Do you feel like you’re waiting in line for certain slots at the casino? That’s certainly the complaint we hear from players periodically, and on occasion we get asked why that is:
Why do they reduce the number of the same machine when they are popular and keep ones that aren’t played often?
Cris C.
The economics of a casino floor, and the decision making that goes along with it, often has a lot to do with it.
Historically casinos owned a significant portion of their slots, and leased a smaller percentage. Oftentimes the leased slots are the ones that are more popular.
Some slots, like Link games from Aristocrat and Ultimate Fire Link series games from Light & Wonder, are leased – so if you noticed that bank of Lightning Link slots sitting there for many years, the casino’s paying every single day for the privilege of having those slots on the floor.
That can lead to business decisions that could seem counterintuitive. Those Dragon Link slots are always busy, but some casinos will fear putting more out because having too many machines might cause demand to dry up, and meanwhile they’re paying every single day for each of those machines on the floor.
In their minds, having a high level of demand for less machines on the floor keeps their usage high and maximizes revenue against the lease. Having people waiting to play helps drive demand because other players see it and will want to play it too.
Meanwhile, those older, collecting slot dust machines are likely owned by the casinos. That means they’re already bought and paid for, so the cost of leaving them on the floor is nominal.
In a post-pandemic world, casinos are getting more aggressive at maximizing what’s on their floor, and that means less idle games and a higher percentage of leased games that perform better. It also means games are more likely to come and go accordingly, which is the flip side of things. But the good news is many casinos are upping their budget for leased slots, which means a better chance for those hotter games, as well as ones with popular themes, showing up at your casino.
One thing we encourage players to do is to tell their casinos they want to see more of a game or that they’re missing a game at their casino. Many casinos do listen to those requests, and it can be a gentle nudge into looking at installing games that aren’t already on the floor. There may be reasons a game isn’t available, but if it is, your speaking up could lead to a game showing up down the line.
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