If you’re lucky enough to have a tabletop gamer to buy for this holiday season, we’ve found the perfect presents for them—including the most popular new games, incredible gifts for Dungeon Masters and Dungeon & Dragons players, and even a game designed to get you outside to literally touch grass.

And if you’re the tabletop gamer? Give someone one of these picks from our Holiday Gift Guide and you’ll immediately have someone to play with! Win-win.

The Deck of Many Things

The Deck of Many Things is a D&D magic item so legendary that most Dungeon Masters shudder when they hear its name. (Or they cackle, which is much worse.) Just in time for the holiday season, The Deck of Many Things is now available as a gorgeous gift set with updated rules, a 66-card deck (which includes the 22 classic cards), its own supplement guide for incorporating the reimagined deck into your game, and more.

Dungeon Masters will love its ability to create adventures on the fly complete with traps and puzzles; D&D players will find new character backgrounds, spells, and star-signs inside. ($99.99, available digitally on November 14 with the physical copy release date TBD)

Disney Lorcana

Lorcana is a Disney-themed trading card game that’s taking the tabletop by storm! While the first starter sets quickly sold out, more are on the way to stores everywhere. Rise of the Floodborn, the second chapter of the game, is due out in December.

In Lorcana, players take the role of Illumineers and use character and item cards to collect 20 lore and win the game. This trading card game is easier to learn than most, but still encourages thought-out strategy and card collecting. And have you seen some of the art? Pick this up for the Disney or TCG fan in your life, and be sure to grab a starter pack for yourself while you’re at it. (2 players, Ages 8+, $5.99-$49.99)

Linkee

Part trivia, part lateral thinking, and part party game, Linkee is the perfect gift for the social butterfly in your life. (It also has two-player rules if your gift recipient prefers to cocoon at home.) Each Linkee card features four short trivia questions. Players remember the trivia answers as they’re revealed, and once they see the connection between them, they shout, “Linkee!” The first team to successfully find the common link for the answers wins the card.

Work together as a team to find the connection and earn bragging rights for eternity. Well, maybe until the next game night. (2+ players, Ages 12+, $8.45)

Magic: The Gathering – Doctor Who

All we really have to say is “Doctor Who Magic cards” and you’ll know immediately who to give this to for the holidays. But, if you need a little more info, we have you covered. The new official “Universes Beyond” set features gorgeous art of 13 Doctors and their companions. These cards with Doctor Who-themed mechanics are now available to join the Magic lineup.

Choose your gift recipient’s favorite Doctor to find the perfect 100 card Magic: The Gathering – Doctor Who Commander Deck, and allons-y! (2 players, Ages 13+, $59.99)

Nine Arches

Nine Arches might be designed like a tabletop card game, but it’s intended to take you and your friends and family away from the table. The game includes a 54-card deck similar to tarot cards that are used to choose your next adventure. Cards feature activities like “dance party,” “caravan,” and “ghost.” With the drawn cards and input from each player, the group adventure’s is talked out. Will you do the activities all at once? One at a time? It’s up to you and the group. Then you’re all off on a real-life journey based on the prompts on the cards!

If your recipient is the type who appreciates experiences instead of plain gifts, you’ll wow them with this one. (1-5 players, Ages 13+, $34.99)

Potion Pack – Cantrip Candles

Whether your lucky gift recipient is a fan of tabletop role-playing games or video game RPGs like Baldur’s Gate 3, this three-candle set from Cantrip Candles will be met with delight when it’s unwrapped. The Potion Pack comes as a lovely gift set of 10 ounce soy wax candles in decorated glass containers.

The Health Potion, Stamina Potion, and Magicka Potion candles are sure to heal and reenergize any weary adventurers (or office workers) who lights them. And how can you pass up the opportunity to give someone a container labeled “Dragon’s Blood”? ($80.00)

The Practically Complete Guide to Dragons

Do you remember being a kid and re-reading your favorite book so many times you had every page memorized? This is your chance to give the youngest Dungeons & Dragons or fantasy fan in your life that same experience!

The Practically Complete Guide to Dragons is exactly what it says on the cover: an imaginative, in-depth look at the dragons that populate the D&D setting of Dragonlance. Written in-character by the kender Sindri Suncatcher, this guide to dragons is packed with personality—along with, you guessed it, lots of dragons. Dragon facts, dragon stories, dragon lair maps, it’s all here. Your lucky gift recipient will spend hours staring at the gorgeous art alone. ($39.95)

Sea Salt & Paper

The stocking stuffer-sized card game Sea Salt & Paper is a delightful set collecting game with a dash of luck to keep things exciting. Collect and play pairs of cards to score points and use their effects to earn even more points. If the player thinks they have enough points in hand, they can call for the end of the round or give everyone one last chance to try to beat them for bonus points. Reach the necessary number of victory points to win the game!

Not only does each card feature charming and original origami art, Sea Salt & Paper includes bold icons so that colorblind players aren’t excluded from the fun. (2-4 players, Ages 8+, $14.95)

Kelly Knox is a pop culture writer and the author of Star Wars Conversation Cards, Be More Obi-Wan, and the upcoming Star Wars Dad Jokes. You can still find her on Twitter at @kelly_knox.

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Americans have long fetishized the mob and all things related to organized crime. We’re not sure when this started. Possibly the gangster movies of the 1930s. But it really came to a head with the Godfather films. Also known as “your dad’s favorite movies ever.” Since then, we’ve had Scarface, Goodfellas, Casino, and many more. All leading up to the GOAT of modern mafia stories, HBO’s The Sopranos. So, of course, it was only a matter of time before Tony Soprano got to headline his own Monopoly game. Just like Spider-Man, Luke Skywalker, and Queen.

Hasbro

Thanks to The A.V.Club (via Indie Wire), we’ve learned that the official Monopoly: The Sopranos description goes something like this. “Buy, sell, and trade popular locations like Tony Soprano’s House and Satriale’s Pork Store. All before wheeling and dealing at The Bada Bing!”

The collectible tokens featured in the game include a baby duck from the show’s very first installment and the Stugots boat. Also, Bobby Bacala’s toy train, Satriale’s pig, Dr. Mefli’s chair, and a Barone sanitation truck. “Stashes” are what all the houses are now called, while the hotels go by the name “contraband.” And we’re sure there are many more details to be discovered.

Some people might feel icky about a board game celebrating the mafia. But, of course, Tony Soprano and his family were all fictional characters. So this is no different really than having a Monopoly game based around horror movie monsters. Maybe it’s just offputting because there are criminals just like this in the real world. And not so many real immortal slashers killing teenagers. Hopefully, the Sopranos theming for this Monopoly game isn’t so complete that you can’t finish the game before cutting to a black screen. Although that sure would be franchise-accurate.

You can order Monopoly: The Sopranos for $39.99 by clicking on this link.

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We recently told you how you can financially adopt a gargoyle from Paris’s Notre-Dame Cathedral. Having a pet stone beast in France would be cool. But if you want to own your own monsters, The Op’s latest board game will let you buy a whole bunch of them. You can purchase ghastly creatures in the all-new Monopoly: Dungeons & Dragons.

Hasbro

The classic RPG meets the iconic board game with Hasbro’s Monopoly: Dungeons & Dragons. Instead of buying properties, players will buy famous D&D monsters. And you’ll travel to their lairs with some pretty fantastic game pieces to find them. From the game’s official description:

“Heed the call to capture monsters from across the Forgotten Realms in Monopoly: Dungeons & Dragons! Buy, sell, and trade traditional and modern iconic and deadly monsters like the Beholder, Storm Giant, and infamous Demogorgon to nerf the competition. Six collectible tokens representing classes including Halfling Rogue, Human Fighter, Elven Ranger, and Tiefling Bard take you around the board to make discoveries, build up Expeditions and Bases, and collect custom D&D currency to become the richest adventurer and win!”

Will we role-play as our token pieces during the game? Obviously. OBVIOUSLY.

Hasbro

In addition to a beautiful board, the game also features 28 custom deed cards with art from Dungeons & Dragons. It also comes with: six collectible tokens, 16 “Encounters Cards” (chance cards), 16 “Treasure Cards” (community chest cards), custom Monopoly money, 32 “Expeditions” (houses), and 12 “bases” (hotels).” Designed for two to six players ages eight and up, estimated game time is at least 60 minutes. Though when everyone does all the voices it’s going to take a lot longer.

You can order your copy from The Op now for $39.99. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t still help out the Notre-Dame Cathedral. But at least these monsters will be easy to visit when you feel like seeing them.

