A method and apparatus which allows player gaming to transpire over a series of sessions without a player losing credit for performances in earlier sessions. A player card carries thereon the current status of the player’s performance during the course of previous sessions and it updated during subsequent sessions. Milestones are recognized as opportunities for providing the player with awards as these milestones are achieved. Score hero.
Casinos continually search for new games which encourage players to spend more time wagering. One way of stimulating player interest involves the award of a larger pay off. Another strategy involves introduction of games that are novel and appeal to a player’s desire for novelty and strategies which increase the interest level of the player. Another technique is to combine the two above-identified strategies for increasing the potential player payout and player stimulation by novel games.
A further trend is to provide games which can only be consummated over a somewhat protracted period of time. An example of such a game involves tournament play in which a player is awarded an initial number of credits and the play is intended to continue over a period time at the end of which awards are made for the participants in the tournament based on having enjoyed distinguished performance over that time period. Tournament play increases the duration of time during which the player participates, but large numbers of people are still excluded from a tournament type of environment for any of a number of reasons. One common reason for not participating in a tournament involves the player’s obligation to discontinue play for other activities. This necessarily decreases the total number of participants who have the desire to play for protracted periods but are unable to commit the time in one session. Score hero.
Apart from tournament play, the industry in general would still like to develop games that encourages a player to participate in an outcome that involves sustained play over a protracted period of time. This would be analogous to “frequent usage or participation” programs that reward an individual for ongoing loyalty to a particular entity. Various devices have been introduced in the industry which allow a player to be “tracked” by the gaming establishment so that it is easier to reward a player who has demonstrated a penchant for either long term play or play involving a relatively large amount of money. One example involves player identification cards which are downloaded into the gaming machines that allows the player’s activity as a function of time to be recorded. Many players, however, are reluctant to participate in what they may view as a form of surveillance and therefore player tracking instrumentalities in which the player is identified has been met with only moderate acceptance by players. Score hero.
A primary object of the present invention is to provide a new, novel and useful method and apparatus for allowing protracted play of one or more similar gaming machines over a series of sessions.
A method for gaming involving a machine and a game capable of being played in a series of session over a protracted period of time, the steps including:
providing a game having a game theme formed from several individual game events,
providing a player a player memory card and reading the present status of the game from the player memory card playing the game based on the present status of the game
A further object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus as characterized above in which the player is provided with a memory card that stores thereon updates with respect to the progress of the player during the course of a series of plays defining the player’s participation.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a device as characterized above which allows the player to select when the player wants to play and cease playing at the player’s sole discretion. The player can play the same game on one or several machines without losing the game status.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a method and device as characterized above which is intuitive to use and enhances the player’s enjoyment.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a method and device as characterized above which increases the enjoyment of the player and allows the player to post results over a duration of time for subsequent ranking and evaluation.
Viewed from a first vantage point it is an object of the present invention to provide a gaming apparatus, comprising in combination: a display means, a processor having means to drive a display means, an outcome generator operatively coupled to the processor to control gaming results of the processor and its driving of the display means, a plurality of inputs enabled by a player allowing the player to initiate and sustain play of the gaming apparatus, and a player memory card including memory storage means on the card removably accessible to the processor to upload and download information between the processor and the player memory card reflective of status of an ongoing game.
Viewed from a second vantage point it is an object of the present invention to provide a method for gaming involving a machine and game capable of being played, in a series of sessions over a protracted period of time, the steps including: providing a player memory card, reading the present status of a game either at the beginning of a game while in progress, or at the end of the game from the player memory card, playing the game based on the present status of the game as reflected on the player memory card, and writing an update of the new status of the game on the player memory card at the end of a session when the player present elects to stop playing.
