We are a game-playing family. And while my husband and I often choose to play games that involve lots of strategy and deep thinking, I have to admit that sometimes, a crazy, quick, no-thinking-involved game is the one that really hits the spot. Especially if there are kids involved.

And it seems that our son, C. (10), particularly enjoys dexterity games (games involving balancing, flicking, stacking, or some other physical skill).  So recently, I took the opportunity to pull a relatively new game, called Hula Hippos, off our shelf. C. and I enjoyed it so much that I decided to give away a copy this week…to one of you!

But first, let me tell you a little about the game, so you can decide if it’s one that your family will enjoy. Hula Hippos is a game published in 2008 by Gamewright (my favorite maker of short, fun, family games). The game is made for 2-4 players, age 5 and up, though younger children can definitely have fun playing along. One game takes about 10-20 minutes.

The components of Hula Hippos are very simple: inside the box you’ll find 1 wooden hoop and 24 hippo-shaped wooden disks (6 hippos in each of 4 colors).

Gameplay is also simple.  Just give each player all six hippos in his or her color of choice, and have players line the hippos up in front of them on the table. Then, to begin a round, start the wooden hoop spinning in the center of the table.

Immediately, all players should begin flicking their hippos across the table, toward the spinning hoop. Each hippo may only be flicked once, and players must flick all their hippos before the hoop stops spinning and falls to the table.

Once the hoop has hit the table, take score:  If one of your hippos ends up inside the hoop, or under the edge of the hoop, that hippo is out of the game and you score 1 point. Continue playing rounds until one player has earned four points (in other words, four of their hippos have been trapped in or under the hoop). That person is the winner!

Hula Hippos does not present players with the opportunity to think deeply about every move. Instead, it provides wacky, and sometimes wild, hippo-flicking fun.

Though younger children will have a difficult time perfecting their flicks in order to get their hippos near the spinning hoop, it often doesn’t matter — they’ll be just as happy watching the hippos zip across the table, crash into each other, and occasionally go flying across the room. Older kids will take on the challenge of learning to flick their hippos just right — with just enough oomph — while trying to predict where the spinning hoop will finally land.

And what about the grown-ups? If grown-ups enjoy a light, zany game, they’ll have fun with this one too. I certainly did.  But even if it’s not exactly your cup of tea, remember: it plays quickly, so you can get in a quick game of Hula Hippos with your kids and then move on to another activity. (I have played games of Candyland that have gone on Forever, so I certainly appreciate a kids’ game that doesn’t overstay its welcome.)

Does Hula Hippos sound like a game your family would enjoy? If so, just leave a comment on this post for a chance to win a copy of Hula Hippos. I’ll randomly draw a winner on Saturday, January 31, and announce that winner here. And I’m sorry to my international visitors, but this giveaway will be for U.S. mailing addresses only, please.

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This giveaway is part of the Bloggy Giveaways Carnival being hosted over at Bloggy Giveaways. Be sure to visit the carnival headquarters so you can check out the tons and tons of great giveaways going on this week. Just click the graphic below!