Cat in the Box Review - with Tom Vasel

[@5iron4]

Update: I just received mine and they have updated the colors of the pieces. Where Tom notes that 2 colors are very similar, they are now very distinct red and purple.

[@maverickdelta]

Can we say that Tom telegraphed that he liked the game by just the fact that he took the time to sleeve all the cards? Has he ever not liked a game while having its cards sleeved?

[@ArsenicDrone]

Yeah, the tone of the review portion was already apparent at 1:19

[@neilbiggin]

How do I know what sleeve size to buy?

[@RAY19740]

Most games made in wasturn the same standard size for magic the gathering ​@@neilbiggin but in Japan like yugioh games its small size japanese card size standard

[@rabidpickle]

Found this at a discount/outlet store brand new for $10 today!

[@namelessfire]

A truly inspired design. Incredibly thoughtful and rewarding. This and Scout have been dominating the “small card game” slot at my game nights.

[@odditie]

Wow I initially dismissed this game when I saw the cover assuming it was some mass market dexterity game. I’m blown away by how unique and interesting it looks.

[@deronfreudenthal5646]

Just demoed this at GenCon. Wasn’t really interested but just happened to be standing by a demo table when it open up. There just happened to be four of us there. We sat down. We played. I loved it!

[@BezierGamesInc]

Thanks for playing!

[@deronfreudenthal5646]

@@BezierGamesInc thanks for bringing it over! I have to have it now :-)

[@A6by]

It's one of the best games I've ever played, mainly because I'm a sucker for unique and beautiful mechanics, and this is a total buffet of them.

[@Warriorking.1963]

Mine's is on order and I'm eagerly awaiting delivery!

[@zivpesso6293]

I have being reading that the scoring rules for the player that creates the paradox is too punishing, has anyone played it that has thoughts regarding this aspect? Otherwise I am super interested in this game

[@carlosflores4179]

Love your style

[@JovinGhoul23]

Got to play this at a convention earlier this year, was pleasantly surprised! Very clever game, that definitely makes you think outside the box (pun intended)

[@bodsarmy]

Knew Tom loved it when he said the card quality was meh so he’d sleeved them

[@lystic9392]

My dad has red-green colorblindness. I'm guessing this wouldn't go well with this game?

[@ClaudeAndTaylor]

This game is sooo good!

[@TheBlakeWhitaker]

This looks incredible! Awesome review!

[@refreshdaemon]

I love how this game uses the theme of Schrodinger's Cat. Might have to play it just because of that.

[@TerrierHalo]

Looks neat.

[@CharlieWellsPlus]

Seems different, color me interested!

[@thiagodonascimento7926]

Can the player who created a paradox still get the bonus points for his prediction? Or does he only get the negative points for each trick in this round?

[@ClaudeAndTaylor]

Nope!

[@thiagodonascimento7926]

@@ClaudeAndTaylor makes sense. Otherwise the player could create a paradox on purpose to fulfill his prediction. I guess 🙂 Just pre-ordered the game and I am excited

[@MikeC310]

This game seems surprisingly good for what looks like a joke game. Nice review!

[@elqord.1118]

How well does this play at 3p?

[@lordzon]

Fine. It scales very well.

[@Jthomas22a]

It is on my short list

[@BGMechanics]

This appears to be convoluted to me.

[@A6by]

It surprisingly wasn't when I played it. It all meshed together way better than I expected.

[@otterlydorky]

Me: I am totally not buying any more games this month…. 5 min into the video: damn you

[@BezierGamesInc]

😹

[@cursivecurses]

I found the game way, way too punishing for the player that causes the paradox. Not just no bonus, not just no bonus and no points for tricks. NEGATIVE points for tricks, punished even more for doing what you were supposed to do

[@TheLonelyCosmonaut]

7:47

[@TheLonelyCosmonaut]

9:03

[@retroarcadefan]

Looks a bit too fiddly for the type of game. A bit of streamlining would have made this really intriguing. Appreciate the review Tom!

[@elqord.1118]

There is nothing fiddle about this one. Not sure what you are on about

[@retroarcadefan]

@@elqord.1118 Never said anything about fiddles, but I do like 'The Devil Went Down to Georgia'. Every time a card is played, each player has to grab a tiny token and put it on a small spot on the one of the tracks or reveal that they can no longer play a certain suit by picking up a tiny token in front of them. Those tracks better be in easy reach of all the players too. Most trick taking games are played lightning fast and there isn't any bookkeeping in between every single players card play. The round scoring and board reset is more fiddly bookkeeping that slows things down.

[@JhoffDJ.]

@@elqord.1118 it’s an opinion

[@ctvisions]

I like the paradox idea as it fits when there can’t be two of the same card, but the other parts of predicting how many wins and the area control bonus scoring part seem to be tacked on mechanisms just to add more to the game.

[@lastburning]

Agreed. Feels like insecure game design. Like they weren't confident the core mechanisms offered enough depth on their own.

[@ctvisions]

@@lastburning maybe. I wouldn’t mind the other additions if it made sense with the theme more. But the prediction is nothing new and the area control seems shoehorned in.

[@luishsm]

I think the "area control" is just a way to make you value certain numbers and colors differently from your opponents. And get points from that. When you play the game you can feel that it is actually necessary to the design, at least that's how I felt!

