Monopoly Section I Some claim that the original version of the game Monopoly started around 1900, and that it was developed as a way of explaining tax laws. The best-known version of the story, however, is that it was invented in 1934 by a man named Charles B. Darrow from Germantown, Pennsylvania. Darrow made the game himself and sold it on a small scale to friends and some small stores, before it was taken over by the games company, Parker Brothers. At that time, the USA was going through a severe financial crisis, and the idea of becoming very rich – even in a game – appealed to many. Section II The object of the game is to make as much money as possible. Players do this by buying up ‘properties’ as they go around the board. They can then choose to spend money developing these properties with the purpose of charging a higher ‘rent’ to other players who land on them. Players aim to own as many properties as possible so that they eventually make their opponents so poor that they have to leave the game. The winner is either the player who owns so many properties that the other players have to drop out or the player with the most money after an agreed time limit. Section III Part of the fun of the game is enjoying seeing your opponents losing their money. This has led to a certain amount of criticism, however. Some people point out that it is not healthy to encourage young people to value money so highly. They also say that the game is based on unhealthy competition and does not teach good moral values. Although a lot of people say that the game helps develop useful skills for real life, some feel that it is unfair to make fun of people because they become poor. Section IV Despite the criticism, there is no doubt that the game has been extremely popular. The number of games sold throughout its history is measured in the hundreds of millions. Several changes have been made in the last 80 years and many updated versions have appeared in different countries. One version, made with gold and silver pieces, sold for $25,000.