12.28
Slot Machine Location
Volumes have been said on this issue, and the controversy and arguments about where the "hot" slot machine games are installed in a casino are still raging – sixty years after slot machines were first placed in gambling houses.
The standard rule is that the very best slots were installed just inside the entrance of the casino; so that fun seekers walking by would be able to see jackpot winners … be inspired to come into the casino … play. Our view is that this is definitely no longer the case.
Practically all of the major casinos today are magnificent complexes … you can no longer see inside from the sidewalk, so there’s no longer a reason to position the ‘loose’ slot games near to any entrances or exits.
Another classic rule is that loose slot machines are positioned on the major aisles in the casinos, again so that more folks could see winning jackpots and be influenced to play. Importantly 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 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!
Nowadays, casinos are constantly changing their philosophy about where to place the loose slot machines.