CATAN – New Energies turns the familiar resource-trading board game into a contest over how to power a growing island: fossil-fuel plants are cheaper in the game, but they trigger pollution events; renewable plants cost more to build, yet can help keep those events in check. It is a standalone game for 3–4 players, not an expansion required to play classic CATAN. Its climate theme makes the trade-off part of the rules, but the game is a stylized strategy experience, not a full simulation of real-world energy economics.
What is CATAN – New Energies?
CATAN – New Energies is a standalone board game built on CATAN’s familiar cycle of harvesting resources, trading and building. Its added systems are power plants, energy tokens and environmental events. The game is designed for 3–4 players ages 14 and up, with an approximate play time of 90 minutes, according to the official product page.
MIT Technology Review’s Casey Crownhart described it in a June 13, 2024 feature as a new version of classic CATAN in which players can use plants powered by fossil fuels or renewable energy. The publication reported at that time that CATAN and related products had sold more than 45 million copies worldwide; that is a figure reported in the 2024 article, not a current sales total.
How does the game deal with climate change?
Fossil fuels offer a cheaper route
Players can begin with cheaper fossil-fuel plants. Burning fossil fuels contributes pollution events, which can interrupt resource production and affect the island shared by everyone at the table. That creates an immediate strategic temptation: the less expensive option can help a player build, while its environmental cost can disrupt production beyond that player’s own turn.
#1 Best Overall
- EXPLORE THE ISLAND OF CATAN: Settle the uninhabited island of Catan by gathering resources, building infrastructure, and nurturing trade relationships.
- STRATEGY AND COMPETITION: Compete with 2-3 opponents to expand your settlements and cities while managing resources and avoiding the robber.
- TRADE, BUILD, AND SETTLE: Use brick, wood, wheat, ore, and sheep to construct roads, settlements, and cities in your race to 10 victory points.
- REPLAYABLE AND ENGAGING: With a modular hexagonal board, no two games are the same, offering endless strategic opportunities and replayability.
- FOR FAMILIES AND STRATEGY ENTHUSIASTS: Designed for 3-4 players, ages 10 and up, CATAN 6th Edition is perfect for family game nights and friendly competition. Add the CATAN 5-6 Player Extension (sold separately) to expand your game to 5-6 players.
Renewables change the event balance
Renewable plants require greater investment in the game. They add event discs to the bag, which can extend play before the bag empties, and change the likelihood of pollution-related events. Players can also negotiate with one another to reduce pollution, making the environmental pressure a shared problem rather than a purely individual score.
The official product page captures the game’s central tension: “As in real life, the most sustainable player does not always win, and as in any CATAN game, there are multiple paths to victory.” The line is a description of the design, not a promise that the game models how real energy policy or investment works.
Rank #2
- EXPLORE THE COSMOS: Set in the year 2700, embark on a thrilling journey to compete for the prestigious title of Ambassador to the Galactic Council in CATAN Starfarers.
- INTERGALACTIC DIPLOMACY: Forge alliances with extraterrestrial lifeforms, discover new solar systems, and use diplomacy to enlist their aid in your quest for fame and glory.
- INTERGALACTIC DIPLOMACY: Forge alliances with extraterrestrial lifeforms, discover new solar systems, and use diplomacy to enlist their aid in your quest for fame and glory.
- UPGRADE YOUR SHIP: Customize your mothership with boosters for speed, freight pods for bargaining power, and cannons to fend off threats.
- UNIQUE GAMEPLAY: Experience a re-imagined classic with a variable game board, snap-together motherships, and a one-of-a-kind shaking mechanism for moves and encounters.
How do you win?
There are two possible endings, so players have to weigh immediate growth against their energy mix:
- Reach 10 victory points first: the first player to reach 10 points wins.
- End the game before anyone reaches 10: compare players’ renewable and fossil energy balance; the best balance determines the winner.
The renewable-versus-fossil comparison gives the theme a direct role in the outcome, but it does not erase the familiar race to build and score. A player can pursue the standard victory-point route rather than relying only on a sustainability-focused finish.
Rank #3
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- Nostalgic tabletop gameplay meets interactive digital content for an immersive gaming experience
- Hasbro Gaming imagines and produces games that are perfect for every age, taste, and event
Is CATAN – New Energies realistic?
It makes energy choices visible and consequential within a board-game system; it should not be read as a scientifically accurate account of climate change, electricity markets or the costs of switching energy sources. Its rules compress complex causes and effects into pieces, events and strategic choices so that players can understand and respond to them during a game.
Crownhart’s June 13, 2024 feature raises a specific question about whether the game’s cost relationship—fossil plants cheaper than renewables—reflects contemporary renewable-energy economics. That is the reporter’s critique of the game’s framing, not a definitive comparison of real-world energy prices. Costs and economics depend on context, and the game’s simplified relationship is best treated as a design choice that creates tension, not as a real-world lesson.
Rank #4
- EXPANDS YOUR GAMEPLAY: This is an official 5-6 player expansion for the CATAN 6th Edition board game. It adds the necessary components to allow 2 additional players to join the race for settlements, increasing the total player count to 3-6 people.
- NOT A STANDALONE GAME: This is an add-on expansion only; you MUST own the CATAN 6th Edition Base Game (sold separately) to play. This set includes 28 terrain hexes, 25 resource cards, 9 development cards, and two full sets of wooden player pieces (brown and green).
- SOCIAL STRATEGY: Perfect for deepening the CATAN experience; more players mean more trading opportunities, more competition for resources, and a larger island map to explore, making every turn more dynamic and interactive.
- HOLIDAY & PARTY GAME: The perfect solution for family reunions, holiday gift exchanges, or weekend game nights where you have more than four players—ensuring no one is left out of the fun during winter evenings or summer celebrations.
- FAMILY & FRIENDS: Designed for groups of 3-6 players, ages 10 and up. A must-have for the living room board game shelf, this expansion allows CATAN fans to host larger social gatherings and competitive gaming sessions at home.
The useful takeaway is narrower: the game lets players experience a trade-off between cheaper growth and shared environmental risk. It does not establish which energy policy is best, or show that a player’s in-game strategy maps neatly onto decisions made by governments, utilities or households.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What CATAN says about the game’s production
CATAN says the English edition is assembled in the United States from sustainably sourced wood and paper and uses no plastic pieces. That is the publisher’s product description; it is not an independent lifecycle assessment and does not establish that the game is carbon neutral or environmentally harmless.
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In a June 14, 2024 launch announcement, CATAN said Connexus Energy provided solar renewable-energy certificates for the electricity used by the factory manufacturing the game, and that the certificates were retired in CATAN Studio’s name. This describes the publisher’s manufacturing-energy arrangement, not the full environmental impact of the product.
Where to find CATAN – New Energies
CATAN announced the game’s release in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom on June 14, 2024. Its official product page points readers to the CATAN shop and local game stores. Availability can vary by location, so check with the publisher or a local retailer for current stock.
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