Patent ID: 7674168

Claim:
A gaming device comprising: at least one display device configured to display: (a) a play of a game, and (b) each of a quantity of randomly pickable symbols in the play of the game, the quantity being at least three, wherein each one of the randomly pickable symbols has a probability of being randomly picked, at least two of the randomly pickable symbols having different probabilities of being randomly picked, and wherein for each randomly pickable symbol, the probability of being randomly picked is based on a number of times that symbol occurs in the game, at least two of the randomly pickable symbols occurring a plurality of times in the play of the game; at least one input device; at least one processor; and at least one memory device configured to store 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, for the play of the game, to: (a) before any of the symbols are randomly picked: (i) determine a number of picks of the symbols, wherein the determined number of picks is less than the quantity of the symbols, and (ii) display the determined number of picks of the symbols, (b) display each of the quantity of symbols, and (c) thereafter, for each sequential pick of the displayed determined number of picks of the displayed symbols: (i) randomly pick at least one of the displayed symbols based on the probabilities, (ii) provide an award associated with each randomly picked symbol to a player, and (iii) if a designated number of symbols have been randomly picked, said designated number of symbols being at least one and less than the displayed determined number of picks: (1) eliminate each and every occurrence of the randomly picked symbol from subsequent random picks of the unpicked displayed symbols remaining in the play of the game, and (2) for at least one subsequent random pick of the displayed symbols, proportionately increase the probabilities associated with the unpicked symbols remaining in the play of the game based on the probability associated with the randomly picked symbol.