Monopoly

The history of Monopoly can be traced back to 1903, when American anti-monopolist Lizzie Magie created a game called Landlord's that she hoped would explain the single-tax theory of Henry George as laid out in his book Progress and Poverty. She devised the key features of the game. It was meant as an educational tool to illustrate the negative aspects of concentrating land in private monopolies. She took out a patent in 1904. This shows the game's characteristic features of a square circuit consisting of corner squares (one the starting point) and a series of intervening spaces where players went round and round until the goal was reached. The railway stations were hazards, demanding a $5 fine. Players received money after completing each circuit. This design was different from other board games of the time. It is possible, but not definitely known, that she was inspired by a game called Zohn Ahl, played by the Kiowa which had a similar shaped board and different rules, and was described in a book about games in 1898. Her game was self-published beginning in 1906.

Magie created two sets of rules: an anti-monopolist set in which all were rewarded when wealth was created, and a monopolist set in which the goal was to create monopolies and crush opponents.

Several variant board games, based on her concept, were developed from 1906 through the 1930s. They involved both the process of buying land for its development, and the sale of any undeveloped property. Cardboard houses were added, and rents increased as they were added to a property. Magie patented the game again in 1923.

According to an advertisement placed in The Christian Science Monitor, Charles Todd of Philadelphia recalled the day in 1932 when his childhood friend Esther Jones and her husband, Charles Darrow, came to his house for dinner. After the meal, the Todds introduced Darrow to The Landlord's Game, which they then played several times. The game was entirely new to Darrow, and he asked the Todds for a written set of the rules. After that night, Darrow went on to utilize it to distribute the game himself as Monopoly. His only change was to add symbols for the electricity and water companies and for the railway stations. …

The Monopoly game board consists of forty spaces containing twenty-eight properties—twenty-two streets (grouped into eight distinct color groups), four railroads, and two utilities—three Chance spaces, three Community Chest spaces, a Luxury Tax space, an Income Tax space, and the four corner squares: GO, (In) Jail/Just Visiting, Free Parking, and Go to Jail.

There have since been some changes to the board. Not all of the Chance and Community Chest cards shown in the 1935 patent were used in editions from 1936/1937 onwards. Graphics with the Mr. Monopoly character (then known as "Rich Uncle Pennybags") were added during that same time frame. A graphic of a chest containing coins was added to the Community Chest spaces, as were the flat purchase prices of the properties. Traditionally, the Community Chest cards were yellow (although they were sometimes printed on blue stock), with no decoration or text on the back; Chance cards were orange, also with no text or decoration on the back.

Hasbro commissioned a major graphic redesign to the U.S. standard edition of the game in 2008, along with some minor revisions. Among the changes: the colors of Mediterranean and Baltic avenues were changed from purple to brown, and the color of the "Go" square was changed from red to black. The Luxury Tax amount was increased from $75 to $100, and a flat $200 income tax was imposed (formerly the player's choice of $200 or 10% of their total holdings, which they could not calculate until after making their final decision). The amount was originally $300, but was changed a year after the game's debut.

There were also changes to the Chance and Community Chest cards. For example, the "poor tax", "receive for services", "Xmas fund matures", and "grand opera opening" cards became "speeding fine", "receive $25 consultancy fee", "holiday fund matures", and "it is your birthday", respectively. Though their effects remained the same, the player must pay only $50 instead of $150 for the school tax. In addition, the player now gets $50 instead of $45 for sale of stock, and the "Advance to Illinois Avenue" card now includes added text indicating that the player collects $200 if they pass "Go" on the way there.

All the Chance and Community Chest cards were altered in 2008 as part of the game's redesign. Mr. …

Besides the game board, a standard Monopoly set includes items such as property title deeds, houses, hotels, Chance and Community Chest cards, Monopoly money, and tokens. When setting up for a game of Monopoly, all extra cash, property title deeds, and buildings are left in the box. This is called the "bank", and it may be controlled by an active player, or by a separate entity who is not actively playing.

A Monopoly set contains 32 Chance and Community Chest cards (16 each), which are placed on the board during play. Chance and Community Chest cards have various instructions printed on them, and they are drawn when a player lands on their corresponding space.

Once the instructions on the drawn card have been followed, it is placed at the bottom of the deck. Some cards may be kept by the player to be used at a later time during the game.

Property title deed cards represent the various purchasable properties on the game board. When a player takes ownership of a property space, they receive its corresponding title deed card.

Printed on the card's obverse are extra details about the property, such as the amount of rent to charge opponents who land on that space, and the costs of developing the property with houses and hotels. On the card's reverse side is its mortgage value. In more recent editions, the reverse side also has the amount a player must pay to unmortgage a property.

