Cat: a little game about little heroes

by John Wick

Cat comes as the third release from John Wick under the Wicked-Dead banner. This long awaited game is a delightful romp of adventure and imagination. The setting and sysetm are both designed to be enjoyable and accessable to players young and old.
The premise is simple, based on the pets found in more than a quarter of American households. Cats protect people from things they can't see. Boggins, specifically. Boggins, like the Man Under the Bed. Players fight to protect humans from the creatures that feed on children's fears and rejoice in men's shortcomings. Cats also venture to the Kingdom of Dreams where the surreal is common place, and anythings is possible.

Employing the Advantage system, Cat allows each player to not be limited by his character sheet, but use the full potential of his imagination.

Genres: Cats, Role Playing Games, Gaming

43 pages, paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

John Wick is an award-winning role-playing game designer best known for his creative contributions to the games Legend of the Five Rings and 7th Sea. He self-published smaller games through his the Wicked Dead Brewing Company, and later created the John Wick Presents gaming company.

Reviews

[Horus · Rating 5 out of 5]

A note that the edition I read was 2014 and includes some changes from the original edition.

This is a delightful idea for a role-playing game. The author explains that the inspiration for the game came after the death of his very young cat from feline leukaemia and since publication has taken on a life of its own. There are some great ideas here about cats protecting their humans from “boggins” or the monster under the bed, ghosts, doubts whispered in your ears etc etc. The premise is really quite clever and could lead to some enjoyable role-playing especially for those who are cat inclined and could also be really child friendly (think of it as an opportunity to let the child tell a story as part of a game).

The author provides all the rules as well as some background info and inspirational ideas for setting up a game story. All in a mere 87 pages.

[Kate Bullock · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cat is an epic little book of wonder. The rules are simple, easy, and make for fast digesting. They aren't confusing at all and make it easy for anyone to pick up and play the game. The magical abilities of the cats are perfectly designed to mimic our four-legged friends, and open up a world of role playing that is both surreal (the dreamscape) and frightening.

The book pits our favourite companions against the things that go bump in the night, other bad cats, dogs, and rats. It sets up a magical world beneath the veneer of normal that we humans just aren't aware of, and invites us, the players, to be those sardonic friends of ours. It's charming, delightful, and a great time. It can be used as a campaign or one-shot, and lends itself to episodic play very easily, which is a favourite of mine.

After having run the game, I will say I find there to be too many dice, but that's just my own preference. Dice pools aren't a method I've ever found super effective or balanced. The game lends itself to being immediately in character, and is a fun, silly time. I did find some players got frustrated with the lack of opposable thumbs, but really, that's just from playing a cat.

[Geoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally, I got this to give to my spouse for Solstice, but there was a snafu in delivery. We did get it, though, and it's charming.

I've played only a handful of games of Cat, and the best one was run by my then-eleven-year-old son, and included my wife. I would like to have seen a bit more description or ideas of stories to run, and a bit more about the World of Dreams. But the system works well, and we had a good time. That's what's important to me.

Thanks, John and Roland.

[Lemurkat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read the book, going to run the game soon. Will update this review when done-so!