Item-no.: 22409

The Higgledy-Piggledy Family

This family gets totally mixed up and you have to watch out for the changing positions of the individual members of the family. This is a game that calls for strategic thinking and good powers of observation.

Age: 4+

Number of players: 2-4

Game length: approx. 10 mins.

Contents: 4 wooden figures

24 playing cards

Game idea: Peter Schunke

Illustration: Christiane Hüpper

It's Grandma Luise's birthday and the higgledy-piggledy family would like to give her something really nice on that day. Mum, Dad and the two children Tim and Annika discuss over and over again what they could get her until Tim has the idea of giving Grandma a picture of the whole family. Everyone thinks this is a great idea but there is one small problem. No one likes the place he's been put in so they keep changing places again and again until a photo can finally be made.

Important: The players must sit at opposite sides of the table (see illustration) and there may not be more than 2 players at any one side.

Game preparation:

The four wooden figures are placed side by side in any order in the centre of the table.

The 24 playing cards are mixed and dealt out so that each player is given the same number. Each player turns up one of the cards and places it in front of himself and leaves the rest face down in a pile in front of him too. The turned up cards should be in full view of the other players.

Rules of the Game:

The youngest child begins the game. He looks at the order of figures on his card and may now move one wooden figure. If after this go the order shown agrees with that on his card, he shouts "Higgledy-piggledy" and may put the card to the side and turn up the next card. If the order doesn't agree, it's the next player's turn. As soon as the order agrees with one of the player's cards, that player may shout "Higgledy-piggledy" even if it is not his go. For that reason it's important for every player to keep a good eye on the other players' cards. If two players sitting opposite each other happen to have the same order by chance, the winner is the first to shout "Higgledy-piggledy".

Variant:

To make the game more exciting, you can also play with your cards face down, which means that every player has to look at his cards very well and then turn them over so that they are face down. As soon as he shouts "Higgledy-piggledy", he has to show his card to the other players.

End of the game:

The winner is the first to have upturned all his cards.

Have a lot of fun with our higgledy-piggledy family!