- Categories
- Hobbies and Crafts
- Games
- Card Games
Download Article
Explore this Article
parts
1Setting Up
2Playing the Game
Other Sections
VideoWATCH NOW
Tips and Warnings
Related Articles
Article Summary
Author Info
Last Updated: January 27, 2022
Download Article
ARTICLE
VIDEO
Don’t worry. The kittens don’t actually explode in this game…so long as you can defuse them, that is! Exploding Kittens is a fun and social card game published by The Oatmeal in 2015. The object of the game is to avoid or defuse Exploding Kitten cards to keep them from blowing you up. If you’re the last player standing, you win the game. In this article, we’ll walk you through the rules of the game so that you can come out the other side in one piece and emerge victorious with your cats unscathed.
Part 1
Part 1 of 2:
Setting Up
Download Article
1
Take out all the cards. Divide them into piles of the Exploding Kittens, the Defuse, and the rest of the cards. There should be 4 Exploding Kittens and 6 Defuses.
2
Use the pile of cards that are not the Defuse nor the Exploding Kittens and give each person 4 cards. The game is meant for up to 5 people (or 10 for the party edition).
- In the party edition, play with only the cards without the pawprint for 2-3 players, with the pawprint for 4-7 players, and with all cards for 8-10 players.
Advertisem*nt
3
Give each person 1 Defuse.
4
Use the following bullets to decide how many Exploding Kittens to put in your deck:
- Put 1 Exploding Kitten in the pile with the rest of the cards if you are playing with 2 people.
- Put 2 Exploding Kittens in the pile with the rest of the cards if you're playing with 3 people.
- Put 3 Exploding Kittens in the pile with the rest of the cards if you are playing with 4 people.
- Put 4 Exploding Kittens in the pile with the rest of the cards if you are playing with 5 people.
5
Put the Defuse back in the big deck. Only put 2 in the deck if you are playing with 2 people.
6
Put the deck face down in a pile.
Advertisem*nt
Part 2
Part 2 of 2:
Playing the Game
Download Article
1
Use these piles during gameplay. When it is your turn you can play as many cards as you want, placing them in a pile next to the deck. When you end your turn, you draw a card.
2
Know what the cards mean as you draw them:
- The Exploding Kitten card makes you eliminated immediately unless you use a defuse card. When you use a Defuse card you get to put the Exploding Kitten anywhere in the deck.
- The Favor card means the person who played the card picks any opponent to give them a card of the opponent's choice.
- The Nope card can be used any time during the game to stop any action except against an Exploding Kitten or a Defuse card. It is even possible to "nope" a "nope".
- The Attack card forces the next player to go twice, and you don't need to draw a card at the end of your turn.
- The "Double slap" and "Triple slap" cards forces anyone playing to take two or three turns in a row.
- The Skip card lets you skip your turn without drawing a card.
- The Shuffle card lets you shuffle the deck.
- The "See the Future" card allows you to see the next three cards in the deck.
- The "Alter the Future" card allows you to rearrange the next three cards in the deck.
- The "Draw from the Bottom" card allows you to end your turn by drawing from the bottom of the deck instead of the top.
- Cat cards aren't useful by themselves but can be used in Special Combos or Pairs.
- The "Feral Cat" allows you to use the card as any cat card.
3
Play pairs/special combos:
- If you get doubles (Two of a Kind) of the same card that has no instructions on it you can play them, allowing you to draw a random card from your opponent of choice.
- If you have triples (Three of a Kind) of a card with no instructions you get to ask any opponent for any card. If they do not have thecard you ask for you get nothing. If they do you get to keep that card.
- If you have five different cat cards, then dive into the discard pile and grab any card you want.
- In Advanced Play, any two or three cards with matching icons in their corners can be played as pairs, rather than only instruction-less cards. And if you have five cards with different icons in the corners (with or without instructions) then you can look through the Discard Pile and grab any card you want.
