Despicable Me 2 Monopoly - Review

I recently placed a pre-order for 2 monopoly sets, not just any monopoly but Despicable Me 2 monopoly with... the popular and well-loved minions included! The recent June holidays was great - I basically watched as many shows as any kid on a holiday break - from Monsters University to Turbo and of course to Despicable Me 2. I had a great time with Dumpling and my mummy friends with the movie play dates.

I have to own up that I love those minions (but not enough to queue over at Mackers for those toys though) but I prefer the plush, bags (yup, ordered one too and waiting for arrival) and... the monopoly set!

I first saw the set while surfing and I later received an email blast from an online spree organizer too. I totally missed out on the deadline and was kinda mad with myself till I saw it at Joli Petite

Dumpling and I had a go at the game over the weekend. Here's our take.

:: Overview 

This set is even simpler (when it comes to the rules) than the Junior set. It states that it's for kids from 5+ and needs adult assembly. However, I think that it should be fine for 4+ too as the rules are pretty straightforward and the 'track' fairly small.

It has a total of 24 'steps' in total on the track with the usual 'jail', 'free parking', etc.

Money wise - it only has denominations of M$1 which is a 'banana buck'.

What it consists of:

• 4 minion tokens
• spinner pod with Nom Nom Tom minion
• game track
• game tray (plus 2 clips)
• 16 Cupcake tokens
• 8 Ice-Cream Sundae tokens
• 16 Property cards
• 16 Chance cards
• Banana Bucks and game guide

:: Design

The design is very true to the story where it features various elements from the story - from The Girls Room, to The Pyramid to Lucy's Car and to... The Moon (from the first movie).

Now, instead of just a traditional board, for this set, the board has somewhat a 'tiered' design where it features an arena with other minions on the side 'cheering on' as the base.

Now, what's the arena used for? Instead of a die, it uses a 'top' where the player spins and the number of steps to move will depend on the number the top points to. What's different about it? Check out the spinner - aka Nom Nom Tom minion

:: Game rules

For 2-4 players, the aim of the game is similar to the traditional fast-dealing property version - to get as many banana bucks as possible. This is done through the 'collection' of money from the other players who land on your property.

Now, with the purchase of 1 property, a cupcake is placed on the board. If you managed to buy property of the same color, your cupcake gets 'upgraded' to a sundae which yields you more banana bucks collected from the other players if they were to land on them (see picture above).

:: What I like about it

Clearly this game rides on the popularity of the movie and the minion fever. The characters and design are wonderfully 'true' - check out the details on the minions below :)

I love the chance cards and how they relate back to the movie and how some are a tad 'villianous'...

:: What I feel could have been done better

Like all monopoly sets, I like that this board game allows the kiddo to learn counting on but unlike the other sets, the denomination of the Minion currency is just set to M$1. 

I feel that this is a pity as it would have been wonderful for the children to have the chance to work on simple subtraction and addition of money.

Another thing which annoys me is that the minion keeps falling off from the top! Every 2 spins definitely guarantees him falling off.

Overall, an entertaining board game with lovely illustrations and cute references to the movie and characters. Dumpling and I played it twice over the weekend so she does enjoy it a lot. Definitely a keeper for fans :)

No haze indoor fun - Friday Five!

With the weekend around the corner and the haze NOT going away anytime soon, here's some activities to keep your little ones engaged!

1) Cardboard FUN - Make a robot photo frame for dad to bring to work! 
Total activity time: approx. 1 hour 

Dumpling did this craft at Kids' Gallery booth at the recent SmartKids Asia. You can easily replicate it too!

Look for boxes around the house - all you need is just one box which is one a good size. Use the flaps for the neck and arms and the sides for the face and body. Cut out a rectangle from the flap for a body and paint over. Embellish with buttons, sequins, felt and draw on the eyes.

2) Bring out all the old toys and set up a shop! 

Total activity time: approx. 60 mins - 90mins (depending on number of kids, items sold, etc. ;p) 

Nothing beats imaginative play - start digging through the storeroom and bring out "old toys" / cookery set. You will be amazed how much fond memories it brings back for both you and the kiddos!

