All I ever needed to know about microeconomics I learned from the Hasbro board game Monopoly. I hope that my teacher does not find the above statement too offensive, and put the zero on my paper before he even reads this. Some people, like myself, need practical models in order to understand certain concepts and theories. In our text book The Economy Today it completely ignores the intrinsic value of business decisions because you cant put a numeric value on it. The game Monopoly is all about the numbers. In the game of Monopoly you have goals: The object is to bankrupt all opponents. To do so, you must be dedicated and make each decision with the aim of improving your chances and wiping out your opponents. (Monopoly) In what I will call throughout the paper real life, the goal is the same. Look at the excerpt from an ABC New article called The Virtues of Monopolies. Ten years ago you wouldn't have found Intel's name on a list of the world's top chip makers. You might not even have heard of it at all. But even back then, it had the mind-set of the monopolist. Today, Intel is virtually alone in the production of microprocessors. Its share of the worldwide market exceeds 79%. Its nearest rival, AMD, has just 11% of the business. What makes Intel the world's greatest manufacturer (not the world's greatest technology companya silly pigeonhole not worthy of the firm's pre-eminence) is its understanding of how to think like a true monopolist. It doesn't want to be beaten at anything. (Cramer)I think the game gives some excellent examples of microeconomic theories such as Barriers to entry.Our book discusses many barriers to entry. It defines a barrier to entry as Obstacles that make it difficult or impossible for would-be producers to enter a particular market. (Schiller p499) In the game of Monopoly there are also barriers to entry. On the official Hasbro website, and in many books you can find all kinds of strategies for winning the boar...
