U.S. patent application number 11/953531 was filed with the patent office on 2008-07-24 for front and back side playing card games.
Invention is credited to Larry Emmanuel Kekempanos, James Thomas Kenny.
Application Number | 20080176617 11/953531 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39641785 |
Filed Date | 2008-07-24 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080176617 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Kekempanos; Larry Emmanuel ;
et al. |
July 24, 2008 |
Front and Back Side Playing card Games
Abstract
Variations of a playing card wagering game are provided in which
the outcome of the game and/or the payoff scale for the game are
determined based on the front sides of the playing cards and at
least one distinguishable card back design. The game deck may
comprise one or more standard or modified standard 52-card decks of
playing cards with multiple different designs, for example,
different colors, on the backs of the different cards. The wagering
game may comprise, for example, a standard casino game with a
tiebreaker that depends on the backs of the cards in the players'
and dealer's hands, or a side bet or payoff multiplier based on the
card backs in the players' hands. Multiple different card back
designs and configurations are provided, along with multiple
different techniques for incorporating card back determinations
into the outcome and payoff scale of the wagering card game.
Inventors: |
Kekempanos; Larry Emmanuel;
(Oak Lawn, IL) ; Kenny; James Thomas; (Shorewood,
IL) |
Correspondence
Address: |
BANNER & WITCOFF, LTD.
1100 13th STREET, N.W., SUITE 1200
WASHINGTON
DC
20005-4051
US
|
Family ID: |
39641785 |
Appl. No.: |
11/953531 |
Filed: |
December 10, 2007 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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60881933 |
Jan 23, 2007 |
|
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60898782 |
Jan 31, 2007 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
463/13 ; 273/296;
463/43 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G07F 17/32 20130101;
A63F 3/00157 20130101; A63F 1/00 20130101; G07F 17/3267 20130101;
G07F 17/3293 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
463/13 ; 273/296;
463/43 |
International
Class: |
A63F 9/24 20060101
A63F009/24 |
Claims
1. A method of providing a wagering card game for one or more
players comprising: providing a game deck of cards comprising one
or more decks of playing cards, wherein the front sides of the
cards for each of the decks comprises a standard or modified
standard 52-card deck of playing cards, and wherein the back sides
of the cards in the game deck comprise a plurality of card back
designs, such that at least one card in the game deck has a
different card back design than at least one other card in the game
deck; providing a published set of game rules and a predetermined
game pay scale; commencing a game hand by accepting an initial
wager from one or more players; dealing one or more player hands
each comprising one or more cards from the game deck, wherein each
of the players is associated with at least one of the player hands
or a dealer hand; determining whether a first player wins the game
hand according to the game rules, wherein the determining is based
on at least one of the card back designs of the cards in the first
player's hand; and paying each of the winning players in accordance
with the game pay scale.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the wagering card game
corresponds to a casino game in which the front sides of the cards
in a player's hand are compared to the front sides of the cards in
a dealer hand to determine whether the player wins the game hand,
and wherein the determining comprises using the card back designs
of the cards in the first player's hand as a tiebreaker between the
dealer hand and the first player's hand.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the wagering card game is
blackjack and wherein the card back designs of the cards in the
first player's hand are used to determine if the first player wins
or loses the blackjack hand when the first player's hand and dealer
hand push.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the wagering card game is a
casino poker game and the determining comprises comparing a poker
hand corresponding to the first player's hand to a poker hand
corresponding to a dealer hand.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the wagering card game is a
casino baccarat game, and wherein the initial wager of the first
player corresponds to a player bet associated with a player hand, a
banker bet associated with the dealer hand, or a tie bet associated
with the player hand and the dealer hand.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the game rules comprise rules for
a first wagering game that depends only on the front sides of the
cards and rules for a second side bet wager that depends only on
the card back designs of the cards in the game hand.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein the rules for the second side bet
wager comprise comparing card back designs of one or more cards in
a player's hand to card back designs of one or more cards in a
dealer hand.
8. The method of claim 6, wherein the rules for the second side bet
wager comprise comparing card back designs of all of the cards in a
player's hand to a predetermined side bet wager pay scale based on
probabilities of different combinations of card back designs in the
players' hands.
9. The method of claim 6, wherein the outcome of the second side
bet wager is determined prior to the outcome of the first wagering
game.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein the game rules comprise rules
for a first wagering game that depends only on the front sides of
the cards to determine whether or not the one or more players win
the game, and wherein the amount paid to each of winning players is
based on the game pay scale and a separate payoff multiplier that
depends on the card back designs of the cards in each winning
player's hand.
11. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of card back
designs in the game deck corresponds to different colors of card
backs.
12. The method of claim 1, wherein the game deck comprises a
plurality of standard or modified standard 52-card decks of playing
cards, wherein each of the decks individually has a single card
back design, and wherein the card back designs of each of the
plurality of decks is different.
13. The method of claim 1, further comprising: commencing a second
game hand by accepting a second set of one or more initial wagers
and dealing one or more additional player hands, wherein the game
deck is not shuffled in between the first game hand and the second
game hand.
14. The method of claim 1, wherein the game rules comprise rules
for a first wagering game in which an initial determination of
whether a player wins the game hand is based entirely on the front
sides of the cards in the game hand, and wherein a second
determination of whether the player wins the game hand is performed
if a card back design in the player's hand corresponds to a
wildcard affecting the outcome of the initial determination.
