Here is the latest news for all of you who can't wait to get the next Catan updates:

Around the turn of the year, Catan will get an update that optimizes the graphics engine in preparation for “Cities & Knights”. We'll also tweak the AI opponents and integrate various smaller optimizations, among others for Game Center and iOS 5.0.1.
We are, of course, working at full speed on the “Cities & Knights” expansion for iOS and Android. We will launch the public beta test at the beginning of next year, and once again we'd be glad if our users could once again provide some feedback to help us optimize the app. We'll keep you updated about the details. Currently we plan to release Cities and Knights around the end of February / beginning of March 2012.

Of course, we also continue working on the eagerly anticipated online multiplayer mode. Our aim is to create a cross-platform multiplayer that will allow iPhone, iPad, and Android users to play online with each other. Since the development and testing on the various devices are very time-consuming, we'll launch the public testing around (or shortly after) the release of “Cities & Knights”.

The completely new iOS app called “Rivals for Catan” - based on the two-player card game bearing the same title - is now being developed. We're currently testing the first version, and we'll also invite our users to join the beta test and to give some feedback on the game. Details on this issue will follow as soon as we're ready to launch the public testing.