CHATROOM SHOWCASE SHOWOFF
RULES AND PROCEDURES(Originally written by Robair, Gatorman, BuddyTom, BigJon, Chelsea, therealcu2010, Guint, Wayoshi)
SECTION I: Intro; What Is CSS?I.a: What Is CSS?Chatroom Showcase Showoff (CSS) is a competitive game revolving around the Showcase segment on the
The Price is Right. Played exclusively on the Golden-Road.net website, chatroom participants bid on the showcases as the stage contestants do in an attempt to be the day's best bidder.
Seasons of CSS generally start on the third Monday of September in a given year, and will include all first-run daytime shows. Any MDS or other prime time shows will be played for fun, but will NOT count towards the year's overall standings.
I.b: Game OfficialsWayoshi is the official CSS Host and Stats-Keeper. Unless an announcement is made otherwise, the Host gets all the bids, every day.
I.c: Official GamesThe CSS is played during the initial East Coast airing of all first-run episodes of
The Price is Right, both daytime and Million Dollar Spectacular versions, though MDS' do not count towards the standings. Between 175 and 185 games will be played during a typical regular season.
The CSS will not be played if...
1. The program is not a first-run episode from the current season.
2. Any part or all of the Showcases are interrupted by break-ins or preemptions to the network. Isolated local incidents are not grounds for cancellation; members may request a readback in the chat room if they cannot see the Showcases for whatever reason.
3. There are problems with the website such as freezes or other failures during the showcase.
4. There are spoilers emanating from official network press releases or local newspapers which divulge winning amounts.
Information released by either the network or the show itself, which reveals showcase prizes themselves, without prices, may be valid at the discretion of the Host.4.1. If you find out omething relating to unaired showcase results (e.g. you attended a taping, or a friend attends, etc.) (see the
1/6/2020 playing), it's
unofficial and it's up to you who you tell, it won't void the playing, and you may use your knowledge to your advantage if the opt-out bonus (see below) does not apply.
It is considered best practice though to keep anything like that to yourself.5. The game Host can deem play void for any reason at their discretion.
If only the price reveals are pre-empted on a telecast, the game will be official if the ending of the showcase airs in another time zone.
I.d: EligibilityAll people on golden-road.net may participate in the CSS, including the game leader and moderators. The two contestants on TV compete as a combined entity known as the "Stage Player." This competitor is a constant foe of all chat room participants, and as such is the only player to be represented in each game of the season.
All golden-road.net members who attend tapings of the show are honor-bound not to participate in that day's CSS, nor to divulge details of the show to other members. Those who attend tapings have the option to "opt-out" and take $10,000 and 20.00 CSS points to be added to their total score. This will not count as a game played, so it's a chance to increase your average if you make the pilgrimage!
SECTION II: Gameplay and ScoringII.a: Submitting your BidsUsing the FORUM PM feature, send a PM to Host "Wayoshi" with BOTH of your bids at the same time. Please label your bids accordingly so there is no discrepancy as to which bid is for which showcase, by default the first bid will be taken as the first showcase, and the same for the second. In general, the first two positive numbers (besides labeling SCs) will be taken as the bids, regardless of commas. For example, do not do this, even as a joke:
727,72$ :1CS
727,33$ :2CS
If the time stamp is after
11:56:30 Universal Internet time, US Eastern (the host has some code that will auto-calculate the difference between forum time and the universal clock), your bids will not count. This time may be adjusted depending on the exact time the show resumes from commercials.
To ensure your bids are sent, please make sure to check the outbox feature within the PM system in case bid validation is required; any PM is automatically sent there with the newest version of SMF. In the case of the site borking and causing late bids or very few total bids, the Host has the discrepancy to accept late bids or cancel the day's playing, on a case-by-case basis.
Bids may only be accepted midway through the airing of the showcases, at
11:52:00 on the PM time stamp. They may not be messaged at any other time in advance of the show, whether it be one day, one week, or ten minutes in advance of the showcases. This feature keeps the game fair and valid for all and prevents otherwise absent contestants from "proxying" bids to stay in the game.
Likewise, players should not use outside sources- whether they be price lists, Google, previous recaps, or whatnot- during gameplay to assist in making bids. This is considered a form of cheating, and, plain and simple, isn't cool. Any player caught cheating will receive serious consequences, up to and including a lifetime ban from CSS, along with a vacation of any previous records and awards. Basically, if you can't do it in-studio, don't do it here!
Bids may be revised in subsequent PM(s) until the deadline. Typos do count, although the current Host is lenient on commas typo'd as periods and the like.
