Volumes have been said on this matter, and the conflict and disharmony about where the "hot" slot machine games are installed in a casino are still raging – over sixty yrs after slot games were first placed in gambling dens.
The quintessential rule is that the better slot machines were located just inside the main foyer of the casino; so that folks walking by would be able to see real jackpot winners … be intrigued enough to come unto the gaming floor … play. Our feeling is that this is no longer the case.
The majority of the major casinos presently are behemothic complexes … it’s no longer possible to see inside from the sidewalk, so there is no longer a reason to put the ‘loose’ slot machines close-by any entrances.
Another standard rule is that loose slots are installed on the major aisles in the casinos, again so that more potential gamblers could see winning jackpots and be encouraged to play. Importantly though, we find that this also isn’t 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 the slots 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 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!
Nowadays, casinos are constantly changing their perspective about where to place the loose one armed bandits.