METHOD OF PLAYING A WAGERING GAME AND MACHINE FOR PLAYING THE GAME

Abstract

A method of playing a wagering game in which the magnitude of the awards is increased and decreased in direct relation to the number of players who play the game, and alternately, in direct relation to the amount wagered by the players in the game. A machine for playing such a wagering game is also disclosed.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The embodiments of the present invention generally relate to wagering games and to machines for playing such games.

BACKGROUND

House banked wagering games, such as casino games, are usually considered to be very exciting and fun as more players participate in the game. This is especially true of so-called live casino table games where players situate themselves around the periphery of a gaming table, such as a roulette table, a craps table, a baccarat table, or a blackjack table. Players not only can interact with the game dealer or game manager, but also can interact with other players. Social interaction at the gaming tables is generally perceived to be a positive environment for casino employees and players alike. Consequently, it is considered desirable to offer greater social interaction at gaming tables by encouraging more players at each table.

It is also to a casino's benefit to encourage more players to play its wagering games, to make more wagers for the games, and to make higher value wagers in playing the games. It is also to the casino's benefit to condense such players onto a fewer number of tables, so as to reduce casino administrative and other overhead costs.

The embodiments of the present invention help promote desired social interaction among players who play wagering games as well as provide an incentive for players to play such games, make more wagers in connection with such games, and increase the amount of their wagers in connection with such games.

SUMMARY

The embodiments of the present invention relate to a method of playing a wagering game in which the magnitude of the awards is increased and decreased in direct relation to the number of players who play the game, and alternately, in direct relation to the amount wagered by the players in the game. A machine for playing such a wagering game is also disclosed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of certain elements of a machine for playing a wagering game in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of certain elements of a machine for playing the wagering game in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the same item.

A wagering game implementing the embodiments of the present invention may be played as a live casino table game, as an electronic simulation of live casino table game, or on an electronic machine, such as a slot machine, a video poker machine, as a multi-player video sit-down machine. Such a wagering game may also be implemented electronically through the Internet or an Intranet.

The wagering game utilized in the embodiments of the present invention is especially adapted for implementation in card games, such as Twenty-one or Blackjack, Let It Ride® Poker, Caribbean Stud® Poker, Caribbean Draw® Poker, Three Five Seven Poker, Three Card Poker, and Pai Gow Poker, although it will be appreciated that the present invention is not limited to implementation with card games.

The invention will be described in some detail below with reference to certain embodiments involving the well-known Caribbean Stud® Poker game, however, it should be understood that such an example is exemplary only, and should not be considered as limiting the nature or scope of the embodiments of the present invention.

At a typical Caribbean Stud® poker table, there are anywhere from five to seven player positions, or spots, at which players may be seated and place their wagers. In the Caribbean Stud® game, each player may place a wager for the underlying game, and may also, optionally, place a side bet wager for an auxiliary game involving a jackpot component. Each player wagering for the underlying game will receive cards and achieve either a winning condition or a losing condition. Each player opting to place the side bet wager for the auxiliary game may win an additional award if the player's had achieves a predetermined arrangement of cards such as a royal flush, a straight flush, four of a kind, or a full house, otherwise, the player loses the side bet wager. After winning wagers are paid by the house and losing wagers are collected by the house, a new round of the Caribbean Stud® poker game commences, and players are given an opportunity to place a new wager for the underlying game and a new optional wager for the side bet auxiliary game.

A typical paytable for the underlying Caribbean Stud® poker game is as follows:

Hand           Paytable
Royal Flush    100 to 1
Straight Flush 50 to 1
4 of a Kind    20 to 1
Full House     7 to 1
Flush          5 to 1
Straight       4 to 1
3 of a Kind    3 to 1
Two Pair       2 to 1
Pair           1 to 1
Ace/King       1 to 1

and a typical payout table for the side bet auxiliary game is:

Hand           PayTable
Royal Flush    100% of progressive jackpot meter
Straight Flush 10% of progressive jackpot meter
Four of a Kind $500
Full House     $100
Flush          $50

