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Quick Look: The Cats of New Orleans

Designers: Matt Forbeck, Marty Forbeck, Marco Pecota
Publisher: RAYBOX Games
Year Published: (currently on Kickstarter, Link at bottom of review)

No. of Players: 1-4

Ages: 14+

Playing Time: 20 – 40 minutes per session.

Find more info HERE.

From the Publisher:

 Disclaimer: I played the Tabletop Simulator version for The Cats of New Orleans, which includes the first three scenarios. A practical tutorial that teaches you the game’s rules, systems and mechanics.

Review:
 

Unfortunately, I was previously unaware of Raybox Games or the work of industry veteran Marco Pecota (the game’s chief designer), but I am glad I was presented with the opportunity to review this game. The theme and game system immediately drew my attention, since I’ve played a fair share of dungeon crawler games with a heavy narrative aspect to them. The anthropomorphic cats from the wetlands and a gruelling post-civil war setting will no doubt be enjoyable for players from the United States and beyond. 

The publisher is famous for their “Paths Unknown” system, implemented in all of their recent titles and most importantly in their “Cats of…” series. In fact, if you are already familiar with The Cats of Mont Saint-Michel (the first game in the series), you probably know what to expect: beautiful artwork and miniatures, excellent writing and the aptly named “one minute setup”. Raybox Games has really gone above and beyond to optimize the setup for their games, and despite the clunkiness of not having used Tabletop Simulator in quite a while, I was able to start playing in no time at all.

This is a book-based game with lots of lore, text, and a combat system that relies on a grid, weapons, action points and heavy use of line of sight. As such, it is important for me to address the elephant in the room and get the Gloomhaven comparison out of the way. Having played (and enjoyed) Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion, the inspiration was immediately apparent to me. However, beyond the movement and combat mechanics, and the all-in-one adventure book / rulebook / board, the design team did an excellent job to further simplify a tried and true system. Gone are the multiple decks of cards for damage and the player’s hand of complex ability cards. Instead, this game relies on a simplified set of actions you can take and a very clever way of utilizing a poker deck for chance-influenced effects.

The demo was short, but more than enough to have a taste of the very impressive writing from the team. And while Tabletop Simulator doesn’t do the artwork justice, you need only to visit the game’s website or Kickstarter page to get a sample of Omar Rayan’s intricate and gorgeous illustrations. With 6 successful crowdfunding campaigns under their belt, the quality of the components and the gameplay should be guaranteed. I for one can’t wait to get my hands on this uniquely themed game, that is sure to awe casual and expert players alike. The fact the characters are AWESOME-looking cats will probably mean that I’ll even get to play it with the missus, who vehemently hates cooperative games, haha.

Closing Thoughts

This is a game that might be interesting for its abundance of style and personality alone, but if you’re looking for a fun and simple campaign game to play with your friends, it’s very likely that this won’t disappoint. The crowdfunding campaign went live on April 21st, so you still have time to make up your mind and give The Cats of New Orleans a chance. The deluxe edition looks gorgeous, even if a little pricey. And really, the only downside is that the game won’t be translated into other languages for now.

Why should you back it?

• Gorgeous artwork and components, with lots and lots of miniatures.
• One of the easiest setups I’ve seen for a dungeon crawler, and a simple set of rules.
• Excellent writing and an original theme set in a gritty post-civil war New Orleans with anthropomorphic animals.

What are the downsides?

• The mechanics and strategy elements might be too simple for the most hardcore players.
• Only available in English for now.

After reading Pablo’s review, if this sounds like a game for you at the time of this posting The Cats of New Orleans
will be live on KICKSTARTER until, remember nothing will be charged to your card until, Thu, May 7 2026 2:27 PM PDT, and has surpassed its funding goal of $36,601. Check it out and back it HERE.

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