Russian missile strike destroys Ukrainian Catan, Exploding Kittens publisher’s entire 200,000-strong inventory

The Ukrainian publisher of board games including Catan and Exploding Kittens is fighting for its existence after a Russian missile strike destroyed its warehouse, wiping out its entire stock of about 200,000 games.

Rozum, which started as an educational board game maker in 2018 before expanding to localisations, said there were no casualties at its warehouse amid the attack on a logistics centre in Vyshneve, just outside the capital Kyiv, on August 1.

But the company has been devastated by the strike, with its parent business Factor Group estimating the losses at up to $670,000 – a situation which has prompted Rozum to launch a fundraising appeal to help it reprint its lost inventory.

Factor said the destroyed games included Ukrainian editions of Catan and Exploding Kittens, alongside locally developed games including Who’s on Top? and The Amateurs’ Club, as well as the publisher’s entire stock of releases planned for the autumn.

The company’s localisations have included titles such as Power Grid, Voidfall, Wonderland’s War and Rising Sun.

A statement from Factor Group said, “This blow is not only to cardboard boxes, but also to a cultural product that promotes the Ukrainian language, fosters a culture of shared leisure, brings people together in such difficult times, and educates children through play.

“Rozum Publishing is currently assessing the damage and planning its next steps. The company’s management assure us that they will definitely resume operations and continue to create popular board games for Ukrainians.

“Everyone can support the publisher right now: buy their games and give them as gifts to friends and children. This will be the best gesture of solidarity and gratitude to Rozum for their work.”

Rozum – whose name translates as ‘mind’ or ‘intellect’ – opened its first showroom in Kharkiv in 2018, before expanding to other Ukrainian cities including Kyiv and Odessa.

The company had barely any time to recover from the fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic before Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, which has also seen its showroom in Kherson bombed and a warehouse in Kharkiv damaged by fire.

Anyone who would like to donate to Rozum’s recovery can do so here.