Nine lives on Kickstarter

Being interested in language, one of the YouTubers I follow is Rob Watts of RobWords (here, 2026a). 

In February this year, Rob posted a short on his YouTube channel about a crowdfunded project for a UK-based word game using cards, called "Nine Lives", asking players to decide what the 'real' answer to the origins of obscure English sayings were (RobWords, 2026b). I went and had a look at the project on Kickstarter, and read about Alex Jones, the creator and self-avowed "Ex-ITV reporter. Ex-sensible adult. Full-time idiom fanatic. I quit the newsroom to create Nine Lives, and I hope you have as much fun playing it as I did obsessively creating it" (2026). I was intriuged.

Having read about it, and - despite it being largely based around cat characters - I decided to put in a small pledge, so am one of the backers on the Nine Lives Kickstarter project (pledges have, I think, now closed). I am looking forward to receiving my copy of the game, which, I hope, will turn up by Christmas... as that is when the family will gather. I am hoping for a summer game, as collectively we do love sharing words, sayings and the unusual things we read.

At its most basic, this is a multi-guess card game with question cards asking where sayings came from, e.g.:

Saying: DEVIL'S ADVOCATE

Answer options:

1. An officer of the British Navy was appointed on ships to argue in defence of sailors facing punishment.
2. From 1587 to 1983, the Catholic Church appointed a biblical scholar to argue why a person put forward for sainthood was undeserving.
3. District attorneys are lawyers in the USA who represent the state against accused citizens. The phrase began as a pun devised by criminals on the initials DA.

And the answer is "b".

Each player can choose a character (I think there are six). There are a few different lengths of games. Similar to jokers or wild cards, there are special cards which change the direction, order and value of play, all with 'cat' sayings: such as letting the cat out of the bag, herding cats, and cat got your tongue. And all those glorious aphorisms to explore (Kickstarter, 2026).

The project is moving through production, and I am very much looking forward to getting the box in the post, so we can enjoy a game 😉

Sam

References:

RobWords. (2026a). Home. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@RobWords

RobWords. (2026b, February 17). Where does 'caught red-handed' come from? [video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/7wdo_AOir4o

KickStarter. (2026, January). Nine Lives: The Idiom Origins Game [Alex Jones]. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/186389310/nine-lives-the-idiom-origins-game