TECHNICAL FIELD

The field of disclosure relates generally to electronic gaming, and more particularly to an electronic gaming machine and method that evaluate player reactions during game play.

BACKGROUND

Electronic gaming machines (EGMs), or gaming devices, provide a variety of wagering games such as, for example, and without limitation, slot games, video poker games, video blackjack games, roulette games, video bingo games, keno games, and other types of games that are frequently offered at casinos and other locations. Play on EGMs typically involves a player establishing a credit balance by inserting or otherwise submitting money and placing a monetary wager (deducted from the credit balance) on one or more outcomes of an instance, or play, of a primary game, sometimes referred to as a base game. In many games, a player may qualify for secondary games or bonus rounds by attaining a certain winning combination or other triggering event in the base game. Secondary games provide an opportunity to win additional game instances, credits, awards, jackpots, progressives, etc. Awards from any winning outcomes are typically added back to the credit balance and can be provided to the player upon completion of a gaming session or when the player wants to “cash out.”

Slot games are often displayed to the player in the form of various symbols arranged in a row-by-column grid, or “matrix.” Specific matching combinations of symbols along predetermined paths, or paylines, drawn through the matrix indicate the outcome of the game. The display typically highlights winning combinations and outcomes for ready identification by the player. Matching combinations and their corresponding awards are usually shown in a “pay-table” that is available to the player for reference. Often, the player may vary his/her wager to included differing numbers of paylines and/or the amount bet on each line. By varying the wager, the player may sometimes alter the frequency or number of winning combinations, the frequency or number of secondary games, and/or the amount awarded.

During game play, players may experience a variety of emotions and levels of engagement with their game. Players that enjoy and are highly engaged in a game tend to continue or repeat playing that game. Accordingly, providing engaging and entertaining games is desirable, both for the players as well as for casino operators and game developers.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

In one embodiment, an electronic gaming machine is provided. An electronic gaming machine includes a display, a digital camera device configured to capture digital image data of a player of the electronic gaming machine during a game play session of a wagering game, a credit input mechanism including at least one of a card reader, a ticket reader, a bill acceptor, and a coin input mechanism, the credit input mechanism configured to receive a credit wager, a storage medium having instructions stored thereon, and a processor. The processor is coupled to the display, the credit input mechanism, and the storage medium. When executed, the instructions cause the processor to at least: (i) receive, from the digital camera device, a digital image of the player; (ii) determine an emotional state of the player by performing facial expression analysis on the digital image; (iii) determine an emotion level of the player by categorizing the emotional state of the player based on the determined emotional state, the categorizing includes a first state representing a positive emotional level and a second state representing another emotional level; (iv) determine that the emotional level is the other emotional level; and (v) automatically initiate a game session action during the game play session, the game session action is configured to cause the player to transition to the positive emotional level.

In another embodiment, a method of analyzing facial expressions of a player is provided. The method is implemented on an electronic gaming machine, the electronic gaming machine includes at least one processor in communication with at least one memory device, a digital camera device configured to capture digital image data of the player during a game play session of a wagering game, and with a display. The method includes: (i) receiving, from the digital camera device, a digital image of the player; (ii) determining an emotional state of the player by performing facial expression analysis on the digital image; (iii) determining an emotion level of the player by categorizing the emotional state of the player based on the determined emotional state, the categorizing includes a first state representing a positive emotional level and a second state representing another emotional level; (iv) determining that the emotional level is the other emotional level; and (v) automatically initiating a game session action during the game play session, the game session action is configured to cause the player to transition to the positive emotional level.

