An electromechanical gaming machine. In operation, the gaming system receives a request for a wager for a player of an entertainment game, the request being triggered by a player's action while playing the entertainment game and establishes a result for the wager. The player's action is compared to an optimal action, and the paytable for the wager is based on that comparison. The gaming system supplies, based on the result of the wager, a play element of the entertainment game to be used by the player while playing the entertainment game.