Playing monopoly empire is not drastically different from playing the classic monopoly game. If a player knows how to play the classic monopoly game, they can quickly learn the rules of this game.
In this post, I will discuss in detail how to play Monopoly Empire Game and in detail, instructions to help you play the game easily step by step.
Let’s get started!
The Objective of the Monopoly Empire
Monopoly Empire is an exciting variant of the Monopoly game. The objective of the Monopoly empire is to collect Billboards and own the world’s best brands.
Unlike other Monopoly games, it does not require the players to make others bankrupt to win the game. The players travel around the boards and keep buying brands, like buying assets or collecting properties.
There is no trading in the Monopoly Empire game. The first player who fills their tower with the top brand’s collection wins the game. None of the players go bankrupt in Monopoly Empire.
The primary target is to reach the goal as fast as possible.
Monopoly Empire Game Initial Setup
Let us first understand how to set up the Monopoly game. Here are the steps you need to follow:
- Place the Chance Cards down the board after shuffling them
- Next, shuffle the Empire cards in the same way and place them on the board
- There are matching spaces for the Electric company and waterworks tiles on the billboard. Place them accordingly
- The Billboard tiles must be placed in the brand spaces
- Towers will lie on the board, whereas the dice and office tiles should be placed next to the board
- This is the setup. After physically setting up these components, each player will choose a token and place it in the Go space of the board.
- The game’s moderator should distribute two Empire cards to each player and the amount of money. Someone out of the players will become the banker.
Things to Know Before Playing Monopoly Empire Game
How many Players can Play Monopoly Empire?
The number of players who can play Monopoly Empire range from two to four. However, the game cannot be played with more than four players as it has only four towers that each of the four players will own.
What are the Tokens in Monopoly Empire?
Monopoly empire has six gold-colored tokens, including a Coca-cola bottle, McDonald’s French fries, Microsoft Xbox 360 Controller, Paramount Pictures clapper board, Ducati Motorcycle, and Chevrolet Automobile.
How much money do you start out with in Monopoly Empire?
Each player needs $1,000K to start the Monopoly Empire game. In the Monopoly Empire game, the “K” stands for thousand. This game works on thousands.
However, you may wonder why the bank notes do not have “K” on them. In that case, you need to assume that a $100 bill is worth $100K or 100,000. The initial amount is distributed as two $50K bills, four $100K bills, and one $500K bill.
What pieces a Monopoly Empire set should have?
A Monopoly Empire set comes with a gameboard, six tokens, and four towers. It contains six office tiles, 30 billboard tiles, 14 Empire cards, and 14 Chance cards.
Besides, the set comes with bank notes, two dice – one regular and another with a shaking hand sign –, and an instruction manual.
What is the goal of the game?
The goal of the game is to fill the tower with billboards. The player who completes this action first is declared the winner.
Monopoly Empire Game Play Instructions Step by Step
The primary target of the monopoly empire game is to collect and buy as many billboards as possible to fill your tower on the board.
The player who fills up their tower with billboards the fastest will win the game. The greater number of billboards a player has, the higher their cash winnings will be.
The way to win billboards is to land on the brand spaces of the specific billboards. For stealing billboards or cash collection, the player needs Empire cards.
According to standard Monopoly empire rules, the youngest player starts the game.
The game then proceeds in a clockwise direction. So, the player sitting next to the youngest in the clockwise direction will play next.
During the turn of each player, they are supposed to take the following actions:
- Roll the dice on the board
- According to the dice results, the token should be moved to a particular number of spaces.
- Like classical monopoly, if any player rolls double in the dice, they can move again.
- Now the game will process in a clockwise direction.
- Players will get cash if they pass the Go space on the board. Like Monopoly classic, when any other player lands in your brand spaces, they will pay you rent. Chance cards and Empire cards entitled players to get money from the banks.
End of Monopoly Empire Game
The game ends when a player has filled their towers with billboards. That means the fastest player to fill their towers becomes the winner.
Different Official Rules of the Monopoly Empire Game
Passing Go Rules
Monopoly Empire game lets you collect an amount equal to the current value of your tower from the bank whenever you land on or pass Go. However, if there is no billboard on your tower, you can collect $50K.
Monopoly Empire Auction Rules
As mentioned above, landing on a brand you don’t want to buy for a specified price gives you the option to auction it. In that case, players will start bidding for the brand from $50K onwards.
The highest bidder gets the billboard and places it on their tower.
Interestingly, the player who puts the brand on auction can also participate in the auction and buy it at a lower price if no other player is bidding further. If none is interested in the auction, then the brand stays on the board.
Rolling Doubles in Monopoly Empire Game
In Monopoly, rolling doubles means rolling two dice with the same number. In that case, the player gets another chance to roll the dice.
If they roll doubles a second time, they get a third chance. However, if a double is rolled the third time, the privilege is forfeited, and the player goes to jail.
Utilities
Monopoly Empire allows only two utilities, namely Water Works and the Electric Company. If you land on any of these spaces, your options are to either buy the billboard or auction it.
However, you cannot rent utilities. Therefore, if you land on a utility space owned by another player, you need not pay anything to him or her. Also, if no utility billboard is left, you don’t have to do anything.
