Mayfair Games
American publisher of board, card, role-playing, and English-language Euro-style games, best known for publishing The Settlers of Catan in the United States.
Last updated August 22, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
Mayfair Games was an American game publisher established in 1981 by Darwin Bromley in Chicago, Illinois. It began with Empire Builder, a railroad-themed game designed by Bromley and Bill Fawcett, and subsequently developed a broad publishing program covering board games, card games, role-playing products, and licensed English-language editions of European-style tabletop games. The company expanded into role-playing game publishing in 1982 through Role Aids, a line of supplements designed for use with established fantasy role-playing systems. This business led to a legal dispute with TSR, Inc. in 1993. TSR argued that Mayfair's marketing of parts of the Role Aids line conflicted with a 1984 trademark agreement concerning compatibility with Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. The resulting court decision found that some individual products violated the relevant trademark restrictions, while the Role Aids line as a whole did not breach the agreement. Mayfair continued publishing the line until its rights were later acquired by TSR. Mayfair became particularly influential in the North American growth of modern Euro-style board gaming. In 1996 it obtained the United States publishing rights for The Settlers of Catan, later known simply as Catan, and held worldwide English-language publishing rights to the series between 1996 and 2016. The Catan relationship gave Mayfair a major position in the American hobby-games market and made the company one of the principal channels through which German-designed strategy games reached English-speaking players. Its wider catalog included 18XX railroad games, Empire Builder titles, Agricola, Caverna, Cosmic Encounter, Patchwork, Tigris and Euphrates, Steam, Isle of Skye, Saboteur, and licensed properties such as Discworld: Ankh-Morpork and SimCity: The Card Game. Mayfair experienced serious financial difficulties in 1997 and temporarily shut down. Iron Crown Enterprises purchased most of its assets and restarted operations through Ironwind, Inc., while continuing to use the Mayfair Games trademark publicly. The company later reorganized around a smaller group of core brands. Pete Fenlon became chief executive in 2007 and directed a major restructuring that emphasized the Catan family and other central products. Mayfair reported selling more than 750,000 Catan-related products in 2013, although this figure is a historical company-reported sales statement rather than a current financial disclosure. In January 2016, Mayfair transferred its English-language Catan publishing, commercial, and brand rights to Catan Studio, a newly created subsidiary of Asmodee. Fenlon moved from Mayfair to become chief executive of Catan Studio. Mayfair subsequently sold all of its assets to Asmodee's North American branch, announcing the transaction on February 9, 2018, and ceased operations. As a result, Mayfair Games is now a defunct publisher whose principal historical significance lies in its role in bringing Catan and other European-style tabletop games to English-speaking markets.
History
Mayfair Games was founded in 1981 by Darwin Bromley in Chicago, Illinois, to publish Empire Builder, a railroad game designed by Bromley and Bill Fawcett. The company's early identity was therefore closely connected with route-building and transportation-themed games, but its publishing scope broadened quickly. In 1982, Mayfair introduced Role Aids, a line of role-playing supplements intended to work with established fantasy role-playing games. Role Aids became the subject of a 1993 lawsuit brought by TSR, Inc. TSR claimed that Mayfair's use of compatibility language violated a 1984 trademark agreement associated with Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. The court concluded that certain Role Aids products infringed the relevant restrictions, but that the entire product line did not violate the agreement. Mayfair continued publishing Role Aids until the rights were ultimately purchased by TSR. The company's most important commercial development came in 1996, when it became the United States publisher of The Settlers of Catan. Mayfair later held worldwide English-language publishing rights for the Catan series through 2016. Catan became a defining title of the modern hobby-game market, and Mayfair's editions helped establish a large English-speaking audience for German-designed strategy games. The publisher also licensed and released many other notable titles, including 1830, Agricola, Caverna, Cosmic Encounter, Patchwork, Steam, Tigris and Euphrates, Isle of Skye, Saboteur, and several Catan-related games. Mayfair's growth was interrupted by financial problems in 1997, when it shut down. Iron Crown Enterprises purchased most of the company's assets and resumed operations through Ironwind, Inc. The restarted business continued to operate publicly under the Mayfair Games name. In 2007, Pete Fenlon became CEO and oversaw a substantial reorganization designed to concentrate resources on core brands, especially Catan. Mayfair reported more than 750,000 Catan-related products sold by 2013. In January 2016, Mayfair transferred all publishing, commercial, and brand rights for English-language Catan products to Catan Studio, an Asmodee subsidiary created for that business. Fenlon departed Mayfair to become Catan Studio's CEO, while Larry Roznai was identified as Mayfair's final CEO. On February 9, 2018, Mayfair announced the sale of all its assets to Asmodee's North American branch and its planned closure. The company consequently ceased operations, although some titles and rights associated with its catalog were not retained by Asmodee.
