How to Play Business Game – Step-by-Step Guide
Business Game is the Indian version of the popular classic board game Monopoly. It’s a fun and competitive game in which players try to buy properties, collect rent, and bankrupt their opponents. It can be enjoyed in groups of 2 to 8 people, especially during festive seasons when families gather after a long time.
The rules of business games are quite easy to understand, but it takes around 2-3 full game plays to get a complete idea of them. Players get to learn about wealth tax, mortgage values, entrepreneur instinct, and many other crucial life skills. If you want to learn how to play a business game, read this article to the end. We’ll cover all business game rules and strategies in detail to help you become a champ in no time.
What is the business game?
The business game is a simple and fun board-based entrepreneur-themed game like teen patti. It can be played in a group of 2 to 8 people, and players try to compete with each other for buying cities, making hotels, collecting rent, and increasing their wealth. Players roll two dice, and based on the outcome, move their representative on the board.
You can land in jail, on other players’ property, chance spaces, in available cities, and more. There are specific business game jail rules to be followed if you get stuck in jail. It’s very similar to Monopoly, but features Indian cities and Indian currency instead. There’s also business international version available in the market, but the rules are more or less similar.
The basic setup of the business game board
To start the game, first you’ll have to open the board booklet and put it on a flat surface. Each player will get a token and place it in the start column on the board. One player will act as banker and give out ₹15,000 to every player. The board has columns or spaces for cities, taxes, community cards, chance cards, jail, and club.
Community and chance cards are shuffled by the banker and placed carefully on the side. The banker must maintain a smooth flow of transactions and manage houses, offices, and unsold property cards. So yeah, that’s the basic setup, now let’s understand the business game rules one by one in detail. With this cleared, now let’s understand how to play business game in detail.
How to play business board game - Step by Step Process & Rules
Once the board is set and players are ready, the game unfolds in the following manner :
1. Roll the dice and start moving
Players take turns one by one to roll the dice. If the outcome is 4, they move their token 4 spaces; if the outcome is 7, they move their token 7 spaces, and so on. As per the business game rules, if you land on an unclaimed or unowned property, you can buy it. If the property is already owned by another player, you’ll have to pay rent as per the yield mentioned on their property card. Whenever you complete a full round on board and pass start, the banker will give you Rs. 1500 as salary. If you somehow and on chance or a community space, you’ll be asked to pick the card from a shuffled deck and follow instructions. It can reward you with money, send you to jail, and more, depending on your luck.
2. Rules for buying and renting properties in the business board game
Every property has its price mentioned on the board. You pay that price to the banker, and they will give you the property title deed card. If you don’t want to buy it, a banker can auction it to other players. Every time you land on your property again, you can increase its rental yield by making houses and offices. If you somehow get all properties of the same color, you can charge double the regular rent. This gets fun and complicated as players try their best not to land on their opponent’s property, and even negotiate a deal if they don’t have enough money.
3. Business game rules and method for upgrading houses on properties
As mentioned above, you can increase the rental yield by building houses and offices, though you must own all properties in a color group. For example, if Delhi, Hyderabad, and Mumbai have blue color property cards, and you own them all, then only you can start building houses and offices. First, you’ll add one house per property, and then upgrade to office 1,2,3,4. It’s the same as a monopoly, where you build hotels instead of an office. The more you build, the higher the rent you can charge.
What is income tax in the business game?
When learning how to play a business game, it’s important to go over income tax rules. In the business game board, there’s a specific box marked as “income tax”. If your token lands on this place, you have to pay a fixed amount ( Rs 2000 ) to the bank.
You can not avoid income tax in the business game; it brings out the real-life aspect and keeps the game engaging. Try to make provisions for such sudden charges to avoid going bankrupt before other players.
What is Wealth Tax in business game?
Just like income tax, there’s a specific space for wealth tax in every
business game board. If you
somehow land in this space, you’ll have to pay a fixed percentage of your total net worth as
tax.
This can be very high as it includes the total value of your properties, houses, offices, and
cash.
Players always try to avoid it, especially if they just bought something big and don’t have enough liquidity to cover this sudden expense. In simple words, wealth tax is a feature of the business game that punishes those who have become too rich too fast.
What are the business game jail rules?