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We’re always hearing stories about new homeowners, stumbling upon hidden treasures when remodeling their recently purchased house. It sometimes feels like half the shows on HGTV are about this. Thanks to Modern Met (via Laughing Squid), we’ve learned about one such story that’s a little out of the box. Out of the board game box, that is.

A Redditor named Yamaha234 recently shared a photograph of what his in-laws discovered in their home after they ripped up the old carpet. Underneath it was a rather large Monopoly board, completely hand-painted. Park Place, the Boardwalk, jail, they are all there. You can see a photo of the massive Monopoly board right here.

This painted Monopoly board is totally accurate to the layout of the original Parker Brothers (now Hasbro) game. Were the original homeowners just incredibly huge board game fans? Well, perhaps they were. But according to a comment from another Redditor named Nrith, in mid-century America, this was actually a bit of a fad.

In their comment, they said “Showed this to my wife. She reminded me that there’s a whole neighborhood near us, built in the mid-50s. One that has game boards painted or tiled onto their basement floors. Seems to have been a selling point or something.”

Hasbro

The original Redditor who posted the photograph is now trying his best to get his in-laws to keep the basement Monopoly board intact. After all, even if it wasn’t totally unique, how many can be left these days? They said “trying to convince them to cover it in epoxy and do the rest of the flooring around it how they originally wanted.”

We hope they succeed. And If this really was a larger fad, we’d love to see the homes that have Candyland or The Game of Life in their basement.

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The Op

The Op‘s newest Monopoly version features the denizens of Bikini Bottom. But you won’t buy and sell the Krusty Krab or Squidward’s house in this game. You’ll dabble in digital “dollars.” This is a celebration of SpongeBob Squarepants memes. From the game’s official description:

Monopoly SpongeBob SquarePants Meme Edition is a hilarious twist on the classic, letting players buy, sell, and trade the most internet-famous images of characters from Nickelodeon’s animated series. Capitalize on properties to channel ‘Savage Patrick,’ or make like ‘Mocking SpongeBob’ as you pay rent. Set down a lawn chair for the wholesome mishaps behind Comments and Shares cards (instead of Community & Chest cards) and stack up as many Likes (aka $$) as you can to bankrupt your Bubble Buddies and win!

The Op

Designed for ages eight and up, the game ($39.99) plays two to six players. It has an expected runtime of an hour plus. Along with a very colorful, very funny board, you’ll also get: six tokens, 28 title deed cards, 16 shares cards, 16 comments cards, custom money, 32 houses renamed posts, 12 hotels renamed collections, and dice.

You will also get rewarded for all the time you have spent in life watching SpongeBob Squarepants. As well as all those hours making memes based on the show. But the best part is that, whether you win or lose, you’ll know exactly what meme to send your opponent after the game.

Featured Image: The Op

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Purgatory is defined as “a place or state of suffering inhabited by the souls of sinners” prior to their ascent to heaven. And while the term obviously has a religious connotation, what better description than that for The Longest Game Ever edition of Monopoly? Because, as its name implies, The Longest Game Ever edition offers games that seemingly last an eternity. Or until somebody decides to sell their soul for Park Place.

Hasbro

Technabob reported on the kitschy, and potentially maddening, version of the classic board game. Gaming and toy company Hasbro highlights on its site that the $20 game is lengthened in multiple ways, including the addition of 38 properties, as well as the disallowance of property auctions.

On top of those two changes, The Longest Game Ever also only utilizes a single die, and has money players can rip in half to increase total in-game cashflow. (Do we sound business-y? We hope we sound business-y.) In this version of the game, players can also continue playing after bankruptcy, as at least one version of the rules requires potential winners to own every single one of the board’s 66 properties.

Hasbro

As far as actual playing time people should expect, estimates are unclear. Hasbro doesn’t imply potential runtimes for games, but one could venture a guess based on anecdotal data. For example, this Quora thread contains a lot of people saying their games run from 60 to 90 minutes. Considering The Longest Game Ever has more than double the properties versus the original, it likely lasts—at least—twice as long. And probably much longer considering the rule changes.

Hasbro

But, perhaps, a board game odyssey lasting four, five, or six hours is exactly what some people need. After all, the term purgatory can also refer to the “quality of cleansing or purifying” something. And, for some sore board-flippers out there, what could be more cleansing than an endless game of Monopoly?

Feature image: Hasbro

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We’ve seen some awe-inspiring gaming tables lately, the most luxurious of which sell for more than $10,000. But while all those tables aimed to enhance the tabletop gaming experience, none of them did much for condensing it. And that’s where the Infinity Game Table, a touchscreen table capable of storing more than 50 board games, enters the picture.

Arcade1Up

Gizmodo reported on the new gaming table, which arcade game-maker, Arcade1Up, recently unveiled. 1Up, based in Los Angeles, has launched a Kickstarter campaign in order to bring the table to market, and has already met its goal. In fact, as of this writing, contributors have pledged approximately $540,00o to the campaign. Toward an original goal of $50,000.

The tables are essentially large, durable touchscreen computers attached to legs, although that description doesn’t do them justice. In fact, the tables have a sleek, handheld-console vibe to them, with built-in speakers and tactile feedback. The tables also have built-in Wi-Fi, and come in multiple screen sizes, including 24″ and 32″. And while the base model doesn’t have a battery, all of the other options do.

In terms of games, all the classics are there. The tables come loaded with 50+ board games, including Monopoly, Scrabble, Battleship, Life, and Trivial Pursuit. The tables also offer access to card games like Blackjack and Texas Hold ’em, as well as multiple chess and checkers games. On top of that, the tables also have a library of 20,000 comic books, and an online store for additional games.

Arcade 1Up

Unfortunately, all versions of the Infinity Table are pricey, with the base 24″ model going for $600, and the top-end 32″ for $900. People who pledge will also have to wait until March 2021 to receive their table. Those caveats aside, however, it seems like the Infinity Table would be great for groups who love to game. And by March of next year, that’ll hopefully be a common occurrence again.

Feature image: Arcade 1Up

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It’s impossible to explain the enormity of McDonald’s Monopoly promotion. Lots of companies have contests with big prizes, but few have ever achieved the reach of the fast food chain’s giveaway. When it ran, it was everywhere. The company promoted it relentlessly on TV, in newspapers and magazines, and along billboards on every highway.

When I was a kid, it felt like the biggest thing in the world. I can still remember the excitement of pulling a game piece off my drink or box of fries. I can also remember the disappointment. A trip to McDonald’s came with the promise of a million dollar Christmas morning, but Ronald McDonald never delivered. It didn’t matter how every previous visit ended. I was young, so I believed in my heart that the next time could be different. It was never going to be different, though. What I, along with millions of other customers—and even McDonald’s executives—didn’t know was that the entire game was rigged.

HBO explores this scam in a compelling new six-part docu-series, McMillions. On the surface, it all sounds insane, but the truth is even wilder than that. And it makes for a story that is about much more than American greed.

After an anonymous tip, Jacksonville FBI agents launched an investigation into the Monopoly operation. The case alone makes for a fascinating series premiere. There’s great insight into how an allegation is investigated. The agents and district attorney explain the difficult choices they faced in how best to pursue it and when and how to involve the fast food emporium. And we get to join them each step of the way as they built their case.

The premiere also introduces us to Special Agent Doug Mathews, who’s such a character he would seem too unrealistic in a fictional story. He’s destined to become everyones favorite FBI employee, though he’s not the only person involved in the case who is likely to go viral. In fact, an incredible amount of people were willing to speak about their involvement. It makes a crime that is hard to fathom feel personal, even as it gets deeper and more complex.

McMillions can go from fun (and at times downright funny) to heartbreaking in the course of single interview. Over the course of more than a decade, the scheme’s many tentacles pulled in lots of otherwise law-abiding Americans. It’s easy to see them all as criminals who stole from honest customers playing a game they didn’t know was rigged. But it doesn’t take long to find yourself empathizing with them and realizing how easily you might have said “yes” if someone offered you a million dollar prize.

McDonald’s was giving all that money away no matter what. What’s the difference if it was you or some random person? Who were you really stealing from?

HBO

Given how much the show’s premiere covered, it seemed strange there were still five more episodes left. But then, the final moment of the kickoff episode made me gasp out loud in the way only a great revelation can. I had the same experience at the end of the next two episodes, too. Now I can’t believe there are only six episodes! The series has left me feeling excited, sad, amazed, incredulous, and heartbroken. The only feeling I haven’t experienced was the one I expected: anger.

