AU2012251954B2

AU2012251954B2 - A method of gaming, a gaming system and a game controller

Info

Publication number: AU2012251954B2
Application number: AU2012251954A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Daniel Julio Montenegro
Original assignee: Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Ltd
Current assignee: Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2010-04-27
Filing date: 2012-11-13
Publication date: 2016-02-11
Anticipated expiration: 2031-04-27
Also published as: AU2012251954A1

Abstract

Abstract The present invention relates to a system and method of 5 gaming comprising: displaying columns of symbol display positions, at least some of the columns having differing numbers of symbol display positions; defining winning combinations of symbol display positions having at least one symbol display position from each of said columns; 10 facilitating selection of at least one of said columns by a player for selection of winning combinations to be played in a game, the selected winning combinations to be played comprising all possible winning combinations derivable from all symbol display positions of said is selected at least one column and a designated symbol display position from each of said columns which the player did not select; selecting symbols for display in said symbol display positions; and determining a game outcome based on symbols displayed in said selected 20 winning combinations. 38498621 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 13111/12 Display RNG 624 Symbols Controller 626 Sybl641 Symbol Selector Gm Rules 642 _ 1---+ Pay II Table ItI Winning Comb. Game Outcome Module 621 ee42A DeterminMeter Determined Winning Comb. Data 625 Selector 622 643 50 62 64 60 Figure 6 Displaying columns of symbol display positions, whereby at least some of the columns have differing numbers of symbol r710 display positions Defining winning combinations 720 Facilitating selection of at least one column for selection of r 3 winning combinations to be played in a game73 Selecting symbols for display in the symbol display positions 740 Determining a game outcome based on symbols displayed in 750 the selected winning combinations Figure 7

