Customer Reviews

Settlers of the Stone Age

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm a big fan of the "Settlers" board games, and I have played almost all of them. I didn't like Starfarers of Catan, because I thought it was too "gimicky" with that plastic rocket and all that. Settlers of the Stone Age is like a cross between Catan and Starfarers. The rules are a little more complicated, and there are more pieces, but it's not overwhelming.

There is one difference in particular that's worth mentioning. In Catan, it's not unusual for one player to dominate the board, receiving more resources per turn than anyone else, making it harder and harder to beat him as the game progresses. That is because in Catan, the player's empire always grows. Not so in Stone Age. A player can only have five camps (the equivalent of settlements in Catan), and there are no cities. If a player wants to build a sixth camp, he must remove one of his other camps first. This encourages players to keep moving, rather than to keep growing. I think that's a nice complement to Settlers of Catan.

There are three drawbacks to this game. First, setting up the board takes longer, because there are more pieces. Second, there is less variety in the board because the terrain layout is fixed. And third, although it was possible to have only two players in Catan, you really need at least three for Stone Age. With only two players, the game isn't balanced, and one player usually beats the other by a wide margin. If you're looking for a two-player Settlers game, get the Settler of Catan Card Game.

My 18-year-old daughter gave this to me for my birthday, knowing how much I love board games. Her friend's family recommended it. It didn't look like the type of game I usually play, though, so I thought I might not like it. But I gave it a try anyway. I played it with my daughter and with my 14-year-old son, and we all LOVED it!!! It's quite different from other board games, and it's been fun figuring out different strategies. It's a little bit similar to Risk, but with much more strategy, thinking, and interaction involved.

The three of us couldn't wait to play again the next morning! The 2nd time we played it, my 9-year-old son joined us, and he enjoyed it as well. He needed a few hints and tips from the rest of us during the first part of the game, just until he got the hang of it. Then he was fine scheming along with the rest of us.

This game is long - it took us about 2 to 3 hours each time we played. However, not once did anyone complain that it was boring. No one announced after half an hour that they didn't want to play anymore. I think this says a lot!

You have to be careful not to jostle the table or the board too much, as much of each player's progress is marked by the many pieces that are simply sitting at different positions on the board. If there could be any improvement made to this game, it would be for the manufacturer to build in little indentations in the board in order to hold the pieces in place a bit better.

Overall, I recommend this game highly!!! I can't wait to play again!

Get together friends and family for an evening of fun-loving competition. It is so fun to try a new strategy each game. See how many you can out-fox this round! I totally recommend this game for those who love strategy board games. This game does take time and mental energy to play.

Settlers of the Stone Age is easy to learn if you are a veteran Catanner - however we found the game is a little long and gets slightly tedious if the pace isn't kept up by all the players. One thing we did try was playing as a 2 player game, with a couple of rule changes, and it worked out great.

So many games can't be played by 2 players, so this is a real boon for Stone Age. With 2 it moves along fast and with limited Neanderthal participation it becomes a race of accomplishment rather than a battle between the players.

Settlers of the Stone Age is a great game if you are a fan of the other Catan games. Easy to learn and really fun. If you haven't played any of the other Catan games, I would suggest getting the original Settlers of Catan before you get Settlers of the Stone Age.

Is really something different from the original catan game. Equal fun even you are playing in 3. On thing is some of the rules are not spell out clearly. Unless you are a catan player, you may be confusion in the beginning. It would be even better that the cards sizes is larger? Too bad there is not expansion pack for this.

I love the Settlers of Catan games, and bought the Settlers of the Stone Age specifically because it could be played by as few as two people. (I believe all the others are for 3 or more) It was an interesting take on the same theme, with some tool and skill advancement rules thrown in.
Overall, the game was good, and the two player mechanics weren't bad. I prefer the original "Settlers" and "Seafarers" because the games are more interesting and challenging with more people.
There are some pretty heavy evolutionary themes to the game, so I wouldn't recommend it for die-hard creationists. If you can take that with a grain of salt, it isn't a problem.