Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Harder to teach
High replayability
Highly interactive
Scales well
Deep strategy
More strategic control
How it plays
How does it play?
Build a modern Catan economy with fossil or renewable power, trade resources, manage pollution, and race toward prosperity without dooming the island.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Trading
Exchange resources, assets, or promises with other players.
Modular Board
Build the play area from interchangeable sections that vary between games.
Area Majority
Compete to have the strongest presence in areas that award control or points.
Dice Rolling
Roll dice to introduce uncertainty into actions, production, movement, or resolution.
Hexagon Grid
Use a hexagonal map where each space connects evenly in six directions.
Variable Set-up
Starting conditions, resources, or layouts change between plays.
Read the full game description
Catan: New Energies reimagines the familiar island as a modern industrial society deciding how it will be powered. Players roll for resources, trade, and expand cities and infrastructure, then choose between inexpensive fossil-fuel plants and cleaner renewable energy. Fossil growth can accelerate an individual economy, but it raises a shared pollution footprint and makes destructive environmental events more likely. Renewable investment costs more now and may pay off later. Victory still rewards clever building and negotiation, yet the table must also reckon with whether Catan itself remains livable when the race ends.
