1 vs 100

I would have posted all these entries last night, but I was distracted by an engrossing new interactive experience. It is a game called 1 vs 100 that is currently in the beta stage on X-box Live.

From what I understand, 1 vs 100 is a game show in which a single contestant competes for prizes vs a "Mob" of 100 by answering trivia. If the contest answers correctly, they keep playing, with the prize increasing with each Mob member knocked out of the game. The Mob works together to fight the One, and also competes against each other. Every Mob member answers the trivia questions on their own, and each time a Mob member answers a question wrong, they are removed from the Mob, causing a dwindling number of people to go against the one, until either a) the one finally answers a question that eliminates all remaining Mob members, or b) the Mob is victorious by answering a question when the One misses it. The catch is that the Mob divides the prize that the One had earned up to that point when they are victorious, which means that if you are in the Mob, you ultimately would want to be the last man standing when the One fails.

Simple enough. Both have trivia, and both even have commercials. The real trick here, however, is how the Xbox version trumps the live TV version: Anyone can win prizes.

The X-box version sets up times which you visit on-line, complete with your own avatar, and join an honest-to-goodness Live episode of the game. Theoretically, every person on X-box live (all what, 4 or 5 million of them?) can join the live streams on Friday and Saturday nights. The game still features the 1 vs the 100 Mob members, but the rest of the people join the "The Crowd." The crowd participates in the game as well: answering questions, going for the high score (based on speed of responses, correct answers, etc.) and even providing a life-line to the One. With a live host providing comedic banter, the 1 and the 100 will be randomly chosen from the crowd, the game quickly hauls you in. Plus, you can increase your chances of being the 1 or the 100 by having a higher score in prior rounds. And since every member of the crowd has an X-box account, when you are selected to be the one or in the Mob, you do actually win prizes. Games, microsoft points (up to $125), etc. are all prizes that participants can win. And since games last anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes, there is a quick turnover in contestants. It really is a cleverly designed experience.

Even the scheduling for Friday and Saturday nights screams genius. Only on Friday and Saturday night are the live shows held with actual prizes. Every other day and time has additional trivia times where you can compete against people around the world and learn more trivia, with the idea, of course, to improve your chances when YOU are selected as the one.

The fact that being selected as the one is probably akin to winning the lotto (maybe slightly better), is glossed over a bit by the host.

It is a very addicting game. The trivia is fun, and competing for a high score alone is enjoyable (made better by not only seeing your score vs the world high scores, but by competing directly against three others players your are matched against). But with the potential to be selected as a real contestant, demonstrating your knowledge to all of the world and winning real prizes, the game transcends the normal experience.

Watch out. This is the type of meta-game that will eventually replace TV game shows, truly bringing the opiate of the masses (not religion, in this case) into your home.