Unless you lived through, it you can’t fully appreciate just how big the McDonald’s Monopoly game really was. You can’t know the excitement of being eight and thinking that this time you were finally going to pull back the Boardwalk piece on your Big Mac box. That someone had already stolen that chance from me should make me angry. But as McMillions shows, it wasn’t me who really lost.

McMillions premieres on HBO on Monday, February 3.

Featured Image: HBO

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. You can follow him on Twitter at @burgermike, and also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

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Monopoly might seem like an outdated board game that only gets dragged out during awkward family get-togethers, but the game is trying to make itself relevant again with Ms. Monopoly, a new edition that centers the action on the gender pay gap.

As the video above shows, this is something that the minds behind Monopoly seem to take pretty seriously, even giving three young female inventors the chance to play the game and gifting them each $20,580 to help them with their innovative pursuits. Over at USA Today Jen Boswinkel, senior director of global brand strategy and marketing for Hasbro Gaming, explained why the time was now for the company to bring the fight for equal pay to the Monopoly board. “With all of the things surrounding female empowerment, it felt right to bring this to Monopoly in a fresh new way… It’s giving the topic some relevancy to everyone playing it that everybody gets a turn, and this time women get an advantage at the start.”

It’s a nice gimmick, though it’s important to note that recently Monopoly has been rife with them, with the release of multiple licensed, joke, and parody versions of the game—including the now discontinued Socialism Monopoly, which was mean-spirited and ignorant to the point of offense (and was taken down in great and brilliant detail over at Polygon.)  So is this just another way for Monopoly to try and curry favor with younger audiences who are less interested in the arguably dated board game? Probably, but it’s also worth looking back at the often forgotten origins of Monopoly which could suggest that the newest iteration isn’t some zeitgeisty money grab but instead a return to form for the misunderstood game.

The Landlords Game, Parker Bros.

Monopoly began life as the The Landlord’s Game and was invented by Elizabeth Magie, who created the game to be a “practical demonstration of the present system of land grabbing with all its usual outcomes and consequences.” Basically Monopoly began as a way to highlight the exploitation of renters by landlords and landowners. Despite the fact that Magie patented the game in 1904 she eventually sold it to the Parker Bros. in 1935—for a mere $500—who stripped the game of its political roots and created the celebration of capitalism and land ownership that we all know and love. Keeping all of that in mind, there is a chance that Hasbro is channeling the radical roots of the game for this new edition but it feels unlikely. The game appears to ignore the plight of people who don’t identify as women or men, the fact that women of color earn far less than white women, and that trans women of color earn even less than that. And really that celebrating female capitalists is still just celebrating capitalism.

But if you want to buy some Wi-Fi instead of Water Works and celebrate female inventions like the cookie and the bulletproof vest, you can grab Ms. Monopoly at your local Walmart now.

Featured Image: Hasbro

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Want a primer on the rules? Check out our How to Play: https://youtu.be/mVFhPa24CP4

Grab your hard hats and bid for the best locations! In this week’s Game the Game host Becca Scott is joined by Erica Lindbeck, Kelly Lynne D’Angelo, and Laser Malena-Webber for The Estates by Capstone Games. In this builder game players become real estate moguls in a competition to develop the best properties.

Tabletop games are super fun, but learning the complicated directions and rules can be a challenge. Becca Scott is your game tutor, explaining the game mechanics in an easy to follow way, so you can get to playing the games faster.

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#GameTheGame #TheEstates #GeekAndSundry

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Grab your hard hats and bid for the best contracts! In this week’s How to Play host Becca Scott teaches The Estates by Capstone Games. In this builder game players become real estate moguls in a competition to develop the best properties.

Tabletop games are super fun, but learning the complicated directions and rules can be a challenge. Becca Scott is your game tutor, explaining the game mechanics in an easy to follow way, so you can get to playing the games faster.

Visit us on http://geekandsundry.com
Subscribe to Geek and Sundry: http://goo.gl/B62jl
Twitter: http://twitter.com/geekandsundry
Facebook: http://facebook.com/geekandsundry
Instagram: http://instagram.com/geekandsundry
#HowToPlay #TheEstates #GeekAndSundry

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If you read anything on the internet, then you’ve seen every article blaming millennials for “killing” everything from bar soap, to beer, to chain restaurants. Apparently, millennials have even killed pants! Although I’m not entirely sure about that one; I’d swear I still see people wearing those.Well, apparently, millennials are also killing board games. Or reviving them, take your pick. Thanks to Wish-TV, we’ve learned Hasbro has announced Monopoly for Millennials, a version of the classic game which now plays into every stereotype we’ve heard for the generation born between the early ’80s to the mid-90s.The game even has an tagline: “Forget real estate, you can’t afford it anyway.” Unlike the classic game, you can forget about buying property of any kind to dominate the board. Instead, the player who gets the most experiences, not the most money, wins. Yep.So what exactly are the experiences prized by the Millennial generation according to this game? They include a week-long meditation retreat, a three-day music festival, and even staying on their friend’s couch and eating at a vegan bistro. Basically, no stereotype is left behind. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they counted tattoos as points.While it seems many millennials people are offended by this game, can I, a Gen-Xer, say I’m just sad I was cheated out of Generation-X Monopoly? The game could have included prizes of trips to the coffee house and flannel shirts, and scored points by how much MTV and Beverly Hill 90210 we consumed. Seriously, I want that game; make it happen for me, Hasbro! In the meantime, Monopoly for Millennials is now available to purchase from online retailers.

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Christmas is the perfect excuse to treat the ones you love (and yourself), buy gifts, and basically live your best life! If you have someone who loves comics on your gift list, we’ve put together some of the coolest sequential storytelling-centric ideas to impress them. Whether they love indie titles or cool collectibles you’ll find something for everyone in this list.

Wonder Woman Holiday Sweater – $58.90

Everyone loves an ugly holiday sweater and BoxLunch has a radical sweater line-up this year. Our favorite has to be this seriously stylish Wonder Woman one. Perfect for the Themysciran royal in your life.You can buy this lovely knitwear from BoxLunch.

X-Men Blu-ray Box Set – $34.99

This is the franchise that changed Hollywood forever. The X-Men movies made superheroes accessible and brought some of the most iconic comic book heroes to life. This box set collects the original trilogy and includes digital, Blu-ray, and 4k for all you tech-heads out there.

You can grab this box-set from Best Buy.

Jim Lee Trinity Statues – $175.00

Jim Lee is one of the most beloved and brilliant comic book illustrators of all time. He also happens to be a radical businessman and apparently very good at designing collectibles, as these gorgeous trinity figures showcase. If you know someone who loves the classic DC heroes then they’ll adore these statues.You can take these heroes home from DC Comics.

Wonder Woman Smartwatch – $150.00

Every town needs a hero, and you can provide your fave local badass with some cool tech to aid them on their adventures. This radical smartwatch is completely Wonder Woman themed from the watch faces to the fact that you can program your exercise routine as if you’re Diana out on patrol.Grab your Wonder Woman smartwatch from One61.

On a Sunbeam by Tillie Walden – $21.99

For the comic book lover who has everything and is particularly hard to buy for, this gorgeous tome is a must have. It’s a beautiful, sprawling science-fiction epic which follows a young woman and her journey across the galaxy in pursuit of her lost love. Walden is a talent like no other and her pastel hued space opera is a gigantic gift of a comic.Fly off into space with On a Sunbeam from Macmillan.

Thor Original Cover Art by Keith Pollard – $6,150

If you want to buy something seriously special, then this original art from an unused cover for Thor #313 is the thing. It shows Odin in Asgard by the awesome Keith Pollard. Owning this piece is a literal once in a lifetime opportunity, but at this price it’s also a massive investment.Impress your comic book bestie by heading over to Comic Art Fans.

Venom Throw Blanket – $19.99

Who doesn’t want to be snuggled up with Venom and his giant prehensile tongue? Well, the good news is that you can now grab the symbiote stan in your life this incredible snuggly venom blanket starring some classic Mark Bagley art.Head over to Hot Topic and pick up this bonkers blanket.

Beneath the Dead Oak Tree by Emily Carroll – $7

A perfect stocking filler for the comic fan in your life, this gorgeous and creepy comic from Emily Carroll is a unique and splendid story that publisher Shortbox describes best: “Murder, decadence, cowardice, guilt, and aristocratic foxes in wigs all combine in this gorgeously poignant poem/folksong from Emily Carroll, about the futility and heartbreak one can run into when dealing with vengeance.”Pop over to Shortbox to pick up this wonderful read.

