Books have been written on this subject, and the disquiet and squabbling about where the "hot" slot machine games are positioned in the casino are still there – over sixty years after slot machine games were first installed in gambling dens.
The classic rule is that the best slot machines were located just inside the entrance of the casino; so that people passing by would be able to see jackpot winners … be convinced to come into the casino and play. Our reckoning is that this is no longer true.
Most of the major casinos presently are massive complexes and you no longer can see inside from the sidewalk, so there is no longer a reason to put the ‘loose’ slot machines close to any doorways.
Yet another classic rule is that loose one armed bandits are put on the major aisles inside the casinos, again so that more fun seekers could see winning jackpots and be roused to play. 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 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 philosophy about where to place the loose slots.