Cascading Wild Symbols with Generation Counters
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need to enhance player excitement and entertainment in gaming machines by providing new ways to increase the number of awards for a single wager on a primary game, while also creating better gaming experiences and environments.
Innovation Solution
A gaming system that enables players to wager on a cascading symbol game with a matrix of symbol positions, where designated symbols, such as Wild symbols, remain active for a specified quantity of symbol generations, allowing them to form multiple winning combinations and remain displayed for more generations, increasing the likelihood of generating winning symbol combinations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If Wild symbols are configured to be analyzed as any symbol necessary to create a winning combination, then the frequency of winning combinations increases, but the complexity of symbol evaluation increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the Wild symbol functionality by assigning each Wild symbol a specific generation count parameter. This divides the evaluation process into discrete steps where the system checks the generation count for each Wild symbol individually, rather than evaluating all possible symbol substitutions simultaneously. This segmentation reduces computational complexity while maintaining the ability to form multiple winning combinations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-configuring each Wild symbol with an indicated quantity of generations before the cascading process begins. This allows the system to determine in advance how many times each Wild symbol can participate in winning combinations, eliminating the need for complex real-time evaluation of all possible Wild symbol substitutions during each cascade generation.
2Adaptability or versatility
If cascading symbol games remove winning symbols and generate new symbols repeatedly, then player excitement increases, but the duration of each game play increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies periodic action by implementing a predetermined maximum number of generations parameter that limits how many times the cascading symbol process can repeat. This creates a periodic structure where the game automatically terminates after a set number of generations, preventing indefinite play duration while maintaining player excitement through multiple award opportunities within the defined generation limit.
3Productivity
If designated symbols remain active for multiple symbol generations, then the number of awards per wager increases, but the complexity of tracking symbol activity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service by configuring each designated symbol with an automatic generation count parameter that tracks how many generations the symbol remains active. The system automatically decrements this count with each generation and terminates the symbol's activity when the count reaches zero, eliminating the need for complex external tracking mechanisms or manual intervention to manage symbol activity duration.
Data Source
AI summary
A plurality of columns each having a plurality of symbol positions are displayed. A gaming system generates and displays one of a plurality of symbols in each symbol position. At least one of the plurality of symbols is a designated symbol with an indicated quantity. The indicated quantity indicates whether the designated symbol is active or inactive. For each winning symbol combination containing at least one designated symbol, the indicated quantity associated with any designated symbol in the winning symbol combination is decremented and any non-designated symbols are removed from the display. Any designated symbols with an associated numeral of zero are inactive and are removed from each winning symbol combination. Any remaining symbols are shifted in a predetermined direction. For each empty symbol position, the gaming system generates and displays a new symbol and repeats the above steps until no winning symbol combinations remain.