WBG Score: 7/10
Player Count: 2-6
You’ll like this if you like: Pretending to be a cat!
Published by: McMiLLER
Designed by: David McGranaghan, Julian Miller
This is a free review copy. See our review policy here.
Have you ever wanted to pretend to be a cat? Yes! Okay, perfect, then read on. If you answered "no" to the above question, then I am surprised you got this far! But maybe you are curious? In which case, are you sure it was a "no"? Either way, The Cat Mitt party game is a hilariously fun game for children and adults, where you need to try to knock a ball about to get dice cubes out to match certain puzzles. That is pretty much it, but I seem to be addicted. Shall we see how it plays?
Great, but first, I would like to mention the publisher, McMiLLER. They are a new independent owned group of wonderful people who just care. Serious. Check out their site. It's wonderful. Inclusive. Sustainable. Open. Honest. Fun. I love these guys. Check them out.
How To Set Up The Cat Mitt Game
Take out the two mitts and ball, and place all the dice inside the ball. It is easiest to do this one at a time and with a little bit of care, rather than trying to stuff them in too fast! Then, shuffle the order cards and draw one card for all to see and give each player playing a Kitty card of their chosen colour. Place the two Meow dice into a central playing area and get ready to play.
How To Plat The Cat Mitt Game
The oldest player will now put on the mitts over their hands and will begin to roll the ball from paw to paw. They are trying to get one of the dice to fall out. If one does, then you need to try and pick it up and roll it so that it matches one of the dice faces shown on the current order card being used for that round. When it does, pick it up and place it into your Kitty card into the correct space, as shown on the order card. Keep doing this until you match the entire sequence. However, as this is going on, the player to your right will be rolling the two Meow dice. When they roll two "Meow's" then they must shout MEOW! And then they can take the mitts off your hand, and they will now start trying to knock a dice out, while the player to their right takes the dice. This continues until one player completes the sequence as shown on the order card that round. They must shout MEOW MEOW MEOW and the round ends.
At this point, all players score one point for each correct dice placed into their play area, and the player who completed the sequence gains the bonus as shown on the top right of the order card. The game plays for three rounds, most points wins!
There are two extra dice you can add for more chaotic fun: a pure red and a pure green dice. When these come out, all players must pay attention and make the appropriate sounds and gestures. For the green dice, you must cry "PURR PURR PURR" while scratching the table. The first to do this can take a treat (dice) from another player's player mat and add it to their own area.
When the red cube comes out, all players must HISS and hold their hands up like a scared/angry Cat. The last player to do this takes the red cube and will score minus three at the end of that round.
Is It Fun? The Cat Mitt Game
If you are looking for a silly, fun party game to enjoy with all ages, then this could be for you. You cannot take this too seriously, but trust me, some of the players playing with you will! Maybe even you. It is strangely absorbing how much you want to get those dice out of the ball, and when someone rolls a double MEOW quickly, giving you less time, it can be very frustrating! But you need to remember what it is you are doing and keep the game in context!
Because this game is very much about just having fun. There is some skill and technique as to how you can best get the dice out of the ball, but the speed at which the other players get the dice is obviously pure luck. You may end up spending a lot more time trying to get the dice out than the other players, perhaps with far less time. That part is totally random, and you need to embrace this.
And when you do embrace the chaos, this can be a lot of fun. My family loved it from game one, and wanted to play over and over. I plan to get this out in the evening over the festive holidays, and I am certain this will be a hit. How much replayability it gets, I am unsure. Games are short, and typically we play at least two games each time. Generally, as the losing child insists on one more go! But I do think there is certainly enough fun - if not strategy and replayability - in this box to warrant your consideration if you are after a silly fun party game. Especially if you are a Cat person!
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