A Few “Million Dollar Password” Changes and Clarifications
CBS’s Million Dollar Password has been taping its new season, and the crew over there decided to make a few changes. However, I think I should clarify this rule since I’m pretty sure it was here last season, but edited out. If you bomb out on the first two levels, they let you one redo for that level. Obviously, they just edit out the failed attempt. Which, again, obviously means if you lose both times, you are just gone. Nothing really wrong with the rule; they just want it to move on. And, plus, it’s not like they just ditched an entire opening round and said, “Hey you got ten grand!” like Set for Life would.
However, the next rule is what alerts me a bit. $250,000 is now a safety level. If you hit the quarter million, you can’t leave with less. You get a free shot at the million. No risk at all. Previously you had to risk falling back down to $25,000. All this really does to me is scream, “We want a millionaire now.” Not as badly as, oh, having 13 $1,000,000 cases out of a potential 26 on Deal or No Deal, but still. As someone brought up to me, no one’s gotten that far yet and it’s hard enough where it probably won’t happen. But still, I always have an issue with basically just giving someone a free shot at mega money. You only have one gamble now: will you risk $75,000 of your $100,000 to potentially get a guaranteed quarter million and a free shot at a million. I have a feeling we’ll be seeing a lot of people going further into the show this season. the critic in me says, “Boo.” The viewer in me says, “This may be pretty exciting.”
One tiny other change. Before you go for the quarter million, they will now be showing you all six words on that level before you decide to go or stop.
I’ve actually always hated the idea of “gambling” with your winnings in game shows ever since Millionaire hit the scene. Sure, it’s dramatic, but I’ve seen enough screen time devoted to “making the decision” that it’s hard for me to empathize with the contestants any longer. So this doesn’t bother me much.
Obviously there has to be some tension in the show, which is why the concept exists, but I’d prefer to see a structure that includes a miniature qualifying round in-between money tree attempts. That way, your progress up the chain is anything but guaranteed, yet your winnings are never at risk. You just play until you either win the top prize, or go home with a loss (and all the money you’ve earned to that point, which is less of a loss than a small victory.)
One such idea: in Password, they could isolate you and your partner, then show you both the same “qualifying” password. Each of you would give the clue you feel most likely to lead the other person to that password, were you playing the normal game. Instead of trying to guess the password, you’re trying to match on the best clue. (Sort of like “Match Up” from Match Game ‘90.) Get one right, and you earn your way into the next money tree attempt. Over the course of the game, you’d be able to get three of them wrong and still continue on. But once you’re out of freebies, you’d have to get every single one right, or go home. Likewise, you’d have to complete each “money tree” round, or go home. But your winnings would never be at risk.
It wouldn’t have to be this particular format, but I think a focus like this would help to put the attention back on the actual gameplay that old-school game shows used to champion.
It sounds interesting to me.
The first thing I thought of when I read about that new safety level was “Well, yeah, the contestant willl be able to have a free shot at a million dollars, but they’ll have to get there first. Not many do.” If they do, I bet they’ll see some pretty obscure words on that level.
I’m all for the changes in the end game.
But, the producers are making the same mistakes in the upfront portion (as Power of 10 did,) by making the losers play for nothing.
Why not give the winner $1000? Then, you don’t have to do this weird, doulbe try- at the lower levels.
Also, why not give the loser $100 X their final score, so like a real game show, everybody wins for their participation. It’s not like they can’t afford it.
Since I grew up with the original, I realize that short attention spans, the demand for instant gratification “yesterday,” and (judging by the way some of the contestants played on this new-fangled version), make the “classic/traditional”-style format obsolete. But, even though I watched the entire run of “MDP,” it basically sucked. With the proposed change in essentially ensuring a million dollar winner, “MDP” now REALLY sucks. And, if CBS does air it against “Idol”, Fox will more than bury it!!!
Talk about “Hobson’s Choice!”
I don’t necessarily see a problem with the new $250,000 level especially since how difficult the bonus round is. I know I’ve said it a million times but this version of password goes against everything that the original was (and I can go on all day why that is but I’ll digress). At least now the producers are throwing the contestants a bone (all be it a small bone). If you can make it to the $250,000 level you deserve to get a free shot at a million. I think the most they given away so far is $100,000.