Description

AUSTRALIA Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION Standard Patent Applicant: Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Limited Invention Title: A METHOD OF GAMING, A GAMING SYSTEM AND A GAME CONTROLLER The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method for performing it known to me/us: 1 Title A METHOD OF GAMING, A GAMING SYSTEM AND A GAME CONTROLLER 5 Related Application This application is a divisional application of Australian application no.2011201891, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Most of the disclosure 10 of that application is also included herein, however, reference may be made to the specification of application no. 2011201891 as accepted to gain further understanding of the invention claimed herein. 15 Field The present invention relates to a method of gaming, a gaming system and a game controller. 20 Background It is known to provide a gaming system that randomly selects symbols for display in symbol display positions and determines game outcomes based on the displayed 25 symbols. Some known gaming systems also include winning combinations of designated symbol display positions. In this case, these gaming systems determine game outcomes based on the symbols displayed in the winning combinations. 30 While such gaming systems provide players with enjoyment, a need exists for alternative gaming systems in order to maintain or increase player enjoyment. 35 Summary of the Invention In a first aspect, the present invention provides a method 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 2 of gaming comprising: displaying a plurality of columns of symbol display positions of a game on a display of a gaming system, at least two columns of the plurality of columns having differing numbers of symbol display 5 positions; defining win lines of symbol display positions having at least one symbol display position from each of the plurality of columns based on game rules stored in a storage device of the gaming system; selecting at least one column from the plurality of columns displayed on the 10 gaming machine in response to a player selection through a game play mechanism of the gaming system; selecting a plurality of win lines to be played from the defined win lines and based on the at least one column selected by the player, each selected win line of the plurality of win 15 lines comprising one symbol display position from each selected column and one symbol display position from each remaining column the player did not select, each of the selected win lines comprising a chance for the player to win the game based on symbols displayed; populating each 20 of the symbol display positions of the plurality of columns with respective symbols; and determining an outcome of the game based on symbols displayed in the symbol display positions of the selected win lines. In an embodiment, displaying comprises displaying five 25 columns of symbol display positions. In an arrangement, the method further includes displaying first and last columns having four symbol display positions, second and fourth columns having three symbol display positions and a central column having two symbol display positions. 30 In an embodiment, displaying comprises displaying the plurality of columns of symbol display positions as a plurality of reels corresponding to the columns. 35 In an embodiment, displaying comprises displaying non uniform size symbol display positions in at least two columns from among the plurality of columns. In an 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 3 arrangement, displaying comprises displaying symbol display positions having one size in one of the columns and another size in another one of the columns. In another arrangement, the symbol display position size in 5 one of the columns is based on a number of symbol display positions in this column. In an embodiment, the winning combinations comprise win lines. 10 In a second aspect, the invention provides a gaming system comprising: a display configured to display a plurality of columns of symbol display positions of a game, at least two columns of the plurality of columns having differing 15 numbers of symbol display positions; a winning combination module configured to define win lines of symbol display positions having at least one symbol display position from each of the plurality of columns based on game rules stored in a storage device of the gaming system; a winning 20 combination selector configured to: select at least one column from the plurality of columns displayed on the display in response to a player selection through a game play mechanism of the gaming system, and select a plurality of win lines to be played from the defined win 25 lines and based on the at least one column selected by the player, each of the selected win lines comprising one symbol display position from each selected column and one symbol display position from each remaining column the player did not select, each of the selected win lines 30 further comprising a chance for the player to win the game based on symbols displayed; a symbol selector configured to populate each of the symbol display positions of the plurality of columns with respective symbols; and an outcome determiner configured to determine an outcome of 35 the game based on symbols displayed in the symbol display positions of the selected win lines. 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 4 In a third aspect, the invention provides a game controller comprising a processor configured to implement: a winning combination module configured to define win lines of symbol display positions of a game having at 5 least one symbol display position from each column of a plurality of columns of symbol display positions based on game rules stored in a storage device of a gaming system, at least two columns of the plurality of columns having differing numbers of symbol display positions; a winning 10 combination selector configured to: select at least one column from the plurality of columns displayed on a display in response to a player selection through a game play mechanism of the gaming system, and select a plurality of win lines to be played from the defined win 15 lines and based on the at least one column selected by the player, each selected win line of the plurality of win lines comprising one symbol display position from each selected column and one symbol display position from each remaining column the player did not select, each of the 20 selected win lines comprising a chance for the player to win the game based on symbols displayed; and a symbol selector configured to populate each of the symbol display positions of the plurality of columns with respective symbols; and an outcome determiner configured to determine 25 an outcome of the game based on symbols displayed in the symbol display positions of the selected win lines. In a fourth aspect, the invention provides A gaming system comprising: a cabinet; a display configured to display a 30 plurality of columns of symbol display positions of a game, the display mounted within the cabinet; a game play mechanism mounted to the cabinet, including at least one input device, the game play mechanism operable by a player to place wagers in the game; and a game controller 35 disposed within the cabinet comprising a processor and a non-transitory memory storing game control instructions that enable the game controller to operate, the game 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 5 controller comprising: a winning combination module configured to define win lines of symbol display positions having at least one symbol display position from each of the plurality of columns based on game rules stored in the 5 non-transitory memory, at least two columns of the plurality of columns having differing numbers of symbol display positions; a winning combination selector configured to: select at least one column from the plurality of columns displayed on the display in response 10 to a player selection through the game play mechanism, and select a plurality of win lines to be played from the defined win lines and based on the at least one column selected by the player, each selected win line of the plurality of win lines comprising one symbol display 15 position from each selected column and one symbol display position from each remaining column the player did not select, each of the selected win lines further comprising a chance for the player to win the game based on symbols displayed; a symbol selector configured to populate each 20 of the symbol display positions of the plurality of columns with respective symbols; and an outcome determiner configured to determine an outcome of the game based on symbols displayed in the symbol display positions of the selected win lines. 