Deadpool Monopoly Collector’s Edition – $39.99

Wade Wilson is one of the most famous comic book characters in circulation right now, and Monopoly is a holiday staple so this mashup makes a lot of sense. But! This is no normal Monopoly. This set includes a whole bunch of Deadpool-centric fun; you have to hire mercenaries and even get your own collectible chimichanga box.Go to Gamestop to grab this maximum effort Monopoly.

Shadoweyes Volume One – $30

Sophie Campbell’s beautiful dystopian superhero comic is a stone cold classic, following would be vigilante Scout Montana as she embarks on a new life as hero. This lovely reprinting from the brilliant Iron Circus Comics is the perfect gift for a superhero fan looking to expand their reading outside of the big two.Jump over to Iron Circus Comics to pick up this cult classic comic.Which of these will you rush out to buy? Got a better suggestion? Make sure to let us know!

Images: Boxlunch, Hot Topic, Iron Circus Comics, DC Comics, One61, Gamestop, Shortbox, Macmillan, Comic Art Fans, Fox 

Need more gift ideas?

• Gift ideas for Disney fans
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• Gift ideas for horror lovers
• Gift ideas for DC Comics fans
• The best “ugly” sweaters
• Gift ideas for the amateur witch
• Gift ideas for music nerds
• Gift ideas for bookworms
• Gift ideas for science lovers
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• Gift ideas for the Rick and Morty-obsessed
• Gift ideas for Star Wars fans
• Gifts under $50

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An iron, purse, lantern, race car, thimble, shoe, top hat, battleship, cannon, and a rocking horse: Those were the ten original player tokens that came with Monopoly when it was first released in 1935. Since then, it has changed up its player pieces only a few times: in 1942, 1999, 2000, 2007, and 2013. Through thick and thin, one piece of Monopoly lore as remained consistent: the thimble. It’s been there for us, to protect our fingers while sewing and to mark our position on the board. now—The Associated Press reports—after 82 years in the sun, an era has come to an end: the thimble, along with the boot and wheelbarrow, no longer have a place in Monopoly.

Taking their place are three pieces that seem just fine, but it’s like when you want Coke but the restaurant only has Pepsi (or vice versa): What we’re getting is still good, but it’s just not the same. a T. rex, penguin, and rubber ducky are the newcomers—check them out, along with the other standard pieces:

They’re fine pieces, and although we miss the thimble, the people have spoken. The new pieces were decided through a fan vote, and 4.3 million ballots later, this is what we’re left with. Although it’s no longer canon, actual thimbles can’t cost more than a few cents, so for the Monopoly traditionalists, we say head to your nearest crafts store and keep the dream alive. But also, let’s be nice to our new friends. This is the most animal-heavy piece line-up we’ve ever had, and that sounds fine to us.

Images: Hasbro

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We’ve been reminded of the didactic origins of some tabletop standards lately. Chutes & Ladders has roots in an ancient Indian game that taught lessons on vice and virtue, and their effects on one’s Karma. Monopoly was actually designed to make players experience the excesses of capitalism firsthand. Semai‘s instructive aims would seem to be even more direct, however.

The game’s been devised by SPAK (an acronym roughly translating to “I am a Woman Against Corruption”), a division of the Australia-Indonesia Partnership for Justice. As the outfit kept at efforts to clean up Indonesian institutions, its members realized the real rub of corruption is that it’s systemic. The lowly citizen who pays a bribe enables the government official who takes the bribe. And seemingly innocuous acts of generosity–like parents giving gifts to their children’s teachers–can inadvertently foster a culture where kickbacks are expected.

So, according to Al Jazeera, Semai has become popular with the same Indonesian teachers who may have previously stumbled into such temptations of favoritism. The words for “nine values” fold into the game’s name. It’s easy to reproduce, and distribute, and it tests players’ sense of right and wrong–presenting them with a series of scenarios, and asking which virtue could be lacking in its characters’ behavior. Through these little morality plays, they might learn to share the class computer, or turn down offers to cheat on a test.

Of course, a person’s virtue doesn’t stop being tried by the end of grade school. SPAK has aged up the set-up of Semai in other games, for teenagers and even adults. In fact, Indonesian government officials have been eager to host workshops where agents see how to tun down bribes and report corruption on the tabletop. Gamifying these lessons requires more engagement of the students–more so than passively watching a video on the subjects, for instance–and the designers’ hope that will make their points stick better.

How do you like the notion of Semai? Sound off in the comments. 

Image Credits: AIPJ

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“Hey, we’re having a board game party. We’re thinking maybe Monopoly and Charades. You in?” When you find yourself invited to such a gathering, your first impulse might be to chastise them for choosing terrible mass market drek and instead suggest the clearly superior hobby games. But if you indulge that inclination, you’ll be a snob. And no one wants to game with a snob.

But that doesn’t mean you can’t evangelize for the hobby games that you know in your heart of hearts are clearly superior to the suggested titles. And you can do it without being arrogant or putting down people that are just looking to have a good time. Here are some tips on how to avoid being the board game snob.

Suggest New Games By Focusing on the Positive

It’s easy to trash talk Monopoly. I mean, it’s not like it doesn’t give you a lot to work with. But when you talk about all the negatives of a game, it makes you the jerk. After all, these are folks who are trying to put a fun night together. And if you just trash their whole idea, then they’ll regret even inviting you.

But that doesn’t mean you can’t make suggestions. You just need to do so positively. Try to avoid saying, “Monopoly is garbage. I have better games at home.” Instead, maybe something like, “Have you guys played Catan? It has trading like Monopoly, but there’s no player elimination so no one has to be ‘out.’” Or even something like, “Cool! I’ll bring Ticket to Ride. You get to build train routes all over the U.S.!”

By focusing on the positives, it makes you seem enthusiastic for the whole game night concept (which you should be). Plus, it doesn’t put down their ideas. In fact, rather than tearing down what they’ve come up with, you’re building upon it. And that is much more welcoming and the other folks are much more likely to try out a good hobby game.

Suggest a Few Games – Not Your Whole Library

Hobby game enthusiasts tend to have a significant collection in their home. Any collection, really, will seem large and unwieldy to non-gamers. And when someone suggests a game night, it can be tempting to rattle off ten or fifteen titles – or even link them to your collection on BoardGameGeek. But that’s a surefire way to Snob Town.

If you bombard them with titles, rejection is an almost automatic response. Most people don’t like learning new rules. So if you suggest ten games, all of which they’d have to learn, it sounds like a lot of work. Work being the opposite of fun. It may seem to them best just to return to Monopoly so that they don’t have to be taught. It can also look like you’re showing off. “Look at how big of a gamer I am, puny mortals!”

Instead, keep suggestions to a minimum. Focus on maybe one or two titles. That way, it seems like you’re excited for game night and are bringing an extra option or two. You aren’t trying to dominate playtime with your games – you’re merely adding to what was already there. You’ll be surprised how receptive people will be to a single suggested game over a whole list of things they don’t know.

Focus on What They Want to Play

“Monopoly and Charades? Guys, you should be playing Dead of Winter or Blood Rage.” That right there may be the biggest snob thing you could do. Not only does that denigrate their fun, but it also puts your personal preferences above theirs.

By and large, gamers love to indulge in their hobby. But if the folks inviting you over want to play party games or other lighter fare, then bringing up relatively heavier strategy games is not the way to go. If they like charades a good alternative is not Power Grid. It’s perhaps Time’s Up. If they are thinking about Monopoly, then Mage Knight is not a good choice.

In other words, don’t tell them what you think they should be playing. Instead, focus on fun hobby games that fall into the niche they are looking for. Know your audience and give them what they want. If you do, you’ll be surprised how willing people are to try new things.

Any other tips to avoid board game snobbery? Tell us in the comments.

Image Credits: Mayfair Games, NYU / Tisch School of the Arts, and Plaid Hat Games

Featured Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons / fir0002

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There’s rarely been a board game as ubiquitous as Monopoly. Decades after its release, Monopoly is still one of the most popular games ever, and it’s been constantly updated in recent years. While the game itself is incredibly fun, very few people even think about the origins of Monopoly. According to the game’s original lore, it was created by Charles Darrow in the 1930s during the Great Depression. The game’s success made Darrow an incredibly wealth man, but that mythology was a lie. The real creator of Monopoly was a woman named Elizabeth J. Magie Phillips, who came up with the game three decades before Darrow stole it.

