Patent Grant
7361086
The present invention relates generally to gaming machines and, more particularly, to a gaming machine with a simulated artificial intelligence (Al) feature.
Gaming machines, such as slot machines, video poker machines and the like, have been a cornerstone of the gaming industry for several years. Generally, the popularity of such machines with players is dependent on the likelihood (or perceived likelihood) of winning money at the machine and the intrinsic entertainment value of the machine relative to other available gaming options. Where the available gaming options include a number of competing machines and the expectation of winning each machine is roughly the same (or believed to be the same), players are most likely to be attracted to the most entertaining and exciting of the machines. Shrewd operators consequently strive to employ the most entertaining and exciting machines available because such machines attract frequent and extended play and hence increase profitability to the operator. Accordingly, in the competitive gaming machine industry, there is a continuing need for gaming machine manufacturers to produce new types of games, or enhancements to existing games, which will attract frequent and extended play by enhancing the entertainment value and excitement associated with the game.
A gaming apparatus for conducting a wagering game includes a value input device, a processor, and a display. The value input device receives a wager from a player to play the wagering game.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the processor is operative to define a plurality of possible destinations; define a plurality of possible different movement patterns for moving the objects to the destinations; and for a given one of the objects, assign probabilities to the respective possible movement patterns and select one of the possible movement patterns based on the assigned probabilities. The display depicts the object going to a selected one of the destinations in accordance with the assigned movement pattern. The assigned probabilities for the given object may, for example, depend upon the destination that is selected.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the processor is operative to define a plurality of movable objects that are ostensibly similar, and assign different behavior types to the respective objects such that the objects behave differently from each other. Each behavior type includes a plurality of behaviors. For each object, the display depicts the plurality of behaviors associated with the behavior type assigned to the given object.
Methods of conducting a wagering game are also disclosed.
Additional aspects of the invention will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of the detailed description of various embodiments, which is made with reference to the drawings, a brief description of which is provided below.
The foregoing and other advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and upon reference to the drawings in which:
While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. However, it should be understood that the invention is not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
Turning now to the drawings and referring initially to
The gaming machine 10 includes a primary visual display 12 preferably in the form of a cathode ray tube (CRT), liquid crystal display (LCD), plasma, or other type of video display known in the art. The display 12 preferably includes a touch screen overlaying the monitor. In the illustrated embodiment, the gaming machine 10 is a “slant-top” version in which the display 12 is slanted at about a thirty-degree angle toward the player of the gaming machine 10. Alternatively, the gaming machine may be an “upright” version in which the display 12 is oriented vertically relative to the player. In addition to the primary display 12, the gaming machine may include a top box display 13 for depicting certain special features and bonus games.
A system memory 22 stores control software, operational instructions and data associated with the gaming machine 10. In one embodiment, the system memory 22 comprises a separate read-only memory (ROM) and battery-backed random-access memory (RAM). However, it will be appreciated that the system memory 22 may be implemented on any of several alternative types of memory structures or may be implemented on a single memory structure. A payoff mechanism 24 is operable in response to instructions from the CPU 18 to award a payoff to the player in response to certain winning outcomes that might occur in the basic game or the simulated Al feature. The payoff may be provided in the form of coins, bills, tickets, coupons, cards, etc. The payoff amounts are determined by one or more pay tables stored in the system memory 22.
In one embodiment, the gaming machine 10 is operable to play a game entitled MONOPOLY Grand Hotel™ (MONOPOLY is a trademark of Hasbro, Inc. for its property trading game and equipment). Referring to
Generally, game play is initiated by inserting money or playing a number of credits, causing the CPU to activate a number of pay lines corresponding to the amount of money or number of credits played. In one embodiment, the player selects the number of pay lines (between one and fifteen) to play by pressing a “Select Lines” key 34. The player then chooses the number of coins or credits to wager on the selected pay lines by pressing a “Bet Per Line” key 36. After selecting a number of pay lines and a wager amount, the reels 30 may be set in motion by touching a “Spin Reels” key 38 or, if the player wishes to bet the maximum amount per line, by using a “Max Bet Spin” key 40. Alternatively, other mechanisms such as a lever or push button may be used to set the reels in motion.
The CPU uses a random number generator to select a game outcome (e.g., “basic” game outcome) corresponding to a particular set of reel “stop positions.” The CPU then causes each of the video reels 30 to stop at the appropriate stop position. Video symbols are displayed on the reels 30 to graphically illustrate the reel stop positions and indicate whether the stop positions of the reels represent a winning game outcome.
A pay table identifies winning basic game outcomes (e.g., symbol combinations resulting in an award of credits or a bonus game) and the awards associated with such outcomes. In one embodiment, the pay table is affixed to the machine 10 and/or displayed by the video display 12 in response to a command by the player (e.g., by pressing a “Pay Table” button 42). A winning basic game outcome occurs when the symbols appearing on the reels 30 along an active pay line correspond to one of the winning combinations on the pay table. A winning combination, for example, could be three or more matching symbols along an active pay line, where the award is greater as the number of matching symbols along the active pay line increases. If the displayed symbols stop in a winning combination, the game provides the award identified in the pay table for that combination. If the award is a number of credits, the game typically multiplies that number of credits by the number of credits wagered on the winning pay line. In the illustrated example, relevant portions of the pay table screens and instructional text appear below:
Wins from the left must occur on adjacent reels, beginning with the leftmost reel.
Only highest winner paid per winning combination.
All line pays are multiplied by the line bet.