15. A computing device, comprising: a processor; a display device;
one or more user input controls; memory storing instructions for
controlling the computing device to perform a method of providing a
wagering card game, said method comprising: providing a published
set of game rules and a predetermined game pay scale; receiving
input via the user input controls corresponding to an initial wager
from one or more players; displaying on the display device
graphical representations of playing cards corresponding to a one
or more player hands of cards from a game deck, wherein each of the
players is associated with at least one of the player hands or a
dealer hand and wherein the game deck is stored in the memory of
the computing device and corresponds to one or more decks of
playing cards in which the front sides of the cards for each of the
decks comprises a standard or modified standard 52-card deck of
playing cards and back sides of the cards in the game deck comprise
a plurality of card back designs such that at least one card in the
game deck has a different card back design than at least one other
card in the game deck; determining whether a first player wins the
game hand according to the game rules, wherein the determining is
based on at least one of the card back designs of the cards in the
first player's hand; and paying each of the winning players in
accordance with the game pay scale.
16. The computing device of claim 15, wherein the wagering card
game corresponds to a casino game in which the front sides of the
cards in a player's hand are compared to the front sides of the
cards in a dealer hand to determine whether the player wins the
game hand, and wherein the determining comprises using the card
back designs of the cards in the player's hand as a tiebreaker
between the dealer hand and the player's hand.
17. The computing device of claim 15, wherein the wagering card
game is a casino poker game and the determining comprises comparing
a poker hand corresponding to the front sides of the cards in the
first player's hand to a poker hand corresponding to a dealer's
hand.
18. The computing device of claim 15, and wherein the game rules
comprise rules for a first wagering game that depends only on the
front sides of the cards and rules for a second side bet wager that
depends only on the card back designs of the cards in the game
hand.
19. The computing device of claim 18, wherein the rules for the
second side bet wager comprise comparing card back designs of one
or more cards in a player's hand to card back designs of one or
more cards in a dealer hand.
20. The computing device of claim 18, wherein the rules for the
second side bet wager comprise comparing card back designs of all
of the cards in a player's hand to a predetermined side bet wager
pay scale based on probabilities of different combinations of card
back designs in the players' hands.
21. The computing device of claim 15, wherein the method further
comprises: commencing a second game hand by accepting via the user
input controls a second set of one or more initial wagers, and
dealing via the display device one or more additional player hands
and associating each of the players with one of the additional
player hands or a dealer hand, wherein the game deck stored in the
memory of the computing device is not shuffled or randomized
between the first game hand and the second game hand.
22. One or more computer readable media storing computer-executable
instructions which, when executed on a computer system, perform a
method comprising: providing a published set of game rules for a
wagering card game and a predetermined game pay scale; receiving
user input corresponding to an initial wager from one or more
players; displaying on the display device graphical representations
of playing cards corresponding to a one or more player hands of
cards from a game deck, wherein each of the players is associated
with at least one of the player hands or a dealer hand and wherein
the game deck is stored in a memory of the computer system and
corresponds to one or more decks of playing cards in which the
front sides of the cards for each of the decks comprises a standard
or modified standard 52-card deck of playing cards and back sides
of the cards in the game deck comprise a plurality of card back
designs such that at least one card in the game deck has a
different card back design than at least one other card in the game
deck; determining whether a first player wins the game hand
according to the game rules, wherein the determining is based on at
least one of the card back designs of the cards in the first
player's hand; and paying each of the winning players in accordance
with the game pay scale.
23. The computer readable media of claim 22, wherein the computer
system comprises a video blackjack machine and the wagering card
game is blackjack, and wherein determining whether the first player
wins the game hand comprises using the card back designs of the
cards in the first player's hand as a tiebreaker when the first
player's hand and dealer hand push.
24. The computer readable media of claim 22, wherein the wagering
card game is a casino poker game and the determining comprises
comparing a poker hand corresponding to the front sides of the
cards in the first player's hand to a poker hand corresponding to a
dealer's hand.
25. The computer readable media of claim 22, wherein the game rules
comprise rules for a first wagering game that depends only on the
front sides of the cards and rules for a second side bet wager that
depends only on a comparison of the card back designs of one or
more cards in a player's hand to card back designs of one or more
cards in a dealer hand.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional
Application No. 60/881,933 filed on Jan. 23, 2007, and U.S.
Provisional Application No. 60/898,782 filed on Jan. 31, 2007, both
identifying Larry E. Kekempanos as inventor. Both provisional
applications are incorporated by reference herein for all
purposes.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates to playing card wagering
games. More particularly, the present invention pertains to methods
and systems of providing and playing new variations of wagering
games adaptable to live table gaming in a casino, video gaming
machines, or gaming software running on a computing device.
[0003] Gaming establishments, producers of video gaming machines,
and designers of gaming and casino software products for computing
devices continually work to provide new and interesting card games
for players. If a gaming establishment such as a casino fails to
offer its players exciting betting games that the players can
understand and enjoy, the casino will not be able to attract or
retain players and may lose the revenue that those players provide.
Casino games and other wagering games are often structured such
that one or more players may play against the dealer/banker
controlled by the game provider (e.g., casino, gaming machine,
gaming software). This structure of dealer-player games may have
certain advantages over player-player games, for example,
dealer-player card games may require less table space and are
typically much faster than player-player card games. Accordingly,
game providers frequently attempt to create new wagering card games
and modifications of existing games that are both popular among
players and profitable for the game providers.
[0004] Many previous attempts to create new wagering card games
involve the introduction of non-standard playing card decks.
However, many people are uncomfortable with non-standard playing
card decks and unwilling to make the effort to learn new games on
new card decks. Instead, most players have strong preferences for
the familiar suits, ranks, and well-known probabilities associated
with the standard 52-card deck of playing cards. Additionally, card
games using non-standard decks are unlikely to achieve popularity
among casual players who will not buy a non-standard deck for
playing at home, but prefer to use standard card decks because they
can be used in many entertaining games that are well-known even to
beginning card players.
