Buzz
Ridiculous ideas, bizarre outfits, and questionable participants—TV game shows frequently embody multiple layers of absurdity. Aside from reality shows (and maybe cable 'news'), no other TV genre has done more to trivialize culture. While there are a handful of gems—Jeopardy being the standout—countless others are utterly mind-numbing.
Below, we present the ten most ludicrous TV game shows ever created. After reading, feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section—our parting gift to you.
10. Press Your Luck
“No Whammies, no Whammies… STOP!”
Press Your Luck could easily rank among the top ten TV game shows—thanks to the sheer brilliance of Whammies. Watching those mischievous animated creatures strip away a contestant’s winnings delivers an oddly satisfying dose of schadenfreude.
However, the show—despite its lasting cultural impact, it only aired from 1983 to 1986—was flawed in two key ways. First, the prize for answering questions correctly was additional spins… which didn’t always guarantee success. While players could pass their spins to opponents, this strategy often backfired due to sheer chance. Ultimately, Press Your Luck crowned winners based entirely on… well, luck.
That was until one contestant cracked the code. A computerized board in the mid-1980s? Patterns were bound to exist. Michael Larson, an ice cream truck driver, exploited this flaw, avoiding Whammies for an astonishing 45 spins and securing over $110,000 (equivalent to $323,500 today). By identifying just five repeating patterns, Larson reduced the risk of a Whammy to almost zero.
The 2019 reboot of Press Your Luck, hosted by actress Elizabeth Banks, introduced a more advanced board system. Contestants, however, remain as unpredictable as ever. And yes, Whammies continue to dominate, stealing cash and hearts alike.
9. Family Feud
Survey says: Ridiculous!
Every family has its share of less-than-bright members. Family Feud demonstrates that, more often than not, there are four or five such individuals in a single clan.
This isn’t always evident in the bonus round, where two members of the winning family face a rapid-fire series of questions. Nerves can lead to some questionable answers. For instance, one contestant nearly lost after her daughter scored 193 points—just 7 short of the 200 needed to win. With only one correct answer, she barely scraped through.
The true absurdity of Family Feud emerges when contestants, given plenty of time to think, provide answers that leave audiences baffled at how they navigate daily life. Some unforgettable moments include:
Host Steve Harvey: “We asked 100 women to name something of Leonardo DiCaprio’s that you’d like to hold.” Contestant: “The Mona Lisa. His painting.” (Cue applause and cheers from the family, shouting, “Good answer!”)
Harvey: “Name a kind of suit this isn’t appropriate for the office.” Contestant: “Chicken noodle.”
Harvey: “Name something a man might be willing to go to prison to get away from.” Contestant: “The police.”
And, of course, in true patriotic fashion: Harvey: “Name a country whose men women find sexier than American men.” Contestant: “The United States of America.”
8. Pitfall
Running out of cash, huh?
Long before he became the iconic host of Jeopardy, Alex Trebek helmed a Canadian show he later described as “one of the greatest tragedies of my life.” This is quite a statement, especially given his ability to maintain composure during the often absurd Celebrity Jeopardy rounds (more on that later).
Trebek hails from Canada, as does Pitfall, which ran from 1981 to 1982. However, unlike Trebek, Pitfall was utterly absurd and nonsensical—and, as we’ll see, it gained a certain notoriety.
On Pitfall, contestants attempted to predict how the studio audience would answer questions about lifestyle and personal preferences. Essentially, they were trying to guess the tastes and opinions of people attending the taping of a rather silly game show.
The winner then moved on to the Pitfall round—or more accurately, they ascended to it, riding an elevator with Trebek to a bridge featuring multiple stages known as “pitfall zones.” Contestants answered questions to progress, but some zones were traps that sent them back a level. The concept was both convoluted and absurd.
The show was, to put it mildly, a disaster. It was also financially unsustainable. The production company couldn’t cover the costs of its early-1980s “high-tech” set, leading to bankruptcy. Most contestants never received their winnings, and even Trebek was left unpaid.
7. Hurl!
Airing for only 11 episodes in 2008 on America’s G4 Network, Hurl! tackled the pressing question of what happens when contestants from a hot dog eating contest are subjected to vigorous shaking. Essentially, it was a 30-minute reenactment of the pie-eating contest scene from Stand By Me.
Hurl! had a straightforward premise: combine extreme eating with extreme physical activity, and the result is extreme nausea. The first round involved a five-minute eating frenzy where five contestants devoured as much food as possible. The top three moved on, while the other two were spared further humiliation.
The following round features a physical challenge that includes a significant amount of spinning. This segment lasts another five minutes—or until a contestant vomits. Notably, only vomit that exits the mouth is counted, meaning gagging is allowed as long as it’s swallowed back. The mere existence of such a rule in a real game should serve as a glaring warning.
The two finalists then proceed to stuff themselves with more food before the ultimate messy face-off: a sudden-death vomit contest. The first to lose their meal loses the game. Often, blindfolds are added to further disrupt their balance.
6. Red or Black?
For nearly two decades, a friend and I had a recurring $10 bet on the Super Bowl coin toss—heads or tails. At one point, my friend won 15 times in a row. The odds of that happening are 0.0000305176%, or 1 in 32,768.
There was, of course, no skill involved—just pure chance, much like the UK game show Red or Black?
Inspired by the colors of a roulette wheel, the show—which aired for just 14 episodes—attracted over 100,000 applicants vying for the million-pound grand prize. Each episode involved large groups of people mindlessly guessing between the two colors, with incorrect answers leading to elimination.
