Author Topic: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts  (Read 3791 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline Bluescreen_ODeff

  • In Contestant's Row
  • ***
  • Posts: 175
  • Owe love...and owe love.
    • The Sweeping Developer
SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« on: May 13, 2019, 01:26:32 PM »
My spidey senses say that the previous thread on bonus spin rules is about to be de-railed, so for further discussion, any thoughts on the current wheel amounts?
Ecclesiastes 12:13

Offline Bluescreen_ODeff

  • In Contestant's Row
  • ***
  • Posts: 175
  • Owe love...and owe love.
    • The Sweeping Developer
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #1 on: May 13, 2019, 01:30:19 PM »
My comment on the 5K/15K/100K suggestion:  That seems like a big change, going from 25K to 100K after just over ten years?  Already, the big prize has been won six times this season.
Ecclesiastes 12:13

Offline WilliamPorygon

  • Walking the Golden Road
  • ****
  • Posts: 343
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #2 on: May 13, 2019, 02:29:35 PM »
100K


Seriously, there's nothing wrong with the amounts as they are now.

Offline gamesurf

  • 4/4/2023
  • TPiR Alumnus
  • *
  • Posts: 1211
  • makin' flippy floppy, tryin' to do my best
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #3 on: May 13, 2019, 04:03:55 PM »
Offering $100K six times every episode would make every other IUFB, pricing game, and showcase seem like a cheap consolation prize

If they miss the bonus spin
"You didn't win $100K. But least you'll get to bid on a Toyota Yaris in the showcases"

Or, even worse, if they hit the bonus spin
"Congratulations, you win $100K, plus the right to bid on a Toyota Yaris in the showcases"
Quote from: Bill Todman
"The sign of a good game, is when you don't have to explain it every day. The key is not simplicity, but apparent simplicity. Password looks like any idiot could have made it up, but we have 14 of our people working on that show. There is a great complexity behind the screen. It requires great work to keep it simple."

Offline pricefan18

  • Double Showcase Winner
  • ******
  • Posts: 1916
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #4 on: May 13, 2019, 04:17:45 PM »
Offering $100K six times every episode would make every other IUFB, pricing game, and showcase seem like a cheap consolation prize

If they miss the bonus spin
"You didn't win $100K. But least you'll get to bid on a Toyota Yaris in the showcases"

Or, even worse, if they hit the bonus spin
"Congratulations, you win $100K, plus the right to bid on a Toyota Yaris in the showcases"

Didn't stop em from doing this with the million dollar spins in the Barker MDS era lol (or $100k for the 2002 Military Specials before them). Granted the budget was higher overall cause Primetime so you got bigger and better prizes, but still.
« Last Edit: May 13, 2019, 04:21:41 PM by pricefan18 »

Offline gamesurf

  • 4/4/2023
  • TPiR Alumnus
  • *
  • Posts: 1211
  • makin' flippy floppy, tryin' to do my best
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #5 on: May 13, 2019, 04:22:01 PM »
Yeah, but IMO that wasn't a very natural move either.

You could tell CBS was like, "Every game show in primetime has to offer a million dollars. Find a way to offer a million dollars", and Barker and co just ran with it because they couldn't think of anything better at the time
Quote from: Bill Todman
"The sign of a good game, is when you don't have to explain it every day. The key is not simplicity, but apparent simplicity. Password looks like any idiot could have made it up, but we have 14 of our people working on that show. There is a great complexity behind the screen. It requires great work to keep it simple."

Offline urbanpreppie0004

  • Taking a Bonus Spin
  • *****
  • Posts: 928
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #6 on: May 13, 2019, 04:23:31 PM »
Didn't stop em from doing this with the million dollar spins in the Barker MDS era lol (or $100k for the 2002 Military Specials before them). Granted the budget was higher overall cause Primetime so you got bigger and better prizes, but still.

And you just answered your own question...it was a special occasion. The amounts they have now are updated and just fine.

Offline pricefan18

  • Double Showcase Winner
  • ******
  • Posts: 1916
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #7 on: May 13, 2019, 04:25:35 PM »
Yeah, but IMO that wasn't a very natural move either.

You could tell CBS was like, "Every game show in primetime has to offer a million dollars. Find a way to offer a million dollars", and Barker and co just ran with it because they couldn't think of anything better at the time

Yeah probably true. Did you like how they did it in the Carey era conversely? Or was it too much/too unnatural then too?

I think the most unnatural part of it all in the Barker era was when they allowed showcase winners (or random contestants in the case of a DOB), spin at the end of the show if they didn't have a spin before that. Pretty anti-climatic way to close things.

Offline pricefan18

  • Double Showcase Winner
  • ******
  • Posts: 1916
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #8 on: May 13, 2019, 04:27:19 PM »
And you just answered your own question...it was a special occasion. The amounts they have now are updated and just fine.

True, but if you go back to the 80's ones, though the prizes were beefed up, the wheel values weren't. Maybe it wasn't quite as necessary back then though to those running things vs when they did these. And BTW, not defending the choice to go $100k now for record, I am fine with where it is too outside of maybe Big Money Week if you really wanna go all out, just pointed it out it had been done for the sake of the discussion.
« Last Edit: May 13, 2019, 04:29:21 PM by pricefan18 »

Offline gamesurf

  • 4/4/2023
  • TPiR Alumnus
  • *
  • Posts: 1211
  • makin' flippy floppy, tryin' to do my best
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #9 on: May 13, 2019, 04:43:06 PM »
Yeah probably true. Did you like how they did it in the Carey era conversely? Or was it too much/too unnatural then too?

