Monopoly has become a part of international popular culture, having been licensed locally in more than 103 countries and printed in more than 37 languages. Monopoly is derived from The Landlord's Game created by Lizzie Magie in the United States in 1903 as a way to demonstrate that an economy that rewards wealth creation is better than one where monopolists work under few constraints, and to promote the economic theories of Henry George—in particular his ideas about taxation.
The game is named after the economic concept of monopoly—the domination of a market by a single entity. ==History== ===Early history=== The history of Monopoly can be traced back to 1903, when American antimonopolist Lizzie Magie created a game which she hoped would explain the single-tax theory of Henry George.
She took out a patent in 1904.
Her game, The Landlord's 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.
M101 has the five-star, 225-room hotel, then under construction, located at the M101 Bukit Bintang in Kuala Lumpur and would have a 1920s Gatsby feel.
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 their house for dinner.
Her game, The Landlord's 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.
The values on the board reflect real estate property values of 1930s Atlantic City: the two cheapest properties, Baltic Avenue and Mediterranean Avenue, were situated in a low-income, African-American neighborhood.
By the 1930s, the inn had become a J.
Winning Moves still produces new city and regional editions annually. The original income tax choice from the 1930s U.S.
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 their house for dinner.
When Monopoly was first published by Parker Brothers in 1935, it did not include the less capitalistic taxation rule, which resulted in a more competitive game.
When the company learned Darrow was not the sole inventor of the game, it bought the rights to Magie's patent for $500. Parker Brothers began marketing the game on November 5, 1935.
patent number US 2026082 A was issued to Charles Darrow on December 31, 1935, for the game board design and was assigned to Parker Brothers Inc.
Not all of the Chance and Community Chest cards as shown in the 1935 patent were used in editions from 1936/1937 onwards.
A booklet included with the reprinted 1935 edition states that the four railroads that served Atlantic City in the mid-1930s were the Jersey Central, the Seashore Lines, the Reading Railroad, and the Pennsylvania Railroad. The Baltimore & Ohio (now part of CSX) was the parent of the Reading.
In a similar fashion, Parker Brothers sent over a copy of Monopoly to Waddingtons early in 1935 before the game had been put into production in the United States. Victor Watson, the managing director of Waddingtons, gave the game to his son Norman, head of the card games division, to test over a weekend.
The original version of the game in this format was based on the streets of Atlantic City, New Jersey. === 1936–1970 === In 1936, Parker Brothers began licensing the game for sale outside the United States.
Not all of the Chance and Community Chest cards as shown in the 1935 patent were used in editions from 1936/1937 onwards.
of Rensselaer, New York in early 1936.
Shortly after Capitol Novelty introduced Stock Exchange, Parker Brothers bought it from them then marketed their own, slightly redesigned, version as an add-on specifically for their "new" Monopoly game; the Parker Brothers version was available in June 1936.
After prints with wood tokens in 1937, a set of eight tokens was introduced.
Two more were added in late 1937, and tokens changed again in 1942.
The battleship and cannon were also used briefly in the Parker Brothers war game Conflict (released in 1940), but after the game failed on the market, the premade pieces were recycled for Monopoly usage.
In 1941, the British Secret Intelligence Service had John Waddington Ltd., the licensed manufacturer of the game in the United Kingdom, create a special edition for World War II prisoners of war held by the Nazis.
Two more were added in late 1937, and tokens changed again in 1942.
By 1943, there were ten tokens which included the Battleship, Boot, Cannon, Horse and rider, Iron, Racecar, Scottie Dog, Thimble, Top hat, and Wheelbarrow.
Since that version had in itself no specific pro-Nazi elements, it continued in use after the war, and formed the base for Monopoly games used in the Netherlands up to the present. ===1970s–1980s=== Economics professor Ralph Anspach published Anti-Monopoly in 1973, and was sued for trademark infringement by Parker Brothers in 1974.
The first Monopoly World Championships took place in Grossinger's Resort in New York, in November 1973, but they did not include competitors from outside the United States until 1975.
Since that version had in itself no specific pro-Nazi elements, it continued in use after the war, and formed the base for Monopoly games used in the Netherlands up to the present. ===1970s–1980s=== Economics professor Ralph Anspach published Anti-Monopoly in 1973, and was sued for trademark infringement by Parker Brothers in 1974.
