Monopoly

# 10 on my "Top 10 Tabletop Game Experiences" list.

NOTE: I’ve often wondered how Monopoly would be viewed if it were released in 2005. Would it garner the same popularity/negativity that it does today? Therefore I’m writing this review, trying to depict how I would play Monopoly if I had played it for the first time, current year.

Negotiation games certainly depend on the group. I’ve played negotiation games with hard-headed, fun-loving groups and have had a blast the entire time. However, I’ve also played negotiation games with folks who were having problems outside the game, didn’t want to trade with a particular person, didn’t want to trade at all, etc. With these people, any kind of trading and bartering can fall flat, destroying the fun in a game. Monopoly (Parker Brothers - designer debated) seems to add a twist on negotiation games - adding luck and “rent” to the equation.

At first, the board appears to be that of the “roll-and-move” variety, where one simply follows the roll of the dice. And this is indeed true, but the crux of the game is in the fact that players attempt to minimize their chances of landing on a poor space, and maximize their opponents. Dice are not the only randomness in the game, as some cards are also drawn during game play, contributing to the luck. But players cannot make any real headway in the game unless they dicker with the other players - so the luck only holds so far. I enjoy a good game of Monopoly, but only every once in a while. Even though negotiation is a mechanic I enjoy, the randomness that comes along with it doesn’t elevate Monopoly over other, better trading games.

A board consisting of forty spaces in a square track is placed on the table, with two stacks of cards - “Chance”, and “Community Chest” - shuffled and placed down on it. Each player chooses a playing piece and places it on the space marked “Go”, and receives $1500 from the bank. The remainder of the money is placed in the “bank”, as well as a pile of green house pieces and red hotel pieces. Twenty-eight property cards, each associating with a specific space on the board, are also placed in the bank area. One player is chosen to go first, with play proceeding clockwise around the table.

On a turn, each player must roll two six-sided dice and move their piece clockwise around the track that many spaces. Depending on what space they land on, they then take an action:
- Chance: The player draws a card from the Chance deck and follows the instructions on it (gaining money, losing money, going to a specific space, etc.)
- Community Chest: Same as above, but with the Community Chest Deck
- Free Parking: The only space on the board where nothing ever happens - a breather.
- Luxury Tax: The player must pay the bank $75
- Income Tax: The player must pay $200 or 10% of all their monetary value (must be decided before the player counts up their money)
- Unowned property space: There are twenty-eight spaces on the board that are property spaces. Twenty-two of these properties are divided up into “color-groups”, two or three properties of the same color. Four other spots are “railroad” spaces, and the final two properties (the Electric company and Waterworks) are utility properties. A player landing on an unowned property space may immediately buy it for the asking price (from $60 to $400, depending on the property). If they decide not to (or can’t), an auction occurs, and the highest bidder gets the property.
- Owned property space. If a player lands on a property space they own, nothing happens. If they land on a property another player owns, they must pay that player “rent”. Each property has a small amount that is charged to the player landing on that space. If a player owns all the properties in one color group, the rent on those spaces is doubled. Players may also increase their rent on their properties by building houses and hotels on them.
- Go to Jail: A player landing here must immediately head to the jail space.
- Jail: A player landing here is put in the part of the space marked “just visiting”, and ends their turn. A player who is stuck here must either roll doubles to get out, or pay $50 to the bank. (Some cards also allow a player to escape). If a player does not roll doubles in three turns, they MUST pay the $50 to escape.
When a player rolls the same number on both dice (“doubles”), they must immediately roll again. If the player rolls three doubles in a row, however, they immediately go to jail. When a player passes “Go” normally, they receive $200 from the bank.

On their turn, or in the short downtime between other players’ turns, each player may trade/sell their properties to one another for whatever deal they can get. Players also have the option of buying houses for their color-properties, if they have all of one set. Players can buy up to four houses for each property, for the price specified on the card, and then build a “fifth” house - which is actually a hotel piece that replaces the four houses on the property. Houses/hotels must be built evenly on both/all three of the color properties.

If a player needs to pay more money than they have - they can sell their houses/hotels back to the bank for a loss, and sell properties to other players or “mortgage” them to get the funds they need. If this still is not enough to cover their debt, the player is out of the game. The last player still in the game is the winner!

Some comments on the game...