Seriously up until this point it seemed like the bonus round was designed for people to fail. You not only have a three-word limit, a 1:30 time limit not to mention after each level the words get harder and the number of possible passwords decrese then you add the fact that you can’t choose your partner (then add the fact there is possibility for penalties e.g. you or your partner saying two words by accident, giving two answers, etc.) makes this extra ordinarily dauntingly difficult and a half.
Well, at first I didn’t like the new $250,000 safety level, but then I’ve come to like it because in the first place, no one ever wins the $250k anyway. I think it’s a great change for the show.
I do agree with the idea that the contestants should win money for the front game. It would be nice to go home with something in case you lose everything in the bonus round.
Damion
I like Million Dollar Password, but I do not like the rule change because it is going to make the contestants not win any money at all. Nobody have gotten to the $250,000 level on there. That means that every level before $250,000 puts the contestant money at risk.
I’d rather see the return of “The Champion”…a winning contestant who ghets to defend his/her title against a new challenger. “The Champion” would definately get up-front winnings (why NOT $1,000?), instead of the $250K safety net.
I brought this up before, but it bears repeating. The three-clue limit in the end game appears to be Fremental, er, uh, Fremantle’s interpretation of one of those “best of…” elements from (in this case, the “Ca$hword” from SUPER PASSWORD) they crowed about when MDP was on the verge of reality.
it’s too much of a safety, if the $100,000 was a safety, that would’ve been fine IMO, but $250,000 is too much, I remember when super millionaire was in development some people where saying the second safety would be $320,000, and then Micheal Davies said in an interview somewhere that it wouldn’t be that much cause they want the drama of a genuine risk. I jsut had a thought, what if if you lsoe a level you lsoe half your money so going for the million and losing would still b $125,000, but $125,000 is still a lot to risk.
I should’ve thought of this one before: the Password is… “DECONSTRUCTION!”
Well, lets see how this breaks down with the show and your idea, Marc, just for the heck of it:
MDP:
$10,000 – risk going for: none
$25,000 – risk going for: $10,000
$50,000 – risk going for: none
$100,000 – risk going for: $25,000
$250,000 – risk going for: $100,000
$1,000,000 – risk going for: none
Marc’s MDP:
$10,000 – risk going for: none
$25,000 – risk going for: $10,000
$50,000 – risk going for: none
$100,000 – risk going for: $25,000
$250,000 – risk going for: none
$1,000,000 – risk going for: $225,000
I would think that your tree may insure that only the true risk-takers would go for the million dollars. I don’t really see that much of difference, though; there is a point on both trees where a player would be risking $100,000 or more.
I will like to be on your game show.
I agree w/Marc Power: safeties should be $25K, $100K…
I don’t have a problem with $25K being a safety level. What’s the use of having a Million Dollar top prize if no one will go for it? There’s no way I would risk $250K for a million. I think the game could be difficult enough that every level should be a safety level. Most players will leave with $25K-$50K. There’ll be a few $100K winners. Very few $250K winners and maybe one millionaire a season, depending on the number of episodes. If it remains basically a replacement show lasting 8-12 episodes per season, then I see no reason not to have players play for the million. In fact, I’d like to see them scrap the $10,000 level and award that $10K to the winner of the elimination round, then start the money tree at $25K.
So let me get this straight: they’re keeping the $25,000 safety level, and they’re ADDING another safety at $250K?
I agree with Marc Power: should’ve been $100K instead of $250K.
The Taiwanese Millionaire (the only yprevious version with a time limit per question) had another interesting concept; instead of safety nets after Q5 and Q10, a wrong answer at any point sent you one step down the money tree. (They used the original prize tree in their own currency, so Q12 was worth 125k, and if you got it wrong you’d go from 64k to 32k, and so on.)
Just wondering if that might work better for MDP. It’d mean a risk at every point, that grew as the game progressed, but with each successful level gaining more assured money.
Referring to Sam:
$10,000 – risk going for: none
$25,000 – risk going for: $10,000
$50,000 – risk going for: $15,000 ($10,000 assured)
$100,000 – risk going for: $25,000 ($25,000 assured)
$250,000 – risk going for: $50,000 ($50,000 assured)
$1,000,000 – risk going for: $150,000 ($100,000 assured)
That may work, actually.