Players assume the role of project managers in the business simulation game Saturating Catan. The objective is to release and upgrade more products than competitors by achieving milestones like product development, testing, and marketing. Players must collect milestone cards in order and can exchange them to place products and customer connections on the game board. They must manage multiple short-term and long-term goals simultaneously within time constraints determined by dice rolls. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins.

1. Saturating Catan
Business Game Proposal
Prepared by Suzanne Rose
Date: March 10, 2010
Executive Summary
Players assume the role of project mangers as they play Saturating Catan. They must
achieve project milestones necessary to release and upgrade products to consumers:
1. Product Idea
2. Product Development
3. Product Testing
4. Training Employees
5. Marketing
These products must be tied to one another with Consumer Connections to create a
positive customer experiences. Players must maintain focus on their long-term goal as
they make timed decisions about their short-term actions.
Objectives
• Release and upgrade more products than your competitors
• Adapt strategies as unexpected happenings or actions of competitors take place
throughout the lifetime of each project
• Maintain a balance between short-term and long-term strategies simultaneously
Goal
The player to reach 10 points first wins. If no players reach ten points and the board is
full or in a state where no additional game pieces can be played, the player with the most
points at that juncture wins.
Players: 2-4

2. Game Parts
Player Pieces
Players select and use a Player Piece to move around the board as
determined by each dice roll. Industry specific pieces are available
at www.ordersaturatingcatan.com.
Dice
Roll two dice for each turn. The die with the lower number determines how many spaces
the player moves on the board. The die with the higher number determines how many
seconds the player has to complete their move.
Tiles and Milestone Cards
Each tile has a corresponding Milestone Card. These match one another by color. When a
player lands on a tile that corresponds to a Milestone card they need, they select one
corresponding Milestone Card. Combinations of these cards allow players to place items
on the board.
1. Product Idea - Black
2. Product Development - Red
3. Product Testing - Orange
4. Training Employees - White
5. Marketing – Blue

3. Consumer Connection
Consumer Connections represent customer experiences in the form of both
customer service (a reflection of employees’ training) and customers’ opinions
of marketing campaigns. To saturate the community of Catan properly, players
must have two Customer Connections between each Product on the game board.
Product Launch
To launch a product, players must reach five milestones in order and
exchange their Milestone cards for a Product game piece. Players may
place a Product at any intersection of tiles on the board. This includes
intersections between the game board edge and the borders.
Product Upgrade
A Product Upgrade enhances an existing product; this may be a physical add-
on or a promotion. A Product Upgrade replaces a Product. (The Product game
piece is placed back in the player’s supply of resources.) To release a Product
Upgrade, players must have an idea, develop the promotion, and market it to
the public in order and exchange their Milestone cards for a Product Upgrade
game board piece.
**Since testing and training is not required for many upgrades, they are not included
here. Players may choose to change this based on their industry; blank Exchange Cards
are provided.

4. Exchange Rate cards
Exchange Rate cards list the cards needed for each exchange (image in next section).
Players must collect the cards listed and can exchange them for pieces to place on the
game board (Consumer Connections, Product Launches, and Product Upgrades). Players
must collect the cards in order. Ex: Exchange a Training card and Marketing card for a
Consumer Connection.
Oh Crap! cards
If you miscalculate your short-term strategy and land on a tile/
milestone that you cannot use, you must select an Oh Crap! card.
This card will have a message on it explaining any actions.
How to Play
Game Set-up
1. Each player may select a Player Piece and an Exchange Card.
2. Assemble the borders first. Fill the game board with tiles moving from outside
to center.
3. Stack Milestone cards and Oh Crap! cards around the edges of the board.
The Milestone cards should be set up around the board in the order they are
needed for a Product.
5. Player one places a Product on any intersection of the board. They also place
two Consumer Connections attached to the Product pointing in any direction.
6. Player two also places a Product on any intersection of the board with two
Consumer Connections attached to it.
7. Repeat for each player. Complete two round so each player has two Products on
the board (and four Consumer Connections).

5. Each Turn / Rules
• When it is a player’s turn they roll the dice.
o The die with the lower number determines how many spaces the player
moves on the board.
o The die with the higher number determines how many seconds the player
has to complete their move.
• A player moves their game piece in any direction without skipping any tiles; the
tile sides must touch for a player to move from one to another. Players can move
in multiple directions during a turn and can cross any Consumer Connections.
o If the player needs the milestone they land on, they collect a card
representing the milestone
Players must collect milestone cards in order as determined by the
Exchange Rate chart.
Players work towards multiple goals on the Exchange Rate card
simultaneously, however each must be collected in order.
o If the player lands on a milestone that is out of order from their project
plan, they collect an Oh Crap! card and follow the directions on the card.
• After their roll and move, players can exchange their Milestone cards for game
board pieces.
• If players have enough cards to exchange for a Milestone, and do not have a place
for it on the game boards, they must forfeit all cards involved in the exchange.

6. Exchange Rate Card
Product Release Milestone Cards
Consumer Connection Training Employees
Marketing
Product Launch Product Idea
Product Development
Product Testing
Training Employees
Marketing
Product Upgrade Product Idea
Product Development
Marketing

7. Appendix A
Reasoning Behind Gameplay
The time constraints simulated by the dice roll represent a common project management
scenario; time constraints may affect decisions and strategies; players must make
decisions quickly and accurately.
While managing a project, employees rarely move in straight lines. Allowing the players
freedom to move around the board as they please represents this realistically. But
skipping steps (tiles) sacrifices the project and is not allowed. However, the main reason
for this is to simulate short-term goals. A player may be looking for up to three Milestone
cards at any given time to achieve the short-term goals of creating Consumer
Connections, Products, and Product Upgrades. They must make the decision of where to
go (based on their roll) in the time allotted (based on their roll) and land on a tile that
advances one of the projects their managing.
The order of the Milestone cards is representative of a realistic product launch. Steps
must be taken in order, so it is not enough for players to simply collect the cards, they
must collect them in order.
Project managers have many projects to juggle simultaneously. They must maintain the
order of each and not let the advancement of one sacrifice another. By allowing players to
build three sets of Milestone cards, they must switch attention from one to another
quickly; just as they would on the job. In this game, project managers are limited to three
simultaneous projects. When one is complete, another of the same type may begin.
If a project manager mis-steps, they likely say, “Oh Crap!” If they do not plan their
progress properly in the time allotted, players must select an Oh Crap! card that lists a
negative outcome such as, “Return the last Milestone card you collected.” or, “Skip your
next turn.” As in real life, some consequences are bigger than others.
If players have enough cards to exchange for a Milestone, and do not have a place for it
on the game boards, they must forfeit all cards involved in the exchange. This is a sign of
poor project management of both short-term and long-term goals. The entire project is
sacrificed, so the player must start over.