Horizon 2020 funded research undertaken by Bath and Plymouth Universities in 2017, involving a 12-month empirical trial of new serious game for energy, ‘EnergyCat’ which was designed to encourage household energy reductions in the UK social housing sector. In the game, the resident cat protagonist (nicknamed ‘EnergyCat’) aimed to teach its human residents about the most effective ways to use energy, through the provision of in-game tips and information. A cat was chosen as a slightly removed, quirky, independent-minded character who could observe and comment on human action without being seen as threatening, and which would allow us to meet our user-objective of a fun and enjoyable game format. Users, via the cat, had the goal of achieving efficiency whilst also maintaining the thermal comfort of the human residents. Effects of gameplay on consumption behaviours and energy awareness were explored through a survey distributed in 2017, using 82 UK social housing households. Results indicated the intervention did not lead to any substantive changes in awareness or consumption practices. However, post-intervention feedback highlighted several issues in terms of game design and usability that may explain why the game failed to change behaviour in this instance.