Klaus Teuber, creator of the board game sensation settlers of catanHe has passed away at the age of 70. According to him , Teuber died on April 1 after a “severe and brief illness”. He is survived by his wife Claudia and his two sons, Guido and Benny, all of whom are involved with publishing company Catan Studios.
It’s hard to do justice to what’s important catan went (and is) to the space of the board game. Teuber invented the resource trading multiplayer game in 1995 and is one of the first European board games to achieve massive success in the rest of the world. As of 2020, more than 32 million copies of catan in 40 different languages have been sold all over the world.
They are not just board games. The popularity of catan it has made multiple digital versions available for smartphones, video game consoles, and PCs. The game has also made quite a mark on pop culture, inspiring countless references in media properties like The Big Bang Theory, Parks and Recreation, Supergirl and South Park. It even inspired a short film in 2014, The Lord of Catan, starring Amy Acker. There have also been rumors of an upcoming Sony-produced movie since 2015.
Teuber may be best known for creating catanbut the designer was also involved in many popular board games such as Barbarossa, crazy crazy crazy and more. In all, she’s won the Game of the Year award a whopping four times. Not bad for a former dental technician who didn’t even start seriously developing games until the 1990s, when he was in his 40s.
“I developed escape games,” he said. . “This was my own world that I created.”
It is with deep sadness that we at CATAN Studio acknowledge the passing of Klaus Teuber, legendary game designer and creator of the beloved board game CATAN. Our hearts go out to the Klaus family during this incredibly difficult time. pic.twitter.com/gPPIVtleHJ
— CATAN – Official (@settlersofcatan) April 4, 2023
Teuber also founded publisher Catan Studios, which released a commemorative tweet today urging the many fans of the title to honor his impact on the world of gaming by “being kind to one another” and pursuing their dreams to the fullest.
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