Board Games That Use Money

Fake money is often a staple of some of the most popular board games. One of the measure of success in today's society is how much money a person earns and accumulates throughout their life and today's board games naturally reflect that ideology. Play money often helps players to accomplish their goals in the game they are playing, but sometimes, however, it simply helps them farther along the path to winning. Whatever the case is for the particular game, though, the money is often an important part of the game itself.

Monopoly is one game where the money is vitally important to the game running well. Each player starts with a certain, small amount of money. As they make their way around the board, they must then use that money to purchase properties to develop as well as paying bills and taxes. Every time that the player makes one lap around the board, they are given an additional $200 for their "payday," but this money can quickly begin to dwindle. The balance comes in trying to always have enough money on hand to pay Rent on the other player's properties, pay any bills or taxes which may arise, and having enough to develop one's own properties so that the Rent on these properties will rise for the other players who land on them.

Players slowly begin to accumulate wealth during the game while other players begin to lose more and more money. Indeed, as property values rise in the game, players will begin to owe the other players more and more money and some players will eventually have to declare bankruptcy. The winner of the game is the last player left standing with money, the one who eventually has a monopoly over the entire game board.

The Game of Life is another one that features money, although it's often simply more about the accumulation of money. The finances in this game don't work as a bartering tool and one usually doesn't need to worry about running out. In The Game of Life, players work their way around the board, accumulating money. Some spaces will force a player to pay money back into the bank, such as when they need to buy a home or pay tuition for their children. However, the salaries in this game are normally much larger than any of the expenses that need to be paid and certain spots in the game will grant a player "Life Tiles" which can be counted up at the end of the game. These Life Tiles mark certain "accomplishments" in the life of the player and usually have large payouts. The winner of The Game of Life is the one who accumulates the most money throughout the game, making building wealth into the main goal.

Other games with money can help players learn more about finances in general. Pay Day, on which the board is a calendar month, will help teach players about budgeting money as well as making smart investments. The game play is denoted by however many "months" the players want to play for, and while the winner of this game is the one who has the largest sum of money at the end, the game is not as simple as only saving all the money that one earns. Players will need to balance their budget will in order to do well with this game, which is just another prime example of games which use the influence of money.