I think the most unnatural part of it all in the Barker era was when they allowed showcase winners (or random contestants in the case of a DOB), spin at the end of the show if they didn't have a spin before that. Pretty anti-climatic way to close things.

The Million-Dollar DSW was fun. Especially after the first episodes proved it was possible.

The Million-Dollar Game was an interesting concept but it varied too wildly for my liking.

Clock Game and One Away were fine (Building up to "Do I have all five numbers right?" for a million bucks is fantastic), but for most of the MDGs the $1M was barely worth mentioning cause there was no absolutely no way any contestant would even be close to winning them. They either required ridiculous sacrifices, had ridiculously long odds, or both.
  • Range Game but you have to pick the exact price of the car? Yeah might as well not offer it.
  • 1/2 off but you have to give back $25K for a 1 in 15 random shot? Boo.
  • Safe Crackers but for a 5 digit car, the numbers can repeat, and you have to give back the car to play for it? lol no way, get bent.
I get that insurance probably wouldn't let them do anything else, but, I mean, really? That's the most exciting thing you could come up with? I can't suspend my disbelief as a viewer and pretend there's snowball's chance any of those will be won, they only serve as distractions from the rest of the show.

The $1M spin was awkwardly placed, but at least you knew that somebody in that episode would have a 1 in 20 shot at a million and they wouldn't have to give up anything to earn it.
Quote from: Bill Todman
"The sign of a good game, is when you don't have to explain it every day. The key is not simplicity, but apparent simplicity. Password looks like any idiot could have made it up, but we have 14 of our people working on that show. There is a great complexity behind the screen. It requires great work to keep it simple."

Offline Drew72

  • 5/2/2003
  • TPiR Alumnus
  • *
  • Posts: 666
  • TPIR Alumnus
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #10 on: May 14, 2019, 11:48:49 AM »
If they miss the bonus spin
"You didn't win $100K. But least you'll get to bid on a Toyota Yaris in the showcases"

Or, even worse, if they hit the bonus spin
"Congratulations, you win $100K, plus the right to bid on a Toyota Yaris in the showcases"

How is that any different than when someone wins or loses "Pay the Rent"?  It's so rare when someone hits a $1.00 and then another $1.00 in the bonus spin.  I don't have the stats but every few months maybe?
Contestant - May 2, 2003 and played One Right Price - Won trips to Montreal and Mazatlan!

Offline gamesurf

  • 4/4/2023
  • TPiR Alumnus
  • *
  • Posts: 1211
  • makin' flippy floppy, tryin' to do my best
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #11 on: May 14, 2019, 12:21:34 PM »
1) I don't think Pay the Rent's $100K payout is the show's most easily defensible idea either
2) Comparing the number of times Pay the Rent is played with the number of times a $25K wheel win is won strikes me as an apples-to-oranges comparison. Seems more fair to me to compare the times the $100K is specifically presented as being in play.

And Pay The Rent is played rarely, once a month, if that. A bonus spin happens on average two and a half times per week. Even if Drew doesn't bring up the $100K unless a bonus spin is hit, that's still ten times the disappointment; it'd happen ten times as often.
Quote from: Bill Todman
"The sign of a good game, is when you don't have to explain it every day. The key is not simplicity, but apparent simplicity. Password looks like any idiot could have made it up, but we have 14 of our people working on that show. There is a great complexity behind the screen. It requires great work to keep it simple."

Offline JayC

  • Double Showcase Winner
  • ******
  • Posts: 5912
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #12 on: May 14, 2019, 04:21:34 PM »
$100,000 for hitting $1.00 on the bonus spin is just ridiculous at this point in time. $25,000 is plenty, heck contestants are very happy to win $10,000 hitting the green sections.

Offline JT

  • Taking a Bonus Spin
  • *****
  • Posts: 692
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #13 on: May 15, 2019, 07:32:40 AM »
What they need to do is make the initial dollar spin $2,000 instead of $1,000.  It's been 40+ years, $1,000 in the 70s is like $4,000 today, at least make it 2 grand.

Do you think they will ever make this easy upgrade? 


Offline gamesurf

  • 4/4/2023
  • TPiR Alumnus
  • *
  • Posts: 1211
  • makin' flippy floppy, tryin' to do my best
Re: SCSD Bonus Spin Amounts
« Reply #14 on: May 15, 2019, 09:56:48 AM »
This is 100% opinion-based but

No, for the simple reason that I can’t think of many game shows that ever offered $2,000 when $1,000 would do. $1,000 is a nice round number that needs no explanation, while $2,000 doesn’t quite have that property.

Not everything needs to scale with inflation IMO

I’m also fine with Grand Game staying at $10,000 because a) starting with $2 and going from it to $200, $2,000, etc. isn’t as novel or natural a progression as 1-10-100-1,000-10,000, and b) if you know your GPs, Grand Game is one of the easiest 10K wins on the show.
Quote from: Bill Todman
"The sign of a good game, is when you don't have to explain it every day. The key is not simplicity, but apparent simplicity. Password looks like any idiot could have made it up, but we have 14 of our people working on that show. There is a great complexity behind the screen. It requires great work to keep it simple."