4
Play until someone wins. The game is won when all but one players have "exploded", or drawn an Exploding Kittens card. The last player left is declared the winner. Have fun!
Advertisem*nt
Video
Read Video Transcript
Community Q&A
Search
Question
Should there always be two piles of cards?
Community Answer
Yes, a pile to draw from and a discard pile.
Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
Thank you for your feedback.
If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission.Support wikiHowYesNo
Not Helpful 9Helpful 18
Question
What about the see the future cards?
Community Answer
See the future cards are what the name suggests: you can peek at the top three cards (but NO REARRANGING THEM). After you've played that card, you still have to draw to end your turn, unless you play a skip or an attack.
Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
Thank you for your feedback.
If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission.Support wikiHowYesNo
Not Helpful 5Helpful 18
Question
When eliminated by the exploding kitten card how is it returned to the deck?
Community Answer
When a player draws an exploding kitten without holding a defuse card, that player is eliminated from the game. All of their cards, including the exploding kitten are discarded.
Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
Thank you for your feedback.
If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission.Support wikiHowYesNo
Not Helpful 6Helpful 17
See more answers
Ask a Question
200 characters left
Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.
Advertisem*nt
Tips
Try to get the most Defuses, because when you use them they can't be used again.
Thanks
Helpful7Not Helpful2
Count the number of cards that have been played. The more cards played, the higher the chances of drawing an Exploding Kitten become.
Thanks
Helpful2Not Helpful3
Show More Tips
Try to get the most Defuses, because when you use them they can't be used again.
Thanks
Helpful7Not Helpful2
Show More Tips
Submit a Tip
All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published
Submit
Thanks for submitting a tip for review!
Advertisem*nt
You Might Also Like
Advertisem*nt
About This Article
wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, volunteer authors worked to edit and improve it over time. This article has been viewed 75,193 times.
18 votes - 78%
Co-authors: 8
Updated: January 27, 2022
Views:75,193
Categories: Card Games
Article SummaryX
Exploding Kittens is a fun card game for 2-5 players. The goal of the game is to avoid drawing an Exploding Kitten card from the deck. If a player draws an Exploding Kitten card, they’re out, unless they have a Defuse card that they can play to save themselves. Whoever is the last player left in the game wins. To start the game, remove all of the Exploding Kitten and Defuse cards from the deck. Then, give each player one Defuse card. Shuffle the remaining Defuse cards and the Exploding Kitten cards back into the deck so there’s one less Exploding Kitten card than there are players. Deal 4 cards to each player, and place the rest of the cards face-down in the middle of the table. Now choose one player to go first. On your turn, you can play one or more cards from your hand if you’d like. When you play a card, place it face-up next to the draw pile, and follow the instructions on the card. For example, if you play a See the Future card, you can look at the top 3 cards on the draw pile. Make sure to read the instructions on the cards in your hand carefully - certain cards allow you to play out of turn or to skip your turn. Some cards don’t have instructions on them. These cards can be collected and then played as a pair, three-of-a-kind, or five-of-a-kind. If you play a pair of cards, you can steal a card at random from a player of your choice. If you play a three-of-a-kind, you can tell a player of your choice what type of card you want from them. If they don’t have the card you ask for, you get nothing. Finally, if you play a five-of-a-kind, you can go through the discard pile and take any card you’d like. When you’re finished playing cards from your hand, or if you don’t want to play any cards, end your turn by drawing a card from the draw pile. After your turn, play continues with the player to your left going next. If a player draws an Exploding Kitten card, they’re out of the game, unless they have a Defuse card in their hand. If a player has a Defuse card, they can play it face-up, then put the Exploding Kitten card back into the deck face-down. They can place the Exploding Kitten card anywhere in the deck, including on top. Continue playing until only one player is left in the game. Whoever’s the last player standing wins! For tips on how to use strategies, like playing pairs and special combos, read on!
Did this summary help you?
- Send fan mail to authors
Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 75,193 times.
Did this article help you?
Advertisem*nt
