Buggo is an entertaining variation of the old matching-type card games that requires memory and, in this case, counting skills--although the latter will apply only to the very young. If you can add one, two, and three, youre set. The memory part is where the kids have an advantage, at least over me!

Tension occurs when the thick, quality tiles the player selects are turned over. Do you go for one more tile, gaining another point, but risking going over the number of bugs you selected and losing your points? The tension can drive you buggy.

I was a bit concerned that my nieces, whom I bought this for, would be put off by the insect theme. The bugs depicted are realistic, and this had seemed more a boyish game to me. But I went with my instincts, and was glad I did--the girls took to it like bugs to sand! And even the youngest, 3 years old, liked the biggest bug, a somewhat scary spider by the name of Buggo, the equivalent of the Old Maid. In fact, she liked him (it?) so much that she insisted on trying to pick a Buggo tile every turn! My concerns had disappeared in an instant, and we all had fun, which is what gameplay is all about.

This is simply a fun little game that youngsters 10-and-under should enjoy. I admit I had fun, too, and I havent been 10 since the 1960s. Part of my enjoyment was playing with kids, since fun is contagious. Buggo is a clean way to play with bugs!