The first Monopoly World Championships took place in Grossinger's Resort in New York, in November 1973, but they did not include competitors from outside the United States until 1975.
The case went to trial in 1976.
Other additions to the Deluxe Edition include a card carousel, which holds the title deed cards, and money printed with two colors of ink. In 1978, retailer Neiman Marcus manufactured and sold an all-chocolate edition of Monopoly through its Christmas Wish Book for that year.
Anspach won on appeals in 1979, as the 9th Circuit Court determined that the trademark Monopoly was generic and therefore unenforceable.
Properties on the board were replaced by companies on which shares could be floated, and offices and home offices (instead of houses and hotels) could be built. ====Playmaster==== Playmaster, another official add-on, released in 1982, is an electronic device that keeps track of all player movement and dice rolls as well as what properties are still available.
This decision was overturned by the passage of Public Law 98–620 in 1984.
This set was designed by artist Sidney Mobell to honor the game's 50th anniversary in 1985, and is now in the Smithsonian Institution. ==Reception== Wired magazine believes Monopoly is a poorly designed game.
These tokens remained the same until the late 1990s, when Parker Brothers was sold to Hasbro. In 1998, a Hasbro advertising campaign asked the public to vote on a new playing piece to be added to the set.
created a play-by-mail game (PBM) version of Monopoly, reviewed in the August–September 1990 issue of White Wolf Magazine.
Parker Brothers was eventually absorbed into Hasbro in 1991.
However, Anti-Monopoly was exempted from the law and Anspach later reached a settlement with Hasbro and markets his game under license from them. The research that Anspach conducted during the course of the litigation was what helped bring the game's history before Charles Darrow into the spotlight. ===Hasbro ownership=== In 1991, Hasbro acquired Parker Bros.
The Free Parking square is covered over by a new Stock Exchange space and the add-on included three Chance and three Community Chest cards directing the player to "Advance to Stock Exchange". The Stock Exchange add-on was later redesigned and re-released in 1992 under license by Chessex, this time including a larger number of new Chance and Community Chest cards.
A new wave of licensed products began in 1994, when Hasbro granted a license to USAopoly to begin publishing a San Diego Edition of Monopoly, which has since been followed by more than a hundred more licensees including Winning Moves Games (since 1995) and Winning Solutions, Inc.
A new wave of licensed products began in 1994, when Hasbro granted a license to USAopoly to begin publishing a San Diego Edition of Monopoly, which has since been followed by more than a hundred more licensees including Winning Moves Games (since 1995) and Winning Solutions, Inc.
The Todds also changed the Atlantic City Quakers' Arctic Avenue to Mediterranean, and shortened the Shore Fast Line to the Short Line. It was not until 1995 that Parker Brothers acknowledged the misspelling of Marvin Gardens, formally apologizing to the residents of Marven Gardens. Short Line refers to the Shore Fast Line, a streetcar line that served Atlantic City.
An electronic hand-held version was marketed from 1997 to 2001. Monopoly: The iPhone game designed by Electronic Arts. Monopoly Millionaires: The Facebook game designed by Playfish. Monopoly Streets: A video game played for the Xbox 360, Wii, and PlayStation 3.
Local variants of the board are now also found in several of Commonwealth countries. In 1998, Winning Moves procured the Monopoly license from Hasbro and created new UK city and regional editions with sponsored squares.
Initially, in December 1998, the game was sold in just a few W H Smith stores, but demand was high, with almost 50,000 games sold in the four weeks before Christmas.
These tokens remained the same until the late 1990s, when Parker Brothers was sold to Hasbro. In 1998, a Hasbro advertising campaign asked the public to vote on a new playing piece to be added to the set.
Another 1998 campaign poll asked people which monopoly token was their favorite.
This new campaign was different than the one in 1998 as one piece was retired and replaced with a new one.
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.
This new token was added to the set in 1999 bringing the number of tokens to eleven.
National Championship=== Until 1999, U.S.
(since 2000) in the United States. In 2003, the company held a national tournament on a chartered train going from Chicago to Atlantic City (see ).
