Catan Universe
Intense overall intensityWhat's in it
Real money buys the full base game, expansions and card-game packs, plus a 'gold' currency, and these unlock the game content and modes needed to play rather than being cosmetic.
The free tier meters play with a rechargeable resource and requires everyone in a group to own the game to play together, so full and offline play stalls until money is spent.
Who can reach your kid
What it is
Catan Universe is the official digital version of the Catan board game. Players settle a fictional island by gathering five resources, building roads, settlements and cities, buying development cards, and trading with opponents or the bank to be first to reach ten victory points; a robber token blocks a tile and lets the active player take one card from a neighbour when a seven is rolled. It can be played online against other people or bots, with text and voice chat, and offline against AI. The content is abstract strategy with no combat, blood, profanity, or mature subject matter. Its most notable element is commercial: the base game, expansions and card packs are bought with real money, and the app uses a 'suns' energy currency and a paid 'gold' currency that limit how much can be played without paying.
How it's framed
The game presents itself as a faithful adaptation of a family strategy board game built around commerce, trading and negotiation; the only conflict is blocking tiles and taking resource cards, with nothing depicted violently. Its monetization is prominent, tying content and continued play to real-money purchases and an energy timer.
Details
- Developer
- Client/Frontend: Endava / Backend: SuperNimbus
- Publisher
- USM
- Released
- Apr 25, 2017
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