Thursday 25 April 2013

HABA 75th anniversary - Sleepy Princess

Sleepy Princess from HABA is a game based on the classic fairy tale The Princess and the Pea. The set consists of a double sided playing board, a pretty in pink wooden princess, a royal bed, a dice, a pile of mattresses, blankets and cushions and of course, a pea.



There are two versions of the game detailed in the instructions. In the simple version, players take it in turns to throw the dice (starting with the youngest) and work together to collect bedding items to pile into a stack on the bed in the correct order of mattress, blanket, cushion. If players land on a washing machine symbol on the game board, a bedding item has to be removed from the bed. The game is over if the stack topples (all lose) or you succeed in placing all the items in the pile (all win).

In a competitive version of the game, a maximum of four players each choses a bedding set of a particular colour. Taking it in turns to move around the board, the players pile their bedding onto the bed (or off!) according to the square they land on. The winner is the first to place all their pieces. If the pile topples, the player whose turn it is must take all the fallen items and begin again.

I love that in the second version, the instructions state that the player with the longest hair goes first - very princessy!

This is a game that encourages turn taking, correct use of a dice, a certain amount of hand-eye co-ordination and of course learning to be a gracious loser.

The bedding is gorgeous - bright and cheerful, well made and appeals to a love I have of all things miniature. The bed is made from four pieces of cardboard that slot together. I do worry slightly that it will be prone to damage (on standby with the sellotape!). As it is in my nature to worry, I will also worry about losing the pea which is small and rolls.

My children were just as happy (happier even) playing with the pieces and making a nice comfy bed for the princess as they were actually playing the game.


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