3) Make a easy and healthy fruit juice Popsicle! 
Total activity time: approx. 30 mins 

If you have fresh fruit juice, all the more better. If you do not, you can use ready ones sold in cartoons. Get your kiddo to use a wooden / plastic knife (children should be supervised at all times!) to help with the cutting of fruits where you can add to the juice that extra yummilicious fruity bite!

4) Dig for kits!

Total activity time: approx. 30 - 40 mins to excavate and another 15 mins to wash and assemble 

I do not know about you but Dumpling has received many many kits over the years - from Art kits to Science kits and to Excavation kits for her birthdays. I have a habit of not using them immediately but instead, keep them for a 'rainy' day. Well, while we certainly can do with some rain now but this hazy period is certainly an apt time to use them. :) 

No kits? No problem - here's a simple science experiment you can do with just an egg and some vinegar! 

5) Games and Puzzles!

Total activity time: approx. 30 - 60 mins for each game 

Toys such as board games, puzzles, etc., are often the best in engaging the little ones where it helps to also nurture their imagination and creativity. 

 In the meantime, stay healthy and safe during this period - load up on water and Vitamin C and, keep your windows closed!

I have a need, a need for S-P-E-E-D!

Following from the earlier guest posts by Pamela Tan of MyFirstGames, I tried my hands at a couple of games with Dumpling!

Dumpling has played simple games like Zingo and some basic board games and has enjoyed them so far. After chatting with Pamela, one of the games she suggested was Spot it!.

Spot it! is a game that is built for speed. The recommended age is actually from 7 years old but when I opened it, I found it to be pictorial based and the game, simple enough even for preschoolers.

Fast eyes coupled with fast hands - there is always one and only one matching symbol between ANY 2 CARDS in this game. So, Spot it! and the player wins.

For such a simple game, I thought that there was perhaps only 1 - 2 ways to play it. So, it was a pleasant surprise when Pamela shared a few ways of playing this (as elaborated below).

The simplest game (Game #1 - The Tower) is of course to distribute a card to each player (max. of 8 players) to start off and the remaining cards are placed in the centre. Each player has a turn to flip over a card from the centre deck and the player that is the quickest at spotting the same symbol "wins" that card and adds it to his/her collection. So, the winner would be the player that collects the most cards.

For older children, one can reverse the strategy. Instead of "collecting" to win, the players can spot the symbol in the centre deck against the other player(s) deck to "add on" to his opponents' pile of cards (Game #4 - The Poisoned Gift). In this way, the objective of the game is to have as few cards as possible.

And so, some of these card and board games became part of our family time where we got the gramps involved too. :)

Family time: Grandma showing and explaining the "rules of engagement" to Dumpling :p

Here Dumpling did a trial run of the game as she was unconvinced that there is a common symbol between any 2 cards. LOL

Errrrmmm... where is the common symbol?!? AHA! I found it!

The game was simple and the use of symbols made it easy for any kids to catch on. What would be useful when you play it is to go through the symbols together to come up with and agree on a common name. An instance of this is where the gramps would call a particular symbol "bull's eye" while I call it "target". 

On the whole, we enjoyed the game tremendously. The game was fast and it added a lot of "squealing moments of delight" to our family time in the evenings. The game also trains the little one to pay attention to details and she also developed her own way of looking for the similarities between cards. The game is also very compact as the cards are nicely tucked away in a small circular metal tin. This makes it very presentable as a gift too.

Retailing at an attractive price of $24.90, this popular game is currently out of stock (no surprise there!). However, Pamela Tan is taking pre-orders so do email her to reserve yours!

Best of all, from now till 31 July, readers who quote "SMB-BEANIENUS" will receive a 10% off your purchases (not applicable on delivery and shipping). So take the chance to stock up on some early X'mas shopping! :)

Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated to MyFirstGames or have been compensated to write about this review. I also do not get any renumeration from any sale that MyFirstGames may have from this review. The games were loaned to us and all opinions are based on our experiences and 100% my own.