Patent Application
20130065693
A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all rights of copyright whatsoever.
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to games, gaming devices and systems, and methods used to provide tournaments on gaming machines, and, more particularly, to wagering games, gaming devices and systems and methods wherein multiple tournaments are initiated at multiple sites to determine winners at the respective sites and the winners are made eligible to compete in a subsequent tournament at an additional site to determine an ultimate winner.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various tournament gaming systems have been developed to provide various formats and graphic presentations for conducting tournaments and presenting game results. There continues to be a need for methods and systems which may offer increased excitement and opportunities for players in tournament gaming systems.
In accordance with one or more embodiments of the invention, multi-site tournament gaming systems and methods are provided wherein multiple multi-session tournaments may be initiated at various sites to generate respective winners at the various sites who thereafter may become eligible to compete in one or more additional tournament sessions at additional sites until an ultimate winner is determined.
These and other features of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments, considered along with the accompanying drawings.
Referring to
In parallel or in sequence with either the planning stage or database step 103, the TEC coordinator may create one or more accounts with one or more social media providers (e.g. Facebook, Twitter) and/or create one or more TEC webpages, such as at Multimedia Games website, or create an independent TEC website (e.g. www.TournEvent_of_Champions.com), step 105. On the webpages, for example, a homepage may include some information about an upcoming TEC championship event such as the date, location, and awards; another page may include dates for qualifying; another page may include tournament rules; and another page may include social media and other connections available to receive or obtain information about the TEC events and participants. Each of the pages may also include logos and names of the participating casinos. See
Next, the operator database may be filtered or searched by entering criteria into a connected database program (e.g. Excel) to generate a database of prospective site operators meeting the selected criteria for participating in the TEC multi-site tournament, e.g. site operators in the state of California with one or more installed Multimedia Gaines TournEvent gaming systems, step 107. From the filtered database, the tournament coordinator may transmit the proposed TEC sequence of events, such as via electronic or physical mail, and enroll each of the identified casino operators electing to participate, step 109 either directly or by providing each identified casino operator an access button or active element in an electronic mail or similar artifice such that the recipient may select the access button which points to the initial entry point (a website portal) on the enrollment webpage of TEC website 203. The TEC sequence of events may be provided from a printout produced from a project file generated on a conventional project management program on the computer by the tournament coordinator and identifying milestones for each participating site operator to: a) advertise and implement a sequence of in-casino player pre-qualification events, such as mini-tournaments, and/or to reward players for achieving a sufficient number of player points on any or selected of the casino operator's gaming machines, e.g. Multimedia Games gaming machines; b) generate a list of in-casino qualified players (e.g. 300 qualified site players) to participate in a series of in-casino playoff tournaments, and c) conduct the in-casino playoff tournament in conjunction with the multi-site tournament coordinator to determine one or more site winners (the winning in-casino qualified players) for advancement to the TEC championship tournament (or to a first multi-site tier of the TEC championship tournament in the case where there are one or more multi-site TEC tournaments for players to compete and advance to one or more subsequent multi-site tournaments culminating in the TEC championship tournament). When enrolling such as through the enrollment pages of TEC website 203, an enrollee/operator may progress through a series of menus and entries such as may be programmed by or through the TEC coordinator on a TEC server connected to TEC website 203) to enroll one or more casino facilities, enter a proposed date or dates to conduct the in-casino playoff tournament, accept the terms and conditions for participation which may include agreeing to generate and provide a list of a predetermined minimum (and possibly a maximum) number of in-casino qualified players to participate in the in-casino championship tournament and may further include submission of an enrollment fee.
Once enrolled, each casino operator may transmit information to the TEC coordinator about the pre-qualifying events and dates and prizes and be able to add a webpage to the TOC website that is specific to the casino operator and/or casino whereon the casino operator may include qualifying dates and/or qualifying events or activities, such as winning in a pre-tournament event or obtaining a threshold number of player points during a given time period. See
After the pre-qualifying events are held by respective casino operators, the respective operators may generate a qualified player database and present qualified players with one or more awards. The qualified player database may be input to an in-casino tournament server, such as shown in
As each of the milestones are accomplished, the respective site operators may transmit the listing of the qualified players, on-site tournament leader board information, and finally, the list of winning site players to the TEC coordinator. Responsive to the data listings received, the TEC coordinator may post the information on the TEC website and on the various social media through its account to provide players and spectators an opportunity to read, disseminate, and share the excitement by receiving information about the she operators, the players and ongoing tournament information, steps 111 and 115.
