Niantic has announced the closure of its AR mobile game CATAN: World Explorers for the mobile platforms. It is a massive online multiplayer game based on the board game Settlers of Catan. It has been taken down from the App Store by the publisher, however, it is still present in the Play Store. The game was announced in 2019 and was a limited beta release in New Zealand and Switzerland.
What is Catan: World Explorers?
The game is all about creating, crafting, collecting, everything that is similar in the world of Minecraft. Players can showcase their creativity by constructing their own cities, landmarks and can also collect the required resources they want. They even get the opportunity to interact and socialize with others who are nicknamed “Catanians“.
Each player has been rewarded victory points for doing such activities in the game and, in doing so, they can also earn themselves a spot on the world leaderboard!
Why is it being axed?
Although, the publishers wanted to expand it globally, and was subsequently launched in markets like Australia, Singapore, and Denmark, in October last year, but was never released beyond these regions. Moreover, it never left the beta test and Niantic’s idea of adopting a board-based game like CATAN: World Explorers to a global level also eventually failed.
Conclusion
To see the game being killed off by the Pokemon Go brand, which focuses on building AR games for mobile devices, in such a manner, reflects the level of competition that has already been increasing day by day in this field. And, because people now spend more time on their smartphones, the demand for something new and different will always be there alongside equipped with the changing landscape of various markets.
Well, what do you feel about this decision by Niantic? Should they have just released it worldwide and let players decide its fate themselves? Let us know your opinions in the comment section below!
For more such content on Gaming news and guides, check out other articles too!