25 In a fifth aspect, the invention provides computer program code which when executed implements the above method. In an sixth aspect, the invention provides a computer 30 readable medium comprising the above program code. In a seventh aspect, the invention extends to transmitting or receiving the above program code. 35 In an eighth aspect, the invention provides a data signal comprising the above program code. 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 6 Brief Description of Drawings An exemplary embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in 5 which: Figure 1 is a block diagram of the core components of a gaming system; 10 Figure 2 is a perspective view of a stand alone gaming machine; Figure 3 is a block diagram of the functional components of a gaming machine; 15 Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the functional components of a memory; Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of a network gaming 20 system; Figure 6 is a further block diagram of a gaming system; Figure 7 is a flow chart of a method of an embodiment; 25 Figures 8a and 8b show exemplary displays of an example of an embodiment; and Figures 9a and 9b show exemplary displays of an example of 30 an embodiment. Detailed Description Referring to the drawings, there is shown a method and a 35 gaming system for implementing the method. In the embodiment, the method includes displaying columns of symbol display positions, whereby at least some of the 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 7 columns have differing numbers of symbol display positions. In the embodiment, the method also includes defining winning combinations of symbol display positions having at least one symbol display position from each of 5 said columns, and facilitating selection of at least one of the columns by a player for selection of winning combinations to be played in a game. The selected winning combinations to be played comprise all possible winning combinations derivable from all symbol display positions 10 of the selected column or columns and a designated symbol display position from each of the columns which the player did not select. In the embodiment, the method further includes selecting symbols for display in the symbol display positions and determining a game outcome based on 15 symbols displayed in the selected winning combinations. General construction of gaming system The gaming system can take a number of different forms. 20 In a first form, a stand alone gaming machine is provided wherein all or most components required for implementing the game are present in a player operable gaming machine. In a second form, a distributed architecture is provided 25 wherein some of the components required for implementing the game are present in a player operable gaming machine and some of the components required for implementing the game are located remotely relative to the gaming machine. For example, a "thick client" architecture may be used 30 wherein part of the game is executed on a player operable gaming machine and part of the game is executed remotely, such as by a gaming server; or a "thin client" architecture may be used wherein most of the game is executed remotely such as by a gaming server and a player 35 operable gaming machine is used only to display audible and/or visible gaming information to the player and receive gaming inputs from the player. 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 8 However, it will be understood that other arrangements are envisaged. For example, an architecture may be provided wherein a gaming machine is networked to a gaming server 5 and the respective functions of the gaming machine and the gaming server are selectively modifiable. For example, the gaming system may operate in stand alone gaming machine mode, "thick client" mode or "thin client" mode depending on the game being played, operating conditions, 10 and so on. Other variations will be apparent to persons skilled in the art. Irrespective of the form, the gaming system has several core components. At the broadest level, the core 15 components are a player interface 50 and a game controller 60 as illustrated in Figure 1. The player interface is arranged to enable manual interaction between a player and the gaming system and for this purpose includes the input/output components required for the player to enter 20 instructions to play the game and observe the game outcomes. Components of the player interface may vary from embodiment to embodiment but will typically include a 25 credit mechanism 52 to enable a player to input credits and receive payouts, one or more displays 54, a game play mechanism 56 including one or more input devices that enable a player to input game play instructions (e.g. to place a wager), and one or more speakers 58. 30 The game controller 60 is in data communication with the player interface and typically includes a processor 62 that processes the game play instructions in accordance with game play rules and outputs game play outcomes to the 35 display. Typically, the game play rules are stored as program code in a memory 64 but can also be hardwired. Herein the term "processor" is used to refer generically 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 9 to any device that can process game play instructions in accordance with game play rules and may include: a microprocessor, microcontroller, programmable logic device or other computational device, a general purpose computer 5 (e.g. a PC) or a server. A gaming system in the form of a stand alone gaming machine 10 is illustrated in Figure 2. The gaming machine 10 includes a console 12 having a display 14 on which are 10 displayed representations of a game 16 that can be played by a player. A mid-trim 20 of the gaming machine 10 houses a bank of buttons 22 for enabling a player to interact with the gaming machine, in particular during game play. The mid-trim 20 also houses a credit input 15 mechanism 24 which in this example includes a coin input chute 24A and a bill collector 24B. Other credit input mechanisms may also be employed, for example, a card reader for reading a smart card, debit card or credit card. Other gaming machines may configure for ticket in 20 such that they have a ticket reader for reading tickets having a value and crediting the player based on the face value of the ticker. A player marketing module (not shown) having a reading device may also be provided for the purpose of reading a player tracking device, for 25 example as part of a loyalty program. The player tracking device may be in the form of a card, flash drive or any other portable storage medium capable of being read by the reading device. In some embodiments, the player marketing module may provide an additional credit mechanism, either 30 by transferring credits to the gaming machine from credits stored on the player tracking device or by transferring credits from a player account in data communication with the player marketing module. 