The first version of the game was called The Landlord’s Game. Whereas the original goal of the game was to simply accumulate wealth, the goal in the eventual Monopoly version was to own industry and create a monopoly of wealth and influence.

The Landlord's Game originally had two sets of rules, one with tax and another on which the current rules are mainly based. When Parker Brothers first published Monopoly in 1935, the game did not include the less capitalistic taxation rule, resulting in a more aggressive game. Parker Brothers was eventually absorbed into Hasbro in 1991.

The board game Monopoly has its origin in the early 20th century. The earliest known version, known as The Landlord's Game, was designed by Elizabeth Magie and first patented in 1904, but existed as early as 1902.