Fill your belly, fill the board

Would you feed your family a month of meals at McDonald’s for $1 million? That’s what it will take to maximize your chances of winning big in the hamburger behemoth’s latest promotion.

McDonald’s is once again partnering with Hasbro, makers of the Monopoly boardgame, and promising to hand out $200 million in cash and prizes in it’s McDonald’s Monopoly 2010 game. Two $1 million prizes are on the line and almost a dozen $25,000 and $50,000 cash prizes. There are also vacations, cars and other stuff if you collect enough stamps — requiring multiple purchases.

In a time when people are facing limited food options and economic hard times, this game feels, at the very least, tone deaf.

McDonald’s reminds you that one in every four players is a winner! But sometimes (most times) you’re just winning more food. More McDonald’s food. (Picture of pre-cooked McNuggets and story about year-old hamburger and fries tell you some of what you need to know about that.)

To win big in McDonald’s Monopoly 2010 — you have to collect one of the winning stamps. There are only two for the biggest cash prize and 11 for the smaller cash prizes. Essentially, you’re playing a high-sodium version of the lottery. Which could make for a nice and teachable moment for the kids if you haven’t yet had that special talk with them yet — the one about statistics and probability and how long-term investments are more likely to pay-off than getting-struck-by-lightening games of chance.

[Sidenote: my favorite bumper sticker ever, "The Lottery: A tax on people who are bad at math."]

For the other non-instant prizes, you have to collect game pieces and fill up your Monop0ly board — a couple dozen squares to cover in a short amount of time. The contest closes Nov. 1. That’s a lot of meals at the golden arches.

Like any savvy company, they’re enticing you to play the game on Facebook and Twitter, letting people keep track of the prizes that are still there for the taking. And also, a way to trade surplus game pieces for those you need.

Though your arteries won’t thank you, I suppose you could try to make at least your investment back in hawking the stamps online. That would be like eating a month’s worth of meals for free!!! At McDonald’s.

Like this mom says, fast food once in awhile won’t kill you. But the rules of the game really push you to get in there as much as you can before the deadline.

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