A Lifer's Diary, Part 14: Another Semi-Enhanced Game?

A Lifer's Diary, Part 14: Another Semi-Enhanced Game?

Having come up with a suggestion for a "semi-enhanced" rule set for my Spinner Wheel set based on Generation II of the Game of Life, I  now feel confident enough to do the same for Generation III. Here's how I'd do it.

General

The rule set will be based on the original "Classic" version, but it will also incorporate some aspects from the Enhanced Play option available in the 2008 video game adaptation. Further details are provided below.

Share the Wealth and Special Effect Cards

These will be retained as-is; however, in addition to receiving a Share The Wealth Card when landing on a Share the Wealth space, players must also draw a Special Effect Card that takes effect immediately. They will be simulated by a single spin of the movement wheel (1-10) as follows:

• 1: Lose the Debt - Decrease your debt by $25,000.
• 2: Give the Debt - Increase any opponent's debt (including interest) by $25,000.
• 3: Shared Memories - Take a Life Tile from any opponent, if possible.
• 4: Job Exchange - You may trade your current Career Card (regardless of its type) with any opponent, if possible; however, if you choose to trade Careers with another player, both players must lose all of their previously accumulated Pay Raises and return them to the bank.
• 5: House Exchange - You may trade your Starter Home/House with an opponent, if possible.
• 6: Free Pay Raise - Take a Pay Raise from an opponent, if possible.
• 7: Lucky Spin x2 - Starts a Spin to Win in which you may select two numbers, but all other players may only choose one each, regardless of whether or not they currently have any Spin to Win Share the Wealth Cards of any types.
• 8: Lucky Spin x4 - As above, but you may choose from four numbers instead of two.
• 9: Half Salary Bonus - Receive 50% of your current salary from the bank.
• 10: Spin Again - Self explanatory. Spin again until a number less than 10 is spun.

Some of these options were not present in the video game adaptation, but I added them anyway to spice things up further.

Wedding Gifts

I could use either leave it unchanged from the Classic Mode ruleset, or use the Generation II Enhanced Game rules regarding wedding gift amounts, which are as follows depending on the number spun:

• 1-2: $0
• 3-4: $5,000
• 5-6: $10,000
• 7-8: $15,000
• 9-10: $20,000

Baby Gifts

These would remain unchanged from the Classic Mode ruleset for Generation III, with one exception: any player who adds twins to their family would receive $10,000 from every other player, instead of the usual $5,000.

College Career Choice

Unlike in the video game, this aspect will not be randomized; instead, I will use the Classic Mode rules for College Career Choice, both for the start of a game (for players who chose to go to college at the start) and when changing careers after returning to school.

Special Abilities

Although I have already mentioned these in an earlier post in this series, I'll explain them again, just to remind ourselves of how they would work:

• Salesperson: Receive 25% of the price of any Starter Home or House purchased by another player.
• Mechanic: Receive $10,000 whenever you overtake (or are overtaken by) another player. If one of your opponents overtakes another, collect $10,000 each from both of them.
• Hair Stylist: Whenever an opponent adds a child, spin to determine the baby gift you receive from them. The amount earned is the same as for wedding gifts in the Classic Mode rule set ($0 for 4 or below, $5,000 for 5 through 7, and $10,000 for 8 and above).
• Police Officer: Collect $5,000 from any opponent who spins a 10.
• Entertainer: Receive a Pay Raise when two identical numbers greater than 7 (i.e., 8, 9, or 10) are spun on consecutive turns.
• Athlete: Receive two Pay Raises (instead of one) when passing over or landing on a Pay Raise space. In addition, retaining this Career after returning to school will earn three Pay Raises instead of two.
• Teacher: Does not have to pay for children's tuition fees (i.e., any Pay space in which the payment's size is solely dependent on the number of children belonging to the player who landed on it), or for returning to school.
• Computer Designer: Allows the player to select one additional number during Spin to Win (except during the Lucky Spin special effect).
• Accountant: Cannot pay taxes or receive a tax refund, but will collect $10,000 from the bank when any opponent pays taxes.
• Veterinarian: Receive a Life Tile when landing or passing a Pay Raise space, taking from an opponent if necessary (unless, for whatever reason, there are no other players to take Life Tiles from).
• Lawyer: Gains $50,000 more and loses $50,000 less from Lawsuits. In addition, if one opponent successfully sues another, that player must also pay the Lawyer $10,000.
• Doctor: Exempt from any and all medical expenses. Note that this only takes effect if a Doctor lands on any one of several spaces on the board, and any opponent who lands on any of these spaces must pay the Doctor instead of the bank (unless no player has that Career Card).

Starter Home and House Values

All Starter Homes and Houses must now have a resale value 25% greater than their original purchase price; however, they will no longer be chosen at random when someone purchases them.

Lawsuits

With the exception of the Lawyer's special ability mentioned above, Lawsuits will remain unchanged from the Classic Mode ruleset.

Career Choices

These will remain completely unchanged from the Classic Mode ruleset, right down to the ability to retain your current Career Card if none are available, at the expense of having to return all of your Pay Raises (if you still have any) to the bank.

Spin to Win

This will generally follow the rules used in Classic Mode, with the only changes being those that I have mentioned above.

Pay Raises

Again, this mechanic will be almost identical to what it was in Classic Mode (except for the Athlete's special ability), for simplicity's sake. However, there will now be provision for an additional rule in which any player who lands exactly on a Pay Day space (as opposed to simply passing over it) will receive an additional Pay Raise. This bonus may also stack with the Athlete's special ability, if it is implemented.

Conclusion

Among the changes I would make to the Generation III Game of Life ruleset, the ones listed above are the most significant. I could implement additional rules if I wanted to, but for now, this is as much meddling that I could get away with before it starts to become too unwieldy for my Generation III Spinner Wheel set.