A gaming system including electronic gaming machines (EGMs) compatible with patron-controlled portable electronic devices, such as smart phones or tablet computers, is described. EGMs within the gaming system can be configured to establish communications with portable electronic devices. After communications are established, the EGMs can be configured to determine input and output capabilities of the portable electronic devices and instantiate temporary peripherals. A temporary peripheral instantiated on an EGM can be used to send output to the portable electronic device and/or receive input from the portable electronic device. In some embodiments, input from a temporary peripheral can be used to affect a state of a wager-based game played on the EGM.