Hasbro's Hungry Hungry Hippos Grab and Go (item F8255), the box our link goes toPhoto: Hasbro
Two hippos and the marbles in one covered unitPhoto: Hasbro
The back of Hasbro's North American boxPhoto: Hasbro
Video

Two-player game

Hungry Hungry Hippos Grab and Go

Travel-size Hungry Hungry Hippos for two: chomp the most marbles

2players · best with 2
2–5 minplaying time
4+recommended age
Learning curve
Very easy1 / 5
EasyDemanding
Luck & skill
More luck than skill
LuckSkill
Interaction
High
Set-up
Under a minute
Reading
None

The quick verdict

Full verdict ↓

Great for Two children from 4 on a long train or car journey, since the marbles stay inside the unit

Think twice if You want a game for three or four children; this box has only two hippos, so get the full-size game

How we rate it

Learning curve. Press a tail, chomp marbles, see who has more. There is nothing to learn, which puts it with UNO and Connect 4 at 1 on our scale.

Luck & skill. Mostly speed and luck: where the marbles roll decides a lot, and fast, steady pressing helps a little.

Interaction. Both hippos chase the same marbles at the same moment, so every marble one player chomps is one the other misses.

Set-up. The first time, an adult sticks the two labels onto the cover. After that, tip any collected marbles back into the middle and play: well under a minute.

Reading. No text during play; only the small rules leaflet has words.

Learning curve: 1 = UNO or Connect 4; 3 = Catan; 5 = a heavy strategy game. These describe the experience, not an overall score.

Is Hungry Hungry Hippos Grab and Go right for you?

Great if

  • Two children from 4 on a long train or car journey, since the marbles stay inside the unit
  • A first game for a 4-year-old playing a parent, grandparent or older sibling: no reading and no turns
  • Birthday return gifts and small presents for preschoolers
  • Homes with little table space: it is one small unit with nothing to set out

Skip it if

  • You want a game for three or four children; this box has only two hippos, so get the full-size game
  • There's a child under 3 at home who puts things in their mouth; Hasbro warns that it has small parts
  • You want something adults will choose to play; it is a minute of fast, noisy luck

How Hungry Hungry Hippos Grab and Go plays

The first time, an adult sticks Hasbro's two labels onto the cover of the game unit. After that there is nothing to set out: the marbles stay inside under the plastic cover. If any are sitting in a hippo's collecting area from the last game, tip them back into the middle.

  • Time to teach: about 1 minute.
  • Reading and language: Nothing to read at all: you press your hippo's tail and count marbles. Once someone shows the children how it works, it plays the same in Hindi, Tamil or any mix of languages. Only Hasbro's small rules leaflet has text, in English and French.

Hungry Hungry Hippos Grab & Go Game · Check It Out

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A turn, step by step

  1. 1
    Pick

    Each player picks a hippo, youngest first. Tip any marbles in the collecting areas back into the middle.

  2. 2
    Chomp

    On 'GO!', both players press their hippo's tail again and again to gobble marbles; there are no turns.

  3. 3
    Count

    The hippo that chomped the most marbles wins. In Hasbro's bonus game, chomping the golden marble wins instead.

Read the official rulesHungry Hungry Hippos Grab and Go instructions (Hasbro item F8255) · English (with French)
The full explanation: how a game of Hungry Hungry Hippos Grab and Go goes

Each player picks a hippo, and the youngest chooses first. Then, as Hasbro's rules have it, whoever's birthday comes next shouts 'GO!', and both players press their hippo's tail again and again to make it chomp as many marbles as it can. There are no turns: you both play at once.

When the chomping stops, look at how many marbles each hippo has collected. The hippo that chomped the most marbles wins, and you tip them back into the middle for the next round.

For Hasbro's bonus game, play the same way, but this time the winner is whoever's hippo chomps the golden marble, so a round can be over in moments.

Compared with the full-size game, there are two hippos instead of four, you press a tail rather than a lever, and the marbles never leave the covered unit, so there is no separate tray or bag of marbles to lose. It is strictly a two-player game.

What's in the box

Two hippos and the marbles in one covered unit · Photo: Hasbro
  • 1Game unit
    two hippos worked by pressing their tails, with the marbles kept inside under a plastic cover; the unit is also its own storage
  • –Marbles
    inside the game unit; Hasbro doesn't give the number, and one is golden for the bonus game
  • 1Label sheet
    two labels an adult sticks onto the cover the first time
  • 1Instructions

Box: 25 × 16 × 5 cm, 0.13 kg. Handy to know for gifting and travel.

From Hasbro's contents list for item F8255 (game unit, label sheet and instructions) and its rules leaflet; the marbles come inside the game unit. The full-size game (item F8815) instead has a game unit with four hippos round an open pond, 20 loose marbles and a marble storage case.

