My favorite kindergartener has discovered The Game of Life
. One quirk about the game is that you sell your children at the end ($50,000 each). As the game does not have cards for becoming a custody plaintiff, collecting child support profits (see the Wisconsin chapter of Real World Divorce for one way to come out ahead), or obtaining government benefits associated with dependent children the rationale behind children being moneymakers is unclear. Was that always part of the game?
Separately the game provides some interesting insights into the thoughts of 5-year-olds regarding the modern style of parenting. Two young neighbors rejected the “family path” in favor of the “life path” so that they would have fewer children. I asked them why they didn’t want to have kids and the response was “too much work.”
There was a time when adult children contributed to the care and housing of their parents. Some even LIVED with them, if you can believe it. I mean, not moving back home, but actually allowing their parents into their (usually better) house as a permanent guest. It boggles the mind.
Or they would pay for their health care, travel, treats… so having children was, at the time of the game, a way to increase your standard of living later in life. The more you had, the more support you would have for the kick-back lifestyle in Florida (or in the guest cottage of their Westchester estate).
(Here in Santa Monica it was so prevelent that the small apartment over the garage is referred to as “a mother-in-law-space.” Properties that have them are coveted now because you can no longer get a permit to make your mother-in-law that comfortable.)
I played the original game “Life” extensively when I was a small child, and yes, you could sell your children at the end. I did not know they had issued a new game, but judging from the reviews, the reboot has problems (such as a spinning wheel that does not work).
The original I remember as a sort of parody of how mid twentieth century middle class Americans viewed life.