Sqrambled Scuares

[bumble]

Hello to everyone.  I'm a new member and (of course) a huge game show fan...always have been, always will be.  I have enjoyed reading a lot of your posts and have been impressed with a lot of your knowledge and opinions.  Please know that what I am about to ask is in no way a solicitation, it is a sincere request for you to give an opinion of a local game show (Sqrambled Scuares) that I produce and host. Constructive criticism is a great way to make improvements.  The plan for this program is to offer the show in many small to medium size markets throughout the country. Towns and cities will have their very own local host and local prizes.  If you're up for some feedback, your thoughts would be appreciated.  You can watch numerous Sqrambled Scuares episodes at www.sqrambledscuares.biz .  Thank you and take care, Buzz.

[Matt Ottinger]

Buzz:

Welcome to the board.  If you've been checking us out for a while, it probably won't come as a surprise to you that we once did have a few comments about your show, but they'd be hard to find since they're within a mammoth thread we have for various YouTube clips.  If you start at the bottom of this page, you'll find several comments about your show scattered over the next few pages, but be warned:  We're a tough, tough room.  Our opinions also vary widely; just because you might see a bad comment or two doesn't mean the whole group feels that way.

I recall that one big question we had was the nature of the distribution of your show.  Channel 14 doesn't appear to be public access, at least by the standard definition I've always had for it, but it does seem to be exclusively a cable channel.  How does that work in your community?  And as you hope to expand, is the idea to do the show in other communities with a similar cable station, or will the effort be to get on broadcast stations instead?

Appreciating your reply in advance.  Also, I'm sure you'll get a lot of new comments about your show here soon.  Now that you're a member, we'll probably be nicer to you!

[Dbacksfan12]

[quote name=\'Matt Ottinger\' post=\'164191\' date=\'Sep 18 2007, 03:05 PM\']
Now that you're a member, we'll probably be nicer to you!
[/quote]
So, what happens if Rich Fields begins to post here?

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'Modor\' post=\'164194\' date=\'Sep 18 2007, 01:10 PM\']
So, what happens if Rich Fields begins to post here?
[/quote]
He'll know more clearly that he sucks.

[bumble]

Hello Matt.  I did see a few posts about Sqrambled Scuares.  I realize that none were intended to be "mean"..just honest.  I like honesty.  To answer your question about where the program is intended to air, it is designed to be included in the "local" origination time at local network affiliates.  Sqrambled Scuares would air immediately before or after a local newscast.  If Sqrambled Scuares aired prior to a newscast, it could be a great lead-in to the station's local news.  The station would receive attention for offering a local game show and local news in an hour block.  Television stations with a local evening news program are always looking for a program prior to their newscast that will pull in viewers.  That's the reason for particular programs placed prior to local newscasts.  In this case, the keyword is "Local".  At this point ,I have a full game plan lined up for any station looking for the extra local edge.  My company will provide the set, support, and training for that station's (community's) very own edition of Sqrambled Scuares.  I could go into more detail, however I don't want to bore you.  Thank you for asking.  Take care, Buzz

[tvmitch]

After producing and hosting my own show while in college a few years ago, I have a different eye and appreciation for locally-produced productions.

Buzz, your show is very well done, and making it to 200+ episodes is certainly a feat. Your list of sponsors says a lot, and I might say that the format is more entertaining than some of the recent premieres in syndication.

[BrandonFG]

I know I ragged on the wardrobe, but the show itself was quite enjoyable for what you're doing. A basic game without the chrome, and good play-along value. Makes me consider trying to get a local project off the ground myself. :-)

[Steve McClellan]

Hi Buzz,
I'll second the notion that Sqrambled Scuares is better than a decent chunk of what's on national teevee right now. As for constructive criticism, the scoring does bother me a bit. I'm going off a few-week-old memory of two episodes here, and this didn't happen in either of them, but if each player gets one puzzle, isn't the winner just whoever got luckier in picking numbers? (Or, the trailing player just has to wait until he/she happens to come within 200 points of the lead before unscrambling.) Either way, I'm not fond of the amount of dumb luck involved there.

But that's a rather small issue. I know I'd be delighted to see the show come to my area; I could use a large stack of one-dollar bills.

[bumble]

Hello Steve. Thanks for your comments. Actually, you're right, there is some luck involved in Sqrambled Scuares, however there is also skill, and strategy.  The luck is what is found behind the square that they choose, the skill is how well they are able to unscramble words with a little help from the "placers", and the strategy comes from how they want to use the points that they have received during play.  They can place a letter that is already up on the Descrambler board for the point value of that letter.  If they spend 20 points to steal 100 from their competition, then that would be considered smart play.  As far as the "dumb luck", well, there is some dumb luck (and chance) in a lot of games that we play, but, keep in mind, while playing Sqrambled Scuares, the contestants have only 2 sets of Sqrambled Scuares and the contestant with the most points after those two sets wins a trip to Super Sqramble to go after the rest of the prize money.  Also, if one contestant unscrambles the first puzzle, that contestant steals 100 points from the competition and it's now up to that contestant to unscramble the next puzzle to insure a trip to Super Sqramble.  On the other hand, the competitor that did not unsqramble the first puzzle has to watch and manage his/her points and try their best to uscramble the next puzzle to take the lead and go on to Super Sqramble.  
 So, once again, yes, your right there is luck involved, however, skill and strategy also play a part for a good player.  Thanks again for your comments and I hope this made sense the way I explained it.  Take care, Buzz

