Volumes have been written on this item, and the debates and ruckus about where the "hot" one armed bandits are installed in a casino are still on-going – sixty yrs after slot machine games were first placed in gambling houses.
The classic rule is that the best slots were positioned just inside the main doorway of the casino; so that individuals passing by would be able to see actual jackpot winners … be impressed enough to come unto the gaming floor and play. Our sentiment is that this is no longer the case.
Just about all of the major casinos today are grand complexes and you can no longer see inside from the sidewalk, so there is no longer a reason to place the ‘loose’ slots close to any entrances.
Another classic rule is that loose slots are placed on the major aisles in the casinos, again so that more potential gamblers could see winning jackpots and be roused to play. Notably however, 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 one armed bandits 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!
In recent times, casinos are constantly changing their philosophy about where to place the loose one armed bandits.