How to Play Hungry Hungry Hippos

Introduced in 1978 by Milton Bradley, Hungry Hungry Hippos continues to entertain young children. This popular game is for two to four players, with recommended ages from four and up. The game develops good hand-eye coordination for preschoolers by having kids press down on a lever to make their hippo munch on marbles.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Choose a hippo and place five marbles into your marble release area beside your hungry hippo. Each hippo has a name and color. Happy, Henry, Homer and Harry are pink, orange, green and yellow.
2. One player releases one marble by pressing down on the marble release lever. Once the marble is in the board's center, all players try to make their hippos munch it by pressing down on their hippo's tail until someone's hippo captures it.
3. Move in a clockwise direction to the next player, who then releases one marble. All players repeat the process.
4. Continue taking turns releasing one marble at a time until all marbles are gone. Each player then counts her marbles and the player with the most wins the game.
5. Change the way to play for more advanced fun. All players release all of their marbles at the same time and try to munch as many as possible at the same time. After all marbles are gone, count them up, and the one with the most wins.

Tips & Warnings

• You must press the hippo's tail all the way down and then release it all the way for your hippo to properly munch marbles.
• This game is not recommended for children under three, as the marbles cause a major choking hazard.