Many countries around the world are looking to replace cash with more digitized forms of payment, although those ideas are met with a fair amount of resistance by consumers and financial experts. Now that the popular Monopoly board game is removing cash, the question becomes whether or not the cashless society is coming a lot closer than most people anticipate. Don’t expect Bitcoin to make an introduction in Monopoly soon, though.
Also read: Syscoin to accept Bitcoin payments in its decentralized marketplace
Cashless Monopoly is Not As Much Fun
For those of us who grew up with playing Monopoly as a board game – not the digital version or the app on one’s smartphone, mind you – cash has always been synonymous with hours of family fun. In fact, the board game managed to explain parts of our society quite well: we move along, trying to earn money as we grow older – completing laps around the board – which we then use to pay for housing, and try to stay out of jail.
However, it looks like the paper money in Monopoly is on the way out, and a new form of payment will be introduced. While it is commendable to see board games evolve to these modern standards of making payments, organizing a contactless and cashless economy in a board game might not be the best of moves.
The new breed of Monopoly board game will issue payment cards to players, which they can then tap at an ATM to purchase properties or when collecting rent from their locations. Granted, this is a very modern take on the financial aspect all of us are faced with, yet it remains to be seen how well this translates to a board game.
It is certainly true contactless payments are becoming the new norm in real life as well, thanks to emerging solutions aimed at mobile devices and new payment card technology. However, Monopoly has a multi-decade tradition of revolving around paper money changing hands. This new version is aimed at future generations, rather than those who truly enjoy playing Monopoly the way it is meant to be experienced.
Granted, the Monopoly application for Android and iOS got rid of cash as well as any other physical pieces completely in the past. In the mobile version, cashless options have been introduced since 2007, although the concept was far less prevalent than the physical board game. On the other hand, this removes the banker from the equation, which is something Bitcoin enthusiasts will thoroughly enjoy.
Source: Consumer Research
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