Patent ID: 7980946

Claim:
A method of playing a game using a symbol matrix formed by at least one row intersecting a plurality of columns, with the rows and columns including a plurality of symbols, comprising: a. entering a wager into a slot machine to participate in the game and causing the slot machine to commence the game, the slot machine upon commencing the game automatically performing the following steps: b. randomly rearranging the plurality of symbols; c. displaying the rearranged symbols; d. determining whether two or more wildcard symbols are used in winning symbol combinations and, if so, displaying multiplier values for each of said wildcard symbols in the following manner: i. Assigning each wildcard symbol a multiplier value, V, from a range of values from 1 to N, such that 1=<V=<N; ii. Displaying a multiplier value of 1 on each wildcard symbol; iii. Selecting one of the wildcard symbols used in a winning combination at random and incrementing its displayed multiplier value by 1 from 1 to X, such that X<=V; and iv. Repeating step 1(d)(iii) until each wildcard symbol used in a winning symbol combination has increased from 1 to its assigned value, V; e. enhancing the award for a winning symbol combination by the multiplier values displayed on wildcard symbols used in that combination; and f. issuing awards for all winning symbol combinations in the symbol matrix.