Suggestions for game show presentation software

[dscungio]

I've been recently thinking of possibly hosting game show panels at conventions, similar to what Greggo and Sonic Whammy do.  However, I haven't had time to look for presentation software.  Since we're the experts at this, could you all help me with suggestions of what's out there?  Let's just stick to Family Feud and Press Your Luck for now.




Dean
(Former 'NetGame Host)

[parliboy]

Unless you want to earn either fanboi hatred or perhaps even scorn of the people who put a lot of time into those operations, my honest suggestion is that you write your own software where you can.  If you can't write your own, then find someone who wants to do the presentation software, but doesn't want to host, and team up.

[nowhammies10]

I'm guessing there's probably the old Todd Robinson software floating around somewhere for Feud.  PYL Expert Edition is probably somewhere as well.

[Greggo]

There are at least five different groups that do Press Your Luck...perhaps strike out on your own with something more original?

[Greggo]

Also, and this should go without saying, if you're wanting to host game shows at fandom conventions because you're a fan of whatever topic(s) the convention is about, go for it.

If you're wanting to host game shows because you want to be a game show host and conventions appear to be an "easy in," then you're going to have a more difficult road ahead of you, and had better have a darn good research team that knows what's popular.  There's nothing worse than a game show where nobody knows any of the answers.

[clemon79]

There are at least five different groups that do Press Your Luck...perhaps strike out on your own with something more original?

Family Feud isn't exactly uncommon either. (I suspect Todd's software has a lot to do with that."

Further, if he thinks the "'NetGame" thing is going to give him so much as an iota of a leg up on the whole thing in terms of the experience, he is in for one hell of a shock.

[Greggo]

You really have to go into it being a big fan of what your target audience is also a big fan of.

Otherwise (as some others who do this have found out) your target audience is going to turn on you.

Stick with Net Games if you want your target audience to be game show fans.

I once did a convention where pretty much everyone was younger than 18, and seeing things like "Tic Tac Dough" and "Press Your Luck" on the schedule did nothing to attract their eye (my average audience size was 7 at a con of nearly 300 people). 

(This led to "Pokemon Game Show," my most popular game, and my emphasis on developing more original content and not loading up with callbacks to 1972.)

[TLEberle]

Further, if he thinks the "'NetGame" thing is going to give him so much as an iota of a leg up on the whole thing in terms of the experience, he is in for one hell of a shock.

That may just be part of his signature in the body of the message.

[parliboy]

Also, and this should go without saying, if you're wanting to host game shows at fandom conventions because you're a fan of whatever topic(s) the convention is about, go for it.

Mostly this. 

If you're wanting to host game shows because you want to be a game show host and conventions appear to be an "easy in," then you're going to have a more difficult road ahead of you, and had better have a darn good research team that knows what's popular.  There's nothing worse than a game show where nobody knows any of the answers.

I actually wrote a format where the most points were earned by choosing the wrong answer given most often.  Worked surprisingly well.  But I'm not a host type.  Not my specialty.  I'm much happier running the tech and leaving the emcee duties to someone else attached to the con.

I once did a convention where pretty much everyone was younger than 18, and seeing things like "Tic Tac Dough" and "Press Your Luck" on the schedule did nothing to attract their eye

Frankly, I suspect that Greggo could write Anime Connect Four and make it work.

[TLEberle]

Dean: it seems like you're doing this backwards. First attend a convention for a thing that you enjoy. On your second go, ask around to see if there's any desire for a game show event, then volunteer to put one on. I'm reminded of when I would put on game shows in the backyard: everyone who participates is doing you a favor, and they are generally doing it for free. There's a reason I would do Double Dare and the like as opposed to Three on a Match or Who/What/Where.

[Greggo]

Dean: it seems like you're doing this backwards. First attend a convention for a thing that you enjoy. On your second go, ask around to see if there's any desire for a game show event, then volunteer to put one on.

This is exactly what I did.

SPOILER ALERT: It worked, and I'm still doing it fifteen years later.

[Sonic Whammy]

From my 6 years of experience, here are the ones that I've seen done by a number of people on the anime scene, including myself, Dean.

Press Your Luck
Match Game
Jeopardy!
Name That Tune

I actually haven't run into Feud all that much for as much as everyone knows the game. I did it once a year after a former contestant of mine did it herself, but that's as far as I've seen.

Nevertheless, make no mistake, this is in NO way easy to do whatsoever. If you followed me through everything that I did at a con just leading up to the show, and everything I do after I get home - which gives the wifey a lot of grief, TTTT - it would drive most people mad. And that's not even counting the stuff I DON'T know how to do that others have been more than kind to help do for me. And yes, what Greg said is true about doing it for a fan base that you actually like yourself. Mine's more of a sideways story where I got lucky, but I got a major reality check my very first show. I'll tell that tale where I have more space to do it.

Just really think about this, Dean. You could find it more trouble than it's worth.

[dscungio]

My belated reply to this thread:

The intention of my original post was NOT "Please do the work for me."  It was to ask the group at large for suggestions about software that is currently available.  If I have to make something myself, then I will take a crash course in Powerpoint, Flash or whatever.  If I do decide to use someone's software, I will contact the designer/programmer and he will get full credit for his creation.

I'm not planning on doing this just so that I can call myself a game show host.  I want to create something different than the usual panels and provide some entertainment for fellow attendees.  I have respect for people like Greg and Brian who have been hosting anime game show panels for years and doing it really well.  I'm subscribed to both of their YouTube channels, and I look forward to whatever comes next from them.

This idea of me running game show panels is currently conceptual.  I may do something six months from now...or I may never do anything.  There are many details to go over, including question writing, presentation, promotion and if the games will be played just for fun or for actual prizes.  I picked Family Feud because it is currently on the air and well-known, you can have eight or ten people playing at once, and there are chances for comedy.  I chose Press Your Luck because it can be an exciting game for an audience, I can easily write trivia questions, and the Big Board software does a lot of the work.  I could certainly pick other titles from the game show catalog instead.

I hosted 'NetGames for eight years and retired in 2008.  I'm fully aware that running a game show online through E-mail or in a chat room is a completely different experience from having a live audience and nervous contestants.  I have time to practice, but again, this is all a concept right now and I may not pursue this depending on various things in the coming months.

Thanks to anyone who can and has offered advice.  If anything comes from this, I'll let you all know.




Dean

[clemon79]

I hosted 'NetGames for eight years and retired in 2008.  I'm fully aware that running a game show online through E-mail or in a chat room is a completely different experience from having a live audience and nervous contestants.

Yet you are still (perhaps unconsciously) trying to cite it as experience when you're going out of your way to tell us how long you did it and citing a "retirement" date. If that is all the experience you are claiming...then you have *no* experience. None-nada-zero.

Nothing wrong with that; mind you: Bill Cullen didn't come out of the womb with a mic in his hand (it just seems that way) and I absolutely urge you to give it a try because in my (extremely limited and incomplete) experience it's a hell of a lot of fun. But I think you will have more success if you go into it understanding that you cannot cut ANY corners in your learning and rehearsal just because you spent eight years writing emails and IMs.