> あの子は俺たちや秋葉が遊ぶように手を取らせる反面、いざ俺たちが遊びだすと少し離れて俺たちの様子を見守っていてくれた。

As for that kid, us and Akiha as if playing were made join hands, on the other
side when we went out to play she distanced herself a little and watched over
us playing.

Is ように meaning _as if playing_ or does it mean _in order to play_?

How can I understand when it's used with the meaning of _similar_ or with the
meaning of _in order to_?
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grammar
Unclear usage of ように
This ように is not _as if_ nor _like_ , but _in order to_ or _so as to_. (The
fourth definition in [this
entry](http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/jn/226613/meaning/m0u/).)

So 遊ぶように here means _in order to play_ or _so (we) can play_.

> あの子は俺たちや秋葉が遊ぶように手を取らせる反面...  
>  That kid made Akiha and us take (one another's) hands so that we play
> (together), ...

The latter half of your translation looks good.

遊ぶように手を取らせる may grammatically mean "to make someone take hands as if he/she
were playing", but it makes no sense to me.
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answer