It's official. Ultimatum was given its ultimatum.
Last Friday, private broadcaster TVA held a press conference to unveil its fall season. They announced that, after three seasons, Ultimatum would not return; its replacement in the 6:30 PM timeslot will be an adaptation of the NBC format Twenty-One.
A homegrown creation, Ultimatum was a big-money, hi-tech game with polished, deep rules. 5 contestants played all week for up to CDN$5,000 a day, $25,000 a week. The winner got to come back the next week, with no apparent limit.
Ultimatum differed from most game shows because, usually, contestants didn't answer questions -- they lobbed them at their opponents, hoping to trip them up. Turning the usual quizzer on its head, Ultimatum required knowledge wide and deep, but also a heavy dose of memory and psychology, along with strategy.
The player in control picked a category; everyone saw the question and 4 possible answers; then the player would throw the question to one of her opponents. A "strategic tool" (lifeline) could be employed to bounce the question once, but no more; whoever ended up with this hot potato "received an Ultimatum" and was forced to answer. If they answered incorrectly, they lost a life -- three strikes and you're out. However, if they were right, it was the player in control who lost a life and control passed to the new player.
To help them along, each player received three lifelines: the
mirror, which allowed the receiver to bounce the question back to the player in control; the
ricochet, which allowed the receiver to bounce off to another player (but not the one in control), and the
trap, which could only be used by the player in control, if they wanted to answer a question themselves rather than toss it out -- if they were right, they got to pick which player lost a life. (If they were wrong, they lost a life and the trap's target now gained control of the board.)
Ultimatum was perhaps the most ruthless game ever shows on French-Canadian TV! However, the fact that elimination was
knowledge-based, rather than based on votes as in Weakest Link, made Ultimatum a true game show, not some vile reality-tainted popularity contest where strong players were guaranteed to disappear. If you were a good player on Ultimatum, you certainly had a bullseye on your back, but the other players had to
earn the priviledge to bump you off.
Although a bit slow and repetitive for US tastes, Ultimatum was a big hit up here. It was our first attempt at an ominous, WWTBAM-style show, with high-tech set, dramatic lighting and sinister sound/music package. (Losing a life was punctuated with a chilling "saber" sound. (A similar SFX is found at
partnersinrhyme.com -- click on "Sword Draw.wav")
And the gameplay! Analyzing the show, I came up with
4 pages of strategies! Each lifeline had strengths and weaknesses; you also had to size up your opponents' knowledge base (or try to remember their track record). Pick a tough category? It might bounce right back to you. Know the answer? Should you toss the question to a player who has their mirror (hoping they don't know), but
not their ricochet (so the question
can't bounce to someone else)? Or should you use your trap right now? (Remember, it can only be used when you're in control -- you might not have control later on, when you need to trap someone. But then, what if you're in control on the last question and it turns out to be ridiculously easy? Wouldn't you rather save your trap for that possibility?)
You can see the depth this game has.
Ultimatum earned great ratings years one and two, but on year three, people were starting to tire of the format -- and Radio-Canada counter-programmed brilliantly with L'union Fait La Force (United We Stand), a game as fast-paced and light-hearted as Ultimatum was ominous and plodding. L'UFLF involved over 30 fun games, much like TVA's mega-hit Les Mordus [1997-2001]: games like "Grade school" (similar to GSN's WinTuition), "Fast/Slow" (identify songs that have been
dramatically sped up or slowed down -- Céline Dion as a walrus, har!), "What time do you want your prints back?" (Clock segments are removed to reveal a mystery picture), and so on.
Hosted by TV powerhouse Patrice Lécuyer, L'UFLF must've spooked TVA, who decided to up the ante by changing Ultimatum to a 6-week tournament format with theme weeks. (Generations, jobs, etc. and the ultimate game show killer,
celebrity weeks!) To pay for the $40,000 prize given out each week, they cannibalized the daily budget and emasculated the rules of what had been a clever, balanced bonus game. (Winner faces off against losers as a team; it was now a straightforward $1,000 question for the winner.) The daily $5,000 potential became $1,500 -- even after covering the grand prize, this removed $65,000 from the budget every 6 weeks.
The writing was on the wall, and it's no surprise that this deformed Ultimatum, having run its course, was charitably given its three strikes.
I'd like to congratulate TVA and the show's creators, Les Productions Casablanca, for having brought us, not only one of the best game shows in Canada, but one of the best, period.
__________
In its place, TVA is bringing to Canadian airwaves a version of NBC's Twenty-One. The show will be hosted by genial TV personality Guy Mongrain, who had capped off a versatile career by becoming anchor of the popular morning show Salut, Bonjour in 1991. Mongrain just ended his reign and will revisit his game-show side by hosting 21 next fall.
No hard information is currently available, but you can be sure I'll post whatever I find out. The press release specifically mentions what a big hit the show was in 2000 on NBC (yeah, right B^) and that there is no limit to how long a champion can stay on, or how much they can win. Now
that's what I like to hear!
Since I may want to become a contestant, I'll start a
separate thread where we can discuss the American show. I never "got" Twenty-One, and would appreciate any insight my game show brethren can share. Thanks!
