Trading

Theme
Players take the part of land owners, attempting to buy and then develop their land. Income is gained by other players visiting their properties and money is spent when they visit properties belonging to other players. When times get tough, players may have to mortgage their properties to raise cash for fines, taxes and other misfortunes.

Gameplay
On his turn, a player rolls two dice and moves that number of spaces around the board. If the player lands on an as-yet-unowned property, he has the opportunity to buy it and add it to his portfolio or allow the bank to auction it to the highest bidder. If a player owns all the spaces within a color group, he may then build houses and hotels on these spaces, generating even more income from opponents who land there. If he lands on a property owned by another player, he must pay that player rent according to the value of the land and any buildings on it. There are other places on the board which can not be bought, but instead require the player to draw a card and perform the action on the card, pay taxes, collect income, or even go to jail.

Goal
The goal of the game is to be the last player remaining with any money.

Cultural impact on rules
Monopoly is unusual in that the game has official, printed rules, but most players learn how to play from others, never actually learning the correct way to play. This has led to the canonization of a number of house rules that make the game more palatable to children (and sore losers) but harm the gameplay by preventing players from going bankrupt or slowing down the rate of property acquisition. One common house rule has players put any money paid to the bank in the center of the board, which jackpot a player may earn by landing on Free Parking. This prevents the game from removing money from play, and since players collect $200 each time they pass Go, this results in ever-increasing bankrolls and players surviving rents that should have bankrupted them. Another house rule allows players to take "loans" from the bank instead of going bankrupt, which means the game will never end. Some house rules arise out of ignorance rather than attempts to improve the game. For instance, many players don't know that properties landed on but left unbought go up for auction, and even some that know to auction don't know that the bidding starts at $1, meaning a player may pay well below the listed price for an auctioned property.

Background
In the USA in 1933, Charles Darrow devised Monopoly based on an earlier game by Elizabeth J. Magie. The patent was filed 31st August 1935 while the game was on sale in America. Based on an earlier game, The Landlord's Game, it was at first rejected by Parker Bros., as being too complicated to be a success. How wrong could they be! It came to the UK in 1936, made under licence by Waddingtons. Darrow died in 1967 having realised he had developed one of the most successful board games of all times. It was awarded as Game of the Century by the TRA (Toy Retailers Association).

Monopoly was patented in 1935 by Charles Darrow and released by Parker Brothers. The game was actually one of a number of variants in existence at the time, all of which date back to an earlier, 1904 game by Elizabeth J. Magie called The Landlord's Game. Magie was a proponent of the Single Tax put forth by famous author Henry George. The game was designed to show the evils of earning money from renting land (as it leads to the destitution of all but one player) and the virtues of the proposed Single Tax - players could choose to play under regular rules or alternate "Single Tax" rules.

The game didn't really go anywhere and Magie lost interest in it. Variations of the game evolved, however, and homemade versions traveled up and down the Atlantic coast and even as far west as Michigan and Texas, being developed all along the way. Eventually the game was noticed by Charles Darrow, who introduced it to the world in its current form.

Re-implements:

The Landlord's Game

Expanded by:
Official

Monopoly Stock Exchange Add-on
Monopoly Free Parking Mini Game
Monopoly Get Out of Jail Mini Game

Unofficial

Super Add-ons: Monopoly
Entrepreneur's Accessory to Monopoly
Game Spice: Monopoly Expansion
Mafiopoly
Monopoly: Mob Rule Expansion Deck
Final Fantasy Monopoly

Catan is off the island and in America. Fans of Catan are eagerly anticipating the next release in the Catan Histories line.

The 19th Century has arrived, and Americans are heading west. Wagon trains are forming up and heading out to settle new lands and build new cities. These new cities will need railroad lines to bring in new people and necessary goods. Some head west for the adventure, some to start a new life, still others to find work.

Look west to make your fortune. As the population grows, resources will dwindle, and the smart money seeks new sources and new markets. Finance your settlers as they head west to build the cities of tomorrow. Link these cities with rails of steel and operate your railroad to supply the townsfolk with goods. To the west lie lands to settle and fortunes to be made!
Settlers of America: Trails to Rails uses the familiar Catan hex-tile grid to present a map of the United States. Players collect and trade resources in order to purchase, migrate and build settlements, forge railroads, and acquire locomotives. Railroads are used to distribute goods to the interconnected cities. As westward locations are settled, old sources of resources deplete. The addition of gold adds to the depth of play and increases options for the players.

Days of Wonder announces Mystery Express

Whodunit on Rails re-invents the classic deduction-style board game
Los Altos, CA; Paris, France - January 25, 2010. Days of Wonder announces Mystery Express, an imaginative new take on the classic deduction game from Antoine Bauza & Serge Laget. While Days of Wonder's first "whodunit" game, 2003's Mystery of the Abbey, was considerably more quirky and chaotic, Mystery Express explores the more analytical side of the genre, rewarding a logical and more precise approach to solving the crime.

Players board the famous Orient Express in Paris just as a murder occurs. The rest of the trip - through Strasbourg, Munich, Vienna, Budapest and their final destination of Istanbul - is consumed with determining the who, what, when, where and why of the crime. Players use their special powers of deduction; information gleaned from others in various train cars; and investigative actions to determine the exact circumstances of the murder. The one who correctly identifies the most elements of the crime by the time the train reaches Istanbul wins the game.

