Hickory Dickory (Saturday Review)

Welcome to the Royal Scavenger Hunt of Tockton Clock. You are cordially invited. It is time to gather your team. Hop onto the big hand and journey around the clock face, pushing other mice off in the process. Don’t waste any time though, because when the clock strikes midnight, the hunt is over. So be quick and line up your crew alongside Hickory Dickory by Sawyer West from Plaid Hat Games with illustrations by Sonja Müller.

You probably know the nursery rhyme about the mouse that ran up the clock. Well, in Hickory Dickory there are a whole bunch of mice. Each player has a team of five mice, one of which is climbing up the chain while the other four travel around the clock face by hanging onto the minute hand. Of course, there is only so much room on the big hand, so sometimes mice get shunted off whether they like it or not. I think it’s immediately clear that this game is going to be a lot of chaos and a matter of perfect timing.

At first glance, Hickory Dickory is the usual fare of collecting tiles to fit a pattern to get points. We’ve seen it done in Azul or Sagrada. Yet, Hickory Dickory is different in a lot of ways. In fact, it’s not so much about fitting tiles in the right slots, but a lot more about collecting sets of tiles. Collecting tiles of the same colour or with the same symbol, or ideally both, is probably where the most points come from. Completing columns or rows on your player board and scoring objectives also gives you points, but if you’re good at collecting, you can probably win the game.

Time Travel

While collecting tiles in Hickory Dickory is where a lot of the points come from, everything in the game is centred around the clock. First of all, it functions as a timer. The hour hand moves forward one space after every round, and the game finishes when it reaches midnight.

It is the minute hand that makes Hickory Dickory so interesting and different from other games though. It rotates around the clock face five minutes at a time, from number to number and picks up or drops off mice. There is only space for five standard-sized mice though, while the scavenger mouse takes up two spaces. So if two scavengers are on the minute hand, there is only room for one normal-sized mouse.

At each stop of the minute hand, the mice on the clock can decide to jump off. The mouse furthest out decides first, then the next one in and so on. Jumping off means you get the tile at that location, if there is one. You also get the choice of carrying out the action at that location. The actions range from taking tiles from the bag, jumping a number of spaces ahead on the clock face, to moving the mouse on the chain up, which can give you points, and so on.

Then the mice that were already at that number can decide to jump on, which can result in other mice being pushed off. Of course, if a mouse is pushed off, they don’t get to carry out an action or take a tile. So you need to think about whether to jump off or risk being pushed.

Limited Space

In fact, a lot of Hickory Dickory is about space. When a mouse picks up a tile, it adds it to their bag. Some mice are stronger and can carry more tiles, but most only have room for four tiles, with one small mouse only being able to carry two. Luckily, mice can swap tiles if they’re at the same location. That can be quite important, because which mouse has what tiles can have a big influence on how many points you score when you do a deliver action.

That’s one of the actions at one of the numbered locations, and whatever mouse takes that action empties their bag and scores points based on how many tiles they’re delivering, the sets of tiles of the same symbol or colour, plus some other potential bonus points. So if you want to score high, you need to coordinate your mice and make sure the right mouse has the right tiles in their bag.

The limited space on the minute hand is also important. If you’re at the front, you will most likely want to jump off to claim a tile and do an action, but sometimes you want to remain, because the mouse needs to continue its journey around the clock face to get to a more favourable tile or action space. The question is whether another mouse will bump you off, so that you get left behind without being able to take any action or claim a tile. It’s a tough decision.

Time Flies

That combination of always having to worry about space and timing is what makes Hickory Dickory such a wonderful brain burner of a puzzle. You also need to try and collect tiles to fill columns and rows on your player board. You also need to keep an eye on objectives to score bonus points. The game is fast and furious and ends sooner than you will like.

The setting, artwork, chunky tiles, physical clock hands that you move around, the custom wooden mice-meeples and everything else make Hickory Dickory a very enjoyable experience. While I would say that it is a family-friendly game, it is often also very cutthroat. It is reminiscent of Azul and Sagrada in that way. So bear that in mind.

Ultimately though, the tactility and visual presentation are amazing. It’s a really well-produced game and nothing feels like a gimmick. Even the clock hands have a purpose and enhance the gameplay experience. It really scratches the spatial puzzle itch for me, while also firing up my brain to plan ahead and work out what my next move will be. After all, it’s all there in front of you. There is no hidden information, other than the decisions other players might take on their turn.

So, if you ever fancied yourself the leader of a group of mice running around a clock and collecting tiles, then Hickory Dickory will be something you should try.

Useful Links

• Hickory Dickory: https://www.hickorydickorygame.com/
• Rulebook: https://www.hickorydickorygame.com/rules.pdf
• Rules Video: https://youtu.be/DVaTDyT4kXA?si=74AgVGN1BNvrdyQM
• Plaid Hat Games: https://www.plaidhatgames.com/
• BGG listing: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/367490/hickory-dickory
• Azul review: https://tabletopgamesblog.com/2020/09/19/azul-saturday-review/
• Sagrada review: https://tabletopgamesblog.com/2022/08/06/sagrada-saturday-review/

Videos

Transparency Facts

I feel that this review reflects my own, independent and honest opinion, but the facts below allow you to decide whether you think that I was influenced in any way. Please also read my Ethics Statement for more information.

• I played a friend's copy of the game.
• At the time of writing, I have not received financial support from the publisher or anyone working on their behalf.

Audio Version

Intro Music: Bomber (Sting) by Riot (https://www.youtube.com/audiolibrary/)

Sound Effects: bbc.co.uk – © copyright 2025 BBC

Music: https://www.bensound.com/free-music-for-videos
License code: GSSYFGQOMUKIANIE

Playlist

These are the songs I listened to while I was writing this review: