It’s like UNO, except there are goats, magical enchiladas and kittens who can kill you.
And that’s apparently enough for people to pledge a gazillion dollars.
Matthew Inman, the cartoonist and grammar enthusiast behind the popular comic website, The Oatmeal, launched a fundraising campaign on Kickstarter Tuesday for a new card game that got more than $700,000 in pledges in just the first few hours.
The game is a cross between Inman’s signature absurdist comic drawings and the popular card game UNO. It was dreamed up by Inman and game creators Elan Lee and Shane Small, according to Exploding Kittens Kickstarter page. The initial goal was $10,000.
There are a lot of reasons why the Internet loves kittens; one hint to Exploding Kittens fiery success is the Oatmeal’s cult following. Its Facebook page alone has more than 3 million followers.
The game rules are explained in a short animated video on the Kickstarter page. Each player draws a card from the deck until someone draws an exploding kitten card. Once an exploding kitten card is drawn the player is booted from the game. The more cards that are drawn from the deck, the higher a player’s chances of pulling an exploding kitten card.
The game also adds a bit of humorous complexity, featuring cards that enable players powers such as weaponizing back hair and laser points to diffuse a kitten’s explosiveness.
Exploding Kittens might seem too magically absurd to be true, but with the success of other Kickstarter campaigns such as party game favorite Cards Against Humanity, this project might be another crowd-funded home run. CNN has reached out to Inman and his creative team for a comment, but has not heard back at this time.
The game creators did note on their fundraising page that they are staunchly against the harming of actual kittens.
On The Oatmeal’s Facebook page, Inman wrote that the Kickstarter goal was reached in eight minutes. “I love you, my precious Oatlets. Who wants a sandwich?”
