Monopoly Party

Before the Atari 2600 invaded America's living rooms, there was a different breed of gaming for the family to rally around: board games. Everything from Boggle to the Game of Life would bring friends and family en masse to the table, where great feuds were born and generational rifts were capitalized upon. Board games still do a healthy business, but let's face it, does a heated Halo deathmatch compare to a game of Risk? (Actually, yes. Some of the best screaming matches -- the kind where you bring out long dormant hurt and apparently-not-forgotten dirty deeds -- can be had over a not-so-friendly board game.)

Alles, was Monopoly ausmacht, ist im Spiel enthalten. Und trotzdem bleibt die Bildschirm-Jagd nach Straßen erstaunlich lahm. Denn im Prinzip bietet Monopoly Party nichts wesentlich Neues - den Simultan-Modus mal ausgenommen. Doch auch den kann man auf einem Spielbrett nachstellen. Es ist zwar schön, dass man nicht mehr mit Geldstapeln hantieren muss und auch die Häuser und Hotels nicht immer unters Sofa fallen, doch ein vollwertiger Ersatz für ein gemütliches Beisammensein am Wohnzimmertisch ist Monopoly Party nicht. Grafisch und akustisch nur durchschnittlich, können die verschiedenen Bretter zwar kurzfristig faszinieren, doch der große Kick bleibt aus. Da sich preismäßig aber kaum ein Unterschied zu der Brettspielversion ergibt, können alle, die sowieso mit einem Kauf eines Monopoly geliebäugelt haben, ein wohlwollendes Auge auf die Monopoly Party werfen.

Monopoly Party is a new twist on a classic game. It does have some nice elements (such as if you are not fond of digging out the money and sorting the properties, or playing banker on the board game, you can dispense with all that fuss and muss), and the game play is fast.

There are two ways to play Monopoly Party! Classic mode and the aptly named Party mode. Classic mode is your traditional Monopoly game, where players take turns rolling the dice, moving, buying properties, and so forth. On the other hand, in the new Party mode, all players roll the dice and move simultaneously. Basic rules still apply, but the fiesta results in much faster games. Gamers not fleet of mind fret not though (say that ten times fast), a player can’t start their next turn until each player has finished their last turn.

When Charles Darrow presented Monopoly to Park Bros. in 1935, who knew it was destined to become one of the most popular and successful board games of all time. Mr. Money Bags has made several leaps onto the video game scene since then. Straight conversions for the PC, NES, PlayStation and PDAs all come to mind, but there’s also been a surprise or two along the way in the form of Monopoly Casino and Monopoly Tycoon. Monopoly Party! is the latest twist on the storied franchise; a buying, trading, building and deal-making frenzy for the next-generation of impatient gamers. So without further ado, let’s roll the dice and see if we can’t win a beauty contest!

It’s difficult to rate a game like Monopoly Party! On the one hand, aside from the camera issue, it’s a solid adaptation of the board game with a unique twist. On the other hand, I still prefer to play the actual board game, and the lack of online support makes this an exclusive party. I suppose Monopoly Party! works best for families with younger gamers, and at $29.99 USD on Xbox and PlayStation 2 ($39.99 USD on GameCube), it’s cheaper than most games on the market. The timing is right for the holiday season, but you might want to rent before you buy.

Monopoly Party comes with plenty of options, some of which are actually pretty cool. You can choose from a variety of languages, including English (phew), Spanish, and Italian. This title is clearly meant for the European market as well as you can switch the currency from dollars to English pounds or euros. The thrill of playing Monopoly with euros instead of dollars, pure joy. Well, it was either the change to euros or the Wild Turkey, but something sure felt good.

One of (if not the) most popular and successful board games of all time has landed on the PlayStation 2 just in time for the holidays. Already available on the Nintendo GameCube and Microsoft Xbox, Monopoly Party is the digital way to assemble you and your buddies for a quick roll of the "virtual dice" without having to break out the dusty box from your storage closet. With mechanics identical to the classic table top and a visual presentation that calls on the power of Sony's favorite videogame machine, you'd think that there would be little in this package that could go wrong. Especially when considering the several additions that have been made to make for a more unique experience on your television set. Unfortunately, that unique experience doesn't necessarily justify the price of admission here folks. I mean come on; this is Monopoly!

Non vraiment, là je vois pas l'intérêt : plus cher, moins fun, jeu identique... ça fait pas un pli, si vous voulez jouer au Monopoly, sortez-le de l'armoire ou achetez en un. Mais ce portage est à oublier, aucun intérêt, à moins de tenir absolument à voir des pions gigoter et disposer d'une liste de variantes des règles.