An interesting conversation on X has unearthed the existence of a rare ASML-focused Special Edition Monopoly board. Two chipmaking and engineering enthusiasts appear to have clinched a deal where one hands over an ASML Lego kit, a scale model of the world’s first High-NA EUV machine. In the no-cash deal, the other party will receive an ASML Special Edition Monopoly board. It appears that the deal is done, barring any regulatory hurdles and no one changing their minds, but it did pique our interest in the history of the board.

While we’ve seen and reported on the ASML chip tool Lego sets previously, this is the first time the firm’s special edition Monopoly set has blipped on our radar. It is possible this obscurity is due to this board game edition coming out way back in 2007, when the pioneering Dutch semiconductor company’s profile wasn’t quite as high as it is now. With the semiconductor segment becoming all the more important in recent years, driving the current AI boom, cutting-edge chip tool firms like ASML have risen to great prominence.

ASML’s special edition merchandise is also in high demand in the 2020s. Thankfully, we can learn a little more about the provenance of the headlining Monopoly board as it is featured in the board game’s Wiki. As previously mentioned, it was produced in 2007. Specifically, it was prepared for the Christmas period at the end of that year “as a gift to ASML employees and their families this holiday season.” From that ‘publisher’s description, it sounds like quite a few employees will have received one of these games, but it is still obviously an attractive collector’s item.

Sadly, the Wiki imagery doesn’t clearly show what the playing ‘tokens’ are (that’s Hasbro’s official term for the little metal playing pieces). The normal game has tokens like a boot, a dog, and a car, but we can’t quite make out the detail on this. Instead of streets and avenues, the ASML Monopoly board appears to have technologies and machines. Furthermore, the traditional stations are replaced by ASML campuses. Elsewhere on the board, special spaces include Corporate Tax and Press Release, where you must pick up a card. Regular Monopoly features such as Go, Water Works, Go To Jail, and the Electric Company remain.

Other non-consumer-facing semiconductor brands like TSMC and SK hynix have released successful sellout merchandise and memorabilia in recent years. Some items are easier for non-employees to get a hold of than others. For example, it is easy for anyone to find resellers of TSMC-related merchandise on Taiwan’s Shopee marketplace.

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Mark Tyson is a news editor at Tom's Hardware. He enjoys covering the full breadth of PC tech; from business and semiconductor design to products approaching the edge of reason.