09.26
Slot Machine Location
Books have been set forth on this subject, and the contention and discord about where the "hot" slots are installed in the casino are still rampant – more than 60 years after slot machine games were 1st installed in gambling dens.
The quintessential rule is that the best slots were installed just inside the main entrance of the casino; so that potential players going by would see real jackpot winners and be challenged to come inside and play. Our standpoint is that this is not so anymore.
Nearly all of the large casinos today are gigantic complexes … it’s no longer possible to see inside from the sidewalk, so there is no longer a reason to place the ‘loose’ slot machine games near to any of the doors.
An additional standard rule is that loose slot machines are placed on the major aisles in the casinos, again so that more fun seekers could see winning jackpots and be motivated to play. Notably 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.