THE NEW MONOPOLY

Grandson Mason had a birthday party to attend recently, and while at the store to buy a gift for him to take to the party...I saw a shelf with several games on sale. One of them was MONOPOLY.

Over my nearly 60 years, I have probably owned a half dozen Monopoly games. Over those years...one would get sold in a yard sale...or lost in a move...or thrown out due to missing pieces...and an opportunity would come to 'need' to buy a new one...so I would.

Well I didn't currently own a Monopoly game...and this new version on the shelf was marked down in price and looked interesting...so I bought it.

I have played Monopoly 1 million times...well maybe not that many...but lots . Admittedly I haven't played in many years, but as a youngster it was an often-played game by myself or with friends.

One buddy, Mike, and I would play over entire weekends. We would start on Friday night after school was out...and wrap up Sunday evening when we'd have to get ready for another school week to start. It didn't matter if we ran out of money (officially, the game is over when a player goes bankrupt). We just kept a notebook off to the side to mark how much we were 'in the hole'...and kept on playing.

There were also many times I'd play by myself. The real me...and 3 of my pretend friends (1 on each side of the square game board) would be entertained for hours and hours.

The original Monopoly houses and hotels were made of wood. I read years ago that some of the early boards with those wooden features are worth a good deal of money these days. I swear I remember playing on one of those versions as a young kid. I sure would love to own one of those versions today.

The houses and hotels in more recent years are made of plastic. This new version of Monopoly are a new design of plastic.

One of the main changes in the new version is that it doesn't come with money anymore. This 21st century version comes with a 'credit' card. A small computer is the centerpiece to the game (the board is also round...no longer square). The computer helps you keep track of your wealth and makes the transactions for you during the game. Each player starts with a set amount of 'credit' on their card and when a player gets more money from the bank or another player...or spends money while buying something or paying one of the other players...you insert your credit card into the computer and it adds or subtracts the appropriate amount. No money ever changes hands...at least in the literal sense.

There are also no longer any 'Chance' or 'Community Chest' cards. If a player lands on a 'Chance' spot on the board...they push a button on the computer and it tells them the good or bad news.

Another thing that has changed is the value of the property...different from the original version of the game...that was made in the 'depression' era. Back then...a player started the game with $1500...passing 'GO' was worth $200...and rents were as little as $2 and $4.

In today's version...a player starts with $15 million...passing go is worth $2 million...landing on Boardwalk with a hotel is going to cost you $20 million in rent. My how times have changed!

In my younger years...I played Monopoly so much and so often...I knew from memory how much every property cost to buy...how much rent was if I landed on it...how much it cost to put houses or hotels on it...and the values associated with them. But that's changed now. I haven't the foggiest how much they cost today...until I've played it enough times to retain it.

Having said all of that...we had an evening with the big kids...and we played the new version of Monopoly. It started before 8pm...and we wrapped up at midnight.

It was a great family time together and all enjoyed it...no one...more than me...as it brought back some old memories of fun times of years gone by.

Some things never change.


Dan