Beloved game Monopoly has finally made it from the board to the screen in the latest mobile release from Hasbro. The new app, developed by Marmalade Game Studios of Clue, Battleship, and The Game of Life mobile game fame, has officially been released and is available for iOS and Android devices.
The award-winning game has made a mostly smooth transition from the board to the screen, especially when it comes to its single-player functions. However, if you're hoping to show off your property management prowess against your friends or other online strangers, be prepared for a buggy and lackluster online multiplayer experience.
Let's Play The Game!
For those who may not have experienced the joys and thrills of the original board game, Monopoly is a board game about property management. Players roll a six-sided dice and advance on a game board, with spaces marked as either purchasable properties, "Chance" or "Community Chest" spaces that dictate random life happenings that can affect your income, different "Tax" spaces where players must pay a fee, a "Jail" and "Go to Jail" space which automatically ends a players turn, and the beginning "Go" space where players begin and collect $200 each time they route the board. The goal of the game is to drive your opponents to bankruptcy, which can be done by buying property and collecting rent from other players.
With this brand new app, the familiar Monopoly board has become a 3D animated game, and, boy, does it look pretty cool. I'm a sucker for graphics and animations, and this app doesn't disappoint. Every property has been rendered and animated fully, giving players a chance to see locations like St. James Place, Marvin Gardens, and Park Place in action. Each of the available tokens for players to use - including the Dog, Top Hat, Ship, and Penguin - gleefully hop across the board to their spaces. And while the Monopoly games of my childhood never had any time of music to set the mood, the delightful background music accompanying each game is an appropriate choice to put a smile on one's face while playing.
One major gripe I used to have with the Monopoly board game was that some playthroughs would take hours to complete. I'm definitely more of a casual mobile gamer, so I was pleasantly surprised to see the game's "Quick" mode feature, which offers a faster option for single players on the go. The "Quick" mode's rules can be edited, but the game's default rules for this kind of game are to skip over all tax, Chance, and Community Chest spaces, force players to leave jail after being in there for one turn, build hotels after three houses (instead of four), and ending the game after one person reaches bankruptcy (the winner is whoever has the most money at that moment). I found this new mode very helpful and fun, and praise the developers on this smart addition to the mobile game.
Another great bonus with this app is that unlike many other popular mobile games of today that require you to have a credit card ready to go to fully enjoy it, you won't need to worry about dropping a pretty penny to get the most out of this game. Monopoly is priced at a very reasonable $3.99 on the Google Play and App Store. Though the game does feature some in-app purchases, those only unlock additional customization options, like the $4.99 "Explorer Pack" which unlocks international Monopoly game boards, or various $6.99 packs that unlock themed boards and additional tokens to play as. However, none of the game's four play modes, or any other features that directly affect gameplay, are locked behind microtransactions.
Finally, the most important thing about the mobile Monopoly game is that, despite being an app, it still preserves the integrity and spirit of the original board game. In my opinion, no features of the original game have been watered down or axed, and if you're a single player looking for a digital Monopoly fix, this game doesn't disappoint.
Multiplayer Madness
Unfortunately, while I had nothing but a delightful time playing the Monopoly app on my own, I could not say the same when I added other people to the mix. The most obvious reason for this was the noticeable amount of bugs and glitches that only appeared in the game's various multiplayer modes (Online Multiplayer, Online With Friends, and Pass and Play). During my first online multiplayer game, my dice kept freezing on my screen, which annoyingly blocked some of the game from my vision, but also kept me from rolling on my own turn. After fiddling with some features I was able to fix it so I could roll, but for a while, I was worried I would have to quit the entire game. Other noticeable glitches occurred throughout the game and other games I played, which made it difficult to enjoy the playthrough.
Additionally, while the game's new "Pass and Play" mode - which is where one player's device hosts the Monopoly game and is passed around to players for each of their turns - may work in theory, it's very impractical in practice. The game may work better with a bigger device, like an iPad, but if played on a smartphone, it's very difficult to keep you and your audience engaged when a tiny device is being passed around. Especially during property auction sessions - it's chaotic and messy. Not at all fun.
While I do stand by my statement that the Monopoly app does a great job of maintaining the feel of the OG board game it may not be the right choice for you if your favorite part of playing was the camaraderie with friends. If this applies to you, stick to the real board game. It'll be less buggy.
An iOS version of Monopoly was provided to TheGamer for this review. Monopoly is currently available for $3.99 for iOS and Android devices.