Advance to Boardwalk Playing Monopoly on Your iPhone
Family game night just got impersonal. I remember receiving Monopoly, published by Parker Brothers, as a birthday gift. It was my first board game anyone has ever gotten me. I could not wait to sit down and play. I gathered my family and told them to meet me in the family room. We started playing the game and I can remember how special that time was. Spending quality time with the family meant very much to me. Now, many years later, I can take that memory of playing Monopoly with my family on the road with me as long as I have my iPhone.
Monopoly for the iPhone takes away setting up the board game and fully automates the process. No longer do you have to worry about counting money, or worry about your little siblings stealing the playing pieces. In my case, my little brother would steal the car. The actual game can be as short or long as you make it. You have a choice of playing alone with up to 3 computer opponents, play with friends by passing your iPhone around, or by playing others using WiFi or Bluetooth multiplayer. Personally, I play against 3 computer opponents.
A nice feature is the ability to set your own house rules. You don’t have to start the game with $1500; you can choose $1000, $1500, or $2000 to start off with. In the board game, you need to build 4 homes before buying a hotel; here you can choose 3 or 4. When landing on Free Parking, you can choose to either not be awarded with money, $250, or taxes. I personally choose the taxes with this option. Since it is rare to land on Free Parking, I would like the money to grow from the taxes until someone lands on it.
What happens with a property if you don’t want to buy it or don’t have enough money to purchase the property? This property goes into auction. You enter into a bidding room with the other opponents you are playing against. As all auctions go, the highest bidder wins.
Trading is synonymous with attaining the property you need that your opponent possesses. This is done in a very smart way. When it is your turn, you have the option to initiate a trade. This will take you to a screen that has the rundown of your assets to the left and the assets of the opponent you want to trade with on the right. You can either trade property for property, or money for property.
EA has done a great job with replicating the Monopoly feel. You have the same forty spaces containing twenty-eight properties we have come to know from the board game. I would definitely recommend this game to everyone. It has become one of my go-to games on the iPhone. Who knows, maybe you will pick up some new negotiation and resource management skills from playing this game.
