Matthew BaileyWe have actually reviewed “Hedgehog Roll” before, but as we head into Christmas 2025 I wanted to bring it back into our festive guide because it continues to be a proper family favourite. It has been in our collection for years, it has survived the usual (probably not as many as Katie would like) game culls, and it is one that all three boys have loved at different ages and still do.
We first played it with Jack, Toby and Henry when they were tiny, and even now it is still one of those games that makes everyone smile.
The idea is simple and very charming. You either race your hedgehog through the forest against other players or you work together to escape a fox. The cooperative and competitive modes are almost identical mechanically, but the slight change in focus keeps it fresh for mixed ages. Hedgehog Roll won the Kinderspiel des Jahres in 2020 and it is very clear why, it is one of those clever little ideas that just works.
The Velcro rolling mechanism is the magic here (I know Velcro is a trademark and this clearly isnt the trademarked version, but I am going to ignore my own rules and use the term Velcro in stead of “hook and loop attachment”. You scatter the tokens across the table or carpet, then roll your hedgehog over them and see what sticks. Younger children can simply roll and hope for the best, while older ones can try to be a bit more tactical and aim for the pieces that move them towards the best spaces. Sometimes you get four pieces that are perfect, other times you get loads that send you nowhere helpful, but that unpredictability is part of the fun.
The components are lovely and the tennis ball hedgehog is still a brilliant bit of design. The boards are chunky and bright, the tracks are varied and the fox adds a fun sense of urgency when playing cooperatively. One small thing to be aware of is that some children who have texture sensitivities might not enjoy the fuzzy feeling of pulling the Velcro pieces off the ball, although this has never been an issue for anyone except me… I hate the sound of Velcro its an ASMR nightmare.
I said years ago that this was one of my favourites and although the boys are older now, it still earns its place. It is perfect for younger kids, but it also fits that very useful niche of being a game older siblings can happily play with little ones. Henry has really grabbed onto this one recently, which is why it felt right to bring it back into our Christmas coverage.
The UK version can sometimes be difficult to track down, but the game is completely language independent, so a European copy works fine. You can always print the English rules from online sources if needed.
The North American release has had a full visual overhaul and the box uses much less attractive artwork than the European edition. The good news is that the actual game inside appears to be identical, so if you see a copy that looks different from the photos in this review, it is still the same experience.
There is also a follow-up, Hedgehog Roll and Friends, although that one is still pretty tough to find and mostly available in Germany. There is artwork for an English version online but as far as I know it never got released.
Overall, Hedgehog Roll remains a joyful little dexterity race that still feels different from anything else on the shelf. It is easy to teach, it is adorable and it is one of those reliable hits for family play over the holidays, especially with little kids.