1.) Components: Probably the most distinctive part of Monopoly is the playing pieces, which are different tokens (iron, dog, ship, etc.) rather than colored pawns. For some reason this is easier to identify (Why don’t more games do this?) and the pawns do usually elicit a positive reaction. The money included with the game is fairly thin and forgettable, as I much prefer poker chips or better quality money; but it works. The green houses are made of plastic, as are the red hotels; and they offer a good, quick visual of the dangers of landing on a particular property. The properties on the board themselves are arranged in order of value, starting with the cheapest property (Mediterranean Avenue - cost $60, highest rent - $250), and going to the most expensive property (Boardwalk - cost $400, highest rent - $2000). The board itself is a little bland, with a lot of wasted space in the middle; but when the houses and hotels are added, everything looks pretty neat. The property cards have a lot of info on them, and since almost every property is different, quite necessary. I’m not sure how the property cards and money will hold up to repeated plays - they look a little beat up after only a few.

2.) Rules: The rules are fairly simplistic to learn and only take a few pages. There are tournament rules that can be found online - and clarify some of the gaping holes in the original rules. For example, the original rules don’t clarify timing issues - as there are only a limited amount of houses and hotels to go around, who gets to buy them first? Also, is rent something that MUST be paid, or can a player who is not paying attention miss the money due to them? These seem like innocuous questions, but I’ve seen all of them greatly debated at games I’ve played.

3.) Money and theme: The game revolves around money - if you lose it, your out! Money changes hands frequently during the game, so I’m sure that the game could help children learn how to handle money. Oddly enough, while the game seems to promote monopolies, all I’ve ever seen was how it showed the negative sides of them. In the beginning of the game, the money amounts being handled are fairly small; but near the end, they can get rather enormous. If players aren’t staying on the same level as other players, they can be eliminated quickly. And this does add some interesting decisions to the game - how many houses/hotels should one buy? If you buy a lot of them quickly, your chance to make a lot of money is increased, but your available cash is low. Also, should players buy every property they land on? At first, it seems like the answer is generally yes, but occasionally it doesn’t help a player to buy everything - besides, you just might get it cheaper in auction?

4.) Elimination: Monopoly’s biggest problem, in my opinion, is the fact that the game has player elimination in it - something that usually doesn’t go over well, especially in a game of this length (usually around two and a half hours). The rules include a variant that ends the game after the second player is eliminated - and I’ve found that this works much better - even though it still causes one player to be eliminated.

5.) House Rules: I’ve played the game with many people, and several people have invented their own house rules, such as awarding money to people who land on Free Parking, auctioning off all properties, etc. Some of these rules really bog the game down, and a few (minute, actually) improve the game. So far it seems that most variants don’t do much to help the game - and some of them actually make it quite dreadful - so I personally tend to ignore them.

6.) Variations: I’ve already seen several variations on Monopoly - Star Wars, Loony Tunes, etc. A few of them add minor rule changes, but it is interesting how the theme of the game can be cut and pasted at will. Since most of these themes change little to, or nothing, I would tend to look for one with the highest quality bits when buying the game (Star Wars Episode I version so far has the best I’ve seen.)

7.) Problems: The game has two problems other than elimination. For one, there is a high luck factor. A player who lands on all of one group of properties (all the railroads, all the reds, etc.) can have a huge advantage at the beginning of the game. A player who lands on very few can also be in a bit of a jam. The Chance and Community Chest cards range wildly from being slightly annoying (pay $50) to extremely hurtful (go to a property that just happens to have a hotel of an opponent’s on it). Still, skillful negotiation and clever purchasing can mitigate (not eliminate) the luck factor to the point where it is palatable. The other problem with the game is smaller, but the fact that every property and every combination of houses/hotels is different causes players to often look up prices. After dozens of games, I’m sure that the numbers can be learned, but it does slow the game down a bit.

8.) Fun Factor and Negotiation: Much of the fun of Monopoly comes from the fact that you can trade almost anything for anything. You can trade Illinois Avenue and a get out of Jail free card for Oriental Avenue, Pennsylvania Railroad, and $200 - or whatever combination you’d like. This is my favorite part of the game, as the shrewdest dealer frequently (barring terrible luck) wins the game. It’s possible that one person can bog down the game if they refuse to trade, ever; but I just skip those people when playing this game. And it certainly is satisfying to see someone land on your Boardwalk when you have a hotel placed there. The game is fun - I’ve seen a lot of people enjoying it - but only if you don’t mind a healthy dose of luck.

I find it hard to determine whether I should recommend Monopoly or not. The idea is innovative and interesting, but the roll-and-move mechanic is sure to put off a lot of people. At the same time, I’ve seen the game played with great success, especially in a group of extraverts. There are some tremendous negotiation games out there, such as I’m the Boss and Dragon’s Gold, that have a lot less luck and provide the same bargaining feel. But I do realize that there are quite a few people who enjoy seeing thousands of dollars gained and lost on the roll of a die. If luck is your thing, and you also enjoy bartering, then pick up a copy of Monopoly. Otherwise, I think I’m going to have to say pass it up for something a little tighter in the rules - and a little less lucky.

Tom Vasel
"Real men play board games"