Patent ID: 7704141

Claim:
A method of conducting a wagering game on a gaming system having a display, a wager input device, and at least one controller configured to execute instructions relating to the wagering game, the method comprising: assigning to a plurality of symbol positions in an array of symbol positions at least one pre-defined attribute via the controller, the at least one pre-defined attribute comprising a probability defined by a probability schedule; receiving a monetary wager from a player via the wager input device associated with the gaming system; converting the monetary wager into an opportunity for the player to play the wagering game on the gaming system; initiating the wagering game on the gaming system; generating a random number using a random-number generator configured to output random numbers; correlating the random number output by the random-number generator to a wagering-game outcome using the controller; displaying a representation of the wagering game outcome via the display, the representation of the wagering game outcome comprising the array of symbol positions, each symbol position in the array of symbol positions comprising a randomly-generated symbol; designating a randomly selected one of at least one of the symbol positions in the array of symbol positions as a lucky spot according to the probability schedule via the controller, the designating occurring without regard to the symbols that fill the array; determining whether the wagering-game outcome corresponds to a predefined winning outcome or a losing outcome using the controller; and converting the winning outcome, if any, into an award for the filled array according to a pay table and according to the lucky spot.