Acquire - How to play

The point of Acquire is to make money through buying stock and merging companies. Each player in turn places a tile on the board, then purchases up to three shares of stock then draws a new tile.

The first part of the turn, placing a tile on the board is the most key. Depending on which of his seven tiles the player places, the player may:

• Found a hotel if the new tile is adjacent to another single tile on the board. In this case the player gets a free founder's share of that stock. The tile can not be placed to found a hotel if all seven hotel corporations are already in play.
• Enlarge a hotel if the new tile is adjacent to a pre-existing hotel. This will increase the stock value of the hotel.
• Merge two (or more) hotels if the new tile is adjacent to multiple pre-existing hotels. In this case, the smaller company is acquired by the larger hotel (if both are equal, the player placing the tile decides which is acquired). The stockholder with the most stock in the smaller company gets a president's bonus, and the stockholder with the second most stock gets a vp bonus. Also, each player with stock in the smaller company may choose to trade it in 2-for-1 for the larger's comapany's stock if more is available, sell the stock at the pre-merger price, or hold it expecting the hotel to be re-founded. Note that in a 2-player game, the bank holds a random number of stock (between 1 and 12 shares) of each hotel. The bank counts as another player when determining who has the most and second most stock in the company. The total number of shares between the players and the bank may be more than 25.

The player then purchases up to three total shares of stock of any companies in play.

Finally, the player draws a new tile, and the next player begins his turm.

General Strategy

In the early going, you want to be the president or vp of any companies that get acquired so you can earn more money to purchase more stock. The $6000 you start with only lasts so long, and there comes a point where all players are hurting for money. Buy stock in companies which are near other companies. Make the companies you are not buying stock in larger. Remember; the only way to earn money is to be the president or vp of an acquired company, unless you sell stock in a merger, which won't return much on your investment.

At some point in the game, you'll start feeling comfortable that you won't run out of money. At this point you want to start being the president or vp of the larger companies because at the end of the game, you'll earn those bonuses to total up your total worth. The player with the highest total worth wins!