The Game of Life Rules
The Game of Life is the classic board game that simulates a person's journey from early adulthood through retirement. Choose your path: go to college or start a career, get married, buy a house, have kids, and try to retire with the most wealth!
Last updated: Feb 2026
Objective
The Game of Life simulates a journey from early adulthood through retirement. Players travel along a winding track in small plastic cars, making decisions about education, careers, marriage, family, home purchases, and investments.
The goal is to retire with the most combined wealth (cash + Life Tile values). The player with the highest total at the end wins!
Setup
- Assemble the board: attach buildings, mountains, and bridge to their marked positions.
- Set up the spinner in its designated hole on the board.
- Separate and shuffle all card decks: Career Cards, Salary Cards, House Deed Cards, and Stock Cards. Place them face down near the board.
- Shuffle all 25 Life Tiles and place them Life-side up (value hidden) as a draw pile. Take 4 Life Tiles and stack them at Millionaire Estates without looking at their values.
- Place all money, insurance policies, and bank loan notes in the banker's tray.
- Choose a Banker (who can also play).
- Each player receives $10,000 from the bank.
- Each player chooses a car and places one person peg (pink or blue) in the driver's seat.
- Spin to determine turn order: highest number goes first, then play clockwise.
College or Career?
Before your very first spin, you must make the most important decision of the game:
Option A: Start a Career (Skip College)
- Place your car on the START CAREER space.
- Draw 1 Career Card (reject any marked "Degree Required" and redraw).
- Draw 1 Salary Card at random.
- Spin and move normally.
Option B: Go to College
- Place your car on the START COLLEGE space.
- Borrow $40,000 from the bank to pay tuition.
- You do NOT get a career or salary yet.
- When you reach the Job Search space, draw 3 Career Cards and 3 Salary Cards, then choose the best of each.
- College graduates can pick careers marked "Degree Required" (Doctor, Lawyer, etc.).
How to Play
On each turn:
- Before spinning, you may optionally: buy a Stock Card ($50,000), purchase Insurance, take out or repay Bank Loans.
- Spin the wheel (1-10). If it lands between two numbers, spin again.
- Move your car forward the exact number of spaces (always forward).
- If you land on an occupied space, move to the next open space ahead.
- Follow the instructions for the space you land on.
Space Types
- Green (Pay Day) — Collect your salary when you land on or pass over this space. You collect every time you pass one!
- Orange/Red (STOP) — You MUST stop here even if you have moves left. Follow the instructions, then spin again.
- Blue — Optional. You may follow the instructions or ignore them.
- Standard spaces — Follow the printed instructions: collect money, pay money, earn Life Tiles, pay other players, etc.
Careers & Salary
Your career determines special abilities, and your salary determines how much you earn at each Pay Day.
Careers Requiring a Degree
- Doctor — Highest-paying potential
- Lawyer
- Accountant — Collects from other players on tax spaces
- Teacher — Earns money when others land on school fee spaces
Careers Without a Degree
- Police Officer — Collects $5,000 from any player who spins a 10
- Entertainer
- Salesperson — Collects $5,000 when another player buys stock or insurance
- Athlete
- Artist — Collects $10,000 from any player who spins a 1
Salary Range
Salary Cards range from $20,000 to $100,000. College graduates draw 3 and pick the best; non-college players draw 1 at random.
Career Change
If you land on a Career Change / Night School space, draw 2 new Career and Salary Cards and choose whether to switch. If you land on "Lose Your Job", you must change career and salary.
Marriage
When you reach the Get Married space (a mandatory STOP space):
- Add one spouse peg to your car.
- Take 1 Life Tile from the draw pile.
- Spin for wedding gifts:
- Spin 10, 9, or 8 — Each other player pays you $10,000
- Spin 7, 6, or 5 — Each other player pays you $5,000
- Spin 4, 3, 2, or 1 — You receive nothing
- Spin and continue moving.
When you land on a Baby space:
- Add 1 peg to your car.
- Collect $5,000 from each other player as a gift.
- Take 1 Life Tile.
When you land on a Twins space:
- Add 2 pegs to your car.
- Collect $5,000 from each other player.
- Take 1 Life Tile.
Your car has 6 peg holes total (driver + up to 5 family members). At retirement, you collect $10,000 per child from the bank.
Buying a House
Starter Home (Early Game)
When you reach the Buy a Starter Home STOP space:
- Choose a Starter Home Deed card and pay the listed price.
- If you can't afford it, you must borrow from the bank.
Upgrading (Mid/Late Game)
When you reach the Buy a House space:
- Sell your current home back to the bank at its selling price.
- Draw a new House Deed and pay the purchase price.
- You can never own two houses at the same time.
Consider buying Homeowner's Insurance to protect against floods, tornadoes, and theft events on the board.
Life Tiles are a key scoring mechanic. There are 25 tiles, each with a hidden dollar value ($10,000 to $50,000+) on the underside.
How to Earn Life Tiles
- Land on a Life Tile space
- Get Married
- Have a Baby or Twins
- Retire at Countryside Acres
Important Rules
- Never look at the value side during the game.
- If the draw pile runs out, take 1 tile from any opponent — except players retired at Countryside Acres (their tiles are protected).
- At game end, flip all tiles and add their values to your cash total.
Stocks
- Buy 1 Stock Card for $50,000 at the start of any turn.
- Choose a number. Whenever any player spins that number, collect $10,000.
- You may only own 1 stock at a time (unless you land on "Stock Market Zooms").
Insurance
- Automobile Insurance — $10,000. Covers car accidents and theft.
- Homeowner's Insurance — Cost varies. Covers floods, tornadoes, theft.
- When a space requires payment for an insured event, the bank pays instead of you.
Bank Loans
- Borrow $20,000 per loan note at any time during your turn.
- Repay $25,000 per loan ($20,000 + $5,000 interest).
- All loans must be repaid at retirement.
Retirement & Winning
When you reach the Retirement space, STOP immediately.
- Repay all bank loans with interest ($25,000 each).
- Sell your house back to the bank at its selling price.
- Return Career, Salary, Pay Raises, and Insurance cards.
- Keep your Stock Cards (still earn dividends).
- Collect $10,000 per child from the bank.
Choose Your Retirement Home
- Millionaire Estates — High risk, high reward. The richest player here gets the 4 reserved Life Tiles at game end. But your Life Tiles are NOT protected from theft.
- Countryside Acres — Safe choice. Receive 1 extra Life Tile, and your tiles are fully protected from other players.
Winning
Once all players have retired, everyone flips their Life Tiles and adds the values to their remaining cash. The player with the highest total wins!
Special Cards
Frequently Asked Questions
You collect your salary whenever you land on OR pass over a green Pay Day space. You collect every time you pass one, even multiple times in a single turn.
You do not lose or get eliminated. You must take out bank loans ($20,000 each) to cover any required payments. Each loan costs $25,000 to repay ($20,000 + $5,000 interest).
Yes. The Buy a House space is a mandatory STOP space. You must draw a House Deed and pay the price. If you cannot afford it, you must borrow from the bank.
Yes, but it is harder. College graduates have access to higher-paying careers and draw 3 Career/Salary Cards to choose from versus 1. However, skipping college avoids tuition debt and gets you earning faster.
No. Looking at Life Tile values during the game is against the rules. You only reveal them at the very end when calculating final scores.
You take 1 Life Tile from any opponent of your choice. However, players retired at Countryside Acres are immune — their tiles cannot be taken.