“Wheel of Fortune” is an American television game show. Where does the name of the show come from? Well, it comes from the wheel the contestants have to spin in order to determine the amounts of money or the prizes they have won, or, in some cases lost. Although “wheel of fortune” was first introduces as a television show in the United States in 1975, afterwards it became highly popular in other countries as well, among which are: The United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Romania, Russia, Singapore, Spain and many other countries.

During the game three players take turns in spinning the wheel and trying to solve a word puzzle. The players are given the category the puzzle belongs to as well as blank spaces which, of course, represent the letters the word puzzle is made of. The letters are randomly revealed until the point when a player thinks he knows the answer, buzzes in and, of course, gives the solution. When his turn comes, a player can choose either to spin the wheel, buy a vowel (only if he already has at least $250), or try to solve the puzzle. Usually, the categories for the round, all punctuation signs, slashes and ampersand signs, as well as spaces are given. The most common categories are: person/people, proper name, landmark, place, phrase, occupation, quotation, event, artist & song, before & after, around the house, classic TV, on the map, and many more.

Whenever the pointer lands on a cash value the contestant names a consonant, and if that consonant appears in the puzzle, the host has to reveal all instances of that very same consonant from the word puzzle. Of course, the contestant receives the cash value the pointer lands on multiplied by the times the consonant appears in the puzzle. When the pointer lands on a prize and the contestant gives a correct consonant, he wins that prize. He can also win a free spin place. Originally, after having solved the puzzle, the player could shop away the cash he won, but, since 1987, the contestants have been playing for cash.

Recently, several special rounds have been introduced. Such is the “Toss up Round” when the puzzle is revealed one letter at a time, except the very last letter. When he thinks he knows the answer, a player can buzz in an give the solution for a certain amount of money. Then, there’s the “Bakrupt/$10000/Bankrupt Round” or Round 1.During this round a sign which reads $10000 is places between two “Bankrupt” signs. When landing on a “Bankrupt” sign, naturally, a player becomes “bankrupt”, but when he hits the “$10000” sign he is allowed to guess a consonant, and, given the situation his guess is correct, he wins the prize. Then, there is the “Double Play” sign which allows a player to double the amount the wheel lands on.

Another special round is the “Jackpot” or Round 2. When hitting the “Jackpot” sign, the player has to call a letter and, in the very same round offer the solution for the puzzle. If he succeeds in doing that, the player wins the “Jackpot” along with the total amount collected in that round. Of course, a player can also hit a prize space, case in which he wins that certain prize. Then, there’s the “Mystery Round” or Round 3 when a question mark is placed on the wheel, and when hitting it and after giving a correct letter, the contestant wins whatever is under that sign. A “Spin up Round” occurs when there is not enough time left to finish the game. The host spins the wheel in order to fix an exact amount of money and the contestants will take turns in giving consonants and trying to solve the puzzle.

Of course, recently a video version of this game has been invented and here the rules are the same as at the television game show. What else is there to say about “Wheel of Fortune”? Maybe that it is a quite simple and a really entertaining game which we highly recommend to anyone who likes word puzzles.




For the latest news and information about the online casino entertainment world turn to Online Casino Archive for the most up-to-date information