Copperas Cove-Opoly now on Walmart shelves

By LYNETTE SOWELL 
Cove Leader-Press 

Copperas Cove-Opoly, a Monopoly-inspired board game, landed on shelves of the Copperas Cove Walmart last week.
Late for the Sky, a company based in Cincinnati, designs and produces board games with a Monopoly theme, based on colleges, cities, small towns and countries.
“Our games are driven by the support of Walmart. They choose cities where people would have an interest in the game,” said Late for the Sky’s vice president, Bill Schulte, who founded the company 35 years ago. “We research the area, talk to some local management, and we make the games exclusively for Walmart.”
The company’s first board game was Miamiopoly, based on Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Thirty-five years later, the company works with Walmart to locate cities on which to base games. Killeen-Opoly was released in August 2018.
Giovanni’s, Waffle Cone, along with Lil Tex Restaurant several of the Copperas Cove businesses that landed on the board, along with Copperas Cove landmarks like Ogletree Gap Park, the Hills of Cove Golf Course, and Business 190. 
Waffle Cone’s owner, John Hayes, said on Tuesday that he’d heard about the game but hadn’t seen it yet. 
“I’m honored for us to be placed on something unique like that, with that group of folks,” Hayes said. “I appreciate them utilizing us.” 
Copperas Cove-Opoly has a board layout similar to Monopoly, but instead of buying the Boardwalk or Baltic Avenue, players can choose to “rent” or “buy” places in Copperas Cove, like Ogletree Gap Park or the Hills of Cove Golf Course. 
The most expensive square in Copperas Cove-Opoly is Downtown Copperas Cove, which costs $425. Sparky, at a cost of $70, occupies the least expensive spot on the board, and instead of four railroads, players can purchase roadways like South Main Street and Constitution Drive. 
Playing pieces include a dog, a boot, a smile, a pretzel, a hand and a heart. As with regular Monopoly, when players land on spaces they can purchase the landmark or business, collect city blocks, which can then be traded in for keys to the city. 
Instead of landing in jail, game players can end up in a traffic jam, or end up with a $75 parking fine.
Schulte said the 300 Copperas Cove-Opoly games sold out within a few days, but Schulte said more are on their way to Walmart in Copperas Cove, although he wasn’t certain the game would arrive in time for Black Friday shoppers. In addition to purchasing the game locally, it can be purchased online at https://www.lateforthesky.com/board-games/city-games/copperas-cove-opoly...