Monopoly James Bond Rules, Strategies and Ultimate Guide (2022)
What is Monopoly James Bond?
The name’s Wilson, Tom Wilson. Doesn’t quite have the same ring to it as Bond, James Bond, unfortunately! Nevertheless, James Bond was a hero of mine growing up and I am a big fan of the James Bond franchise (I won’t get into the debate of who is the best Bond, there can’t be just one shhuuurely not! ????)
Monopoly James Bond has had multiple editions over the years and the latest edition which I cover in this post covers the latest film of the franchise No Time To Die. I have several of the other editions, but I thought I would cover this one as this is the most up to date available.
This edition follows on from the Spectre Edition that was launched in 2017 and adds the final Daniel Craig film No Time To Die to the game.
In this guide, I am going to tell you everything about the Monopoly James Bond 2020 Edition.
What comes with Monopoly James Bond?
The following items are found in the box of Monopoly James Bond:
| What | Quantity |
|---|---|
| Monopoly James Bond Game Board | 1 |
| James Bond Collectible Tokens | 6 |
| Title Deed & Utilities Cards | 28 |
| Allies Cards | 16 |
| Enemies Cards | 16 |
| Monopoly James Bond Money Pack | 1 |
| Safe Houses (Houses) | 32 |
| Headquarters (Hotels) | 12 |
| Dice | 2 |
The Monopoly Game Board consists of a fully black background with the iconic 007 Logo in silver across the middle. Two spots are left for the Chance (Allies) and Community Chest (Enemies) cards.
Around the game board the squares are named after each film and railways have been replaced with James Bond vehicles. The Utilities have been replaced with Q Branch.
The board is of the newer style Monopoly boards, that is it folds neatly into quarters, ideal if you wish to pack it to take away with you.
What are the Monopoly James Bond Tokens?
Being an official James Bond product (and a collectible too) the film franchise has gone all out on unique Monopoly tokens for this edition of the game.
They are (from left to right):
- ‘Wet Nellie‘ Lotus Esprit Car (from The Spy Who Loved Me)
- Oddjob’s Bowler Hat (from Goldfinger)
- Spectre Symbol (repeatedly in films, latest No Time To Die)
- 007 James Bond ‘Gun’ Logo (from film titles Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace)
- Rosa Klebb’s shoe (from From Russia with Love)
- Acrostar ‘Bede’ Jet (from Octopussy)
The tokens all feel high quality and are silver in color. As I discuss later on in this post, the tokens have changed over the years in the different Monopoly James Bond editions.
How are the Chance and Community Chest Cards different?
In this edition of Monopoly the usual cards have been renamed and offer a strong connection to the James Bond franchise.
Chance Cards (Allies)
Chance Cards are now known as Allies and each one is a scene from one of the many Bond movies. In the photo below the two girls join Bond (Roger Moore) and perform karate to help him in the film The Man With The Golden Gun.
Community Chest Cards (Enemies)
Community Chest Cards are now known as Enemies and each one includes a famous enemy from one of the many Bond films. In the photo below Mr. Kidd confronts James Bond in the film Diamonds Are Forever.
There are 16 Allies and 16 Enemies cards in total.
How are the Title Deed and Utilities Cards different?
There are no physical properties to ‘own’ in this version of Monopoly. Instead, you are purchasing Films – all the values of the films are the same values as the corresponding properties in the Classic Edition of Monopoly.
Both Utility Companies have been replaced by ‘Q Branch’ – where the same monetary multiplication rules apply (One owned = 4 x Dice amount, Two owned = 10 x Dice amount).
The Railways have been replaced with James Bond vehicles and the same monetary multiplication rules apply too, from one to four vehicles owned.
How is the Monopoly Money different?
There are seven different value notes in the James Bond Monopoly money pack. These range from 1 up to 500. Each one has the 007 Logo printed on them, but they are the same colors as you would find in the Classic Edition of Monopoly.
How are the four Game Corner squares different?
There is no difference to the Game Corner squares in this edition of Monopoly, unfortunately. Each of the four game corners is exactly as you would find them in the Classic Edition.
How are the Houses and Hotels different?
Only a slight change here. Houses are now known as safe houses and Hotels are now known as Headquarters. The pieces themselves are the same color as the Classic Edition though, which is a shame – I think it is nice when they change the colors of these to match the brand or edition.
For example, in the James Bond 50th Anniversary Edition, the houses were white and the hotels were gold in color.
Also read:
How are the dice different?
Whilst the dice are not the cheapest dice I have seen in an edition of Monopoly, they also aren’t very exciting either. But don’t let that fool you!
Whilst they aren’t loaded dice and work perfectly legitimately – they are actually very similar to the dice from the film Octopussy as used in the ‘Lucky Dice’ scene!
Whether this is an Easter Egg in this edition or by chance, I can’t confirm!
How to set up Monopoly James Bond
After deciding who is going to be the Monopoly Banker and setting out the money, title deed cards and making sure both piles of Allies and Enemies cards are well shuffled and placed on the board, you need to make sure the correct money denominations are given to each player.
Firstly, let each player pick one of the James Bond tokens and then give them the following money:
- 2 x M500
- 4 x M100
- 1 x M50
- 1 x M20
- 2 x M10
- 1 x M5
- 5 x M1
After that, roll the dice and off you go! To decide who goes first, perhaps who throws the highest number on a dice roll can help make the decision!
Monopoly James Bond Rules
The rules for Monopoly James Bond are fairly straightforward if you have played the original/classic version of Monopoly before.
There are no different rules than the original game, the winner is the person that is left after all other opponents that are playing have gone bankrupt.
You might have your own techniques or tricks to beat others at the game, well you will be pleased to know that you should be able to use those in this game too – just take a glance at the properties before you start and their corresponding purchase prices.
How to play Monopoly James Bond
As in the standard edition of Monopoly, each player throws two dice when it is their turn and they move the corresponding number of places around the game board.
As you land on each square, you can decide to buy the square in question or if it is already owned you will need to pay another player rent for staying there during that turn.
How to win Monopoly James Bond
The winner of the game is the last person who hasn’t gone bankrupt! As long as you play by the traditional (Classic Edition) rules you will eventually bankrupt everyone else and own the most properties (and cash) on the board. Be careful how much you spend initially and don’t always wait for that one property in the hope of completing it to put Headquarters (hotels) on!
What are the other Monopoly James Bond editions?
The 2020 Edition of James Bond Monopoly brings the latest film, No Time To Die to the game and completes the franchise as of now.
However, there have been other versions of James Bond Monopoly before this one, the most recent one before this was the Spectre Edition and before that the James Bond 50th Anniversary Edition which was gold in color and instead of the Spectre Logo Token was an Aston Martin DBS Car Token.
This edition celebrated 50 years of James Bond and was released in 2012. It coincided with the latest film at the time, Skyfall.
Earlier still was the Monopoly James Bond Ultimate Edition (2008) that celebrated all the films up to and including Quantum of Solace.
Before that was the Monopoly James Bond Collector’s Edition (2006) which was released to coincide with the film Casino Royale – the tokens haven’t changed much since then.
Final Thoughts
I guess this edition of Monopoly is probably only for James Bond lovers – but as a popular worldwide film franchise, there will be a lot of those!
Whilst I know a few collectors that have them as part of collecting, I also have seen a fair few owned by friends who use them frequently because they like the slight difference from the standard Classic Edition of Monopoly.
One thing is for sure, as a Bond addict I will be getting the next edition as soon as it comes out!
I’ll leave you with one of my favorite James Bond sequences which include Bond fighting Oddjob in Fort Knox!
