Kids Game Review: ‘Pete the Cat Bedtime Blues Game’ from Briarpatch

Pete the Cat Bedtime Blues Game from University Games’ Briarpatch line for younger players presents challenges in collecting and counting to win the game. Inspired by the Bedtime Blues book from the wildly successful Pete the Cat series, the board shows the art of the gang of friends bedding down for a sleepover. Like Pete says in the book, “This cool cat needs to go to bed.” It is not as easy as that, of course, as there are more steps to getting into bed than just tucking under the covers.

Getting Ready for Bed Rules

A round of Pete the Cat Bedtime Blues Game begins with each player getting a set of five Pete the Cat stands and placing one of them at the “Start” marker on the board. Players take turns spinning the spinner and moving their cat on the board the number of spaces.  Like Pete in the book, players are working to be the first to catch some ZZZs, and to do so they must collect each of the Bedtime Tokens as well as getting at least four cats onto the bed. Each time a player lands on a new type of token, whether Take a Bath, Brush Teeth, Put on PJs, or Go to Bed, they must act out the action and collect their token.

The real trick of Pete the Cat Bedtime Blues Game is getting all four cats on the bed. Players may place cats whenever they land on a Jumping on the Bed space. Each space is marked with a different number from one to three, correlating to how many cats a player can place onto the bed. Landing on a three is a must to maximize the number of cats in a single go since, at the end of every turn, the active player pushes the red button on the bedpost once. At some random push, the red button will activate the spring inside, sending all the cats on the bed up into the air! The ones that fall off the bed are returned to their owners, who need to start adding them again.

Patience is the Key

Since the win conditions of Pete the Cat Bedtime Blues Game require all four Bedtime Tokens as well as four cats on the bed, the game is a combination of luck and patience. Landing on the right squares to pick up the tiles and place cats on the bed is key, but it can all be undone by an unlucky push of the red button.

Great for Young Players

Pete the Cat Bedtime Blues Game is a token-moving and collection game for two to four players aged three and up. With the spinner running most of the mechanics of the game, there is not much need for strategizing, making it well suited for the youngest players. It is a great way to practice counting and collecting toward a goal all the while living in anticipation of the bed going off and cats going flying!