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Studio 33 - Price is Right Discussion => The TALK Is Right => Topic started by: TPIR1990 on October 27, 2008, 09:06:36 PM

Title: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: TPIR1990 on October 27, 2008, 09:06:36 PM
Well, I asked Roger why Poker Game and Joker were retired, here's what he said:

"Both these games were considered weak.  Joker had a couple of game problems (one could get all the small prizes correct and still lose/the reveal in Joker was awkward).  Poker game had a very awkward strategy (e.g. "try to find prizes with prizes that have a lot of nines in it") , truncated poker rules (we didn't care about straights) and viewers who had no idea how to play poker.  And prizes were limited to under $999."

We now have an official reason.

Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: FPGWillyT on October 27, 2008, 09:08:18 PM
Well actually, Poker Game is retired because he asked me one time "I'm thinking about getting rid of Poker" and I responded "Good Riddance".
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: bikiniwall.com on October 27, 2008, 09:10:05 PM
It took them 25+ years to finally decide to retire "Poker Game"?  And I thought the Post Office was slow!
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: TPIR1990 on October 27, 2008, 09:11:29 PM
It took them 25+ years to finally decide to retire "Poker Game"?  And I thought the Post Office was slow!


Yeah, almost 32 years....Joker was WAY worse though!
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: Todd on October 27, 2008, 09:11:44 PM
I disagree. I thought Poker Game was a fun game and underrated.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: TPIR1990 on October 27, 2008, 09:12:43 PM
I disagree. I thought Poker Game was a fun game and underrated.

I agree. Poker wasn't too too bad, although, they should have anted up the prizes, all they really needed to do. Joker just HAD to go!
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himse
Post by: cbcarter24 on October 27, 2008, 09:12:48 PM
well, I like joker, even if it doesn't get won that often. joker is a challenging game. we need more games like joker on tpir.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himse
Post by: goldroadfanatic on October 27, 2008, 09:14:16 PM
Joker relied on being lucky and being able to price sub-$100 small prizes correctly.  Poker Game was just blind luck with a little bit of strategy when it came to passing the initial hand or not, and rewarding for LFaTs who memorize the prices of the prizes offered.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: TPIR1990 on October 27, 2008, 09:15:33 PM
well, I like joker, even if it doesn't get won that often. joker is a challenging game. we need more games like joker on tpir.

No...no...just no. Joker was not challenging. Like Goldy and The Dob said, it relied on luck, not skill.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: Brent115 on October 27, 2008, 09:16:32 PM
Joker was one of my favorite games. Poker Game was showing its age and most prizes aren't less than $1,000.

Although, Gas Money, the new pricing game, is somewhat like Joker in a way. Because you want the card with the Joker on it, or "pink slip" as it's called on Gas Money.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: FPGWillyT on October 27, 2008, 09:19:45 PM
It should also be understood that Roger TOILED over any decision to retire any pricing game whatsoever because "Everyone has their own favorite game on the show and I really don't want ot get rid of any game".

Besides, with every pricing game retired it just means that we have to endure the playing of "pricing game X" one more time because there was one less pricing game to fill a slot.

Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himse
Post by: cbcarter24 on October 27, 2008, 09:30:52 PM
so let me get this straight. you would rather have a game that gets won 9 times out of ten (like shell and bonus) than a game that requires luck (like joker).

and I don't care what you say. joker is challenging. it's just like 5 price tags. you expect them to get rid of that too?
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himse
Post by: goldroadfanatic on October 27, 2008, 09:34:27 PM
I hope to heck that they don't axe Five Price Tags.  But the thing is about Five Price Tags that puts it on a new level compared to Joker, is that you have to know a thing or two about the car presented if you stand a chance at winning. 
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: temptation1979ga on October 27, 2008, 09:38:25 PM
Quote
Joker had a couple of game problems (one could get all the small prizes correct and still lose/

Personally, I've never seen that as a problem with any game. I think it actually prevents games from having a "perfect pricing guarantees boring reveal" kind of win.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: Axl on October 27, 2008, 09:39:24 PM
Gas Money, the new pricing game, is somewhat like Joker in a way. Because you want the card with the Joker on it, or "pink slip" as it's called on Gas Money.