In a recent episode of the YouTube series, Today I Found Out, the real story about Monopoly’s history was examined in great detail. It was originally called The Landlord’s Game in 1903, when Phillips came up with it as a way to educate the public about the tax theories of Henry George and the negative consequences of monopolies. Many of the game’s signature elements were present on Phillips’ version of the board.

The Landlord’s Game wasn’t a wide success by the time that Darrow played it at a friend’s home many years later. In an amazingly shameless move, Darrow repackaged the game as his own creation and sold it to Parker Brothers. Phillips eventually discovered what Darrow had done, but her contributions to Monopoly went largely unrecognized for many years.

Parker Brothers eventually struck a deal with Phillips, but she was never fairly compensated for what had become a cultural phenomena. Even the point of her original game was largely lost on the public, who briefly got to enjoy the sensation of wealth and power while playing the game with family and friends. While it may not have been her intent, Phillips’ contribution to the history of board games is immense. And for that, we’re extremely grateful.

What did you think about the story of Monopoly‘s true creator? Do not pass go until you leave a comment below!

Image Credit: Today I Found Out

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For instance, people often miss the etymological link between “keys” on a laptop and “keys” on a piano. Indeed, the typewriter was once angled as a “harpsichord for words.” And Johnson asserts that Charles Babbage may have been inspired to create programmable machines after being enchanted by a music box as a boy.

Likewise, golden age Hollywood star Hedy Lamarr developed an early version of wireless communication while moonlighting as an inventor during World War II. Inspired by player pianos, she devised a system with 88 slots (again, like piano keys) which could encode messages sent to torpedoes over long distances.

The intended innovations don’t always catch on, of course. Johnson notes that Monopoly‘s predecessor, The Landlord’s Game, was actually developed by social progressive Lizzie Magie. She wished to teach children about the ills of capitalism-run-amuck by enticing them with tabletop fun. With the removal of an optional play style where kids could win by sharing wealth, of course, the game has perhaps come to send the opposite message.

There’s plenty to be said about how artificial intelligence has advanced in leaps and bounds because of the needs of next-gen video games. Still, we can’t help but think of that gag in Treehouse of Horror where Kang and Kodos insist their world’s games aren’t more advanced than Pong because they’ve been focused on space travel instead.

Can you track any tech innovations to games? Has play time ever opened your mind to better problem-solving? Sound off in the talkback.

Featured Image Credit: Milton Bradley

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That beautiful mind and game theorist John Nash would be proud. “Stand-up Mathematician” Matt Parker recently took a hard look at the probabilities that come with playing Monopoly. He mapped out all potential outcomes for dice rolls, plugged them into some code, and then let his computer plot out a million rolls.

No matter how high the roll gets, the odds never seem to favor one outcome that much more significantly over another. Still, if a player knew how to work with all these figures, then a 0.451% difference might actually make a huge difference in the pursuit of buying up all nearby property. Parker was serious about checking the validity of his finding so, like any respectable big thinker, he pulled in another experimenter to compare results.

As it turned out, Dr. Hannah Fry had just examined Monopoly, too. Her approach was theoretical, while Parker’s was mathematical. Did their conclusions line up? Watch to see.

Is it a little tricky to keep track of their findings, even in such a friendly and conversational video? Well, there’s good reason Fry shares her finding in big books. Still, as good scientists, the two have made their data available through Dropbox for review and scrutiny. Parker put his code up, while Fry has posted charts of her results.

Here’s the question now, though. Does seeing all the probabilities of Monopoly dice rolls laid out so precisely enhance your enjoyment of the game or does it take all the fun out of it, like nutrition stats on a candy bar wrapper? Isn’t part of the enjoyment of the game based on gut feelings? And if somebody used this inside info to win, would you call them a cheater?

We’d like to know your answers to all these questions. Drop them in the talkback.

Featured Image Credit: Matt Parker

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Just when you thought Monopoly’s day in the sun might be over, the Lagos State Sports Commission announces the board game as an official sport in order to ensure the “true essence of Monopoly as an entertainment sport is captured and promoted among sport enthusiasts in the State!” And just in time for the Olympics. Do you think one day Monopoly players will march amongst the Olympic athletes to compete? We might not be at that point quite yet. Here’s the official announcement ceremony:

Monopoly is now an official Lagos sport @MMWithNimi @dejitinubu @bestmangamesltd #LaunchofMonoply2016 @folicoker pic.twitter.com/m7dtidpRUL

— Babafemi Oretuyi (@Opetuyii) August 5, 2016

So what does all of this mean? According to the CEO of Bestman Games, Mrs. Nimi Akinkugbe, the company began “training 100 teachers from 100 Lagos schools for the championship.” That’s right, they’re training students to participate in a Monopoly championship.And we’re not saying that we know the best way to win at Monopoly at Geek and Sundry, but we have more than a few tips for anyone looking to take home the gold in this event.

Does that mean there’s a Monopoly class in school now? Monopoly tests? The Under-17 Monopoly Championship coming up will feature 2000 players from 100 schools across the country. So, this is kinda like the Olympics in Lagos.

Akinkugbe goes on to say that “it is appropriate that this historic Tournament in which we expect to beat a world record should take place on the grounds of Teslim Balogun Stadium in Surulere which is the landmark of Monopoly Board.” Well, hey that actually is pretty cool. Looking to celebrate the announcement? But wait! There is even more exciting news. There’s now a City of Lagos Edition of Monopoly:

The City of Lagos Edition of #Monopoly is the First #African City Edition.#BestmanGames

— Bestman Games (@bestmangamesltd) August 6, 2016

Congratulations Lagos! Can’t wait to see what your version of Boardwalk and Luxury Tax are.

What other games should be an official sport? Let us know in the comments!

Featured Image Credit: Monopoly / Facebook

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Broadway is rewarding the friendship ruining, family destroying board game classic, Monopoly, with its very own musical. Seriously. What’s more is this will not be the only board-game themed musical to hit the Great White Way. Nope, as Variety reports, this musical is the first in the series thanks to a partnership between Hasbro and Broadway producers, the Araca Group.

This isn’t the first time that Hasbro has brought some of its toys and games into the world of live-action entertainment. The company has already brought properties like My Little Pony and Transformers to television and film, and if the crazy success behind shows like Wicked and the more recent Hamilton are any indicator, there is big money to be made by merchandising popular Broadway shows.

So what can we expect from a Monopoly musical? Well, we don’t entirely know yet. The plot, setting, music, characters… really just about everything about the show is in development. One thing you can count on is that the show won’t be about a group of people playing Monopoly–which is could actually make a pretty fun musical since most game devolve into hardcore family drama. While the plot is still being developed, it’s safe to assume the musical will instead be set within the world of the game. We’ll have to see if they include giant brass shoes, irons, and top hats.

What do you think of Monopoly becoming a Broadway musical? What other games would you like to see become a musical? Let’s talk about it in the comments!

Image credit: Mike_Fleming/Flickr.com

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Certainly tabletop style games with pieces and dice have been around for almost all of recorded history. Senet, for example is a game found in the tombs of ancient Egypt. That makes it more than 5000 years old. It was played on a board, not unlike a Cribbage board, but does that make it what we would call a board game? Chess and Checkers and Go are all played on boards and are also hundreds, if not thousands of years old, but while they might technically be board games, they are still missing something from how we think of board games today.

For me, the concept of “board game” seems to start with games like Monopoly or Life, the mass produced board games of the 50s (although Monopoly actually gained popularity in the 30s). Interestingly, it seems these were not the first such games either. Long before games like Trouble, the first mass produced and what some might call “modern” board game was called The Game of the Goose, and its odd history was the subject of a gallery exhibit in New York last month.

The Game of the Goose first crops up in the history books around the mid 1500s when Francesco dei Medici, Grand Duke of Florence sent a copy to King Philip II of Spain. Apparently it caused quite a stir at court. Considering two rulers both getting excited about the same game, it was to no surprise that the game took off. It was in England by the end of that century and quickly made its way everywhere else.

In case you are chomping at the bit to play this game, you might want to turn down your enthusiasm. By all modern gaming standards the game is pretty boring. It’s essentially a roll and move game. There is a long winding track and players take turns rolling one or two dice (depending on the version) and moving that many spaces. The first to make it to the end, 63 spaces away, was the winner. There was a number of “special” spaces that would affect the player pawns. For example, in many versions, landing on a picture of a goose would move you forward again the same number of spaces. Some spaces would move you back. Some spaces would be jails and lock your piece in play until you rolled a specific number or a number of turns went by. In this way The Goose was a lot like Candyland or Chutes and Ladders.

