...To using the late '70s/Early 80's format???

While watching a MG'90 ep yesterday, as witnessed by the red/green stars on either side of the celeb names and the odd *-M-A-T-C-H signs on the contestant desks (which easily could have been 6 green/red *'s with one * per match), it looked as though they prepared the set with the predecessor's format in mind (maximum 6 matches per game).

Would the gameplay (in your opinion) have been better if they did use the 70's/80's version format -- with or without the Match-Up rounds?

Was there a serious effort to go with the 70's/80's format before they went to the "unlimited matches" format, and what was the reasoning?

That's exactly why I would love to see the pilot. All I've seen of it is the one moment you see on GS blooper specials. Perhaps a giving soul could upload it to the You Tube.

Based on the couple of Bert Convy pilots that I saw, the format was as such...

There were no Match-ups and three rounds of "everybody plays" 70s Match Game were played.

ROUND 1 - 1 point per match
ROUND 2 - 1 point per match
ROUND 3 - 2 points per match

The rectangular stars next to each celeb's nameplate stayed lit up when a player matched him/her, but they were reset at the beginning of each round.

Also, the individual *-M-A-T-C-H rectangles didn't seem to line up on the player's podium. The scoreboard was a two-digit eggcrate display (to accomodate a maximum score of 18) as opposed to the four-digit display used once the show hit the air.

In watching the pilots, it seemed like the having a 3-round "everybody plays" format dragged a bit. Also, all thepilots seemed to run long for a half-hour slot. Program time clocked in around the 27-minute range EVEN with editing.

- Mandel
http://mandelweb.com