Strap on your safari hat and lace up your boots! It's time to take charge of your very own zoo. Find animals in the wild or buy them in the auction. Choose the perfect animals to complete your exhibits and attract visitors. The zookeeper with the best exhibits and most visitors is the victor.
Zoodlums (formerly "Zooligans") is a fast and fun card game for the whole family. Players learn while they play–from categorizing animals to counting and reading amazing facts. It will take strategy, planning, and a bit of luck to come out ahead, but everyone who plays is a winner! But don't take our word for it...
Zoodlums (formerly "Zooligans") is a fast and fun card game for the whole family. Players learn while they play–from categorizing animals to counting and reading amazing facts. It will take strategy, planning, and a bit of luck to come out ahead, but everyone who plays is a winner! But don't take our word for it...
- "I like the detail of the animal cards & how that plays into mechanics" Overall 4/5 -Ryan Metzler of the Dice Tower network
- "Zooligans is a wonderful game.... every session left me feeling like I played a game that was worth my time." -Father Geek review
- "Short, simple, fun. Good game" -Andrea D
- "Wow this game is amazing! Each animal photo and fact is so interesting to look at and read." -Ann M, English professor
- "WAY better than any similarly themed animal game I've seen at science teaching conventions" -Tom F
- "The game is very well balanced, the easy to see symbols make it simple and exciting." -Justin T, high school teacher
Game Play
There are two main types of cards in Zoodlums animal cards and goal cards. The animals are categorized by type (bird, fish, mammal, reptile), home continent, and special category (venomous, rainforest, etc.) Goal cards represent the exhibit objectives you are trying to fulfill by matching animals in the correct category. There are central goals that all players compete to complete, and each player also has a secret continent goal. When a goal is met an exhibit is completed, and the player earns a number of visitors.
To complete their exhibits, players lay down cards from their hand. Each round there is an auction followed by playing a card. Then players can trade animals, and finally they draw a new animal card. Play continues until all central goals have been completed or the auction animal pile is depleted. Then points (visitors) are counted to determine the most successful zoo.
Watch the following game play/mini review video from All Us Geeks for more info.
To complete their exhibits, players lay down cards from their hand. Each round there is an auction followed by playing a card. Then players can trade animals, and finally they draw a new animal card. Play continues until all central goals have been completed or the auction animal pile is depleted. Then points (visitors) are counted to determine the most successful zoo.
Watch the following game play/mini review video from All Us Geeks for more info.
Current State
Zoodlums began over three years ago as Animal Matcherz. In early 2013 new cards were designed and the rules were updated to add more strategy. We continued to play-test to make final tweaks to the rules until the game was ready to be published.
In May and June 2013, we ran a successful Kickstarter campaign, earning 495% of our original funding goal. The next step was to self-publish the game by finalizing the animal list and sending the digital files to the printers. This was completed, and the last of the Kickstarter shipments went out in September. Our goal was to get Zoodlums into as many hands as possible, and almost 150 people ended up getting the game!
Stay informed on our progress–Like Zoodlums on Facebook.
In May and June 2013, we ran a successful Kickstarter campaign, earning 495% of our original funding goal. The next step was to self-publish the game by finalizing the animal list and sending the digital files to the printers. This was completed, and the last of the Kickstarter shipments went out in September. Our goal was to get Zoodlums into as many hands as possible, and almost 150 people ended up getting the game!
Stay informed on our progress–Like Zoodlums on Facebook.
Available Now on The Game Crafter
You can now order your very own copy of Zoodlums. The Game Crafter will print on demand and send your copy, usually in about two weeks. Check out the shop page here.
Download the Complete Rules
| zoodlums_pnp_rules.pdf |