Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)This release is quite the anomaly.First off, I didn't even know it was out - a friend of mine who works at Electronic Arts told me that it had come out.If it wasn't for that, I wouldn't have known.Now that's not a fault of the game mind you, but for such a classic board game, you'd think it would be a little more promoted.That issue aside..
I was quite looking forward to playing it.I'm a Monopoly fan, and my wife is not, so I never get to play anymore.So I was looking forward to getting in some Monopoly.I sat down, fired it up, and played a few single player games.The game does a very good job at replicating the board game onscreen.There have been some Monopoly games on the PC in the past, and this one is quite good.The graphics look quite spectacular on my 46" HDTV.But the game play is right.So much so that there's a whole gaggle of custom rules you can put into play.Things such as "Land on Go, get double pay", "All tax goes into pile which is won by landing on Free Parking", Number of houses/hotels, mortgage rate, etc.The game play is pretty darned customizable, so that's a plus.There is a wide range of board themes.There's the obvious standard one, a future theme, a World Board, a Jungle Board, even food themes like chocolate and cheese.Each of these themes have appropriately named properties too (things like "Polar Bear Mountain" and "Blizzard Plains" for an ice themed board).There is a very strong variety of play here - without changing the basic game at all.And that is just in standard mode.
There is another mode called "Richest" Edition, where you play with some new rules.One of which is no money.Richest uses no money at all - when you owe someone money, you have to give or take properties.When I first played it, I thought it was going to stink - the formula is changed around a lot, but I have to say, I really ended up enjoying it.The lack of money gave the game a rather different, and very enjoyable feel to me.There are also mini games in between rounds in the "Richest" mode to play which are loosely based on certain aspects of Monopoly.The mini games are kind of hit or miss depending on which one you get (there's about a dozen different ones, including one bizarre one where you have to take X-Rays of the Pennybags character).But I do have to say I really took to the Richest Edition variant of game play.It's notably shorter than regular games of Monopoly, which is one thing to take into account.
So I was really quite enjoying this game, which brings me to the strongest negative to this title.THERE IS NO SORT OF MULTIPLAYER OVER XBOX LIVE!THIS IS A FAILURE OF EPIC PROPORTIONS!How a game like Monopoly could be created without any sort of online play in 2008 is beyond me.It's not like this a Gears of War game or a Halo 3 where you have to push massive amounts of bits up and down an Internet connection.It's Monopoly.I cannot fathom why there was no Xbox Live play here - it just boggles my mind that I cannot do this.This is such a major drawback, I can see it preventing a lot of people from buying the game.Yeah, there's multiplayer locally.You can play up to four people here on the same console.But to be honest, if I have four people in my living room, I'm going to play the real board game version.I might have been inclined to give this game five stars in my review, but the lack of Xbox Live play takes it down to three.It makes me think this omission is why the game ha a list price of $39 instead of the $59 most Xbox 360 games have.
Still, my feelings on lack of Xbox LIVE play aside, this is a very good representation of Monopoly.If you are big time into Monopoly, and always wanted to play but had nobody to do it with, this can work for you.It is a very good game of Monopoly, and the new modes bring a fresh flavor to a game that most of us know pretty darned well.
I wrote this review on the Xbox 360 version.It is also out on the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, as well as the Wii.I do not know the multiplayer situation on those, but if they can play online, and the 360 version cannot, I'll be even more irritated at that.
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Product Description:
Turn real estate into real entertainment as Monopoly, the biggest deal in classic board games comes to Xbox 360 in Monopoly Here & Now: The World Edition. Celebrating over 70 years of family fun, this new rendition of the legendary property trading game is sure to delight Next Generation players as it blends familiar turn-based board game style play with the energizing, interactive action modern gamers crave.
10 playable themed boards.
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4-player mini-games galore.
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Fast play in 'Get Rich Quick'.
Viewlarger. Gameplay
As with all versions of Monopoly, gameplay in Here & Now: the World Edition is driven by turn-based rolling of the dice and the player's ability to secure and maintain control of real estate investments. In the Xbox 360 version players use their controller to roll the dice, with their piece moved around the board and rents deducted from their account automatically. Once this is done they have the choice to either visit the accounts screen, where all player owned properties and available cash are listed, or to allow the next player to roll. A new twist in gameplay involves the mini-games scattered throughout the board. These occur at different points in the game--for example, at the beginning of the game to determine who will roll first. They are quick detours from the main action and are generally designed to challenge players according to their standing in the game, thus making it tougher for first place players to pull away from their competition. A New Game With New Boards
Although the game environment of Monopoly Here and Now: The World Editionis firmly rooted in the original game through its inclusion of a classicallylaid out board, with all the properties and playing pieces you remember, italso offers up new directions of play through its wealth of new board options.The game contains 10 playable boards. Each is individually themed, with propertiesreflecting that theme. Just a few of these themes included are, jungle, arctic,future, cheese, and deco. In addition, other available boards are designed afterworld capitals. As players access these boards they receive stamps (tied toXbox LIVE achievements) on a virtual passport that when filled will unlock evenmore boards as they circle the globe becoming international real estate tycoons. Key Game Features:
Get Rich Quick - In this all-new, super-fast version, trade properties and compete in exciting mini-games designed to encourage fast monetary turnarounds, to see who makes the top of the rich list.
Group Play - Up to four players can simultaneously join in on the "rags to riches" fun.
Monopoly Past, Present & Future - The most extensive collection of Monopoly boards all in one package - from the newest Monopoly Here & Now: The World Edition to classic Monopoly.
Now Boarding -Fill up your passport as you play to unlock new and never-before-seen Monopoly boards.
Earn Xbox LIVE Achievement Points - Xbox LIVE players receive achievementpoints for each board played. Play them all and boost your gamer score.
A big part of the fun of the original Monopoly board game was the experienceof going head-to-head against fellow players in games that could last for hours,depending on the roll of the dice and how much money and real estate assets wereavailable. But not everyone wants to, or has the time to play a drawn out gamelike this. This is where Monopoly Here and Now: the World Edition's 'GetRich Quick' game mode comes in. Designed to be accessible to players of any ageand more importantly to provide all the rags to riches excitement cherished fromprevious versions of Monopoly, condensed into shorter space of time, afull game in Get Rich Quick mode can take as little as 30 minutes depending onyour configuration. This speed of play is achieved through the availability ofvarying levels of play and strategy built into the mode. At the outset of thegame players agree to play at either the developer, industrialist, or tycoon levels.Big payoffs and fast turnarounds are the norm here, with the developer level offeringthe quickest play due to the leveling events incorporated within it. Through these,large leads can often quickly disappear, keeping the game competitive regardlessof player's skill levels and initial bankroll. The result is quick, compellingand addictive family gameplay that is sure to make its mark on generations ofwould-be real estate tycoons for years to come.
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