Patent ID: 8684822

Claim:
In a bonus gaming system including one or more gaming devices interconnected via a network, each gaming device comprising a gaming processor, a player tracking system in communication with the gaming devices, and a bonus gaming system in communication with the gaming devices and comprising a processing and control system and a desktop computer, the bonus gaming system monitoring and controlling bonus sessions presented on the gaming devices, a method of managing a system level bonus game comprising: configuring by the desktop computer, at the system level various parameters of the bonus game including a plurality of bonus levels represented by a number of points earned during the course of play of a base game, wherein earning points in the bonus game is based upon the player's time of play; initiating by the processing and control system a bonus session when the bonus gaming system obtains player information from the player tracking system; monitoring by the gaming processor gaming activity during the course of play of a base game, wherein monitored gaming activity represents the player's time of play; providing information from the gaming processor to the processing and control system regarding player time of play to the bonus gaming system; determining by the processing and control system a number of base points accrued by a player based upon player time of play in a base game; determining by the processing and control system a number of bonus points accrued by a player based upon player time of play in a base game and the current bonus level of the bonus game; and awarding by the gaming processor a player a system award when the player achieves prescribed base and bonus point levels for each bonus level.