Patent ID: 7491121

Claim:
A gaming device comprising: (A) a housing; (B) a plurality of mechanical reels located in the housing, the mechanical reels being rotatable about an axis, the mechanical reels being moveable in at least a first and a second manner, the mechanical reels being moveable independently of each other; (C) a player input device coupled to the housing, the player input device in communication with a controller, the player input device being adapted to be activated by a player; and (D) the controller in communication with the mechanical reels and the player input device, the controller enabling the player input device after an occurrence of a consecutive number of losing outcomes and when no game is being played and disabling the player input device while a game is being played, the controller causing at least one of the mechanical reels to move in a the first manner when a game is played and to allow the player to cause at least one of the mechanical reels to move in the second manner when the game is not being played without altering or producing a game outcome, the game outcome comprising a winning or losing outcome, and after the player has activated the player input device.