The Cannon, and Horse and rider were both retired in 2000 with no new tokens taking their place.
The set retailed for $600. In 2000, the FAO Schwarz store in New York City sold a custom version called One-Of-A-Kind Monopoly for $100,000.
Many of the original rules applied to this new version (in fact, one optional play choice allows for playing in the original form by only adding the "Advance to Stock Exchange" cards to each deck). A Monopoly Stock Exchange Edition was released in 2001 (although not in the U.S.), this time adding an electronic calculator-like device to keep track of the complex stock figures.
An electronic hand-held version was marketed from 1997 to 2001. Monopoly: The iPhone game designed by Electronic Arts. Monopoly Millionaires: The Facebook game designed by Playfish. Monopoly Streets: A video game played for the Xbox 360, Wii, and PlayStation 3.
(since 2000) in the United States. In 2003, the company held a national tournament on a chartered train going from Chicago to Atlantic City (see ).
Also in 2003, Hasbro sued the maker of Ghettopoly and won.
National Tournament had 50 contestants - 49 State Champions (Oklahoma was not represented) and the reigning national champion. Qualifying for the National Championship has been online since 2003.
For the 2003 Championship, qualification was limited to the first fifty people who correctly completed an online quiz.
The process was to have produced a field of 23 plus one: Matt McNally, the 2003 national champion, who received a bye and was not required to qualify.
This game comes from the authoritarian communist era (1948–1989), when private business was abolished and mortgages did not exist, so the monopoly theme was changed to a horse racing theme. Ghettopoly, released in 2003, was the subject of considerable outrage upon its release.
In February 2005, the company sued RADGames over their Super Add-On accessory board game that fit in the center of the board.
The judge initially issued an injunction on February 25, 2005, to halt production and sales before ruling in RADGames' favor in April 2005. In 2008, the Speed Die was added to all regular Monopoly sets.
Edition was changed to match the UK and various European editions, including a flat $200 Income Tax value and an increased $100 Luxury Tax amount. In cases where a national company produced the game, the $ (dollar) sign was replaced with the £ (pound), but the place names were unchanged. ===Post-2005 variations=== Beginning in the UK in 2005, a revised version of the game, titled Monopoly Here and Now, was produced, replacing game scenarios, properties, and tokens with newer equivalents.
The popularity of this voting, in turn, led to the creation of similar websites, and secondary game-boards per popular vote to be created in the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, and other nations. In 2006, Winning Moves Games released the Mega Edition, with a 30% larger game-board and revised game play.
release, critiques of some of the rules caused the company to issue revisions and clarifications on their website. ====Monopoly Here and Now==== In September 2006, the U.S.
The properties were decided by votes over the Internet in the spring of 2006. Monetary values are multiplied by 10,000 (e.g., one collects $2,000,000 instead of $200 for passing GO and pays that much for Income Tax (or 10% of their total, as this edition was launched prior to 2008), each player starts with $15,000,000 instead of $1,500, etc.).
market in 2007, and is sold by Winning Moves U.K.
Standard Edition set. ===Dice=== A pair of six-sided dice is included, with a "speed die" added for variation in 2007.
Another retirement came in 2007 with the sack of money that brought down the total token count to eight again. In 2013, a similar promotional campaign was launched encouraging the public to vote on one of several possible new tokens to replace an existing one.
In 2007, Parker Brothers began releasing its standard version (also called the Speed Die Edition) of Monopoly with the same die (originally in blue, later in red).
The judge initially issued an injunction on February 25, 2005, to halt production and sales before ruling in RADGames' favor in April 2005. In 2008, the Speed Die was added to all regular Monopoly sets.
Standard Edition of the game in 2008 along with some minor revisions.
In addition, a player now gets $50 instead of $45 for sale of stock, and the Advance to Illinois Avenue card now has the added text indicating a player collects $200 if they pass Go on the way there. All the Chance and Community Chest cards received a graphic upgrade in 2008 as part of the graphic refresh of the game.
The properties were decided by votes over the Internet in the spring of 2006. Monetary values are multiplied by 10,000 (e.g., one collects $2,000,000 instead of $200 for passing GO and pays that much for Income Tax (or 10% of their total, as this edition was launched prior to 2008), each player starts with $15,000,000 instead of $1,500, etc.).