Monopoly Empire Taxes in the Game (Luxury Tax, Rival Tax, and Tower Tax)
The classic Monopoly’s Super Tax and Luxury Tax are replaced with Rival Tax and Tower Tax in the Monopoly Empire version.
If you land on Rival Tax space, you are allowed to return another player’s topmost billboard to the board.
On the other hand, if you enter Tower Tax space, you must return your topmost billboard to the board. Therefore, Rival Tax can benefit a player while Tower Tax can harm them.
Free Parking In the Game
Free parking is a space on the Monopoly board that offers you the option of doing nothing or taking a trip. If you choose to take a trip, you must pay the bank $100K and move your token to any place you like.
During your trip, if you drive past Go, you can collect your tower’s current value from the bank.
It has been observed that players often choose the first space after Go as a landing point.
This move has two benefits. First, as they move past Go, they can collect the current value of their tower. Second, they get the opportunity of picking up an Empire card.
Monopoly Empire Jail
If you land on the space called Go to Jail, you must enter the jail without passing the space Go.
While inside the jail in Monopoly, you are not allowed to collect rent, but you can participate in auctions and use Empire cards. You can use any of the following three strategies to get out of jail.
- Simply pay $100K and start your turn by rolling the dice. An exception to this rule occurs when you roll a double. Then, the amount payable reduces to $50K.
- You can roll a double and move with your turn.
- If you have a Get out of Jail free card, you can use it and move with the roll of the dice.
Monopoly Empire Cards
Empire cards are to be kept a secret. At the beginning of the game, each player gets two Empire Cards. A player can receive more Empire cards if they happen to land on one of the two spaces marked with the capital M.
After that, the players can use these cards as per their instructions.
For example, if an Empire Card states, “play on your turn,” you can use it before or after you roll the dice or before or after you make a move. However, to make an informed decision, you must use the card after you have rolled the dice.
It is worth noting that the Empire Card does not make a turn. Therefore, players are allowed to play these cards along with their usual turns.
Additionally, nothing in the Monopoly rules prevents players from playing two or more Empire Cards together.
A caveat using the “Stock Market Crash” Empire Card is that it can lead to punishment of the user if not used prudently.
This card lets the user take the topmost billboard of all the players, including himself/herself, and return them to the board. If the user’s tower is taller than the other players, using this card will harm the user.
Brand Spaces in Monopoly Empire
In the game, properties of the Classic Monopoly have been replaced with brands like McDonald’s, Coca-cola, and Xbox.
You have two options whenever you land on a brand that nobody owns. You can either buy the brand billboard by paying the amount shown on the board or auction it.
Contrarily, if you land on a brand that someone else owns, you must pay them the current value of the player’s tower as rent.
So, for example, if the current worth of the tower of a player is 100 and you land on her brand, you need to pay her $100K.
Always remember to ask for the rent whenever someone lands on your brand. If the other player moves off your brand, you cannot ask for rent from them.
Office Tiles in the Game
While playing, if you complete a color set, you can buy an office tile from the bank paying $500K during your turn, and slide that into your tower.
If you are close to filling up your tower, be careful to check the amount of money you are left with. This will help you to buy more office tiles as the game approaches its conclusion.
Money Rules in Monopoly Empire Game
Money rules are simple in the Monopoly Empire game. In events such as running out of cash or inability to pay the bank or rent, all you have to do is return the topmost billboard to the board.
However, unlike Monopoly Classic, you cannot mortgage or sell billboards in the Monopoly Emore game.
Monopoly Empire Handshake
One of the two dice has a handshake sign on one side. This is an exciting addition to the usual dice. If the handshake side appears after a roll, you get an option called sneaky swap as one of your actions.
Using this option, you can exchange two of your topmost billboard tower tiles with the two topmost billboard tower tiles of another player.
Alternatively, you can exchange the top two billboard tiles of the other two players. This move is optional. You may or may not act.
You can also choose to do nothing after the roll and make your usual move.
However, If you decide to act, you cannot move your token for this turn.
How do you Win Monopoly Empire?
Protecting your tower is one of the most significant strategies for winning a Monopoly Empire game. Unfortunately, large billboards at the top make you vulnerable. Adding a smaller one can as soon as possible will reduce your risk.
Maintaining a healthy cash balance is another tip that can ensure a win. You need to have at least $500K cash in hand so that you don’t lose your topmost billboard due to non-payment of dues or rent.
Moreover, a solid cash balance will help you buy office tiles at the end of the game.
Playing Empire Cards is a crucial strategy for winning the Monopoly Empire game. Try to remember what they say and what options they entail.
These secret weapons will come in handy whenever you feel threatened or want an edge over others.
Is Monopoly Empire Discontinued?
Monopoly Empire was launched in 2013 and updated in 2014 and 2015. However, the manufacturers decided to discontinue the game after its 2015 edition. The older editions are available for purchase.
Monopoly Empire Gold vs Silver
In the beginning, Monopoly Empire was launched with a gold version. All its tokens were in gold color. In 2014, a few silver color tokens were added.
In 2015, a few new brands were added along with some new gold tokens. Both the gold and silver versions are almost identical. However, the silver version has two Super Empire cards, namely “You’re fired” and “Hands off.”
