Patent ID: 7794318
Filing Date: 2010-09-14
Classification: G07F

Abstract:
1. A method for operating a gaming system, the method comprising: (a) storing a data structure on a computer-readable medium, the data structure for use in a gaming system, the data structure including: (i) a number of first result levels, each first result level correlating a respective result level identifier, a respective result value, an expected number of results per given number of plays in a game, a payout percentage, and a non-zero probability percentage, wherein at least one of the first result levels is associated with a nonzero result value and at least one of the first result levels is associated with a zero result value; and (ii) a plurality of second level results, each second result level correlating a respective result level identifier, a non-zero expected number of results per given number of results in the game, a payout percentage, a non-zero probability percentage, and a respective operator definable result value field, the operator definable result value field being set to zero, the second result level, unlike the first result levels, being included to provide the ability for changing its corresponding operator definable result value field to a nonzero value after the gaming system has been deployed and operated using the operator definable result value field with the zero value; (b) in response to a first game outcome including a result level ID value, reading the data structure with game software executed on a gaming machine by looking up a result level identifier in the data structure with the result level ID value, and selecting an associated one of the result values or one of the operator definable result value fields for use in a first game result, and causing the first game result to be displayed on an electronic display on the gaming machine and an electronic indicator of a player's credit value to be updated with the associated one of the result values; (c) sometime after causing the first game result to be displayed, receiving a first value from an operator at a system operator terminal in response setting the operator definable result value field to the first value received from the operator at a system operator terminal; and (d) sometime after setting the operator definable result value field to the first value, in response to a second game outcome including a result level ID value, reading the data structure with game software executed on a gaming machine by looking up the second result level in the data structure and selecting the operator definable result value field for use in a second game result, providing the second game result having a result value equal to the first value received from the operator, and causing the second game result to be displayed on the electronic display on the gaming machine and an electronic indicator of the player's credit value to be updated with the first value.