Game Shows

[Guest123_x1]

Game shows, or quiz shows, are a type of radio or television programming in which participants answer questions (or give a question to an answer), solve puzzles, or compete in some other form of contest, usually for cash and/or prizes.
Such shows have been fixtures of television since its beginning, although a scandal broke out in the United States in the 1950s over many of the shows being rigged, which nearly brought down the genre. Laws were then passed to put a stop to and punish rigging.

Examples of game shows include The Price Is Right (created by Bob Stewart for Goodson-Todman) Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? (created in the UK by David Briggs), Jeopardy!, and Wheel of Fortune (both the preceding two created by Merv Griffin), and The Weakest Link (created in the UK by Fintan Coyle and Cathy Dunning).

There are even cable channels dedicated to the genre, such as Game Show Network (US), GameTV (Canada), and Challenge (UK).

Do any of you watch game shows? If so, what are your favorites?

 

[TRIFORCE89]

I loooooved Who Wants to Be a Millionaire back in the day. That was addicting. They need to bring it back to prime-time. Regis needs something to do

 

[Sydian]

I love game shows! I have a grandmother that loves them and watches them during the day while she cleans house so naturally, I would watch them when I was there as a child. I especially love the ones where you're asked questions, not just pricing type things, so that means I'm a HUGE Millionaire fan haha. I love watching it and seeing if I get any answers right. I prefer the old style with Regis though, honestly. :( It's changed so much from the original that I find it way too easy now and I'm just very impartial to change anyway haha. I still watch it though! Jeopardy is a great show and even a great learning method in classrooms. Makes education fun and I totally plan on using it with my students if I'm able to, since it was always my favorite game in any class it was used in. Weakest Link has a classic line too. It's safe to say all three of these shows are stapled into our culture...at least in America. Can't speak for other countries I suppose, haha.

 

[Mr Cat Dog]

British game shows are a national institution, and it's a weird feeling seeing them exported all over the world (Millionaire, Weakest Link etc). And while I don't watch enough of them nowadays, I do want to talk about my favourite one in recent years: Million Pound Drop Live. I believe it aired in the US, but under a much-neutered format.

The UK one is simple: the couple who enters the show are given £1 million pounds, and if they can answer 8 questions correctly, then get to keep it. However, the 'twist' comes in the fact that for each question they answer, they have to put their money where their mouth is: if contestants are unsure of an answer, they can split their money between two or three options rather than put everything on one answer. This means their pot shrinks accordingly - because any money on the wrong answer literally gets dropped away from them! - and adds to the tension. As well as this, the show was filmed and broadcast completely live, and many of the questions concerned events that happened on that exact day, in order to flaunt that fact to the audience. The whole combination of super-tension, live entertainment and the feeling of literally watching piles of £50 notes fall away from you is amazingly addictive to watch.

In recent months, it's become slightly neutered down: there've been more and more 'celebrity' versions where the questions are easier because the money's going to charity; and it also used to be event television - once or twice every few months - and now it's a semi-regular staple. But it's still a hella fun gameshow to watch, and is easily my favourite out of the ones that are airing at the moment.

So... yeah, I like game shows! :D

 

[PlatinumDude]

I watch game shows every now and then. My favorite one is Wipeout because, well, of the wipeouts and the humor coming from the announcers. I've also taken a liking to 101 Ways to Leave a Game Show.

 

[Guest123_x1]

now for my take...

I have been a fan of Wheel of Fortune for many years. However, I haven't been watching the show very much for quite a few months, considering the quality of the gameplay and contestants has been going downhill for quite some time. I also edit a fan-made Wiki dedicated to the show.
As I have stated now and then, I prefer older episodes, particularly when Vanna (and Susan Stafford before then) turned the letters, as opposed to touching them as she does now. Every now and then I search for Wheel-related stuff on YouTube, particularly episodes from the early 1990s and before (dating all the way back to Shopper's Bazaar in 1973, of which the opening segment surfaced nearly a month ago, and I'm really wanting to see the 1974 pilots hosted by Edd Byrnes, as well as the 1975 premiere. Unfortunately, most daytime episodes from 1975 through at least 1980, possibly as late as mid-1985, have been wiped, as was standard practice for daytime programming at each of the Big Three networks back in the day, as well as a policy of Merv Griffin Productions.)

Million Pound Drop Live. I believe it aired in the US, but under a much-neutered format.

The US version was called "Million Dollar Money Drop", hosted by Kevin Pollak, and aired on FOX from December 20, 2010 to February 1, 2011. There was a controversy on the very first episode, which involved the accuracy of a question in which a contestant team lost $800,000 for getting the answer wrong.