Mayfair Games, Publisher of Settlers of Catan, is Closing Down

For anyone who missed last week's announcement, Mayfair games will be closing its doors after 36 years in business. The company made the news official in a statement on their Facebook page last Friday.

They wrote, "As of today, the management team at Mayfair Games, Inc. announces we will wind down game publishing."

If there's a silver lining for fans, it's that Mayfair's games won't cease production—at least not anytime soon. In the Facebook post, the company went on to write, "We are pleased to announce that we have sold our games to Asmodee North America, who have acquired all the assets of Mayfair Games, Inc." 

Fans of Mayfair might recognize Asmodee as the company that purchased Settlers of Catan's North American distribution rights in 2016. Asmodee also publishes such popular games as 7 Wonders, Dixit, and Spot it!

Though Mayfair's games will endure under new ownership, this is certainly still a blow to the gaming industry as a whole. During their nearly four decade run, Mayfair contributed an incalculable amount to tabletop gamers. Aside from the wildly popular Settlers of Catan, they also produced Agricola, Sim City: The Card Game, Empire Builder, and many more.

So though Mayfair Games may be no more, their legacy still lives on. The company closed its announcement by saying thank you to retailers, customers, and fans, so we'd like to say the same back. Thank you, Mayfair Games!

Kyle Massa is a writer and avid Magic player living in upstate New York with his fiancée and their two cats. When he's not writing, you'll find him down at the East Greenbush FlipSide store jamming booster drafts. For more of Kyle's work, visit www.kyleamassa.com or follow him on Twitter @mindofkyleam.