Since we are on the topic of Shell Game, does anyone know why Drew no longer allows the contestants to place the chips themselves?  I can't imagine that saved much more time than allowing them to do it...

I chalk it up to him just not paying that much attention to the intricacies of each game in his hosting style. He also doesn't let the contestant "Pass the Buck" anymore, he placed the marks on "Make Your Mark", and on at least one occasion he didn't even have the contestant open the safe.

Make Your Move was somewhat of a toss-up because the two choices for Hawaii were close to each other, but $532 seemed a little too cheap for the luggage.

Pretty difficult Vend-O-Price. I thought the Jello would be under a dollar or a little over a dollar at most and the crackers would be in the mid $3 to $4.99 range. The prize package was also pretty odd because there were several items included that all had to be described and playoffs were mentioned but nothing shown on the TV (I assume they meant NFL playoffs given the original airdate). I wonder if there was more to be shown or talked about that was specifically football during the prize package but they edited it out before airing it today since obviously the playoffs are long over now.

Because they have the choice to quit the game at that point. If there's no risk involved, the game becomes less exciting.

D'oh, not sure how I forgot about something so obvious when I asked that.

Since we are on the topic of Shell Game, does anyone know why Drew no longer allows the contestants to place the chips themselves?  I can't imagine that saved much more time than allowing them to do it...

Why does the contestant still get cash if they lose on the first three grocery products ($1/$10/$100) in Grand Game, but nothing if they lose on the fourth grocery product ($1,000)?

Because they have the choice to quit the game at that point. If there's no risk involved, the game becomes less exciting.