Survey Says: These Are the Absolute Classics of American Game TV
Some of the longest-running American game shows have been going strong for 60 years, so if you've been watching TV long enough, you'll definitely have caught a few episodes of the titles on this list. You might have even watched long enough to see the hosts change! From Jeopardy! to Let's Make a Deal, here are the 20 greatest American game shows of all time.
1. Jeopardy!
Jeopardy! first debuted in 1964 and has since been an iconic game show known worldwide, inspiring different versions in other countries, and creating multiple spin-offs, such as Celebrity Jeopardy! and Jeopardy! Masters. The game's objective is simple: given a chosen subject and several clues, contestants must name the answer in the form of a question.
2. The Price Is Right
First aired in 1972, The Price Is Right had been hosted by Bob Barker for 35 years until his retirement in 2007. It's considered the longest-running game show in the US with over 10,000 episodes. Here, contestants—plucked right from the studio—are tasked to guess the price of everyday items.
3. Family Feud
Hosted by Steve Harvey, Family Feud challenges two teams of families to guess the top results of survey questions. The group that wins the face-off is put into a bonus round to win more prizes. Though we'll seemingly never know who even places the answers for these surveys, the show has been running since 1976, which goes to show that maybe we don't care about the specifics if it's entertaining enough.
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4. Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Originally hosted by Regis Philbin, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? gives contestants a chance to win a million-dollar grand prize by answering trivia questions covering different topics, with only three lifelines to help them. It's inspired by the UK game show of the same name, and has been airing since 1998.
5. Wheel of Fortune
Can you guess the phrase? Wheel of Fortune challenges its participants to do just that, with a game wheel that's spun during each turn. Incredibly, game hosts Pat Sajak and Vanna White have been around since the show's debut in 1983, though Sajak announced his retirement in the show's 41st season, with Ryan Seacrest being his successor.
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6. Cash Cab
Ever wanted to not only get a free taxi ride, but win cash while you're at it? That's basically the set-up of Cash Cab: answer trivia questions as you're driven to your destination, but get three strikes and you're kicked to the curb.
7. Deal or No Deal
Howie Mandel hosts this classic American game show, where, if you've watched enough episodes, you probably can still mimic the exact way Mandel asks the iconic questions: "Deal or no deal?" And with gorgeous models holding each briefcase, what more could you ask for?
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8. The Gong Show
Creator and host Chuck Barris leads the absurdity that's The Gong Show, where contestants show off their "talents" in front of a panel of celebrity judges. In a fashion similar to America's Got Talent, if certain acts were bad enough, a massive gong was rung to kick bad performers off the stage.
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9. Match Game
Unless they had telepathic powers, it was mostly pure luck that contestants were riding on in the Match Game. After all, matching answers to the panel of six celebrity judges to fill-in-the-blank questions sounds a lot harder than it... well, sounds.
10. Name That Tune
How good are you at remembering songs? That's the entire premise of Name That Tune, where participants are challenged to guess a piece's title given a few short notes played by an on-stage orchestra or band. Its format is so popular, in fact, that it inspired other similar shows, like Don't Forget the Lyrics and The Singing Bee.
11. Press Your Luck
Press Your Luck invites contestants to answer trivia questions that earn them spins on a game board, which offers various prizes—and whammies. Landing on this cartoon devil empties your pot, which is why the show is named the way it is.
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12. Pyramid
Pyramid, or The $100,000 Pyramid, pairs participants with celebrities as they team up to guess words and phrases under a chosen category. Upon making it through the initial round, successful contestants get a chance at the bonus game, Winner's Circle, where pairs must correctly answer all categories on the pyramid in 60 seconds or less.
13. The Weakest Link
An adaptation of the UK game show of the same name, The Weakest Link debuted in 2001 on NBC with Anne Robinson as the host, who had also presented the UK version. A mash-up of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and Survivor, contestants are pitted against each other as they answer several rounds of questions. The "weakest link" (one with the most incorrect responses) is voted out each round until the last one remaining takes home the prize.
14. Card Sharks
The setup of Card Sharks is a little absurd, but that's probably what makes it so fun and iconic. To start, contestants are asked to predict the outcomes of survey questions, while others guess whether the number is lower or higher. Whoever's answer is the closest gains first control, and they must continue to guess whether each playing card they have is higher or lower than the last.
15. Hollywood Squares
Ever wanted to play human tic-tac-toe? Well, Hollywood Squares is it. Here, two contestants—Mister X and Miss Circle—try to make three squares in a row while simultaneously judging the truth of the celebrities' answers to gain a square. Responses by the stars are often a way for them to crack jokes, dubbed "zingers" by the production staff.
16. Let's Make a Deal
Famously hosted by Monty Hall for 30 years during its original run, Let's Make a Deal offers live contestants from the studio audience—who often wear crazy costumes to get noticed—to trade prizes. As they never know what they're going to trade for, they sometimes end up with something of value or an absolute dud ("zonk").
17. Supermarket Sweep
If you ever wanted free groceries, Supermarket Sweep could grant you that wish. That is, if you're able to correctly answer grocery-related trivia questions to gain a chance to race through the aisles. The original debuted in 1965 on ABC, and the 2020 reprise starred comedian and Saturday Night Live writer Leslie Jones.
18. The Newlywed Game
Four newlywed couples answer knotty questions about each other to see how well they know—or didn't know—about their spouse. It's all fun and games when bickering ensues, which often is the goal of the show, though The Newlywed Game has actually led to more than one divorce.
19. Password
In The $100,000 Pyramid fashion, Password invites two teams—a celebrity paired with a contestant—to guess the secret password using only one-word clues. Variations of the original retro run were reprised with Password All-Stars, Password Plus, Super Password, and Million Dollar Password.
20. Love Connection
Love Connection is both a game show and a live matchmaker: contestants choose potential dates after reviewing clips of three profiles, while the studio audience vote on which is the best pick. If the contestant and the audiences' choice matched, a pair gets a free date!