[@ctvisions]

@@luishsm right I can see that being why. That is only potential points unless you get the amount of tricks right. But prefer it would make more sense with the theme cause the core colorless cards idea is cool and could probably carry the game more if paired with some other type of scoring system.

[@Draffut2003]

@@ctvisions Theme? What trick taking games are you thinking of that are thematic?

[@XRay44]

Seems more like Fiddly: The Trick Taking Game to me.

[@tourguidechuck]

But is it a The Crew killer?

[@Draffut2003]

Why would a pure competitive game and pure cooperative game ever replace each other?

[@ConeDefense]

@@Draffut2003 depends how many trick taking games you think you need in your collection. We only have a few people that’ll play them, so for us more than 1-2 is overkill.

[@Draffut2003]

@@ConeDefense Depends on how different they are. Fox in the Forest is unique in that it's 2p. The crew is cooperative. They different enough like that and I can justify 4-5. And you can always upgrade and old one for a new one, cult of the new!

[@danielmcmillan7655]

Noooo! Don’t make this scarce at GenCon lol

[@whytemeet]

It probably would have scored higher but we all know that Tom hates cats.

[@thedicetower]

I gave it a VERY high score. Cats has nothing to do with it. Not even part of the them, anyway.

[@surnis9043]

Schrodinger's cat is killed with radiation and acid in the experiment, so this game would actually attract cat haters, not cat lovers.

[@republikadugave420]

I am kinda on the opposite side...worst trick taking game i have ever played by a mile ... that i do not have blue it is cool for a game or two but it has a big problem .. it has happened that i would have predicted amount tricks with a great bonus setup on board but someone busts so i have to pat myself on the back and say you played well only other players are idiots

[@lilyblanco9525]

For me, I just don't like trick taking games. It's entirely luck what you're dealt for a hand and total guesswork as to how a hand will go (especially in the beginning when you have no idea what the other players have). I've played a variety of different trick taking games and they really all feel the same to me. It's like wearing different pairs of jeans, but even if they are different colors and styles, they're still jeans. And honestly I'd rather just open the Hearts app on my computer if I'm in the mood for trick taking.

[@ConeDefense]

Trick taking needs to be snappy, this one is NOT. We played it at origins, it was far too slow paced and fiddly because of maintaining the card colors.

[@Templarkun]

I see what you mean. Would you say that this game to trick taking as a Codenames was to party games?

[@ConeDefense]

@@Templarkun I think that’s fair, which could prove Tom correct in its success. For us though, this was just too slow and pokey by comparison to things like “Tournament at.”

[@laxrulz7]

Just to be clear, you'll never have a 3 in your hand if all the 3s are taken... a paradox happens when you only have 3s in your hand and the only open 3s are things that you have declared you're void in. There are four of every number so you can't be screwed simply by having other people play your numbers first.

[@JorWat25]

No, there are five of each number. The game comes with 45 "Cat cards, 5 cards each from 1 to 9", to quote the manual.

[@CarlToonist]

Tom, I know you like trick taking games. But this sounds a little like going out early in Llama and causing other people to have points. I wonder what the difference is?

[@thedicetower]

I'm not sure there is any correlation between the two games. I don't know how I could/would compare them.

[@happiness1st]

I have plenty/enough trick taking card games, and most of them, after playing it, get pretty boring, same old thing! That's why I haven't brought them back out to play. This card game seems pretty boring! Nothing interesting!🙄 Capital Lux 2 card game is 100 times MORE INTERESTING and so are other card games(Arboretum, Ohanami, TEN, Parade, etc.) that is not 'trick taking game'!! Try those instead!!

[@StevenStJohn-kj9eb]

Really? I mean, it looks super-ugly, and the idea of the paradox just ending the round seems really random and frustrating. And it seems like a lot of mental work to do a very simple thing (play the highest card). Then layer on that a need to match the prediction of how many you'll win? That just sounds really... painful.

[@primusinterpares5767]

Since you're trying to match the prediction, "play the highest card" is a pretty ridiculous description of the game. And the paradox ending isn't random, it's based on how much you were pushing it earlier in the round.

[@Draffut2003]

If someone else causes a paradox, you get a point for every trick you've taken. The prediction part is just a bonus, you don't need to hit it, it just gives you a way to score better with a weaker hand (only 1 trick)

[@thedicetower]

I can only say to play it. It REALLY works well, and it's not as thinky as you might think so. Also, the paradox only ends the round in the last or second last trick usually.

[@StephenAslett]

If you always play the highest card you will lose. You have more than 4 cards in your hand and the max trick prediction is 4. Not only will you probably not make your prediction with a strong hand but your tokens will probably be staggered so won’t be many bonus points if you do. Also, if you choose to keep only the highest cards (and throw out a 1) and everyone else does the same, you’re more to cause a paradox at some point in the round, getting you negative points. Cat in the Box is one of the finest trick taking games I’ve played. Really good, especially with other players at the same experience level.

[@chuckm1961]

There is absolutely nothing random about a paradox. It is the result of a series of choices by all the players. It’s called “strategy”. Also, it’s not about simply playing the highest card. With all due respect, you completely misunderstand the game and should probably play it first, before commenting