Own a piece of Corner Brook with Corner Brook-opoly

CORNER BROOK — Have you ever wanted to own property on Broadway in Corner Brook? Well, now you can own all of Broadway, or at least pretend you do, when you play a new game that features landmarks and locations in Corner Brook.

Corner Brook-opoly, the latest edition of Outset Media’s Monopoly-styled games, is on the shelves at the Corner Brook Walmart.

Jean Paul Teskey, senior vice-president of Outset Media, said board games have made a big resurgence lately and their popularity has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Board games will always be a standby because you can’t replace the social interaction of having face-to-face time with family and/or friends with a screen.”

Teskey’s family has been breaking out board games, card games and even puzzles during the past few months.

“Just to get away from tech for a bit and be social. We certainly need that social time, especially in this day and age.”

Outset Media has been making Monopoly-styled games based around communities in Canada for more than a year.

Teskey said a company Outset Media works with had been granted rights in perpetuity to use the Opoly name and Monopoly-style of play for games like this. Walmart Canada was aware of the deal and asked if the company would help create a line of games celebrating Canadian communities.

“And the program has exploded this year. We’re up to almost 100 different communities across the country.”

Corner Brook is the third community in this province to have a version of the game. Earlier versions feature St. John’s and Gander.

The game features some well-known streets — Broadway, Mount Bernard Avenue and O’connell Drive — and business — Whalen’s Gate, Flynn’s Pub and the Valley Mall. Players will also find the Rotary Arts Centre, Marble Mountain, local parks, schools and the Corner Brook caves in there.

“We try to just make it really fun and interesting,” said Teskey.

To keep it accurate, the company relies on Google checks and, if there are any questions, they’ll call the different places.

Corner Brook resident Mark Bennett has been a board game enthusiast for about 10 years.

“A board game gives you a social experience. You get to sit and chat with your friends and you still sit down and you play a game.”

It’s a different experience from playing online video games, he says.

“You just can’t beat a sit down faceto-face with another person.”

Bennett has a collection of about 75 board games, recently downsized from more than 100. He’s played Monopoly in the past and has owned a few versions. He calls it a cut-throat game.

“You strive to be the winner. You’re striving to be above the other players and you’re trying to be number one out of it and eliminate everyone else.”

He’s more into games like Forbidden Island, where it’s all the players versus the game itself.

“So, you work as a team, you win as a team or you lose as a team.”

When asked about his favourite, he said, “That’s like asking me which one of my children are my favourites.”

He likes the Tiny Epic series, which are expansive games that come in tiny boxes that could fit in a pocket and, while he’s not sure if this is the most appropriate time for it, he also enjoys the board game Pandemic.

He’s seen the advertisements for the Corner Brook-opoly and will probably pick one up.

“Just to say I have it.”

He’ll likely keep it in the wrap and just show it off. Bennett said the game could take off or it could disappear.

“Either way I could say, ‘Hey, I’ve got a piece of Corner Brook history right here. It actually became a version of Monopoly.’”