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Hens box art

Hens

Game ID: GID0155618
Game Info
Year
2023
Players
1-4
Age
14+
Playtime
20 min
Collection
Your Tier
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Description

A puzzly abstract card game of hen breeding.

In Hens you are a hen breeder! Each round you will play a hen card from your hand, trying to create a harmonious barnyard with different hen breeds. The rules to place cards are few and simple, but the difficulty lies in making large groups of hens of the same breed.

At the end of the game you will gain points from your largest group of hens of the same breed in your barnyard, from your rooster token and from the goal card. Don’t forget some rare hens give you medals worth points at the end of the game.

The hen breeder with the best barnyard wins!

—description from the publisher

Description

A puzzly abstract card game of hen breeding.

In Hens you are a hen breeder! Each round you will play a hen card from your hand, trying to create a harmonious barnyard with different hen breeds. The rules to place cards are few and simple, but the difficulty lies in making large groups of hens of the same breed.

At the end of the game you will gain points from your largest group of hens of the same breed in your barnyard, from your rooster token and from the goal card. Don’t forget some rare hens give you medals worth points at the end of the game.

The hen breeder with the best barnyard wins!

—description from the publisher

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All mentions
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 8
This page: 8
Sentiment: pos 5 · mix 0 · neu 0 · neg 2
Mentions per page
Showing 1–8 of 8
Video kmCAJ83K13E No Rolls Barred Other at 1:32 sentiment: positive
video_pk 99420 · mention_pk 276958
No Rolls Barred - Hens video thumbnail
Click to watch at 1:32 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
  • Was fun.
  • Got really good views.
Cons
none
Thematic elements
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • I hate to hear you throw the word genius around, BUT I AM.
  • It's a real game. And you have to try and keep Jason Statham excited, otherwise he'll just leave.
  • We're Londoners.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video RQ-N5w0daJs Gaming with Edo & Jessica Discussion at 13:14 sentiment: positive
video_pk 86650 · mention_pk 224974
Gaming with Edo & Jessica - Hens video thumbnail
Click to watch at 13:14 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
  • Difficult to do poorly
  • Low stakes
  • Variety in setup
Cons
  • The box is difficult to open, which is 'not cozy'.
Thematic elements
  • chickens
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • Grid Building — Players create a grid of chickens.
  • Tile Placement — Placing chicken tiles into a grid.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • cozy for me though I'm looking at something that obviously I enjoy but it's something where the setup is quick playtime is quick there's not a lot of components the rules are easy for me to relearn
  • it is just it's a nice sort of like a visit with an old friend there's not really much to talk about there's nothing new here necessarily but it is just a nice time
  • boring so when you see reviews for some of these games there's going to be some people who call it cozy great and some people who say that's too repetitive there's it's not exciting it's not interesting it's it's just it's just boring and both are correct
  • the stakes there's no Stakes involved and I'm not talking about Stakes to eat I'm talking about the stakes involved in winning or losing in some games you know you have characters who if you lost your character died which is it's not so cozy
  • I love that one the only thing with Meadow even just the base game does take a bit of time to play I think this usually clocks in around 40 minutes for me just the base game which is a little lengthy for a cozy game because again I'm looking for something that is fairly quick to play usually when I want something cozy not always though
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video _fxMm4qPzbw Gaming with Edo & Jessica Top List at 12:50 sentiment: positive
video_pk 85541 · mention_pk 219448
Gaming with Edo & Jessica - Hens video thumbnail
Click to watch at 12:50 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
  • Nice games to play
  • Variety through swapping hens
  • Easy setup
Cons
  • Box top is slightly tighter than it should be
  • Has a 'savage predator' promo hen that the reviewer doesn't know how to use in solo play
Thematic elements
  • Hens and organizing them
  • Farm
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • Area Control — Laying out hens in a coupe area and gaining a coupe by not flipping them over.
  • Card Drafting — Players pick up cards and choose what they want to happen.
  • Set Collection — Choosing hen species that will score well at game end.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • I went through and picked out a bunch that are mostly in small boxes.
  • And these are ones that I know that when I don't have a lot of time, I can just grab them and the setup process is going to be pretty quick.
  • It's just fun. And this one is just one of those nice, delightful sorts of games that I like so much that really doesn't require a lot of work and getting it to the table.
  • I think sometimes with setup with bigger games, if you don't have a useful insert or if you don't have things sorted, that can increase the setup time.
  • So, all these ones that I'm talking about have easy setup times.
  • I have chosen many bird themed games. I like birds if it's not obvious.
  • It's just about having some fun with organizing some chickens in a farmyard.
  • I've seen a lot of boxes that have wasted space and I don't think this is one of them.
  • Food Chain Island, which might be the least coziest of the games on this list, uh, because this is about animals eating each other, but in a not terrible way.
  • There's so many other great little box games that have quick setup times.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video GYv8Rl30mic Tabletop Tokki Unboxing And Reaction at 17:09 sentiment: positive
video_pk 85395 · mention_pk 218669
Tabletop Tokki - Hens video thumbnail
Click to watch at 17:09 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
  • Accessible with depth through grouping strategy
  • Aesthetic and fonts are appealing
Cons
  • Potentially confusing with multi-language components
Thematic elements
  • Hen breeder and barnyard management
  • Barnyard
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • placement — Place hens on the board to maximize end-game scoring.
