Home Versions

[kurtinrod62]

What game shows did not have any home board game versions? I know most shows did, but for those that did not, was there any reason why there weren't any?

[The Ol' Guy]

Considering we have people like Matt, Jake T., and many other serious collectors on board - would you guys think that - using the ETGS as a guide -  probably only 15 - 25% of game shows ever had a home version (standard box)? It can seem like a lot when you consider some games had multiple versions - but there are far more game shows that didn't have home versions than have them. Among the reasons - quick failures, summer replacements, some props could be too expensive, rights issues, and just not adaptable to home play - $1.98 Beauty Pageant, anybody?
Now what could be an interesting thread as well --shows we WISHED had a home game....

[JohnTheGameMan]

To my knowledge, a home version of "Press Your Luck" was never made. Probably this is due to the electronic board set up.  Too bad Tiger electronics did not make a version of "Press", for they made electronic versions of other games like "Let's Make a Deal", "Concentration" and "Super Password".  I remember a friend of mine said that maybe a spinner would have sufficed, but I did not think it would be effective for a home version.
Other games I know of that did not have a home version include "Gambit", "Split Second" and "Battlestars".  At least "Gambit" and "Split Second" lasted at least two to three years and "Battlestars" had two incarnations.  If there are any more I can think of, I will let you know.

[MYosua]

[quote name=\'JohnTheGameMan\' date=\'Apr 23 2004, 10:14 PM\'] To my knowledge, a home version of "Press Your Luck" was never made. Probably this is due to the electronic board set up.  Too bad Tiger electronics did not make a version of "Press", for they made electronic versions of other games like "Let's Make a Deal", "Concentration" and "Super Password". [/quote]
There actually was a GameTek-made computer version of "Press Your Luck" in the 5 1/4" days.  If I can remember correctly, gameplay was identical to the real show.  It was good enough to provide a fun gaming experience - I remember playing it on my family's AT&T computer (with a green screen).

[zachhoran]

[quote name=\'JohnTheGameMan\' date=\'Apr 23 2004, 09:14 PM\']
Other games I know of that did not have a home version include "Gambit", "Split Second" and "Battlestars".  At least "Gambit" and "Split Second" lasted at least two to three years and "Battlestars" had two incarnations.  If there are any more I can think of, I will let you know. [/quote]
 Cross-Wits lasted longer than the shows you mentioned and it never had a home version, as did Chain Reaction(considering the USA run) and Fandango, two other long running game shows sans board games. Fandango did have a trivia book available in its last season, and Bill Anderson would plug it on the show. It consisted of a few hundred questions culled from the previous five seasons as used on the show.

[JacksonBrowne1980]

i think strike it rich 1986 did not have a board game neither did double talk; i know trivia trap didn't.

[Matt Ottinger]

[quote name=\'kurtinrod62\' date=\'Apr 23 2004, 09:46 PM\'] What game shows did not have any home board game versions? I know most shows did, but for those that did not, was there any reason why there weren't any? [/quote]
The majority of famous, long-running shows had at least some form of home version made for them at some point, but The Ol' Guy is right:  There is a MUCH larger number of game shows that did NOT have home versions released.  

The simple reason for the vast majority of them is that the shows didn't last long enough or wasn't popular enough to warrant a home version, but there are a lot of other reasons why various shows don't have home versions as well.  Duplicating the game might be too expensive, there might be rights complications or there might be something unusual about the TV show that just wouldn't translate to home play.

Using the EOTVGS index of longest-running shows, most of the top-fifty that never had any home version of any sort are shows that many of us wouldn't even consider game shows in the first place:

Love Connection
Queen For A Day
The Big Payoff
Celebrity Bowling
Who Do You Trust?

Of that group, Queen, Payoff and even Celebrity Bowling had other, non-game tie-in items that were sold commercially.  I'm told there was a prototype of a box game for Who Do You Trust? that was supposed to go into production, but didn't.

And yeah, I know it's been almost a year since I've touched the GSHGHP, but most of it is still pretty useful:
http://userdata.acd.net/ottinger/games.htm

[whampyl03]

To my knowledge, a home version of "Press Your Luck" was never made. Probably this is due to the electronic board set up. Too bad Tiger electronics did not make a version of "Press", for they made electronic versions of other games like "Let's Make a Deal", "Concentration" and "Super Password".

True, but GameTek released a PYL computer game around 1988.

[Mike Tennant]

[quote name=\'MYosua\' date=\'Apr 23 2004, 09:25 PM\']There actually was a GameTek-made computer version of "Press Your Luck" in the 5 1/4" days.  If I can remember correctly, gameplay was identical to the real show.  It was good enough to provide a fun gaming experience - I remember playing it on my family's AT&T computer (with a green screen).[/quote]
Perhaps we two have different definitions of "identical" and "fun."  The PYL computer game I got from GameTek, for my C-64, was horrendous.  Not only were the graphics subpar even for that computer, but gameplay was sluggish and none too accurate.  During the question rounds, instead of giving each player a separate key to press in order to ring in, players were instructed to hold down the space bar until the player who was buzzing in was highlighted on the screen.  What a way to decide who was first!  In addition, during the spin rounds, often the light kept moving until the space bar had been held down for a few seconds.

I was excited to get this game but quickly soured on it.  The only computer game of that era that was a bigger disappointment to me was the GameTek (again!) TPIR, which was even more horrendous that PYL.

[MYosua]

[quote name=\'Mike Tennant\' date=\'Apr 24 2004, 10:06 PM\'] Perhaps we two have different definitions of "identical" and "fun."  The PYL computer game I got from GameTek, for my C-64, was horrendous.  Not only were the graphics subpar even for that computer, but gameplay was sluggish and none too accurate.  During the question rounds, instead of giving each player a separate key to press in order to ring in, players were instructed to hold down the space bar until the player who was buzzing in was highlighted on the screen.  What a way to decide who was first!  In addition, during the spin rounds, often the light kept moving until the space bar had been held down for a few seconds.[/quote]
I was only about 5 years old at the time - so I very well may be not remembering things.  However, I do think there was a key for each player.  The graphics were kept simple, but they were functional (although I wanted more than one whammy animation).  I did try to fire it up a few years ago, but even with a decellerator running, it was practically impossible to get past the first screen.