But we still had a good view of the stage. Plus names were called at random so people up much higher than us got called.
They do things different for the live show compared to what you see on the real show. First it is hosted by Reality TV star Mark L. Wahlberg from Antiques Roadshow. Normally contestants stay in contestant row until they get the closest bid. Three games the wheel etc, etc.
The way this works is they call 4 people at a time and they go up and bid, the winner plays the game and then a new group of 4 get called up, they bid and play game. They do this 3 times so that more people have the opportunity to play the game. Now one thing that they did different was they call 3 new people up to spin the big wheel. Then it is repeated again with 3 more games and then the wheel again. Finally they do the showcase. I really did not like the way this was done. They show all the prizes then they call out one person from the audience to give someone a chance to "play for the showcase" I thought they would do a bid like normal. But instead they chose one of the harder games "Ten Chances" to win the 4 prizes. The woman who was chosen won the first 2 prizes but not the car.
They really did have a nice selection of prizes even though they are scaled back price wise compared to show.
There were some really good games that are a part of the show but not very many prizes were won.
Cliffhanger- iMac Computer (did not win)
Hole in One- Stainless Steal Fridge (did not win)
Punch a Bunch-2500 (won 500)
Plinko-2500 (won 550)
Any Number-Trip to Vegas (did not win)
Showcase- Coffee Pot, PS3, 50" TV, Trip to Hollywood and a Nissan Versa (did not win)
Anyone who played the game and lost was given a 100.00 gift card from Amazon. They gave away a 250.00 gift card to Amazon, 3 25.00 gift cards to Subway and 3 25.00 gift cards to Home Depot to people in the audience who didn't play any games.
My tips for anyone who reads this and is thinking about going to one of these if the show comes to a town near you.
1. Don't pay the extra amount for VIP or better seats. The contestants are picked at random regardless where you are seated.
2. Preregister online otherwise you will wait in line to do that.
3. Don't bother designing a crazy shirt because it is not like the real show. The only people who see them are the audience.
4. Don't bid high on any items when bidding. I am guessing the people who were chosen did not research this because they were bidding 700-800 on a couple items. I think the most expensive item was around 400.00
5. Have fun and enjoy yourself. There was one contestant who seemed so miserable to be there with no personality even the host was having a hard time getting any reaction out of her.
6. Don't expect to be chosen. There are so many people there who all want to get picked and unless you are one of the chosen few (19-20 people)
I wanted to take more pictures but once the announcer started talking they said no cameras so boo :(
