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- Verified Buyer
As a retired elementary school teacher, I like to find alternatives for my grandsons to their IPad videos and electronic games. A couple of years ago, I ordered Cat Crimes for the older one (now10) who loves cats. We played it a couple of times, but didn’t really get into it. This week the younger one (7) pulled it out. He loves animals. We worked on it together with me reading the cards & him placing the cats around the board. He really enjoyed it & begged me to order Dog Crimes ( he likes their 2 cats, but is more into dogs). So I did and it arrived the next day. Today both boys worked on a few cards in the Dog Crimes game & really enjoyed it. I did too as I was helping them. I think it works well with 2 people. One reads the card & the other places the animals. The game comes in a box about the size of a Kindle tablet. The characters are made of sturdy cardboard & are of a nice size. They have cardboard stands, so they stand up. The crimes are printed on round cardboard circles that you place on the playing board. I like logic games & the 3-D aspect makes this fun for kids.The game is fun and has cute characters, but I've found one puzzle so far that has multiple solutions. In puzzle 19, starting at the coffee cup and going clockwise, I placed the cats as follows:Ginger, Mr. Mittens, blank, Duchess, Sassy, Tom CatThis arrangement satisfies all the clues, but is different from the one on the back of the card. After I found this solution, I realized that I could modify it to get several more:Ginger, Mr. Mittens, blank, Duchess, Sassy, Pip SqueakGinger, Mr. Mittens, blank, Duchess, Sassy, blankGinger, Mr. Mittens, Pip Squeak, Duchess, Sassy, blankGinger, Mr. Mittens, Pip Squeak, Duchess, Sassy, Tom CatGinger, Mr. Mittens, Tom Cat, Duchess, Sassy, blankGinger, Mr. Mittens, Tom Cat, Duchess, Sassy, Pip SqueakI didn't look, but there may be even more solutions to this puzzle.When there are multiple solutions, there is only so much you can determine logically--the facts that are common to every solution. Beyond that, you have to guess until you find a solution that works. This can be fun in a game like Gravity Maze where you can experiment and test the results (the marble either makes it to the end or it doesn't), but a game like Cat Crimes is better if there is only one right answer. Whereas the Gravity Maze manual explicitly says that some puzzles have multiple solutions, the Cat Crimes manual implies the opposite: "Determine THE placement of Cats that would satisfy all of the clues listed" (emphasis mine). So, it seems like they didn't realize that multiple placements are possible in some puzzles. It's still a good game, but it's diminished somewhat by this oversight.I got it for my kid, we play it together. It's fun and challenging. Figuring out how to figure out the puzzles is part of the game. I might get it for my aging parent too.Sooo I totally missed the fact that this was a single player game when I purchased it BUT I actually ended up liking it for that. My just turned 8yo can do the easy cards on her own but it’s also fun to work together as a team with the harder cards. There are 40 different challenge cards separated into three levels of difficulty. And unless you have a photographic memory, over time, the cards can easily be played more than once. They start off VERY simple and get increasingly more difficult and require you to go back and reread the clue over again or switch up your original cat clue placement. I was really impressed with the quality of the game prices as well. Very sturdy for not being plastic and super easy set-up. My daughter loves mystery/detective stuff so this game is perfect for her when she needs to fill some non-electronic down time but we also had fun playing it together.I bought this for my granddaughter's ninth birthday. She is into solving mysteries and also loves cats. I enjoy playing it with her. We worked together to solve the mysteries. It's a cute game (spoken like a true cat lady).Had bought the cat version first, this is similar and great too. Fun with all ages.Bought this for my grandson 8 yrs old. Played it with him and sister age 6 SEVERAL times a day during my visit. They loved solving the crimes and were up to the expert level very quickly. Love that they can do it on their own for work together. Even Mom and Dad jumped in to help solve the crime! Great for logical thinking and perseverance. They do not seem to mind repeating the cards. I am pretty sure we went through all the cards on my visit and my granddaughter is still playing it... with her pet cat watching ?.Cat-loving 4 year old loves this game! He obviously needs help with the clues right now, but he has a blast and this seems like a game he may continue to enjoy as he grows up. He also gets a kick out of the fact that we have a cat named Sassy that looks just like the Sassy in the game. Game itself is easy to assemble and keep organized. It is a welcome addition to our board game selection.I think this game is probably meant for kids but myself and my friend really like it. We're both in our 50s, cat lovers and think it's fun. You do have to use your brain a lot to decipher the culprit of the crime, especially the crime cards at Advanced level. Can't help thinking it would be great if it was possible to buy one of these games but have 'personalised' cat figures made up in the names/likenesses of your own cats and, if you don't have the (required) 6 cats yourself, your friend's cat names!! :)I bought this for a weekend away with husband and 9 year old. We have a lot of family time together playing games and I like to try ones that are not run of the mill.My daughter and I played together to start with, and she gradually got more confident solving the puzzle herself. The ‘whodunnit’ cards, cats and board are very good quality, and have different levels of challenges. The box fits nicely into a backpack so nice and portable.My husband joined in the action once he saw how much fun we were having, and my daughter able to explain the rules as they are fairly straight forward once you get going. However this is a game she can easily play by herself and be entertained without wanted her iPad!Bought this as was home schooling 9 year old due to covid school closure. Difficult enough for him to think about without getting stressed in (what is, let's face it) a stressful time.Good fun. You need to think very logically to get it right. Can be played alone or as a team with one other person. Cards are sturdy and well illustrated. Children from about 8 and adults who enjoy stimulating the little 'grey cells' should thoroughly enjoy it. This game has different levels of difficulty - everyone should start at level 1 as a warm-up! By the way, the price is reasonable but the postal charges to France outrageous - about £10!My 6 year old is obsessed with cats and loves logic games. This was a birthday present for her and it tends to come out about once a week for a few games. She picked up the concept quickly, and can play it by herself now. The 40 cards of varying difficulty means that while she can do about half she struggles with the much harder set, but then so do I!Some of the clues (eye colour) are a little tricky, but there is the guide book which has a little 'bio' for each cat which is easily referred to.Such a simple concept, with nice graphics, and very entertaining. Hopefully the materials (thick cardboard) will stand up to use over time, in which case this will continue to be 5*!