35 A top box 26 may carry artwork 28, including for example pay tables and details of bonus awards and other information or images relating to the game. Further 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 10 artwork and/or information may be provided on a front panel 29 of the console 12. A coin tray 30 is mounted beneath the front panel 29 for dispensing cash payouts from the gaming machine 10. 5 The display 14 shown in Figure 2 is in the form of a video display unit, particularly a cathode ray tube screen device. Alternatively, the display 14 may be a liquid crystal display, plasma screen, any other suitable video 10 display unit, or the visible portion of an electromechanical device. The top box 26 may also include a display, for example a video display unit, which may be of the same type as the display 14, or of a different type. 15 Figure 3 shows a block diagram of operative components of a typical gaming machine which may be the same as or different to the gaming machine of Figure 2. 20 The gaming machine 100 includes a game controller 101 having a processor 102 mounted on a circuit board. Instructions and data to control operation of the processor 102 are stored in a memory 103, which is in data communication with the processor 102. Typically, the 25 gaming machine 100 will include both volatile and non volatile memory and more than one of each type of memory, with such memories being collectively represented by the memory 103. 30 The gaming machine has hardware meters 104 for purposes including ensuring regulatory compliance and monitoring player credit, an input/output (I/O) interface 105 for communicating with peripheral devices of the gaming machine 100. The input/output interface 105 and/or the 35 peripheral devices may be intelligent devices with their own memory for storing associated instructions and data for use with the input/output interface or the peripheral 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 11 devices. A random number generator module 113 generates random numbers for use by the processor 102. Persons skilled in the art will appreciate that the reference to random numbers includes pseudo-random numbers. 5 In the example shown in Figure 3, a player interface 120 includes peripheral devices that communicate with the game controller 101 including one or more displays 106, a touch screen and/or buttons 107 (which provide a game play 10 mechanism), a card and/or ticket reader 108, a printer 109, a bill acceptor and/or coin input mechanism 110 and a coin output mechanism 111. Additional hardware may be included as part of the gaming machine 100, or hardware may be omitted as required for the specific 15 implementation. For example, while buttons or touch screens are typically used in gaming machines to allow a player to place a wager and initiate a play of a game any input device that enables the player to input game play instructions may be used. For example, in some gaming 20 machines a mechanical handle is used to initiate a play of the game. In addition, the gaming machine 100 may include a communications interface, for example a network card 112. 25 The network card may, for example, send status information, accounting information or other information to a bonus controller, central controller, server or database and receive data or commands from the bonus controller, central controller, server or database. In 30 embodiments employing a player marketing module, communications over a network may be via player marketing module - i.e. the player marketing module may be in data communication with one or more of the above devices and communicate with it on behalf of the gaming machine. 35 Figure 4 shows a block diagram of the main components of an exemplary memory 103. The memory 103 includes RAM 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 12 103A, EPROM 103B and a mass storage device 103C. The RAM 103A typically temporarily holds program files for execution by the processor 102 and related data. The EPROM 103B may be a boot ROM device and/or may contain 5 some system or game related code. The mass storage device 103C is typically used to store game programs, the integrity of which may be verified and/or authenticated by the processor 102 using protected code from the EPROM 103B or elsewhere. 10 It is also possible for the operative components of the gaming machine 100 to be distributed, for example input/output devices 106,107,108,109,110,111 to be provided remotely from the game controller 101. 15 Figure 5 shows a gaming system 200 in accordance with an alternative embodiment. The gaming system 200 includes a network 201, which for example may be an Ethernet network. Gaming machines 202, shown arranged in three banks 203 of 20 two gaming machines 202 in Figure 5, are connected to the network 201. The gaming machines 202 provide a player operable interface and may be the same as the gaming machines 10,100 shown in Figures 2 and 3, or may have simplified functionality depending on the requirements for 25 implementing game play. While banks 203 of two gaming machines are illustrated in Figure 5, banks of one, three or more gaming machines are also envisaged. One or more displays 204 may also be connected to the 30 network 201. For example, the displays 204 may be associated with one or more banks 203 of gaming machines. The displays 204 may be used to display representations associated with game play on the gaming machines 202, and/or used to display other representations, for example 35 promotional or informational material. In a thick client embodiment, game server 205 implements 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 13 part of the game played by a player using a gaming machine 202 and the gaming machine 202 implements part of the game. With this embodiment, as both the game server and the gaming device implement part of the game, they 5 collectively provide a game controller. A database management server 206 may manage storage of game programs and associated data for downloading or access by the gaming devices 202 in a database 206A. Typically, if the gaming system enables players to participate in a Jackpot 10 game, a Jackpot server 207 will be provided to perform accounting functions for the Jackpot game. A loyalty program server 212 may also be provided. In a thin client embodiment, game server 205 implements 15 most or all of the game played by a player using a gaming machine 202 and the gaming machine 202 essentially provides only the player interface. With this embodiment, the game server 205 provides the game controller. The gaming machine will receive player instructions, pass 20 these to the game server which will process them and return game play outcomes to the gaming machine for display. In a thin client embodiment, the gaming machines could be computer terminals, e.g. PCs running software that provides a player interface operable using standard 25 computer input and output components. Other client/server configurations are possible, and further details of a client/server architecture can be found in WO 2006/052213 and PCT/SE2006/000559, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. 30 Servers are also typically provided to assist in the administration of the gaming network 200, including for example a gaming floor management server 208, and a licensing server 209 to monitor the use of licenses 35 relating to particular games. An administrator terminal 210 is provided to allow an administrator to run the network 201 and the devices connected to the network. 