Once the TEC coordinator has received a listing of the in-casino winners, invitations may be transmitted through electronic or physical mail to provide the information for attending and participating in the TEC championship event which may include one or more tournament sessions to determine a TEC championship winner, step 113. Thereafter, each of the invited in-casino winners' names may be uploaded by the TEC coordinator into a database accessible by a TEC championship tournament server connected to designated gaming machines, step 117, and the TEC championship tournament may be operated in one or more tournament sessions on a tournament system (such as shown in
Referring to
Multi-site tournament gaming system 201 may additionally include and bi-communicatively connected to user interface devices 211 enabling users (e.g. players and the public-at-large) to access TEC published information and feeds. For example, user interface devices 211 may include without limitation personal computers, phones, personal data devices, tablets, kiosks, and gaming machines that may connect to one or more of gaming facility server and/or website 213, 215, social media server & website 209, and TEC server and website 203 to access information, recorded feeds, and/or live feeds published or transmitted by or to the various locations or facilities. For example, users may be able to download recorded feeds or receive live broadcasts of TEC pre-qualifying tournament sessions at various casino facilities 205, 207 or championship tournament sessions. Example live feeds may be directly transmitted (e.g. simulcast, podcast, RSS) from a tournament system server as in
Further referring to
With respect to the pre-qualifying events, the TEC coordinator may request that the participating gaming facilities respectively obtain a predetermined number or minimum number of qualified players by hosting specific events, such as by hosting weekly pre-qualifying tournaments for a period of several weeks or months, and selecting winners of various tournament sessions to be added to their database of qualified players. In some cases, the TEC coordinator may establish rules for generating the databases of qualified players or may provide for the participating facilities to determine their own criteria for generating their respective databases of qualified players and may offer some suggestions or guidelines. For example, the TEC coordinator may request that each participating facility generate a database of 300 qualified players to participate in the respective in-casino championship tournament sessions from which the in-casino champions are determined and each of which may receive one or more awards and an invitation to participate in the TEC championship tournament. By further example, to generate the database of qualified players, the TEC coordinator may request or require each participating facility to: a) host a series of pre-qualifying tournaments and/or host a series of events in order to determine 25-50% of the qualified players tor the qualified player database; b) track player activity on one or more selected gaming machines in the facility, e.g. Multimedia Games gaming machines, and determine 25% of the qualified players based on play on those gaming machines; and c) select 25% of the qualified players from the facilities list of VIP players. Players may also participate in drawings at the respective facilities in order to qualify. Additionally, some facilities may issue a symbolic award, such as a golden ticket, to each qualifying player which may be required to be presented at the respective facility's in-casino championship tournament. Other facilities may offer consolation prizes, such as tee shirts or other mementos, to various players participating in the pre-qualifying and in-casino championship tournament sessions. In some instances, the in-casino championship tournament dates may be scheduled in coordination with the TEC coordinator, which may provide operational support to conduct the in-casino championship tournaments including providing hostesses and a mascot or symbolic master of ceremonies, such as Multimedia Games Moneyman, plus various prizes, awards, and keepsakes which may profile the facility name and logo, sponsors' names and logos, and/or the TEC name and logo. The in-casino championship winners may for example, receive a custom jersey and medal plus an invitation to participate in the TEC championship tournament with free accommodations, roundtrip airfare for themselves and a guest, and a cash prize (e.g. $1000). From each participating facility, one or more in-casino champions may be determined, such that the number of in-casino champions participating in the TEC championship tournament may be a predetermined number, such as 16 player-champions. As part of the TEC championship event, the TEC coordinator may host a welcome party, photo/video shoots and interviews with the participants including players, facility operators, and guests, which may be transmitted by live or delayed feed to the TEC, facility, and social media websites, and/or may be transmitted on an address or bandwidth which may be received by various user interface devices, such as phones, personal computers, etc. Apart from the TEC championship tournament, additional tournaments may be hosted for fun and/or awards and be made available for anyone to play, such as other guests of a hosting cruise line or resort where the TEC championship event is hosted. Various pre-events may be hosted to build up further anticipation and provide opportunities for the guests of the locale to participate and receive various keepsakes and prizes. As part of the TEC championship event, each of the in-casino champions names and possibly additional information such as their sponsoring facility and location, may be entered into the tournament server database and an operator may set up the tournament bank or banks with the respective player's name and any additional information displayed on respective of the gaming machines. To open the TEC championship event, the designated master of ceremonies, such as the Moneyman, may make an announcement that the TEC championship tournament is to begin and introduce the participating facility representatives and each of the in-casino champions; the Moneyman or one of the hostesses may then escort each of the players to the respective player's tournament gaming machine. The TEC champion may then be determined, for example, as being the top scorer from three two-minute round games and an award presentation may include an oversized check and a coordinated balloon and confetti drop.