In one embodiment, the present invention contemplates that the pay off rewards are increased in direct relation to the number of players at a particular Caribbean Stud® table. For example, if at least a predetermined number of people, such as five, play at the table and place a wager for the underlying game, then the paytable for the underlying game might be changed to the players' advantage, and to the house's disfavor, as follows:

Hand           PayTable
Royal Flush    200 to 1
Straight Flush 75 to 1
4 of a Kind    25 to 1
Full House     12 to 1
Flush          10 to 1
Straight       6 to 1
3 of a Kind    3 to 1
Two Pair       2 to 1
Pair           1 to 1
Ace/King       1 to 1

Such a modification at the paytable would reduce the house's edge by about three percent.

Similarly, if at least a predetermined number of players at the table place a side bet wager, then the paytable for the auxiliary game might be increased to the players' advantage and to the house's disfavor. In addition to increasing the ratio of the payback for certain predetermined card arrangements, the embodiments of the present invention contemplate that the amount on a progressive jackpot award may be increased by a certain fixed value (such as an additional $100,000.00) or percentage value (such as an additional ten percent). Likewise, instead of a fixed ratio payback, a secret or mystery progressive jackpot could be activated, very preferably having a base, seed amount that is higher than what the normal payback amount would be at the fixed ratio. Similarly, many jackpots are paid not immediately, but through the use of annuities that pay equal installments of the jackpot over a long period of time, such as ten years or even twenty years. The embodiments of the present invention contemplate that the jackpot award can be increased in the sense that the period of paying off the jackpot to a winning player can be made over a shorter period of time, thereby effectively increasing the amount paid to the winning player, when considering the time/value of the money.

The embodiments of the present invention also contemplate that increased awards may be triggered by achieving at least a predetermined amount of the total, aggregate value of the players' wagers for the underlying game during any round of play. In yet another aspect of the present invention the increased pay award can be triggered by achieving at least a certain percentage or ratio of players who place the side bet wager for the auxiliary game component relative to the number of players who make an underlying game wager, for each round of play.

It should also be appreciated that the embodiments of the present invention contemplate that there need not be only one triggering event and only one associated increase of the awards, but that there may be more than one triggering event, each with associated increases (e.g., an award increase based upon achieving a certain total aggregate value of wagers for the underlying game, and yet further, additional award increases based upon achieving an even higher level of total, aggregate wagers for the underlying game, in any round), and there may be more than one type of increase of awards for the same triggering event. Moreover, any combination of triggering events may be utilized in the same round of play for the game.

An expected consequence of the embodiments of the present invention is that players are encouraged to ask their friends and other patrons to play the underlying game at the same table, to increase the size of their wagers on the underlying game, and to place the optional side bet wager.

The embodiments of the present invention also contemplate a situation in which a winning player actually receives an award of less value if other players are placing wagers in the same round of play. For example, if a player places a side bet wager for the auxiliary game component and achieves a winning condition that entitles the player to the top progressive jackpot award, either a fixed percentage of that award can be required to be shared among other players at the table who place such a side bet wager in that round of play (e.g., ten percent of the jackpot award is shared equally among the other players) or a fixed percentage of the award can be given to each other player at the table who placed a side bet wager for the auxiliary game component during that round of play (e.g., each other player receives two percent of the jackpot award). Such sharing of the jackpot award with other players need not have a triggering event, but also may have a triggering event such as requiring that the number of players that place a side bet wager relative to the number of players placing an underlying game wager satisfy at least a certain ratio. It is also possible that the percentage to be shared among the players or the percentage received by each player could increase with either the number of players placing a side bet wager in that round of play or as the ratio of players placing the side bet wager to players placing the underlying game wager increases to certain predetermined criteria. It will be appreciated that with the implementation of the jackpot sharing aspect of this embodiment of the present invention, the players have incentive to encourage other players to place side bet wagers, so as to effectively hedge their bets. The win by one player will be a win for all players who place a similar wager, and will result in players cheering each other on to achieve a winning condition in the game.