On every business game board, there’s space for Jail. If you roll the dice and land on the space marked “go to jail”, you have to move into the jail box. If you are running low on luck, chance, or community cards can also send you to jail.
Once you are in jail, you can wait for 3 turns to get out, or pay Rs 500 to get out on the next turn, or somehow roll double thrice in a row to escape for free. Or, you may also use the “get out of jail free” card, but it’s quite rare. The biggest drawback is that you can neither collect your salary nor build more houses and offices on the property, which can slow down your momentum.
What are the business game community chest rules?
Community chest has a special purpose and forms a critical part of the business game rules. It’s a dedicated box on board, where you can be both rewarded and punished depending on your luck. When you land on a Community Chest, you have to pick a face-down Community Chest card from the custody of the banker. The card can reward you for winning some contest, ask you to pay for repairs, fine you for breaking some law, send you to jail, or ask you to collect rewards or bonuses from other players. It’s a hit and miss, there’s also a chance card with similar outcomes. So, depending on what card you get, it can increase or hurt your progress.
What is a club in business game?
Club is a special space on the business game board, where the player has to pay fines of Rs. 100 to all other players. Similarly, there’s also a rest house place on the business game board; if you land there, all other players will give you Rs. 100. You can not skip or default on club payments, so do make provision for it in the beginning itself. Business game club rules keep the rounds engaging and challenging.
What is the bank mortgage value in the business game?
Let’s say you have run out of cash and need to pay money to the bank or other players. In that case, you can mortgage your properties. The bank mortgage value in the business game for specific properties is written on the back of the property cards. The bank will pay you the mortgage value, and you can use it to clear your debts and obligations. Once a property is mortgaged, you cannot collect rent on it. To release your property from mortgage, you need to pay back the mortgage amount plus an additional 10% fee as interest to the bank. So yeah, that’s the business game’s rules about mortgage, now let’s take a look at how you can use trading and negotiation for your benefit.
Business game rules: Trading and Negotiation
To succeed in a business game, you must develop good trading and negotiation skills. You can always buy, sell, or trade properties with other players, and even ask them for a loan or get of out-of-jail card. You can make these deals anytime, except when it’s a player’s turn to roll the dice. Smart negotiation is an important aspect of learning how to play the business game. You may not have cash all the time, and making deals during such a situation can help you out for real.
How to play International business game?
To play the business international game, you can buy the “International Business” board from any e-commerce platform or local board game shop. The rules are more or less the same as a normal business game. You can say that international business is closer to the original monopoly because it uses international currency and similar vocabulary.
The End Note: How to win business game ?
According to business game rules, the game can go on until everyone has been eliminated through bankruptcy, and only one player remains in the end, having the highest net worth. But this can prolong to hours and hours, to cut short, sometimes remaining players go for a showdown.
The players with the highest asset and cash value win, and other players are given second or third position. Here are some tips to increase the chances of winning in the business board game :
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Try to color the same colour properties early on, and build houses and offices right away
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Keep cash provisions for income tax, wealth tax, community or chance fines, jail release, and club penalties
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Use the mortgage system smartly to avoid going bankrupt in the early rounds. Try to get out of jail using dice rolls instead of paying cash.
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Once the board is full of expensive properties owned by other players, you can smartly increase your jail time to avoid paying rents.
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Be open for negotiation, and read all business game rules thoroughly to stay afloat till last. This game is all about smart decisions, emotional control, and deal-making.
Frequently Asked Questions
1) Are monopoly and business the same?
No, Monopoly and Business are similar but not the same. Business is the Indian version, with different city names, currency, and a bit simpler indigenous rules.
2) What are the rules for the business game jail?
In jail, players miss turns if they don’t roll a six, pay ₹500, or use a jail-free card. No rent or property actions are allowed till the player gets out of jail.
3) How much money is given in the business game?
Each player typically receives ₹15,000 to ₹20,000 at the start, in different note denominations. Example Rs50,100,200,500,1000, and 10,000. The banker manages the rest of the game’s currency.
4) How to play business board game in India?
Roll the dice, move your token, buy properties, collect rent, build houses/offices, and avoid bankruptcy. Follow Indian cities and currency-based rules with local tax and charge card variations.
5) How does the business board game end?
The game ends when all players except one go bankrupt. The last player with money and properties is declared the winner. If time is less, a showdown can be done; the player with the highest net worth wins.
