The chicks are trying to lay their eggs in peace, but a sly fox has gotten into the henhouse. Can you help the mama chicks, or will the rotten fox scramble the day?
Bye Bye Mr. Fox, designed by Marie Fort and Wilfried Fort and published by Blue Orange Games, is a cooperative children’s game for 1-4 players and plays in about 10 minutes.
Gameplay Overview:
The goal of Bye Bye Mr. Fox is to get 3 eggs to each of the 3 chickens before the wily fox steals them all. The rules are light and child appropriate. On a turn, players will flip over a token, placing any revealed eggs on open spaces or any chicken or fox tokens revealed will cover up any other chicken or foxes. Then we spin the wheel, awarding any eggs to chickens or foxes.
Game Experience:
Just like my previous child-geared review, this review will be a little different from what I typically write. My criteria here will be a few items: what ages is this most appropriate, build quality (how quickly might my kids destroy this), value, and teaching moments.
The game is geared toward 5+-year-olds, which I think is quite appropriate. I don’t think a child much older than 9 would get into the game, but as with any kids’ games, your mileage may vary. I played with my kids and niece, and they were very much drawn to the cute artwork and bright colors. Because this is a shorter game, most kids should have no trouble playing through to the end.
I was very pleased with the build quality and I think it will have no trouble holding up to kids and their play style. The tokens are thick enough for them to be able to handle but should be at risk for getting bent. The chickens which come with the game are fat, wooden pieces your kids will likely pick up and use their imaginations. These pieces can get knocked over when kids start spinning the wheel, but they otherwise add a nice tactile addition to the game that could have otherwise but skipped over.
I’m not sure what I think about the value. I definitely don’t feel the game is overpriced. How often your kids might want to play it will depend on how they handle losing games. This is a game of randomness and chance. While it is cooperative and I encourage parents to play with their kids, there can be games where tokens just run out, leaving that win condition a turn or two away. That might be frustrating to some young ones, so just be aware of that possibility.
The game can offer some teaching moments such as identifying colors, matching, critical thinking, and problem-solving. Kids will have the opportunity to identify certain colored chickens and match those chickens the pointer identifies with those around the outside of the board. Critical thinking will come in when a token is flipped over and shows either a chicken or fox. You and your kids can have conversations about what to cover up, thinking about possible outcomes for choices and how that’ll affect the game, such as when is it ok to cover up chickens based on the eggs they have.
Final Thoughts:
Bye Bye Mr. Fox is an attractive and visually engaging game that gives kids and parents a chance to play cooperatively and problem-solve together. The rules in the game are also audience appropriate. As long as your little ones are able to cope with loss, as choices in Bye Bye Mr. Fox can be random and out of players’ control, this game can afford some light fun.
Final Score: 3.5 Stars – A light and visually engaging cooperative game that kids and parents can enjoy together
Hits:
• Bright and colorful visuals
• Audience appropriate rules and playtime
• Opportunities for problem solving and other group-thinking in gameplay
Misses:
• Randomness of game can easily lead to a loss, which could be difficult for kids
