And whoever died is dead
Exploding Kittens , released in Poland in 2017, is a typical last-man-standing party card game – we try to avoid death in every possible way , mercilessly planting pigs on other players in order to eliminate them from the game as quickly as possible. If anyone missed it, it is worth remembering that the game was born on Kickstarter and gained so much funding that to this day it ranks first in the ranking of the most supported project on the website (according to information on the official Kotki website ) .
Over the years, the authors have created subsequent additions and new versions of the game, and in 2022 (and in Poland by Rebel Publishing House in 2023) the Zombie Kittens version appeared . As a seasoned fan of both the basic version of the game and its imploding variant, I had to check what the latest edition introduced this time.
Strategic exit from the grave
Exploding Kitties: Zombies is a completely standalone game. Therefore, there will be no problem if someone does not know and/or does not have the basic version. Yes, the zombie deck can be added to the base game, but the reviewed game works very well in the standalone version.
The rules are very simple and quickly learnable. As usual, the authors encourage you to watch a short video explaining the rules of the game, instead of reading the attached manual. That’s why I won’t go into detailed explanations of the rules here. In one sentence – everyone gets the same number of cards with which they must both defend themselves against the deadly exploding cat (if you explode, you are out of the game) and pester other players so that they get the final enemy’s card. A new feature in the reviewed variant is the ability to turn into a zombie. The player who decides to do so becomes an untouchable observer of the game – no one can steal his cards, he does not take part in any mischief between the “lives”, and he can also receive beneficial prizes from others. He finally returns to the game to find out
The best thing that Exploding Kittens introduce: Zombiesit is an opportunity to apply a new strategy. You have to think carefully whether to use a new skill straight from a horror movie or wait. The basic version of the game does not offer this option – obviously, you need to assemble the best defense deck possible and make your enemies’ lives as difficult as possible. However, it is difficult to talk about any strategy since the deck is mostly governed by blind fate. However, in the reviewed variant, the cat’s new competencies give more room to show off and have greater influence on planning the victory. As I already mentioned, I played the basic version through and through and I really liked this breath of freshness. Once I completely missed the moment I turned into a zombie and died instantly right after being resurrected, and another time I carefully hid myself in the shadows, watching with a nasty smile as the enemies slowly wore themselves down to finish them off one by one.
The murmuring of the living dead
Should I buy it or not? If you are a fan of cats, zombies or absurd humor – yes. If all these things – definitely yes!
I have one final reflection. I liked Exploding Kittens: Zombies so much that the basic version seems less interesting. Therefore, if someone doesn’t know this series at all and wants to read it, I recommend reading the base first and then the variant with the dead. It will be a smooth transition from the base to a slightly more diversified version. In the opposite order – I would be afraid that the first edition would be poor.
