Jeopardy! Home Game Question

[GSRebich]

Why do most Jeopardy! home games have only 5 categories for each game instead of the usual 6?

[Matt Ottinger]

Why do most Jeopardy! home games have only 5 categories for each game instead of the usual 6?

Milton Bradley did it so they could use the same game board that they were cranking out for their Concentration home games.  I believe most other home versions do have six categories.

[SuperMatch93]

The Pressman editions have five, while the Parker Brothers had six.

Interesting, they also reused the Concentration board for their $ale of the ¢entury home games, despite there being nothing to put it the front slots.

[That Don Guy]

Why do most Jeopardy! home games have only 5 categories for each game instead of the usual 6?

Milton Bradley did it so they could use the same game board that they were cranking out for their Concentration home games.  I believe most other home versions do have six categories.

The main problem with this theory is, Jeopardy game boards had 5 rows, while Concentration game boards had 6.  It was probably just easier to make the pieces for a 5-column board; for example, maybe the sheets with the answers on them were on a "standard" size, and having six columns would have made the questions too hard to read.

A lot of MB show-based board games have different rules from the TV versions.  Examples:

Password - IIRC, it was five words per game, with the last word worth double.

Family Feud - instead of first to a certain number of points, it was most points after three rounds (single-single-double), which occasionally led to a strategy of a team that won the first two rounds and gaining control in the third one choosing to play, then intentionally getting three strikes, so even if the other team made a steal, it wouldn't be enough to win.

Didn't one (Trebek-era) version have each category on a separate stand?

[Marc412]

Yes indeed, Don.  Each player could "host" a couple categories per round that way.

[clemon79]

The main problem with this theory is, Jeopardy game boards had 5 rows, while Concentration game boards had 6.  It was probably just easier to make the pieces for a 5-column board; for example, maybe the sheets with the answers on them were on a "standard" size, and having six columns would have made the questions too hard to read.

Yeah, now you're going to see how questioning the guy who runs a web site about home games works out for you.

which occasionally led to a strategy of a team that won the first two rounds and gaining control in the third one choosing to play, then intentionally getting three strikes, so even if the other team made a steal, it wouldn't be enough to win.

Do you know what I do with people who play party games in that fashion?

Me neither, but I can assure you it sure as hell doesn't involve playing party games with them again.

[TLEberle]

I hear about the Family Feud strategy, and it never occurred to me to intentionally muff the last question like that.

On boardgamegeek.com, users are able to purchase microbadges to go next to their avatar. You can pledge fealty to games, sports teams, television shows, damn near anything you could imagine is in microbadge form. One of them has a quote from gamemeister extraordinaire Reiner Knizia: "when playing a game, the goal is to win, but it is the goal that is important, not the winning."

I love playing games, and I love winning at games. I don't let my manic desire to win whatever game I'm playing detract from the real objective: sharing an experience with friends and having a good time. Winning the face-off and striking out in three straight answers runs counter to my manifesto there.

To Chris's point: my friend from junior high will occasionally bog down in analysis paralysis, and I have to pull him back saying "just a game, don't worry about it or ruin it for everyone." Sometimes he chafes at this, and sometimes he sees the light.

[snowpeck]

Why do most Jeopardy! home games have only 5 categories for each game instead of the usual 6?

Milton Bradley did it so they could use the same game board that they were cranking out for their Concentration home games.  I believe most other home versions do have six categories.

The main problem with this theory is, Jeopardy game boards had 5 rows, while Concentration game boards had 6.  It was probably just easier to make the pieces for a 5-column board; for example, maybe the sheets with the answers on them were on a "standard" size, and having six columns would have made the questions too hard to read.

Matt is exactly right... both the Jeopardy and the Concentration home games used the same 5-column/6-row board.

[The Ol' Guy]

Interesting side comment - when I noticed the first MB Sale Of The Century used the Concentration grid, I just made cover slides for them. I wrote to MB and suggested the same, and when the 2nd edition came out, it featured just a plain solid red plastic window - no slots. Weird. Why even have someone reading from a giant plastic window box when a question book would have done as well? And been perhaps cheaper (no red overprint, etc.)?

[Matt Ottinger]

Milton Bradley did it so they could use the same game board that they were cranking out for their Concentration home games.  

The main problem with this theory is, Jeopardy game boards had 5 rows, while Concentration game boards had 6.  

The only thing that bothers me more than seeing someone "correct" a mistake that wasn't a mistake at all is when someone corrects me like that. Both games used the same basic piece. Jeopardy's top row identified the category.  The outer frames of the two boards are of slightly different dimensions (and are cast separately with the names of the shows), but the main piece is the same for both games.

[WhirlieBird74]

Incidentally, the Pressman version had a rule where all three contestants begin with $500, mainly to make up for the missing category.  Since $1,500 is available for a category, it was best to split it $500 three ways.

[clemon79]

Incidentally, the Pressman version had a rule where all three contestants begin with $500, mainly to make up for the missing category.  Since $1,500 is available for a category, it was best to split it $500 three ways.

Or, alternately, in a game where you are keeping score with paper money and as such have no good way to represent a negative score, they staked everyone $500 so they would have something to lose early on.

There is no sensible reason for it to have anything to do whatsoever with the "missing" category.

[PYLdude]

The Pressman editions have five, while the Parker Brothers had six.

I think the Tyco version had five as well, IIRC.

One of the things I hated about that version was the amount of pieces that had to be put together in order to play the game properly (whereas in the Pressman games, you just hook the legs to the board and pop in the dollar values as you will before sliding the sheet in). That plus, even though there were tons of questions you could use (which was not a bad thing), you had to search for Daily Doubles if you wanted to use them.

[GSRebich]

The Pressman editions have five, while the Parker Brothers had six.

I think the Tyco version had five as well, IIRC.

One of the things I hated about that version was the amount of pieces that had to be put together in order to play the game properly (whereas in the Pressman games, you just hook the legs to the board and pop in the dollar values as you will before sliding the sheet in). That plus, even though there were tons of questions you could use (which was not a bad thing), you had to search for Daily Doubles if you wanted to use them.

The Tyco version did had 6 catergories.