Monopoly – Here & Now is one of the half a dozen or so slot machines from IGT that are built with the same theme in mind, a popular board game that you’re probably at least aware of, if not a fan. The game doesn’t have to be played only by fans of the Monopoly franchise though, it can be quite fun as a slot machine, especially the titles that have both the graphics and the features to keep you occupied. If you take a look at this version of Monopoly, you will discover a good looking slot machine.
In Monopoly – Here & Now, you will find a 20 payline slot from IGT, all of them arranged on the same 5 reels. A wild symbol and various bonus games make up the list of features, while the biggest payout offered will go up to $25,000.
Features of Monopoly – Here & Now
While you don’t have a long list of features you can take advantage of in Here & Now, you do get a wild and a bonus game, which can be quite fun.
The wild symbol is the easiest of the two to explain, the symbol showing you Mr. Monopoly as he’s celebrating something, surrounded by fireworks. He doesn’t give you any kind of prizes, and it can’t substitute for free parking or for bonus symbols. In every other situation where it is allowed, it will use its substitution powers, and hopefully that will mean more money for you.
The Free Parking feature will start up with the help of its own symbols, which have Free Parking written on them. They influence the value of their own corresponding jackpot, meaning the one that has the same color as them. One of them adds 3x the bet to the jackpot, another adds 2x and the last one adds 1x the bet. Each one influences a different jackpot meter. You can win that jackpot during the bonus game, where you need to land on Free Parking to get the prize. You can see the value of the Free Parking jackpots in the top left corner.
Bonus Game
The other major symbol would be the Board Bonus icon, with a pair of dice shown behind the words. Three of these bonus symbols need to be present, all on the same payline that is active, for the bonus feature to start.
Once it starts, you are asked to select the piece you want to play with, after which you will notice Mr. Monopoly throwing the dice. For every property that your piece moves through, you get a prize. If you get the Go to Jail option, you need to spin a double in order to escape it. If you don’t get that double, the bonus game will end.
One thing that can help you get more value out of this feature is the presence of deed symbols during the base game, which you collect and they will be worth more once you land the bonus feature.
Betting options and jackpots
Bets of up to $100 are possible in this version of Monopoly, with each payline allowed to use a maximum of $5, while the starting point is only $1. You can choose to use fewer paylines if you want to, or smaller bets, but everything has an effect, either on the size of your prizes, or on the chance of you getting a winning combo.
The maximum bet is required for you to get the biggest prize, worth $25,000. The prize in that case is worth about 5,000x the line wager.
Design and symbols
This being a Monopoly themed slot machine, you should expect all its graphics to be drawn accordingly. The background picture might just be an image of the sky, filled with fireworks, but the logo area and the symbols are all related or themed in some way around the board game with the same name. From various objects that you would use to represent you on the board, to the properties, utilities, airports and other symbols that you would get in the game, the developers made sure that this slot was easy to recognize as a Monopoly title.
Symbols: Monopoly Wild (wild), Board Bonus Dice (bonus), Free Parking (bonus), Deed (bonus), Monopoly Man in Red Car (5,000x), Property (1,000x), Utilities (500x), Airports (250x), Ace (250x), King (200x), Queen (150x), Jack (130x), 10 (120x) and 9 (100x).
Is It Worth Playing?
As a fan of Monopoly, I have no doubt that you will enjoy playing the slot machine as well. It’s designed well enough and its features manage to incorporate some elements from the board game, so I would recommend it to anyone that knows it already. Those that never played Monopoly before might find it somewhat confusing though.
Monopoly, the Original Game
Initially released in 1903, Monopoly was modified a number of times. When it was first launched, the purpose behind this board game was to show how land ownership was evil. The game you will find in stores right now is based on the 1935 version, which Parker Brothers released. The name comes from the concept of dominating a market. These days, Hasbro is the one that is producing and distributing this board game in the United States.
As part of the game, you have to choose a piece to represent you, and then by using the dice you move on the board and along the way you trade or buy various properties, you develop them into hotels or houses and you receive rent. The end goal here is to bankrupt the other players, so that only one remains.
The Monopoly – Here & Now slot machine is offered through the IGT platform, so if you want to play it for real or just to practice, look out for casinos that use it.
