Pick a Chicken

In “Pick a Chicken,” the new card-matching game from the Viennese game publisher Piatnik for children ages six and up, things get truly wild. To keep all the chicken coop’s residents happy and score as many points as possible, you’ll need to pay attention to their preferences and needs: The rooster, of course, likes to rule alone; chicks always feel most comfortable in pairs; sick chickens need a veterinarian by their side; and so on. Whoever optimizes their own chicken coop as best as possible through skilful card swapping has a good chance of winning. Various ways to score points and the humorous illustrations make this fast-paced pocket game particularly appealing.

Among the 55 playing cards are healthy and sick hens, mother hens, chicks, eggs, roosters, and the veterinarian. At the start, each player lays out 12 of these cards face down in a 3x4 grid—this is their personal chicken coop. The player who last saw a chicken begins optimizing their own chicken coop. To do this, a player swaps one of the five face-up cards in the centre of the table for a card from their own chicken coop that remains face-down. In this way, as players take turns, the number of face-up cards in the centre of the table gradually decreases, and so does the selection. Only when there are nothing but face-down cards left in the centre—and it’s your turn—may all five cards be turned face-up to form a new swap display. The following rule applies when placing cards in the chicken coop: “What’s there is what you get.” Roosters, hens, chicks, and the like may not be moved after they’ve been placed. Once all 12 spots in the chicken coop are filled, scoring begins.

Which card fits best where depends on the type of bird. Hens love large groups; the more of them sitting next to each other horizontally or vertically, the more points you score. Chicks only earn victory points in pairs; the rooster tolerates no competition and is only worth it if he is the sole ruler in the same row and column. Cards with eggs also earn points; when combined with an adjacent hen, each egg counts double. Sick chickens even result in a two-point penalty. However, if a veterinarian is right next to it, you may enter the number six on the scoring pad. The player with the highest total score wins this accessible, lovingly illustrated card game with high replay value.