Author: Zen, PANews

Known for his "businessman mindset," U.S. President Donald Trump has ventured into various fields throughout his career, including real estate, reality TV, vodka, mortgages, the NFL, aviation, bottled water, steaks, and even board games. His business empire is also expanding into the cryptocurrency industry—after making moves in NFTs, DeFi, stablecoins, memecoins, and crypto mining, Trump is now reaching into the realm of blockchain gaming.

According to two insiders cited by Fortune magazine, Trump is collaborating with business partner Bill Zanker to prepare a real estate-themed crypto game centered around his brand, with gameplay similar to "Monopoly Go!" For this "veteran enthusiast," who launched a similar Monopoly board game thirty years ago, releasing a digital version of Monopoly with the backing of blockchain and cryptocurrency is both unexpected and yet seems to be in line with his business trajectory, indeed bringing a wave of excitement to the long-quiet blockchain gaming sector.

Real Estate Tycoon Trump: A Longtime Fan of Monopoly

In May 1989, Donald Trump collaborated with the classic board game company Milton Bradley to launch the board game "Trump: The Game," inspired by Monopoly and Trump's own career as a real estate mogul. Milton Bradley, then president of the company, stated that the game was set against a backdrop of high-stakes gambling, trading, and Trump's bestselling book "The Art of the Deal," released in 1987. Trump also filmed television commercials for the game, promoting the slogan, "It's not whether you win or lose, but whether you win!"

Before the official release of "Trump: The Game," Trump announced at a promotional event that he would donate an undisclosed portion of the game's revenue to charity for research on cerebral palsy and AIDS, as well as to help the homeless. The game, priced at $25, was initially projected by Trump and Milton Bradley to sell 2 million copies, but ultimately only sold 800,000, far below expectations.

The reasons for this shortfall include the perception that the game, named directly after Trump, was merely a tool for the wealthy to make money, with the public unaware that part of the proceeds would go to charity. Additionally, misleading marketing led many to view it as a knockoff of Monopoly. Trump believed the main issue was the game's overly complex design, with a rulebook exceeding 12 pages, lacking mass appeal. Despite later advertisements stating, "Mr. Trump will donate the proceeds from 'Trump: The Game' to charity," sales remained sluggish. Furthermore, a 2016 report by The Huffington Post indicated that Trump's claims of donating game proceeds to charity could not be verified, and Trump and related entities declined to comment.

In 2004, following the success of Trump's reality show "The Apprentice," Parker Brothers re-released "Trump: The Game." The new version introduced Trump's classic catchphrase from "The Apprentice": "You're fired!" and featured the slogan, "It takes smarts to make a million, but it takes Trump to make a billion." However, even with Trump's celebrity effect, this rehashed game ultimately received a lukewarm response.

It is worth noting that Milton Bradley was acquired by toy and entertainment giant Hasbro in 1984 and merged with another Hasbro subsidiary, Parker Brothers, in 1998. The brand was later abandoned in 2009 in favor of the parent company's name, ultimately rebranded as Hasbro Gaming. Therefore, the IP for this Trump-authorized board game should belong to Hasbro.

"I have always thought Monopoly is a great game, and many people are interested in it," Trump, a "true fan" of Monopoly, attempted to launch a primetime reality show based on Monopoly in 2006. Trump was set to collaborate with documentary producer RJ Cutler, with Hasbro as a partner in the project. However, the plan quietly fell through during development, with no television network purchasing it, and no official program name or episode count was announced.

Returning to the Monopoly Board After More Than Thirty Years, Now Based on Crypto Technology

Now, Trump is returning to the Monopoly board, but this time he is bringing it to the blockchain.

According to Fortune, multiple sources have revealed that Trump is working with his business confidant Bill Zanker to develop a crypto-based real estate-themed game, expected to launch by the end of April this year. The game is an adaptation of "MONOPOLYGO!" where players move pieces on a virtual Monopoly board and build structures in a digital city to earn game currency.

Insiders indicate that Zanker is the driving force behind this blockchain gaming project and initially planned to launch it before the inauguration of the 47th president. Zanker is considered Trump's "guide" into the cryptocurrency industry, having been instrumental in the launch of Trump's NFT project.

Zanker recalled that when he suggested Trump launch NFTs in early 2022, Trump was intrigued by the idea of "former president art image NFTs" but was reluctant to use the term "NFT," preferring to call it "digital trading cards on the computer." By the end of that year, Zanker pushed the idea again, and Trump readily agreed, saying, "Many friends told me I shouldn't do it, but I like it, so let's go for it."

In Trump's memecoin project TRUMP, Zanker also played a significant role. According to the memecoin's website, the remaining tokens after the ICO are held by CIC Digital LLC and Fight Fight Fight LLC, accounting for 80% of the total supply. Zanker is listed as the primary contact in the registration documents for "Fight Fight Fight LLC."

Regarding the specific details of the crypto gaming project, Zanker's spokesperson Kevin Mercuri only revealed that they are developing a "game." Mercuri denied claims that the game would bear any resemblance to "Monopoly Go," stating that such information is merely "rumors." Previously, the entity responsible for Trump's trademarks, DTTM Operations, applied to extend Trump's name to various virtual products and NFT-related services. However, Mercuri declined to disclose whether these trademark applications are directly related to the project or how blockchain functionality will be integrated into the gameplay.

Additionally, whether the upcoming blockchain game will be based on the 30-year-old "Trump: The Game" remains uncertain.

Sources indicate that last May, Zanker approached Hasbro to negotiate the repurchase of the IP for "Trump: The Game." However, Hasbro informed Zanker that it no longer owned the rights to the game, which has been around for over 30 years. Nevertheless, according to Fortune, a spokesperson for Hasbro, the original developer of the Monopoly board game, stated that the company has not licensed the Monopoly IP to any organization associated with Trump for cryptocurrency investment.

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