What’s amazing is just how prolific this game was. Perhaps because it was so simple and easy to “skin” with new branding, the game was reworked and re-released by several companies over the years. It also had a lot of other names, often based on the board art. The Royal Game of Cupid and Swan of Elegance are just a few. Plus, there were a few dozen branded versions of the game used to promote products like Coca-Cola or to lampoon the Italian electoral process. Some have estimated that if you counted all the versions of The Game of Goose by every name together over the years, it would have outsold any modern board game. In the 1895 inventory of The Museum of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, they listed over 146 different versions of the game with distinct names and from all over the world. Only the game’s mechanics and similar names and imagery for the special squares unified them all as the same old Goose.

Taken as a whole, the game stands as an odd reflection of the culture of its time, with each new version featuring the passions and interests of the world around it. Some sets look like ancient illuminated manuscripts. Other boards depict hot air ballooning or brand new modern conveniences such as electric lights. They are all beautiful with odd concentric patterns and often hand painted art that’s as breathtaking as it is enlightening. Certainly, the idea that an exhibition of such boards could be displayed in a museum is not unthinkable when you look at them and their historical significance or their artistic merit. The aforementioned exhibit in New York based on the vast collection of Adrian Seville had over 70 such boards  

Of course, I’m not the first writer that’s looked at this exhibit and asked the question what modern board games will be similarly displayed in 200 years. Monopoly? Settlers of Catan? Mouse Trap? A collection of zombie board games? Perhaps some day the prize in someone’s collection will be the Felicia Day character card from Dead of Winter.

We know you collect board games but would you ever display the boards as art? What games are so beautiful you might put them on your wall? In the future what games will be displayed in museum collections? Leave your historical thoughts in the comments.

All images via Wikimedia Commons 

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I know, I know. How much more is there to discuss about Monopoly, the classic, down-home American board game that launched a thousand grudges? Well, I hope there’s at least an article’s worth, because here I go anyway.

It is widely known that Parker Brothers, now a subsidiary of Hasbro, purchased Monopoly from enterprising Charles Darrow and published the game in 1935, in the throes of the Great Depression, when people grasped at the chance to simulate wealth by paying fake money to place plastic houses on squares. However, this is not the full story.

Charles Darrow was never the mastermind behind Monopoly. Rather, it was Elizabeth “Lizzie” Magie who developed and patented the idea for Monopoly in 1904 under the title The Landlord’s Game. Lizzie was a progressive thinker and advocate of Georgism, an economic philosophy detailing that resources earned from land should be equally distributed to all residents, with some provisions for those who do more work for the community. Doesn’t sound much like Monopoly, does it?

In fact, Lizzie’s entire purpose for her game was to teach these more progressive theories and illustrate the consequences of total reliance on a capitalist economy. She focused specifically on how landlords could so easily take advantage of their tenants through profiteering, squeezing every last cent from the pocketbooks of those reliant on them. In Lizzie’s mind, The Landlord’s Game would show America how this selfish and money-grubbing way was the path to ruin, how you couldn’t possibly play this game and come out of it saying to yourself, “Yeah, that was a good thing I just did to my fellow humans.”

What Lizzie probably didn’t count on was America’s dogged desire to turn every negative criticism into a pat on the back. By the 1930s, Americans were taking pleasure in other players’ pain instead of learning from it. The general concept of the game remained the same in that it consistently demonstrated the nature of capitalism to raise yourself up by pushing others down. Coming up with the game-winning strategy was much more thrilling for most than were the game’s moral considerations.

Lizzie’s original game went relatively unnoticed until Darrow snatched it up at a friend’s game night in 1932. Up to that point, the concept of Monopoly had apparently traveled by word of mouth such that no one actually had a physical copy of the rules, and the general understanding of how to play was just ingrained in households across the country. Darrow seized this opportunity, asked his buddies for some written rules, and went on to make millions of real-life dollars off of his Monopoly.

Parker Brothers did eventually throw Lizzie a bone, paying her a measly sum for the rights to The Landlord’s Game and two other games that faded into relative obscurity. When she saw the similarities between her board for The Landlord’s Game and the Monopoly board, she was justifiably furious. She received neither recognition nor credit for Monopoly until after her death, and Darrow’s is still the primary name associated with the game.

The next time you play Monopoly (if it’s soon, I pity you), spare a thought for Elizabeth Magie and Georgism as you spend fake money to squish friends and family under your gluttonous, capitalist thumb. Or don’t because that’s how the game has been played for almost one hundred years.

Are there any other games that you know of with secret histories? How has Monopoly ruined your life? Let’s talk about it in the comments!

Featured image credit: flickr/William Warby
Image credits: Wikimedia Commons/Thomas Forsyth, Wikimedia Commons/Brian0918, Wikimedia Commons/JohnDBuell
HT: Kill Screen

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Family board games are advertised as entertainment, but there’s nothing quite like a round of Blokus or Sorry! to raise your stress level to the maximum. Players unbox the board and prepare the pieces with hope that the game will distract them from their daily life, and then the game starts and all hell breaks loose.

Sorry! (Hasbro)

No surprise here, Sorry! is a loose adaptation of the 1965 classic, Trouble. The name of the game implies feeling badly for your actions, when Sorry! actually represents that swell of pride when you finally get revenge on the opponent who bumped you back to start when you were only six paces away from the finish line.

Each player has four pawns they want to move all around the board and into their final circle, but if someone’s pawn lands in a square already holding a pawn, that original piece must start way back at the beginning. Unfortunately, that’s just one of the instances where your game can be completely ruined with a single draw of the card. Sorry, not sorry.

Monopoly (Hasbro)

There are two major frustrations when it comes to playing the the family game night classic, Monopoly. Firstly, someone must be sacrificed to the position of banker, and then comes the long, slow torture of arguing over properties at the dinner table for three hours.

In recent years, there has been a collective light-bulb moment for those with a distaste for the game due to its runtime. When you land on a property and decide to pass on it, thinking you just don’t need or want it right now, the banker is supposed to auction that property off to the other players. This speeds up the game immensely since before someone finally reread the rulebook, you had to wait until a player landed on the property for purchase.

Heed this advice, players, and study up on the instructions or you could be settling in for a long game.

Blokus (Mattel)

Another prime example of defiling an opponent’s chances of success, Blokus is all about blocking the other players’ pieces as you cross the board with your own. How rude.

Players have a handful of colored tiles in either red, blue, yellow, or green, shaped similarly to what you see in Tetris. Starting in one of the four corners on the board, players must connect their tiles to each other by placing a single piece on each of their turns. Once they’ve been blocked by other player’s tiles and can no longer play, they’re out. Or, you’re out, if that unlucky player is you.

The Game of Life (Hasbro)

One of the most popular and beloved family board games may actually be a plot to make players feel absolutely horrible about themselves. Players win The Game of Life, or simply Life, by collecting tiles throughout their journey to retirement, and after everyone is old and worn, whoever has the highest cash value is crowned victorious. Once players have retired, though, they cash in their life savings for more tiles to add to their collection.

No money? Things are about to get complicated.

Life throws many things at you, including career changes, taking out bank loans to buy homes for your brood, multiple ski accidents, and more. If you’re drowning in student debt in the real world, don’t worry, you can experience that in the game, too.

Pictionary (Mattel)

The mother of all frustrating family board games (no offense to Frustration), if you don’t know about Pictionary then you are an exception to the rule. Just about every game-night at anyone’s grandma’s house involves a round of screaming at your cousins and siblings, “You’re doing it all wrong!”

The objective of Pictionary is to reach the end of the game board by correctly identifying the walrus your uncle tried and failed to sketch after landing on the person/place/animal space on the board. Or, a paper doll from an object space. Or, if the Pictionary gods want a good laugh, an “artist’s” depiction of rage by landing on an action space.

Now, if your family happens to consist of all illustrators, this game could be right up your alley. For the rest of us, it seems that we’re doomed to a lifetime of “It’s a house! It’s a… it’s a roller coaster?” and “But where’s it’s ears? You didn’t draw ears!”

Pictionary, just don’t do it. Don’t.

Any other family game night memories that just boil your blood? Tell us your tales in the comments below.

Image Credit: Alex Lovell Troy

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“You’ve just been elected Mayor. Congrats!” That’s the premise of Machi Koro, setting the stage for this SimCity-like tabletop game. What they didn’t tell you was that the vote was rigged: your city consists of nothing but a wheat field and a bakery, and you were the only person eligible to vote in the district. (The game doesn’t tell you that last part, but I can’t think of another reason anyone would want me as their mayor, so I may be embellishing on the premise.)

