How To Play The Game Of Life Spin To Win? ( Expert Tips )
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The Game of Life Spin to Win game is a great family game by Hasbro. These Game of Life Spin to Win Instructions and expert tips will help you get the most fun from the game. They may even give you the edge to win your next one.
The Game of Life literally leads you through an entire life where you have a career, buy houses, get married and even have kids. The objective is to retire with the most money and live out the rest of your days with the satisfaction that you are the winner.
Lets begin with the instructions on how to play the game of life spin to win game and then at the end I’ll share some expert tips with you.
Table of Contents
How to Setup Game of Life
I am assuming that you have successfully installed the spinner on the board and removed the pegs from their plastic frames. You can use an emery board or fine sandpaper to remove any spurs left on the pegs.
Each player receives:
- One colored car of their choice
- A matching Spin to Win token
- 1 pink or blue peg of their choice
- 1 green pet peg
- 2 x 100k dollar notes
Now separate the five decks of cards into their respective piles and place them near the board. The five decks are:
- House cards
- Action cards
- Career cards
- College career cards
- Pet cards
Nominate one of the players to be the banker. They are responsible for managing payments to and from the bank.
If someone lands on or goes past a payday square then the banker will pay their wages from the bank. If someone runs out of cash then the banker will provide a bank loan.
Now each player must make their first choice of the game. Are they going to choose college or go out and get a job?
The college route will require you to pay 100K in tuition fees but you may get a better paying job. The career route will get income quicker in fact pick the top two cards from the career deck and choose one. That is now your job and you can discard the other one to the bottom of the deck.
Pop your pegs into your car. Tell everyone your backstory, hopes and aspirations and you are ready to start.
How to Play
OK, so you are set up and ready to begin. Youngest goes first.
The game is pretty self explanatory. You have already chosen a College or Career path so place your car on the first square of that path. Your goal now is to reach retirement, enjoy your life.
Spin the spinner and move the number that the spinner lands on. But before you begin it is a good idea to have a look at the different spaces you might land on.
Payday Spaces
Payday spaces are green and if you pass over them then you receive the salary marked on your career card or college career card. If you land on the space then good job, you get 100k bonus in addition to your salary.
Action Spaces
Action spaces are yellow spaces with a yellow ring on them. When you land on one of these, pick up an Action Card from the top of the deck and read it aloud. Once read out, carry out the instructions on the card.
Make sure you keep the card though. It is worth money at the end of the game.
Spin to Win Spaces
One of the most fun spaces to land on, this is an action everyone is involved in. Each player takes their Spin to Win token and places it on a number on the Spin to Win wheel. Players can put their token on the same number if they wish.
If you are the player who landed on the space then take the silver one and place it on a number. You get a double chance at winning!
Now spin the spinner, if it lands on a number that a player has put their token on then they win 200k. If it lands on a number that no tokens are on then spin again until someone wins.
Baby Spaces
Baby spaces have little images of baby pegs on it. Congratulations, if you landed on one of these then you have had a baby. Put the number of pegs shown on the space into your car.
House Spaces
House spaces are indicated by a house and are one of the spaces where you have a choice. You can buy a new house or sell one you purchased previously. You can buy and own multiple houses at the same time.
To buy a house you take two House Cards from the top of that deck. Then choose the house that you want to buy. Pay the bank the purchase price shown on the card. Discard the other card to the bottom of the House Deck.
To sell a house you nominate the house you want to sell. Then spin the spinner. When the spinner stops, look at the inner ring on the inside of the numbers. It is divided into red and black.
You notice on the house card there is a red and black sale price. Typically the red price will get you less than you bought the house for, whilst the black price will make you a profit. Discard the card to the bottom of the House deck and take the money from the bank.
Pet Spaces
Pet spaces are pink with a paw on it and are similar to Action spaces. Draw a card from the Pet deck, read it aloud, then take those actions. As with the Action cards, keep Pet Cards as they are worth money at the end.
STOP! Spaces
Stop spaces work slightly differently. Even if you have spun a number that will take you past a Stop! Space you must stop on the space.
Once you have finished completing the actions on a STOP! Space you must spin the spinner again and move that number of spaces.
There are several types of STOP! Space and here is a description of each.
Graduation STOP!
If you have chosen the college route, congratulations you have graduated. You now get to pick a career. Take two cards from the top of the College Career card deck. Choose a card and then discard the other to the bottom of the deck.
