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The popular game show 1 vs. 100 will soon be coming to the Xbox 360, but it promises to be more than just a simple trivia game that you can play with a few friends. Instead, Microsoft will actually be rolling out a live interactive game show with regular episodes that broadcast weekly via the Xbox 360’s online gaming service, Xbox Live, and allow thousands of players to come together and share in the experience.
Microsoft demonstrated 1 vs. 100 to a roomful of journalists at a preview event that Gamezebo attended yesterday. The full game is scheduled to launch later this spring, but what we saw was more than enough to whet our appetites.
If you’ve never watched 1 vs. 100 on TV, the game pits a single contestant (“the One”) against a mob of 100 players to see who can answer the most questions correctly. Each time one of the 100 gets an answer wrong, he or she is eliminated from play and the One earns more cash. Of course, the One has to answer all of the questions correctly as well.
In the online version, players who connect to the game will have a chance to be select as the One, or one of the 100. The rest of the players will still be able to play along and answer questions as members of the audience. The format is similar to other console trivia games like Scene It!, where you have a limited amount of time to buzz in the correct answer based on a series of multiple choice questions. There’s a pretty strict time limit, so if you’re thinking about cheating by Googling all the answers, forget it!
One of the most compelling things about 1 vs. 100 is that real prizes are up for grabs. The One and the Mob will compete for a purse of 10,000 Microsoft Points (a value of about $125) every episode, which can be spent on games, movies and TV episodes from the Xbox Live Arcade. Mob members who perform well have the chance to earn free Xbox Live Arcade games. Audience members who answer questions correctly will build up credits that increase their chances of being chosen as contestants the next time around.
In addition to the main event on Friday evenings, trivia buffs can hone their skills in the “1 vs 100 Extended Play” mode, which features themed trivia each night of the week around topics like Battle of the Sexes, Super Hard, and Player Written Questions.
There are a couple of unique things here: one is that each player is represented in the game by his or her Xbox Live avatar, which adds a healthy dose of personality to the game (in the demo we played, our colleagues couldn’t stop waving, taunting and showing off their dance moves – all actions that you can make your avatar perform by tapping the “Y” button).
The other neat thing, of course, is that 1 vs. 100 is Microsoft’s first attempt at a “massively-multiplayer” social game. The game show episodes are scheduled events happening in real time with live commentary by the host, Emmy Award-winning actor Chris Cashman. In other words, you can be guaranteed that when you sign in to play there will be other people around to play with – unlike other online experiences where you log in and just hope that there are other people around at the same time. Also, there will be a team of writers on-hand to produce fresh content each week to reflect current events and other hot topics, so you shouldn’t see any stale or repeat questions.
1 vs. 100 is free to play, but you need to have an Xbox Live Gold membership - Microsoft’s premium online gaming service that enables Xbox 360 users to play multiplayer games online for a $50 per year subscription fee. However, if there’s one Gold member in the house, the game allows up to three other players who have Silver (free) memberships to connect alongside them and play along. The game will also be supported by ads and sponsorships presented during regularly scheduled “commercial breaks,” much like a real game show.
1 vs. 100 is currently in beta, and the full game will launch later this spring. With the energy of a “live” game show and the excitement of real prizes on the line, 1 vs. 100 has certainly peaked our interest. For all of you who've ever watched a game show on TV and wanted to be there, now's your chance. We'll definitely be tuning in.