[0005] Additional previous attempts have involved modifying
traditional card games with additional new features and/or side bet
wagers. However, modifying well-know traditional games may confuse
players, and therefore the new game features and side bets are
often played at different times and in separate regions of the
gaming surface (e.g., casino game table, video gaming display
screen) than the traditional game. Many of these game modifications
and new features may also require additional cards from the game
deck to be dealt to the players or the dealer. However, the gaming
surface on casino tables and video gaming screens is limited, and
any new game features or additional cards dealt onto the surface
may reduce the number of players that can play at the table, and
therefore may potentially reduce the wagering revenue for the game
provider. Furthermore, when additional cards are dealt as part of a
new game feature or side bet, the game deck of cards will be
depleted faster and shuffled more often, resulting in slower
overall play and less potential wagering revenue.
[0006] Accordingly, there remains a need for designing and
providing new and modified playing card wagering games.
SUMMARY
[0007] The following presents a simplified summary of the present
disclosure in order to provide a basic understanding of some
aspects of the invention. This summary is not an extensive overview
of the invention. It is not intended to identify key or critical
elements of the invention or to delineate the scope of the
invention. The following summary merely presents some concepts of
the invention in a simplified form as a prelude to the more
detailed description provided below.
[0008] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a playing
card wagering game is provided using a game deck of cards having
multiple different card back designs, in which the outcome or the
pay scale of the wagering game is determined at least in part by
the backs of the cards in the hand. The game deck may comprise one
or more standard, or modified standard, 52-card decks of playing
cards, and the wagering game may be, for example, a modification of
a standard casino game that uses card fronts to determine game
winners and payouts. The modified card game, including game rules,
payout rules, and card back comparisons and evaluations, may be
provided at a live casino or home gaming table, by a video gaming
machine, or by gaming software running on a computer or mobile
device.
[0009] According to additional aspects of the present disclosure, a
conventional wagering card game may be modified to use card back
designs in determining the winners and payouts of the game. In one
modification, the rules of a conventional card game (e.g.,
blackjack) may be supplemented to include a dealer-player or
player-player tiebreaker in which the backs of the cards in the
players' and the dealer's hands may be used to determine which
players win and the payout amounts. As an example, numbers, colors,
symbols or other indicia on the backs of the player's cards may be
compared against related indicia on the backs of the dealer's cards
to make the tiebreaker determination. In another modification, a
wagering card game may include a separate side bet wager based on
the card backs in the game hand. For example, a pattern of symbols
or colors may be identified on the backs of the cards in the
player's hand and compared to a card back side bet pay scale to
determine if the player wins the side bet wager regardless of
whether or the not player wins the main bet wager. In yet another
modification, a conventional wagering card game may be modified to
include a payout modifier based on the pattern of designs found on
the backs of the cards in the player's winning hand. In this
example, the game rules determining wins and losses for the main
wager need not be affected, but the pay scale for winning players
may be modified based on the backs of the winning players'
cards.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] Having thus described the invention in general terms,
reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are
not necessarily drawn to scale, and wherein:
[0011] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a computing device,
in accordance with aspects of the present invention;
[0012] FIGS. 2A-2F are block diagrams illustrating various
configurations for designing backs of playing cards in a game deck,
in accordance with aspects of the present invention;
[0013] FIG. 3 is a flow diagram showing illustrative steps for
performing a wagering game with a card back tiebreaker, in
accordance with aspects of the present invention;
[0014] FIG. 4 is a flow diagram showing illustrative steps for
performing a wagering game with a card back side bet wager, in
accordance with aspects of the present invention;
[0015] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram showing illustrative steps for
performing a wagering game with a card back payoff multiplier, in
accordance with aspects of the present invention;
[0016] FIGS. 6A and 6B are illustrative diagrams corresponding to
screenshots from a user interface for playing a wagering game with
a card back tiebreaker, in accordance with aspects of the present
invention; and
[0017] FIGS. 7A and 7B are illustrative diagrams corresponding to
screenshots from a user interface for playing a wagering game with
a card back side bet wager, in accordance with aspects of the
present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0018] In the following description of the various embodiments,
reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part
hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration various
embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. It is to be
understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural
and functional modifications may be made without departing from the
scope and spirit of the present invention.
[0019] FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a generic computing
device 101 that may be used in accordance with certain embodiments
of the invention. Device 101 may include a processor 103 for
controlling the overall operation of the computing device and its
associated components, including RAM 105, ROM 107, input/output
module 109, and memory 115. Also shown inside the RAM 105 are
applications 106a-106c, representing the application data stored in
RAM memory 105 while the computer is on and corresponding software
applications (e.g., software tasks) are running on the computer
101, including, for example, system applications and user
applications, such as native applications or managed applications
executed in a managed runtime environment. Thus, computer 101
typically includes a variety of computer readable media, and
combinations of the any of the above should also be included within
the scope of computer readable media.
[0020] I/O 109 may include a microphone, keypad, touch screen,
and/or stylus through which a user of device 101 may provide input,
and may also include one or more of a speaker for providing audio
output and a video display device for providing textual,
audiovisual and/or graphical output. I/O 109 may also include a
user interface including such physical components as a voice
interface, one or more arrow keys, joystick, data glove, mouse,
roller ball, or the like. Memory 115 may store software used by
device 101, such as an operating system 117, application programs
119, and associated data 121. Additionally, an application program
119 used by device 101 according to an illustrative embodiment of
the invention may include computer executable instructions for
invoking system and/or user functionality. For example, an
application program 119 used by the device 101 according to an
illustrative embodiment of the invention may include computer
executable instructions for invoking user functionality related to
communication, such as email, short message service (SMS),
multimedia messaging service (MMS), and voice input and speech
recognition applications.
[0021] The device 101 may operate as a video gaming machine,
personal computer, mobile device, or server in a networked
environment supporting connections to one or more remote computers
that include many or all of the elements described above relative
to device 101. Thus, the device 101 may support connections to
various networks, including local area networks (LANs), wide area
networks (WANs), and many other varieties of communication
networks. When used in an Ethernet or other LAN networking
environment, the server 101 may be connected to the LAN through a
network interface or adapter 125. When used in a WAN networking
environment, the server 101 may employ a modem 123 or other
techniques for establishing communications over the WAN. It will be
appreciated that the network connections described herein are
illustrative and other techniques for establishing communications
links between computers may be used.
[0022] As described above, the present disclosure relates to
playing card games such as casino games and other wagering games.
Accordingly, the device 101 may be an electrical or
electro-mechanical apparatus such as a slot machine, video poker
machine, or other wagering game apparatus. The device 101 may also
be a computer or mobile device running a playing card game or
casino software application. The device 101 may also be a single
video gaming machine in a multi-unit video device system wherein a
plurality of players may play card games against each other and/or
against a dealer via a communication network.
[0023] The present disclosure relates to playing card games such as
casino games and other wagering games using game decks that have a
plurality of card back designs. In other words, the backs of
different playing cards in a single game deck may have different
designs (e.g., different patterns or different colors) which may be
used to determine at least part of the outcome of the game. Thus,
as described below, the game rules and payout rules of many
existing card games may be revised to account for new card back
aspects of these games. The possibilities for specific revisions to
game rules and payout rules may depend on the card back designs of
the game deck and the rules of the game being modified. In other
words, different card games may be modified in different ways, and
a card game modification based on card back designs will depend on
which card backs designs are used in the game deck.
[0024] Referring to FIGS. 2A-2F, a series of diagrams is shown
illustrating a few of the different potential configurations for
designing backs of playing cards in a game deck in accordance with
aspects of the present invention.
[0025] FIG. 2A shows a set of playing cards having different
patterns of the backs of the cards. In this example, the first card
has a diagonal pattern, the second card has a checkerboard pattern,
and the third card has a dotted pattern. Thus, a game deck of
playing cards that has these different card back patterns or other
card back pattern designs may be used to revise or supplement
standard card games that depend solely on the fronts of the playing
cards. When creating a game deck with different card back designs,
it may be advantageous to create the deck such that a predetermined
number of distinct card back patterns are placed in equal numbers
on the cards in the game deck. For example, a standard deck of 52
playing cards might use four different card back designs, each
design printed on a random selection of 13 cards in the deck. In
addition, standard decks of playing cards may also refer to
modified standard decks that are based on the standard card deck
having exactly 52 cards but that have been altered, for example, to
include jokers or to remove cards of certain rank or suit and/or
replace certain standard deck cards with other standard deck cards
for changing the rules or odds of some card games. Thus, a modified
standard 52-card deck of playing cards might not contain exactly 52
cards and might have a different composition or ratio of standard
cards, and may have some additional and/or missing cards in
comparison to a standard 52-card deck. When designing a
configuration of card back designs on a deck of playing cards, it
may be useful to determine the precise number of playing cards in
the deck in order to divide the playing cards into groups and
assign different designs (e.g., colors) to the backs of the cards
in the different groups. As another example, a casino game that
uses a six shoe game deck, such as blackjack, might use two or
three different card back designs, each design printed on three or
two, respectively, of the six 52-card decks included in the shoe.
Thus, it may be possible to quickly create a game deck with
multiple card back designs by combining or shuffling together
multiple different standard or modified standard 52-card decks.
[0026] FIG. 2B shows another set of playing cards having the same
pattern in different colors on the backs of the cards. In this
example, a red backed card, a blue backed card, and a green backed
card are shown. A game deck following this example might consist of
multiple standard 52-card decks of cards, one-third red backed
decks, one-third blue backed decks, and one-third green backed
decks. Using this game deck, a wagering game may be modified so
that player wins an additional amount based on the size of his main
bet, or wins a separate side bet, when all of the player's cards
have the same back color. Another game modification may involve a
comparison of the colors of a player's card backs against the other
player's and/or the dealer's cards. For example, the player may
receive an additional payout if the set of card back colors for his
hand matches the dealer's set of card back colors.
[0027] FIG. 2C shows a set of playing cards each having a different
letter on the back of the card (`J`, `R`, and `E` in this example).
A game deck following this example might consist of a standard deck
of 52 playing cards, wherein every letter of the alphabet is
printed on the back of exactly two of the cards. Larger game decks
may be formed by combining multiple of these letter-backed 52 card
decks. Using a letter-backed game deck, a wagering game may be
modified to allow the player to match at least some of the letters
on the backs of his cards to a predetermined bonus letter or set of
letters, or to allow the player to form a word out of the letters
on the backs of his cards, in order to win an additional game wager
or affect the primary game wager. For example, the payout rules of
a standard blackjack game may be modified so that when a player can
spell out one of the number words `one` to `ten` with the letters
on the backs of his cards, he will receive a payout multiplier
bonus equal to the value of the word spelled. As demonstrated in
this example, a card back modification may affect player strategy
in the primary wagering game. That is, blackjack players in this
modified version might risk taking additional hit cards if they
have the chance to spell a number word and earn a payout multiplier
bonus.
