<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>While <italic>Monopoly</italic> is still one of the best-known board games in the United States today, increasing attention is paid to <italic>The Settlers of Catan</italic>, a mid-1990s German immigrant to the United States and a mid to late 2010s staple in popular culture and on store shelves. However, the one place where <italic>Catan</italic> has seen a drop in popularity over the past decade is in its first world, that of hobby board games. With so many new and innovative games and mechanics flooding the hobby market each year, <italic>Catan</italic> struggles to find a place. This struggle is due in part to its lack of innovation, attempt to keep pace with game trends, and seemingly, a reluctance to buy into the popularity of app-supported games (though solely mobile versions of <italic>Catan</italic> exist), crowdfunding, and new mechanics. This research explores <italic>Catan</italic>’s history in the United States to illustrate the paradox of its growing popularity with the general public while also experiencing a downturn in accolades from within the hobby, all while functioning as a barometer against which we can measure trends in the selling and playing of hobby board games.</p></abstract>

While Monopoly is still one of the best-known board games in the United States today, increasing attention is paid to The Settlers of Catan, a mid-1990s German immigrant to the United States and a mid to late 2010s staple in popular culture and on store shelves. However, the one place where Catan has seen a drop in popularity over the past decade is in its first world, that of hobby board games. With so many new and innovative games and mechanics flooding the hobby market each year, Catan struggles to find a place. This struggle is due in part to its lack of innovation, attempt to keep pace with game trends, and seemingly, a reluctance to buy into the popularity of app-supported games (though solely mobile versions of Catan exist), crowdfunding, and new mechanics. This research explores Catan’s history in the United States to illustrate the paradox of its growing popularity with the general public while also experiencing a downturn in accolades from within the hobby, all while functioning as a barometer against which we can measure trends in the selling and playing of hobby board games.

The Sellers of Catan: The Impact of <italic>the Settlers of Catan</italic> on the United States Leisure and Business Landscape, 1995-2019

Board Game Studies Journal

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The Sellers of Catan: The Impact of  on the United States Leisure and Business Landscape, 1995-2019

While Monopoly is still one of the best-known board games in the United States today, increasing attention is paid to The Settlers of Catan, a mid-1990s German...

The Sellers of Catan: The Impact of the Settlers of Catan on the United States Leisure and Business Landscape, 1995-2019

Published Online: Dec 17, 2020

Page range: 61 - 82

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/bgs-2020-0004

© 2020 Erica Price, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.