Classic board game Catan gets reimagined in VR

The Settlers of Catan is a multiplayer board game that was first launched in 1995. It's since received a number of expansions, tie-ins, and videogame offshoots—not least a mobile version for Nokia's N-Gage in 2005, and a handheld variation for the Nintendo DS in 2009.

I understand an adaptation of the game appeared on MSN Games in 2004, but I'd left my emoticon-sharing days behind me by then because I'm a million years old. In 2018, however, Experiment7 and Asmodee Digital's Catan VR marks the game's first venture into virtual reality and invites players to build, trade, and acquire resources on the eponymous island itself.

Available on both Oculus Rift headsets and Samsung Gear VR, the game supports cross-platform play, voice-chat, and touch and gaze controls as you take on friends and strangers alike online, or on your lonesome against familiar faces such as Candamir, Lin, Mary Anne, and Nassir.

Here's a trailer:

"Catan is about exploring new frontiers," says Catan creator Klaus Teuber in a statement. "What better way to express that than by venturing into the exciting new world of virtual reality? The immersion made possible by this platform captures the boundless opportunity of taking that first step onto undiscovered lands."

Asmodee Digital's chief marketing officer Philippe Dao adds: "It can sometimes be hard to get everyone together to play board games. One of the strengths of VR experiences is that they allow you to gather with your friends—or meet new ones—more often, because you don’t physically have to travel. Ultimately, we think that playing Catan VR is the closest you can get to playing Catan around a table with friends... even if your friends are far away."

Catan VR is out now—more information on its £10.99/$14.99 Oculus Rift variation can be found here, while more on its £7.99/$9.99 Gear VR instalment lives here. The game's official website is this way.