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The Cat Scratch Game: The Story, the Poem, and How to Play

The Cat Scratch Game is one of many scary games you can play at a sleepover or just when you get a bit bored and want to challenge yourself with something that is a little spooky.

For many kids and teenagers it can be used as test of sorts, as well as a dabbling in things some consider to be possible, and that is connecting with the supernatural in some small (and sometimes scary) way. We previously wrote about other similar games such as Red Door Yellow Door and The Midnight Man game and the Baby Blue Challenge. The Cat Scratch Game is an alternative, but one that can be just as spooky.

What is the Cat Scratch Game?

It is a sleepover game that is meant to challenge those who might be scared. The rules of the Cat Scratch Game are relatively easy if you know the story and/or poem that is supposed to accompany it. Just make sure you know what can go wrong if you don’t do them exactly as described. Are you in danger? Lets dive in to find out about this unique supernatural game.

The Cat Scratch Game is also sometimes known as Black Cat Scratch or Cat Scratches.

How to do the Cat Scratch Game

What you will need:

  • A pillow
  • At least two people

One person will act at the Storyteller and the other person as the Victim.

If there are others, they can sit quietly or if there is enough others in the room they can form a circle around the two people participating. The important thing is that the others should remain silent.

Step 1: Position the Storyteller and Victim

The person acting as the Storyteller will sit cross-legged on the floor with a pillow in their lap. The person acting as the Victim will lie down on their back, placing their head on the pillow.

Step 2: Rub temples

When everything is quiet and calm, the Storyteller will gently begin to rub the temples of the Victim.

Step 3: Recite story or poem

The Storyteller will begin to recite one of the two options below, either the story version or the poem version of Cat Scratch.

Step 4: Victim stand and show

Once the Storyteller finishes telling the story or poem, the Victim will stand up immediately and lift their shirt from their back (though it could be their stomach perhaps). They may not have felt anything, but sure enough there will now be three long, red scratch marks very visible on their skin.

cat scratch game

Cat Scratch Game Story

You are walking through a dark alley late at night.
You are the only one there.
The ground is slick with rain.
The alley is filled with garbage cans and litter.
But then you hear something.
A movement in the garbage cans.
You pick up your pace.
You want to get out of the alley fast.
But then you see something.
Red eyes. Glowing red cat eyes.
They are the eyes of an enormous cat.
You run but the cat chases you and jumps on you.
It scratches you: one, two, three.
Cat Scratch, Cat Scratch, Cat Scratch.

Cat Scratch Game Poem

There once was an old lady who owned a cat.
The cat was very nice.
It meowed and purred.
One day, the cat got hit by a car and died.
Cat Scratch, Cat Scratch, Cat Scratch.

The old lady got a new cat.
The cat was very mean.
It hissed and clawed.
Cat Scratch, Cat Scratch, Cat Scratch.

One day, the cat got hit by a car and died.
The old lady decided not to get anymore cats.
Cat Scratch, Cat Scratch, Cat Scratch.

Examples of the Cat Scratch Game

Of course, like many scary games you can play at sleepovers and other occasions, the results can vary. Sometimes the point is not to experience the exact thing that the urban legend is supposed to be, but merely to experience something and get some excitement from it.

Below are some examples of people trying the Cat Scratch Game or otherwise explaining how to do it visually.


Photo by Anton Darius on Unsplash

Last Updated on August 16, 2022.

3 Comments

[…] commonly used as a sleepover game or ritual game similar to such games as Baby Blue Challenge, the Cat Scratch Game, the Sandman Game, and […]
[…] used as a sleepover game or ritual game similar to such games as the Midnight Man Game, the Cat Scratch Game, the Sandman Game, and […]
[…] as a party activity, not unlike a host of supernatural games like Red Door Yellow Door or the Cat Scratch Game. Mia (Sophia Wilde) looks to connect with the supernatural following the death of her mother, but […]

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