Chatroom players' differences on the showcases will then be calculated based on the actual retail price (ARP) the TV host reads for each showcase (and as verified by an official recap). Scores are then recorded for each player. These results generally get posted after 2PM Eastern on the same day the episode airs.
In the event that the Host chooses to play CSS, he can send his bids to an active player willing to verify the bids.
II.b.1: Scoring, PointsThe day's winner is the player with the highest point score, which represents a percentage of the player's bids against the ARP of both showcases without going over. Important: For a player's score to count, the player must bid under the ARP on each showcase. If a player is over on one or both showcases, that player's score for that day is zero. Over on one, over on both.
Show-specific point bonuses:
— Points and monies shall be doubled on Fridays, as per tradition.
— In the event of a perfect show (all six pricing games won), points are doubled. Note that for Plinko, any five-digit total will count as a win towards this bonus.
Game-specific point bonuses:
—
Plinko Doubler. Anyone wishing to participate will FORUM PM the CSS Host their guess as to how much money will be won in Plinko after the small prize pricing portion has concluded, after we know how many chips will be dropped.
All slots on the Plinko board must be cash for the Doubler to be valid. The CSS Host may invalidate the Doubler at anytime, including a judgment after the Plinko segment airs, if known spoilers dictate that there was/will be a significant potential unfair advantage. The closest player(s) to the actual score without going over will have the opportunity to get their points doubled, however only the top TWO scorers will actually receive double points in the event that more than two people tie for the win.
NOTE: There will be no "second-place" doublers awarded - only the guess closest to the actual amount won shall be awarded the doubler. Additionally, players may only submit an amount that can actually be won by the player on stage. Bids that result in impossible amounts will be disqualified. This rule also applies if a doubler winner does not then submit bids for the main portion of CSS.—
"My Three Got Big". If any of the Big 3 (Golden Road, Triple Play, 3 Strikes) is won, all players will receive double points for the day.
Showcase-specific point bonuses:
—
DSW. If the player scores less than $250 away from the ARP of one showcase, without going over on the other, they will have their points doubled (2x), in addition to any other show or game-related multipliers.
—
QSW. If the player scores less than $250 away from the ARP of BOTH showcases, they will have their points quadrupled (4x), in addition to any other show or game-related multipliers.
—
EXACTA. If the player scores exactly $0 away from the ARP of a showcase, they will have their points multiplied by 1.5x on top of the DSW bonus.
—
BLITZ. If the player is the ONLY player to receive points that day (STAGE PLAYER must be over as well) then they will receive double points (2x). (Opt-outs excluded.)
—
HOST BLOWS IT. If Wayoshi is the ONLY player to OVER that day, everyone else will receive double points (2x). (Opt-outs excluded.)
II.b.2: Scoring, MoneyFor each showcase, there will be a designated "showcase winner", who will receive the ARP cash value of that showcase added to their money score. The "showcase winner" is the player who has the highest acceptable bid on each showcase -- without going over on the other. Just like with the points scoring, nobody who goes over has the opportunity to win money.
If the showcase winner on any one showcase has bid within $250 of the ARP of the showcase they won, they will receive the cash value for both showcases. If one player should have the best difference on both showcases, and each bid is within $250 of the ARP of their respective showcases, they shall be awarded double the cash value of both showcases.
Additionally, any showcase winner who bids the exact ARP of a showcase will receive the cash value of the showcase they bid exactly right on, in addition to any cash already earned.
Money scores will double on Fridays. Money scores DO NOT double on a perfect show, a CSS BLITZ win or with the Plinko, My Three Got Big, or Host Blows It doublers.
II.c: Week to Week ResultsDaily results will appear in the CSS forum every day the game is played sometime after the recap is posted, as these results will include Stage Player differences that may act as spoilers. The table will be sorted by point score, and will also denote the two showcase winners for that day and their money scores.
Statistics for the game period will be kept and tallied throughout the season. Every Friday night (or so) there will be a new leaderboard released by the Stats-Keeper featuring the cumulative point and dollar scores. The chart will track average score based on number of games played (as we go on there will be a minimum number of games to qualify for this), number of daily wins, number of Double and Quadruple Showcase wins, number of times over, lowest difference for any one showcase (which will include days a player is over on one showcase and makes a great bid on the other), single best daily difference, and money score. Every week's chart will be accompanied by a recap of the week's action.
II.d: Specials/BonusesVarious special games with bonuses may be held throughout the year. They will be announced at least one week in advance of the game.
Section III: PostseasonIn the closing weeks of the season, there will be playoffs. Another thread will detail the exact ruleset from year to year.
