Electronic gaming system and method of providing progressive jackpot play

1. A gaming system, said gaming system comprising:

a jackpot server configured to accumulate respective contributions from a plurality of gaming client devices into a token progressive jackpot; and

a gaming server configured to:

present a plurality of wagering games to a player on a gaming client device, the plurality of wagering games including:

a first wagering game having a first progressive jackpot component, wherein the first progressive jackpot component is associated with the first wagering game; and

a second wagering game not having the first progressive jackpot component, or any other progressive jackpot component;

receive data from a jackpot token, the jackpot token comprising a storage media storing the data, the data including a token identification associated with the player and a progressive jackpot identification associated with the token progressive jackpot;

receive a wager from the player for the second wagering game, the wager including a wager amount;

associate, upon receipt of the data from the jackpot token and the wager for the second wagering game, the second wagering game with the token progressive jackpot, wherein the second wagering game was not previously associated with any progressive jackpot component and receipt of the data from the jackpot token including the progressive jackpot identification stored thereon causes the gaming server to link the token progressive jackpot to the second wagering game upon receipt of the wager for the second wagering game;

conduct the second wagering game such that the player participates in the token progressive jackpot, wherein all of the wager amount is initially applied to play of the second wagering game;

identify a predetermined portion of the wager amount to later be applied to the token progressive jackpot, after all of the wager amount is initially applied to play of the second wagering game; and

transmit a message to said jackpot server, the message including an outcome of the second wagering game and the predetermined portion of the wager amount which is to be credited as a contribution to the token progressive jackpot.

2. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the token identification identifies at least one of a particular player account, a length of time for which the player may play for the token progressive jackpot, and an expiration of the jackpot token.

3. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the token progressive jackpot is controlled by said jackpot server.

4. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the first wagering game includes a plurality of first wagering games, and the second wagering game includes a plurality of second wagering games.

5. The gaming system of claim 4 , wherein upon receiving the data from the jackpot token, said gaining server is configured to display the plurality of second wagering games not having a progressive jackpot component that are available to the player for application of the jackpot token.

6. The gaming system of claim 4 , wherein said gaming server is further configured to:

continuously retrieve a current token progressive jackpot amount from said jackpot server; and

display the current token progressive jackpot to the player.

7. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein to receive the wager from the player, said gaming server is further configured to one of receive the wager from the player using a credit input mechanism and subtract the wager from a credit balance associated with the player.

8. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the received wager must meet or exceed a predetermined qualifying wager amount to qualify to win the token progressive jackpot, the predetermined qualifying wager amount being greater than a minimum wager amount for the gaming client device.

9. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the jackpot token serves as a qualifying wager to qualify to win the token progressive jackpot, and the received wager must meet or exceed a minimum wager amount for the gaming client device.

10. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein in response to receiving the message from said gaming server, said jackpot server is configured to:

determine whether the token progressive jackpot is to be paid out based on the outcome of the second wagering game, and

when a token progressive jackpot payout is to be made, transmit a message instructing said gaming server an amount of the token progressive jackpot payout to pay to the player.

11. The gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of gaming client devices include at least one of an electronic gaming machine in a casino, a remote gaming machine accessing the casino via a network, a remote gaming machine having virtual access to any casino coupled to the network and associated with said gaming server, and a personal computer or mobile device coupled to the Internet via a virtual private network such that the player may participate in the game, remotely.

12. A method of playing a wagering game using a gaming system, said method comprising:

accumulating, by a jackpot server, respective contributions from a plurality of gaming client devices into a token progressive jackpot, wherein at least one of the gaming client devices presents a wagering game not having a first progressive jackpot component;

presenting, by a gaming server communicatively coupled to the jackpot server, a plurality of wagering games to a player on a gaming client device, the plurality of wagering games including:

a first wagering game having the first progressive jackpot component, wherein the first progressive jackpot component is associated with the first wagering game; and

a second wagering game not having the first progressive jackpot component, or any other progressive jackpot component;

receiving, by the gaming server, data from a jackpot token, the jackpot token comprising a storage media storing the data, the data including a token identification associated with the player and a progressive jackpot identification associated with the token progressive jackpot;

receiving, by the gaming server, a wager from the player for the second wagering game, the wager including a wager amount;

associating, upon receipt of the data from the jackpot token and the wager for the second wagering game, the second wagering game with the token progressive jackpot wherein the second wagering game was not previously associated with any progressive jackpot component and receipt of the data from the jackpot token including the progressive jackpot identification stored thereon causes the gaming server to link the token progressive jackpot to the second wagering game upon receipt of the wager for the second wagering game;

conducting, by the gaming server, the second wagering game such that the player participates in the token progressive jackpot, wherein all of the wager amount is initially applied to play of the second wagering game;

identifying a predetermined portion of the wager amount to later be applied to the token progressive jackpot, after all of the wager amount is initially applied to play of the second wagering game; and

transmitting, by the gaming server, a message to the jackpot server, the message including an outcome of the second wagering game and the predetermined portion of the wager amount which is to be credited as a contribution to the token progressive jackpot.

13. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:

receiving, by the jackpot server, the message from the gaming server;

determining whether the token progressive jackpot is to be paid out based on the outcome of the second wagering game; and

when a token progressive jackpot payout is to be made, transmitting, by the jackpot server, a message instructing the gaming server of an amount of the token progressive jackpot payout to pay to the player.

14. The method of claim 12 , wherein receiving the data from the jackpot token further comprises identifying, by the gaming server, at least one of a particular player account associated with the jackpot token, a length of time for which the player may play for the token progressive jackpot, and an expiration of the jackpot token.

15. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:

generating, by the jackpot server, the token progressive jackpot.

16. The method of claim 12 , wherein the first wagering game includes a plurality of first wagering games, and the second wagering game includes a plurality of second wagering games, said method further comprising:

continuously retrieving, by the gaming server, a current token progressive jackpot amount from the jackpot server; and

displaying the current token progressive jackpot to the player via the gaming client device.

17. The method of claim 12 , wherein receiving the wager from the player comprises one of:

receiving the wager from the player using a credit input mechanism of the gaming client device; and

subtracting the wager from a credit balance associated with the player, the credit balance stored on a player tracking server of the gaming system.