Gaming devices and methods for enriching subsequent gaming activity based on current gaming activity

Abstract

Systems, apparatuses and methods for identifying positions of card hands that will be accorded some heightened value or enrichment on a future hand(s) of the game. In one embodiment, a player of a poker game may be notified in connection with a current hand that some preset progress or other partial progress is made towards a potentially favorable result, where that progress is made known to the player so that the player knows it is coming on a subsequent poker game.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A video poker apparatus comprising:
 a display including a plurality of card positions;   a user interface configured to generate signals in response to inputs from a player to facilitate player participation in the poker game;   a memory configured to store a credit amount and at least one deck of virtual playing cards;   a wager input device structured to receive physical items associated with currency values;   a processor coupled to the display, the user interface, the memory, and the wager input device, the processor operable to:
 receive a signal indicating receipt of a physical item associated with a currency value; 
 increase the credit amount stored in the memory based on the currency value associated with the received physical item; 
 receive a first game initiation signal from the player interface including a first wager amount to initiate a first poker game, the first wager amount deducted from the credit amount stored in the memory; 
 randomly deal virtual playing cards to the plurality of card positions on the display; 
 determine whether any of the plurality of card positions are randomly selected to be designated; 
 mark a designated card position among the plurality of card positions on the display when the designated card position was determined to be randomly selected; 
 evaluate a first poker hand from virtual cards in the plurality of card positions in the first poker game for first poker awards; 
 increase the credit amount stored in the memory by any first poker awards in the first poker game; 
 receive a second game initiation signal from the player interface including a second wager amount to initiate a second poker game after any first poker awards in the first poker game have increased the credit amount stored in the memory, the second wager amount deducted from the credit amount stored in the memory; 
 deal an upgraded virtual card to the designated card position on the display, 
 randomly deal virtual playing cards to any remaining card positions of the plurality of card positions on the display; 
 evaluate a second poker hand from virtual cards in the plurality of card positions in the second poker game for second poker awards; and 
 increase the credit amount stored in the memory by any second poker awards associated with the second poker hand of the second poker game. 
   
     
     
         2 . The video poker apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the upgraded virtual card dealt to the designated card position in the second poker game is a wild card. 
     
     
         3 . The video poker apparatus of  claim 2 , wherein the wild card is associated with a randomly determined multiplier value. 
     
     
         4 . The video poker apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the processor is further operable to:
 specify a plurality of cards to be used in the second poker game when it is determined that at least one of the plurality card positions has been randomly selected to be designated;   present the specified plurality of cards via the display during the first poker game; and   dealing the specified plurality of cards in a subset of the plurality of card positions as upgraded virtual cards during the second poker game.   
     
     
         5 . The video poker apparatus of  claim 4 , wherein the processor is further operable to specify the plurality of cards to be used with the subsequent poker game by presenting, via the display, visual representations of specific cards from the virtual deck that will be used with the second poker game.