SNAP Review – Dirty Pig Card Game

Dirty Pig case sitting in dirt

Dirty pigs are happy pigs!

“Dirty pigs are happy pigs!” That’s the driving idea behind Dirty Pig, a silly quick card game by Frank Bebenroth.

Asher and Anitra tell us about this fast-moving game for 2-6 players. Give it a listen in less than 4 minutes or read on below.

How to Play Dirty Pig

playing the Dirty That Pig card
Dirty Your Pig

Your goal: get all your pigs dirty first!

Each player gets a hand of 3 cards, and between 3-5 unhappy clean pigs in front of them.

On your turn, play a card from your hand:

  • Dirty Your Pig
  • Rain – clean all the pigs. Pigs hate that!
  • Barn – build a barn to shelter one of your pigs and protect it from rain.
  • Clean That Pig! – scrub up someone else’s pig, even if it’s in a barn!
  • Barn Door – nail the barn door shut over a muddy pig, so no one can come scrub it.
  • Lightning – destroy a barn, even if the door is shut. Don’t worry, the pig isn’t hurt!
  • Lightning Rod – add to your barn to protect it from lightning.

Draw a new card after your turn; and don’t forget, the goal is to get all of your pigs dirty!

Pigs protected by barn cards. One barn is struck by lightning, the other has a lightning rod.
Nail the barn door shut, but risk it to lightning?

Impressions

Clean That Pig card flips a pig card back over to the clean side.
Clean that pig!

Dirty Pig is a quick, fun game. It feels like a party game, but plays equally well even at 2 players.

Although it’s a turn-based game, it can go fast and furious, because the decisions are so simple. It’s silly fun, and even though there’s a lot of take-that action, our kids never took it too seriously. It’s hard to get bent out of shape about getting your pigs dirty and other people’s pigs clean.

Dirty Pig is the latest addition to the Happy Planet line from North Star Games. Like Happy Salmon, Funky Chicken, and Monster Match, it’s easy to learn and plays very quickly.

Rain card and 3 clean pigs
Oh no! The rain!

We found that Dirty Pig makes a great filler game for all ages. There’s no reading required, but younger kids may have some trouble deciding where to focus, especially in a group of 4 or more players.

Because of its handy pouch, Dirty Pig is incredibly portable, and you can play it nearly anywhere, as long as each player has a place to lay out their pigs, plus room for a draw & discard pile.

Asher says, “It’s something I would play again.”

Anitra thinks it would be a good game to bring to a restaurant, picnic, or other family gathering. It plays in 15 minutes or less, and tends to attract spectators who will groan or cheer as the players rain on all the pigs or burn down each other’s barns.

Find Dirty Pig at North Star Games, Amazon, or ask for it at your friendly local game store.

4 pig cards: 3 clean pigs and 1 muddy pig. Deck of Dirty Pig cards in background

The Family Gamers received a copy of Dirty Pig from North Star Games for this review.

This post contains affiliate links, which do not change your price, but help support The Family Gamers.

SNAP review music is Avalanche, provided courtesy of You Bred Raptors?

Dirty Pig
  • Dirty Pigs
4

Summary

Number of Players: 2-6

Age Range: 6+ (we’d say 4+, but only in small groups)

Playtime: 15 minutes