- 2018
Asset sale and closure
[1]Mayfair announces the sale of all assets to Asmodee's North American branch and the end of its operations.
- 2016
Catan rights transfer to Catan Studio
[1]Publishing, commercial, and brand rights for English-language Catan products move to Catan Studio, an Asmodee subsidiary.
- 2007
Reorganization under Pete Fenlon
[1]Pete Fenlon becomes CEO and refocuses the business on core brands, particularly Catan.
- 1997
Operations are restarted after financial difficulties
[1]Following a shutdown, most Mayfair assets are acquired by Iron Crown Enterprises and operations resume through Ironwind, Inc.
- 1996
Catan publishing begins in the United States
[1]Mayfair becomes the United States publisher of The Settlers of Catan.
- 1993
TSR lawsuit over Role Aids
[1]A court dispute with TSR addresses Mayfair's claims that Role Aids products were compatible with Advanced Dungeons & Dragons.
- 1982
Role Aids expands the catalog
[1]Mayfair adds role-playing supplements through its Role Aids line.
- 1981
Mayfair Games is founded
[1]Darwin Bromley establishes Mayfair Games in Chicago to publish Empire Builder, designed by Bromley and Bill Fawcett.
Products and positioning
A specialist tabletop-game publisher focused on hobby games, railroad and economic simulations, role-playing supplements, and English-language editions of acclaimed European strategy games.
Euro-style strategy board game · 1996
The Settlers of Catan
Mayfair's most commercially important publishing property. The company published the game in the United States from 1996 and held worldwide English-language rights to the Catan series until 2016. The title uses trading, settlement, resource management, and modular board construction to create competitive but relatively accessible strategic play.
Railroad strategy board game · 1981
Empire Builder
The game that Mayfair was created to publish. It is a railroad-themed route-building and logistics title designed by Darwin Bromley and Bill Fawcett, and it established the transportation and economic simulation tradition visible in several later Mayfair releases.
Role-playing game supplements · 1982
Role Aids
A line of role-playing supplements launched in 1982. The products were marketed for use with established fantasy role-playing systems and became the focus of Mayfair's 1993 trademark litigation with TSR. Mayfair continued publishing the line until its rights were acquired by TSR.
Railroad and economic strategy board game
1830: The Game of Railroads and Robber Barons
A major entry in Mayfair's railroad and economic-game catalog. The title belongs to the 18XX tradition, combining railway development, company management, stock-market decisions, and competitive financial strategy.
Euro-style strategy board game
Agricola
A strategic farming and household-development game included in Mayfair's catalog of licensed and published Euro-style titles. Players manage limited actions and resources while developing a farm and supporting a growing household.
Euro-style strategy board game
Caverna
A large-scale strategy title in Mayfair's Euro-game portfolio. It extends the farming and settlement-management style associated with the company's licensed European games, using resource allocation, development, and long-term planning.