[0028] FIG. 2D shows another set of playing cards each having a
different number on the back of the card (`8`, `11`, and `4` in
this example). A game deck following this example may include one
or more standard decks of 52 playing cards with one of a predefined
set of numbers printed on the back of each card. Using a
number-backed game deck, a wagering game may be modified so that a
player can sum the numbers on the back of his cards, match one or
more of the numbers to a predetermined bonus number, or compare his
card back numbers (or the sum of his card back numbers) against
other players and/or the dealer. For example, a modified three-card
poker game may provide the user a chance to place a side wager or
initiate a double-or-nothing wager with the dealer wherein the
player wins if the sum of his card back numbers is greater than the
sum of the dealer's card back numbers. In other examples, the use
of numbers or other symbols on card backs may affect the game rules
and/or payouts of a primary game. For instance, a modification of a
game of blackjack or baccarat using card back designs with numbers
may provide players with a choice of using the card back numbers
instead of (or in addition to) the front side number values of the
players' cards. In one such modification, a player might know that
some or all of the card backs in the game deck have card back
number symbols, but might not know which of his cards have numbers
on their backs or the value of those numbers. The player may then
have the option of turning one or more cards over and using the
back side numbers instead of the front side numbers to make a
blackjack or baccarat hand.
[0029] FIG. 2E shows another set of playing cards having printed
words (or graphical icons in other examples) in other examples on
the backs of the cards to allow users to play rock-paper-scissors
against other users and/or the dealer in conjunction with a
traditional primary game. A game deck following this example might
consist of multiple standard 52-card decks of cards, wherein
one-third of the cards in the deck have a card back showing a paper
icon, one-third of the cards in the deck have a card back showing a
rock icon, and one-third of the cards in the game have a card back
showing a scissors icon. It may be advantageous to assign or print
the rock-paper-scissors icons on the card backs in a random
configuration, so that there is no relationship between the suit
and rank one the front of the card and the probability of finding a
rock, paper, or scissors on the back of the card. As described
above, a game deck may be created by combining multiple standard
decks of 52 playing cards, each of which has a single different
card back design (e.g., one 52-card deck of scissor cards, one
52-card deck of rock cards, and one 52-card deck of paper cards).
Using a game deck with rock, paper, and scissor card backs, a
wagering game may be modified to incorporate one or more rounds of
rock-paper-scissors between players or between a player and the
dealer. The rounds of rock-paper-scissors may occur during a
standard casino card game or other wagering card game and may
affect the game outcome or payout of the casino game or other
wagering game. In other examples, the rock-paper-scissors game may
be implemented as a side wager, payout multiplier, or a
double-or-nothing wager occurring just after the outcome of the
primary wagering game is determined. Additionally, although this
example describes a rock-paper-scissors game, other types of games
may be similarly provided by printing game characters or symbols on
the backs of the playing cards in the game deck. Dominoes,
mah-jongg tiles, or characters in fantasy-based collectible card
games may also be printed on the backs of playing cards, and card
back versions of these games may be similarly incorporated into
standard casino and wagering games that use card fronts. For
example, mah-jongg tile or card designs on the back of cards may be
used for a side bet in one or more games, such as baccarat and
other card games.
[0030] FIG. 2F shows yet another set of playing cards in which two
of the playing cards have normal card backs, and the third card
back contains a wildcard symbol. In this example, a game deck may
have a predetermined number of card back wildcard symbols (e.g., 4
per every 52-card deck), that are randomly printed on different
cards in different standard decks. These wildcard symbols may be
used to affect the outcome of a wagering game, such as two-,
three-, or four-card poker casino games.
[0031] Having described some of the possible game deck
configurations and designs that may be placed on the backs of
playing cards, FIGS. 3-5 illustrate some of the possible techniques
for revising standard wagering games based on card back designs.
Although these examples may be discussed with reference to specific
casino games (e.g., blackjack and three card poker), it should be
noted that a wide variety of playing card games may be modified or
supplemented by incorporating back-of-card designs into these
games. For example, variations of baccarat, pai gow poker, two card
poker, four card poker, faro, Caribbean stud poker, Texas hold' em,
Spanish 21, let it ride, casino war, and other card games may be
modified so that the determination of the game winners or the game
payouts may depend on the both backs and the fronts of the playing
cards in the game.
[0032] Referring to FIG. 3, a flow diagram is shown illustrating
steps for performing a wagering game wherein the designs on the
backs of the player's cards and/or the dealer's cards may be used
as a tiebreaker in determining the game winner. This example may be
used to create new variations of existing card games, for example,
a no-tie blackjack game similar to the game described below in
reference to FIGS. 6A-6B. In step 301, a hand of a wagering game
has commenced and the game provider (e.g., a gaming table at home
or in a casino, a video gaming machine, or gaming software running
on a computing device) accepts a wager from one or more players and
deals out one or more cards to each of the players. However, the
number of hands dealt to players, number of cards in each of the
hands, and whether or not a dealer hand is dealt may depend on the
type of card game being played. For example, in blackjack or three
card poker, each player and the dealer may be dealt separate hands,
while in baccarat and other games, only a single player hand and
dealer hand are dealt regardless of the number of players in the
game. Additionally, in baccarat, each player may be associated with
a community player hand (i.e., a player bet), or the dealer hand
(i.e., a banker bet), or with both the player and dealer hands
(i.e., a player-banker tie bet). In this example, a card back
tiebreaker may be used to resolve the player bets and banker bets,
while player-banker tie bets might be paid off regardless of the
outcome of the tiebreaker. In certain other games, the players may
have the option of betting on the dealer hand or on the hand of
another player, thus a player and a player's wager might not depend
on his own cards but might be associated with another hand in the
game.
