In a colorful fantasy setting, players try to escape from the Schmunzelmonster (a tentacled alien monster). Each player has 4 Schlammhüpfers ('mud hoppers', the pawns), who try to escape from getting eaten by the Schmunzelmonster by throwing 2 dice. The first die determines if players get to move their Schlammhüpfers or the Schmunzelmonster (⅔ chance). The second die determines how far they must move.
On a player's turn, if they still have a Schlammhüpfer in the safety of their burrow, they need to move it out before they may move another one on the board. Schlammhüpfer can cover quite a lot of distance because they skip occupied spots. That is needed, however, to get away from the ravenous monster.
The player with the last Schlammhüpfer remaining wins the game. Schmunzelmonster is a beautiful and colorful game for ages 6 and up.