Patent ID: 8376829

Claim:
A method to play a slot machine game, the method comprising: receiving, via a slot machine, an initial wager from a player; spinning, via the slot machine, a plurality of reels of the slot machine; stopping, via the slot machine, each spinning reel of the plurality of spinning reels to an initial outcome for that reel, and then paying, via the slot machine, an award based on all of the initial outcomes; cycling, via the slot machine, through all reel stops on a particular reel of the plurality of reels while the remaining reels of the plurality of reels remained stopped; while cycling through all reel stops on the particular reel, the slot machine, at each reel stop, determining whether each payline at that reel stop is an active payline or a non-active payline, comparing a paytable to each active payline to determine if the active payline is a potential winning payline, and then computing a win value based on each active payline that is a potential winning payline at that reel stop, wherein each active payline at each reel stop includes a symbol of the particular reel, and wherein each active payline and non-active payline at each reel stop includes the initial outcomes of the remaining reels of the plurality of reels; summing, via the slot machine, the computed win values to determine an accumulated value; determining, via the slot machine, a respin cost for the particular reel by dividing the accumulated value by a number of reel stops on the particular reel; displaying, via a display device at the slot machine, respin information that identifies the potential winning paylines that may result if the particular reel is respun and each reel of the remaining reels is not respun and remains at its initial outcome, wherein each potential winning payline comprises a winning combination of symbols defined by the paytable; respinning, via the slot machine, the particular reel to a final outcome; and paying, via the slot machine, any awards earned resulting from the initial outcome of each reel of the remaining reels of the plurality of reels and the final outcome.