Referring to
As shown in
As shown in
Referring to
Additional webpages may be provided such as to enable enrollment by respective facilities into scheduled multi-site tournaments; for example, an enrollment page may include active fields where the enrolling facility may insert the facility name, location, and attach a logo for publishing. The enrollment page may include various menus enabling an enrolling facility to select available dates to conduct pre-qualifying and in-casino championship tournament events.
In one or more embodiments, social media page 801, or an alternate accessible location, such as one of the app stores of various mobile devices, may include downloadable applications for viewers to receive online audio, video, and/or data streams from various of the scheduled events. For example, social media webpage 801 may include a portal for receiving information from the enrolled facilities about scheduled pre-qualifying events; receiving captured images and data from pre-qualifying, events at respective of the enrolled facilities; receiving captured images and data from in-casino championship tournaments at respective of the enrolled facilities; publishing the schedules for the pre-qualifying events and locations; and, publishing selected of the captured images and data. In one or more embodiments, social media webpage 801 may be enabled to publish the captured images and data in real-time or quasi-real-time, wherein the captured images include audio and video signals. In one or more embodiments, social media webpage 801 may provide a gaming portal to viewers wherein viewers may download one or more gaming applications, receive a countdown transmission for an impending pre-qualifying tournament event, and participate remotely in the pre-qualifying tournament event or a pseudo-version of the pre-qualifying tournament event. In some instances, the viewers may actually qualify based on a posted score; and, in other instances, the viewers' participation may not qualify them but may receive the benefit of seeing their scores posted and possibly receive separate prizes through the TEC coordinator or enrolled facility for their participation.
Referring generally, to the forgoing description, as used herein the terms “comprising),” “including,” “carrying,” “having” “containing,” “involving,” and the like are to be understood to be open-ended, that is, to mean including but not limited to. Only the transitional phrases “consisting of” and “consisting essentially of,” respectively, shall be considered exclusionary transitional phrases, as set forth, with respect to claims, in the United States Patent and Trademark Office Manual of Patent Examining Procedures. Any use of ordinal terms such as “first,” “second,” “third,” etc., in the claims to modify a claim element does not by itself connote any priority, precedence, or order of one claim element over another, or the temporal order in which acts of a method are performed. Rather, unless specifically stated otherwise, such ordinal terms are used merely as labels to distinguish one claim element having a certain name from another element having a same name (but for use of the ordinal term). The term ‘presentation’ as used herein is meant to refer to the display of any image and/or video performance and/or the performance of one or more sound bites or audio tracks (such as digital or analog sound tracks or information stored on a memory device and processed by an audio controller to emit sound through a speaker) whether in an attract mode or as part of a game presentation or outcome.
The above described example embodiments are intended to illustrate the principles of the invention, but not to limit the scope of the invention. Various other embodiments and modifications to these preferred embodiments may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention.
This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Nonprovisional patent application Ser. No. 13/239,171, filed Sep. 21, 2011 and entitled “Tournament Game, Gaming Machine, Gaming System and Method With a Player-Interactive Bonus Feature”, which claims the benefit, under 35 U.S.C. §119(e), of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/388,598 filed Sep. 30, 2010, and entitled “Tournament Game, Gaming Machine, Gaming System and Method With a Player-Interactive Bonus Feature,” and of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/406,019 filed Oct. 22, 2010, having the same title. The entire content of each of these applications are incorporated herein by this reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61388598 | Sep 2010 | US | |
| 61406019 | Oct 2010 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 13239171 | Sep 2011 | US |
| Child | 13606958 | US |
