Books have been stated on this issue, and the conflict and face-offs about where the "hot" video slots are positioned in a casino are still intense – over sixty years after the slot machines were first placed in the casinos.
The standard rule is that the superior slot games were put just inside the entry of the casino; so that fun seekers walking by would see real jackpot winners … be baited to come inside … play. Our belief is that this is definitely no longer true.
Many of the big name casinos these days are colossal complexes and now you can’t see inside from the sidewalk, so there is no longer a reason to position the ‘loose’ slot machines near any doorways.
Another standard rule is that loose slot machines are placed on the major aisles in the casinos, again so that more potential gamblers could see winning jackpots and be motivated to play. Interestingly though, we find that this also is no longer a universal rule.
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 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!
These days, casinos are constantly changing their philosophy about where to place the loose slot games.