4 ms·

That last line is the rub here. I used to play Monopoly as if my life depended on it. Now I don't, because no one will play Monopoly against me anymore.

DanielBMarkham 11y ago
Agreed. I've found the best way to play games against friends is to disconnect my competitive spirit and anlytical mind and just sit back and enjoy the conversation. I have fun, and those folks who are hyper-competitive get another "victim", so it's good for everybody.
- DanBC 11y ago
  That, however, means a monopoly game can easily last 5 hours. The only way to play monopoly is to be brutal and eliminate everyone as quickly as possible. (Ignoring the best way to win is to not play, and play any of the very much better games)
  - DanielBMarkham 11y ago
    Really? Maybe a couple of hours. I just buy whatever I land on. Others usually follow suit and fairly quickly the board is divvied up. Then it's horse-trading and luck. I think that with a few simple heuristics the game moves along quickly enough. I have family members who are so nice they try to prevent doing things the other players don't like. These games take forever. Geesh. I haven't played in quite a while, so I may be remembering the game moving along faster than it actually does. Side note: we've been playing Machi Koro at home over the last few weeks. Very simple concept, mostly luck, and interesting enough for a somewhat fun 30 minutes or so.
DanBC 11y ago
Monopoly requires player elimination. That's seen as "mean", whereas winning isn't seen as mean. That's the main reason Monopoly isn't a good game. The other reason is that people have house rules, which often have the effect of reducing the risk of player elimination, which then increases the playtime to stupid lengths. There are a bunch of great, easy to understand, easy to play games that are much better. (HN search might find a few, there have been several threads before. Board Game Geek tends to skew toward the more complex end, but there's probably good lists of great family games.)
- blowski 11y ago
  There are some interesting variations of the game, using a standard Monopoly set. One I've seen allowed things like Lynch Mobs - if enough of the players agree, they can send someone to prison, remove their assets, or even eject them from the game. You could also institute a rule like "90% tax on cash holdings" or "those with assets under $200 receive an extra $1000 when they pass Go". It sort of combined Werewolf with Monopoly, because it required more skill at the human level to persuade your fellow players to vote with you.
  - debugunit 11y ago
    "...Lynch Mobs - if enough of the players agree, they can send someone to prison, remove their assets, or even eject them from the game" AKA democracy ;-)
  - JoshTriplett 11y ago
    Sounds like "Monopoly: Regulatory Capture Edition".
- steveklabnik 11y ago
  > Monopoly requires player elimination. Absolutely. I love Monopoly, and when I mention this, people always say "but it lasts so long!" It only lasts so long because just as someone is about to get knocked out, someone else loans them money to stay in the game... > There are a bunch of great, easy to understand, easy to play games > that are much better. My favorite with family is either Carcassonne (I even have a tattoo) or Ticket to Ride.
  - DanBC 11y ago
    Carcassonne and Ticket to Ride are brilliant games!
- jon-wood 11y ago
  I'd utterly forgotten about house rules, but you're right, they're infuriating. The combination of not auctioning off properties when passed up and free parking make games go on forever.

DanielBMarkham 11y ago

Agreed. I've found the best way to play games against friends is to disconnect my competitive spirit and anlytical mind and just sit back and enjoy the conversation. I have fun, and those folks who are hyper-competitive get another "victim", so it's good for everybody.

DanBC 11y ago
That, however, means a monopoly game can easily last 5 hours. The only way to play monopoly is to be brutal and eliminate everyone as quickly as possible. (Ignoring the best way to win is to not play, and play any of the very much better games)
- DanielBMarkham 11y ago
  Really? Maybe a couple of hours. I just buy whatever I land on. Others usually follow suit and fairly quickly the board is divvied up. Then it's horse-trading and luck. I think that with a few simple heuristics the game moves along quickly enough. I have family members who are so nice they try to prevent doing things the other players don't like. These games take forever. Geesh. I haven't played in quite a while, so I may be remembering the game moving along faster than it actually does. Side note: we've been playing Machi Koro at home over the last few weeks. Very simple concept, mostly luck, and interesting enough for a somewhat fun 30 minutes or so.

DanBC 11y ago

Monopoly requires player elimination. That's seen as "mean", whereas winning isn't seen as mean. That's the main reason Monopoly isn't a good game. The other reason is that people have house rules, which often have the effect of reducing the risk of player elimination, which then increases the playtime to stupid lengths. There are a bunch of great, easy to understand, easy to play games that are much better. (HN search might find a few, there have been several threads before. Board Game Geek tends to skew toward the more complex end, but there's probably good lists of great family games.)

blowski 11y ago
There are some interesting variations of the game, using a standard Monopoly set. One I've seen allowed things like Lynch Mobs - if enough of the players agree, they can send someone to prison, remove their assets, or even eject them from the game. You could also institute a rule like "90% tax on cash holdings" or "those with assets under $200 receive an extra $1000 when they pass Go". It sort of combined Werewolf with Monopoly, because it required more skill at the human level to persuade your fellow players to vote with you.
- debugunit 11y ago
  "...Lynch Mobs - if enough of the players agree, they can send someone to prison, remove their assets, or even eject them from the game" AKA democracy ;-)
- JoshTriplett 11y ago
  Sounds like "Monopoly: Regulatory Capture Edition".
steveklabnik 11y ago
> Monopoly requires player elimination. Absolutely. I love Monopoly, and when I mention this, people always say "but it lasts so long!" It only lasts so long because just as someone is about to get knocked out, someone else loans them money to stay in the game... > There are a bunch of great, easy to understand, easy to play games > that are much better. My favorite with family is either Carcassonne (I even have a tattoo) or Ticket to Ride.
- DanBC 11y ago
  Carcassonne and Ticket to Ride are brilliant games!
jon-wood 11y ago
I'd utterly forgotten about house rules, but you're right, they're infuriating. The combination of not auctioning off properties when passed up and free parking make games go on forever.