Distracted at the Bird Feeder with Piepmatz and Small Sums
Line up birds at the feeder to spot matching pairs, collect piles of seed, and avoid pests like curious squirrels in Piepmatz.
I last played Piepmatz a few years ago, and seemingly enjoyed it quite a bit! Yet it’s been languishing on my shelf ever since, and I wanted to see if it brought out the cozy vibes I recalled. Bird-related solo games aren’t uncommon, but there’s usually something unique to like about each one. I was off to the bird feeder to discover this beautiful, realistic artwork!
Game Overview
Game Name: Piepmatz
Publication Year: 2018
Designers: Ben Pinchback and Matt Riddle
Artists: Klemens Franz and Mike Langman
Publisher: Lookout Games
Solo Mode: Unofficial Solo Variant
Various bird species line up at the feeder, seeking a quick snack! The goal is to collect a majority of each species to score, which is achieved by doing small sums to figure out how to align the waiting birds. It’s a lovely game to look at, with a lot more to think about than meets the eye.
First Play
May 14, 2022
Complexity
2
Latest Play
September 12, 2025
Expansions
0
Setup Time
Almost None
Lifetime Plays
6
Play Time
20 Minutes
High Score
101
Game Area
34" x 18"
Low Score
62
Lovely Bird Art
There are all sorts of birds to enjoy! Realistic artwork is split up between the males and females of each species, as there is an element of pairing up matching values to score well.
I loved looking at the cards and mixed in the blackbirds for the first time. One species is removed entirely for solo.
However, I quickly stumbled into the rules… As in, really stumbled. The rulebook wasn’t as clear as it could be, and I found myself flipping back and forth way too much.
Keeping the play area organized was also a nightmare for me, with cards spreading out left and right. My goodness!
A Morning Greeting
What’s one of the rarest types of Calico Critters? Birds. It’s always the birds. Ha ha! So although this family was better suited to a previous play, they stuck around for the seeds.
A friendly wave at the feeder kept the adults distracted as the trio of hungry babies sidled up and robbed everyone of all the seeds. What else were they here for? Ha ha!
I was quite surprised by this different experience, though. When I first played, I thought I loved gameplay so much.
But it quickly felt like a chore with pure randomness, and I kept myself distracted with these adorable snowbirds.
Numerically Lined Up
Gameplay simply fell flat for me. The idea was to collect birds to score later on, but pairing them up relied on a bit of luck with this unofficial solo variant. And the rules…
I couldn’t remember how to play through a round for a long time, mostly because it didn’t feel that intuitive.
Thematically, it made sense to be able to collect a bird once the value of those on the ground was greater. But chaining together a cascading effect rarely happened to me.
This took small sums to the next level as I had to constantly think about the values I needed to achieve in many ways.
Collecting Penalties
Seed cards act as a counter to the end game, but also provide different bonuses based on the difference in bird values.
The worst part are the crows and squirrels. I love them as animals! But these cards get attached to seed cards, meaning it’s advisable to avoid those sums when possible.
So I kept taking back my turns when I realized I would incur a penalty. It wasn’t fun, like I could work around it. This felt oddly punishing and distracted from the core gameplay.
Alas, although these birds are beautifully illustrated, this game is not for me and was a brief detour away from cozy.
When Cozy Turns Into the Opposite of Cozy
As I continue to play a bunch of solo games that seem to be in the cozy realm, I expect a few won’t work out for me! It was a bit jarring to have this one fall so flat, though. I thought I had it marked down as something that could be a favorite, yet it made me think in ways that felt stressful. “OK, that’s a difference of 1, 2, 3… I’ll take that seed card… Wait! It has a crow!”
I don’t mind small sums, and arguably, Songbirds is filled with addition in a bunch of ways, all at once. The difference there was that I still had the chance to make neat decisions. In this case, I often didn’t have a lot of good choices. Only now and then did things work out, and part of that was due to luck when I wasn’t paying attention to the card values.
Not enjoying a game is something I try to avoid, and I really struggled to find anything that resonated with me during this session. Fortunately, I’ve gotten better at defining what a cozy game is to me over the last year or so. This is not in that group, but I hope this copy will move onto a new home where it can be enjoyed. The birds certainly are pretty to look at!
Session Overview
Play Number: 5 & 6
Solo Mode: Unofficial Solo Variant
Play Details: Easy Difficulty Level
Outcome: 87-118, 83-71 (1 Win & 1 Loss)
I made some clever choices to force the solo opponent to pick up low-value seed cards and some penalties… But again, I never felt like I was connected to the game. All of the constant addition with caveats had me lost in arithmetic. The birds were merely numbered cards. Sadly, this was a pretty unfortunate session, although at least I learned that this game will be better suited to a new home!
%
1 Play
Affordability
Price & Value
7
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
7
Originality
Design & Theme
5
Quality
Components & Rules
7
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
3
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
4
+ Pros (Positives)
- All of the bird artwork is excellent with beautiful depictions of the different species that stand out nicely.
- The concept of birds lining up at a feeder to eat seeds is pleasant, and there are thematic ways the mechanics tie in.
- Play time is relatively quick during most turns, and the seed cards act as a quick and easy end game reminder.
- Not all of the cards are used with every play, allowing for variety and unpredictability with creating matching pairs.
- Different species are easy to tell apart with the clear card names at the top and bottom, along with the border colors.
- Low-value cards can be surprisingly helpful with the ability to score cards from in-hand, rather than at the feeder.
– Cons (Negatives)
- Constantly evaluating values and looking for matches or penalties takes a lot of mental effort, which is distracting.
- Keeping track of the collected species means that the play area stretches out quite a bit, and gets very messy.
- Luck and randomness play major roles in the card order, sometimes making the choices almost nonexistent.
- The rulebook is short, yet is hard to follow and doesn’t include a helpful summary, requiring lots of flipping around.
Victory Conditions
Score the Most Points
- Overall Goal Progress 100%
Goals and Milestones
Score at least 100 points.
Win at least 1 game at the easy difficulty level.
Continue the Conversation
Do you enjoy playing Piepmatz? What are some other bird-themed solo games you enjoy? Perhaps I was spoiled by a few other recent plays of vaguely similar games, but I really had intended for this one to be another enjoyable experience. Tastes change over the years, though, and I’m glad to have played before letting this one fly off elsewhere in the world!
0 Comments