Another landmark, Jacobs Field, still exists, but was renamed Progressive Field in 2008. In 2015, in honor of the game's 80th birthday, Hasbro held an online vote to determine which cities would make it into an updated version of Here and Now.
Monopoly is a version of the game released in 2019, in which female players earn more than male players. ====Monopoly Deal==== Monopoly Deal is a card game derived from the board-game Monopoly introduced in 2008, produced and sold by Cartamundi under a license from Hasbro.
Hasbro lost the suit in 2008 and had to pay $446,182 in royalties.
standard editions of the game included a total of $15,140 in the following denominations: 20 $500 bills (orange) 20 $100 bills (beige) 30 $50 bills (blue) 50 $20 bills (green) 40 $10 bills (yellow) 40 $5 bills (pink) 40 $1 bills (white) Newer (September 2008 and later) U.S.
Before September 2008, the money was divided with greater numbers of 20 and 10-dollar bills.
In 2008, the calculation option was removed from the official rules, and simultaneously the Luxury Tax was increased to $100 from its original $75.
However, the lottery game connected with the game show (which provided the contestants) went through multiple complications and variations, and the game show last aired at the end of April 2016. ===Films=== In November 2008, Ridley Scott was announced to direct Universal Pictures' film version of the game, based on a script written by Pamela Pettler.
The result of the voting was announced on August 20, 2008. Out of these, Gdynia is especially notable, as it is by far the smallest city of those featured and won the vote thanks to a spontaneous, large-scale mobilization of support started by its citizens.
It also plays eight short tunes when key game functions occur; for example when a player lands on a railroad it plays "I've Been Working on the Railroad", and a police car's siren sounds when a player goes to Jail. ====Get Out of Jail and Free Parking Minigames==== In 2009, Hasbro released two minigames that can be played as stand-alone games or combined with the Monopoly game.
In these editions it remains optional, although use of the Speed Die was made mandatory for use in the 2009 U.S.
Out of concerns that such methods of qualifying might not always ensure a competition of the best players, the 2009 Championship qualifying was expanded to include an online multiple-choice quiz (a score of 80% or better was required to advance); followed by an online five-question essay test; followed by a two-game online tournament at Pogo.com.
In fact, two of those who had tied and would have otherwise been eliminated, Dale Crabtree of Indianapolis, Indiana, and Brandon Baker, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, played in the final game and finished third and fourth respectively. The 2009 Monopoly U.S.
In his first tournament ever, Richard Marinaccio, an attorney from Sloan, New York (a suburb of Buffalo), prevailed over a field that included two previous champions to be crowned the 2009 U.S.
In addition to the title, Marinaccio took home $20,580—the amount of money in the bank of the board game—and competed in the 2009 World Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada, on October 21–22, where he finished in third place. In 2015, Hasbro used a competition that was held solely online to determine who would be the U.S.
In 2009, forty-one players competed for the title of Monopoly World Champion and a cash prize of $20,580 (USD)—the total amount of Monopoly money in the current Monopoly set used in the tournament.
The show was paired with a summer-long Super Jeopardy! tournament, which also aired during this period on ABC. From 2010 to 2014, The Hub aired the game show Family Game Night with Todd Newton.
No logline or writer for this iteration of the long-gestating project has been announced. The documentary The MONOPOLY Story, covering the history and players of the game, won an Audience Award for Best Documentary at the 2010 Anaheim International Film Festival.
A Director's Chair token was released in 2011 in limited edition copies of The Monopoly Story.
beginning in March 2011 and was released on Amazon and iTunes on February 14, 2012.
However, Universal eventually halted development in February 2012 then opted out of the agreement and the rights reverted to Hasbro. In October 2012, Hasbro announced a new partnership with production company Emmett/Furla Films, and said they would develop a live-action version of Monopoly, along with Action Man and Hungry Hungry Hippos.
beginning in March 2011 and was released on Amazon and iTunes on February 14, 2012.
Another retirement came in 2007 with the sack of money that brought down the total token count to eight again. In 2013, a similar promotional campaign was launched encouraging the public to vote on one of several possible new tokens to replace an existing one.
