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Meow
Since the time of the ancient Egyptians, cats have sat in a place of power in society. Those furry little bundles of arrogance have captured our love and continue to be one of the most popular pets in the country. This has led to the 8th August becoming International Cat Day, a day of acknowledging our fuzzy friends. Growing up, I always had cats in the house, one strong independent lady named Chloe who owned the road we lived on and then there was Libby, my own house cat who was cuddly and needy and was always there when I needed her. Now, catless I rely on my little fur niece Luna (see photo) for my kitty cuddles. Luckily, there are a plethora of cat theme board games that scratch that post and here are a few that have caught our attention.
Meow Meow Meow (Translation - Isle Of Cats)
Frank West’s 2019 mega-hit Isle of Cats has gone on to provide, not only multiple expansions but a roll and write version and now Race for the Raft (coming up) a sequel to the original game. The world of Isle of Cats is a gorgeous one. Made of beautifully colourful and exotic cats that you are trying to rescue before the horrible Lord Vesh arrives to hunt them. Each player has their own ship board in front of them, each divided into a grid of squares. The cats are designed in a Tetris-style polyomino shape and so placing them on the ship means fitting them into your grid and slowly trying to cover as much of your ship as possible. There are lots of ways to score including covering all the different rooms on your boat or you can focus on creating large families of cats of the same colour. There is also a great drafting mechanism that allows you to gain end of game scoring cards as well as one off powers and opportunities to gain gold and special Oshax cats. This Oshax cats are bigger than the rest and will join any family you like, changing its colour to suit, working as a wild card for scoring at the end. This was one of the first games that got me back into the hobby during the first lockdown and became our happy place when we had returned from our government sanctioned one hour of walk each day. Its vibrant design and fun gameplay just make it a box that I keep wanting to pull off the shelf.
Meow Meow Meow MeoW (Race To The Raft) by Becky
Race to the Raft is another creation from the cat-filled brain of Frank West. With the same objective – to save all cats – as The Isle of Cats, this co-operative version will see you battling a raging fire to lead all cats to safety via their own colour designated paths. Choosing from 4 piles of different pathway cards, your aim is to create a path from the cat's starting point to the safety of the raft – avoiding any cat being cut off by the fire tiles. As the fire increases quickly, and pathways may only be traveled once, it's a race against time to solve each puzzle. The rules limit how much communication is allowed, which serves as a great mechanism to avoid “alpha” players dictating moves. Players may be distributed tokens that allow free speech/meows as one off interactions, and though the meowing is a little silly, I've found it allows enough communication to stop potential pitfalls during play. Race to the Raft ramps up difficulty with each scenario, and there are 81 scenarios for players to work through. Having played through the first eight scenarios, I have already begun to notice the increasing challenge, and soon may need to rethink some strategies in order to survive the more complex set-ups. Some factors that come into play include restrictions on how each cat may travel and embark the raft – these small limitations can have huge impacts and this really helps each scenario feel like a fresh challenge. The evolution of each puzzle, the nemesis of fire and getting to play as a team are all big draws for me. And saving the cats from a terrible fate...I can think of no better way to spend International Cat Day!
Meow Meow Meow Meow (Cat In The Box) by Seb Hawden
As International cat day approaches, I was thinking, there really is a day for everything these days isn’t there? Anyway, we are giving you some top notch, cat-based games to get your little toe-beans or razor sharp claws into. Cat in the Box is a trick taking game with a massive twist. All the cards are black, I know, it sounds crazy but bear with me. Everytime I put it in front of someone I get the same reaction, first confusion, then after a bit of explanation, pure merriment. For players who have never played a trick taking game a player plays a card of a suit and others must follow, if possible with the same colour. The highest taking the ‘trick’. Normally there's bidding involved and how you play your cards, losing certain tricks and when to win them is vital to your success. Other games of this ilk include Hearts, Spades, The Marshmallow Test, Nyet, The Crew and Skull King, they all have their own unique twists and mechanics. Cat in the Box however, is probably the most unique of them all. In Cat in the Box, when you play one of your cards you select what colour it is when you play it and use a little counter to mark it off on a grid. So every card can only be used once as normal, but until you play it all your cards are all suits and in flux. *Insert mind blown gif*. The game takes shape though when you realize you cannot play a card, because it's already been played and you create a paradox and end the round. Every round is tense as you see your options narrow, it's exhilarating. Not only that but as with most trick taking games you bet on how many tricks you will win and if your successful in reaching your bid you also get the largest group of orthogonal pieces you have played on the board, giving the game a small area control style twist. It's quick, it's quite simple when you get your head around it but boy, is it a great slant on trick taking. Everyone I have shown k too has loved it. It’s so different, so unique and has that quality we all love. It's a short, simple game with a lot of decision space and strategy. So grab some friends, grab Cat in the Box and have a good time. Happy International cat day everyone!
