A couple other changes with 500 Questions (and, yes; I completely agree that Dan Harris is a much better fit than Richard Quest was as host):
1. The only "special" type of question is the Battle question, and it is explicitly stated there are six in each round.
2. Only 3 questions per category instead of 5 (so, 30 questions clears the board).
3. For normal questions, contestants get 5 seconds per answer, and get the $1,000 for a correct answer regardless of when they say the correct answer.
Overall, I like the changes (the Lightning Round was a nice way to break the game up from its standard format), and the game does move through more questions than last year, though Battle questions can greatly slow the game to a crawl. That being said, there is much less for the challenger to do now, since he/she is only directly involved for six questions and a possible elimination category pick.
Also, was it just me, or did the questions seem much harder this time around?
Personally, I enjoyed watching and playing along, but I could see this getting old fast...two hours is a long time for a show like this.
Anthony