The biggest problem with Joker's reveal was that Bob was not consistent.  Sometimes, he would look at the discards (where you'd hope to see the Joker); other times he'd look at the remaining cards (where you didn't want to see the Joker).  In the case of Gas Money, the awkwardness of the reveal is forced by the rules... you could theoretically switch things up on the final unknown price, but that would just make it more confusing.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: SteveGavazzi on October 27, 2008, 09:43:38 PM
Joker had a couple of game problems (one could get all the small prizes correct and still lose...).

Hmm...that never seemed to be a problem while Bob was around.  Given some of the changes we've seen since Roger was fired, I wonder if Drew could have been a factor in his getting rid of it.  After all, we know it was supposed to be played on February 29, so he obviously hadn't originally planned to retire it.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: TPIR1990 on October 27, 2008, 09:51:12 PM
Hmm...that never seemed to be a problem while Bob was around.  Given some of the changes we've seen since Roger was fired, I wonder if Drew could have been a factor in his getting rid of it.  After all, we know it was supposed to be played on February 29, so he obviously hadn't originally planned to retire it.

That's a good point. Maybe Drew was revealing it wrong or in a bad manner.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: SteveGavazzi on October 27, 2008, 09:56:43 PM
Drew never rehearsed Joker.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: TPIR1990 on October 27, 2008, 09:57:48 PM
Drew never rehearsed Joker.

So did Drew have 'power' before this Season? Or at least is that what we are implying?
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himse
Post by: goldroadfanatic on October 27, 2008, 09:59:19 PM
Now, I know the lineups are made in advance of a show before it's taped, but how far back was the lineup for February 29, 2008's show conceived?  It must have been during the time Drew was finishing up learning the games, but I must ask, if Drew didn't learn Joker did he not earn Poker Game either?
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: TPIR1990 on October 27, 2008, 10:03:37 PM
I would assume he didn't...but maybe he did? When was Poker supposed to be played?
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himse
Post by: goldroadfanatic on October 27, 2008, 10:06:28 PM
From what I understand, when I was talking with John and Steve months ago, Poker Game was never scheduled to be played.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: TPIR1990 on October 27, 2008, 10:08:38 PM
From what I understand, when I was talking with John and Steve months ago, Poker Game was never scheduled to be played.

So, then in that case, I would say no, but who knows.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: asd2001 on October 27, 2008, 11:51:53 PM
Poker Game was one of my favorites.  I think all of the different combinations of "hands" made the strategy in this game very unique.  Plus, I loved the large game board, especially when the contestant elected to pass his/her hand to the house - it almost looked like the numbers literally "moved" from the first row to the second row.  And the "Joker" (or whatever it was) at the top of the board was cool.

To make up for the small value of the prizes, perhaps they could have offered some sort of cash bonus for winning.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: crazypackersfan on October 28, 2008, 03:39:29 AM
I'm glad to finally know the reasons for their retirement, and both make a lot of sense. However, I still would have rather had both stay, especially the rather unique Poker Game.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: CBSpromoman on October 28, 2008, 07:42:31 AM

Something's wrong with the price limit reasoning on "Poker Game."  Who says they could only offer prices under $1000?  What real difference does it make whether there are three-digit or four-digit prices?  If you're building a hand with two three-digit prices, like $999 and $589, you're still tossing out one digit because you can only have five "cards."  So your hand would be 99998.

If you're building a hand with two four-digit prices, the same logic applies:  if the prices are $1799 and $2379, your hand would be 99977.  You'd toss out three digits instead of one, but the game is still perfectly playable AND the extra digits would lead to a bigger variety of resulting hands.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himse
Post by: ayoung on October 28, 2008, 09:36:47 AM
They could have played poker game with four digit prizes and just explained to people who dont know poker to try and get high matching numbers.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: greg on October 28, 2008, 09:51:21 AM
One of my favorite games, Poker Game that is,  I really hated to see it go.  I actually liked Joker, too.  I wonder if the reveal would have been more fun if they had had the models do it like Card Sharks?
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: JokerFan on October 28, 2008, 09:57:58 AM
The biggest problem with Joker's reveal was that Bob was not consistent.  Sometimes, he would look at the discards (where you'd hope to see the Joker); other times he'd look at the remaining cards (where you didn't want to see the Joker).
I liked how the reveal was never consistent.
As for perfect pricing and not a guarantee win, there are other games in which this happens.  Why are there no complaints regarding this problem with other games?  Is it because this is not that exciting of a game to lots of people?
At least now we get to know why these two games were retired.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himse
Post by: edmojautis on October 28, 2008, 10:23:31 AM
They could have played poker game with four digit prizes and just explained to people who dont know poker to try and get high matching numbers.

