Catan: The First Island Review

Anannya Sen’s Review

3 of you, one of me, an island, well I make that Pimms o'clock.

Catan is the story of a newly discovered island. The only problem is, you have to try and become its ruler. At it's heart, Catan plays a lot like monopoly. You role dice (although you don't move), you build stuff and you trade a bit. Ok, maybe not so much like Monopoly, more like the mobile version of the apparently hugely best selling and original German game Settlers of Catan. I must admit I had never heard of this game, but it's supposed to be very well known.

For a full explanation of the game, the wiki link is your best bet. The mobile version seems to be quite a faithful recreation and is the type of game ideally suited to mobile phones. You build a couple of settlements on hexagonal hexes. Each hex produces a specific type of resource and has a number. If you roll that number with the dice you get that resource.

As you get more resources you can build roads and more settlements and even upgrade them to cities. But it depends on the resources you have and here's where the trading element comes in. You can trade with the other AI players to make a deal for stuff you, and they, want. They may not accept though. Or, you can trade with the bank, which is more expensive in terms of resource, but guarantees you get what you want.

As each turn unfolds, you can trade and build and also buy development cards. These have a variety of uses like being able to build roads for free or moving the Robber. What's that pray tell? Well, if you roll a 7 you can move the robber icon and steal resources from your enemies. There is no battle in this game, but you can try and catch up to your opponents by refusing to trade or through the robber. You get victory points for having settlements, cities, the longest road and other specific requirements. The first player with 10 victory points wins.

The game is fun to play once you figure out what's going on. The main basis is trading with the AI or your friends, and it's great because you can have up to 4 players. There is a whole load of strategy involved and at first it will take you a while to get to grips with the basics. These are that you should try and have your settlements on strategic points and have free space to build roads. Once you get the hang of this you will have to start trading. Trading is good because you can get things cheaper than by going to the bank. There are also special ports that can increase your trading capabilties.

The graphics and sound are nicely recreated, plenty of colour and music. There are two levels of detail, one overview level and one which is closer to the island. The animations are simple but well executed and the sound and sfx are pretty good too. Controls are easy to pick up, you can use the D or key pad to move around the pointer and build things. The right soft key opens up your menu and the left one selects choices. After a while you should get the hang of it pretty quickly.

The real appeal of the game is in the strategy and playing. You are up against crafty AI who seem to know the little nuances of the game, so novices may take a while to get the hang of things. But once you do, the fun of getting the right resources to build, as well as trading with the AI will have your island overlord juices flowing.

There are plenty of strategic nuances and ways for you to try and block your enemies. After a while it becomes more of a race to see who can build as the trading will begin to flow. I must admit, I haven't won a game yet, although after playing 3 games fully I feel I am pretty close. What makes the game a bit more unique is the bluetooth playability. This is something that we couldn't get to try but will be perfect for this game. It's ideal to be able to play live opponents as it's a board game which is well suited to this. You don't even have to remember what your opponents have done, because before your turn you get a handy summary.

Overall a well made recreation of the classic board game (that I never heard of) which has a lot of strategy involved and is great for multiplayer options.