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Settlers of Catan Online Now Available

Posted by Zonk on from the did-you-know-you-can-make-a-road-out-of-some-wood-and-four-sheep? dept.

kazama writes "Settlers of Catan, the very popular board game by Klaus Teuber, is now available from the MSN Games zone for free offline play and $30 for online play. Screen shots look comparable to the version by Capcom in Japan but we shall see how good it is when you need the 3:1 port."

32 comments

  1. but...but... by antimatt · · Score: 4, Informative

    It has been for years: http://settlers.cs.northwestern.edu/

  2. Save yourself some money... by karrde · · Score: 3, Informative

    Take a look at http://www.s3dconnector.net/. Online play is free, the only downside is there is no bots, all human players. They've been arround for a while and have a small community going.

    1. Re:Save yourself some money... by cjpez · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Ah, but how long is it going to be before all the other Settlers games out there start getting C+D letters? Klaus hasn't been able to do anything about them largely because of international copyright stuff, I believe, but now that Microsoft's got their fingers officially into the mix, I bet things will change. Hopefully not though, as gnocatan is right up near the top on my menu...

      --
      Al Qaeda has ninjas!
    2. Re:Save yourself some money... by karrde · · Score: 1

      It's not a copywrite issue. You can copywrite the written rules, you can copywrite the art, you can trademark the name. But you can't copywrite the mechanics of the game.

      I can see certian sites might have issues. gnocatan because they use the word Catan in thier name. JavaSettlers... maybe, probably be shakey. Sea3D should be pretty safe. S3D specifically created a new art set for all thier stuff so that there would be no copywrite issues there, and none of them have word for word rules copying.

  3. Catan by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If you want a -real- game of Catan - check out www.s3dconnector.net

    Much better graphics, support and a decent ladder.

  4. Catan by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    If you're looking for a -good- OSS version, check out www.s3dconnector.net It's 100% donation driven and has a great community!

  5. Other versions by belg4mit · · Score: 1

    WanCatan hs been around for awhile, the grapics suck
    if you care about that kind of thing but the game is
    all there. It even includes Seafarers and Cities & Knights.

    There are many more computerized versions as well.
    Settlers3D that others have mentioned here is
    supposed to be glitzy, but it has no Citites & Knights.

    --
    Were that I say, pancakes?
  6. Just a clarification by kazama · · Score: 4, Informative

    After downloading the online version of the game and playing with it a bit I just wanted to clear up my statement above. First, the free download is for a demo version of the game which will time out after 60 minutes of play. The full version of the game is $30USD which allows you to play offline anytime, save games in progress, and play against computer players (up to 4) and other people on the same machine.

    What looks to be sorely missing from this is the online component of the game promised in the original press release. Half of the reason I was excited about this was to challenge people online when my friends got tired of me pestering them to play. Hopefully that will follow soon.

  7. S3D? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I've actually already been playing online - www.s3dconnector.net - an excellent site and even better, it's OSS!

  8. BrettSpielWelt? by Golgafrinchan · · Score: 2, Informative

    Is there any advantage to playing this over the version at BSW? BSW is free, has a great community, AND you get to learn German while gaming. How can you beat that?

    --
    My userid is prime!
  9. Just noticed it last night as well by hrbrmstr · · Score: 3, Informative

    We were actually playing the physical board game last night (Cities & Knights expansion, actually) and I pulled out my PowerBook just to check and see the status.

    $30.00USD is not bad for a game and I did the "buy it" before the "try it" assuming that both Microsoft and the game stakeholders would not let a piece of crap ruin the good name of Catan (yes, I am a moron).

    With the meager requirements (Pentium, 300MHz, Win98 thru XP, DirectX *3*) I figured it would run on my Win2K Virtual PC image. Not so much.

    I managed to get it installed on a real Windows box and RDC'd into it. The game handled well over an RDC connection (I was surprised).

    I didn't have time to do a full play analysis (it was late, I've got a day job and I'm not one of the 13 year olds on /.) but I was surprised that the AI did not pick any harbors during the setup phase. The gameplay was quick enough but I won't be able to give a good feel until I get some humans playing over the network. Our daughter is in college, so it will be kinda cool to play Catan with her while she is supposed to be studying for midterms next semester.

    The board looked very nice (but the free, online 3D Catan clone is way cooler) but there was just something missing. Perhaps it was the quality of the physical game and the lack of real wooden pieces. Or it might be due to the way that the production window just pops up after the virtual roll. Or it could be the lack of the crafty card shuffle to prevent critical resource loss after someone uses the robber on you.

    While it will be cool to have something to fall back on, and board setup and clean up are much easier [grin], my first choice will always be the physical game. Besides, until they get some PhD whiz to create a Cities & Knights or Seafarers AI, it will be hard playing "just Catan".

    As to the other, currently free online Catans, I expect that Microsoft and the e-game IP owners will be sending many letters out over the next few months and there will be almost no overt sign of them (one reason I paid to have this one available). It's a shame since there were some really nice implementations.

    Since it looks Flash-based, I really wish there were a cross-platform version of it. Until then, I'll keep poking at the Virtual PC problem.

    To all who actually get to really test this thing out: pls post reviews!!! I'm eager to know how good the AI really is!

    --
    Mind the gap...
    1. Re:Just noticed it last night as well by LordPhantom · · Score: 0

      Actually, you should preface your post with IANAL - and although IANAL, I've read into this a bit... how do you think Monopoly clones survive as shareware? Simple - they avoid the copyright restricions on games which in the US are -artwork-. You can't copyright the general rules - Milton Bradley can't own Tic-Tac-Toe or Chess for example. Mod parent down, this is just FUD :)

    2. Re:Just noticed it last night as well by hymie3 · · Score: 1

      You can't copyright the general rules - Milton Bradley can't own Tic-Tac-Toe or Chess for example. Mod parent down, this is just FUD :)

      Not true. Parker Brothers lost the monopoly on Monopoly because the game wasn't original. The only thing they were allowed to walk away with was the original artwork.