Just what I was thinking!! Hate to see this one go.  :cry:

Joker......Eh.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himse
Post by: WarioBarker on October 28, 2008, 10:52:34 AM
Drew never rehearsed Joker.

Quote from: Golden-Road.Net FAQ/Timeline - March 4, 2008
During Tuesday's Step Up, Drew states that he has now learned "all 75 games"; this now-incorrect count was given to him before Poker Game and Joker were retired.

...So he learned all the games yet never rehearsed Joker? Does that make sense?

...Anyway. Poker Game's leaving was a matter of time. Joker's leaving...at least reuse the small prize thingy, hm?

This show, due to its long history, has reused many of its props - such as the 1986 Special "spotlights" in the 1993 TNPiR Pilots and a Showcase in which Kathleen was a Studio 33 tour guide...

The Bullseye '72 board for Double Digits... (I'm sticking by it and the evidence I have presented before!)

...The price display from Add 'Em Up for Pathfinder (and is still a separate prop), etc.

That's my thoughts.
-Daniel
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: PriceFanArmadillo on October 28, 2008, 12:02:03 PM
I still say they should have figured out a way to retool Poker Game into Texas Hold'Em game with a car and some SP's.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: Scott5114 on October 28, 2008, 02:11:53 PM
Thing about Poker Game is, how would anyone (aside from Enzo Aquarius) know the difference between a $999 prize and a $971 prize just by looking at it? Everyone should be able to ballpark prices, but nobody (aside from Enzo Aquarius) can give you the exact dollar amount unless they had happened to see that prize on the show and somehow remembered the price. That's why the $500 bonus for perfect bids exists...most of the time when people stumble on the ARP, it's pure luck.

That said I liked seeing Poker Game; it had a unique prop and seeing it pop up after a long absence was always special.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: JokerFan on October 28, 2008, 02:20:12 PM
I remember when I first saw Poker Game.  I thought it was just numbers that counted (not pairs, full house, etc.)  Therefore, a hand of 98633 would beat a hand of 88877.  I wonder if the game was really played this way, it might have had a better chance to not be retired.
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: left4thehouse on October 28, 2008, 09:11:53 PM
The Poker Game was one of the first games that stuck out at the age of three. Big ol' Joker, the sliding of the passed hand, Big Banana Remix (now willed to Danger Price?) Bob's explaination, and my STINKING USER NAME! Better. Still, a $999 and $500 pairing could get trumped by a sneaky $1000 espresso machine and, say, a $17,980 Vibe (just an example) which would reward the loyalist, the lucky, and poker skilled. Cash bonuses by strength of PLAYER hand could have worked just as well.

Joker to me meant that 5PT, Bonus, Shell, or even Plinko would not get a play that day. Maybe we send the podium back to 1973 and it can be used for Give or Keep? Oh well.
   
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himself!)
Post by: JasonA1 on October 29, 2008, 12:11:22 PM
Thing about Poker Game is, how would anyone (aside from Enzo Aquarius) know the difference between a $999 prize and a $971 prize just by looking at it?

Exactly the reason I think Range Game should go from a $600 range with a $150 rangefinder to a $2,000 range with a $500 rangefinder. Saying a trailer is $9,171 versus $9,229 is trifling. A bigger range would make it a true game of pricing again, instead of a game of chicken against the producer.

-Jason
Title: Re: OFFICIAL Reason for Retirement of Joker and Poker Game (From "The Dob" Himse
Post by: JohnHolder on October 29, 2008, 01:37:57 PM
... rewarding for LFaTs who memorize the prices of the prizes offered.

Many of the games are like that, as they should be. I've always thought that the best way to succeed on the show would be to watch carefully for several months and memorize as many prices as possible. If it weren't for TPIR, I'd have no way of knowing that the Libman Wonder Mop is $13 or that Hot Pockets are $2.49. Nor would I have a particular reason to care.

John