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 14 The gaming system 200 may communicate with other gaming systems, other local networks, for example a corporate network, and/or a wide area network such as the Internet, 5 for example through a firewall 211. Persons skilled in the art will appreciate that in accordance with known techniques, functionality at the server side of the network may be distributed over a 10 plurality of different computers. For example, elements may be run as a single "engine" on one server or a separate server may be provided. For example, the game server 205 could run a random generator engine. Alternatively, a separate random number generator server 15 could be provided. Further, persons skilled in the art will appreciate that a plurality of game servers could be provided to run different games or a single game server may run a plurality of different games as required by the terminals. 20 Further detail of gaming system In an embodiment, a player operates the game play mechanism 56 to input instructions (e.g. make selections) 25 for a game. The inputted instructions, and wager, are then used in the game to affect a game outcome. For example, a player makes a selection of columns, from a display of columns of symbol display positions, for use in 30 selecting winning combinations to be played in the game. The winning combinations are defined as having at least one symbol display position from each of the columns. In an embodiment, the winning combinations comprise win lines which will be referred to hereafter. 35 In another embodiment, the columns of symbol display positions correspond to reels of symbols displayed in the symbol display positions. In an example, the player 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 15 obtains a win entitlement in a game outcome based on a selection of a number of reels to play and an amount to wager per reel. The selection of a reel means that each displayed symbol of the reel can be substituted for 5 another symbol displayed in that reel. In other words, all symbols displayed at symbol display positions corresponding to a selected reel can be used to derive winning combinations comprising win lines with symbols displayed at designated symbol display positions of the 10 other reels which the player did not select. For example, if there are five reels having 4, 3, 2, 3 and 4 symbol display positions respectively, and only the first reel is selected, four winning combinations of symbol display positions constituting four ways to win (e.g. win lines) 15 can be derived. In this example, each winning combination comprises any one of the symbols displayed in the four symbol display positions of the first reel and one displayed symbol in a designated symbol display position in each of the second, third, fourth and fifth reels which 20 were not selected. The total number of ways to win on win lines to be played in the game is thus determined by multiplying the number of active symbol display positions of each reel, the 25 active symbol display positions being all symbol display positions of each selected reel, with the designated symbol display position of the non-selected reels. Also, in the embodiment, at least some of the columns (e.g. reels) have differing numbers of symbol display positions. 30 Thus, in the above example where there are five reels having 4, 3, 2, 3 and 4 symbol display positions respectively, if all the reels are selected to form win lines, the total number of ways to win is 288 (i.e. 4*3*2*3*4). 35 It will be appreciated by those persons skilled in the art that the designation of symbol display positions (e.g. 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 16 number of symbol display positions or size of symbol display positions)_in each column (e.g. reel) may be specified in game rules 642 or may be designated at random. For example, it may be specified that adjacent 5 designated symbol display positions in non-selected reels are aligned horizontally on the display. As described above, symbols are selected for display in the symbol display positions and a game outcome (e.g. a 10 win entitlement) is determined based on symbols displayed in the selected win lines. In Figure 6, the processor 62 of game controller 60 is shown implementing a number of modules based on program code and data stored in memory 64 to conduct the game. The modules are adapted to display 15 the symbol display positions in columns, facilitate selection of reels for selection of win lines to be played in the game, select symbols for display in the symbol display positions and determine a game outcome based on the symbols displayed in the played win lines. Persons 20 skilled in the art will appreciate that several of the modules could be implemented in some other way, for example by a dedicated circuit, or on a server remote from the game controller 60. 25 In the embodiment shown in Figure 6, the modules of the game controller 60 include a winning combination module 621 to define all possible win lines for each variation of display of reels and symbol display positions. For example, in the above five reel 4*3*2*3*4 symbol display 30 position example, the winning combination module 621 determines that there are 288 possible win lines which can be played if a player selects all reels. In another example, there are four reels of 4, 3, 2 and 3 symbol display positions respectively. In this case, the winning 35 combination module 621 would determine that there are 72 possible win lines to be played in the game. 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 17 The winning combination module 621 also includes a winning combination selector 622, which operates in response to the player's operation of game play mechanism 56 to select the reels for selection of win lines to be played in the 5 game. For example, the player may select reels 1 to 4 of the five reel 4*3*2*3*4 symbol display position example and thus the winning combination module 621 determines that there are 72 win lines to be played in the game. 10 In an example, the game is a spinning reel type game where the player operates the game play mechanism 56 to input a wager and selects a number of reels to select a number of win lines to be played in each game. In response, a game outcome is generated by the winning combination module 621 15 communicating with a symbol selector 623 which selects symbols from a set of symbols specified by symbol data 641 using random number generator 624. The selected symbols are advised to the display controller 626 which causes them to be displayed on display 54 at designated symbol 20 display positions. The symbols 641 for the game may be displayed in symbol display positions arranged in columns, generally representing reels. In an example, the symbol selector 623 selects symbols from a plurality of symbol sets stored corresponding to respective ones of a 25 plurality of spinning reels. The display controller 626 is advised of the selected symbols and displays them in symbol display positions such that a player selected win line includes one symbol 30 display position and thus one symbol from each column. A game outcome determiner 625 then determines an outcome of the game based on the symbols selected for display in the played win lines. The result of the determination (e.g. whether the player is entitled to a prize) is then advised 35 to the display controller 626 for display to the player on the display 54. 