A loser game review on Settlers of Catan

Does anyone enjoy playing the game Settlers of Catan?

It seems like everytime if anyone who played eurogames before, they would recommend this as an introduction to euro board games.

Personally i feel that this game is way overhyped. Don't get me wrong, it is not too bad, just wasn't as fantastic as it was made up to be. There are definitely much better eurogames for first timers. Of course the fact that i am a loser in this game, it is definitely not love at first sight for me.

Ok so lets move on to my review on this game. In this game you try to build a civilisation in the island of Catan. Different part of the island produce different resources. By producing or trading the resources, players try to expand their civilisation with cities, roads, etc. To learn exactly how to play this game, click here

So to begin the game, you will need to setup the "island" of Catan by combining the individual tiles. I hate this setup part. You see, the game itself is meant for 4 players. For more players you have to buy a separate expansion set which give more tiles. So you have to combine them, and when you keep the game you also have to separate them out. A pain in the ass.


Ok there you have it, the island of Catan

See the different colored tiles? They produce different resources like wheat, ore, brick, sheep and wood. Everyone will get a chance to place their settlement on the tiles.



Each tile will have number on it and everyone will get a chance to roll 2 dice, the tile with the same number as the outcome of the dice will get to produce the resource. If you have your settlement there, then ho seh lor you get the resource, otherwise suck thumb lar

Of course I try to spread my settlements on tiles with different numbers to increase the probabilty of the settlement producing the resources...


Unlucky roll of dice

Ok this is my main complain about the game, it can be too random and luck based. It all depends on the roll of dice. It doesn't matter if number 8 and 6 are higher probability, if the dice outcome is not the number you want, you just can't produce anything!

As the hokkien saying goes "nan suay qi jiao bian gong guay" which means if you are unlucky, even rearing a bird it will turn out to be a cock!

So imagine for a few rounds you sit there nothing much to do, never get any resources while all your friends are happily collecting various resources...


Everyone collects so many resources except me!

Without resources you can't build anything or trade with anyone! Trade backside also nobody want. Of course subsequently my luck turn better and i manage to get some resources, but by then it was already too late to get back in the game.

The game also gets abit tiring and repetitive. Roll dice, collect resources, trade resources and build. Repeat till one player gets 10 points or till the cow comes home. There is room for lots of strategy but the result of the dice throw still plays quite a dominant role in this game. Abit of luck do make the game more interesting. However if you are disadvantage too early, the game can be kinda of draggy.


Resources can change for interesting development cards too!

Don't get me wrong. Settlers of Catan is still a fun game to play with interesting mechanism like building and trading that encourage lots of interaction among players. With an element of luck, newbies may get a fair chance of winning the game too. With most people familar with games like monopoly, players of Settlers of Catan find themselves right at home with the dice rolling mechanism (something that is not that common for Eurogames). That could be the reason for its popularity and acceptance.

But for a true gateway eurogame, Settlers of Catan is overhyped. I personally think that there are much better games. The one that comes to my mind goes chu chu chu....

Overhype or is the game really good? Come to Pitstop Cafe and try out Settlers of Catan and let me know your thoughts on the game!

Pitstop Cafe, the place to settle!

astroboy

A Pitstop for Stars

Over the months, we have people asking us, 'so are there any stars who visited Pitstop cafe?'.

As a matter of fact, I have mentioned before that all you folks are our stars in Pitstop cafe! Some can play settlers of catan in 15 mins, some can eat chicken chop for 2 hrs, some can play Jenga until drink up the whole penguin and some can even mistook the kitchen for toilet....

indeed, Pitstop cafe is a place full of wonderful and interesting people.. each a star in their own rights...

However, like the meteor shower, Pitstop cafe has been extremely bright and starry for the past few days.Take a look below and you will know why.


with all these lights, of course it is bright


They brought their own lights as they find pitstop cafe too dim


wah lau..order two drinks only need so much light

Ahh..as we can see, it's not just the lights.. its some familiar faces...


oi..say you look famiiliar only lah..dun look so shock

Yes, Pitstop cafe played host to the crew for the Mediacorp serial Chase. It was a fun filled afternoon having seen how TV production works... we could almost memorise the script already...