      Settlers, although perhaps evolutionary rather than revolutionary, *is* an original work. As such, copying it will get one thrown in court as soon as that blip appears on the IP radar.

    3. Re:Just noticed it last night as well by LordPhantom · · Score: 1, Informative

      Even -that- article dosen't state what you claim it does. Game mechanics aren't patented, and although the artwork can be copyrighted and the name of the game trademarked, it's quite simple not to call the game anything with "catan" in it and not copy the artwork,etc. You managed to find an article that although interesting, has nothing to do with the real world - Read the U.S. Government's take on Copyright - http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl108.html . Apparently you don't have a "monopoly" on links... good thing mine is accurate :).

    4. Re:Just noticed it last night as well by hymie3 · · Score: 1

      You're right; I'm wrong.
      http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl108.html very clearly states that game mechanics are not copyrightable (although exact wording of rules may be).

      And... it seems foobar that you can't copyright games. I mean, why would Microsoft even bother negotiating for rights? Why not make a brand new game, which just happens to have the *exact* same game mechanics, but is known as "Pioneers"?

      Does that mean that I'm free to make a "compatible" expansion to Munchkin?

  10. Meh by SetupWeasel · · Score: 2, Funny

    All the fun of Settlers is shouting "It's the wood that makes it good!" at your friends whenever you score some on a roll. It's just not the same in a chat box.

  11. I'll stick to my Sea3D.exe by Crimsane · · Score: 0

    I play catanwith internet friends all the time, but since none of them run linux, we use Settlers3d.

    Its an okay game and runs decently under wine. It would be nice to see the gnocatan windows port working though.

  12. offline settlers of cataan by Stanza · · Score: 1
    My favourite version of offline settlers comes from

    http://wishbone.is-root.com/

    Unfortunately it's a wimpy server and it's never up when I need to download it. Also, it's windows only--anyone know a good version of settlers that's more multiplatform?

    1. Re:offline settlers of cataan by hymie3 · · Score: 2, Informative

      Unfortunately it's a wimpy server...

      It's called "The First Colonists". Try downloading it from the underdogs.

    2. Re:offline settlers of cataan by CtrlPhreak · · Score: 1

      Aw man, so you've got this wimpy server that serves something you like and you decided to post it to slashdot knowing it'll go down and just taunt all us who may wish to use it.

      Makes me want to use my best shatner voice and shout "Khaaaan!"

      --
      WikiAfterDark.com It's a sex wiki, go now!
  13. BrettSpielWelt by Sailsa · · Score: 3, Informative

    http:www.brettspielwelt.com/ has tons of games, including Settlers, available for online play, has been around for years, and is adds new games every few months. Granted their interface is not the easiest for new people to pick up on but once you learn it is a great way to play many games to try before you buy. I have bought several games after trying them on BSW. I don't see what this version of the game has that makes it worth $30 when there are so many alternatives available. I also think it would be a real shame if Teuber allowed Microsoft to shut down all the free versions of Settlers because it is those versions which helped contribute to the game's success.

    1. Re:BrettSpielWelt by NJVil · · Score: 2, Informative

      This is absolutely 100% correct. If you can deal with a little bit of German, BSW is infinitely more interested if you prefer strategy-type boardgames rather than word games or exercises in dice-rolling.

      If you're interested, there's an English language support site at: www.brettspielwelt.info that can get you started.

    2. Re:BrettSpielWelt by salmacis2 · · Score: 1

      Yup, BSW rocks. I played Attika (face 2 face) this week, and I noticed that there was an advert for BSW at the bottom of the instructions. So I don't know what the legal status of BSW is, but it certainly doesn't appear to be "dodgy".

  14. Any good tutorials? by BTWR · · Score: 1

    My friends have been trying to get me to learn Settlers for years! Any good tutorial sites out there for a total beginner? I want to finally be able to play Settlers with them...

    1. Re:Any good tutorials? by Quill_28 · · Score: 1

      Go here

      http://settlers.cs.northwestern.edu/ [northwestern.edu]

      Choose server 1 or server 2 and play against bots, quickest way to learn

    2. Re:Any good tutorials? by dchamp · · Score: 1

      It's a really simple game to learn. If you can't learn it in 2 game sessions, you may have a problem. Most people I've played Settlers with learned it after the first.
      Like most strategy games, it takes far longer to master.

    3. Re:Any good tutorials? by kazama · · Score: 1

      Download the demo of Settlers from MSN and there is a flash Tutorial which will help you learn how to play. I think there may also be a writeup at the s3dconnector.com.

  15. Or better still... by sbszine · · Score: 3, Funny

    "I've got wood for your sheep!"

    --

    Vino, gyno, and techno -Bruce Sterling

    1. Re:Or better still... by Dehumanizer · · Score: 1

      Hmm... sheep.

      --
      The Tlog - a technology blog
  16. Another game of the year available by Kraegar · · Score: 2, Informative
    Another winner of the "spiel des jahre" online is Carcassonne. I find the game every bit as enjoyable as Die Siedler, but the online version is much, much better in its design, gameplay, and overall implementation.

    You can download it from SoftUnity though you need to read some german to do so. Around $10 for the original game, another 14 or so for the expansion.

    This site will help you through ordering it. If you want to play a good german game online, this one rocks!

    (Note, the game is not advertised in english, but simply changing the language flag in the config file from '2' to '1' will change the entire game to english)

  17. jsettlers? by Dwedit · · Score: 1

    Does this mean that Java Settlers of Catan is illegal now?