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 18 An example of a game employing the above method is described with reference to Figures 8a and 8b. The example 800 shown in Figure 8a illustrates a display with the first reel 810 selected by the player for selection of 5 win lines to be played. In the example 800, the winning combination selector 622 operated in response to the player's operation of the game play mechanism 56 to select the first reel for selection of win lines to be played in the game. The winning combination module 621 thus defined 10 the win lines to be played as having at least one symbol display position 820 822 824 826 from reel 810 and a designated symbol display position from each of reels 812 814 816 818 which the player did not select. That is, the winning combination module 621 defined four win lines to 15 be played in the game out of a possible 288. Symbol Display Positions Win line 1: 820 828 830 832 834 Win line 2: 822 828 830 832 834 20 Win line 3: 824 828 830 832 834 Win line 4: 826 828 830 832 834 It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the designated symbol display positions from each of reels 25 812 814 816 818 need not be located in a row. In addition, the designation of symbol display positions to form a win line may be specified in game rules 642 or may be designated at random. 30 In the example 800, the symbol selector 623 selected symbols which were subsequently advised to the display controller 626 for display in the corresponding symbol display positions from the symbols specified by symbol data 641 using the random number generator 624. It can be 35 seen from the example 800 that the game outcome determiner 625 would not determine that a winning combination of symbols was displayed in any of the played win lines. 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 19 Symbols Win line 1: K Q K K K Win line 2: 2 Q K K K 5 Win line 3: 8 Q K K K Win line 4: 9 Q K K K Figure 8b shows an example 836 where both the first reel 810 and second reel 812 are selected by the player for the 10 selection of win lines to be played in the game. That is, the winning combination selector 622 operated in response to the player's operation of the game play mechanism 56 to select both the first and second reels. In this case, the winning combination module 621 defined twelve win lines to 15 be played out of a possible 288. In the example 836, the symbol selector 623 selected symbols which were advised to the display controller 626 for display in the symbol display positions. In this 20 case, the game outcome determiner 625 determines that a winning combination of symbols (5 Kings) was displayed in one of the played win lines (Win line 1). Symbols 25 Win line 1: K K K K K Win line 2: K Q K K K Win line 3: K A K K K Win line 4: 2 K K K K Win line 5: 2 Q K K K 30 Win line 6: 2 A K K K Win line 7: 8 K K K K Win line 8: 8 Q K K K Win line 9: 8 A K K K Win line 10:9 K K K K 35 Win line 11:9 Q K K K Win line 12:9 A K K K 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 20 Another example of a game employing the above method is described with reference to Figures 9a and 9b. The example 842 shown in Figure 9a also illustrates a display with the five reels 810 812 814 816 818 however the reels 5 and symbol display positions are of non-uniform size. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that either the reels or the symbol display positions could be displayed in non-uniform sizes. It will also be appreciated that the size of the symbol display positions 10 and/or the reels may be specified in game rules 642 or may be designated at random. In the example 842, the reels 810 812 814 816 818 have symbol display positions in different sizes and the size 15 of the symbol display positions in one reel corresponds to the number of symbol display positions in the reel. In the example 842, the central reel 814 with two symbol display positions displays larger sized symbol display positions than the second and penultimate reels 812 816 20 who, in turn, displays larger sized symbol display positions than the first and last reels 810 818. It is envisaged however that a different relationship between the number of symbol display positions in a reel and the symbol display position size may be employed, such as the 25 inverse of the above relationship. In the example 842, all the reels 810 812 814 816 818 are selected by the player for selection of win lines to be played. Thus, the winning combination module 621 defined 30 288 win lines to be played and it can be seen from the example 842 that the game outcome determiner 625 would determine that a winning combination of symbols (5 Kings) was displayed in one of the played win lines. 35 The example 844 shown in Figure 9a also illustrates a display with reels and symbol display positions having non-uniform sizes. In this example, there is a sixth reel 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 21 846 and the displayed size of the symbol display positions is such that the top of the first symbol display position and the bottom the last symbol display position of adjacent reels is aligned. 5 In the example 842, all the reels 810 812 814 816 818 846 are also selected by the player for selection of win lines to be played. In this example, the reels have 4, 3, 2, 2, 3 and 4 symbol display positions respectively thus the 10 winning combination module 621 defined 576 win lines to be played. It can also be seen that the game outcome determiner 625 determined that a winning combination of symbols (6 Kings) was displayed in one of the played win lines. 15 Referring back to Figure 7, a method 700 of gaming as described above is summarised. The method 700 includes displaying 710 columns of symbol display positions, whereby at least some of the columns have differing 20 numbers of symbol display positions. The method 700 further includes defining 720 winning combinations (e.g. win lines) of symbol display positions having at least one symbol display position from each of the columns, and facilitating 730 selection of at least one of the columns 25 by a player for selection of winning combinations (e.g. win lines) to be played in a game, the selected winning combinations to be played comprising all possible winning combinations derivable from all symbol display positions of the selected at least one column and a designated 30 symbol display position from each of the columns which the player did not select. In addition, the method 700 further includes selecting 740 symbols for display in the symbol display positions and determining 750 a game outcome based on symbols displayed in the selected winning 35 combinations. Further aspects of the method will be apparent from the 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 22 above description of the system. It will be appreciated that at least part of the method will be implemented digitally by a processor. Persons skilled in the art will also appreciate that the method could be embodied in 5 program code. The program code could be supplied in a number of ways, for example on a tangible computer readable storage medium, such as a disc or a memory (for example, that could replace part of memory 103) or as a data signal (for example, by transmitting it from a 10 server. Persons skilled in the art, will appreciate that program code provides a series of instructions executable by the processor. It will be understood to persons skilled in the art of the 15 invention that many modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, in particular it will be apparent that certain features of embodiments of the invention can be employed to form further embodiments. 20 It is to be understood that, if any prior art is referred to herein, such reference does not constitute an admission that the prior art forms a part of the common general knowledge in the art in any country. 25 In the claims which follow and in the preceding description of the invention, except where the context requires otherwise due to express language or necessary implication, the word "comprise" or variations such as 30 "comprises" or "comprising" is used in an inclusive sense, i.e. to specify the presence of the stated features but not to preclude the presence or addition of further features in various embodiments of the invention. 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM

