Books have been said on this topic, and the bickering and ruckus about where the "hot" slot machines are placed in a casino are still happening – more than sixty years after slot machines were first placed in gambling dens.
The classic rule is that the very best slot games were put just inside the entrance of the casino; so that folks passing by would be able to see jackpot winners … be challenged to come unto the gaming floor … play. Our view is that this is no longer the case.
Many of the large casinos today are magnificent complexes … now you can’t see inside from the sidewalk, so there’s no longer a reason to place the ‘loose’ slot machine games near to any of the doors.
An additional classic rule is that loose slots are located on the major aisles inside the casinos, again so that more folks could see winning jackpots and be galvanized 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 slot machines 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!
Today, casinos are constantly changing their philosophy about where to place the loose slot machine games.