Where to buy

Check price on Amazon.in
How to make sure you get a genuine copyEditions and the details worth checking.

About the editions

Hasbro's own photo of the Grab and Go box reads 'Made in India', and Indian-labelled boxes name a manufacturer in Karnataka, with Hasbro India as the marketer. The listing behind our Amazon.in link, though, gives Vietnam as the country of origin, so we can't say which factory your box will come from. Either way it is Hasbro's own item F8255, the same travel game, sold through Hasbro's store on Amazon.in.

Before you choose

  • Look for the Hasbro Gaming logo and the Hungry Hungry Hippos Grab and Go name. Hasbro's item number is F8255; Indian-labelled boxes also print the code F8255IN62.
  • It is one small unit with two hippos and a plastic cover over the marbles. The hippos chomp when you press their tails.
  • Hasbro's barcode for F8255 is 195166231037, the same on Indian store listings.
  • Check for the ISI mark and a BIS licence number on the box; toys sold in India must carry them.
  • Small marble-grabbing travel games from other brands use other names. A listing that says 'Hungry Hippos' without naming Hasbro is not Hasbro's game.

What reviewers and players say

We found no written reviews of the Grab and Go box itself, so this draws on reviews of the full-size game, which plays the same way with more hippos. Reviewers agree Hungry Hungry Hippos is a children's game first: Father Geek found it easy to have fun with very quickly but says the magic wears off fast for grown-ups, while Geeky Hobbies says it 'works better for adults than most people would expect', though it relies heavily on luck, gets repetitive and is very loud. Hasbro's travel box answers one common complaint, lost marbles, by keeping them under a cover, but with two hippos it loses the four-way scramble that makes the big game so lively.

What people love

  • Children love the frantic chomping, and it takes seconds to explain
  • No reading and no turns, so a preschooler can play an older sibling or grandparent
  • Very quick to set up and play, so it fits in anywhere

Common complaints

  • Mostly luck and speed, and the fun wears off quickly for adults
  • Noisy: reviewers call the full-size game one of the loudest board games around
  • Pressing over and over can make small hands sore
Based on 4 reviews and discussions

Summarised in our own words from the sources above. We don't use Amazon reviews or ratings.

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Travel-size Hungry Hungry Hippos for two: chomp the most marbles

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Players22–42–42
Best with2442
Play time2–5 min5–10 min20–40 min2–10 min
Age4+4+5+5+
RulesEasyEasyEasyEasy
Indian editionAvailableAvailableAvailableAvailable
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Questions people ask about Hungry Hungry Hippos Grab and Go

What is the difference between Hungry Hungry Hippos Grab and Go and the regular game?

Grab and Go is Hasbro's travel version: two hippos instead of four, in one small unit whose plastic cover keeps the marbles inside, so it's for exactly two players. The full-size game has four hippos round an open pond, 20 loose marbles and a storage case, for 2 to 4 players. Both are won by the hippo that chomps the most marbles.

How many players can play Hungry Hungry Hippos Grab and Go?

Two. There is one hippo for each player, and Hasbro rates it for ages 4 and up. For three or four children, the full-size game is the one to get.

Does Hungry Hungry Hippos Grab and Go need batteries?

Hasbro lists no batteries. Each hippo chomps when you press its tail, so it works by hand alone, which also makes it easy to take on a journey.

Can you lose the marbles in Hungry Hungry Hippos Grab and Go?

Not easily. The marbles stay inside the game unit under a plastic cover, and after each round you tip them back into the middle. That is the main reason Hasbro sells it as a travel game.

Is Hungry Hungry Hippos Grab and Go made in India?

Hasbro's own box photo says 'Made in India', and Indian-labelled boxes name a manufacturer in Karnataka. The listing behind our Amazon.in link gives Vietnam as the country of origin, though, so the box you receive may come from either.

Game facts

Designed by
Fred Kroll
Publisher
Hasbro (Hasbro Gaming; Hungry Hungry Hippos was first sold by Milton Bradley in 1978)
In India
Hasbro India Toys Pvt. Ltd., Mumbai (importer on the Amazon.in listing; marketer on Indian-labelled boxes)
First published
2023
Players
2
Barcode
195166231037
Language
No reading – Nothing to read at all: you press your hippo's tail and count marbles. Once someone shows the children how it works, it plays the same in Hindi, Tamil or any mix of languages. Only Hasbro's small rules leaflet has text, in English and French.
Box size and weight
25 × 16 × 5 cm, 0.13 kg
Sources & photo creditsThe references behind this guide.

Facts on this page come from the publisher, the Indian maker or distributor, and the sources below. Photos are credited under each one.