Claims

1. A method of gaming comprising: displaying a plurality of columns of symbol display 5 positions of a game on a display of a gaming system, at least two columns of the plurality of columns having differing numbers of symbol display positions; defining win lines of symbol display positions having at least one symbol display position from each of the 10 plurality of columns based on game rules stored in a storage device of the gaming system; selecting at least one column from the plurality of columns displayed on the gaming machine in response to a player selection through a game play mechanism of the 15 gaming system; selecting a plurality of win lines to be played from the defined win lines and based on the at least one column selected by the player, each selected win line of the plurality of win lines comprising one symbol display 20 position from each selected column and one symbol display position from each remaining column the player did not select, each of the selected win lines comprising a chance for the player to win the game based on symbols displayed; populating each of the symbol display positions of 25 the plurality of columns with respective symbols; and determining an outcome of the game based on symbols displayed in the symbol display positions of the selected win lines. 30

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein displaying comprises displaying five columns of symbol display positions. 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 24

3. A method as claimed in claim 2, further comprising displaying first and last columns having four symbol display positions, second and fourth columns having three symbol display positions and a central column having two 5 symbol display positions.

4. A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein displaying comprises displaying the plurality of columns of symbol display positions as a plurality of 10 reels corresponding to said columns.

5. A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein displaying comprises displaying non-uniform size symbol display positions in at least two columns from 15 among the plurality of columns.

6. A method as claimed in claim 5, wherein displaying comprises displaying symbol display positions having one size in one of said columns and another size in another 20 one of said columns.

7. A method as claimed in claim 6, wherein displaying comprises displaying the symbol display position size based on a number of symbol display positions included in 25 the corresponding column.