The embodiments of the present invention may be implemented in more than just a live casino table game played at a single table or a single multi-player sit-down video machine; the invention may be utilized with electronically interlinked live casino table games or multi-player sit down video machines, as well as with electronically linked stand alone video gaming machines and with games played via the Intranet or the Internet. In these latter types of embodiments, the rounds of play at each table or at each terminal will not exactly overlap. As such, the numbers of player positions, the numbers of players wagering in the underlying game, the numbers of players wagering the side bet, the total amount wagered in the underlying game, and any other relevant criteria, will not usually be monitored in a given round of play, but rather, within a predetermined time interval, such as within ten seconds prior to determination of any winning condition. Since the achievement of any triggering criteria may change within any such predetermined time interval, the invention further contemplates that the awards will change only if the ratios and other criteria have remained either above or below the triggering standard consistently for a separate predetermined time interval, such as twenty seconds before the determination of a winning condition.

Various embodiments of the machine for performing the method, either adapted for use with a live casino table game or with other versions of the game will now be described with reference to block diagrams 100, 110 in FIGS. 1 and 2, respectively.

Referring to FIG. 1, in a first embodiment shown by block diagram 100 and dependent on a number of players, players may indicate the making of a wager, for example, in a live casino table game by placing a coin, a chip, or a token at a specified location on the table layout or within a special coin, chip, or token sensor located on the table layout. The placement of the coin, chip, or token may be sensed 101 by well-known devices, such as optical detectors utilized in the Caribbean Stud® poker game and the Let It Ride® table game and by electrical induction coils underneath the table layout. Many casino chips are now embedded with electronic microchips that bear encoded information such as the name of casino issuing the chip and the monetary value of the chip, which are read by an RFID device located beneath the table layout. The player's placement of a wager may also be sensed by well-known technology such as the placement of a human fingertip or digit on a touch screen, by depressing a push button on a gaming machine, or by depressing a key on a computer keyboard interlinked to an Intranet or the Internet. The embodiments of the present invention also contemplate that the placement of a wager may be sensed by sound sensors that include voice recognition technology and that detect a player's voice command.

The preferred machine also includes a device for determining substantially when any player has placed a relevant wager 102. In the context of a live casino table game, the device may simply include a lockout switch and a reset switch that a dealer manipulates to signal the beginning and end, respectively, of a round of play of the game and associated circuitry that processes only signals from the sensors that occur between those two events, and ignores all other signals from the sensor. It is also contemplated that the device may include a timing circuit that tags a signal from the sensor indicating that a wager has been made at a particular time.

The machine also includes one or more microprocessors that may be pre-programmed with the relevant triggering criteria and the associated increase or decrease of the awards, for determining the value of the wagers placed and for assessing whether certain triggering criteria have been established 103, and for modifying the awards 104. If the trigger conditions (e.g., number of players) have been met, the awards are modified 104 and if not, they are not modified 105. The same microprocessor may control a signage display of the awards at any given time 106.

Now referring to FIG. 2, a block diagram 110 details a second embodiment of the present invention based on an aggregate number of wagers. Like with block diagram 100, placement of wagers is sensed 111 and when the wagers are placed is determined 112. Next, in this embodiment, the value of each player wager is aggregated 113 and the aggregated information is compared to a threshold trigger condition 114. Based on the results of the comparison at 114, the awards are modified 115 or not modified 116. Again, the signage can be controlled accordingly 117.

It should be understood that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.

Claims

1. A method of playing a wagering game played essentially concurrently by a plurality of players, said game including at least one non-winning condition, at least one winning condition, and at least one award, each award corresponding to an associated one of said at least one winning conditions, wherein a player placing a wager may win an award if said player achieves a winning condition, and wherein each player is capable of achieving either one of said at least one winning conditions or one of said at least one non-winning conditions independently of each of the other players, said method including:

(a) increasing and decreasing the magnitude of at least one of said at least one awards in direct relation to the number of players who essentially concurrently play said game and who place said wager.

2. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 1 wherein said game includes at least one non-winning condition, a plurality of winning conditions, and a plurality of awards, each award corresponding to an associated one of said plurality of winning conditions, wherein a player placing a wager may win an award if said player achieves one of said winning conditions, and wherein each player is capable of achieving either one of said winning conditions or one of said at least one non-winning conditions independently of each of the other players, said method including:

(a) increasing and decreasing the magnitude of each of at least two of said awards in direct relation to the number of players who essentially concurrently play said game and who place said wager.

3. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 2 wherein said plurality of players who essentially concurrently play said game and place said wager number between three players and seven players, inclusive.

4. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 1 wherein said game comprises a card game.

5. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 4 wherein said at least one winning condition comprises a predetermined arrangement of cards.

6. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 2 wherein said game comprises a card game.

7. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 6 wherein each of said plurality of winning conditions comprises a predetermined arrangement of cards.

8. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 6 wherein said card game is selected from the group consisting of Caribbean Stud® poker, Caribbean Draw® poker, Lit It Ride® poker, Three Card Poker, Twenty-One, 357 poker, and Pai Gow poker.

9. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 2 wherein said card game is played in a series of rounds and wherein the term “essentially concurrently” means “within a round” of play.

10. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 2 wherein the term “essentially concurrently” means “within a predetermined time interval”.

11. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 10 wherein said plurality of players who essentially concurrently play said game and place said wager number at least five players.

12. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 11 wherein said plurality of players who essentially concurrently play said game and place said wager number at least one hundred players.

13. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 1 wherein said game includes a plurality of winning conditions, and a plurality of awards, each award corresponding to an associated one of said plurality of winning conditions, said awards being awarded at least in part according to a predetermined pay out table listing awards as a ratio of said wager placed by any said player, and wherein said increasing and decreasing step includes modifying said ratio for at least two awards.

14. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 1 wherein said at least one award includes a jackpot paid in partial payments over a period of time, such as an annuity, and wherein said increasing and decreasing step includes modifying the length of said period of time.

15. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 1 wherein said game comprises a wagering game played against a house and wherein the house has more favorable odds than any of said players and wherein said increasing and decreasing step includes modifying said odds.

16. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 1 wherein said increasing and decreasing step includes increasing the magnitude of at least a first one of said at least one award as the number of said players who essentially concurrently play said game and who place said wager increases, and decreasing the magnitude of said same at least first one of said at least one awards as the number of said players who essentially concurrently play said game and who place said wager decreases.

17. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 1 wherein said increasing and decreasing step includes decreasing the magnitude of at least a first one of said at least one awards as the number of said players who essentially concurrently play said game and who place said wager increases, and increasing the magnitude of said same at last first one of said at least one awards as the number of said players who essentially concurrently play said game and who place said wager decreases.

18. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 17 wherein said at least first one of said at least one awards comprises a progressive jackpot.

19. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 17 wherein said increasing and decreasing step includes the step of (1) when a player achieves at least a first one of said at least one winning conditions, a portion of the award corresponding to said at least first one of said at least one winning conditions is awarded to at least one other player who also essentially concurrently played said game and who placed said wager.

20. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 19 wherein said portion comprises a percentage of said award.

21. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 20 wherein said percentage is shared equally among all of said other players.

22. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 20 wherein each of said other players receives an equal percentage of said award.

23. A method of playing a wagering game capable of being played essentially concurrently by a plurality of players, said game including at least one non-winning condition, at least one winning condition, and at least one award, each award corresponding to an associated one of said at least one winning conditions wherein a player placing a wager may win an award if said player achieves a winning condition, and wherein each player is capable of achieving either one of said at least one winning conditions or one of said at least one non-winning conditions independently of each of any other player, said method including:

(a) increasing and decreasing the magnitude of at least one of said at least one awards in direct relation to substantially the ratio of the total value of said wagers wagered by players playing said game essentially concurrently and who place said wager to the number of players who are capable of essentially concurrently playing said game and placing said wager.

24. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 23 wherein said game includes at least one non-winning condition, a plurality of winning conditions, and a plurality of awards, each award corresponding to an associated one of said plurality of winning conditions, wherein a player placing a wager may win an award if said player achieves one of said winning conditions, and wherein each player is capable of achieving either one of said winning conditions or one of said at least one non-winning conditions independently of each of any other player, said method including:

(a) increasing and decreasing the magnitude of at least two of said awards in direct relation to substantially said ratio.

25. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 24 wherein said plurality of players who are capable of essentially concurrently playing said game and placing said wager number between three players and seven players, inclusive.

26. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 23 wherein said game comprises a card game.

27. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 26 wherein said at least one winning condition comprises a predetermined arrangement of cards.

28. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 25 wherein said game comprises a card game.

29. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 28 wherein each of said plurality of winning conditions comprises a predetermined arrangement of cards.

30. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 27 wherein said card game is selected from the group consisting of Caribbean Stud® poker, Caribbean Draw® poker, Lit It Ride® poker, Three Card Poker®, Twenty-One, 357 poker, and Pai Gow poker.

31. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 24 wherein said card game is played in a series of rounds and wherein the term “essentially concurrently” means “within a round” of play.

32. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 24 wherein the term “essentially concurrently” means “within a predetermined time interval”.

33. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 32 wherein said plurality of players who are capable of essentially concurrently playing said game and placing said wager number at least five players.

34. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 33 wherein said plurality of players who essentially concurrently play said game and place said wager number at least one hundred players.

35. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 24 wherein said game includes a plurality of winning conditions, and a plurality of awards, each award corresponding to an associated one of said plurality of winning conditions, said awards being awarded at least in part according to a predetermined pay out table listing awards as a ratio of said wager placed by any said player, and wherein said increasing and decreasing step includes modifying said ratio for at least two awards.

36. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 24 wherein said at least one award includes a jackpot paid in partial payments over a period of time, such as an annuity, and wherein said increasing and decreasing step includes modifying the length of said period of time.

37. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 24 wherein said game comprises a wagering game played against a house and wherein the house has more favorable odds than any of said players and wherein said increasing and decreasing step includes modifying said odds.

38. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 24 wherein said increasing and decreasing step includes increasing the magnitude of at least a first one of said at least one award as the number of said players who essentially concurrently play said game and who place said wager increases, and decreasing the magnitude of said same at least first one of said at least one awards as the number of said players who essentially concurrently play said game and who place said wager decreases.

39. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 24 wherein said increasing and decreasing step includes decreasing the magnitude of at least a first one of said at least one awards as the number of said players who essentially concurrently play said game and who place said wager increases, and increasing the magnitude of said same at last first one of said at least one awards as the number of said players who essentially concurrently play said game and who place said wager decreases.

40. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 39 wherein said at least first one of said at least one awards comprises a progressive jackpot.

41. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 39 wherein said increasing and decreasing step includes the step of (1) when a player achieves at least a first one of said at least one winning conditions, a portion of the award corresponding to said at least first one of said at least one winning conditions is awarded to at least one other player who also essentially concurrently played said game and who placed said wager.

42. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 41 wherein said portion comprises a percentage of said award.

43. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 42 wherein said percentage is shared equally among all of said other players.

44. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 42 wherein each of said other players receives an equal percentage of said award.

45. A method of playing a wagering game capable of being played essentially concurrently by a plurality of players, said wagering game comprising (1) an underlying game including at least one non-winning underlying game condition, at least one winning underlying game condition, and at least one underlying game award, each underlying game award corresponding to an associated one of said at least one winning underlying game conditions, wherein a player placing a wager to participate in said underlying game may win an underlying game ward if said player achieves a winning underlying game condition and wherein each player is capable of achieving either one of said at least one winning underlying game conditions or one of said at least one non-winning underlying game conditions independently of each of any other player, and (2) an auxiliary game including at least one winning auxiliary game condition, at least one winning auxiliary game condition, and at least one auxiliary game award, each auxiliary game award corresponding to an associated one of said at least one winning auxiliary game conditions, wherein a player placing a wager to participate in said auxiliary game may win an auxiliary game ward if said player achieves a winning auxiliary game condition and wherein each player is capable of achieving either one of said at least one winning auxiliary game conditions or one of said at least one non-winning auxiliary game conditions independently of each of any other player, said wagering game comprising:

(a) affording each player an opportunity to make at last one underlying game wager to participate in the underlying game;

(b) affording each player an opportunity to make at last one auxiliary game wager to participate in the auxiliary game; and

(c) increasing and decreasing the magnitude of at least one of said at least one auxiliary game awards in direct relation to the number of players who essentially concurrently play said wagering game and who place at least one of said at least one auxiliary game wagers.

