Catan Board Game Rant

I hate Catan but let me tell you why......

Check out my discussion and review of Terraforming Mas

Our discussion and review of Hadrian's Wall!

[xfoolsgoldx]

Have come back to Catan after 20 years and still love it. Most games get old but Catan holds up more for me more than most new games. Catan definitely has luck but there is buckets of strategy also and its very unlikely a new player can beat a good experienced player💙👍

[Jaydeblue]

I think another thing to point out is that this game snowballs way too easily. If all players have equal placements at the start, but one person happens to get lucky with the first few rolls, they can get so far ahead that it’s near impossible for anyone else to catch up. Then everyone else has to sit there for an hour plus watching that person rake in all the resources while they struggle to get a few. This is especially bad if the robber is moved beside the losing player(s) early on and 7s happen to not be rolled for a while. I don’t mind luck games as long as: 1. They play in a short amount of time (20min max), and 2. They don’t snowball. I truly do hate this game, and I would never use it to introduce someone to the hobby. Also worth pointing out: I had never played Catan until after I was fully into board gaming and had been for years. So it holds no nostalgia for me.

[gronthgronth]

i remember seeing ads for this game as a kid. For some reason i always wanted to play it but either did not have the game, the place to play or, friends to do so.
Now, when i have all of the above, when i wanted to play it, everyone i know who plays board game says that they dont like it or even hate it. Yeah i understand the flaws. But its kind of sad :/.

[pdwub]

Regarding your argument at 3:05 (beginners choosing initial placements badly). That is why with a beginner the first few games you should play with the beginners setup (as explained in the rules). Typically after two games, they get the idea and you can go to the random setup. Alternatively from the second game onwards you help them with advice on the initial setups, say what you would do and why. I don't agree with many commenters below that the game is decided after the setup. I find it exciting throughout, especially with the bargaining. And end-game situations can become very exciting.

[Pappagar]

I hate Catan. All the interesting decision making is front loaded

[HovisSteve]

Firstly, I'll confess that the version I am playing is the recently released (at time of writing) new _CATAN - Console Edition_ and not the tabletop version (actually, I don't play physical tabletop games because I don't have the room and, more importantly, am not a social person). I'm also brand new to Catan, though I am getting into digital tabletop games, both adaptations and originals.

Until Catan, I have enjoyed the learning period of the games I've played whether I won or lost. Not so with Catan. Whether against the AI or other players, on all my sessions so far I have come away feeling lousy. It does that to you.

Whether it's some of the arbituary rules the game has (e.g. finicky limitations and restrictions on where roads and settlements can be placed, or if you accumulate a certain amount of resources and then have to discard a disproportionate amount of them simply _because_, regardless if it's no fault of your own that you aquired them to begin with or even plan to make use of them on your turn) to the excessive use of dice rolling _for practically everything_, to the fact the game doesn't accommodate the ability for players left behind to rally and snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

The less said about how the game doesn't consider the consequences for a player being hemmed in and having no way to recover the better. Don't care what anyone says, a good game should make allowances for a recovery or sorts.

All these things, and a few more besides, really have left a sour taste in my mouth. I feel it's quite a mean spirited game too. For me, a game like this makes for a better RTS or God-sim video game than a tabletop game (I think the Amiga game _Settlers_ was a major influence in this games' creation even if it never seems to get mentioned).

Personally, I'm left wondering why this game is so damn popular. It's awful for new players as far as I'm concerned.

[Sanderus]

I played Catan twice in my life, not as an introduction to the hobby, but to check what it is. Just the base game. One if those playthroughs I was not able to do anything because of bad dice rolls.if somebody invited me to play this game i would agree, but I would not recommend it myself.

[sebton]

The biggest problem with Catan imho is that the decisions are made in the first 20% of the game. The rest is most of the time pure luck or already decided. If the game runs at 45 minutes, is fine. If it drags for 90 minutes, its awfully painful.

[ye_zus]

Catan is good as a competitive tournament game, but as a fun boardgame night experience it really sucks:
- difficult for beginners due to starting positions and turn order
- actions being determined by resources, meaning those ahead get further ahead
- get a bad roll? oh you've missed out on a turn. get multiple? oh you've done nothing for 4 rounds and now you're screwed
- robber / discarding is needlessly punishing
- It's not a very deep game, it misses out on that mid-level forward planning of multiple turns ahead. You're really just reacting to dice rolls with some long term hopes.

Overall the experience is the opposite of what we want with tabletop games. I want FUN. Catan feels restrictive and sometimes cruel. I want creativity and options, multiple paths, not simply reacting to randomness.

Though the trading system is great.