Both were chosen by a vote that ran on Facebook from January 8 to February 5, 2013.
Shortly after the 2013 Facebook voting campaign, a limited-edition Golden Token set was released exclusively at various national retailers, such as Target in the U.S., and Tesco in the U.K. The set contained the Battleship, Boot, Iron, Racecar, Scottie Dog, Thimble, Top hat and Wheelbarrow as well as the iron's potential replacements.
After polling their Facebook followers, Hasbro Gaming took the top house rules and added them to a House Rule Edition released in the Fall of 2014 and added them as optional rules in 2015.
In 2014, Hasbro determined five popular house rules by public Facebook vote, and released a "House Rules Edition" of the board game.
The show was paired with a summer-long Super Jeopardy! tournament, which also aired during this period on ABC. From 2010 to 2014, The Hub aired the game show Family Game Night with Todd Newton.
After polling their Facebook followers, Hasbro Gaming took the top house rules and added them to a House Rule Edition released in the Fall of 2014 and added them as optional rules in 2015.
Another landmark, Jacobs Field, still exists, but was renamed Progressive Field in 2008. In 2015, in honor of the game's 80th birthday, Hasbro held an online vote to determine which cities would make it into an updated version of Here and Now.
and World Monopoly Championship, as well as the 2015 World Championship. ===Spin-offs=== Parker Brothers and its licensees have also sold several spin-offs of Monopoly.
For the show's fourth season, a new game was added called Monopoly Remix, featuring Park Place and Boardwalk, as well as Income Tax and Luxury Tax. To honor the game's 80th anniversary, a game show in syndication on March 28, 2015, called Monopoly Millionaires' Club was launched.
In addition to the title, Marinaccio took home $20,580—the amount of money in the bank of the board game—and competed in the 2009 World Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada, on October 21–22, where he finished in third place. In 2015, Hasbro used a competition that was held solely online to determine who would be the U.S.
representative to compete at the 2015 Monopoly World Championship.
The most recent World Championship took place September 2015 in Macau.
We apologize to our Monopoly fans." A similar online vote was held in early 2015 for an updated version of the game.
The resulting board should be released worldwide in late 2015.
However, the lottery game connected with the game show (which provided the contestants) went through multiple complications and variations, and the game show last aired at the end of April 2016. ===Films=== In November 2008, Ridley Scott was announced to direct Universal Pictures' film version of the game, based on a script written by Pamela Pettler.
In January 2017, Hasbro invited Internet users to vote on a new set of game pieces, with this new regular edition to be issued in March 2017. On May 1, 2018, the Monopoly Mansion hotel agreement was announced by Hasbro's managing director for South-East Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan, Jenny Chew Yean Nee with M101 Holdings Sdn Bhd.
In January 2017, Hasbro placed the line of tokens in the regular edition with another vote which included a total of 64 options.
By March 17, 2017, Hasbro retired three additional tokens, namely the thimble, wheelbarrow, and boot; these were replaced by a penguin, a Tyrannosaurus and a rubber duck. ====Special editions==== Over the years Hasbro has released tokens for special or collector's editions of the game.
Hasbro released a 64-token limited edition set in 2017 called Monopoly Signature Token Collection to include all of the candidates that were not chosen in the vote held that year. ==Rules== ===Official rules=== Players take turns in order with the initial player determined by chance before the game.
The game also has candy and a popular TV series Matador named after it. Turism, a variant sold in Romania. Kleptopoly, released in 2017 where users can be like Jho Low.
In January 2017, Hasbro invited Internet users to vote on a new set of game pieces, with this new regular edition to be issued in March 2017. On May 1, 2018, the Monopoly Mansion hotel agreement was announced by Hasbro's managing director for South-East Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan, Jenny Chew Yean Nee with M101 Holdings Sdn Bhd.
Monopoly is a version of the game released in 2019, in which female players earn more than male players. ====Monopoly Deal==== Monopoly Deal is a card game derived from the board-game Monopoly introduced in 2008, produced and sold by Cartamundi under a license from Hasbro.
A World Championship had been planned for 2021, but Hasbro has cancelled it due to the Coronavirus pandemic. ==Variants== Because Monopoly evolved in the public domain before its commercialization, Monopoly has seen many variant games.
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