For as long as television has been a popular medium of consuming entertainment, there have always been game shows. As such, with the genre becoming a staple of broadcasting, show creators have had to think up some interesting games to keep them different from the competition. Here are some of the best ones out there.
One of the most popular and indeed long-running games, Wheel Of Fortune, has certainly gone down as an all-time classic. Having been on US television since the mid-seventies, the show has run for 38 seasons and runs on the same principles since its inception. Interestingly, show creator Merv Griffin came up with the idea of the game thanks to long car trips as a child, on which he used to play Hangman. However, just having a game show based around a missing letter game seemed pretty standard, so he wondered if there was a way of getting people drawn in somehow. To employ the ‘hook’, Griffin decided to add a roulette-type wheel to the game, as he’d been drawn to them when in casinos – he found there was a certain mystical quality to them which should translate to a great show. The inclusion of the wheel certainly worked out, as the original American show was then ported to UK television, as well as Australia, New Zealand, and the Philippines.
The roulette wheel also inspired a British game show called Red Or Black?, hosted by Ant And Dec from 2011 to 2012. It’s fair to say that Simon Cowell’s then most daring project didn’t work out as first planned. As much as the concept seemed somewhat interesting, Red Or Black? got slated by the critics, but did end up breaking some quite interesting records. Since its release, it’s become the most expensive game show ever with a total cost of £15 million overall, and also the first game show in British history to give away a prize over a million pounds – a carpenter from Reading, Graham Fletcher, won £1.5million on a double rollover episode.
In-keeping with the British theme, as well as games found in casinos, Bruce Forsyth’s Play Your Cards Right ditched the roulette wheel in favor of a good-old pack of playing cards. Forsyth was the king of the game show and Play Your Cards Right, as much as people had suspicions it was staged, proved how Forsyth was the master of the game. It’s a thoroughly simple affair, with a classic higher or lower game, but it still made for good viewing.
With the casino theme in mind, it’s easy to forget that game shows have since been ported into the world of online casinos, such as those found on Bonusfinder’s website. As a comparison website, they’ve gone through and collated online casinos in one place, as you can see if you click here to read the full article. Interestingly, one of the providers they mention, Caesar’s, have a slot game based on Wheel Of Fortune, proving that the appeal of game shows goes further and wider than just the television.
Over the years, there’s definitely been some great game shows out there, each coming with their own unique charm. Be it, Bruce Forsyth, on Play Your Cards Right or Pat Sajak on Wheel Of Fortune, as much as the hosts make the shows what they are, you can’t take away some of the innovative and intriguing games created over the decades.
