Where have the animal’s hats gone? Lu Duck is ready to help her friends by rolling around and collecting their lost hats in this adorable cooperative My Very First Game – The Duck Game.
Children can choose to play two brightly colored observation games and help the little ducky while they play. In the first cooperative game, children win together if they can match the six hats before all of the star tiles are turned over. In the second game, children play against each other to determine who will be the first to uncover their own three hats and match them correctly.
The sweet wooden ducky makes this early game really come to life while teaching early rules and cooperation.
- Recommended for Ages 2 and up
- 1-4 players
- Trains the recognition and assignment of patterns
- Supports gross and fine motor skills through play
- Made in Germany
LK Ruby –
This HABA Little Duck game is a wonderfully well made first board game designed for toddlers aged 2 years and up. If you are hunting for a very first board game where all its playing pieces are pretty much indestructible by children, this should be near if not at the top of your list to look at. The game parts are either of smooth wood or else very thick cardboard. I got this game to give my grand niece, who is not two years old yet, so most the game and what it hopes to teach her by playing it is still over her head, but she is already quite interested in “Lu, the wooden Duck on wheels” that comes with this game and is interacting and playing with that particular game piece, learning it can be pushed around on its wheels, which HABA describes as the earliest stage of play using this game before they move forward learning how to actually play it via some rules. The game itself was designed to help a toddler begin learning to identify both colors and shapes and how to match them. It is accomplished by using a game boards that show pictures of different animals, all of which are friends of Lu the duck. The friends are all dressed in clothing colors decorated with patterns that match the shapes the child is learning to identify. The clothes also all come with matching hats, but the hats are always being misplaced by the friends, and so need Lu the duck’s help to find the hats and then match them up with the correct outfit. The game was designed to be played alone or with up to four people. Initially, the game is played cooperatively until the child knows the four basic colors and shapes used, and late, they can advance to mild competitive play. Beyond that, it is possible to incorporate a memory game into the game as well. So it is a very cute game that will teach the most basic concepts of joint play and playing games with rules, as well as the importance of helping others when they need it, and that games can be fun even if you do not win each game. The skills being furthered by playing the game include color and shape learning, and how to be a better observer of things, as well as some coordination of fine motor skills. Overall, this is a win-win early game.
Heiligerdankgesang –
I love it. Put hats on a duck! Not only are there two game styles (a cooperative and a competitive way to play), but there’s also the amazing wooden duck that can be used separately as a toy.Like with everything else Haba, the quality of the cardboard pieces and the wooden pieces are top notch. Thick, sturdy cardboard pieces that will stand up to excited toddlers? Check. Well finished wooden pieces that won’t splinter or otherwise cause harm to toddlers? Check.The game rules are simple and ensure games last no more than 5 or so minutes. Just long enough to play a couple games with a toddler before they lose interest.
Slippery Jim –
Haba has made a name for themselves producing well-made games for small children.The Duck Game is another solid offering in their growing lineup. It is in many ways as much a toy as a game, in that moving around the adorable little wooden duck-on-wheels (“Lu Duck”) and putting hats on it is perhaps the most significant part of the experience.There are zero meaningful decisions to be made (you choose hats at random), which is generally a good thing for the first games tiny humans play. In this it is similar to other Haba titles such as First Orchard that have been very popular with our kids in the 2-4 range.The fundamental skill required to execute each turn properly is color and pattern/shape recognition. Additionally, kids will exercise their basic motor skills trundling the wheeled Lu Duck around, adding and removing hats, and placing the hats/tiles where they go on various boards.The fun of the game comes from, in addition to the enjoyable physical components, the anticipation of what color/pattern each hat will be, the mild tension of needing to complete collections of them before drawing all the starry night hats/tiles, and the satisfying of correctly matching and placing the hats where they go.It teaches kids about taking turns, about working together/understanding that sometimes other people win instead of you (depending on if you’re playing the cooperative or competitive variant), and of course provides practice in identifying/matching colors and tiny shape patterns.The kids always really want to roll that duck around and put hats on it. Overall, it’s a solid entry in the “my first game” category.