46. A method of playing a wagering game according to claim 45 further comprising (d) increasing and decreasing the magnitude at least one of at least one of said underlying game awards in direct relation to the number of players who essentially concurrently play said wagering game and who place at least one of said at least one underlying game wagers.

47. A machine for playing a wagering game, said wagering game played essentially concurrently by a plurality of players, said game including at least one non-winning condition, at least one winning condition, and at least one award, each award corresponding to an associated one of said at least one winning conditions, wherein a player placing a wager may win an award if said player achieves a winning condition, and wherein each player is capable of achieving either one of said at least one winning conditions or one of said at least one non-winning conditions independently of each of the other players, said machine including:

(a) means for sensing whether a player has placed said wager;

(b) means responsive to said sensing means for determining substantially when any player has placed any said wager;

(c) means responsive to said determining means for assessing substantially how many players have placed said wager and are playing said wagering game essentially concurrently; and

(d) means responsive to said assessing means for increasing and decreasing the magnitude of at least one of said at least one awards in direct relation to the number of players who essentially concurrently play said game and who place said wager.

48. A machine for playing a wagering game according to claim 47 wherein said sensing means includes an optical detector for optically detecting the presence of a tangible wagering indicia such as a coin, a chip, a token, or a human digit.

49. A machine for playing a wagering game according to claim 47 wherein said sensing means includes an electrical detector, such as an inductance detector, for electrically detecting the presence of a tangible wagering indicia such as a coin, a chip, a token, or a human digit.

50. A machine for playing a wagering game according to claim 47 wherein said sensing means includes an electrical switch activated by a player manipulatable a button, such as a push button or key on a computer keyboard.

51. A machine for playing a wagering game according to claim 47 wherein said sensing means includes a sound detector for detecting a player's voice command.

52. A machine for playing a wagering game, said wagering game capable of being played essentially concurrently by a plurality of players, said game including at least one non-winning condition, at least one winning condition, and at least one award, each award corresponding to an associated one of said at least one winning conditions, wherein a player placing a wager may win an award if said player achieves a winning condition, and wherein each player is capable of achieving either one of said at least one winning conditions or one of said at least one non-winning conditions independently of each of any other player, said machine including:

(a) means for sensing whether a player has placed said wager;

(b) means for calculating the value of said wager placed by any player;

(c) means responsive to said sensing means for determining substantially when any player has placed any said wager:

(d) means responsive to said determining means for assessing substantially which players have placed said wager and are playing said wagering game essentially concurrently;

(e) means responsive to said calculating means and to said assessing means for aggregating the value of said wagers placed by said players and who are playing said wagering game essentially concurrently;

(f) means responsive to said aggregating means for comparing said aggregated value to the number of players who are capable of essentially concurrently playing said game and said wagers; and

(g) means responsive to said comparing means for increasing and decreasing the magnitude of at least one of said at least one awards in direct relation to substantially the ratio of said aggregated value to the number of players who are capable of essentially concurrently playing said game and placing said wager.

53. A machine for playing a wagering game according to claim 52 wherein said sensing means includes an optical detector for optically detecting the presence of a tangible wagering indicia such as a coin, a chip, a token, or a human digit.

54. A machine for playing a wagering game according to claim 52 wherein said sensing means includes an electrical detector, such as an inductance detector, for electrically detecting the presence of a tangible wagering indicia such as a coin, a chip, a token, or a human digit.

55. A machine for playing a wagering game according to claim 52 wherein said sensing means includes an electrical switch activated by a player manipulatable a button, such as a push button or key on a computer keyboard.

56. A machine for playing a wagering game according to claim 52 wherein said sensing means includes a sound detector for detecting a player's voice command.