Top That!

Top That! - A logic stacking game

There are a few game manufacturers that I keep up with: SmartGames, ThinkFun, MindWare, FatBrain, BlueOrange and FoxMind. I watch the "coming soon" section on their websites, and I will pay full price if I see something I like (you can often pick it up cheaper on Amazon than on the manufacturers website). Somehow Top That!, by BlueOrange, slipped by me and I didn't know of its existence until I found it second hand a few days ago. I immediately put it to the test because it is not easy to find logic games that you can use with moderate cognitive impairment where kids don't eventually top out due to difficulty.

I have a couple of other magician themed logic games (Oops!, Houdini Brainteaser), and Top That! is the easiest. This game also reminds me of Bunny Boo, which kids have loved and is a fun activity for working on visual form constancy and spatial relations.

Each player will receive five plastic pieces that you might expect to see in a magic show. There are four sets (so up to four can play) of the five pieces: rabbit, coin, tube, cup, hat (see image below). The hat, cup and tube are hollow and the four pieces will fit "invisibly" inside the hat. You will have to stack the pieces according to three rules that will determine whether each piece will be visible, invisible and/or empty (see rules below). 

The challenge cards will show you which pieces you will be using for a particular challenge. If the piece(s) is printed in gray on the card, that means that the piece must be invisible (hidden inside another piece). If there are stars around a piece, that means that the piece is empty. There is an advancement in difficulty but the cards are not marked in any way. Start with the cards where all the pieces are showing and you are simply stacking, there are four of these cards. Next move to cards with either a hidden piece(s) or an empty piece. Finally go to puzzles that have both hidden and empty pieces. There are four challenges that only use three pieces, the rest use four or five. Something else I like about the cards is that they show the pieces in different orientations.

 
If you would rather watch a video on how to play, click on the image below to go to an Amazon listing with a video. Even though this game has game rules, it can just as easily be played 1:1 in a therapy session, using the pattern cards without playing a game.

If you would like to read more about one-person logic puzzles, check out my post What's in Your Therapy Box? Logic Puzzles Edition. 


Object:
Determine the number of cards to use as the goal before you start. For instance, the first player to win five cards is the winner. Or play until the deck is gone and the person with the most cards is the winner.

Set up:
Give each player a set of 5 plastic pieces. Set the deck of challenge cards face-down near the players.

Play:
Turn the top card face-up in the middle of the players. Everyone plays at the same time, using their own set of five pieces. Players stack their pieces so they meet the challenge indicated by the images on the card. The three rules of play are:

1. Objects printed in color must be visible on the stack. An object is considered visible if 100% of it can be seen from the side.
2. Objects printed in grey must be invisible, hidden somewhere inside the stack. An object is considered hidden if it is completely inside another object. 
3. Objects printed in color and with stars around them must be empty. No other objects can be hidden inside them.

The first person to build their stack according to the challenge card calls out "Top that!" If his stack is correct, he wins the card. If not, the other players keep going until someone is correct and wins the card. Play until someone earns the agreed upon amount of cards and wins the game.

Try this:

• Play with the pieces before you start. Show how pieces can fit into other pieces and how they can stack.
• Look over the cards before you start to play. Point out how the same piece can look different on different cards - sometimes grey, sometimes in color, sometimes in different orientations.
• Choose a challenge card and work the puzzle while the child watches. Talk out loud as you work the puzzle, so the individual can learn how to think about the pieces and how to solve the puzzle. Then take it apart and ask them to solve it.
• Stack the deck before you start playing so that you are not jumping around, so you can have a steady increase in difficulty over the challenges.
• Look at the card before starting to stack. Point out things like which pieces are grey and will be hidden, which piece(s) they will fit into (to hide), which pieces will be the only ones you will see (those printed in color and the hat is always visible).
• Push to the side any unneeded pieces before you start each puzzle so that don't confuse. 
• Pretend you are a magician to add a little fun and reinforce what you will be doing for a certain challenge card. For instance, say things like "I will make this coin disappear and all you will see is the hat and the rabbit". Then work the puzzle.
• Work on visual discrimination, visual form constancy, spatial relations, manual dexterity, problem solving, logic, process skills, socialization skills, executive functioning skills, play and leisure exploration and participation

In the box: 4 plastic hats, 4 plastic tubes, 4 plastic coins, 4 plastic cups, 4 plastic rabbits, 55 challenge cards

If you are interested in purchasing this game or just want more information, click on the image below.