[TimK2003]

Buzz (and the others who are looking to find a way to create & market a local game show):

I saw this Broadcasting & Cable article which mentions how some of the MyNetwork affiliates are looking to locally-produced shows.  There have been some successes -- anything better than the ratings from last season's Telenovelas is considered a success.

I'm not saying it won't be hard to do -- it is still long odds -- but if you can find the right concept, get the right combination of investors, sponsors, and PR people to sell the idea to the local affiliate (and out of the Big 4 Networks + the CW, Ion and MyNetwork, MyNetwork seems to have the best odds at the moment), you might have a shot at seeing a project go to air.  But be prepared to do most of the legwork, as you'll probably have to line up the prizes and sponsors yourself initially.

[parliboy]

[quote name=\'bumble\' post=\'164216\' date=\'Sep 18 2007, 05:34 PM\'] Hello Steve. Thanks for your comments. Actually, you're right, there is some luck involved in Sqrambled Scuares, however there is also skill, and strategy.  The luck is what is found behind the square that they choose, the skill is how well they are able to unscramble words with a little help from the "placers", and the strategy comes from how they want to use the points that they have received during play.  They can place a letter that is already up on the Descrambler board for the point value of that letter.  If they spend 20 points to steal 100 from their competition, then that would be considered smart play.  As far as the "dumb luck", well, there is some dumb luck (and chance) in a lot of games that we play, but, keep in mind, while playing Sqrambled Scuares, the contestants have only 2 sets of Sqrambled Scuares and the contestant with the most points after those two sets wins a trip to Super Sqramble to go after the rest of the prize money.  Also, if one contestant unscrambles the first puzzle, that contestant steals 100 points from the competition and it's now up to that contestant to unscramble the next puzzle to insure a trip to Super Sqramble.  On the other hand, the competitor that did not unsqramble the first puzzle has to watch and manage his/her points and try their best to uscramble the next puzzle to take the lead and go on to Super Sqramble.  
 So, once again, yes, your right there is luck involved, however, skill and strategy also play a part for a good player.  Thanks again for your comments and I hope this made sense the way I explained it.  Take care, Buzz

 [/quote]

Buzz:

If you believe that spending points to place letters is an important strategy, then it's really something you should put more emphasis on in the contestant briefings.  It's not something I've seen happen all than often in the shows I've watched.  If you have been telling them, and they still aren't doing it... then that may be your contestants' way of telling you that the risk/reward isn't worth it.

You're asking me to place a letter, losing at least 10 points (assuming it's a consonant), instead of likely picking a letter which earns 10 points at least.  That's a 20 point swing.  30 if it's a doubler.  40 if it's a stealer.  Again, those values all assume consonants, and we don't even discuss the double doubler.  And if the puzzles are split, they cancel out and it all comes down to those points.  The only time I'm going to spend those points is when a) I think I might know it and b) there's missers on the board and I don't want to risk losing my turn.

I don't mean to sound like I'm harping, and if this were one small flaw in a larger game, it wouldn't be nearly as big of a deal.  But since this is really the only tactical decision you make the entire game, it's a problem.

All of that said... that's really my only big problem with the game, too.  The word scramble aspect adds a dimension that "related" games currently on the air don't have.  The blocking issues caused by the way you interact with the set aren't a big deal to me, because you get out of the way pretty easily.  That said, it can be a problem during the Super Sqramble.  But that's easily solved by just raising the board a bit so that the contestant has to reach up.  Don't know if that's feasible with your setup... but worth considering.

Anyway, that's my two cents.  Fun show to kill a half hour (or a bit less if you're fast-forwarding on Google Video), and certainly serviceable, despite the one big scoring flaw.

[NickS]

[quote name=\'TimK2003\' post=\'164222\' date=\'Sep 18 2007, 07:02 PM\']
Buzz (and the others who are looking to find a way to create & market a local game show):

I saw this Broadcasting & Cable article which mentions how some of the MyNetwork affiliates are looking to locally-produced shows.  There have been some successes -- anything better than the ratings from last season's Telenovelas is considered a success.

I'm not saying it won't be hard to do -- it is still long odds -- but if you can find the right concept, get the right combination of investors, sponsors, and PR people to sell the idea to the local affiliate (and out of the Big 4 Networks + the CW, Ion and MyNetwork, MyNetwork seems to have the best odds at the moment), you might have a shot at seeing a project go to air.  But be prepared to do most of the legwork, as you'll probably have to line up the prizes and sponsors yourself initially.
[/quote]

To throw in my .02:  Even at a 100+ level, my concern is that most affiliates have something in local fringe next to their local news locked up in syndication (read: Wheel out to 2012, for instance).  Tim's got a great point in that your indies/MyNets would be the first place to look to.