There are rival mayors (read: other nearby wheat farmers/bakers) and you want to show them up and build a world class city first. Let’s assume they were badmouthing the quality of your crops and bread. Motive aside, there seems to be a universal understanding that having a train station, a shopping mall, an amusement park, and a radio tower is the measure of a true city. Those amenities are easily built once your city is creating enough revenue through commerce, so your goal as newly-minted mayor is to build all four of those amenities before your rivals do.

The game mechanics are simple. Roll a die, earn income, and purchase amenities for your city.

When you roll your die, it can trigger effects on cards whose value is shown at the top. Some cards are only triggered when the player themselves rolls the die (green cards). Blue cards, representing primary industries, earn income paid from the bank for all players, no matter who rolled the die. And red cards force the player who rolled the die to pay players who possess the red cards of that roll value before they earn income themselves.

The simple mechanics disguise a game that offers a number of strategies to success, giving the game a high replayability. There’s luck involved for sure, but so too is there strategy and skill in building city amenities that maximize on dice rolls and doubling up on benefits.

Machi Koro is the game I pull out when people say they haven’t played board games other than the standard Hasbro/Parker Bros. fare. It’s analogous to Monopoly in a lot of ways, though substantially more fun. The concept of rolling dice, earning money, and buying things isn’t intimidating and the art is accessible.

It doesn’t feel like a heavy infrastructure-building Euro game like Agricola or Power Grid, but it certainly is a great gateway to those games, unlike Monopoly.

The layers of strategy in this game are surprising, given how it only lasts 30 or so minutes. Businesses can combine effects, so how you build your city early in the game affects your choices later on. For example, buying up lots of ranches in the early game makes having a cheese factory more beneficial later in the game.  While diversifying amenities may help players earn more overall in the early game, committing to a single type of business pays off in the later game. You can even choose to buy high die-roll value cards early in the game, denying access to your opponents later in the game. There’s enough player interaction throughout the game to keep it from feeling like a solitare-style Eurogame slog.

The best games are premised around giving players many options but only a few opportunities to choose and that’s exactly what Machi Koro delivers, all while being fun. It offers serious gamers high fun efficiency (amount of fun over time) while also offering opportunities to change and adjust their strategies. At the same time, the game’s components are as simple as small coin punch outs in cardboard, cards, and dice. The components, while beautifully illustrated, are simple and basic, meaning you’re not spending $50-$80 on a game full of complicated (and expensive) components. As an analog to Monopoly, it competes similarly in price.

In addition to the core set, Machi Koro‘s expansions give the game new life; the Harbour expansion, for example, not only introduces new types of businesses but also a new way to play the game (limiting the types of properties available for purchase to 10). This changes the dynamic of the game completely, breathing new life and adding even more replayability to the core set.

It’s not a deep-dive, heavy weight game, but that’s not the hole it fills on my gaming shelf. What Machi Koro offers is a luck-based, income engine-building game that is quick playing enough to not be boring, strategic enough to feel like a substantive gaming experience for the 45 minutes it occupies, and accessible enough that the entire family can play it. In terms of family gaming, you can’t ask for any more. Well, other than maybe a hospital for your city.

Have you played Machi Koro? Tell us what you think of the game in the comments!

Featured Image Credit & Image Credits: Teri Litorco 

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Imagine an analog Sim City. Or a macro-sized Catan or Monopoly. Or maybe just wrap your noggin around the notion of an all-day executive seminar scheduled around a board game.

Newtonian Shift is such a game, and it’s delivered by the Advanced Energy Center at MaRS Discovery District in Toronto. Effectively taking up an entire room, it simulates a changing energy landscape, letting players act as various roles (including utilities, and private and corporate end users) as they experience 15 years of sector transformation in just a few hours. The idea is that by actively engaging with extensive research–by playing it–executives will better understand internalize the impact of impending changes on their business. More so than they would just listening to a presentation, for sure.

Oh, and the game’s title refers to its setting, the fictional country Newtonia, which borders the playfully-named nations of Einsteinistan and Wattland. To get a better sense of how it plays, check this promo.

Suffice it to say, Newtonian Shift is the deepest dive, giving players a true lesson on its subject, not just an impression. It was initially commissioned by a Dutch utility, but it’s gone on to be played by executives throughout Europe and was recently adapted for North American audiences. If you watched the video and thought, “Wait… can I play, too?” you’ll be happy to hear this isn’t strictly the domain of utility execs. We reached out to MaRS and learned you can contact their director of business development to inquire about a copy.

Speaking of entertainment and education intersecting at the office, Chris Sanders, the director of How to Train Your Dragon, once made a storybook for a Disney company retreat. Titled The Big Bear Aircraft Company, it used funny animals to advise execs on how to best develop projects to encourage innovation. Like any good allegory, though, its message applies just a well to workplace situations in other fields.

Are you eager to give Newtonian Shift a whirl yourself? What other “edu-tainment” games have made complex subjects fun and accessible? Share everything in the talkback. 

Featured Image Credit:MaRS

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There’s something about Monopoly that we all kinda hate. It’s never truly fun to play nor does winning actually feel satisfying. I’ve never thought about why that is, but an Imgur user, Elpher, just posted a brilliant pictorial essay titled, “How to Win At Monopoly and Lose All Your Friends” detailing exactly what we all hate about the game. After reading it, we’ve figured out that it’s mostly because the game turns human beings into Ferengi, and that’s generally a bad thing.

Here’s what we learned, and why this game isn’t fit for humans:

1. Monopoly is designed (and patented) to make people hate their friends and capitalism.

Where it fails in the latter, it more than makes up for with success in the former. Unless, of course, you’re learning your Rules of Acquisition.

The essay points out that, “[b]ecause of the way the game is designed, this inevitably results in one person acquiring a majority of the assets on the board, and beginning the slow, painful, friendship-destroying process of grinding the other players out of the game, turn by turn.”

The essay outlines the game’s history as a rip-off  of a non-patented game (how Ferengi of them). “The Landlord’s Game” was designed by a proponent of Georgism: a land-based communal-wealth sharing philosophy. “The game was designed to teach children about the inherent unfairness of the capitalist land-grabbing system, and demonstrate how it enriches landlords while impoverishing tenants.”

This seems like the sort of game that Ferengi would use to teach their children how to live a good and righteous life, by Ferengi measures.

2. You have to be willing to be a huge jerk to win. 

The path to success in Monopoly is ensuring everyone else has a terrible time playing the game.  “A little-known rule of Monopoly is that the game has exactly 32 houses and 12 hotels. Once you run out of houses, no more can be purchased until they re-enter the supply by being sold or upgraded to hotels.”

After following the path to success elpher describes, which includes manipulating your friends into making trades that benefit you and your strategy, “you will be asked repeatedly to build some friggin’ hotels already so that other people can build houses. Don’t.”

That advice sounds a lot like the 10th Rule of Acquisition: never allow doubt to tarnish your lust for latinum.

3. Winning at Monopoly the way the game intends for you to win grinds the souls of your opponents into talcum powder.
The name of the game is Monopoly, and getting land monopolies and monopolies on the improvements (houses) is how you win. It’s a boring way to win but as the article points out, it’s worse for those who aren’t winning. “A losing opponent essentially has no path to victory, even with lucky rolls. Your goal is to play conservatively, lock up more resources, and let the other players lose by attrition.”

Playing a low-risk, defensive strategy that rates negatively on the scale of fun is the surest way to victory.  After all, you can’t make a deal if you’re dead (Rule of Acquisition 125).

The moral of the story: there are so many better games out there. 

Being a good Ferengi means you’re a bad opponent, a bad friend, and a bad family member. G&S contributor Kendall describes her personal descent into Ferengi-ism thanks to Monopoly – the picture she paints isn’t pretty. Ultimately, you should play a game that makes you want to play it again with your friends and family, and there’s tons of games out there that do that. Monopoly just doesn’t seem to be one of them.

Check out the essay itself and after you do, let us know if you agree with us and with elpher in the comments below!

Featured Image Credits: CBS (Fair use), Mark Strozler (CC 2.0)
Image Credits: Cory Doctorow (CC 2.0), Andy Smith (CC 2.0)

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I can’t remember the first time I played Monopoly. I just remember there always being some form of Monopoly in our house starting with Monopoly Jr. when my brother and I were kids. From an early, early age, I learned that if I wanted to win this game, the goal was simple: buy everything, and make sure my brother doesn’t get a single dime. I also learned that, since my brother was three years younger than me, it was pretty easy to ensure I won.