  • Set Collection — Collect hens to form largest groups of the same breed.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • Huge thanks to Noble Knight Games for sponsoring the stream.
  • Two-player games are some of my favorite; they’re balanced well in most cases.
  • Me loves the fonts and color combos; teal and red look great together.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video Izik8QMZsbM Board Games UnLocked Review at 3:20 sentiment: negative
video_pk 82262 · mention_pk 206660
Board Games UnLocked - Hens video thumbnail
Click to watch at 3:20 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
negative
Pros
none
Cons
  • Extremely difficult and potentially unwinnable
  • Frustrating encounter cards like 'Shadows of the Past'
  • Scaling difficulty that makes the game overwhelming
  • Protracted and challenging gameplay loop focused on rescuing Odin first.
Thematic elements
  • Defeating the Goddess of Death
  • Asgard/Hell
  • Scenario-based progression with villain mechanics
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • attachment mechanics — Odin is attached to the main scheme, and Hela's cloak can be attached to her, granting her Stalwart.
  • Encounter cards — The game uses encounter cards that introduce new threats and challenges, such as 'Fallen Warrior' and 'Shadows of the Past.'
  • nemesis system — The 'Shadows of the Past' card reveals the hero's nemesis minion and a side scheme.
  • Permanent Upgrades — The Nornstones provide permanent stat boosts and healing capabilities.
  • Stun effect — Enemies can be stunned, preventing them from attacking or scheming.
  • Threat Escalation — Threat is added to the main and side schemes, leading to potential loss conditions.
  • Toughness — Some enemies, like Garm and Scourge, have toughness, requiring multiple hits to defeat.
  • Villainous health scaling — Hela's hit points increase based on the number of side schemes in the victory display.
  • Wounded state — Hela can be wounded, which triggers effects, but she cannot be defeated until Odin is rescued.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • So, yeah, Hela is a one scheme, one attack, but she gets plus one scheme and one attack and plus two per player hit points for each side scheme in the victory display. So the more we go into hell, the stronger she gets.
  • God, two ramps. So, it's going up by four.
  • All right. Well, that was the quickest uh quickest game ever.
  • Shadows of the Past card is probably one of the worst cards in the game because not only does it bring out a character, an overpowered minion and a side scheme, it also shuffles in overpowered Nemesis cards.
  • I don't know how I've gotten this every time.
  • I genuinely think I I raved about it or ranted about it last time, but it's such a it's so stupid. It makes me so mad.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video k5rABLKEiUM The Dice Tower Other at 9:40 sentiment: negative
video_pk 81546 · mention_pk 203179
The Dice Tower - Hens video thumbnail
Click to watch at 9:40 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
Negative
Pros
none
Cons
  • Host did not like it at all.
Thematic elements
  • Card game construction
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • Card Drafting — Implied by 'building this little card game'.
  • Set Collection — Implied by 'putting these around'.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • Hens is a game I didn't like at all.
  • Gobblet is a simple game in which you are to stacking pieces and trying to get four in a row, but bigger pieces cover up other pieces.
  • Dice as resources to buy cards, kind of like a Dominion-style game. And it was fine. It just didn't have any kind of air of excitement to it.
  • And it's a big, grandiose Euro-style game that I thought worked pretty well.
  • The biggest problem with Echoes of Time is I think it's almost too short.
  • It's a cool mechanism. This is the game that should have it.
  • It's a very different feeling of Lost Cities. It's not as good as Lost Cities, but it's still pretty cool game.
  • It's very Ameritrashy.
  • It's a lot going on in this game.
  • I think my favorite of those is Pixel Tactics 2.
  • Thanks as always for joining me in my pile of mid games.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video Vb2xRgrxPOI Game Night Picks - Pair Of Dice Paradise Top List at 9:03 sentiment: positive
video_pk 80938 · mention_pk 198728
Game Night Picks - Pair Of Dice Paradise - Hens video thumbnail
Click to watch at 9:03 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
  • New version includes advanced rules with power tokens, power bonus markers, and new great fans.
Cons
none
Thematic elements
  • Creating Japanese folding fans by collecting cards to create sets of various values.
  • Japan
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • Hand Management — Players manage cards in hand.
  • Set Collection — Players retain specific cards to create specific fans.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • Recall is our penultimate pick, because this is a deep strategy game from the designers of 2022's massively popular network building game Revive.
  • Recall focuses on engine building and exploration as various tribes explore the lands and discover traces of ancient civilizations.
  • Then, at three different points during the game, players must choose one of two paths, with the chosen path providing an immediate bonus as well as boosting one of the end-game scoring options.
  • just like those players, we have reached our end game with this month's bestest bet, which is the super puzzly two-player maze deduction game Layers.
  • Layers is full of both dungeon building and simultaneous dungeon exploration.
  • It's a game that tests players to build a dungeon dangerous enough to confuse their competitor, while deftly defying a dungeon of their own.
  • If you'd like to find even more great games to discover, well, then continue on to our latest episodes of our High Rollers or Hot Picks and Cool Recommendations videos.
  • There are a lots more games that are ready for you to enjoy as your next game night pick.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video PV_4JX6vgL0 Meeple University Preview
video_pk 70031 · mention_pk 166930
Pros
none
Cons
none
Thematic elements
none
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • the game plays one to four players with mechanics such as tile placement hand management and set collection
  • planning ahead is needed for sure
  • this collection of hands will hopefully delight your table with the explosion of fun extravagant
  • the winner with the highest points is the most excellent chicken breeder
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
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