Decades-old board game Monopoly will be soon getting a new version. The interesting thing is, if you love to cheat and did it discreetly enough, without letting your opponents know about it, you're the winner in the new version.
Yes, you heard it right! The new version of the game — the original was created in 1935 — encourages players to cheat, but if you get caught there're plastic handcuffs to lock you up. The aim of the game, however, remains the same — to become the richest player by collecting rent and buying properties.
A recent study revealed that nearly half of Monopoly players attempt to cheat during games. "So, in 2018, Hasbro decided it was time to give fans what they've been craving all along," a statement from Monopoly's manufacturer said.
According to an Agence France-Presse report, the new Cheaters Edition of the game will be available this autumn. A total of 15 cheat cards will be available in the new edition, covering the common types of cheating done by players, such as stealing money from the bank, moving tokens more spaces than allowed by the dice, and avoiding rent.
The "cheaters" will be rewarded a hotel, Monopoly money, or $200 from the bank only if they can get away with it before the next players' turn.
"But if they get caught, they'll pay the consequences. Pretend handcuffs will leave offenders 'chained' to the board until they are released," Hasbro explained.
Another change in the age-old game is that there will no longer be a designated banker. Each of the players control the central money pool during his or her turn — it makes it easier to cheat.
Hasbro says it has "finally decided to embrace our less-than-honest fans by encouraging them to partake in those iconic (yet sometimes unspoken) Monopoly moments."
Edward Castronova, a specialist in media and games at the University of Indiana, said: "Monopoly is a horrible game, and a cheaters' monopoly would be even more so."
He added that the game "is a completely inaccurate simulation of real economies". He said: "If Monopoly's model were accurate, there would only be one company in the world, instead of billions and billions."
However, it's a hugely popular game in the world and more than 275 million copies of Monopoly — in various versions — have reportedly been sold in 114 countries.
