👀 #TIL Monopoly wasn't invented by the Parker Brothers, nor the man they gave it credit for. In 1904, Monopoly was originally called The Landlord's Game, and was invented by a radical woman. Elizabeth Magie's original game had not one, but two sets of rules to choose from.
One was called "Prosperity", where every player won money anytime another gained a property. And the game was won by everyone playing only when the person with the least doubled their resources. A game of collaboration and social good.
The second set of rules was called "Monopoly", where players succeeded by taking properties and rent from those with less luck rolling the dice. The winner was the person who used their power to eliminate everyone else.
Magie's mission was to teach us how different we feel when playing Prosperity vs Monopoly, hoping that it would one day change national policies.
When the Parker Bros adopted the game, they erased the "Prosperity" rules and celebrated "Monopoly".
#ElizabethMagie #Monopoly #Landlord
HT Tumblr.com/soberscientistlife

@Heliograph

Fun fact: There is nothing in the current rules preventing players cooperating with one another. Sharing properties and letting one another off mortgages etc.

Its a really fun way to annoy people who say they know how to win by being hyper-capitalist. You can win in short order and they are furious.

@robcornelius @Heliograph Can you tell more about this?

@Holir_ @Heliograph Basically two or more players agree not to charge the others when they land on a property, pool cash, what ever you like basically.

The rules don't forbid things explicitly its more like "if you are going to do xyz then you have to do it like this". You can literally make up rules to allow you to cooperate.

My brother says he is a "capitalist". He really hated it when myself and a friend played him at monopoly. He thought he knew how to play the game. It ended with him frantically reading the rules then storming off in a massive sulk. It was a fun Xmas

@robcornelius @Holir_ @Heliograph someone also suggested leaving properties with four houses to starve other players of upgrade opportunities as part of that strategy.
@robcornelius @Holir_ @Heliograph
Only recently saw a meme were one person said something along the lines of "If no-one buys any property in Monopoly, all players are gaining money and nobody loses in the end"