Don't Go to Jail Game

 

This is another fast play Monopoly game that can be played in mere minutes depending on the agreed upon winning score. This is a dice game which includes 10 dice. Players roll all the dice on their turn trying to make property matches.  Matches will earn you points, most properties require 3 dice to match. However railroads are 4 dice and dark purple, dark blue, or utilites are 2 dice to match.

The player will decide which die to place on the board and which to keep rolling. Here is where the strategy comes in, when a player rolls 3 dice that spell "Go To Jail" his turn is over AND he looses all the points he has earned that turn. It is smartest to quit while your ahead. If a player decides to end their turn before forming any matches, they will earn the sum total of the dice placed on any property.

To win you need to be the first player to reach the pre- determined score. Keep in mind the round continues until all players have taken their turn. So there is a chance to come from behind and steal the win. 

This is perfect as a travel game since it takes up little room. It's great for younger players since the game play is easy and less complicated then a standard game of Monopoly. It also reminds me of "Deal or No Deal." Chasing a big win can wind up costing the player everything. 

UPDATE:

While researching I've found two games very similar to Don't Go to Jail (1991.) In 2007 Hasbro released  Monopoly Express, which is also a dice game. It's advertised to be played in under 20 minutes. The game play functions the same with the addition of an 11th house/hotel dice. This is rolled seperately and will allow the player to buy a house, return a house, or build a hotel. The wild dice have been replaced by a chance (?) dice but function the same as the wild does. The 3 Go To Jail dice, have been replaced by 3 dice featuring a policeman. Once you roll 3 of these you do go to jail, and loose your points accumulated in that round. There is also a GO dice included, if a player rolls GO they collect $200 points. 

The game ends when one player reached 15,000 points, with players no longer allowed to complete the last round. 

In 2021 Hasbro release Monopoly Diced! After reading the instructions I determined that this game is the same as Monopoly Express with the exception of the packagaing. This new game comes in a square box with square game board. 

Monopoly Diced! was also part of Hasbro's line of diced travel games. Which included variations of Clue and Sorry. 

I was somewhat dissappointed that these 3 Monopoly games turned out to be the same game. I think the marketing department should have realized that Monopoly players would be smart enough to figure this out. After all Monopoly is a game of skill and strategy. I would have prefered a re-release as an anniversary editon with a new design. This leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth. I hope the other games I plan to write about don't turn out to be one and the same.