Author Topic: Did it with Price... (Read 7389 times)

zachhoran · « **Reply #15 on:** June 09, 2006, 07:18:54 PM »

How about doing what used to be done often in the final speed up round during the shopping era: play that round(or one round per show) for the amount won on a gift certificate or gift card(from Sony or otherwise). Perhaps do this instead of the gift tags.

saussage · « **Reply #16 on:** June 09, 2006, 09:20:44 PM »

Can the toss-ups as well.

Good thing nobody said "bring back the mystery wedge". I always loved the "Free Spin" wedge though.

JohnHolder · « **Reply #17 on:** June 09, 2006, 09:49:45 PM »

Actually, there's a "What would you change for the new season?" thread going on right now on the show's message board.

I'd overhaul the Bonus Round. Have a fairly large puzzle, reveal the category but no letters to start. On the wheel are spaces ranging from $1000 to $5000, maybe some high-end gift tags and a car or two, maybe a one-peg-wide $10,000 like the one in Round 1, but no Bankrupts or Lose a Turns. The contestant gets five spins. They play a big-bucks solo round of the front game with no risk. Land on a space, call a consonant, if it's in the puzzle, the money/prize goes into your bank. After you've spun five times, you may buy vowels at $1000 apiece (assuming that you've accumulated enough money). Solve the puzzle within five/ten seconds after the last letter is revealed, and win what's in your bank.

From my perspective as a former contestant, I like the Toss-Ups, and not just because I won two of them.

I agree that there should be more variety on the Wheel, including more four-digit spaces.

Returning champs and/or progressive jackpots wouldn't work, because the weeks of shows don't air in the order in which they're taped, and occasionally one episode will even air out of taping order.

John

Jimmy Owen · « **Reply #18 on:** June 09, 2006, 10:03:18 PM »

I always thought they could modify the bonus round by having a wheel with consonants and a small one for the vowel to determine the letters for the final puzzle. That way the writers wouldn't have to go out of their way to create puzzles that don't have the freebie letters as they seem to do now.

Steve Gavazzi · « **Reply #19 on:** June 09, 2006, 10:21:59 PM »

[quote name=\'saussage\' post=\'120940\' date=\'Jun 9 2006, 09:20 PM\']
Can the toss-ups as well.

Good thing nobody said "bring back the mystery wedge".
[/quote]

How can you bring back something that's still in use? And furthermore, even if someone had said it, what were you gonna to do them -- smash 'em upside the head?

Unrealtor · « **Reply #20 on:** June 09, 2006, 11:04:49 PM »

Revamp the categories. They've gotten too many in number, and too specific (Does it really matter whether it's a living thing or an inanimate one?)

Cut them down to the basics, plus (where applicable) a version that refers to one specific instance of that category, like:
Person/Proper Name
Place/On the Map
Thing/Trademark
Phrase/Quotation
Event/Historic Event
Title

I could take or leave the bonus categories ("Who is it?" and "Where are we?") personally, so I'd leave them for continuity's sake.

Brandon Brooks · « **Reply #21 on:** June 09, 2006, 11:33:41 PM »

[quote name=\'brianhenke\' post=\'120920\' date=\'Jun 9 2006, 05:06 PM\']
I would add more variety to the Prize Puzzles (ie, home entertainment systems, tickets to big sporting events, new kitchens, etc.) It needn't be a trip every single day.
[/quote]
See, Henke... that was a decent post.

Anyway, the suggestion of returning champions was already made, so how about this one: Drop Charlie O's voice over segment between the final puzzle and the farewell. Have Vanna walk over in front of the wheel with Pat and the contestant and say goodbye. It just seems odd for continuity's sake the way they do it now, and I don't like them kicking the contestant off stage to bring them back again.

Brandon Brooks

Steve Gavazzi · « **Reply #22 on:** June 10, 2006, 12:21:47 AM »

I would bring back the category "Really Long Title". I feel it was underused.

Robert Hutchinson · « **Reply #23 on:** June 10, 2006, 01:39:25 AM »

Perhaps saussage is thinking of the Surprise wedge?

John: I think that format might be a little broken. The crafty contestants (of which Wheel has few, sadly) are going to get RSTLN and (probably) however many vowels they want/need--and with large puzzles, they'll still stand a good chance of losing. Everyone else, excepting a few flukes, is going to call the H after the T because they know how to spell "the", repeat letters, and try to solve when they don't know it and can still buy vowels. One of the good things about the current bonus round is that, if the contestant is without a clue, it's all over much faster.

Jimmy: Are you going to assign the letters on the wheels randomly, or will they be tailored to the puzzles? I'm getting visions of kids on Wheel 2000 spending half the show on a stunt only to earn all the Xs, Qs, and Js in the puzzle.

