Had to pick between Catan and Ticket to Ride for game night last weekend

I was hosting a group of five friends who mostly play party games, so I had to decide between Catan's trading and Ticket to Ride's route building. Went with Ticket to Ride since it's easier to teach and nobody gets eliminated early. Has anyone else had a game choice backfire because the group just wanted something lighter?

3 comments

3 Comments

danielowens2d ago

Wait, you actually had to pick between those two? That's wild to me. I mean, Ticket to Ride is lightyears easier to explain to a group that's used to party games. Catan has all that trading and negotiation that can get clunky with five people who aren't board game veterans. Plus you're right about the elimination thing - nobody wants to sit there for an hour watching other people play after getting knocked out early. I've definitely been in situations where I brought something like Small World instead of Codenames and could feel the energy drop in the room. People just want to laugh and chat, not calculate resource ratios. Sounds like you made the smart call even if it wasn't the flashy one.

ray6132d agoTop Commenter

Dude YES this is exactly what I'm talking about! I brought Azul to a game night once thinking it'd be a nice chill option and people were literally zoning out by the third round. Sometimes the simple crowd pleaser is just the right move even if it's not your personal favorite.

noahwood2d ago

Three games of Catan with five people and we haven't had a single elimination yet. The robber slows people down enough that nobody pulls too far ahead until the very end. I think people overstate how hard the trading is too, it's just "I give you sheep, you give me brick" most of the time.