The Game of Life®: The Wizard of Oz™ 75th Anniversary Collector’s Edition Review

Who would have thought, that USAopoly could have combined two of my favorite things, the board game The Game of Life, and my favorite movie of all time, The Wizard of Oz.  That’s exactly what they did, and I am thankful for it.

I have always been an avid board game and card game type of individual growing up.  The hardest part I had was getting people to play with me, especially in Monopoly, I was ruthless in that game!  However my second favorite game had to be The Game of Life, a lot of it depended on the spin of the wheel, getting the right occupations, and generally some good luck collecting the life cards for the end of the game.

So how does it look?  I think the graphics on the board are fantastic and vibrant, the included pieces for the board were well thought out, instead of the mansion and the house at the end of the regular game of life, you have the Emerald City, and Dorothy’s house instead.  Instead of the Car, you have a pair of ruby red slippers, and the spinner has a Wizard of Oz feel to it as well.

How does it play?, the game rules are not that far off of standard Life rules, but instead of Careers, you get to be a character in the game, like when I played, I had the unfortunate luck of drawing the flying monkey, which paid the least and had a max pay cap on it too.  The one to get is Glinda the Good Witch, $100,000 each pay day, and no max on increases along the way.  The different action cards, allowed you to switch your character with that of another, and other surprises that can change the outcome of the game.  I don’t want to give too much away, because I want you to enjoy it for yourself, when you buy your copy.

I brought the game with me to my wife’s parents house, as we were celebrating Father’s Day for her Dad.  My wife, myself, my sister-in-law Cindy, and my mother-in-law, all played.  You can play from 2-6 people, but 4 would suffice this time around.  The game lasted about 40 minutes, and I got my butt kicked by my sister-in-law.

Here are some screenshots of the game in action:

Pros:  It’s a Wizard of Oz themed Game of Life board game (just awesome in itself), brings elements from the movie into play and makes it fun, great for kids and adults, after put together for the first time, stores easily in the box it came in.

Cons:  I lost my first game playing.  (not really a con, but I hate to lose!)

Definitely a “Buy” in my book, would be an excellent addition to your board game collection, and a wonderful change of pace for family game nights.   Check out USAopoly on the web, Twitter, and Facebook.