Modern game

In 1960 the Game of Life was introduced. A collaboration between Reuben Klamer and Stephen Withers, it consists of a track which passes along, over, and through small mountains, buildings, and other features. A player travels along the track in a small plastic automobile, according to the spins of a small wheel on the board with spaces numbered one through ten. Each car has six holes into which pegs are added as the player "gets married" and "acquires children". The modern game pegs are pink and blue to distinguish the sexes (blue for male, pink for female). Each player starts the game with one peg.

There is also a bank which includes money in $5,000, $10,000, $20,000, $50,000, and $100,000 bills; automobile, life, fire, and/or homeowners' insurance policies (depending on the version); $20,000 promissory notes and stock certificates. Other tangibles vary between versions of the game. $500 bills were dropped in the 1980s, as were $1,000 bills in 1992. The rules in all different modern versions of the game are generally the same, even though they may have different cards and spaces. The winner is the player who retires with the most money.

Hasbro acquired Milton Bradley Company in 1984 and continued developing the game. Markham's heirs sued Hasbro in 2015, claiming that he did not get proper credit or reward for developing it. In 2019, Judge William E. Smith ruled in favor of Hasbro, explaining that while developing a game is a collaborative effort, copyright law assigns the copyright only to one entity.^[5]

1960s version

The Game of Life, copyrighted by the Milton Bradley Company in 1960, had some differences from later versions. For example, once a player reached the "Day of Reckoning" space, they had to choose one of two options. The first was to continue along the road to "Millionaire Acres," if the player believed they had enough money to out-score all opponents. The second option was to try to become a "Millionaire Tycoon" by betting everything on one number and spinning the wheel. The player immediately won the game if the chosen number came up, or went to the "Poor Farm" and was eliminated if it did not. If no player became a Millionaire Tycoon, the one with the highest final total won the game. In addition, there were spaces that forced a player to go back; in the case a player landed on one of these, they were forced to take the shortest route and pay no attention to any penalties and rewards in doing so.

This version had Art Linkletter as the spokesman, included his likeness on the $100,000 bills (with his name displayed on the bills as "Arthur Linkletter Esq.") and a rousing endorsement from Linkletter on the cover of the box. It was advertised as a "Milton Bradley 100th Anniversary Game" and as "A Full 3-D Action Game."

As of 2022, Winning Moves markets a classic 1960s edition.

1970s/1980s versions

About halfway through the production of this version, many dollar values doubled. This description focuses on the later version with the larger dollar amounts. Early 1960s-era convertibles were still used in the 1978 edition, while the late 1980s version replaced the convertibles with minivans. The "Poor Farm" was renamed "Bankrupt!" in which losing players would "Retire to the country and become a philosopher", and "Millionaire Acres" was shortened to "Millionaire!" in which the winner can "Retire in style". Like the 1960s version, there were spaces that forced a player to go back; in the case a player landed on one of these, they were forced to take the shortest route and pay no attention to any penalties and rewards in doing so.

The gold "Revenge" squares added a byline, "Sue for damages", in the 1978 edition.^[6]

1991 version

Exactly seven years after Hasbro acquired the Milton Bradley Company, The Game of Life was updated in 1991 to reward players for good behavior, such as recycling trash and helping the homeless, by awarding players "Life Tiles", each of which was worth a certain amount.^[7] At the end of the game, players added up the amounts on the tiles to their cash total, and counted towards the final total. The spaces that forced players to go back were removed, starting with this version.

2005 version

An updated version of the game was released in 2005 with a few gameplay changes. The new Game of Life reduced the element of chance, although it is still primarily based on chance and still rewards players for taking risks.

2013 version

The 2013 version removed Life Tiles and text on the spaces themselves. Most spaces are now "Action Spaces", where a card is drawn. At the end of the game, these cards are worth $100K each. Additionally, houses are no longer mandatory since to buy a house, you must land on a specific space.^[8]

2017 version

The 2017 version includes green pegs for adding pets to your family. Pets are worth more than children at the end of the game.^[8]

2021 version

Action cards no longer are worth $100K at the end of the game. Careers now come with a "bonus salary" - a higher payday if you land directly on the Payday space. There are now six peg colors, and there are more split paths on the board with certain paths giving advantages and disadvantages.^[8]

Other versions