Gaming system having dynamic payback percentage as a function of enabled features
A method of operating a wagering game comprises detecting receipt of a primary wager for playing a primary wagering game, and activating a first bonus feature in response to one or more first eligibility criteria, the first bonus feature having a first bonus payback percentage. The method further comprises activating a second bonus feature in response to one or more second eligibility criteria, the one or more second eligibility criteria including activation of the first bonus feature. The second bonus feature has a second bonus payback percentage higher than the first bonus payback percentage. The method further comprises displaying a randomly selected outcome of the primary wagering game, and in response to at least one triggering event associated with the first and the second bonus features, conducting the first or second bonus feature if the first and second bonus feature is active.
1. A method of operating a gaming system primarily for playing at least one casino wagering game including a primary wagering game and one or more bonus features that can be included in the casino wagering game, the gaming system including a housing, a random element generator, one or more controllers, an electronic display device, and an input device, the electronic display device and the input device being coupled to the housing, the method comprising:
generating one or more random elements with the random element generator;
receiving, responsive to a physical input to the input device, a primary wager to initiate the primary wagering game;
displaying, on the electronic display device, a plurality of selectable bonus feature elements;
allowing a player to build the casino wagering game by including one or more of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements in a play of the casino wagering game, the allowing including:
(i) receiving a selection of a first one of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements thereby building the casino wagering game to include a first bonus feature associated with a first bonus payback percentage;
(ii) receiving a selection of a second one of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements thereby building the casino wagering game to include a second bonus feature associated with a second bonus payback percentage; and
(iii) in response to the receiving of the selection of the first selectable bonus feature element, increasing an aggregate payback percentage of the casino wagering game and in response to the receiving of the selection of the second selectable bonus feature element, further increasing the aggregate payback percentage of the casino wagering game;
determining, by the one or more controllers, an outcome of the casino wagering game based, at least in part, on the one or more random elements;
displaying the outcome on the electronic display device; and
awarding, by the one or more controllers, a tangible award in response to the outcome meeting a predetermined award criterion.
2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising prior to the receiving the selection of the second one of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements, deactivating a third one of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements thereby preventing selection of a third bonus feature associated with a third bonus payback percentage.
3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving a selection of a third one of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements associated with a third bonus feature associated with a third bonus payback percentage;
calculating the aggregate payback percentage based in part on the third bonus payback percentage;
in response to the calculated aggregate payback percentage being greater than a predetermined limit, maintaining the aggregate payback percentage of the casino wagering game at the increased level based on the enabling of the first and the second bonus features; and
in response to the calculated aggregate payback percentage being equal to or less than the predetermined limit, increasing the aggregate payback percentage of the casino wagering game in response to the receiving of the selection of the third one of the plurality of bonus feature elements.
4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising in response to a first triggering event associated with the first bonus feature, conducting the first bonus feature; and in response to a second triggering event associated with the second bonus feature, conducting the second bonus feature.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the receiving the selection of the first one of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements further includes receiving a first bonus wager in addition to the primary wager.
6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the receiving the selection of the second one of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements further includes receiving a second bonus wager in addition to the primary wager and in addition to the first bonus wager.
7. A casino gaming machine primarily for playing at least one casino wagering game including a primary wagering game and one or more bonus features that can be included in the casino wagering game, the machine comprising:
a housing for housing components associated with the casino wagering game;
an electronic display device coupled to the housing;
an input device coupled to the housing, the input device configured to receive a primary wager from a player to initiate the primary wagering game;
one or more controllers disposed within the housing and including a random element generator, the random element generator configured to generate one or more random elements, the one or more controllers configured to:
display, on the electronic display device, a plurality of selectable bonus feature elements;
allow a player to build the casino wagering game by including one or more of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements in a play of the casino wagering game, the building including:
receiving a selection of a first one of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements thereby building the casino wagering game to include a first bonus feature associated with a first bonus payback percentage; and
receiving a selection of a second one of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements thereby building the casino wagering game to include a second bonus feature associated with a second bonus payback percentage, wherein an aggregate payback percentage of the casino wagering game increases upon the including of the first bonus feature in the casino wagering game and further increases upon the including of the second bonus feature in the casino wagering game;
initiate the casino wagering game in response to receiving the primary wager;
determine an outcome of the casino wagering game based, at least in part, on the one or more random elements;
direct the electronic display device to display the outcome; and
award a tangible award in response to the outcome meeting a predetermined award criterion.
8. The gaming machine of claim 7 , wherein the aggregate payback percentage is not increased upon including a third bonus feature associated with a third bonus payback percentage in the casino wagering game if such an increase would make the aggregate payback percentage higher than an upper limit of a predetermined range for the aggregate payback percentage.
9. The gaming machine of claim 7 , wherein the first bonus payback percentage and the second bonus payback percentage are substantially equal.
10. The gaming machine of claim 7 , wherein the receiving the selection of the first one of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements further includes receiving a first bonus wager in addition to the primary wager, and wherein the receiving the selection of the second one of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements further includes receiving a second bonus wager in addition to the primary wager and in addition to the first bonus wager.
11. The gaming machine of claim 7 , wherein a primary payback percentage is associated with the primary wagering game, and wherein each of the first bonus payback percentage and the second bonus payback percentage is greater than the primary payback percentage.