[0033] In step 302, the hand of the wagering game is played
according to a set of standard game rules. For example, the play of
a hand of blackjack at a gaming table or in video slot machine may
be governed by a standard set of rules for determining the winning
and losing players, and a standard pay scale for determining the
size of the payouts for the winning players. For casino games and
other wagering games, the payouts may correspond to monetary units
such as chips or credits, while in other non-wagering card games
(or for-fun versions of wagering games) the payouts may correspond
to non-monetary sums such as gaming points.
[0034] In step 303, after the round of play for the game hand is
complete, a determination is made if any of the players in the game
has tied or pushed, for example, by matching the dealer's cards in
a hand of two card poker or by having the same point total as the
dealer in a hand of blackjack, etc. In standard variations of many
card games (e.g., blackjack, casino war, pai gow poker), the
player's original bet will be returned in the event of a tie or
push against the dealer, and the player will not win or lose any
money on the hand. However, in the example shown in FIG. 3, if a
player has tied or pushed on a game hand, then in step 304 the
designs on the backs of the cards of that hand may be used to break
the tie and determine whether the player wins or loses the hand.
Thus, after a tie with the dealer, the player may turn over his
cards and compare the colors, values, symbols, or other designs on
the back of his cards with the dealer's card backs using one of the
illustrative techniques described above in reference to FIGS.
2A-2F. For example, if the player and dealer have tied in a hand
played with a numbered card back deck (see FIG. 2D), the tie may be
resolved by both the player and dealer turning over their cards and
summing the numbers on the backs of their cards. In this example,
the largest summed value may determine the winner of the game hand.
The tiebreaker determination in step 304 may also involve comparing
the card backs of two players against each other, or might be based
on the backs of the player's cards only. For instance, ties in game
hands played with a multi-patterned card back deck (see FIG. 2A) or
a multi-colored card back deck (see FIG. 2B) may be broken in favor
of the player if all of the player's cards have the same patterned
or colored card back, or if the player has more cards having a
higher ranking card back design than the other player or the
dealer. In an illustrative blackjack game using a 6-deck shoe with
two decks each having red, blue, and green card backs, the red
cards may be considered to have a higher ranking than the blue
cards, which have a higher ranking than the green cards. Ties
(pushes) between players and the dealer may be broken based on
whose cards have more higher ranking card back designs or
values.
[0035] Finally, in step 305, any players that won the game outright
in step 302 or in a tiebreaker in step 304 are paid out according
to the standard game rules and pay scale. That is, in this example,
a player that wins a hand because of a card back tiebreaker may be
paid out exactly as though the player won the game outright without
needing a tiebreaker. In other examples, a player winning in a
tiebreaker may receive a reduced percentage of the standard
winnings, or may be paid out according to a different pay
scale.
[0036] Referring to FIG. 4, a flow diagram is shown illustrating
steps for performing another wagering game wherein the designs on
the backs of the player's cards and/or the dealer's cards may be
used in determining the winner of a separate side bet. This example
may be used to create new betting opportunities for players in
existing card games, without changing any of the game rules or
probabilities that the player has become accustomed to. An
additional potential advantage of a side bet wager based on
back-of-card designs is that no additional playing cards need to be
dealt from the game deck for the additional wagering opportunity.
Therefore, the number of game hands that may be played before
reshuffling the deck may be unaffected by a card back side wager,
and variations of wagering games with card back side bets may
potentially have increased betting revenue and a more favorable
betting ratio (e.g., bets per hour, dollars bet per hour).
Additionally, it should be noted that multiple hands of a live or
video/electronic version of these wagering games may be performed
wherein the game deck is not shuffled in between hands. This may
further increase the hands per hour ratio of the game (thus
potentially increasing profitability for the game), and may help to
maintain a high level of interest in the game by players who may
become bored and/or distracted during shuffling breaks.
[0037] In step 401, a hand of the wagering game has commenced and
the game provider accepts wagers for the primary card game (e.g., a
standard casino game using card fronts to determine winners) as
described in step 301 above. However, in this example, the game
provider may accept an additional side bet wager from the players,
wherein the side bet winner might be determined based entirely on
the card backs of the game hand. In certain games, players might
only be eligible to place a back-of-card side wager if they have
also placed a wager in the primary game, while in other games a
player might be eligible to play the back side wager without
playing the primary game. Additionally, the provider may limit the
side bet wager amount to a specific amount or range (e.g., a
multiplier based on the amount of the primary game wager), while in
other variations the amount of the card back side wager may only be
limited by the game or table betting limits.
[0038] In step 402 the game provider deals out one or more cards to
each of the players, and in step 403 the provider determines which
of the players has won or lost based on the standard games rules
and pay scale of the primary card game. Then, in step 404, the
separate side bet wager is determined based on the back-of-card
designs on the players' cards and/or the dealer's cards, for
example, using one of the techniques described above in reference
to FIGS. 2A-2F. The game rules and pay scale for the separate card
back side wager may also be based on the primary card game. For
example, certain card back designs and card back games may be
better suited to primary games that have a large (or small) number
of cards in the hand. Other card back games may be better suited to
primary games having a variable number of cards (e.g., blackjack),
while others are better suited to primary games with a fixed number
of cards. Thus, primary card games in this example may be matched
with appropriate card back designs and card back games for side
wagers.
