free spin outcome is a separate determinable event, simplifying the control logic while the sequential presentation creates the effect of accumulating awards.
Data Source
AI summary
A gaming machine determines a base outcome and initiates a bonus display sequence including a plurality of bonus outcomes. Prior to displaying any of the bonus outcomes, the machine determines a quantity of free spins and an outcome for each free spin, including an outcome amount, and at least one additional free play outcome including a corresponding outcome amount. The machine identifies i) a plurality of winning outcomes and ii) a plurality of non-winning outcomes and sorts, in ascending order based on the outcome amount, the plurality of winning outcomes in a table stored in memory. The machine displays the winning outcomes in order retrieved from the table, and displays the at least one additional free play outcome when the corresponding outcome amount is equal to or greater than the respective free play outcome of the plurality of winning outcomes.