When it comes to board games, The Settlers of Catan, or simply Catan, is a modern classic. However, for those looking to include some tech elements into the gameplay, there is a `fancy schmancy` version, as its inventor, Sam March, likes to call it. He came up with an ingenious board made of tiles that light up on their own!
As of 2020, Catan has sold over 32 million copies worldwide. These figures make it one of the most popular board games out there. For those who might not know, there’s also a Catan World Championship that takes place every two years, with the location alternating between Germany and the U.S. So you can figure that people are serious about their game.
Its popularity actually led to the creation of spinoffs and many DIY versions over the years. Recently, with the health crisis going on, people had to come up with ways to have fun while being inside. And while board games are exciting at first, they do tend to become less and less attractive. That’s when all sorts of variants come to life.
From a Game of Thrones Catan to 3D tiles and multilayered wood with resin inlays, this game can be extremely versatile. However, Sam’s idea is a bit more complex. He combines electronics with a custom-made plywood board but also tries to keep the signature design of the game.
Building the board and assembling each tile is a meticulous task that requires precision. But that’s not the hard part, no. That came when Sam had to wire everything up and do the coding. Unlike its traditional counterpart, the Fancy Schmancy Settlers has circuit boards with LED lights glued underneath the tiles.
When everything was put together, the final product took the form of a classic Catan board with a twist: tiles that automatically light up in a random arrangement. They also display different colors, thus players can tell when it’s their turn and what type of resources are produced.
Sam also thought about saving time, so instead of taking turns to roll the dice, each person simply presses a button on the side of the board. It’s indeed a very ”fancy schmancy” way to play Catan.You can watch Sam build everything from scratch in the video below, who knows, maybe you'll do your own version of the popular game.
Florina taught herself how to drive in a Daewoo Tico (a rebadged Suzuki Alto kei car) but her first "real car" was a VW Golf. When she’s not writing about cars, drones or aircraft, Florina likes to read anything related to space exploration and take pictures in the middle of nature. Full profile
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