Say u familiar also dun have to be so defensive right?

Of course, the Pitstop crew had a bit of chance to hit the small screens.. Finally I can say I am a celebrity also....


No.. no..Im the not the dog! Well, Astrodog, REX got a chance to play Joanne Peh's dog, 'Fluffy'.. how fluffy is he?


ahh..here you go, Timothy as 'the waiter'


Damn, this waiter is giving me a headache.. why need so many takes just to pass a bill?!!

So there you go.. Pitstop cafe has now been smeared by the presence of these stars. Joanne Peh has sat on the toilet bowl, Utt lied on the sofa, Joanne Peh ate the chicken chop, Utt drank the coffee...

Do as the stars do! make your reservation and seat on the seats that the star seats! (wow..that's really a tongue twister)


This is the sofa that Utt lied on

It has been fun working with the crew, and even more encouraging to hear some of the celebrities saying that 'this place is so cool!' think, we will come here next time and play boardgames rather than just drink, drink and drink

Yes, of course..Pitstop cafe is the place where even celebrities wanna be part of the fun


Ezann Lee and Co.


Carol, Joanne and the Pitstop Mu


Max, Utt and the Pitstop crew

Remember! come and be smeared by their presence!

Pitstop cafe, Utt lied on the sofa and Joanne ate the chicken chop.

Timothy(finally got time to blog)

Penguin offsprings

Ever since the failed invasion of the penguins, they have served as P.O.W at Pitstop Cafe for a couple of months and they are really doing a good job! The folks here really enjoy the service rendered by these penguins and were even asking for their personal penguin.

Of course at Pitstop Cafe, we always hear feedbacks and try our best to fulfilled them. However getting these penguins are no easy feat consider the long swim down here from the artic oceans. Hence we try to see if we can make them to breed and multiply over here at Pitstop Cafe...


but gan and gan how to breed? This ain't Jurassic Park!

The penguins here are pretty straight and hence we got to bring in the chio chio penguin to get the action going...


Wah really c&c, cute and chio...


Seem like having a bit of intimate close contact might prove difficult for these folks...

More research has to be done to make them breed!







But none since to work. Finally we tried the Double Inverted Eiffel Tower Technique; head joined, one penguin slowly levitates vertically above the other....


Double Inverted Eiffel Tower, sound familar?

And yes it works! We are proud to present the first offspring of the penguins!


Young handsome penguin, still freshly covered in his shell...


Nice family photo. Some say he looks more like his dad...

So yes, these penguins are available to be adopted by you. They will render their friendly services to you, making sure you get 8 glasses of water daily to keep you fresh and healthy!

They are going for only $25.00 per set.

Pitstop Members gets 10% discount!

if you have added our blog sticker on your website, get another 5% more discount!

So come to Pitstop Cafe and grab this fabulous deal now!

Pitstop Cafe, handsome penguins for adoption

astroboy

Online Reservation

I am not sure if you guys are shy or that perhaps our voices over the phone is tramatising for them. Maybe that is why some folks prefer to make their reservation by email or perhaps leaving a message in our chatbox.

No worries, we have now a proper online reservation service! To make a reservation, just click on the online reservation link on the side bar. Do note that for online reservation, it must be at least a day in advance.

So whether you like to make a reservation by calling our chatline and hearing our sexy voices or do it the cyber way, do make your date at Pitstop Cafe today!

Pitstop Cafe, our voices quite sexy mah

astroboy

A Big Thank You

It has been a week since Eve and my b'dae has passed. We defintely had enjoyed our birthdays. The guys gave each of us a Fossil watch. Thank you guys. Astromum treated the gals to a birthday meal. Thank you Astromum. Many Pistoppers dropped Eve and me a B'dae greeting not only at the shout-box but at the cafe too. It was sweet of you all :) Thank you. Not forgetting, our new part-timers who gave us Chicken wings. Thank you too.

Most importantly, we had pleasant surprises from Jolene and Alex ( Pitstoppers as well). Jolene sent each of us a birthday card which was delivered promptly.

The Lovely Bdae Cards from Jolene

and......

Famous Amos Cookies from Alex

Eve and me were really touched.