[0039] Finally, in step 405, both the winners of the primary
wagering game and the separate card back side bet wager may be paid
out according to the respective rules and pay scales of these
games. It should also be noted that the timing of step 405 and the
timing of the other steps may be implemented differently in
different embodiments. For example, the primary game wager might be
completely paid out before the winners of the side bet wager are
determined in step 404. In other examples, such as in casino games
in which the player and dealer cards are dealt face down, the
outcome of the card back side bet wager may be determined and paid
out before the primary game is played. Additionally, players might
have the option to initiate a card back side bet wager during or
even after the completion of the primary game hand. For example,
the odds of winning certain types of card back side wagers might
increase as the player accumulates more cards in the primary game.
Thus, the player might decide while playing a primary game hand
(e.g., blackjack) that his hand has enough cards that he should
accept the card back side bet wager, and in this example he could
do so at anytime before his primary game hand is over (e.g., before
busting in blackjack). As another example, a card back side wager
may be played with a baccarat primary game (e.g., using mah-jongg
card back designs), where the outcome of the card back side wager
may be determined either before or after the outcome of the
baccarat hand. In other examples, a game may include only a side
bet game using the card backs of one or more standard or modified
standard 52-card decks, and might not include any primary wagering
game.
[0040] Referring to FIG. 5, a flow diagram is shown illustrating
steps for performing another wagering game wherein the designs on
the backs of the players' cards and/or the dealer's cards may be
used in determining the amount that winning players will win in the
primary card game. In step 501, a hand of the wagering game has
commenced and the game provider accepts wagers and deals the cards
for the primary card game, as described above. In step 502 the
players play the game and the game provider determines which of the
players has won or lost based on the front of the players' and
dealer's cards, according to the games rules and pay scale of the
primary wagering game.
[0041] In step 503, if a player has won the primary game based on
the card fronts (503:Yes), the player may be eligible to receive a
payoff multiplier based on the backs of the player's and/or the
dealer's cards in the hand. In this example, a player that did not
win the primary game will not be paid off regardless of any
determination using the card backs from the game hand. Thus, unlike
the card back side betting games described in FIG. 4, in this
example the card backs may only be used to supplement or multiply
the player's winning from the primary game.
[0042] In step 504, the backs of the cards in the game hand are
used to determine a payoff multiplier for any of the players that
have won the primary wagering game. Thus, one or more of the
techniques and back-of-card designs described in reference to FIGS.
2A-2F may be used to determine a multiplier value. In one example,
the game deck may comprise different colored card backs (see FIG.
2B), and a winning player whose card backs are of all the same
color may receive a "X3" payout multiplier so that the player will
receive triple the winnings from the primary game. In other
variations, numbered card backs (see FIG. 2D) from a player's hand
may be averaged (or other computations may be performed) to
generate the player's payoff multiplier. In another example, the
game deck may comprise a number of card back wildcard symbols (see
FIG. 2F), which if found in a player's winning hand may act as a
payoff multiplier. In yet another example, a winning player may
optionally accept a double-or-nothing wager against another player
or the dealer, wherein a card back game (e.g., rock-paper-scissors)
may be used to determine whether the player's winnings will be
doubled or lost. A double-or-nothing wager using card backs might
also be available recursively, potentially allowing the player to
double their payout multiple times after a single hand of the
primary game. For example, in a primary game in which both the
player and dealer receive multiple cards, a winning player might
accept a double-or-nothing wager using one of the techniques
described above for comparing a first card in his hand to a first
card in the dealer's hand (e.g., by colors, numbers, symbols,
etc.). Then, if the player successfully doubles his payoff with the
first comparison, he may opt to continue on to a second
double-or-nothing wager based on comparing the second cards in the
player's and dealer's hands. Finally, in step 505, the winning
players are paid out according to pay scale of the primary wage
game, supplemented and/or multiplied by the payoff multiplier
determined in step 504. The multiplier may also act to reduce the
player's winnings, e.g., by 1/2 in some embodiments.
[0043] Referring now to FIGS. 6A and 6B, illustrative
representations of screenshots are shown from a user interface for
playing "No Tie Video Blackjack," a wagering game using designs on
card backs as a blackjack tiebreaker and demonstrating some of the
aspects described in the flow diagram of FIG. 3. In this example,
the user interfaces 600a and 600b may represent user interfaces
displayed on a display device of a electro-mechanical gaming
machine or other computing device, such as a video blackjack
machine 101 operated by a casino or other gaming establishment.
Thus, the game deck with different card back designs may be
implemented using a computer algorithm to assign a specific card
back design to each digital playing card (i.e., to each reference
in the memory 115 of the machine 101 corresponding to a stored game
deck card). The video blackjack machine 101 may then store in
memory 115 a table or other data referencing the playing cards in
the digital game deck and linking each playing card to its assigned
card back design.
[0044] The video blackjack user interface in this example has
graphical and text displays showing the game title 605, the number
of gaming credits available to the player 610, and the current game
hand status 620. The user interface 600a may also include a touch
screen with input buttons 615. In the user interface 600a, the
player has completed a standard hand of blackjack against the
computer dealer which has ended in a tie (or push). In certain
conventional variations of blackjack, the player would simply
receive his initial wager back and would not win or lose any money
on the hand. However, in this illustrative version of no-tie
blackjack, the player may be prompted after a tie via the status
display 620 to select one of his cards via the input buttons 615.
The user is informed by the game rules and/or the status display
620 that the back of the selected card will be exposed and compared
to the back of a card selected from the dealer's hand to settle the
tie.