8. A gaming system comprising: a display configured to display a plurality of columns of symbol display positions of a game, at least 30 two columns of the plurality of columns having differing numbers of symbol display positions; a winning combination module configured to define win lines of symbol display positions having at least one symbol display position from each of the plurality of 35 columns based on game rules stored in a storage device of the gaming system; a winning combination selector configured to: 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 25 select at least one column from the plurality of columns displayed on the display in response to a player selection through a game play mechanism of the gaming system, and 5 select a plurality of win lines to be played from the defined win lines and based on the at least one column selected by the player, each of the selected win lines comprising one symbol display position from each selected column and one symbol 10 display position from each remaining column the player did not select, each of the selected win lines further comprising a chance for the player to win the game based on symbols displayed; a symbol selector configured to populate each of the 15 symbol display positions of the plurality of columns with respective symbols; and an outcome determiner configured to determine an outcome of the game based on symbols displayed in the symbol display positions of the selected win lines. 20

9. A gaming system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said display displays five columns of symbol display positions.

10. A gaming system as claimed in claim 9, wherein said display displays first and last columns having four symbol 25 display positions, second and fourth columns having three symbol display positions and a central column having two symbol display positions.

11. A gaming system as claimed in any one of claims 8 to 30 10, wherein said display displays a plurality of reels corresponding to the plurality of columns. 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 26

12. A gaming system as claimed in any one of claims 8 to 11, wherein said display displays non-uniform size symbol display positions. 5

13. A gaming system as claimed in claim 12, wherein said symbol display positions have one size in one of said columns and another size in another of said columns.

14. A gaming system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the 10 symbol display position size of a column is based on a number of symbol display positions in the respective column.

15. A game controller comprising a processor configured 15 to implement: a winning combination module configured to define win lines of symbol display positions of a game having at least one symbol display position from each column of a plurality of columns of symbol display positions based on 20 game rules stored in a storage device of a gaming system, at least two columns of the plurality of columns having differing numbers of symbol display positions; a winning combination selector configured to: select at least one column from the plurality of 25 columns displayed on a display in response to a player selection through a game play mechanism of the gaming system, and select a plurality of win lines to be played from the defined win lines and based on the at least 30 one column selected by the player, each selected win line of the plurality of win lines comprising one symbol display position from each selected column and 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 27 one symbol display position from each remaining column the player did not select, each of the selected win lines comprising a chance for the player to win the game based on symbols displayed; and 5 a symbol selector configured to populate each of the symbol display positions of the plurality of columns with respective symbols; and an outcome determiner configured to determine an outcome of the game based on symbols displayed in the 10 symbol display positions of the selected win lines.

16. A game controller as claimed in claim 15, wherein said display displays five columns of symbol display positions. 15

17. A game controller as claimed in claim 16, wherein said display displays first and last columns having four symbol display positions, second and fourth columns having three symbol display positions and a central column having 20 two symbol display positions.

18. A game controller as claimed in any one of claims 15 to 17, wherein said display displays a plurality of reels corresponding to said columns. 25

19. A game controller as claimed in any one of claims 15 to 18, wherein said display displays non-uniform size symbol display positions. 30

20. A game controller as claimed in claim 19, wherein said symbol display positions have one size in one of said columns and another size in another of said columns.

21. A game controller as claimed in claim 20, wherein the 35 symbol display position size in a column is based on a 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 28 number of symbol display positions in the respective column.

22. A gaming system comprising: 5 a cabinet; a display configured to display a plurality of columns of symbol display positions of a game, the display mounted within the cabinet; a game play mechanism mounted to the cabinet, 10 including at least one input device, the game play mechanism operable by a player to place wagers in the game; and a game controller disposed within the cabinet comprising a processor and a non-transitory memory storing 15 game control instructions that enable the game controller to operate, the game controller comprising: a winning combination module configured to define win lines of symbol display positions having at least one symbol display position from each of the 20 plurality of columns based on game rules stored in the non-transitory memory, at least two columns of the plurality of columns having differing numbers of symbol display positions; a winning combination selector configured to: 25 select at least one column from the plurality of columns displayed on the display in response to a player selection through the game play mechanism, and 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM 29 select a plurality of win lines to be played from the defined win lines and based on the at least one column selected by the player, each selected win line of the plurality of win 5 lines comprising one symbol display position from each selected column and one symbol display position from each remaining column the player did not select, each of the selected win lines further comprising a chance for the player to 10 win the game based on symbols displayed; a symbol selector configured to populate each of the symbol display positions of the plurality of columns with respective symbols; and an outcome determiner configured to determine an 15 outcome of the game based on symbols displayed in the symbol display positions of the selected win lines.

23. Computer program code which when executed implements the method of any one of claims 1 to 7. 20

24. A computer readable medium comprising the computer program code of claim 23.

25. Transmitting or receiving the program code of claim 23. 25

26. A data signal comprising the program code of claim 23. 7318017_1 (GHMatters) P83003.AU.2 DEBORAM