Now that I'm done whining, well, my suggestion was sort of offered already. But rather than giving the show a tranquilizer, I would want a better crop of contestants. That's a valid single change, right? "Hey, guys. Don't bring in contestants who can't figure out that the three arrows on the wheel *might* mean that everyone has their own to watch. Thanks." That would probably take care of the hyperactivity problem, as the smarter contestants would just ignore the exhortations of the Wheel staff (and Pat would get fewer migraines).

(But seriously. If your bonus round puzzle is an EVENT, and you get _ _ _ _ N _ / _ / _ _ _ E, and you call an I and a G, I will laugh at you so much.)

Craig Karlberg · « **Reply #24 on:** June 10, 2006, 03:42:53 AM »

If I'd run WoF, one of the things I liked back in the mid 90's was the daily tournament format where the top 3 winners during the first 4 shows of the week come back on Fridays. Ah yes! The Friday Finals! Boy do I miss those. Not only will it work on regular weeks but on location weeks too.

gameboy2000 · « **Reply #25 on:** June 10, 2006, 08:05:59 AM »

I would make some trips available in the bonus round.

BrandonFG · « **Reply #26 on:** June 10, 2006, 01:37:01 PM »

[quote name=\'Craig Karlberg\' post=\'120956\' date=\'Jun 10 2006, 03:42 AM\']
If I'd run WoF, one of the things I liked back in the mid 90's was the daily tournament format where the top 3 winners during the first 4 shows of the week come back on Fridays. Ah yes! The Friday Finals! Boy do I miss those. Not only will it work on regular weeks but on location weeks too.
[/quote]
I'm agreeing with Karlberg. Has Hell frozen over yet? ;-)

Seriously, that was a nifty idea that should've stuck around longer. I thought the bonus prize they gave to the tournament winner was a nice touch too.

JohnHolder · « **Reply #27 on:** June 10, 2006, 01:39:58 PM »

[quote name=\'Robert Hutchinson\' post=\'120955\' date=\'Jun 10 2006, 01:39 AM\']
But rather than giving the show a tranquilizer, I would want a better crop of contestants. That's a valid single change, right? "Hey, guys. Don't bring in contestants who can't figure out that the three arrows on the wheel *might* mean that everyone has their own to watch. Thanks." That would probably take care of the hyperactivity problem, as the smarter contestants would just ignore the exhortations of the Wheel staff (and Pat would get fewer migraines).

(But seriously. If your bonus round puzzle is an EVENT, and you get _ _ _ _ N _ / _ / _ _ _ E, and you call an I and a G, I will laugh at you so much.)
[/quote]

BAKING A CAKE?

The contestant staff made it clear to us that "juice" or enthusiastic personality is more important to them in a potential player than actual puzzle-solving skills. Although there are both oral and written puzzle tests at the auditions, a good score doesn't automatically get you on the show and a bad one doesn't disqualify you.

Case in point: On the show that taped immediately after mine, a woman had three incorrect solves over the course of her game, including guessing CHEESE GRATER for an "Around the House" Toss-Up puzzle whose first word had eight letters and second word had seven. She blew a Prize Puzzle when, with one blank remaining, she said "NEW FAT" instead of "FEW" (as in LEARNING A _EW SPANISH PHRASES for a trip to Panama). I forget the third one.

And she won the game.

Then she lost the bonus round (and a car) because, on a "Happy Holidays"-themed show which was to air Christmas week, she couldn't get THING:

_ _ L E
L _ G

She kept thinking the second word was LEG when the blank obviously wasn't an E.

John

aaron sica · « **Reply #28 on:** June 10, 2006, 01:56:02 PM »

[quote name=\'fostergray82\' post=\'120968\' date=\'Jun 10 2006, 01:37 PM\']
I'm agreeing with Karlberg. Has Hell frozen over yet? ;-)

Seriously, that was a nifty idea that should've stuck around longer. I thought the bonus prize they gave to the tournament winner was a nice touch too.
[/quote]

I'm agreeing with Karlberg *and* Henke...Both very good ideas.

I also like JohnHolder's idea of increasing the cost of vowels.....When every space on the wheel is more than the cost of 1 vowel, that's too easy.

Robert Hutchinson · « **Reply #29 on:** June 10, 2006, 02:49:45 PM »

[quote name=\'JohnHolder\' post=\'120969\' date=\'Jun 10 2006, 01:39 PM\']BAKING A CAKE?[/quote]

That was what I had in mind, yes. It's not the main game, folks! You get no money for placing letters you already know.

I noticed at least a couple of times this season that Pat has actually started explaining why some of the contestants were doomed to fail. The E was already called, there aren't five letters in SESQUIPEDALIAN, etc. I wish Pat would just give up and turn completely snarky with the players.

I don't think contestants even consider vowels to have a cost any more, since buying them is such a drop in the bucket. Yeah, some of it could be the IQ levels in general, but look at how often contestants will try to buy vowels lately when they've only got a gift tag.