Jackpot or Mistake? Man Sues Over $1.6M 'Jackpot'

If the case does make it into court, expect more wrangling over who is ultimately responsible for the malfunction. GLI, hired by the casino to test the slot machine, said that the jackpot was caused by a problem with the machine's memory.

A spokesman for International Gaming Technology blamed a separate software program for the mix-up -- something GLI's technicians say is not possible.

As for Hoffman, Sandia officials say he has visited the casino more than 70 times in the first six months of 2007, a claim Hoffman did not dispute.

Cases like Hoffman's may still be bad for business, gambling experts say. "The players have to have an enormous amount of trust in the casino and in the slot machine," said slot machine expert John Robison.

"The player cannot go inside and look at that random number generator and figure out what really happened on the machine," he said. "If the machine tells you you won, well then I think you've won."

With reporting by Mary Kate Burke and Sarah Calvert