As a kid, I used to love playing Monopoly with friends and family. Its combination of classic board-game fun and cut-throat boardroom capitalism made it the perfect accompaniment to growing up in 1980's Britain. So when I had the chance to test Monopoly Here & Now, I leaped at the opportunity to revisit my old haunts: Bond Street, Mayfair and Marylebone.

Monopoly Here & Now is an updated edition of the popular classic, featuring the same reliable gameplay and board, with updated locations, utilities and situations. For example, the likes of "Go back to Old Kent Road" in the London edition have disappeared, to be replaced with problems surrounding credit card bills, legal fees and trust funds. Naturally, the amount of money dealt with at every stage in the game is quite different too: you can't buy a property for $60 like in the old days.

The design of the game is immediately familiar, but includes numerous new elements such as animated characters and pieces. Actually, the animations start to become slightly annoying after about five minutes (and you can't deactivate them in the options menu). The music and sound effects which permeate the game can be deactivated, which is lucky because they're irritating after about five seconds. Elements of the game like mortgaging and auctions are fairly well implemented, though I was surprised that whenever the computer made a move, the alert window still read "Click on a property you would like to mortgage", making me think I had to do something.

What worried me most about Monopoly Here & Now was the atrociously bad luck I seemed to suffer while playing. I mean - going to jail five times in one game?! Also, it is rather difficult to steal from the bank if the bank is controlled by a computer.

In all seriousness, Monopoly Here & Now is a fun re-telling of the classic game. It is let down somewhat by its repetitive animations and sounds but it'll probably prove more attractive to children who might not understand the use of Fenchurch Street Station or Baltic Street, for that matter.

An amusing, fun new edition of a board game classic, let down only by its sound effects and music. Ideal for families.

Review by Tom Clarke