Patent ID: 8246449

Claim:
A gaming system comprising: at least one display device; at least one input device; at least one processor; and at least one memory device which stores a plurality of instructions, which when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to operate with the at least one display device and the at least one input device to: (a) for each of a plurality of plays of a base game: (i) enable a player to place one of a plurality of different wagers on said play of the base game, (ii) randomly determine whether to accumulate any bonus indicia, (iii) display a plurality of symbols from a set of symbols, (iv) provide any awards associated with the displayed plurality of symbols, and (v) if the determination is to accumulate any bonus indicia, accumulate said bonus indicia, wherein: (A) a first quantity of accumulated bonus indicia is associated with an availability of a first random bonus award determination sequence selectively accessible by the player, and (B) a second, different quantity of accumulated bonus indicia is associated with an availability of a second, different random bonus award determination sequence selectively accessible by the player.