Monday, August 3, 2009

Buckaroo - Fun Family Stacking Game

After attending to her school activities last weekend, I decided to bring my baby to the malls. Once there, we stopped by a Toy Kingdom express outlet to look for something new, really interesting, and of course reasonably priced.

I would have gone for the Transformers if only it would make sense for an alibi that I am buying it for my daughter. How will her mom react is she finds Optimus Prime stuffed in a Barbie box? Oh well.

I was looking for other options when I chanced upon Buckaroo. “Bucker” what?! I picked up its box, quite big and sturdy, a good indication that what’s inside is valuable.

Reading on the packaging I found that Buckaroo is like a stacking game with a different twist. It’s a game of physical skill, intended for children aged four and above. Buckaroo is made by Milton Bradley, a division of toy giant Hasbro who also distributes the Transformers line of toys.

Play centers around a colorful articulated plastic model of a mule named Roo. On an even surface, the mule begins the game standing on all four feet, with just a blanket on its back. Players take turns placing various items onto the mule's back. They must do so very gently as a delicate spring mechanism inside the mule will be triggered by excess vibration. Actually, it is more of a mechanical switch that is hooked to the blanket from the mule’s back. If it is triggered, the mule bucks up on its front legs, throwing off all the accumulated items. The player who triggered this buck is knocked out of the game, and play resumes. The winner is the last player remaining in the game. In the (unlikely) event that a player manages to place the last item onto the mule's back without it bucking, that player is the winner.

Basic pieces include the mule, its base, and the blanket. Other items which players must place on the mule's back are:

    • bedroll
    • canteen (water bottle)
    • crate (rifle box)
    • frying pan
    • cowboy hat
    • guitar
    • holster (holster with gun)
    • lantern (lamp)
    • rope
    • saddle
    • shovel
    • stick of dynamite

Of these, the saddle must be placed first. It has a number of points on which the subsequent items are hung. The other items may be placed in any order.

Buckaroo is definitely a fun exciting “you never know when he’s going to buck” stacking game! With lots of colorful pieces to play with, Buckaroo will make the entire family jump with excitement as Roo kicks the load off his back! Has 3 moody mule levels and best of all – no batteries required.

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