Board Games Continue To Join The Virtual Reality Boom With Catan VR

If you’ve ever wanted to play Settlers of Catan on the title island, you’re in luck!

The popular board game has been around since 1995 and has seen its fair share of adaptations. In 2005 alone there was an off-line PC version, and online version through Microsoft’s MSN chat system, and a Capcom developed version for the N-Gage Nokia handheld. There have been various releases on the Xbox Life Arcade and the Playstation Network, and a version for the Nintendo DS back in 2009.

Now it can add a title to that ever growing list. Catan VR allows players to take to the island itself and play against friends or take on computer opponents dressed up as local residents.

Asmodee Digital has taken the charm of the resource gathering board game and taken it to the screen once again with this cute and colorful version of the game. There are a variety of different island backdrops for you game, as well as several floating head avatars to use to represent yourself and your friends. The game interface itself looks smooth and polished, and a little more lively than colored blocks on a hexagonal board.

But it isn’t just all about the graphics. There’s some impressive stuff going on behind the scenes. Catan VR features voice chat, touch and gaze controls to use while you’re playing. It also supports cross platform play so you can play with any of your friends as a disembodied cat head, no matter what console they are on.

Board games on consoles isn’t anything new at all, but it is cool to see them adapting to the changing landscape and giving VR a try. Catan VR is out now on the Oculus Rift and Samsung Gear VR for $14.99 and $9.99 respectively.

Sarah Johnson: Sarah Johnson is a writer and recent graduate of New York University. In an attempt to pursue all of her passions at once she majored in film production and minored in both game design and cinema studies. In her spare time you will find her playing the games she writes about, binge watching Netflix, or working on her next cosplay.
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