Weekend Replay: New “Lingo” from the Netherlands

We’ve got a pretty cool Weekend Replay for you this weekend.  I constantly get emails asking for new episodes of Lingo on GSN.  The show may be done with here, but it’s still going nicely in the Netherlands.  It’s been on the air since 1989 and is a huge inspiration for what you see on the GSN version.  Few changes have come over the years, but some of the stuff included would have been fantastic to see on our version.  The show is currently hosted by Lucille Werner.  There’s apparently a Dutch law that says everyone who hosts a Dutch game show must be hot.  I can think of two or three reasons I adore the Netherlands to begin with, and this just adds to it.  Anyway, instead of five lettered words, their version plays with six letters on Monday through Thursday and a seven letter edition on Fridays.  The game is basically what you see in America.  Try to guess a six letter word by process of elimination.  Each right word is worth 50 euro.

Here’s where the show gets a bit different.  Every correct answer puts 100 euro into a jackpot and allows the team to draw two balls from their hopper in an attempt to get a Bingo (which will now be called a Lingo for fun).  Each hopper consists of numbers not marked off on their Lingo card, a few red balls which loses control, a few question marks which are wild cards, and three green balls.  If a team draws all three green balls that team wins whatever is in the jackpot at the moment.  Fantastic addition that we should have done.  Also every three words they do a “Ten Letter Word”, where they show a scrambled up word consisting of ten letters.  First team to buzz in with the correct word wins the value which starts at 70 euro and goes down for each letter put in the right place.  It’s a nice addition to see who gets to start a round, for instance.  The only other main game change is if one team has control of a word, the other team may buzz in and gets only one chance to solve that word.  If they are right they double their score but if they are wrong they lose half.  It’s a neat element of risk.

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We’re working on getting the end game for you (having audio problems), but it’s almost all of what you see in America.  The winning team has two minutes to guess as many words as possible.  Each right guess earns a ball which they get to draw in an attempt to make a Lingo for 5,000 euro.  In the hopper also is one gold ball.  If the gold ball is drawn the team has the option to leave with 2,500 or turn that down and play for the 5,000.

What do you think?  I definitely like the look of the American version better, but the green jackpot balls and the attempt to double your score by stealing a word is cool.  I’m not sure about the bailout ball in the end game, though.  Seems like they tried to throw a bit of Deal or No Deal wherever they could.