Hedgehog Haberdash is a game for ages 3+ from Haba. It is well themed for November's unit study as it is themed on The Hat by Jan Brett. So, of course we had to give it a try. The tot has been able to play more challenging games as he nears the age of five. With that in mind, I wasn't sure he would like the game. Possibly it would be to "little kid" for him. Here is what the game is about:
The hedgehog children are playing dress-up and want to have big spines in their favorite colors. To do this, the players need to draw leaves with the right colored points out of the leaf bag, but be careful! The wind can blow the leaves around so that even leaves you thought were safely yours fly away again! The first player to completely decorate their hedgehog with leaves in their color wins Hedgehog Haberdash.
From the moment I opened the box there were little hearts of love shooting from the tot's eyes. There is a fair bit of pre-assembly and I had already done that work before showing it to him. All those cute 3D hedgehogs with their little eye glasses and the bag of colorful leaves, Mmmmmm. It really pops off the table. This game practically begs to be played. And played it was, again and again and again. This is the tot's favorite game by a landslide. He asks to play it and he plays through the whole game. Playing through a whole game with a preschooler is never a guarantee. I would absolutely recommend this game for the small kiddos in your life. They will love it and the theme is much more wholesome than many novelty games you can find at the big box stores these days.
I know you want to know how it plays for the grown ups that belong to the tots that love this game. I do make a point of sharing what game play is like for the children's games I review and I am going to do it again. It's pretty dull. You roll the dice and put some leaves in some hedgehogs over and over again till someone wins. There is a tiny bit of strategy and memory but it is a very small amount. I don't enjoy playing the game because of the game play, I enjoy it because of just how excited the tot gets when we play. He is learning to take turns, share, and make decisions. What I get out of playing the game isn't related to my playing it but his. Maybe I am getting a bit too deep here, but there it is. Hedgehog Haberdash has become a beloved game in our home and we will keep playing it.