Game shows overdue for a remake

[wdm1219inpenna]

My first choice would be High Rollers.

I realize it had three short-lived runs, 1974-76 and 1978-80 on NBC and 1987-88 in syndication, but it's very surprising that a simple yet exciting big stakes game show such as this has not been remade since Ronald Reagan still occupied the White House.

This game could very easily become a big money primetime ABC game show.  They redid Press Your Luck, Card Sharks, To Tell The Truth, Supermarket Sweep & Pyramid, all of which were also on the air after 1988 in one form or another, so why not High Rollers?

I'd love to hear your thoughts and your ideas on how this could be made into a big money primetime program.

[SamJ93]

My first choice would be High Rollers.

...
I'd love to hear your thoughts and your ideas on how this could be made into a big money primetime program.

Off the top of my head: four contestants in each game, with the board resetting every time someone is eliminated. Stick with the three-column format of the '78 and '87 versions, but instead of prizes, each column is worth a cash jackpot that starts at a random amount between $2000-$5000 and increases by that amount every round it isn't won.

For the bonus round, bring back the original rule from Shut The Box that a contestant may choose to only roll one die if the 7, 8 and 9 are gone, and give them the option to stop and take $3K/eliminated number after every roll. Bad number loses everything, knocking off all 9 wins $100K.

[Jamey Greek]

Mine would be Concenttation It was NBC's lobgest-running game show for 15 years until WOF surpassed it and there has not been a revival since Bush #41 was president. I am still upset with NBC after they passed on a Concentration reboot in 2000 for a third hour of The Today Show.

[WhammyPower]

I would do I've Got a Secret with the questioning style and mystery guest from What's My Line (but *not* the sign-ins).

[BrandonFG]

I am still upset with NBC after they passed on a Concentration reboot in 2000 for a third hour of The Today Show.

It's really time to let go of this one. Really.

I dunno if I'd like to see a primetime High Rollers, but maybe GSN with another Catch 21 reboot.

Would love to see Blockbusters rebooted, either in syndication or on GSN. Keep the 2-vs.-1 format of the original, and it would probably have to be self-contained, so crossing the board wins the round and $250 for rounds one and two, doubled values each subsequent round. High score after four rounds wins, and if there's a tie play a sudden death question. Gold Run/Rush for $20K. Even if it's for GSN, because it's my hypothetical.

A few years ago, I also had an idea for a primetime $ale. Start each player at $500, with correct answers worth $100. I actually wouldn’t mind the Temptation model with a few :30 speed rounds and mini-games, with Instant Bargains mixed in. Throw in a Fame Game with spaces for $100/250/500. End the game with one final speed round.

Prize levels:
-Stainless steel kitchen ($1,500)
-Small trip, i.e. Canada, the islands ($1,575)
-Family car, i.e. Toyota Camry ($1,700)
-Luxury vacation to Europe, Australia, Africa, etc. ($2,000)
-Luxury car, i.e. Acura MDX ($2,250)
-250K cash ($2,500)
-The Lot ($3,000)

That allows a contestant to win the lot in a minimum of two games. Maybe do an hour-long show where the champ of the first half has the option to risk his or her winnings in the second half.

Or just bring it back for syndication, and let the contestant stay for as long as it takes.

[BillCullen1]

You never know when someone in the forum will stand up and yell Jackpot.

Other possibilities are Blockbusters and Now You See It.

[TLEberle]

Cash Cab, Wanna Bet?, OG The Price is Right, Pro-Fan.

Cash Cab can work anywhere and people would be jazzed to get to play.

I thought Wanna Bet was a fun spin on TTTT, though there was one week that I think Tom Green bet all his money in round one, lost and was out of contention.

Pro-Fan would have to be on ESPN or maybe a local version, but I think a simple framework could be explored.

[SuperMatch93]

I'd love to see the team producing the current version of PYL take a crack at bringing $ale into the 2020s, especially if they carry over the whole personalized prizes gimmick.

[gromit82]

"What's My Line" hasn't been remade in the U.S. for nearly 50 years. (Unless you count the live stage version.) That would be my choice.

[Stackertosh]

Sale of the Century/Temptation and make it an hour-long show with two games, and the returning champion returns for the second part with 2 new contestants.



Others
1 vs 100
Blockbusters
Greed

[The Ol' Guy]

With High Rollers mentioned, I imagine some of you here have seen this Japanese knockoff. It could work within a GSN-style budget. I find it charming. Instead of constant dice rolls, contestants set up traps for each other. The correct answer to a toss-up question forces the opponent to pick one of the 9 squares on the board, hoping to avoid getting knocked out. Surviving contestant plays the original High Rollers "clear the numbers" board (1-9) with two of the 9 numbers putting the player at risk of losing everything if picked back-to-back. From what I've read, this lasted about four years in Japan. A reboot of this could bring back some of the excitement of High Rollers with a different twist. They call it "Super Dice Q."

[Loogaroo]

The big problem with High Rollers as a format is figuring out a way to convince players to engage in the main mechanic of the show. Unfortunately there isn't much incentive to roll the dice on any given turn but a whole lot of disincentive.

Pacing is also a major consideration - even in the 1987 version, they struggled to fit a full match into one episode, and there were many instances of the time's-up bell ringing just before the Big Numbers could be played. I can only imagine how much less time is available to producers in a half-hour timeslot nowadays.

Building off Stackertosh's idea, I think Sale of the Century could work as a possible primetime reboot, but only with a major format overhaul. To wit, ditch the champion's journey up the ladder and instead have three new contestants each week. Offer a good-but-not-great cash prize to the night's winner ($50k, let's say) and then a much nicer cash prize ($500k, for example) if they can break a certain score threshold. Now, you take the prizes you would have offered in the shopping segment of the game, and you make those the Instant Bargains. Or, you do what they on PYL and offer personalized prizes as Bargains to really force the contestants to weigh their options between grabbing a sure thing now vs. trying to win the game and a significant cash prize vs. going for the brass ring.

[SuperMatch93]

Building off Stackertosh's idea, I think Sale of the Century could work as a possible primetime reboot, but only with a major format overhaul. To wit, ditch the champion's journey up the ladder and instead have three new contestants each week. Offer a good-but-not-great cash prize to the night's winner ($50k, let's say) and then a much nicer cash prize ($500k, for example) if they can break a certain score threshold. Now, you take the prizes you would have offered in the shopping segment of the game, and you make those the Instant Bargains. Or, you do what they on PYL and offer personalized prizes as Bargains to really force the contestants to weigh their options between grabbing a sure thing now vs. trying to win the game and a significant cash prize vs. going for the brass ring.

I like this. A lot.

Would this format have a bonus round as well, or would the game end after the Speed Round?

[TLEberle]

Would this format have a bonus round as well, or would the game end after the Speed Round?

I think it would be amusing to close the show immediately after the bell, the hosts says "everybody wins what they do, see you next time!"

Yes, I know that's not what you meant.

[Loogaroo]

Would this format have a bonus round as well, or would the game end after the Speed Round?

Any bonus round where a jackpot is on offer in the front game is going to feel tacked on. Might as well end it at its most logical point.