Emee –
HABA My Very First Games Little Duck for Ages 2+This is a perfect and fun way to introduce very young children to playing a board type game. Little Duck utilizes a child’s ability to recognize colors and patterns that match to help the soft toy illustrations find their missing hats. The instructions include practical ways to help your child develop the cognitive skills they need to begin playing, as well as ideas for supporting those skills during play. There are also several social skills that come into the picture as you play. What a great way to have quality time and fun together. There are two variations of the game. One is a cooperative version and the second is competitive. Again, there is useful information in the instruction booklet about ways to approach both of these. Each game takes only about 5-10 minutes to complete, which is developmentally appropriate for the target age group. I have a feeling that many children might even come up with their own ideas for using these game parts. By far, our favorite part of this game is getting to take Lu Duck for rides around the game pieces. She is beautifully made of smooth wood and looks simply adorable wearing the hats. While the cost of this item might seem a bit high for a toddler’s game, our experience with HABA games and toys is that they are very durable and long lasting. A much better investment than toys that fall apart after a few uses.Designed for children 2+, HABA has taken into account that they can sometimes be unintentionally rough with toys, and used heavy duty durable cardboard and wood elements to create this.
Susan KT –
My son is 2.9 years old, and we have a few other games in our collection. This duck hat game, was really fun. For some reason, I always have a hard time understanding game directions, but this one’s pretty simple. We started with the simple version, where you pull the duck around in a circle turnover a disc, and match the color and pattern to the various game boards. This made me very impressed with my son’s eyesight, haha. He could distinguish between the tiny triangle pattern and the tiny dot pattern from 3 ft away!I had initially tried to set the game up on my son’s weaning table, but it did not work. The game required too much space so we moved it to the floor. We are still working on taking turns, and maybe assigning each player a game board, but I think this game will grow with him. My son also loves vehicles so the fact that this duck has wheels was a big plus.The game boards and all the circle discs are made of thick cardboard, very good quality. It would be tough for a toddler to bend this. Not impossible, cuz with toddlers we all know where there’s a will there’s a way, but I don’t think my son has the finger strength to bend the boards.This is a cute game and I’m so glad we added this and it’s very fun for color recognition pattern recognition and I’m sure the more advanced game will build on these skills.
Katie –
This is a great game for young ones. The pieces are a sturdy, thick cardboard and the duck is adorable. The matching the pieces game could easily be played without the duck, but the duck helped to keep my kid’s attention and made it a lot more entertaining being able to put the ‘hats’ on the ducks head before putting them in their place.I first tried this with my 21 month old. She is too young to really play it, but did do pretty well just using the pieces and practicing matching them and placing them. Then I tried it with my 4 year old (just turned 4). It ended up being great for her. She knows her colors and shapes well, but it was great to practice having her name them and to practice turn taking, as we haven’t played many games like this yet. She enjoyed it and wanted to play again and again, although by the 3rd game her attention span was waning so I decided we should put it away for the day after that.I recommend this for toddlers, probably ages 2-4 or 5. Good learning game.
AleeshaBoo –
Cute simple game for small kids, we love this brand.
Mom B. –
The quality of this game was excellent, the pieces are all made of wood and brightly colored. The pieces to pop out are clearly labeled with a trash can so it’s easy to set up for the first time and know what’s what. The duck was a little small and the string a little short, but he wheels around great. The instructions were so child-friendly and gave a very no-rush, enjoy the experience kind of vibe. There were even pictures to explain and show examples of how to set up, which made it quick to start playing . There were no sharp edges on the pieces or anything and the “hats” fit nicely on the duck’s head. It was easy enough for kids to do themselves. It was anything but boring because you have to physically wheel the duck around, and I like how there is an option for gameplay as a group where we all practice taking turns flipping tiles but we aren’t playing against each other, we are working collaboratively. Overall, I think this is the most child friendly game I’ve ever played and the game materials are excellent quality.
Kirk –
This game is excellent and you probably do not have another game quite like it. The main character is a cute wooden duck on wheels, which the players take turns pulling by a string. Scattered in the playing area are “hats” which are cardboard circles that fit on the duck. These “hats” are randomly selected when the duck is pulled up to them, then placed on the duck to be carried to the appropriate places near animals on the 4 game boards. The game can be played competitively or cooperatively by 1 to 4 kids. The best way to figure it out is to set everything up and see the plan, then introduce your child to it. The instructions are clearly stated in a booklet in 6 different languages. This would be a great one-to-one game with an adult or a few kids. Highly recommend giving this a try–but be careful, because someone might just want to play with the adorable little duck.
Deb –
I love this company’s games. I’ve come to expect quality games pieces, multiple ways to play the games, and clear instructions in multiple languages. The Duck Game does not disappoint.With the option to play collaboratively or competitively, this is a game that can grow with the youngest game players. Quick game play means less time for their attention to wander.A great game for families of 2-5 year olds.