When a player lands on a property space, they may buy it from the bank at the price listed on the game board. Property prices range from $60 to $400. If they do not wish to buy it, the bank must offer it up for auction to other players, with the winner of the auction acquiring the property. If no players wish to bid on the property, it remains in the bank for purchase at a later time.

Most editions of the game feature the following property types:

A pair of six-sided dice is included, with a "speed die" added for variation in 2007. The 1999 Millennium Edition featured two jewel-like dice which were the subject of a lawsuit from Michael Bowling, owner of dice maker Crystal Caste. Hasbro lost the suit in 2008 and had to pay $446,182 in royalties. …

Each player starts with $1,500 in their bank. Players roll the dice, and whoever rolls the highest number goes first. Play then proceeds clockwise.

On a player's turn, they roll the dice and advance their piece clockwise around the board the corresponding number of squares. Rolling the same number on both dice (doubles) allows a player to take another turn after moving their piece. However, if a player rolls doubles three times in a row, the player is immediately sent to jail and does not complete their third turn.

A player who lands on or passes the "GO" space collects $200 from the bank. Players who land on either Income Tax or Luxury Tax pay the indicated amount to the bank. In older editions of the game, two options were given for Income Tax: either pay a flat fee of $200 (or $300) or 10% of total net worth (including the current values of all the properties and buildings owned). No calculation could be made before the choice, and no latitude was given for reversing an unwise decision. In 2008, the calculation option was removed from the official rules. Additionally, the Luxury Tax was increased from $75 to $100. Nothing happens when a player lands on Free Parking.

If a player lands on a Chance or Community Chest space, they take the top card from the respective deck and follow its instructions. This may include collecting or paying money to the bank or another player or moving to a different space on the board. Two types of cards that involve jail, "Go to Jail" and "Get Out of Jail Free", are explained below.

When a player is sent to Jail, they move directly to the "In Jail" part of the "In Jail/Just Visiting" space, and their turn ends. They do not collect $200 for passing Go. If an ordinary dice roll (not one of the above events) ends with the player's token on the Jail corner, they are "Just Visiting", and can move ahead on their next turn without penalty.

If a player is in Jail, they cannot move and must either pay a fine of $50 to be released, use a Chance or Community Chest Get Out of Jail Free card, or roll doubles on their next turn. If a player fails to roll doubles, they lose their turn. Failing to roll doubles for three consecutive turns requires the player to either pay the $50 fine or use a Get Out of Jail Free card, then, when they get out of Jail, move ahead according to the total rolled. …

According to Jim Slater in The Mayfair Set, the Orange property group is the best to own because players land on them more often, as a result of the Chance cards "Go to Jail", "Advance to St. Charles Place (Pall Mall)", "Advance to Reading Railroad (Kings Cross Station)" and "Go Back Three Spaces" (New York Avenue / Vine Street).

In all, during game play, Illinois Avenue (Trafalgar Square) (Red), New York Avenue (Vine Street) (Orange), B&O Railroad (Fenchurch Street Station), and Reading Railroad (Kings Cross Station) are the most frequently landed-upon properties. Mediterranean Avenue (Old Kent Road) (Brown), Baltic Avenue (Whitechapel Road) (Brown), Park Place (Park Lane) (Dark Blue), and Oriental Avenue (The Angel, Islington) (Light Blue) are the least-landed-upon properties. Among the property groups, the Railroads are most frequently landed upon, as no other group has four properties; Orange has the next highest frequency, followed by Red.

According to Business Insider, the best way to get the most out of every property is to build three houses on each as quickly as possible. In order to do this, the player must have all the corresponding properties of the color set. Once every possible property has three houses, it is advised they then upgrade to four houses and then hotels.

Trading is a vital strategy in order to accumulate all the properties in a color set. Obtaining all the properties in a specific color set enables the player to buy houses and hotels which increase the rent another player has to pay when they land on the property. According to Slate, players trade to speed up the process and secure a win. Building at least 3 houses on each property allows the player to break even once at least one player lands on this property.

One common criticism of Monopoly is that although it has carefully defined termination conditions, it may take an unlimited amount of time to reach them. Edward P. Parker, a former president of Parker Brothers, is quoted as saying, "We always felt that forty-five minutes was about the right length for a game, but Monopoly could go on for hours. Also, a game was supposed to have a definite end somewhere. In Monopoly you kept going around and around."

Hasbro states that the longest game of Monopoly ever played lasted 70 days.