Mystery Express is a classic Days of Wonder design made up of top-notch components and unique, period-perfect illustrations. Along with the Mystery Express board map detailing its itinerary from Paris to Istanbul the game features: 5 resin character figures and matching character tokens; 5 Ticket wallets that include a description of each character's special power; 100 Deduction sheets that players use to keep track of their deductions; 72 Crime cards; a Mystery Express miniature train to track the Mystery Express's journey on the map; a Conductor figure; 2 small passenger tokens, a miniature travel bag, a train whistle and rules booklet. Mystery Express is for 3-5 players and will be available worldwide in April 2010. Price is $50/€45.

Video Overview from Myriad Games Presentations available here

In the Settlers of Catan Gallery Edition, the award-winning game is simplified and reduced in price to allow for quick play and introduction to casual players. The Settlers of Catan are once again traveling through the lands of Catan, racing to develop their settlements.

Players are now able to gain the flavour of the popular board game within 60–90 minutes with simplified rules that allow quick game setup and learning. The Catan board game continues to have the popular modular board and the variety of strategic options available that made the original Settlers of Catan game so popular.

Contents of the Game:

1 playing board, 3 dice, 3 packs of ‘Commodity’ cards (coloured red green and yellow) 1 pack of ‘Command’ cards (coloured blue) various denominations of ‘Credit’ notes, 6 playing pieces, 6 ‘At Risk Zone Cards’, 1 set of Rules.

Cards: There are 4 packs of cards which are placed on the playing board, as indicated by the 4 colour coded cards situated between the ‘inner’ and ‘outer’ circles. The 4 packs of cards are made up as follows:-

Red Commodity Cards – cheapest range from 500 to 1,000 ‘Credits’.

Green Commodity Cards – middle range from 2,000 to 10,000 ‘Credits’.

Yellow Commodity Cards – dearest range from 10,000 to 100,000 ‘Credits’.

Blue Cards – ‘Command’ cards – instructions must be followed.

This game can be played by 2 to 6 players aged 8 and over. There are 3 different levels of the game, each being a little more complex than the last. The first level enables you to get used to the basic idea. The second level introduces more advanced rules and techniques. The third level encourages you to play the game in its purest form, pitting your wits against the other players until a final winner emerges. (You will find a ‘Quick Start Guide’ on the back of the ‘At Risk Zone Card’.)

The idea of the game is to be the most successful Wheeler Dealer™ and depending on which level is played, be the first to have a total wealth of up to 3,000,000 ‘credits’. Players start with 8,250 ‘credits’ and a random hand of 4 red and 4 green ‘Commodity’ cards on level 1. Players accumulate wealth by selectively buying and selling ‘Commodity’ cards one at a time, until a ‘set’ of 3 or more identical cards has been built. Once a ‘set’ has been built it may be sold to the ‘bank’ for 2, 3 or 4 (sometimes more) times the ‘face value’. It is good practice to place the ‘set’ to be sold to the ‘bank’ in the middle of the playing board. ‘Commodity’ cards sold to the ‘bank’ are placed at the bottom of the coloured coded deck.

Players must start on the ‘outer circle’, from any of the blue spaces, in a clockwise direction. Players may only progress to the ‘inner circle’ when they have sufficient total wealth (150,000 ‘Credits’ level 1). As soon as one player reaches the ‘inner circle’ all other players are permitted to enter also, even if they do not have sufficient wealth. Wealth is accumulated faster on the ‘inner circle’, however, there are greater risks. All players must announce that they are going to enter the ‘inner circle’ before the dice are thrown. Before throwing the dice to move around either ‘circle’, players may buy one ‘Commodity’ card from any other player for 3 times the ‘face value’. Other players do not have to sell and only one card may be bought at a time. If buying a card makes a ‘set’ of 3 or more the player may also sell the ‘set’ to the ‘bank’ before throwing the dice to move around the ‘circle’.

Players may at any time during their turn secure loans on other ‘Commodity’ cards in their possession at ½ ‘face value’ which is known as the ‘At Risk Value’. Such cards must be placed on the ‘At Risk Zone Card’, unless they form part of the ‘set’ to be sold immediately to the ‘bank’. ‘At Risk’ cards may be bought by other players, when it is their turn, at 2 times ‘face value’. If asked, the owner of an ‘At Risk’ card must sell it to the other player, repay the bank the ‘At Risk Value’, plus 10% interest. It is good practice to place the ‘At Risk Zone Card’ to your left, thereby keeping your cards and money away from the other players.

Once the above options have been exhausted, the player then rolls the dice (2 ‘outer circle’ 1 ‘inner circle’) and moves his playing piece the number of spaces rolled in a clockwise direction. The player turns over the top card of the colour landed on and may buy the ‘Commodity’ card at ‘face value’. If buying this card makes a ‘set’, you must wait until your next turn before selling the ‘set’ to the ‘bank’. If a player does not have or cannot raise enough money to buy the ‘Commodity’ card or does not want it, the player must pay the ‘bank’ 10% of the ‘face value’ to cover the ‘Handlers Charge’ and the ‘Commodity’ card is placed to the bottom of the colour coded deck. If the player cannot raise enough money to pay the ‘Handlers Charge’ bankruptcy must be declared. When landing on a yellow space (outer circle), players have the option of turning over a yellow ‘Commodity’ card buying it or paying the ‘Handlers Charge’, or turning over a blue ‘Command’ card and following the ‘Commands’.

If a player lands on a blue space ‘outer circle’ a 5,000 ‘Credit’ bonus is paid to the player from the ‘bank’. The player also takes a blue card (‘Command’ card) from the top of the deck and follows the ‘Commands’ exactly. If a player lands on a blue space on the ‘inner circle’ no bonus is paid but a ‘Command’ card must be taken from the top of the blue deck and ‘Commands’ followed exactly.