Papageno

A big problem I have is that large birds such as ostriches and emus keep flying into my garden, sitting on my washing line, and snapping it in two. I know this is a common problem experienced by the vast majority of washing line owners so I’ve always wondered why no one has done a game based on this bird-related annoyance. But wait! Here comes Papageno, a game about attracting the lightest birds to your washing line. About time too!

What’s The Game Like

Papageno is a tiny card game from Helvetiq coming in one of their signature small narrow boxes. You start with six face down cards in two rows of three. You turn one of your cards face up. The rest of the cards form a draw deck and the top card gets turned face up and placed in a discard pile. On your turn, you draw a card, either from the face down draw deck or from the face up discard pile. You then have two choices: either discard this card or swap it for one of your six cards. This can be already face up or face down. Then it’s the next player’s turn.

At the end of the game, you’ll add up the numbers on your six cards. The lowest total wins. But there’s a twist, if you have two cards with the same number in a column, they cancel each other out and you score 0 for that column. So just like in real life, two heavy 9-value birds cancel each other out and become weightless.

There are some special cards too. Egg cards take the value of the card either to their left or right. The pan pipes swap cards around all of the players. And Papageno lets you swap one of your birds with one of the other players. The downside is that you have to keep Papageno and he’s worth 10!

Is This A Game For Children

It’s a very simple game primarily aimed at children. The age rating on the game is from 6-99. So, when I hit hundred years old and the Queen sends me my letter, she’ll put a P.S. at the end telling me to return my copy of Papageno to the relevant local authorities. This will not make me happy because although it is a children’s game, I love it too.

What’s Good About This Game

Surprising things happen in Papageno that make me laugh. Let’s look at an example. The game ends when someone has six face up cards in their display. They work out their total. Then the other players turn over their face down cards and work out their totals. I’ve played Papageno over fifty times and I can’t tell you how many times the last card you turn over is a -2 card or a Papageno card worth 10 points. It’s amazing how many times that last turn of a card can change the outcome of a game.

There are many times when strange things you haven’t seen before happen. For example, you have a 9 in your bottom row and you’re turning over the cards above it. You turn over the cards and oh no, it’s not a 9. It’s an egg. But look! The card to the right of the egg is a 9, so the egg becomes a 9 cancelling out the 9 below it, and you win! Hooray!

How Long Does It Take

This is a very light, short game. The box states 15 minutes for a game and while this may be true for four players, you can knock out a two-player game of this in 5 minutes. It is a lucky game too. But for such a short game this isn’t an issue at all.

Are There Any Strategies

There are some strategies to go for. Do you get your cards turned over as quickly as possible even if you have a lot of large values, and then go for cancelling them out with other large numbered birds? Or do you minimise the number of points you’re scoring as you go, constantly cancelling or taking low-numbered birds? There are also some simple choices to be made. Do you replace an 8 bird with a 3 bird or do you wait and try to get an 8 to go below it? You haven’t seen a lot of 8s come out so maybe this is the best plan.

The Components

If there’s one word I associate with this game it’s ‘charming’. The art is perfect for a fun little game. The light birds hardly affect the washing line they are on at all while the 9 birds really push it down in the middle. The -2 birds even lift the line slightly due to their negative gravity power! It’s all very sweet. When the Papageno card turns up at the end of the game wrecking your carefully strategized win, there he is with his happy laughing face. You can’t help but smile too.

Does The Game Scale Well

This game plays well at different player counts. At two players, the pan pipe cards are removed. It still plays very well. It’s one of those games that you can’t play just once. We normally have a best of 3. Or best of 5. Or best of 7 etc. At four players it’s a lovely light family game with some very gentle take that. I don’t normally like take-that in games but this is such a short light game that it’s all part of the fun.

Picky Criticism

I’ve only got one minor criticism and it’s incredibly picky. I’d like there to be something on the back of the cards to show which way is the right way up. When you’re dealing the cards out, you do have to bear in mind which way up the cards go. But that’s it. That’s the only thing I don’t like about this game.

Who Is This Game For

Families with young children will probably love this game. It’s a light, colourful game with simple tactics and a huge dose of fun. It may also be appropriate for couples who appreciate letting their inner child out to play. We’re around the 50-year-old mark and we can’t play a game of Papageno without smiling.

Conclusion

Papageno is fun. That could be the end of my conclusion. One sentence. Papageno is fun. Yep, that about sums it up. It’s light, bright, and has a bonkers charming theme. And did I mention it’s fun?

So, string up your washing line, put out some bird seed, and prepare yourself for some colourful avian fun. May all your birds be light!