Volumes have been set forth on this issue, and the bickering and ruckus about where the "hot" slot machine games are installed in a casino are still passionate – 60 yrs after one armed bandits were first placed in casinos.
The traditional rule is that the superior one armed bandits were placed just inside the main foyer of the casino; so that potential gamblers walking by would see actual jackpot winners … be tempted to come into the casino … play. Our assessment is that this is not so anymore.
The majority of the large casinos presently are huge complexes and you can no longer see inside from the sidewalk, so there is no longer a reason to place the ‘loose’ slot machines near any of the doors.
Yet another classic rule is that loose slots are placed on the major aisles in the casinos, again so that more fun seekers could see winning jackpots and be motivated to play. Notably however, we find that this also is not a universal rule any more.
What casinos found over the years is that people walking down the busy aisles were frequently on the way to somewhere else. If they played slot games at all, they would simply put in their loose change because they happened to be walking by. Win or lose, they would very often not stop to keep playing. And the very last thing a casino wants is for someone to win a jackpot by playing only a few coins and then not stay to put it all back in!
In recent times, casinos are constantly changing their philosophy about where to place the loose slot machine games.