Deal or No Deal comparisons

One of the hottest game shows in the 2000s was "Deal or No Deal", and while the show is no longer on the air in the United States it's still running in such countries as Australia (which was the first country to air an international version of the show) and the United Kingdom.  For this entry, I will compare the American, Australian, and British versions of the show.

The basics of the game are the same--select a box, then open the other boxes to determine what you have, with cash being offered at various points the game to leave.  The differences are as follows.

Australia

Since the Aussie version was first (having debuted in 2003), I'll start here.

The contestants are chosen from sections of the audience, divided into 6 "blocks" (8 "blocks" in the original primetime version).  From that block, one member is selected to be the "main" contestant, who selects one of 26 cases.  The other 25 cases are distributed amongst the other audience members, some of whom may be supporting the main player (and after often the last case remaining).

In the first round, the contestant must open six cases before being given an offer from the Banker, Walter P. Smyte (who issues offers and other notes via a messaging system).  Before opening a case, the case holder must predict how much is in his/her own case.  If they made a correct prediction, they win money ($1,000-$6,000, depending on the round, in the original primetime version, $1,000 at the start of the daytime version {2004-2005}, and $500 nowadays {since 2006}).  After the contestant decides whether or not to continue (using a "money" gesture for DEAL, and an "X" gesture for NO DEAL), five more cases are opened in the second round, followed by four more in the third round, three more in the fourth round, two more in the fifth round, and one case at a time in subsequent rounds.

There are various "mini-games" in this version, the most prominent being the "Megaguess," where the caseholder can win $2,000, $5,000, or $10,000 for a correct prediction.

The top prize was originally $2,000,000 (Yes, you read that right.  TWO MILLION DOLLARS.), with the lowest amounts on the board being 5c, 25c, 50c, and 75c (Yes, they had more than one case that valued under a dollar).  After the show moved to daytime, the top prize was lowered to $200,000, with 50c being the lowest amount.  In 2005, a "CAR" was added, being placed amongst the Red cases valued at $10,000 and above, and the two six-figure amounts ($100,000 and $200,000) were colored green.  The values under $10,000 were colored blue, and the values under $1,000 were colored yellow.  In 2006, all of the values on the left side of the board (50c-$750) were colored blue, while the top values ($50,000, $75,000, $100,000, and $200,000) were colored green, and all other values (including the CAR) were colored red.

This version can be considered more exciting than the American version.  At least, I think so.  Your mileage may vary, of course.

Great Britain

The British version debuted in October 2005, two months before the American version.  Here, there were only 22 boxes (not cases), and all are held by twenty-two contestants, one of whom is randomly chosen at the start of the game.  In the first round, five boxes are opened before the offer, with each subsequent round opening three boxes.  Here, the Banker communicates via telephone.  The top value is £250,000, with the lowest value being 1p (one penny).  All values on the left side of the board are colored blue, and all values on the right side of the board are colored red.  This version of the tends to be a bit more...melodramatic, compared to the high-energetic Australian version, but I do like how the contestants do seem to bond with each other, as they are often on the show for weeks at a time before they are chosen to face the Banker.

United States

Ah, yes.  I had to get here sooner or later.

The rules of this version are similar to the Australian version, only with twenty-six models holding the cases, the banker communicating via telephone (like the British version), and the top value being $1,000,000...all the way down to one penny.

The daily syndicated version had 22 cases, like the British version, but unlike the UK version, the 22 potential players only appear during that particular week (the British contestants often appear holding the boxes for up to months at a time).  The top value here is $500,000, with the lowest being a penny.  The first round removes five cases, followed by another five in the second round, four more in the third round, two in the fourth round, two in the fifth round, and then one in each of the last two rounds.

The problems with the American version include going to commercial at the most aggravating times, the player's supporters often giving stupid advice, not to mention players insisting on going all the way...only to win very little when they could have made a big deal.

Anyways, those are my thoughts.  If you have a chance, please tell me yours.

Next time on the comparisons, if I'm up to it...we'll deal with catchphrases.