Meow (Calico) by Gillian Lee
I can’t say I’ve loved cats my whole life, but as it usually goes, a few positive experiences with the fluffy creatures have changed my mind. And apparently a few positive experiences with cardboard cats can change my mind too. For a deceptively friendly (but secretly fiendish) cat board game this International Cat Day, we’ve got Calico. Since this came out a few years ago, I think everyone has got the memo that it’s a real head-scratcher wrapped up in a cosy theme. In Calico, you’re trying to make the nicest quilts to attract the cutest cats (who can say no to Tibbit?). You score points by meeting the design, colour and pattern objectives. It’s pretty simple, you place a tile then draft from the three face up tiles in the main pool. If you meet one of the colour or cat objectives, you get an adorable button. Sounds like wholesome fun. But as you progress through the game, your internal monologue of “oh no that’s not going to work” and “ahhh I needed that tile” only grows louder and you give up your dreams of the perfect quilt. Though the buttons are a nice consolation. Calico is a wonderful game for both beginner and veteran gamers, as it’s so easy to access but with a lot of potential depth. Rarely have I found a game that adapts so well to mixed abilities and interest in the hobby. You get good variation with the different design goals and cats (cause you’ve got to please all the cats). Though be warned if you suffer from analysis paralysis, you could be here for a while. Maybe this International Cat Day, you can curl up with a kitten, a cuppa and a quilt and enjoy a game of Calico.
Meow Meow (Cat Cafe) by Andy Broomhead
One of my great regrets is not visiting the little café in the centre of Sheffield where you could get a cuppa and sit in amongst the many cats that called it their home. Sadly it closed after COVID, but now with two friendly (ish) felines of my own, some dice, paper and a pencil, I can recreate my very own Cat Café at home for International Cat Day! This delightful roll and write from Mandoo and Alley Cat Games (of course…) has the active player rolling dice before all players choose in order, leaving one communal die left in the centre. From your combination of dice you can choose to mark a particular cat accessory off on a level of a cat tower. So if you’d chosen a 2 and the communal die was 4, you could choose to mark a ball of string (item number two) on the fourth level of any tower, or a food bowl (item number four) on the second level of any tower. Play continues until one player has marked off three complete cat towers and then you score up, with the most points taking the win.
This is a great little game for 2-4 players, though I think if you have more dice knocking about, you could play with more. It’s easily portable as well and great for all ages. It was also my first roll n write so it has a special place in my heart for that reason. The way the theme fully fits into the game is great, with cat towers to complete, and squeaky mice, balls of string and food bowls just some of the symbols you need to mark off to score points. If you love cats and games, be sure to give this a go!
Meow Meow Meow (My Little Scythe) by FavouriteFoe
How do we have a purrrrfect International Cat Day? By celebrating with lashings of ice-cold milk, super stinky sardine sandwiches, and of course a game of My Little Scythe! Now, you may be wondering what the Kingdom of Pomme has to do with all things feline. But have no fear for I am here to show you why it’s the cat’s whiskers! Stonemaier games’ gorgeous, more accessible adaptation of its big brother, SCYTHE, features a host of kingdoms vying to win trophies in the 300-year-old Harvest Tournament. And one such kingdom is populated by the Wild Tigers. Inspired by Jamey Stegmaier’s own cats, Biddy and Walter, the amazing minis in this game level up its table presence (and there’s even a model painting guide included inside the box!) as the Tigers seek to leverage their expert marksmanship in the pie throwing contests happening between players! A wonderful mix of pick up and deliver, action selection, area majority, combat, and more, My Little Scythe is a hit in our household. Its focus on rewarding friendship despite the competitive nature of the gameplay is lovely and rarely seen in non-cooperative games, let alone those with actual pie fights! Our son who is 8 years old right through to Nanny (who refuses to divulge her age but says it’s definitely less than we think!), everybody has been able to get stuck into this game from the get-go. Intuitive play and beautiful components, we don’t need International Cat Day to play it, but we will take any excuse!
And in fact, we have enjoyed it so much that we also now have the expansion ‘Pie in the Sky’ which introduces a cool 3D airship into the mix as well as two more uber-cute factions! We love My Little Scythe and will definitely be playing with our claws out on International Cat Day!
So on International Cat Day, cuddle those kitties, pull down one of the games that celebrate these feline friends and happy gaming!