That, or maybe you look at a Sunday morning weekly instead of a M-F strip.

My question for you, strictly from a production standpoint -- how many cameras and how much post is involved?

[TimK2003]

[quote name=\'TeppanYaki\' post=\'164224\' date=\'Sep 18 2007, 09:12 PM\']

To throw in my .02:  Even at a 100+ level, my concern is that most affiliates have something in local fringe next to their local news locked up in syndication (read: Wheel out to 2012, for instance).  Tim's got a great point in that your indies/MyNets would be the first place to look to.[/quote]

Then you look for dayparts with 2-3 infomercials in a row. If you have a strong presentation to give to a station's GM, go for the lead-in/lead-out of the block of infomercials and pose the question, "Do you want viewers, or do you want to air the Time-Life Greg Brady 70's Collection for the 1,277th time to the 8 or so people forced to watch the TV in the social room of Sunny Oaks Rest Home?"  

[quote name=\'TeppanYaki\' post=\'164224\' date=\'Sep 18 2007, 09:12 PM\']
That, or maybe you look at a Sunday morning weekly instead of a M-F strip.

My question for you, strictly from a production standpoint -- how many cameras and how much post is involved?
[/quote]

To that, we go to the all-knowing authority of simple, locally-based game shows and the Master of the Obvious™...

...Matt Ottinger to the White Courtesy Phone, please...

[LA the DJ]

Not a bad show. An entertaining way to kill time.
Just a couple of small comments about the presentation:

First, I think it would be a little easier on the eyes to note the placed letters with say red or blue cellophane. The yellow tends to kind of disappear in the set, whereas red or blue might stick out better.

Second, would be to not even use the camera 1 (or is it 2?) shot during the bonus round. The shot is pretty much useless, showing the back of the contestant and blocking out the game board. At least in the episode I just watched.

Third is, again, the scoring issues. Game show second rounds are always worth more, but With stealing the points from the other player, essentially that says "Hey it doesn't matter if you win round one, because your opponent will take those points anyways if he wins round two".

Aside those issues, it's a pretty good local show that's fun to watch with nice playalong value. The host seems very capable (especially to say Piedmont National Secret Stash of Cash ten times an episode), and the set is pretty well done for a situation where I'm sure there's not a lot of money available. Plus, it's nice to see a home viewer game going on.

[Matt Ottinger]

[quote name=\'TimK2003\' post=\'164236\' date=\'Sep 19 2007, 12:11 AM\']
[quote name=\'TeppanYaki\' post=\'164224\' date=\'Sep 18 2007, 09:12 PM\']My question for you, strictly from a production standpoint -- how many cameras and how much post is involved?[/quote]
To that, we go to the all-knowing authority of simple, locally-based game shows and the Master of the Obvious™...
...Matt Ottinger to the White Courtesy Phone, please...
[/quote]
I'm not saying it has to be done our way, plus the economies of doing something on a university-owned PBS station with a deep-pocketed underwriter vs doing something on a small local station that's just scraping by can be significantly different.  Still, since I haven't done this in a while:

QuizBusters has five cameras, two of which are stationary and the other three of which are run by college-student employees.  Every other producer and technical position (seven, not counting me) is an adult staff employee at WKAR, employed by the station whether we do QuizBusters or not.  Volunteers man the scorer's table.  Judges receive a very small stipend.

We tape three shows a night (from about 6pm to about 9pm), either one or two nights a week, from September through February, excluding December.  We pride ourselves on the fact that there is NO post.  Not only do we almost always get the show live-to-tape, but in the rare event that we do have a stoppage, we find an edit point and continue the show from that point live on the master tape.

Since salaries and studio usage don't count against us in the budget, the biggest single expenditure for the station is what they pay me as a contractor for my on-air and production duties. (The show producer is a WKAR employee, and she and I essentially work as partners.)  It's a decent amount of money, especially compared to the number of hours I'm actually working, but you wouldn't consider it a living wage, and it's not nearly my main source of income.  The next largest expense is the money we spend for NAQT to provide us with about 60% of the game material. (The rest we create ourselves -- which is to say I do.)  After that, there's maybe a thousand dollars we use to buy our players lovely parting gifts with our logo on them.  Because we need so many, these items are notoriously cheap, but the students love them and they've become part of our tradition, especially the key chains that are always the first-level prize.

That's it in a nutshell, and while there certainly have been improvements over the years, that basic structure has remained the same for eighteen seasons, and probably about a thousand shows, though nobody actually knows for sure how many we've made.  In the last few years we've done 75 shows a season, but it hasn't always been that many.  Season 19 starts taping Monday.