Get Married STOP!
When you stop on this space you have gotten married. Take a peg in the color of your choice to represent a husband or wife. Now place it in your car.
It is a bit of a celebration and so spin the spinner and check the inner track. If it lands on red then collect 50K. If Black then receive 100K.
Night School STOP!
Night School is slightly different in that it gives you a choice to either go to Night School and get a new career or keep the one you’ve got.
If you decide to chance it for a new career then pay 100K Night School fees and take one card from the College Career deck. You can then choose to keep your current career or take the new College Career card.
Whichever you discard should be placed at the bottom of their deck. When you are ready to move, follow the Night School path.
Paying 100K is a choice and so you can keep your current career and continue as normal with a spin. Move in the direction of the Life Path indicated on the STOP! space.
Family STOP!
This type of STOP! Again gives you a choice but this time in direction on the board. Spin again and move in the direction of your choice. One direction will be the Family Path with the inevitable bambinos, the other is not.
Baby STOP!
This is a simple spin of the spinner and depending on the number you get babies. Take the pegs and pop them in your car.
Risky STOP!
The STOP! Test your risk aversion. Are you willing to take the risky path and win big, careful you can also lose big.
You can take the safe route and play as normal. The choice is yours.
Bank Loans
If you run out of money then you must get a bank loan. The banker will give you a loan certificate and 50K. You can pay these back at any time but you’ll need to pay 60K to clear your debt.
You can choose to just keep these till the end. Each loan will need to be paid back and thus subtracted from your final cash amount.
Talking of banks, if you also play Monopoly then my article How Long Does It Take To Play Monopoly? has some tips that will help you win in record time.
Retirement
As people reach retirement they get to choose which place to retire to. They can choose the Millionaire Mansion or Countryside Acres. Put your car in the space of your choice and wait for the rest to catch up.
When you retire the bank will payout a retirement bonus as follows:
| Player to retire | Bonus |
|---|---|
| 1st | 400K |
| 2nd | 300K |
| 3rd | 200K |
| 4th | 100K |
Winning
Wait for everyone to finish and then each player will calculate their final balance sheets as follows:
- Sell your houses and take the sum from the bank.
- Collect 100K for each Action Card you have.
- Collect 100K for each Pet you have.
- Collect 50K per baby.
- If you have any loans then you must pay the bank 60K per loan.
- Count your cash and the player with the mostest wins.
Expert Tips
OK, let’s move on to my expert tips. This is really a great family game that many will have great memories of playing as children. So I am not sure that getting super competitive is the way to go with this game.
The Game of Life is also a game that is pretty much based on luck. You can do all the right things but if you are unlucky then you still may lose.
However, here are some tips that will help you get ahead and improve your chances of winning.
Always go to College
The Game of Life rewards players with a better salary over the course of the game if you go to college. This usually means that you are better off financially in retirement by paying the 100K up front and taking your salary over the course of the game.
First to Retire is Not Always Best
Being the first to retire may bring you a 400K bonus. However, if there are four players playing then 4th place is guaranteed to earn 100K at retirement. A 300K difference from the first player.
That is only 3 Action Cards or 6 babies. So, by planning on being last and taking the longest route possible you will likely gain more Action Cards. Rack up a few more 100K Action cards than the first player and it will negate their 400K lead.
Also, each player before you would have stopped on the Risky STOP! and either taken the safe route or the risky route. You will have an idea of whether they came out golden or at a loss.
Watch your opponents
Try to keep track of your opponents wealth. If you have a rough idea of what they will finish with then you can plan your strategy accordingly.
When it comes to the Risky STOP! You may not need to take the risk if they are not that far ahead of you. Weigh up your options carefully.
Be flexible
Be ready to change your strategy depending on how the game plays out. This is a game of luck and if your opponents are not having much of it then you should switch.
We have previously mentioned keeping a track of your opponents wealth. If you are falling behind then reacting to this and changing your plan to increase your wealth will ensure you have the best chance.
Conclusion
So, that is how to play the Game of Life Spin to Win. It is one of those games that fill my childhood memories along with the likes of Monopoly, Scrabble and Clue.
I am certainly looking forward to introducing my children to these great family games once they are old enough. I can’t wait to create those happy memories for them too.
I hope you find my expert tips helpful too. Remember though that this is a game foremost for fun. Try not to be too competitive.
Most of all I hope you have many hours of fun and laughter playing the Game of Life Spin to Win!