Thank you once again to those who brightened up our birthdays in different ways...

Pitstop Cafe, a great place to have fun.

Love,
Mutastic

Pitstop blog sticker!

Yeah we got a Pitstop blog sticker!



If you had a wonderful great time at Pitstop Cafe, do support us by putting this sticker in your sidebar to tell your friends about this site ok!

Just add the following snippet to place the sticker to your website.

<a href="http://pitstopcafe.blogspot.com"><img src="http://static.flickr.com/121/273973730_1ecfc90147_m.jpg" border="0" alt="Pitstop Board Games Cafe Singapore"/></a>

In return we will give you lots of hugs and kisses...

We will create a list of Pitstoppers who have blogsites and it will be cool to blog hop around and check out fellow Pitstoppers blog!

But wait, there is more...

We will add another 10 Pitstop Dollar to your personal vault! Simply leave a comment or email us stating your blogsite as well as your unique Pitstopper ID.

Of course most regular Pitstoppers have been asking the crew,
But what the heck are those Pitstop Dollars good for?

That is indeed a very good question...

Pitstop Cafe, we also have stickers hor!

astroboy

Greetings from Chicago

I have only been in Chicago for almost a week! Been a busy time with work and I hope all things are great at Pitstop Cafe!

It has been an interesting experience over here. It is my first time seeing a live dissection on a human cadaver. I thought i would have gross out looking at a human head sitting on the table but it was quickly overcome by the amazement of looking at interior of the head as layers are slowly dissected and drill away. There are so many parts inside the head that it is simply mind boggling!

It also great to see George Lucas in person though i ain't exactly a star wars fan. Ok enough of all this nonsense babbling, time to share some pics




Walking down Michigan Avenue...

Michigan Avenue is similar to that of Orchard Road in Singapore. Lots of department stores, Macy, Gap, Nordstrom, etc. I know Eve is goning to kill me for not having gotten her anything yet!


Museum of Science and Technology...


Science discerns the law of nature. Industry applies them to the need of man

Ok gotta rush off. Today is my last day in Chicago and I will be heading home soon!

Miss Eve
Miss the Crew
Miss the laughter from all you Pitstoppers
Miss Pitstop Cafe


Remind me of Ticket to Ride

Btw this week this the birthday for our lovely girls at Pitstop Cafe, Eve and Mumu! In fact they are just 2 days apart. Eve falls on the 12th while Mumu on the 14th! So if you guys are down that day, wish them a happy birthday ok!

See you folks soon!

Pitstop Cafe, be part of the fun!

astroboy

Specially for Pitstopgers

When it comes to boardgaming, the impression that most have will be that it is dominated by nerdy and geeky folks like me. Yet to our surprise, over 75% of the membership holders are ladies!

When come to boardgaming, these ladies are no push over. Folks like nadnut totally smoke out the guys in a negotiation game like "I'm the Boss". Some even represent Pitstop Cafe to take part in a board game competition!

So for this month the Pitstop Crew has work hard to find a good deal for all you Pitstopgers. We have a special tie up with Mani Pedi to give you girls a treat. Show your Pitstop mini and get 15% discount for spending above $21!

More about Mani Pedi

ManiPedi is, by far, the largest nail grooming outlet situated in the heart of Boat Quay. With a spacious manicure/ pedicure area, it is an ideal location for fun family day escapes, ladies night out and corporate events.


Cool place for a manicure!

The newly set up accessories corner promises to make nail grooming an even more pleasurable experience. So, call them at 6536-7786 today for more information about packages, gift vouchers or group escapes.

So girls if you enjoy manicure or pedicure like Evelyn, do head down and enjoy this treat. It is just across the road from Pitstop Cafe. For guys, it is a good chance for you and your girlfriend to spend some quality grooming time together!

Hope you folks enjoy these little additional perks of been a Pitstop Cafe member. It has definitely not been easy for us in sourcing for these tied ups. However we know that these little gestures will be something that you folks will appreciate.

Any merchants who like to offer great deals to our Pitstoppers, do drop us an email for more details!

Special thanks to Mani Pedi for the support and do check back for more exciting deals!

Pitstop Cafe, we do more for you

astroboy