Gaming system and method for providing team progressive awards

摘要

A gaming system and method which forms, tracks and maintains one or more groups or teams. The gaming system and method also maintains at least one team progressive award. At any designated point in time, each group or team includes one or more players, wherein as a player plays one or more games at one or more gaming devices, the player accumulates or builds up equity in their current team or group. Upon a determination to provide a team progressive award to a player of a designated team, each eligible player actively associated with the designated team (i.e., each player actively belonging to the team) is provided a portion of the team progressive award. Each player's provided portion of the team progressive award is based on that player's relative accumulated equity in the designated team compared to each other eligible player's accumulated equity in the designated team.

主权项

1. A method of operating a gaming system including a plurality of gaming devices and at least one display device associated with at least one of said gaming devices, said method comprising:
(a) causing at least one processor to execute a plurality of instructions to maintain a team award; (b) causing at least one display device to display the team award; (c) after an occurrence of an equity accumulation event, causing the at least one processor to execute the plurality of instructions to accumulate an amount of equity associated with a team for a player at one of said gaming devices, wherein the accumulated amount of equity is independent from any amounts of any wagers placed on any plays of any displayed games; and (d) after an occurrence of a team award triggering event:
(i) causing the at least one processor to execute the plurality of instructions to determine if any players at any of said gaming devices are actively associated with the team within a designated time period after the occurrence of the team award triggering event, and(ii) for each of any players actively associated with the team within the designated time period after the occurrence of the team award triggering event:
(A) causing the at least one processor to execute the plurality of instructions to determine a portion of the team award, wherein said determined portion of the team award is based on that player's accumulated amount of equity associated with the team relative to a total amount of equity associated with the team accumulated for each of the players actively associated with the team within the designated time period after the occurrence of the team award triggering event and if a first player has a first accumulated amount of equity associated with the team and a second, different player has a second, different accumulated amount of equity associated with the team, a first portion of the team award is determined for the first player and a second, different portion of the team award is determined for the second player, and(B) causing the at least one display device to display the determined portion of the team award, wherein a credit balance is increasable based on the determined portion of the team award, said credit balance being: (i) increasable via an acceptor of a physical item associated with a monetary value, wherein said physical item is selected from the group consisting of: a ticket associated with the monetary value and a unit of currency, and (ii) decreasable via a cashout device.