Books have been set forth on this subject, and the bickering and disharmony about where the "hot" slots are installed in the casino are still bubbling – over 60 years after slot machines were 1st installed in the casinos.
The quintessential rule is that the best slot machine games were put just inside the entry of the casino; so that potential gamblers going by would see real jackpot winners and be keen enough to come into the casino … play. Our point of view is that this is definitely no longer true.
Nearly all of the large casinos nowadays are behemothic complexes … you can no longer see inside from the sidewalk, so there is no longer a reason to place the ‘loose’ slot machine games near to any doors.
An additional traditional rule is that loose slot machine games are put on the major aisles inside the casinos, again so that more potential gamblers could see winning jackpots and be inspired 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 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 machine games.