A system providing a community award to player is disclosed. The system comprises a plurality of gaming machines and a system controller. Each gaming machine is configured receive a wager from a respective player and responsively initiate a game. The system controller is coupled to each of the gaming machines and includes a database with a community awards list including a plurality of total award probabilities, each total award probability associated with a corresponding number of players. The system controller is then configured to detect a triggering condition; responsively determine a number of players playing the plurality of gaming machines; determine a total award probability as a function of the determined number of players and the community award list; and provide a community award to at least one of the plurality of players as a function of the determined total award probability.