Zombie Kittens

Zombie Kittens changes the usual elimination system of Exploding Kittens by allowing defeated participants to remain involved and potentially return to play. The standalone deck contains 61 cards and supports two to five players, with a typical match lasting about fifteen minutes. It has no developed story or campaign, although its theme presents cats returning from the dead. The objective is to become the last living participant after the others have exploded.

Surviving the Draw Pile

Each player begins with a hand that includes a Zombie Kitten Card, while Exploding Kittens are hidden inside the draw pile. During a turn, the active participant may play any number of Action Cards before drawing. Drawing usually ends the turn. If the card is an Exploding Kitten, the player must use a Zombie Kitten or become Dead. Used Exploding Kittens are secretly returned to the draw pile, allowing players to place danger near specific positions.

Death Does Not End the Match

A Dead player stops taking regular turns but keeps the remaining cards in their hand. Certain cards marked for immediate use can still be played, allowing eliminated participants to interfere with the living. When a living player uses a Zombie Kitten to survive an explosion, that person also chooses one Dead participant to resurrect. Both players then return their Exploding Kittens to secret locations in the draw pile, and the revived participant resumes taking normal turns.

Several cards interact directly with this system:

• Zombie Kitten prevents an explosion and can return another participant to life.
• Feed the Dead makes living players give cards to a selected Dead player.
• Grave Robber forces Dead participants to shuffle cards from their hands into the deck.
• Dig Deeper lets a player inspect the top card before deciding whether to keep it.
• Attack of the Dead creates additional turns based on the number of Dead players.
• Clone copies the effect of the card directly below it in the discard pile.

Controlling Life, Death, and Information

Zombie Kittens does not contain levels, maps, missions, or permanent upgrades. Progress is determined by the number of living players and the changing position of dangerous cards. Standard actions such as Attack, Skip, Shuffle, See the Future, Favor, and Nope help players delay drawing, inspect the deck, or disrupt another participant’s plan. As more players die, cards connected to the Dead can become more useful.