Patent ID: 7108603

Claim:
In a network of gaming machines, each of said gaining machines being capable of accepting different wager amounts made by a player, a method of randomly awarding one progressive prize from a plurality of progressive prizes using a second game to select said one progressive prize, a display of said second game being triggered upon an occunence of a random trigger condition having a probability of occurrence related to an amount of the wager, comprising: making a wager at a particular gaming machine in the network of gaming machines; initiating a first main game at said particular gaming machine; causing a second game trigger condition to occur as a result of said first main game being initiated, said second game trigger condition occurring randomly and having a probability of occurrence dependent on the amount of the wager made at said particular gaming machine, said step of causing a second game trigger condition to occur including: (1) selecting a random number from a predetermined range of numbers; (2) allotting a plurality of numbers from the predetermined range of numbers in proportion to the amount of the wager made at said particular gaming machine; and (3) indicating the occurrence of the trigger condition if one of the allotted numbers matches the selected random number; triggering a second game to appear at said particular gaming machine in response to said occurrence of said second game trigger condition, said second game appearing after completion of said first main game; randomly selecting said one progressive prize from said plurality of progressive prizes that has been won; displaying said second game to the player at said particular gaining machine in response to said triggering; identifying to the player said one progressive prize from said plurality of progressive prizes that has been won; and awarding said one progressive prize from said plurality of progressive prizes that has been won.