Step2 Naturally Playful Adventure Lodge Play Center

We purchased this playset for our son's 2nd birthday. I did alot of research before purchasing and heavily debated between this set and a larger wooden set. All of my friends recommended I go ahead and get the bigger set so he could use it longer - for the amount of money, it seemed like the best thing to do. He loves the bigger sets at the playground and I didn't want him to be bored with a "baby" playset.However, I wanted something he could do all by himself, and I didn't like the sharp corners or wood splinter possibilities of the wooden set, so I resigned myself that even if he only used it a year, we'd have a great year. Now that it's here, I am VERY glad we purchased this set. I think it will last him many years and he loves it. My son is on the tall side for his age, and a pretty good climber, but he's not as fearless as other kids I know. The 3, 4 and 6 year old at his party played on it as well and had just as much fun. The product recommends 3-8 years of age, but I think 6 is probably topping it out.)Installation was a breeze. However, I highly recommend obtaining one terrific husband who never complains first. He did work in the garage some late nights and had to reference the assembly video on the Step 2 website a couple of times, but overall, I truly didn't hear any swearing. There appeared to be approximately 4,327 parts which all arrived in 2 huge boxes on pallets. I cut some windows and doors in the boxes and voila! the kids had as much fun with the boxes as the playset.)The playset itself is sturdy and the colors blend great in our yard. The swings were a little high, so we added a bit of chain to lower the swings. The basketball hoop on the side is bigger than I expected, and while my son doesn't have a "real" basketball, his larger balls fit just fine. The upper fort has a steering wheel and appropriately placed handles to help climb the ladder and go down the slide. There are no sharp corners anywhere and the ladder has large flat steps that are easy to climb. The bottom of the slide sits on the ground, which looked funny to me (there are no legs or braces that elevate the slide) and caused the kids to slide right off to the ground with a bump, but they didn't mind. I can't think of anything I don't like about this playset. Oh yes I can - the price. I think it was a little pricey, but maybe I am just cheap - it IS a great product and I would buy again.)

My 2.5 yr old loves the playset - plays on it every day and insists that mom and dad play with her. Construction was a little tricky. Couple of tips:1. Pre-sort all the nuts, bolts and washers according to the instructions. We used a separate bowl for each step. It was the smartest thing we did.2. I had to drill a hole where one should have existed but didn't. Keep a drill handy.3. Sprocket set or die. Using anything other that sprockets for all the nuts and bolts would have driven me crazy.4. Be thoughtful about sun angles. The slide gets a little hot...Hence the 4 stars instead of 5. Otherwise we love it!

The play set arrived last Thursday (9/11/2014) and the delivery men placed the 2 large boxes in my daughter's back yard as requested. No damage. I opened both boxes and was surprised to see each contained a check list of parts packed. Very nice. The instruction book contained 133 steps (ugh), all of them pictures (double ugh). But by carefully studying the pictures I was able to put the set together by myself with only a few minor difficulties, and a helping hand every now and then, in about 7 hours. The instructions did have a couple of errors, but they were not egregious, and is about average for a large product. Yes, the playhouse is a bit small, so if your children are tall they will have to stoop to play inside. I have to say that after having read some of the negative reviews, I was pleasantly surprised and totally satisfied with the product. My grandchildren are just 3 yrs. old and love it.

We bought this for our daughter who is 26 months. She has a lot of energy for a girl so we wanted something that would keep her attention and this definitely does. In addition we bought an infant swing for it because the swings that come with it she is still too small for.This took my husband and I two evenings to put together...maybe 6-7 hours total. I'm also 34 weeks pregnant and the two of us could put it together with any one else's help. The directions are very helpful but could have been a little better. For example step 1, you are supposed to put piece 'hh' on the steering wheel and screw it in with 3 screws but in the picture for step 1 it doesn't call out piece 'hh' which is this little yellow plastic circle and since the pictures are black and white, we didn't realized we didn't do that till the end and at that point we couldn't climb in and do it. My husband thinks he can use a ladder and do it but isn't not a make or bought piece so it might never get done.The other thing about the directions which is funny is there are something like 130 steps which at first was very daunting but really it wasn't bad something step 40 will tell you to screw 4 screws into four holes, then step 41 will illustrate putting the screw driver into the screw, then step 42 will illustrate how you turn the screw....so a lot of extra steps illustrated which I didn't think we're necessary but I guess if you aren't handy or good at reading directions they are helpful.I would definitely recommend this to anyone. We did think about a wood play set but for the money this seemed better and safer since it's plastic, more durable in weather. My neighbors put a big wooden one together for their grand kids and they said it took them a month to do. So in comparison this was a breeze.

The bad first: The instructions leave a lot to be desired, which prolongs assembly. that being said, I did this by myself in about 2.5 hours. it should have only taken about an hour to an hour and a half.Component fitment: some pieces fit better than others, nothing that required drastic measures to overcome, but something to keep an eye on as you go about putting it togetherIncorrect pieces: The rope ladder portion of this (at least on mine) comes up 2 inches too short. you might not think that this is a big deal until you notice that it attaches to the bottom of the playset which now is pulled up at a 30 degree angle. the alternative is a large amount of stress on the outter end of the pole.The bottom line: My kid loves it, it's not completely awful but it is painfully average in terms of quality all the way around. I feel like this item would be better suited at a $600 price point than a $900 price point, Especially after discovering CostCo has one that is much more robust for only $100 more (also probably not as low an age/weight limit but that's subjective I suppose)