[0045] Referring now to FIG. 6B, the user has selected the middle
card 630 in his blackjack hand by pressing the corresponding "B"
input button 617. In response, the processor 103 of the video
blackjack machine 101 identifies the card back design corresponding
to the player's selected card 630, a rock in this example for
playing a rock-paper-scissors card back tiebreaker game. The
processor 103 also selects a card 640, possibly at random, from the
dealer's blackjack hand, and determines the back design
corresponding to the dealer's selected card 640, a pair of scissors
in this example for playing the rock-paper-scissors tiebreaker. The
video blackjack machine 101 then displays an updated user interface
600b exposing the card back designs (i.e., rock icon 635 and
scissors icon 645) respectively on the player's and dealer's
selected cards 630 and 640. In this example, if the player's
tiebreaker icon were to match the dealer's tiebreaker icon, the
video blackjack machine 101 may initiate additional tiebreaker
rounds using the additional cards in the player's and dealer's
hands, and/or additional card back indicia. The video blackjack
machine 101 may then compute the tiebreaker winner, which is the
player in this example, and update the game status text field 615,
the gaming credits field 610, and any other fields accordingly.
[0046] Although the above example relates to a blackjack game
played on a computing device 101 with a video screen, other similar
variations of a no-tie blackjack game may be played live, for
example, at a casino gaming table. However, in live versions of
no-tie blackjack and other live wagering games involving card
backs, it may be of increased importance to prevent players from
seeing their own card backs or the card backs of the dealer's hand
before placing primary game wagers, side bet wagers, or playing the
strategic portions of the game. For instance, a player that could
quickly glance at the backs of cards as they were being dealt
face-up could gain an unfair advantage over the house or the other
players in any subsequent betting or strategic play that depended
on the card backs. To prevent this problem for live card back
games, the dealer might require all bets based on card backs to be
placed in advance of any of the cards being dealt. Additionally,
live wagering games based on card backs may be pre-designed so that
there is no potential advantage to be gained by the player if the
player happens to see the backs of his own or the dealer's cards.
For example, in a live version of no-tie casino war wherein the
player is dealt a single card and a comparison of the card backs is
used to break ties between the player and the dealer, it would be
inconsequential if the player sees a card back before the
tiebreaking comparison because once the hand begins the player does
not make any more betting or strategy decisions, and thus could not
affect the outcome of any potential tiebreakers.
[0047] Referring to FIGS. 7A and 7B, illustrative representations
of screenshots are shown from another user interface for playing "3
Card Poker with Card back Side Wagers," a wagering game using
designs on card backs as a separate side wager for a traditional
three card poker game, and demonstrating some of the aspects
described in the flow diagram of FIG. 4. As in the above example,
the user interfaces 700a and 700b may represent user interfaces
displayed on a display device of a video poker machine 101. The
video poker user interfaces 700a and 700b in this example, having
graphical and text displays showing the game title 705, the number
of available gaming credits 710, the amount of the current main bet
wager 715, the amount of the current side bet wager 720, the game
status 725, a pay scale 730 for the three card poker game (i.e.,
the primary game), and a second pay scale 735 for the card backs
game (i.e., the side bet wager).
[0048] In user interface 700a, the player has just completed and
won a standard hand of three card poker against the computer
dealer. As indicated in the game status display 725, the player has
earned a 1-to-1 return on his main bet 715 of 4 credits. In certain
conventional variations of three card poker, the game hand might
end at this point and the user could optionally initiate another
hand by betting more credits. However, in this illustrative version
of three card poker with a card back side wager, the player may
place both a main bet 715 and a side bet 720, the outcome of which
is dependent on the backs of the player's cards 740. Thus, in user
interface 700b, the processor 103 of the video poker machine 101
identifies the card back designs corresponding to the player's
cards 740. The video poker machine 101 may then display an updated
user interface 700b exposing the card back designs for the player's
cards 740, and then determine the outcome of the side bet wager
based on the card backs game rules and side bets pay scale 735. In
this example, the game deck comprises a multi-colored card back
deck (see FIG. 2B), and the card back game pays a 3-to-1 return on
the side bet wager 720 when all of the backs of the player's cards
740 have the same color. Thus, as indicated by the credit display
710 and the game status 725, the player has won an additional
amount of game credits from the card backs side bet wager.
[0049] Although the above examples are described using blackjack
and three card poker variations, other casino games may be modified
to include tiebreakers, payoff multipliers, side wagers, or other
game modifications based on card back designs. For example, a
baccarat casino game might incorporate a card back tiebreaker or
separate card back side bet wager, etc. Additionally, in some
modifications of casino and other wagering games, including
variations of the examples discussed above in reference to FIGS. 6
and 7, the card backs may have mah-jongg tile or card symbols and
numbers so that the backs of the players' and/or the dealer's cards
form mah-jongg hands, and so that card back side wagers, primary
game tiebreakers, etc, are determined based on mah-jongg game
rules.
[0050] Because each variation of card back design usage in a card
game affects the probability of winning by the gaming provider (the
house's take), a gaming provider may commission a statistician or
mathematician to determine the average payout based on usage of
card back designs (e.g., based on two colors versus three colors;
rock-paper-scissors; numbered backs; wildcards; player wins ties if
all card backs alike; player wins ties if has higher ranking card
backs than dealer; etc). Alternatively, in view of knowing the
payout percentage for each variation, a gaming provider may vary
the circumstances under which a player wins based on the gaming
provider's desired payout percentage in any given game.
[0051] While illustrative systems and methods as described herein
embodying various aspects of the present invention are shown, it
will be understood by those skilled in the art, that the invention
is not limited to these embodiments. Modifications may be made by
those skilled in the art, particularly in light of the foregoing
teachings. For example, each of the elements of the aforementioned
embodiments may be utilized alone or in combination or
subcombination with elements of the other embodiments. It will also
be appreciated and understood that modifications may be made
without departing from the true spirit and scope of the present
invention. The description is thus to be regarded as illustrative
instead of restrictive on the present invention.
* * * * *