Exploding Kittens Expansions Ranked
Exploding Kittens is one of those quick and fun party games that so many people have discovered and enjoy. But if you are in the market to get the game now, there are many expansions to choose from. So which expansion “blows” our minds? Let’s find out.
The Base Game/ NSFW version and Party Pack
We will not be adding the Base Game and the Not Safe For Work version in the rankings here. Please if you are looking to get the game, pick the version that you are most happy with. If you want to bring this to family events or play with children, the NSFW might not be the route you want to take.
Additionally, if you are looking to play with more players, the party pack might be a good option, but it could limit you to adding in expansions. This is good in the event that you want to play with a large group and still want to keep the rules simple.
You can pick up any of these sets using the links to Amazon here.
4. Exploding Kittens The Hidden Pack
This one might not be around anymore, but the Hidden pack was a merger between Cards Against Humanity and Exploding Kittens and could be found at Target locations by looking in the display cardboard that was setup at the time.
There was only 1 card that was released with this pack called the Blind Bat card. This pack came with the party pack back as well as the original card back so they could be used for both versions of the game. However, this card was the precursor to the Curse of Cat Butt released in a later set and tends to be the least favorite card created for the game by the creators and some of their fans due to its complexity that it adds to the game.
It’s for this reason that we put this pack in dead last. Sorry Blind Bat.
3. Streaking Kittens
Streaking Kittens is the set that released the curse of Cat Butt as well as several other cards for the game. The backs to the cards are designed only for the main version of the game so party pack players beware.
This set released some new cards that are enjoyable to play but we have to put this expansion lower due to the Curse of Cat Butt. If cards need to be pulled out of the expansion to keep the game less confusing and maintain fun, then there is an issue.
That being said, the other cards that this set released are really enjoyable. I love the Cataomic Bomb where all the exploding kittens are taken out of the deck and then placed in one location together on the deck.
This adds strategy to the game for holding onto other cards such as draw from the bottom, or the Super Skip card that makes its first appearance in this expansion.
Steaking Kittens is still a good expansion with the cards that it offers, but I would recommend going after some of their other releases before getting your hands on this one.
2. Barking Kittens
A step up from the Streaking Kittens, the cards that this version has to offer are really fun and add some simple yet effective new mechanics that allow players to play on other peoples turns utilizing the Now feature. This behaves similar to that of a Nope card in which you can play it on another player's turn, but the cards do not require some other card to first be played by another player.
I am also a big fan of the attack cards that allow for attacks to continue to pile up. This makes cards like the super skip really valuable as well as maybe holding onto those attack cards for the right combo.
The Barking Kitten leaves something to be desired personally, but is still fun to see more kitten cards in the game that do not just defuse or explode players.
If you want to know what all comes in Barking Kittens, you can check out our recent unboxing of this latest expansion here.
You can pick up your own copy of the Barking Kittens expansion using our Amazon link below!
1. Imploding Kittens
This is our favorite expansion to the game, and it was the first expansion released. This expansion gives players the imploding kitten, an exploding kitten that starts off face down in the deck as an imploding kitten, but once drawn, gets placed back in the deck face up and cannot be defused.
I like the ultimate doom that this card offers. In addition to that this expansion really started to change up the card abilities with alter the future, some targeted attacks that didn’t change the game too much, but still made it feel new and refreshing.
This expansion because of the imploding kitten expanded the max players up 1 from the base game so if you needed just one more player spot, this is the expansion to pick up.
The cone of shame is incorporated as well which helps the player penalized to wear it to remember the direction of play as there is another new card time called reverse that simply reverses the order of play.
The overall simplicity, but effectiveness of the new cards is fantastic with this set and though the cone of shame tends to not come with when I travel with the game to friends houses, it’s still a great expansion to pick up.
You can pick up our number one ranked expansion for Exploding Kittens, Imploding Kittens using our Amazon link below!
Conclusion
And so there you have it, that is our ranking of the Exploding Kittens expansions, please comment below and let us know your favorite expansion and what you want to see the developers to next!
Be sure to check out some of our other game expansion ranking lists or see what else we offer here for board game news and reviews!