Science-fiction strategy board game
Cosmic Encounter
A negotiation-oriented science-fiction board game listed among Mayfair's published titles. Its play centers on asymmetric alien powers, alliances, confrontation, and rapidly changing negotiations rather than purely deterministic economic optimization.
Civilization strategy board game
Tigris and Euphrates
A strategic civilization-building title in Mayfair's Euro-style catalog. It is characterized by competition over territories, kingdoms, and multiple forms of development, requiring players to balance short-term tactical opportunities with broader structural planning.
Railroad economic board game
Steam
A railway-development and economic strategy game consistent with Mayfair's longstanding interest in transportation and network-building titles. Players develop routes, deliver goods, and compete over infrastructure and financial efficiency.
Controversies
1993
TSR lawsuit concerning Role Aids
TSR, Inc. sued Mayfair over the marketing and trademark implications of the Role Aids role-playing supplements. The court found that some products violated the applicable trademark restrictions, but that the line as a whole did not violate the agreement.
Brand decisions
2018
Sell remaining assets to Asmodee and closeM&ABackground
Following the earlier transfer of the English-language Catan business, Mayfair announced a further transaction involving the rest of its assets.
Action taken
The company sold all of its assets to Asmodee's North American branch and announced that it would shut down.
Aftermath
Mayfair ceased operations and became a defunct brand; some Mayfair titles and rights were not retained by Asmodee.
2016
Transfer English-language Catan rights to Catan StudioM&ABackground
Asmodee created Catan Studio to manage the English-language Catan business.
Action taken
Mayfair transferred all publishing, commercial, and brand rights for English-language Catan products to Catan Studio.
Aftermath
Pete Fenlon left Mayfair to become Catan Studio's CEO, and Mayfair lost control of its defining franchise.
2007
Refocus the company on core brandsStrategyBackground
Pete Fenlon became CEO during a period of organizational change and sought to make the publisher more focused.
Action taken
Mayfair reorganized around a smaller set of core brands, with particular emphasis on the Catan family.
Aftermath
The strategy strengthened Catan's role in the business and supported Mayfair's position in the hobby-game market.
1996
Publish The Settlers of Catan in the United StatesProduct launchBackground
Mayfair was expanding beyond its original railroad and role-playing focus while the modern Euro-style board-game market was developing in North America.
Action taken
The company licensed and published The Settlers of Catan for the United States, later holding worldwide English-language rights to the series.
Aftermath
Catan became Mayfair's central commercial franchise and a major gateway for European-style strategy games in English-speaking markets.
Recent events
- 2018
Mayfair Games announces sale of assets and closure[1]
M&A · Bankruptcy
Mayfair announced that it had sold all of its assets to Asmodee's North American branch and would shut down.
- 2016
English-language Catan rights move to Catan Studio[1]
M&A · Leadership change
Mayfair transferred its English-language Catan publishing, commercial, and brand rights to Catan Studio, a newly established Asmodee subsidiary. Pete Fenlon left Mayfair to lead the new company.
- 2013
Mayfair reports more than 750,000 Catan-related products sold[1]
Other
Mayfair reported that sales of products related to Catan had exceeded 750,000 units or products. The available reference does not specify a complete financial period or independently audited basis.
- 2007
Pete Fenlon becomes Mayfair Games chief executive[1]
Leadership change
Pete Fenlon took over as CEO and led a reorganization focused on the company's core brands, particularly the Catan family.
- 1997
Mayfair Games shuts down during financial difficulties and is restarted after an asset purchase[1]
Bankruptcy · M&A
Mayfair temporarily ceased operations for financial reasons. Iron Crown Enterprises acquired most of its assets and restarted the business through Ironwind, Inc., which continued using the Mayfair Games trademark.
- 1996
Mayfair Games becomes the United States publisher of The Settlers of Catan[1]
Product launch
Mayfair obtained the United States publishing rights for The Settlers of Catan and later held worldwide English-language publishing rights for the series.
Sources1 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/mayfair-games · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled