Oh My Pigeons! Family Game Review

Written by Charlie Pettit

I’m going to go out on a wing here, and tell you immediately that I really love this game. It’s no secret that I’ve got a soft spot for a game that I can explain in a few sentences, often because I love playing them with people who tell me they don’t and won’t play games. I'll often tempt them into just one light game... which often becomes another, and another. All of a sudden they’ve got a BGG account and are subscribing to Tabletop Gaming – and I have someone new to play games with. Winner!

No wonder I love it. But before I go much further, I'll get the negatives out the way. Oh My Pigeons! is nothing revolutionary. It’s not smashing through the genre by being excessively innovative, or bringing to life an unimaginable concept. It’s 'just' a silly little card game with tiny plastic pigeons and fun illustrations at the end of the day. And yet, it manages to be a lot of fun for a broad audience. 

How to Play Oh My Pigeons!

It's super simple – players have a bench. The goal is to coax eight pigeons onto your bench to win. You do this through cards, drawing up to three each turn, and playing one – two, if they’ve got a heart symbol on – which let you do things like collect pigeons from the centre, or steal pigeons from your fellow players. These pigeons are adorable physical creations that exist as a flock in the centre of the board when not chilling on a bench. 

If you’re not playing cards to get pigeons directly, you might be playing an Oh My Pigeons! card, where you roll a die, which depending on the roll, will give you pigeons from the flock, pigeons from other players, or sees you flicking your die at your opponent’s benches. If you knock a pigeon from another player’s bench, it gets returned to the flock. 

That is everything you need to know to play. The rulebook is just a double-sided sheet of A5, with pictures and credits. Play cards, get pigeons. It reminds me of Exploding Kittens, but more family-friendly, and with pigeon components. So what’s made it stand out?

Oh My Pigeons! Artwork

Firstly, the way the game has been illustrated is absolutely perfect for the game that it is. Alena Istif has created these bonkers, wide-eyed pigeons that perfectly capture the intelligence we consider of pigeons, with a whole stack of personalities, that in turn match the humour of the game. In playing the “Sliiiiiide to the left” card (yes, you’ll be singing that ear worm today, you’re welcome), the pigeon is engaging gleefully in the Cha Cha Slide, and everyone will pass their board to the left. In the NON card, a pigeon sporting a beret clutches a baguette, and the action the opposing player was trying to take is prevented. I have yet to play a game where playing this card hasn’t seen it shouted in a Pink Panther-esque French accent. 

Oh My Pigeons! Review

I’m also obsessed with how wonderfully this game fits into every place I tried it. At home, in a bad mood, not really wanting to play a game – I was grinning within a few minutes. With reluctant lunch takers (“Not again, Charlie, can’t we eat lunch in peace?!”). With my regular gaming groups. With the younger family members. With mixed ages. There’s just something really engaging about it, really silly, and self-aware. It describes itself as a ridiculous party game of fowl play, and it’s not wrong. I’ve gone back and forwards on whether this is a must play game or not. I think it’s a whisper away from being one – I’d just love if it had options for more (more game, more complexity) to give it more longevity. Having said that, it is fantastic, and you should absolutely put this one on wishlist if you need a quick board game to play with the family.

If you like a laugh, and have space in your life for super light party game, Oh My Pigeons! might be my new favourite recommendation to make. 

You should try this game if you like Exploding Kittens, because shouting NON is just as fun as shouting NOPE. 

Buy Oh My Pigeons! On Amazon

Publisher: Ravensburger

Time: 15 minutes

Players: 2-5

Ages: 8+

Price: £19

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