New Monopoly Edition Replaces Cash With Scanner And Cards

Monopoly, the game that drags on forever and has caused more than a few family fights, is back with a new edition called Monopoly Ultimate Banking. Rather than including paper money, as has been the norm for most of the game's existence, Ultimate Banking ditches the physical cash in favor of player credit cards and a bank scanner that tracks funds.

This isn't the first time Monopoly has tried to do away with cash, as any longterm fan will tell you. In the past, though, users were more or less given a big corny calculator for manually plugging in funds. This time around, the bank scanner is far more efficient, allowing gamers to swipe their game cards and a credit card upon which funds are added.

As the game progresses, gamers scan the chance cards and property cards they acquire via bar codes included on them. To buy property, the player will need to scan their credit card and, assuming they have the funds to buy it, the property's card. The funds will be deducted automatically and the new balance calculated.

In addition, card scanning can be used to transfer funds from one gamer to another, such as when one person lands on someone's property. Joining the new bank scanner are Life events (new chance cards), as well as sudden financial upheavals that toss a wrench in the game's financial situation. The new board game will be available from Hasbro later this autumn for $25 USD.

VIA: Gizmodo