Gaming system, gaming device, and gaming method for shifting symbols from a staging area to a symbol matrix

摘要

A gaming device displays a symbol matrix including a plurality of symbol positions and at least two symbol staging areas, each symbol staging area including at least one supplemental symbol potentially shiftable into the symbol matrix. The gaming device displays a symbol staging area indicator. For a play of a game, the gaming device generates a symbol in each symbol position of the symbol matrix. Upon an occurrence of a triggering condition, the gaming device indicates one of the symbol staging areas using the symbol staging area indicator and removes at least one symbol from at least one symbol position of the symbol matrix. The gaming device re-populates the empty symbol positions by shifting any appropriate symbols of the symbol matrix any appropriate empty symbol positions, and thereafter shifting at least one supplemental symbol from the indicated symbol staging area into at least one remaining empty symbol position.

主权项

1. A gaming system comprising:
a housing; at least one display device supported by the housing; a plurality of input devices supported by the housing, said plurality of input devices including:
(i) an acceptor, and(ii) a cashout device; at least one processor; and at least one memory device which stores 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 plurality of input devices to:
(a) if a physical item is received via the acceptor, establish a credit balance based, at least in part, on a monetary value associated with the received physical item, wherein said physical item is selected from the group consisting of: a ticket associated with the monetary value and a unit of currency;(b) display a symbol matrix including a plurality of symbol positions and at least one symbol staging area including a plurality of supplemental symbol positions;(c) at each of the plurality of symbol positions of the symbol matrix and at each of the plurality of supplemental symbol positions of each symbol staging area, display a randomly generated symbol selected from a plurality of symbols, wherein the generation of symbols for the symbol matrix is independent of the generation of symbols for the at least one symbol staging area;(d) determine if the symbols displayed at the plurality of symbol positions of the symbol matrix form any of a plurality of winning symbol combinations;(e) provide an award to a player based on any generated winning symbol combinations;(f) for at least one of any winning symbol combinations formed by the symbols displayed at the plurality of symbol positions of the symbol matrix:
(i) remove at least one symbol from the symbol matrix, resulting in at least one empty symbol position,(ii) for each empty symbol position:
(A) shift one of the supplemental symbols of the at least one symbol staging area to cause any empty symbol position to be filled, wherein prior to be shifted from the at least one symbol staging area, no determination occurs of whether said supplemental symbol is part of any winning symbol combination, and(B) generate a new supplemental symbol in the at least one symbol staging area, and(iii) repeat (d) to (f) at least once; and(g) if a cashout input is received via the cashout device, cause an initiation of any payout associated with the credit balance.