Designed by both Elan Lee (Xbox, ARGs) and Shane Small (Xbox, Marvel), and illustrated by Matthew Inman (The Oatmeal), Exploding Kittens is a self-proclaimed “kitty-powered version of Russian Roulette.” This humorous, tension-building card game was both the most-backed and most-funded project in Kickstarter history in early 2015. The NSFW (Not Safe For Work) edition plays exactly like the standard edition, but contains mature imagery and text. This is definitely NOT for kids!
Instead of a loaded gun, you get exploding kittens. They’re not mean or vicious, just innocent and naïve (usually). They could mistake a stick of dynamite for a toy, or accidentally pull the pin on the hand grenade that they were munching on. If you draw an exploding kitten card on your turn, you explode, and are out of the game . . . unless you can diffuse the card by neutering the poor kitten, distract him with nature documentaries, or otherwise divert the kitten’s attention. Diffused kittens are always placed back into the draw pile.
The draw pile is never replenished, so the odds of drawing an exploding kitten increases as the game progresses. On your turn, you can play as many cards as you like, skipping your turn, attacking players, stealing cards, or negating a player’s action with a “nope” card. As the game goes on, the draw pile gets smaller while the tension gets higher. Only one person is walking away alive, and everybody knows it!
Exploding Kittens takes only a few minutes to learn and plays in about fifteen minutes. A single deck supports up to five players, but you can combine two decks to accommodate up to nine players. The only difference between the two editions is the artwork, so if you’re playing the adult version you can combine both editions for double the hilarity.
– Robert Nava
Exploding Kittens – A “kitty-powered version of Russian Roulette”
Exploding Kittens: NSFW Edition (explicit content)
by Exploding Kittens LLC
Ages 18 and up, 2-5 players
Exploding Kittens: Original Edition (family-friendly version)
Ages 7 and up, 2-5 players
$20 Buy a copy on Amazon