Aaron Long: Hasbro banks on Monopoly for Christmas number one

Monday, July 18, 2011

Hasbro banks on Monopoly for Christmas number one

Old favourite rejigged in several ways
Hasbro banks on Monopoly for Christmas number one

Toy manufacturer Hasbro has crafted three new versions of Monopoly for 2011, and while they stick to the same basic rules, each has a unique selling point that will appease different kinds of people.

First up is a new Electronic Banking version of the original game, borrowing the chip and pin calculator from last year's Monopoly Revolution anniversary edition. This time, however, the electronic bank is square (rather than round) and ditches the song clips that played with certain actions. The community chest and chance cards are back to the paper kind too.

The board is the usual Monopoly square, but the major difference with this set is that all of the place names have been updated to more relevant ones. For example, Euston Road has been changed to Camden High Street and Pentonville Road is now Earl's Court Road.

In addition, the hotels are now high-rise blocks, to match more modern themes.

The other two sets are for kids and collectors respectively. The kiddie one is a license edition released to tie in with Pixar's Cars 2. It's simplified for younger players to understand (monetary units are more basic) and as well as each of the properties being replaced with characters from the movie, Pocket-lint is most impressed with the replacement for traditional dice-rolling.

Instead of flinging a die or two across the board, Lightening McQueen is physically whizzed around a circular track that frames the board. It's a great way to promote interaction for very young kids. Other cars from the movies make up the place markers, and the whole thing is fun and slick.

The other set is more traditional, but completely themed around the London Olympics 2012. Character pieces include mascots Wenlock and Mandeville, the hotels are in the shape of the Olympic Stadium, and the locations are different venues for all of the sporting events.

There are also points of interest on the board, such as the ticketing office and merchandising booth. Other than that, it follows the standard rules of Monopoly.

Prices for each of the sets range from ?26.99 for the Electronic Banking version up to ?35 for the London Olympics 2012 edition (the Cars 2 set is around ?30).

There's one set missing, though. Surely there should've been a News of the World commemorative edition? Go straight to jail, do not pass "Go", do not buy BSkyB....

Tags: Hasbro Monopoly Toys Dad Cars 2 London Olympics 2012 Board games