I don’t know WHAT to make of Hasbro’s new “Monopoly Millennial Edition.” I hear some Millennials are outraged; some are getting a real kick out of it. As a Generation X-er, I feel kind of shocked and sad, but I’m not exactly sure. Shocked because it’s hard to believe so many life milestones, goals, and dreams can change so much from generation to generation. Sad because I loved the traditions and constants of the Monopoly we grew up with.
What’s changed? Players now collect experiences instead of real estate. Forget dreams of landing on and buying Park Place. They can go to a meditation retreat or eat at a vegan bistro. If a player experiences something first, they can collect money any time an opponent lands on that experience.
Remember how much we loved the top hat and dog game pieces when we were growing up? They’ve been replaced by a crying emoji and a hashtag symbol.
This NBC News article even comments on the game's cover: Mr. Monopoly is wearing a medal, presumably from that half marathon he ran, holding a coffee, wearing headphones and snapping a selfie. Can you imagine what cover may have represented us/Generation X when we were growing up? Maybe we would have been running around the neighborhood holding absolutely nothing! No cell phone, no bottled water, no awards. Maybe some Wacky Packs and a house key around our neck. Or an overnight bag as we headed from our broken home to our see-you-on-the weekend dads.
This latest game change makes me shake my head even harder than when I went to buy the game for my kids years ago and they insisted on the electronic banking version of Monopoly. There went my memories of sorting, piling and calculating all those paper bills, or passing that experience on to them…
With all the buzz about Millennial Monopoly this month, someone on Twitter wrote: "Monopoly isn't chess, it's not a game that deserves to exist forever."
I don't know about that. Gosh. Does anything?
