Monopoly the board game is a much-loved classic

Game:
Monopoly
the Board game manufacturer:
Parker Brothers
Number of players:
2-6

QUICK VERDICT

Monopoly will not disappoint you if, somehow, you've never played it before! Although it can grow tiresome with repeated playings, its mix of simple gameplay and rewarding strategy shows why Monopoly the board game has never gone out of style.

The original Monopoly is hard to beat for a family boardgame experience. More or less on its own, the game has invented the collectable boardgame genre, with dozens, if not hundreds, of spin-off versions and geographical variations.

Many of the world's major cities now have a local version of Monopoly for tourists to buy. There's also Star Wars, Lord of the Rings and countless other licensed versions. You can be pretty sure we won't be trying to keep up with every single version!

The Game

For the most part, the game remains unchanged from its roots. The Monopoly board game describes itself as a property trading game, but although wheeling and dealing are important, luck does play a major factor in the outcome.

Players begin with $1500 and take turns to throw two dice and advance around the board. For the first circuit, property may not be purchased, but once passing GO for the first time, players may buy any property that's still available.

Income is derived from rent paid by other players landing on your properties. Property is arranged in street sets of two or three cards, identified by colour.

The dog is one of the famous Monopoly boardgame tokens. A player who owns all of a set has a huge advantage. Not only do the rents on that set double, he may build houses or a hotel to exponentially increase the rents payable when players land on his buildings.

There are special squares, including taxes, the infamous GO TO JAIL and two card stacks, CHANCE and COMMUNITY CHEST, which can both have positive or negative outcomes.

The winner is the last person to remain solvent.

Click to read part two of Monopoly the board game review