14 (General) Tips and Tricks to Win at the Game of Life!

Last Updated on January 7, 2024 by Gamesver Team and JC Franco

If you plan to haul out the Game of Life at your next family event or social gathering, you might want to brush up on your skills. If you are anything like me, winning is just as important as having fun, so it can’t hurt to have a few tricks up your sleeve to get you to where you want to be: ultimate victory. 

While I have played Game of Life for many years, I must admit that I have not given much thought to the strategies involved. I assumed it was a game based on chance, and because I am a great advocate for fun, that was always enough for me. How surprised I was to learn that I could tweak my gameplay to ensure more wins. And when I say “surprised”, I really mean excited!

Ready to learn how to tweak your gameplay to win at Milton’s Game of Life? Then, read through each of the points below.

These are 14 general tips and tricks to win at the Game of Life:

1. Understand the main object of the game to increase your chances of winning.

Before you even sit down to play, make sure that you understand the main objective of the game. Of course, that is to get as much money as possible by the end. If you know what the goal is, you can work towards it with greater ease.

2. Know the rules of Game of Life by heart to win more.

You can’t use the game rules to your advantage, if you do not know what they are. It is important to read through all of the game rules and know precisely what you have to do in every single scenario that might crop up on the board. You know what they say; “knowledge is power”.

3. Enforce the rules of the game to ensure that others don’t cheat.

The next step, after learning the rules by heart, is to watch for other players making mistakes. If someone breaks a rule, make sure that they know it and that there is a consequence. Enforcing the rules can stop others from trying to be sneaky and can ensure a win that you would otherwise not get.

4. Know that you do not have to get married and have children to win at Game of Life.

You might start the game and think that there are things that you have to in order to get to the end of the game. Just like in real life, there is no actual set template…even if everyone else is doing it. If you want to win, focus on your own game and play it the way it feels right for you. 

5. Be sneaky – encourage other players to make bad choices in the game to lower their chances of beating you.

There are a few strategies that can make winning easier, but you do not want to share these with your opponents. Instead, keep them to yourself and encourage them to make moves that will make winning less easy for them. Yes, it is a sneaky move, but it is not cheating and it will get you ahead.

6. Pass up on buying a house and pay rent instead to save on expenses.

If you buy a house, you will pay out a chunk of money. If you decide not to buy a house and pay rent instead (every time you spin a 2 or 3). By choosing to not buy a house, you can actually save a lot of money. 

7. Go to college – the paydays earn more money than first retirement money.

It is a common misconception that missing college is better for your gameplay because it takes fewer tiles to reach retirement first (which means more money). However, going to college is a better choice because you earn more on every payday, which can amount to a great deal more than the amount attached to retiring first.

8. It is not worth buying car insurance in the Game of Life as it costs almost as much as the car accident tiles.

Car insurance seems like a waste of money in the game. Usually, there are only 4 car accident tiles, and if you run into any of them, they don’t cost much more than the actual insurance. It is better to take your chances and skip on the insurance. It could save you a lot of money in the end.

9. Buy stock cards when playing the Game of Life because you could earn 3 times their value.

Buying stock cards is an investment, but it is also like buying lottery tickets. Anytime another player spins your number, you win/earn a bit chunk of money. You can, by the end of the game, earn up to 3 times the amount you spend on the stock cards. That seems like a worthy investment to me. 

10. Getting married can be lucrative in the Game of Life as you earn Life card points.

10 out of the 11 “get people” cards are also life tiles. So, at the end, when you have to pay an amount for every person in your card, you will have already earned enough in extra life points. Getting married allows you to have a spouse, children, and grandchildren – there are a lot of life cards just waiting for you to claim. 

11. Have good morals throughout the Game of Life as these are rewarded.

When playing Game of Life, you will have the opportunity to show you have good morals, such as helping the homeless, recycling trash, and so on. Every time you do this, you earn life cards and stand to earn some money. It can be quite lucrative to be a good person!

12. Do not take the “lottery” space at the end as it could cause your downfall.

Towards the end of the game, there is a lottery play square. The player who lands on the Lottery square is allowed to pick 3 numbers while the other players pick 1. Then the player whose number comes up in the lottery wins the lottery amount. At this point of the game, if you are in the lead, it is a good idea to skip on the lottery as it could push one of your opponents ahead of you. If you want to skip this turn, you can choose to draw a Life card instead.

13. Do not try to cheat as it could result in you losing.

Trying to find loopholes and trying to cheat will only distract you from the actual gameplay and most often puts the player on the back foot. It is a far better strategy to stick to the rules and be aware of what your opponents are doing around you. Cheating is just a waste of time. 

14. Have fun.

One of the best ways to win at Game of Life is to relax, unwind, and have fun. You may find that when you are not focusing on winning and are focusing on having fun and connecting with your friends/family, you win more easily too. That is strictly a personal experience, though. 

Everything considered

Who knew that the tricks to winning at the Game of Life board game could be so simple? I certainly did not.

When it comes to board games, winning is fun, but it is not everything. However, I am the type of person that focuses a great deal of attention on actually winning, so I know how it feels to want to win more. If you want to win more, take the time to scrutinize these tips and tricks so that you can increase your chances.

With this in mind, and because the Game of Life is a game of chance, you can’t really do anything that absolutely guarantees a win; but I have found that the above tips and tricks have really made a difference to my gameplay. Good luck and enjoy.