Great fun for adults and older children (Monopoly)

Member Name: foxylou1980

Product:	Monopoly
Date:	31/03/09 (127 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A good way to teach children about money; great for a rainy day!

Disadvantages: Can cause heated arguments! Pieces are very small so be aware of choking issues with small kids

Monopoly is a great game for the financially savvy apparently; well I am one of the most financially savvy people around so how come I always lose at Monopoly then?

Monopoly is a property trading game for up to six players. Each player travels around the board using their "token" (I am always, always the dog, and I blatantly refuse to be the iron for purely feminist reasons!). Players move around the board, buying and selling property, and sometimes even landing up in jail! You may also find yourself being the runner-up in a beauty contest if you pick up a Chance card (always guaranteed to merit some sarcastic remarks from fellow players!)

Monopoly is now available in many different versions worldwide, including Star Wars Monopoly, The Simpsons Monopoly and even one of my (almost) hometown, Middlesbrough Monopoly! I am a big believer in tradition though and prefer to play the original version which is based around streets in London.

I first discovered Monopoly when I was a little girl of about three years old and I used to play with the houses and hotels at my grandma's house! Then when I was 13 I was introduced to it properly by my stepmam who taught me the rules of play. Or so I thought at the time... It actually transpires that her rules weren't exactly how the game is supposed to be played! I have found this out through playing the game with my husband (an incredibly sore loser who always beats me at Monopoly!) When I used to play it with my stepmam there were no negotiations involved or anything; basically when you ran out of money that was it, you were out of the game. But the way my husband plays it is a little more complicated but much more fun, with IOUs being bandied about the table and properties being sold off to the highest bidder!

My seven year old daughter has the game Junior Monopoly which she really enjoys playing; I think she's almost ready to tackle the real thing now, and enter into the cutthroat world of the property market!

I would add some of my own personal strategies for Monopoly here but being as I tend to lose I'll use my husband's!

1) Always buy as much property as you can - basically buy everything you land on if you can afford to. Favourite roads are Mayfair and Park Lane - more expensive to buy but the rents are higher on them (I always buy Whitechapel and the Old Kent Road; in some strange way I just feel sorry for them as they really are the runts of the Monopoly litter!)

2) As soon as you have the colour set of properties put as many houses and hotels on them as you can - that way when anyone else lands on them they'll owe you a stack of rent!

3) Don't get drunk when you're playing Monopoly - other players will take advantage of your inebriated state and try to swindle you out of your hard-earned cash and properties!

The original Monopoly game is currently priced at £12.69 on Amazon; however after Christmas my husband and I saw both the Star Wars and original Editions in Tesco at the price of about six pounds, so it may be worth waiting for the January sales if you want to grab a bargain. Charity shops are often a good place to pick up the game, although there will be probably be some bits missing!

Summary: Monopoly will always be around in one version or another, great fun!