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Wii Monopoly collection

There have been more than a dozen video game adaptations of Parker Brothers' highly successful board game Monopoly.

Early versions[]

The first of the adaptations were released in 1985 with the release of Monopoly for the BBC Micro, Amstrad CPC and ZX Spectrum. Over the years, Monopoly has been released for different operating systems on the PC and Macintosh platforms. Also, versions have been licensed and produced for the NES, Super NES, Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo 64, Nintendo GameCube, PlayStation, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, Sega Master System, Sega Genesis, Xbox, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Wii, and Switch consoles, as well as mobile device (PDA/Smartphone) versions. There's even one for the Game.com system from Tiger Electronics.

The game plays by the same rules as the standard board game, and allows for single or multi-player games. When a single player game is chosen, the game would generate computer-controlled opponents.

One of the lesser-liked features of the game was that the players could play only in the exact style programmed into the game. This could be slightly different than the various "house rules" that many homes employ, and could cause problems. An especially problematic feature was the mandatory auctioning of unpurchased properties, that led to rich players having a better run of the board. Some versions however, like the Nintendo 64, PC, Macintosh, and PlayStation versions, do allow the most common "house rules" to be turned on, such as Free Parking jackpot, no collecting rent in jail, unlimited houses/hotels, collecting double salary for landing on GO (i.e. $400 instead of $200), rather than merely passing it.

PlayStation and PC/Mac versions[]

PS version was developed by Gremlin Interactive, whilst PC/Mac version was by Westwood Studios. The PC/Mac version played top down, while the PlayStation version was 3D. They both had movies in common, played when showing the game pieces moving on their own.

The PlayStation version was poorly received by Josh Smith of GameSpot, who called it "a novelty item with little replay value" and assigned the game a score of 4.2 out of 10.

General MIlls released a CD ROM version for PCs of Monopoly Junior as a promotion in 2000.

Electronic Arts version[]

A new version developed by Electronic Arts was released in 2008 for the Wii, PlayStation 3, iPhone and Xbox 360, with a slightly stripped-down version for the PlayStation 2. It includes a transatlantic selection of boards, including the new Here & Now edition boards and new game mode, Richest. There are no online features, however.

Reception of the EA version[]

EA's Monopoly game scored fairly poorly, with a 54% average on the PS3 on Metacritic, and 56% on the Xbox 360. The Wii version fared better with 70%.

The Official Nintendo Magazine in the UK were most positive in their evaluation of the Wii version, which they called "great fun" in the Christmas 2008 issue.

EuroGamer was less enthusiastic, saying: "For the price of Monopoly for Wii, you could buy real Monopoly. Twice. Or you could just buy no Monopoly at all and spend the money on something more likely to inspire amity and harmony, like a book by Hitler."

Monopoly Plus[]

In 2014 Ubisoft released Monopoly Plus for Xbox One, PS4, Xbox 360, PS3 and Windows. You can pick from the 8 classic tokens: Top Hat, Race Car, Cat, Dog, Boot, Wheelbarrow, Battleship and Thimble, or you play as a Rabbid from the Rabbid's franchise. You can play on 2 boards: A living board or the classic board. On Xbox One, PS4, Xbox 360 and PS3, players can buy a My Monopoly DLC allowing players to create their own board, there is a My Little Pony DLC allowing players to have a My Little Pony theme, there is also a Just Dance DLC which is based on another Ubisoft franchise Just Dance, and there is a Rabbid's DLC which is from Ubisoft franchise Raving Rabbids. In 2017 Engine Software ported Monopoly Plus to Nintendo Switch without the DLC, added 2 new boards and replaced the Thimble, the Wheelbarrow and the Boot with the Penguin, the Rubber Duck and the T-Rex, the winners of the 2017 token vote, the game was simply called Monopoly for Nintendo Switch. In 2020 a port for the Stadia cloud gaming platform was released

Electronic handheld version[]

An electronic handheld version of the game was marketed from 1997-2001. The player can play one of 4 tokens: Hat, Dog, Shoe, or Car; and can also pick from 5 available AI opponents (but must have at least 1 to play against): Connie Cashola, Diamond Jim, Greedy Granny, Hot Shot, and Penny Wise.

In this adaptation of the game, Rich Uncle Pennybags is both banker/auctioneer, and the human player always goes first. If the human player goes bankrupt at any time, the game ends right then and there, regardless of how many and which AI players remain in the game.

See also: Monopoly Jackpot

Mobile version[]

An mobile game version of Monopoly was released in 2008 by Hasbro and Electronic Arts. Four players can choose the follow eight tokens: Top Hat, Dog, Battleship, Car, Iron, Shoe, Wheelbarrow, and Thimble. In 2014, Monopoly announced that they removed Iron from the game and replaced with the Cat.

In 2019, the mobile game version of the game was now made by Marmalade Game Studios. This is where the players can play online from other players around the world and variety of board themes to choose from, as well as new tokens can be used in the game.

Other mobile games of Monopoly can be available, such as Monopoly Solitaire (it's a game between Monopoly and the card game of Solitaire where you can roll the dice after placing cards in the foundation), Monopoly Tycoon (where you can build your own tycoon empire from all three cities: Atlantic City, Paris, and London), and Monopoly Go! (Where you can shut down other players' landmarks, steal cash from the player's bank, and complete boards by fully building your landmarks).

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