Finally, when I got older I started playing “real” Monopoly, and I started to see what a friendship-ruiner that game is. It’s not just because that game is long (and oh man, is that game long) it’s that the game encourages you and rewards you for being a money-grabbing slimeball.

I played with some friends and a dude I was dating at the time who I’ll call John. He is the type of guy you never want to play a game of Monopoly with. He buys up property with a vengeance. He’ll buy properties out from under someone. He never fails to notice if you land on one of his properties, he never makes deals with other players (and any deals he proposes are wildly in his favor), and if another player does anything he doesn’t deem correct, the games stops while he checks the rules.

And even though we all hate him juuuust a tad each time we play with him, you bet your ass he wins. Every. Single. Time. Of course, John would always notice our seething rage, but it never got him down. Fresh off the high of yet another Monopoly win, he’d just smile, shrug, and say, “That’s just how the game goes.”

Why is it that when people totally stomp on everyone in a long, arduous game and choose to have a super chill, “whatever, man” reaction that your loss becomes 100 times worse?

But the thing is, he’s totally right. That is how the game goes. John was only playing by the rules, and when I would play with my younger brother, I was only playing by the rules. The game is designed to encourage players to get monomaniacal when it comes to buying up property and stuffing your bank with as much Monopoly money as you can. It doesn’t only encourage you to do that, but it rewards you when you do, and makes your friends shell out tons of fake dollars into your fake pocket.

There aren’t any friendships in Monopoly either. If you let your guard down for a second, or you decide to trust that your friends are telling you the truth about what is written on that chance card (a rookie mistake I made repeatedly in a game which brought me down from winning by a huge margin to going completely bankrupt) you’re doomed. There’s no room for mercy, explanation, or charity–only ruthlessness.

Monopoly makes you bloodthirsty. It makes you want to buy up Boardwalk, slap a bunch of hotels on it, and laugh an evil laugh when your nearly broke friend lands on it. If you own a side of the board, you will make up some stupid name for that area of the board like Kendall Land, and you will heartily welcome your friends to “your side of the board” and get super annoyed if they roll just right and end up passing your area without paying you a cent. Monopoly is more than just a game that makes you competitive, it makes you want to fully destroy the other players.

Why is that though? What is that magical incantation that makes us turn from friends and family to mortal enemies the first time we collect 200 dollars after passing ‘Go’? I think it’s the time you put into that game. You start up a game of Monopoly, and you know you’re going to be there for hours. If you’re gonna commit to spending 2-4 hours sitting around your kitchen table playing a game that sometimes feels a bit too much like real life, you’re gonna win. Maybe you’re drowning in taxes and other crazy fees in real life, but in Monopoly world, you’re gonna rake in the big bucks. So we do that by being giant sticklers for the rules, showing our friends no mercy, preying upon our friends’ lack of attention, and reveling in our friends’ misfortune as they play. And if you find that you’re on the losing end? That suddenly, you realize you’ve been playing for literally hours, are miserable, and are losing big time? You  can always flip the board over. If you aren’t having fun, no one is.

Monopoly teaches you to be the worst by breaking you. It’s the water torture of games, slowly and methodically wearing you down until you find yourself either laughing as your friends slowly start to hate you with each roll of the dice, or flipping the game over in a overly dramatic rage quit. Yet for some reason, everyone owns a copy of that game. Monopoly makes everyone the worst, and yet we all play it, we all own a copy (or two if you have a special editions), and there’s always someone who suggests playing it on a slow day. It makes you wonder: is the game the worst, or is it really just us?

No, it’s totally the game…

Image credit: William Warby/Flickr.com, ScumbagSeth.Tumblr.com/Giphy, Gifbay.com/Giphy,Teendotcom.Tumblr.com/Giphy

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I’m obsessed with zombies. If you can show me a game, movie, or TV show with a zombie, you can bet your bottom dollar that I’ll be interested in it. So naturally, I was incredibly excited when Fear the Walking Dead premiered. I made sure to clear my schedule for Sunday nights, and I’ve been faithfully watching it each night, but the fan reception hasn’t been the most positive. Some argued that the character development was off, others say the pacing was jarring, but there was one moment in particular that caused the entire fandom to utter a universal grunt of confusion: when Madison decided to play a board game with her kids, Nick and Alicia, as the world grew more and more zombie-infested right outside of their door. The scene felt weird, but the most puzzling question of all revolved around Madison’s game choice: Monopoly.

Yes, the notorious game that lasts for hours, brings out the absolute worst in every human, and has been destroying relationships since its inception. Monopoly teaches players to be divisive, to grab power and money, to build an empire, and to get to the top by whatever means possible–even if it means buying out a corner of the board so your friends and family have to get through a literal [editor’s note: figurative] hell just to pass through and reach ‘Go’ again.

In a zombie apocalypse, you need to know how to survive, collaborate, make hard choices (that don’t always serve your needs first), and how to shine under pressure. Judging by the amount of people who have watched their loved ones rage quit a Monopoly game, I’d say Monopoly isn’t the best game choice to learn those vital skills. Happily, we here at Geek & Sundry are a fountain of game recommendations, so I’ve compiled a more appropriate list for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. These games are not only more fun and less friendship-ruining than Monopoly, but they will also teach you skills that are priceless in a zombie apocalypse. Pay attention to these games, and be sure that you have them in your survival kit. Remember, a well-stocked bug out bag has canned food, bottled water, a first aid kit, and some solid tabletop games.

Zombie 15′

Image Credit: iello

This game is perfect for zombie apocalypse training, and it’s perfect for post-apocalyptic family game night fun! Zombie 15′ is about a world where everyone over the age of 18 has become a zombie. Players not only must survive, but they must work to find answers about the horrific plague infecting the world’s adults. It’s biggest asset to zombie-prepping players is that it forces you to think quickly, act fast, and cooperate with your team as seamlessly as possible. Once the world becomes overrun with hordes of the undead, you’ll want to be sure that you can remain cool under pressure, think fast, and work well in a team.

Dawn of the Zeds

Image Credit: Victory Point Games

While surviving in a group is ideal, it’s likely that you will be on your own for varying amounts of time as you fight the undead for survival, or that you will be called to lead a group, which can also be a lonely job. In Dawn of the Zeds, you are fighting hordes of zombies as you wait for rescue from the National Guard, and coordinate defenses of the nearby towns while you wait. This game not only helps you figure survival on your own, but it also helps teach you how to empower others to survive when you find yourself in a leadership position. After all, Walking Dead fans have seen enough of The Governor to know that it doesn’t take long for a position of power to completely destroy a survivor.

Outbreak: Undead

Image Credit: Hunters Books

Playing a role-playing game is a great way to prep for outrageous situations, and Outbreak: Undead is the perfect option. With loads of zombie outbreak scenarios to choose from, you can test out the waters of all sorts of different zombie apocalypse scenarios. Even better, the game is based in reality. So while you’re fighting walkers, you also have to account for things like pain, empathy, creating weapons, levels of experience, and personality types. Even cooler, this game allows players to take on a personality type or play as themselves by using the S.P.E.W. Test to determine their stats. That’s some actual zombie survival training, kids. I suppose you can think of this game as a zombie apocalypse test drive.

City of Horror

Image Credit: Repos Production

The gruesome reality of a zombie apocalypse is that hard choices must be made. In City of Horror, players are forced to survive at all costs, even if it means putting those around you in danger. While it seems grim, survivors in an actual zombie apocalypse will be faced with impossible scenarios. Often times, you don’t have the luxury of time to mull those choices over and make a solid pro/con list (my decision making method of choice). Playing a game that trains you to be able to make those tough choices quickly, even if they break your heart, will only prove to be an asset when the walkers come.

Dead of Winter

Image Credit: Plaid Hat Games

The ultimate problem that comes along with surviving a world-ending event is the need to rebuild society and deal with other survivors. Attempting to reform a society after its complete destruction is hard. Not only are you dealing with the zombie threats outside of your city walls, but you are also having to deal with the powder keg of humanity within them. Collaboration is key, but it’s often more challenging than downing a walker. Dead of Winter helps you prep for the challenge of dealing with members of the living and the undead.

What games do you think are vital in prepping for a zombie apocalypse? Give me your recs in the comments! 

Image credit: AMC, Dawn Beattie/Flickr.com, bib0un/DeviantArt.com, fdasuarez/DeviantArt.com

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