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Monopoly
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Monopoly - real estate board game for two to
eight players, in which the player's goal is to remain
financially solvent while forcing opponents into bankruptcy by
buying and developing pieces of property.
Each side of the square board is divided into 10
small rectangles representing specific properties, railroads,
utilities, a jail, and various other places and events. At the start
of the game, each player is given a fixed amount of play money; the
players then move around the board according to the throw of a pair
of dice. Any player who lands on an unowned property may buy it,
but, if he or she lands on a property owned by another player, rent
must be paid to that player. Certain nonproperty squares require the
player landing on them to draw a card that may be favourable or
unfavourable. If a player acquires a monopoly—that is, all of a
particular group of properties—that player may purchase improvements
for those properties; improvements add substantially to a property's
rental fee. A player continues to travel around the board until he
or she is bankrupt. Bankruptcy results in elimination from the game.
The last player remaining on the board is the winner.
Monopoly, which is the best selling privately
patented board game in history, gained popularity in the United
States during the Great Depression when
Charles B. Darrow, an unemployed heating engineer, sold the
concept to
Parker Brothers in 1935. Before then, homemade versions of a
similar game had circulated in many parts of the United States. Most
were based on the
Landlord's Game, a board game designed and patented by
Lizzie G. Magie in 1904. She revised and renewed the patent on
her game in 1924. Notably, the version Magie originated did not
involve the concept of a monopoly; for her, the point of the game
was to illustrate the potential exploitation of tenants by greedy
landlords. Magie used the Landlord's Game to promote a remedy for
such exploitation—namely, the
single tax on property owners, a leading social issue among
those who criticized land speculation as a cause of economic
injustice.
Monopoly became popular in many other parts of
the world. In the original North American sets, the properties were
named for streets in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Notable among these
is Marvin Gardens, which is a misspelling of the real Marven Gardens
in Atlantic City. Sets marketed in other countries may be modified
to represent a local city; for example, London streets are used in
the British version. Monopoly games also have been licensed with
other North American cities as the subject (e.g., Chicago);
prominent local landmarks and points of interest usually replace
street names as properties.
Source: Encyclopedia Britannica.
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