12. The gaming machine of claim 11 , wherein the aggregate payback percentage is a function of the primary payback percentage, the first bonus payback percentage, and the second bonus payback percentage.
13. A method of operating a gaming system primarily for playing at least one casino wagering game including a primary wagering game and bonus features that can be enabled and playable in conjunction with the primary wagering game, the gaming system including a housing, a random element generator, one or more controllers, an electronic display device, and an input device, the electronic display device and the input device being coupled to the housing, the method comprising:
generating one or more random elements with the random element generator;
receiving, responsive to a physical input to the input device, a primary wager to initiate the primary wagering game;
allowing a player to build the casino wagering game, the allowing including:
receiving an input corresponding to a desired aggregate payback percentage for the casino wagering game;
in response to the receiving, displaying, on the electronic display device, at least a first combination of the bonus features and a second combination of the bonus features, the first and the second combinations of the bonus features when enabled providing the desired aggregate payback percentage for the casino wagering game; and
receiving a selection of either the first or the second combination of the bonus features;
determining, by the one or more controllers, an outcome of the casino wagering game based, at least in part, on the one or more random elements;
displaying the outcome on the electronic display device; and
awarding, by the one or more controllers, a tangible award in response to the outcome meeting a predetermined award criterion.
14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the determining includes conducting the casino wagering game with the desired aggregate payback percentage.
15. The method of claim 13 , wherein the first combination of the bonus features includes a first bonus feature and a second bonus feature, the first bonus feature being associated with a first bonus payback percentage and the second bonus feature being associated with a second bonus payback percentage that is higher than the first bonus payback percentage.
16. The method of claim 13 , further comprising receiving a bonus wager for playing either the first or the second combination of the bonus features.
17. A casino gaming machine primarily for playing at least one casino wagering game including a primary wagering game and one or more bonus features that can be enabled and included in the casino wagering game, the machine comprising:
a housing for housing components associated with the casino wagering game;
an electronic display device coupled to the housing;
an input device coupled to the housing, the input device configured to receive a primary wager from a player to initiate the primary wagering game;
one or more controllers disposed within the housing and including a random element generator, the random element generator configured to generate one or more random elements, the one or more controllers configured to:
allow a player to build the casino wagering game, the allowing including:
receiving an input corresponding to a desired aggregate payback percentage for the casino wagering game;
in response to the receiving, displaying, on the electronic display device, a plurality of selectable elements, each of the selectable elements being associated with a respective set of the bonus features and being selectable to provide the desired aggregate payback percentage for the casino wagering game; and
receiving a selection of a first one of the selectable elements thereby enabling a first set of the bonus features;
establish an aggregate payback percentage of the casino wagering game as the desired aggregate payback percentage upon enabling of the first set of the bonus features;
initiate the casino wagering game in response to receiving the primary wager;
determine an outcome of the casino wagering game based, at least in part, on the one or more random elements;
direct the electronic display device to display the outcome; and
award a tangible award in response to the outcome meeting a predetermined award criterion.
18. The gaming machine of claim 17 , wherein a primary payback percentage is associated with the primary wagering game and wherein an aggregate bonus payback percentage is associated with the first set of the bonus features, the aggregate bonus payback percentage being greater than the primary payback percentage.
19. The gaming machine of claim 18 , wherein the aggregate payback percentage is a function of the primary payback percentage and the aggregate bonus payback percentage.
20. A method of operating a gaming system primarily for playing at least one casino wagering game including a primary wagering game and one or more bonus features that can be enabled and included in the casino wagering game, the gaming system including a housing, a random element generator, one or more controllers, an electronic display device, and an input device, the electronic display device and the input device being coupled to the housing, the method comprising:
allowing a player to build the casino wagering game, the allowing including:
receiving an input corresponding to a desired aggregate payback percentage for the wagering game;
displaying, on the electronic display device, a plurality of selectable bonus feature elements; and
receiving a selection of a first one of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements thereby enabling a first bonus feature associated with a first bonus payback percentage;
receiving a selection of a second one of the plurality of selectable bonus feature elements thereby enabling a second bonus feature associated with a second bonus payback percentage;
determining a wager amount for playing the primary wagering game, the first bonus feature, and the second bonus feature such that an aggregate payback percentage of the casino wagering game is the desired aggregate payback percentage, the determining the wager amount including (i) determining a primary wager amount for playing the primary wagering game, (ii) determining a first bonus wager amount for playing the first bonus feature, and (iii) determining a second bonus wager amount for playing the second bonus feature, a primary payback percentage being associated with the determined primary wagering game, the aggregate payback percentage of the casino wagering game being calculated by the following function: [(the primary payback percentage)*(the primary wager amount)+(the first bonus payback percentage)*(the first bonus wager amount)]+(the second bonus payback percentage)*(the second bonus wager amount)]/[(the primary wager amount)+(the first bonus wager amount)+(the second bonus wager amount)];
receiving, responsive to a physical input to the input device, the wager amount to initiate the casino wagering game;
generating one or more random elements with the random element generator;
determining, by the one or more controllers, an outcome of the casino wagering game based, at least in part, on the one or more random elements;
displaying the outcome on the electronic display device; and
awarding, by the one or more controllers, a tangible award in response to the outcome meeting a predetermined award criterion.