Most of us have done it.
We’ve invested in property. We’ve been in and out of jail. And we’ve collected $200 for simply passing go.
How long has it been since you’ve sat down with family or friends and spent an evening playing Monopoly? The next time you do you might be surprised at how times have changed.
Ever wondered what might happen if you turned your company’s decision making over to the public?
Hasbro, the makers of Monopoly, recently ran an online poll to see what Australian regions should be included in the new Australian Edition of their famous board game. The old Australian Edition is 25 years old and needed some changes. They expected several hundred or even several thousand votes. They received 16.8 million during the four and a half week voting period.
The game was launched amidst a cloud of secrecy yesterday morning. The makers of the game worked hard to ensure that details of which Australian regions made it onto the board didn’t leak out before the official release.
While many have given up such games to focus on interactive computer games, it seems that the humble board game still holds a place in our hearts. Computer games can be fun but nothing beats sitting around and interacting with our family or friends.
This morning during my radio programme on 98.5 Sonshine FM I spoke to Monopoly Marketing Manager, Amanda Blackhall, about the updated game and about some of the other changes we can expect such as fines for driving while using a mobile phone and the possibility of winning second prize, not in a beauty contest, but a reality television show.
You can listen to our discussion using the media player below.
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Let’s arrange a games night when we come over next year? That’d be fun and different.
I’ve been playing the english ‘here and now’ version on my mobile for a while now, so when i noticed in the paper that you could get the new aussie ‘here and now’ version (only on wednesday) for $26 at kmart, i got my mum to grab a copy for me. Ended up costing $20.50 with a friend’s staff discount! Not bad considering i paid $7.50 for the mobile version! I can’t wait to play it – board games are a blood sport around here!
There’s something about Monopoly that turns me into a psychotic, over-competitive jerk. I’ve almost come to fist fights with friends over the game. So I’ve had to give up playing it.
I now play other board games like Settlers of Catan, Ticket to Ride and Carcassonne.
I think your giving Monopoly too much credit for your disposition Gaz 🙂
Taboo is the game that gets us really aggro, while monopoly reveals our true inner capitalists 🙂