China Toy Fair


Geocache Becomes First-Ever Fan-Voted Scrabble Word

April 11, 2014 By

The word “geocache” beat out 15 other nominees in last month’s Scrabble Word Showdown, and as a result, will be included in the fifth edition of Merriam-Webster’s Official Scrabble Players Dictionary, scheduled for release this August. This marks the dictionary’s first major update in nearly a decade, and the first time it has ever included a word voted on by fans.

Nominated by fans following a national call-for-entries on the Hasbro Game Night Facebook page in March, “geocache” is a verb meaning to seek items by means of a GPS device as part of a game. It faced 15 other popular choices in an online showdown from April 2 to 10, besting such fan favorites as “bitcoin,” “cosplay,” and “ew.”

Geocache will be an eligible word right in time for National Scrabble Day on April 13. It will also be playable in the upcoming National School Scrabble Championship on April 26 to 27 and the National Scrabble Tournament in August.

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Hasbro Survey Finds 78 Percent of Americans Partying at Home on NYE

December 31, 2013 By

For the second year in a row, when the clock strikes Twelve on New Year’s Eve, the majority of Americans plan to ring in the New Year at home instead of out on the town, according to a new survey by Hasbro. Seventy-nine percent of women and 76 percent of men, up from 70 percent last year, will opt for a more low-key celebration. To make the most of a festive night at home, Hasbro recommends some friendly game night competition to get the good times rolling on December 31.

And while most (56 percent) seem to want to keep the competition light and friendly, 81 percent of people ages 18 to 24 admit to “bending the rules” in order to win when playing games. If you’re spending the night in on New Year’s with some family-friendly competition, be sure to upload pictures of your party to the Hasbro Game Night Facebook page or tweet @HasbroGameNight, #HasbroHolidays.

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Neil Patrick Harris Teams Up With Hasbro to Promote Scrabble Catch Phrase, Hasbro Game Night

August 28, 2012 By

Actor Neil Patrick Harris announced that he will be appearing in a new ad campaign from Hasbro, Inc., featuring the all new Scrabble Catch Phrase game. Harris, star of CBS’ sitcom How I Met Your Mother, is featured in the game’s television advertising campaign, set to begin airing in the U.S. this week.

Along with the commercial for Scrabble Catch Phrase, Harris will help kick off Hasbro Game Night, a new campaign that celebrates the fun and spontaneity of adding a game to any occasion. The first ad shows Harris “crashing” a gathering to liven up the action with the Scrabble Catch Phrase game, turning the friendly get-together into a Game Night. The all-new Game Night campaign will include two additional ads, featuring the Yahtzee and Jenga brands, which will not include Harris.

In Scrabble Catch Phrase, players describe words or phrases from one of five categories: fun and games, entertainment, everyday life, the world, and variety. It’s a frenzied game of grabbing, guessing, and passing that invites players to frantically try to get their teammates to guess each phrase that appears on the electronic game unit — just don’t be caught holding the game unit when the buzzer sounds. The game is recommended for four or more players, ages 12 and up. Three AAA batteries are required for the electronic game unit.

Scrabble and Hasbro Game Night fans will be able to find additional content, such as Neil Patrick Harris’ rules of Game Night and behind-the-scenes action from the television ad shoot, at www.Facebook.com/OfficialScrabble and www.Facebook.com/HasbroGameNight.

This post was originally written by Sierra McCleary-Harris and published by ToyBook.com. For more news, visit www.toybook.com, follow The Toy Book on Twitter, and like The Toy Book on Facebook. The Toy Book is a bimonthly trade magazine covering the toy industry, published by Adventure Publishing Group.

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