[xJohnnyBloodx]

I hate this game because i get second place sooo often. I'm always the first person to get nine points. I don't try to be, I get lucky and place good settlements down at the start, but then, everyone decides I shouldn't win. Once someone else gets to 9, it's too late, everyone put the robber on my much needed ore, while the other guy gets the win. It's especially bad when i go through the game at 9 points for 7 turns, waiting for the dice to just roll in my favor, but get no luck while everyone else makes sure it stays that way.

[hadolfitler]

Catan was one of the first board games outside of games like monopoly i played. Immediately didnt care for it. While i dont mind light weight games i have played a good amount of resource management video games and its leaves a lot to be desired. After playing it, i ended up finding games like Root and Puerto Rico and loved them. The biggest annoyance though is that it feels so hard to get people off of catan, they just stay with that one game. So now i try showing people pretty much anything else just so that way i could get them off catan for good lol.

[pixxelwizzard]

This is like players who leave a negative Steam review for games they have over 1, 000 hours in. :P

I played this once and decided I didn't like it. I still have two copies in my collection though (both thrifted) because of its reputation.

[justanerd]

The game is just meh. At the time it was initially published it certianly was influential and helped move the hobby forward but the system has not aged well and there are much better options out there.

[northsouth]

i just got taught Catan for the first time and I really didn't enjoy it mostly due to the exact problems you mention in the video. I feel bad cos so many people rave about Catan but I don't like it. But I've played many other board games. Maybe it's just not for me.

[sharpdad]

What’s a good alternative to Catan? I’m looking to get into a really fun game with my 17 year old son. Ive all of a sudden wanted to really get into table top game nerdery. Sadly most of the time the instructions are like reading someones thesis. We couldn’t even figure out Pandemic. 😢 How is Plunder? Looks great. Or Splendor?

[timurteacher]

Catan is just an IMBALANCED trash. Just get rid of a trade system and you will see that the whole game hinges on that mechanic. The designer simply decaded to make us as a gamers resolve the randomness of the game by trading. Even if you start with the lucrative position in the very beginning you still can loose the game. No expansion fixes this mess. Better play backgammon than this.

[shanecoyle]

TLDR I also hate catan, no 7 came up for many rolls and I could not get brick so 3 of the players got very far ahead and this game doesnt have comeback mechanics.


I am a new board game player. I actually would classify my self as someone who doesnt even like boardgames but we play Catan at family gatherings. Each time I play catan I become some petulant insufferable child.

Let me give you a quick tour of the last game I played and why I become like this. We randomized the board (great) 2 brick mines both fall on 8s (interesting chaotic game play !). Myself and my dad build on 1 of these brick fields my brother sister in law and mam build on the other. It is clear where this game will be won and lost.

I roll a 7 I put the robber on their brick mine because DUH, next turn my brother rolls a 7 the robber goes on our brick mine because again DUH. 15 dice rolls pass no 7. My grain is on a 10 my dad has no grain one of my starters is on the coast for ore and because I had sheep on a 6 elsewhere and this was close to that port while maintaining the ore. I am getting very few cards mostly sheep some wood (a 9 I had). Working towards a development card desperately STILL NO 7. More turns pass I get the development card I play my knight on my next turn to finally get some brick so I can actually play the game and in probably 3 dice rolls the robber is moved back to me. My game is over, I have used all my resources to try get some brick. The port I wanted with the sheep, gone my sister in law sniped it (she build adjacent to it for ore) (this was my only other plan for brick). I slowly build to get a 3rd settlement each 3 dice rolls I get 1 card (and we play with a welfare system so 1 welfare) meanwhile my brother who has 2 cities at this point gets 10 cards by the time his turns comes around (sometimes he is caught by the robber obviously but not enough). He also has I think both a 2:1 brick deal with the bank and a 3:1 deal with the bank (either both or 1 of them) regardless he is getting enough cards that he can do whatever he wants.

I dont get many cards, I build settlements as best I can I can never upgrade my settlements because grain on a 10 and I was using grain for trades with the bank. Late game arrives I have 4 points my brother and sister in law have 9 and 8 points. 4 hours have passed and I knew I lost in hour 1 because I got no brick 4 times when i should have (early game). My dad also has 4 points. No 7 came so we get screwed. I am moaning the entire game and being an arsehole (I am self aware) I am being a child and on reflection i feel bad. I just wanted to be competitive and I simply couldnt because the dice roll didnt roll a 7. Was my plan perfect hell no could I even begin to try do my plan not Games are not fun unless I have a chance for me I ruined everyone elses night because no 7 came up.

[yoliazpiazu]

Hello! I would like some recommendations of games to play with my 8 and 10 year old boys please?

[mikecustoms]

never played it and the algorithm is already making me hate it

[GWong-vptt]

Can I just have the game list that beats catan