What's great about Catan is the simple combination of strategy, luck and trading. The rules are easy to teach and playing the game works on an intuitive level. It's versatile in terms of adjusting risk and goals. It is well suited for family or casual groups and works best with a player count of 3, but 4 works well too. The flow of the game can produce a relaxed, laid back atmosphere, but also serious and tense situations.It's one of those low commitment and high impact games with a lot of freedom in how you play. Some points of criticism regarding runaways are real, but I find the game to feel rewarding because of them. Once you have the basic gameplay underneath your belt, you can begin to home rule a bit. We hate the robber and have found that placing him somewhere else from a competitor makes things a little less "angry".The game can be little bit too long for some common standards and half of the game might be more or less enjoyable for some individuals, depending on where one is coming from. More precisely, it's just a bit too lifeless outside of the trading phase.If you are looking for a board game that is not Monopoly to play with the family or friends this is the game to do it. I will warn you though. This game may trigger an obsession with board games!