Nick's NTN Standard Game Info

Last Update:
06/08/04
01:00 7 EST

Countdown: The "standard" game format. This half-hour game features general trivia in three five question rounds. It is the most common game format. The questions are followed by five possible answers and then by three clues, the third one being a positive clue to the correct answer, usually. If you correctly answer the question immediately (about five seconds) you'll receive 1000 points. If you answer after the first clue you'll receive around 750 points, on the second clue around 500 and after the third clue less than 300 points. Wrong answers will net you a negative 250 points. Ouch. Good scores range from 9000-12000. To make top twenty nationally you'll need above 13000. Depending on how easy the game was, sometimes you'll need near a perfect score.

Round	Q	Points	Max
1	5	1000	5000
2	5	1000	5000
3	5	1000	5000

Wipeout: The other "standard" game. This half-hour game features general trivia in three five question rounds. This is the second most common game format. It also has three five question rounds. But instead of clues, three wrong answers will be removed from the list. The scoring is the same as Countdown. Because of having to choose from two final answers, wrong answers giving you zero points are more common. Good scores tend to be in the 8000-11000 range.

Round	Q	Points	Max
1	5	1000	5000
2	5	1000	5000
3	5	1000	5000

Countdown Variants:

• Abused News: Features very current news and events (within the past two days). The game plays every weeknight around 7:30 (PST). Sometimes the answers to the question are rather bizarre. If you have not heard any mention of the question, sometimes its a good bet to pick the most unlikely answer. Good scores vary, but since this is only ranked by time zone, it is easier to make the top-twenty list with a less than stellar score.
• Appeteasers: 15 minute variant - 2 rounds of 4 questions
• BrainBuster: This is a countdown-style game except the questions are more difficult, and the clues are hard too. Sometimes the clues are harder than the question. It is played once a week on Wednesdays. You're doing well to score above 7000.
• Get Reel!: Movies
• PastTimes: U.S. history
• Retro*acTiVe: Classic TV 
• Sci-Files: Science-fiction and fantasy
• Topix: This Countdown variant has all questions related to one topic. You can find a list of upcoming topics at NTN's what's new page. The topics range from James Bond movies to Ballet and usually relate to some event near the time of the game's play date (movie releases, holiday's, etc.).

Battle of the Sexes: Questions/Scoring men versus women. I've played this a couple times, it's usually too crowded, and I've drank my limit by the time this game comes on. More interactive than most and I haven't figured out the scoring yet.

Round	Q	Point	Max	Q Format	Notes
1	12	2/4	36	3 choices/question
2	12	?	?	Category - players vote	2 questions per category
3	20	?	?	1 clue, 2 choices
4	?	?	?	Gender neutral

 

Round	Q	Points	Max	Q Format	Notes
1	8	1000	8000	Countdown style
2	6	1000	6000	Vote for the topic - Coutdown style scoring

Mini-Six: Miniture two-round version of the premium game SIX. The second and fourth rounds are included in this game.

Round	Q	Points	Bonus	Max	Q Format	Notes
1	6	6x250	500/Group	12000	Word matching	Never match the answer straight across.
2	6	1000	0-5000/Topic	21000	Wipeout	Bonus for answering prior to first clue (5 Seconds).

Nightside: NTN's only "adult" game, usually only available late at night and must be scheduled by the bar's NTN administrator. I've played this game maybe twice in six years.

Round	Q	Point	Max	Q Format	Notes
1	5	1000	5000	All or nothing
2	5	1000	5000	All or nothing
3	5	1000	5000	All or nothing

Triviaoke: Based on Playback's Triviaoke round. I haven't played this in so long that I'm not sure about the questions and rounds.

Round	Q	Points	Max	Q Format	Notes
1	5	1000	5000	Complete the lyric
2	5	1000	5000	Complete the lyric
3	5	1000	5000	Complete the lyric

Tuned In: I have not played this game, it's on Saturday nights one of the nights I rarely play.

Discontinued Games

Restore Order: A fastest finger type half-hour game. Three rounds of questions. Each question has four items which you must place in the order specified, e.g. West to East, oldest to newest, largest to smallest, etc. Scoring is based on speed of entry and correctness with 5-second penalties for each incorrect answer. REMEMBER this game requires you to use the small red number buttons.

Round	Q	Point	Max	Q Format	Notes
1	4	0-30	0-120	Category - Players vote between two categories
2	4	0-30	0-120	Chronology
3	4	0-30	0-120	Geography