Baby Rosalie will be arriving in Cloudland soon, so join Unicorn Glitterluck and the other unicorns in preparing a celebration to welcome her! Gather all the animal friends, collect all the cloud crystals, and arrive at the party before Rosalie does in this cooperative children’s game.
What Is Unicorn Glitterluck: A Party for Rosalie?
Unicorn Glitterluck: A Party for Rosalie is a cooperative kids game for 2-4 players, ages 4 and up, that plays in approximately 20 minutes. It is a light-hearted game designed for children that includes dice rolling, decision making, and a bit of luck. Published by HABA, it is available for $27.99 from online retailers, or you can check your local gaming store for a copy.
Unicorn Glitterluck: A Party for Rosalie Components
Inside the box, you will find the following components:
- 4 unicorns
- 1 baby unicorn
- 1 die
- 1 game board
- 8 friend tokens
- 8 friend tiles
- 10 cloud crystals
- 1 rule book
Right from the start, I was impressed with the quality of the components. The board comes in five separate pieces that fit together like a jigsaw puzzle, so the fun begins before you even start playing the game. The four player unicorns plus the baby Rosalie unicorn are thick wooden meeples with unique images and colors for each unicorn. My girls enjoyed playing with these pieces during the game as well as after we were done. The die is also wooden with smooth, rounded edges and clear, easy to read symbology including a sparkling, reflective cloud on one face. The tokens and tiles are made of thick, sturdy cardboard, just like the board itself. Lastly, the cloud crystals are big, chunky gems that my daughters gushed over. The graphics are also wonderfully done. There are cute animal friends, cupcakes, flowers, and rainbows. The whole artistic style reinforces the fun party theme. The board is easy to read and discern between the different colors of clouds while the spinner in the middle of the board rotates smoothly with the slightest of flicks. Overall, I don’t have a single criticism about any of the components. Everything was made to be durable and engaging to children.
How to Play Unicorn Glitterluck: A Party for Rosalie
Objective
The goal of the game is to get all eight animal friends, all ten cloud crystals, and yourselves to the party cloud before Rosalie arrives there. If you complete these tasks, then as a group, you win!
Setup
To begin, you will have to put the board together. Then flip all the friend tokens face down, mix them up, and place one on each of the yellow flowerpot clouds. Next, shuffle the friend tiles, and depending on the number of players, deal one or two to each person. The remaining friend tiles are placed, face up, to the side of the board, along with the cloud crystals. Lastly, place Rosalie on her starting cloud in the upper right corner, while placing the players’ unicorns at cloud castle in the lower left corner.
Player Turn
The starting player rolls the die and then takes one of the following actions, dependent on what was rolled:
- If a single, double, or triple cloud symbol is rolled, move your unicorn up to that many spaces. Note that you can use rainbows as shortcuts while moving.
- If the Rosalie symbol is rolled, move Rosalie one space along her track and end your turn.
- If the glitter cloud symbol is rolled, then move your unicorn to any pink or yellow cloud on the board.
Then, depending on what cloud your unicorn finishes on, you will perform one of the following actions:
- If you ended your move on a white cloud, take no further actions.
- If you ended your move on a pink cloud, spin the cloud spinner and place that many cloud crystals on the crystal cloud in the upper left corner of the board.
- If you ended your move on a yellow cloud that has a friend token on it, flip that token over. If the token matches one of your fiend tiles or one of the community tiles to the side of the board, then you can place that token in one of the empty circles by the party cloud. If the token matches another player’s tile, then leave it there for that player to collect.
Once you have gathered all the friends and cloud crystals, all players must get their unicorns to the party cloud. If everyone arrives before Rosalie, then you win!
Why You Should Play Unicorn Glitterluck: A Party for Rosalie
I was initially interested in Unicorn Glitterluck: A Party for Rosalie because I have all daughters who are crazy about unicorns, fairies, and other fantastical creatures. So a game about unicorns throwing a party in Cloudland seemed right up their alley, and I wasn’t wrong. Being a kid’s game, the mechanics are simple, and easy to grasp, even for my four-year-old. The lack of written words and clear symbology makes the game accessible to younger children who have not begun to read yet. Once I explained the rules to my younger daughter, she quickly caught on and understood what all the different die symbols meant and could take her turn without any assistance.
While not a complex game, Unicorn Glitterluck: A Party for Rosalie still provides players choices, which I really appreciate. The branching pathway pattern of the board allows players to make decisions with every roll. You are never forced into a certain direction but can choose. Do you want to head towards that unrevealed friend tile or go for a pink cloud to collect more crystals? Although, admittedly, near the end of the game when there are fewer tasks to complete, the choices do become more obvious.
Also note that there is a healthy dose of randomness and luck in the game. The chance of Rosalie arriving at the party before you complete the preparations is slim since you would need to roll her symbol 11 times; however, it is possible. Even though we won all of our games, Rosalie was rolled enough times to always make the game feel close. If you wanted to increase the difficulty, I would recommend dealing out all of the friend tiles to the players, making it more challenging to gather the friends at the party cloud before Rosalie arrives.
If I have one critique, it is that the game can suffer from the alpha player syndrome, typical of many cooperative games. This is where one player dictates what everyone else should do with their turn. My eldest daughter quickly caught on that the best way to succeed was if all the players split up and headed towards different corners of the board to collect the spread out animal friends, and she wasn’t shy about instructing other players on what to do. That being said, if you have a dominating personality in your gaming group, this game might bring that personality out.
Overall though, my girls and I really enjoyed this game. The theme is fun and the combination of dice rolling, spinner flicking, and racing around the board to beat Rosalie to the party had everyone cheering and working together. Unicorn Glitterluck: A Party for Rosalie is a fun, quality game for younger kids or families to enjoy so pick it up for your next party!
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Disclosure: GeekDad received a copy of this game for review purposes.
