We have a bird. His name is Maverick. And let me tell you, there is a certain type of person who visits our house and immediately assumes that because we have a feathered friend, they have the right to handle him. They do not!
People see a bird and think, “Oh, I want to hold it!” But birds are not props for amusement. If you don't know what you're doing, you are probably going to get bitten
Which brings me to this new party dexterity game that arrived on our doorstep as a review copy. Thankfully, this is a much safer way to give people the bird
The premise of The Bird is simple: you are volunteers at a bird sanctuary, and your job is to help rehabilitate nervous birds and get them into flocks. One player becomes The Handler. They have to hold their hands in whatever ridiculous position the card demands while trying to balance the growing flock on their hand. Balancing these plastic birds without dropping them can feel like a minor miracle
The rest of the table is responsible for giving The Handler birds. You draw cards, wait for The Handler's signal, and carefully add another bird to the growing group. If at any point The Handler drops a bird, you curse them out by giving them the bird in your head.
Components
Inside the box, you get a surprisingly nice insert that fits the rules, plastic birds, the cards you'll be flipping, and the nine scoring cards. The birds are the stars of the show, and everything packs down small enough to make The Bird an easy one to throw in a game bag
Gameplay
Shuffle the deck and the nine scoring cards, then put three scoring cards face up. These show how many birds you need to balance to earn a reward. Flip a card, pick your Handler, and the rest of the table starts giving them birds
As the flock grows, you have to decide whether to keep pushing for another reward or take what you've already earned before everything comes crashing down. If you push too hard and drop the birds, you flip one of the scoring cards over and, voila, you have a dropping!
Yes, there are bird droppings!
No, I am not mature enough to find this anything other than hilarious. The gameplay is simple, and watching someone attempt to maintain a very specific hand position while everyone around the table keeps adding birds is where the fun comes from. Do you think they can handle one more? They probably can't. But we're going to try anyway
Once you get your third dropping, the game is over. Add up the points you've collected and compare your score to the chart to see how well you did. Apparently, even after having a parrot for nine years, I'm still a beginner
Pros
easy to teach
zero downtime
escalating chaos
small box energy
language independent
plays well at every count and age
Considerations
The physical dexterity is the entire point
This is more about the experience than the strategy
Who's This Game For?
The Bird is for anyone looking for a quick party game that takes almost no time to teach or play. It's especially good for mixed groups because you don't need to be a dedicated board gamer to understand what you're doing. Heavy gamers might look at The Bird and think it's an activity rather than a game. I understand the argument. But not everything on my shelf needs to be heavy or challenging. Sometimes I just want to sit around, watch someone try to balance a bunch of birds on their hands, and give someone the bird. As a side note, we need to deep clean our parrot's cage. I think we might have to play The Bird and see who can handle the most birds. Winner doesn't have to clean the cage. I hope I win.
Conclusion
The Bird is a silly game, and I mean that as a compliment. It doesn't overstay its welcome, it's easy to teach, and it creates the kind of moments that people actually remember after the game is over. I'm never going to argue that The Bird is secretly a heavy strategy game hiding underneath a pile of feathers. It isn't
Other Games to Consider
For more silly games that work:
- Playprop, now called Qork turns corks, cups, and dice into a surprisingly frantic game
- Chicken vs Hotdog is all about throwing things and hoping they land face up
- The Fuzzies takes a tower of fuzzy little balls, but there are challenges
These aren't the games I reach for when I want to flex my board gaming brain. They're the games I reach for when I want everyone at the table to have a good time
About the Author:
Coty is a board game blogger, reviewer, and accidental LEGO art collector. When she’s not testing rulebooks or trying to beat her wife at two-player games, she’s playing ice hockey. Follow her adventures on Instagram or read more at KaCo Plays.