The show featured absurd, random stunts, such as predicting which of two skydivers—one with a red parachute, the other with a black one—would land first, or which color-clad motorcyclist could navigate through an increasingly narrow gap. Another challenge involved guessing which golfer could hit a bullseye from 100 yards away.
The pinnacle of absurdity was the car joust, blending the immaturity of Medieval Times with the reckless energy of bro culture. Contestants picked either the red or black knight, while viewers at home likely hoped for a high-speed collision, which (presumably?) would have meant red won.
5. Candy or Not Candy?
Even more perplexing than choosing between two colors is the critical task of determining whether something is—or isn’t—a piece of candy.
Japanese television features some truly bizarre content (often involving physical harm or embarrassment), with many game shows centered around personal injury or humiliation. For instance, the American obstacle course show Wipeout was inspired by the Japanese program Takeshi’s Castle, where contestants attempt to conquer a fortress-like structure filled with dangerous and painful challenges.
At least those participants endure pain for a reason. The same can’t be said for another show. Appropriately titled Candy or Not Candy?, it dares contestants to bite into random objects—some of which might be candy, while others could damage their teeth. Items like doorknobs, picture frames, table corners, or shoes could either be chocolate or a dental disaster.
As a final touch, contestants who bite into non-candy items are sprayed in the face with a white substance—a parting gesture that’s… well, let’s just leave it at that.
4. Be Cute or Get Pie
We’re not finished with Japan yet, as it remains a treasure trove of game show absurdity.
Japanese game shows often exhibit blatant misogyny. Take The Bum Game, for example, where men must identify their female partners from a lineup of three—yes—bare behinds. To assist, they’re permitted not only to look but also to touch, grope, lick, and kiss the exposed bottoms. The experience is rarely enjoyable for the women involved, and even less so for the men when, on occasion, the rear they’re handling belongs to another man.
However, one show takes the cake for being both creepier and more absurd. Be Cute or Get Pie begins with a group of attractive women sleeping on floor mats. One by one, a bizarre figure in a wig wakes them up—sometimes in disturbingly invasive ways, like tearing buttons off their pajamas.
Upon waking, the women have a split second to act or look cute. If they fail, they’re hit with a pie to the face—a fate that, given the show’s unsettling nature, might actually be preferable to what could have happened next.
3. Wheel of Fortune
Wheel of Fortune stands as the most mindless game show in TV history, and it’s not even a close contest. The fact that it airs right after Jeopardy in most U.S. markets only highlights the stark contrast between intellectual stimulation and childish entertainment, all within the span of a commercial break.
The primary issue lies with the contestants, who appear to be selected specifically to exclude anyone remotely skilled at word games—or, for that matter, anyone with an IQ above 75. It’s no surprise the show proudly labels itself “America’s game.”
In January, a contestant attempted to solve a song lyrics puzzle missing just three letters: “TH_S _AND _AS MADE FOR YOU AND ME.” Her guess? “This band has made for you and me.” Many consider it the most baffling answer in the show’s 47-year run.
Interestingly, Sajak unintentionally revealed his true feelings while explaining the show’s lack of intellectual rigor. “Honestly, my goal is just to help them get through it,” he said, before slipping in, “and to reassure them that even very smart people make mistakes.”
2. Celebrity Jeopardy
Answer: “This show confirms what you’ve always suspected about many celebrities—that they’re not exactly geniuses.”
Question: “What is Celebrity Jeopardy?”
At first glance, Celebrity Jeopardy seems simple, even predictable. Three celebrities (usually B-List) compete on the most iconic quiz show in TV history, with their winnings donated to charity. It began innocently in 2009 with the Million Dollar Celebrity Invitational. While not as intellectually demanding as regular episodes, the questions were still challenging. Michael McKean, later famous for Better Call Saul, emerged victorious.
The issue, of course, is that most celebrities lack the intelligence of an average Jeopardy contestant. They’re not even on par with College Tournament or Teen Tournament participants.
For over a decade, the result has been a version of Jeopardy so simplified that it became a recurring parody on Saturday Night Live. Will Ferrell, portraying the ever-dignified Alex Trebek, struggles to maintain composure amidst a sea of clueless celebrities like Burt Reynolds, Keanu Reeves, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and the legendary Sean Connery. “Suck it, Trebek.”
For fans of absurdity, there’s good news: Later this year, Celebrity Jeopardy will debut as a standalone series. It will air on ABC Sunday nights, nestled between the brainless America’s Funniest Home Videos and—heaven help us—Celebrity Wheel of Fortune.
1. The Price Is Right
Come on down! You’re about to join one of the most mindless shows on TV! This long-running daytime program, second only to Wheel of Fortune in understanding its audience—let’s generously call them “average Americans”—carefully selects contestants to match.
The absurdity begins in the first round, where four contestants, plucked from an overly enthusiastic studio audience, guess the price of a mid-range item. However, they can’t exceed the actual price, leading to strategic moves like adding $1 to a previous guess. It’s essentially the original game show power play.
The winner of this chaotic round moves on to a solo game, which may or may not involve any skill. Some games require a bit of strategy, but most rely entirely on luck. In Plinko, contestants drop a chip that bounces through pegs to land in cash prize columns—like throwing darts blindfolded. In One Away, contestants guess the price of a car, with each digit either one above or below the correct number. Who could possibly know if a Ford F150 costs $25,176 or $25,354? Pure randomness equals pure absurdity.
Finally, three contestants spin a massive, unpredictable wheel twice per show to determine who advances to the final round. It’s all about luck—a simplified game for a simplified audience.
