Overview

Animal Upon Animal: Balancing Bridge is a dexterity game in the Animal Upon Animal series by HABA. Players stack brightly colored wooden animals on a suspended cardboard bridge, trying to fulfill secret stacking assignments. The box itself becomes the game board, divided into four themed environments (volcanic, oceanic, forest, desert), with animals distributed around the edges. A die determines which side of the box you pick animals from. The first player to complete all their assignment cards wins.

Components

• 29 brightly colored wooden animal figures (various shapes with ridges and bumps)
• 1 cardboard bridge (spans across the box)
• 1 die (with habitat symbols and special faces)
• Assignment cards (showing sets of 3 animals each)
• Game box (divided into 4 triangular sections representing environments: volcanic, oceanic, forest, desert)
• 1 crocodile figure (starting piece on the bridge)

Setup

1. Place the cardboard bridge across the game box.
2. Place the crocodile on the bridge as the starting base.
3. Distribute all other animal figures roughly equally along the four edges of the box, in the four habitat zones.
4. Deal 3 assignment cards face-down to each player. Players look at their own cards secretly.
5. Choose a starting player.

Turn Structure

On your turn:

1. Roll the die to determine which habitat zone you must select an animal from.
2. Pick an animal from the indicated zone.
3. Stack the animal on the bridge using only one hand, attempting to fulfill your assignment cards.
4. Check assignments — if the three animals on any of your assignment cards are all touching each other on the bridge, that card is completed and revealed.

Actions

Roll and Select

Roll the die. The result indicates one of four habitats (volcanic, oceanic, forest, desert). You must take an animal from that zone. Two special die faces exist:

• Bridge symbol: Instead of placing a new animal, rearrange one animal already on the bridge.
• Question mark (wild): Pick an animal from any zone you choose.

Stack

Place the selected animal on the bridge, balancing it among the existing animals. You must use only one hand. The goal is to position animals so that the three shown on your assignment cards are touching each other.

Complete Assignments

If, at any point (even on an opponent’s turn), the three animals depicted on one of your assignment cards are all in contact with each other on the bridge, you reveal and complete that card.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

The first player to complete all 3 of their assignment cards wins.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Collapse penalty: If you knock animals off the bridge, you must draw 1 additional assignment card as a penalty. (This penalty can be waived for younger players.)
• Animal relocation: If animals fall into a different habitat zone than where they started, they remain in the new zone and can only be retrieved when that habitat is rolled.
• Assignments can be scored on any turn — not just your own. Stay alert to the bridge state at all times.
• Animals need not all be touching simultaneously — completing a card requires all three depicted animals to be in contact with each other on the bridge at the same time.
• The crocodile is a permanent fixture on the bridge and serves as the base for stacking.

Player Reference

Turn: Roll die → Pick animal from indicated zone → Stack on bridge with one hand → Check assignments

Die Faces: 4 habitats, Bridge (rearrange), Wild (any zone)

Win Condition: First to complete all 3 assignment cards

Penalty: Knock animals off = draw 1 extra assignment card