Scheduling of reconfigurable gaming machines

A controller of gaming machines that permit wagering on games comprising:

• a first memory location that stores a first time-based schedule of different games to be run by the gaming machines at different times the gaming machines being located remote from the controller;
• a second memory location that stores identities of first gaming machines;
• one of the first and second memory locations storing a pointer that links the other of the first and second memory locations and associates the first gaming machines with the first schedule so that one of the first schedule and first gaming machines can be modified independent of and without modifying the other of the first schedule and the first gaming machines;
• data transmitter that automatically transmits instructions corresponding to one game defined by the first schedule to be run by the first gaming machines, where the one game is different from a game currently being run on the first gaming machines, the data transmitter automatically transmitting the instructions at a time interval prior to the scheduled time at which the one game is to be run the first gaming machines.