Page 5
Tycoon Bonus
Page 6
Awards appearing in Tycoon Bonus:
All awards appearing in the TYCOON bonus have already been multiplied by the line bet.
The player may collect the amount of accumulated credits by pressing a “Collect” button 44. In the illustrated example, the winning combinations start from the leftmost reel and span adjacent reels, i.e., winning line pay combinations pay left to right only. In an alternative implementation, the winning combinations start from either the leftmost reel or the rightmost reel and span adjacent reels, i.e., winning line pay combinations pay left to right and right to left.
Included among the plurality of basic game outcomes are start-feature outcomes for triggering play of different special game features. The special game features may, for example, include the simulated Al feature and other bonus games. A start-feature outcome may be defined in any number of ways. For example, a start-feature outcome occurs when a special start-feature symbol or a special combination of symbols appears on one or more of the reels 30. The start-feature outcome may require the combination of symbols to appear along an active pay line, or may alternatively require that the combination of symbols appear anywhere on the display (i.e., “scattered”) regardless of whether the symbols are along an active pay line. The appearance of a start-feature outcome causes the CPU to shift operation from the basic game to the associated special game feature. In the illustrated example, a combination of three or more Hotel symbols 46 along an active pay line 32 triggers a simulated Al feature that, in the MONOPOLY Grand Hotel game, is called the Tycoon Bonus. The Hotel symbols 46 in the combination may, for example, be highlighted using a flashing border.
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
The destinations provide the following awards when a guest 58 runs to that destination:
The above examples likely would not all take place during the same occurrence of the Tycoon Bonus, but are sequentially shown in the figures for the sake of simplicity of illustration.
The CPU determines the destinations to which the guests 58 will go as follows. Prior to any of the guests 58 going to a destination, the CPU creates an ordered list of destinations. The CPU randomly selects the destinations to be included in the ordered list. The destinations selected for inclusion in the ordered list may be weighted equally or unequally during the selection process. The number of destinations in the ordered list is at least as great as the maximum number of guests 58 that can appear during the Tycoon Bonus (including any extra guests that may result from a guest going to one of the four Railroads, as discussed above). The same destination may appear more than once in the ordered list such that more than one guest 58 can go to the same destination. Starting from the top of the ordered list, each guest 58 that breaks out of the middle of the game board 54 goes to the next destination in the ordered list.
When all of the guests 58 (see
In accordance with the present invention, the Tycoon Bonus is based on a game program that simulates artificial intelligence by creating objects that are ostensibly the same but in fact behave as if there is some intelligence, personality, and motivation driving their behavior. The objects are preferably characters (e.g., guests 58) that are initially part of a crowd in the middle of the game board 54.
When a guest 58 stands in the crowd in the middle of the game board 54 as in
A guest 58 of behavior type 2 could exhibit the following sequence of behaviors:
A guest 58 of behavior type 3 could exhibit the following sequence of behaviors:
In the preferred embodiment, there are a total of twenty behavior types that can be randomly assigned to the guests 58. Some possible idle behaviors may include the following isolated actions of a guest (acting alone): waiting, stretching, setting down and picking up a suitcase, rocking back and forth, checking a wristwatch, looking around, dancing, exciting jumping, doing a handstand, spinning, etc. Other possible idle behaviors may include the following interactions between two or more guests: shaking hands, talking and listening, excited talking and excited listening, giving a high five, dancing, etc. The game program loops a guest through the sequence of behaviors defined by the assigned behavior type.
When a guest 58 breaks out of the middle of the game board 54 and runs to a selected destination, the guest 58 engages in a run pattern behavior primarily intended to heighten the level of excitement, anticipation, and suspense. The run pattern behavior is defined by two linked tables. Table 1 defines the possible run patterns or maneuvers: decisive, indecisive, fake jump, etc.
Table II is a weighted table that provides, for a given destination, the probabilities that a guest 58 will exhibit different ones of the run patterns noted in Table I. The destination determines the possible run patterns of the guest 58 going to that destination and the probability of exhibiting each of the run patterns. For example, a guest 58 going to a lower-paying, more mundane destination such as Vermont Avenue is more likely to (but not always) go directly to the destination and follow a decisive path; however, a guest 58 going to a higher-paying, more exciting destination such as Boardwalk is more likely to (but not always) go indirectly to the destination and follow an indecisive path, e.g., look around, fake a jump, and then continue along. Thus, while higher-paying destinations will more likely use tricky and evasive maneuvers than lower-paying destinations, there is still an element of randomness in Table II that makes the maneuvering unpredictable.
In the preferred embodiment, a guest's possible run patterns and probability of exhibiting each of the run patterns are dependent upon the guest's destination. In an alternative embodiment, a guest's possible run patterns and probability of exhibiting each of the run patterns may be tied to the guest instead of the destination, such that the possible run patterns and the probabilities are independent of the guest's destination.
While the present invention has been described with reference to one or more particular embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that many changes may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
For example, instead of having the destinations on the game board 54 define the awards to be given to a player, the destinations could be eliminated so that the idle behaviors and/or the run pattern behaviors of the guests 58 in and of itself define the awards. For example, an idle behavior of dancing could represent a larger award than an idle behavior of stretching.
Further, a simulated intelligence feature akin to the Tycoon Bonus could be implemented in other wagering games, such as video poker, video keno, video blackjack, etc. The feature could be implemented as part of a base game or a bonus game.
Each of these embodiments and obvious variations thereof is contemplated as falling within the spirit and scope of the claimed invention, which is set forth in the following claims.
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