CATAN Creator Klaus Teuber Passes Away, Age 70

By Christian Hoffer

CATAN's creator Klaus Teuber has passed away after a brief illness. CATAN Studio announced his death earlier today, stating that Teuber had passed away after a "brief but severe" illness. A former dental technician, Teuber is best known for creating Settlers of Catan, a classic board game that revolutionized the board game industry and helped pave the way for more strategy-focused "Eurogames" to be important en masse to the United States and abroad. Teuber was 70 years old. 

In a statement, Catan Studio head Pete Fenlon, said "While Klaus' contributions to the board gaming industry are immeasurable, we will remember him as a kind and selfless human being, an inspirational leader, and most importantly, as a friend."

Settlers of Catan, which was rebranded as CATAN, was first published in 1995 and features players competing to build connected settlements while gathering resources every turn. The game won the prestigious Spiel des Jahres award (one of four won by Teuber) and became the catalyst for a new generation of "Eurogames" designed for more strategically minded thinkers to reach success outside of the European market. CATAN spawned a number of spinoffs and remains a perennially popular game, having sold tens of millions of copies. CATAN has become synonymous with board games and is considered one of the go-to "gateway games" that appeals to both a casual and more dedicated audience. 

While Teuber's CATAN remains his most popular work, he was already an established designer by the time of its release, having won three other Spiel des Jahres awards for Barbarossa, Drunter und Drüber and Adel Verpflichtet.

Our condolences to Tueber's family and acquaintances. 

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