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Golden Balls: DVD Game

Moby ID: 96146

Description

Golden Balls: DVD Game is based on the popular UK game Golden Balls which was originally broadcast between 2007 and 2009. The TV show was hosted by Jasper Carrott who also hosts this game.

The game comes in a keep case with four two sided 'Golden Wheels' reminiscent of the copy protection code wheels of old PC games. Each side contains thirty eight segments numbered 1-38 on one side and 39-76 on the other. Each segment contains a message such as 'You've been voted off'; '£35,000 £500 KILLER', and so on. Note: Though the 'Golden Wheels' look the same the messages in the numbered segments differs from one to another.

While the TV game was played by four players, this implementation of the game can be played by up to four players with AI players making up the numbers. The 'Golden Wheels' are only used by the human players and then only in rounds one and two.

Round One: The game has a bank of one hundred golden balls and inside each is a cash amount between 310 and £75,000. The game draws twelve of these balls at random and adds four 'Killer' balls making sixteen in total. These sixteen balls are divided among the four players who display them as two front balls and two back balls. The front balls are revealed while the back balls stay hidden. Players then look at the value of their balls and announce a value to all the other players, this may be the truth, a calculated bluff or an outrageous lie.
This is where the 'Golden Wheels' come into the game. After the balls have been dealt to each player the screen shows the players' front balls. The human players are instructed to turn their 'Golden Wheels' to a specific numbered segment from side one, which shows what their back balls are. The players keep the contents of their segments secret as the next stage is where they discuss amongst themselves what they claim have. The player(s) then get to see what the AI players claim to have.
The round ends with player's taking a vote on who they want to eliminate, it's perfectly possible for the human player to be eliminated. In the event of a tie there's a second vote and if there is still a tie then there's a sudden death draw which eliminates one player.
The round ends with all players' balls being revealed.

Round Two: At the start of round two the eliminated player's balls are removed from the game. The twelve balls of the remaining players ate put into a pool and two more cash balls together with one more 'Killer' are added. The balls are then distributed five per player, two front balls and three back balls. The human players are instructed to look at a segment from side two of their 'Golden Wheel' which they talk about amongst themselves, once again after discussions/bluffing has been completed the player(s) get to see what the AI opponents claim to have.
As with round one there's a vote and one player leaves

Round Three: Bin To Win At the stat of this round the five balls of the remaining two players are taken away , another 'Killer' ball is added and the eleven balls are all mixed up. The remaining players then take turns picking a ball, one player's balls are discarded while the other player's selections are added to the cash pot. However should the player building the cash pot pick a 'Killer' ball they reduce the value of the prize pot by a factor of ten making £1000 into £100, £100 into £10 and so on. This continues until all the balls have been selected / discarded and the game calculates the final jackpot total.

Round Four: Split or Steal. The remaining two players are given two balls. Inside each ball is a word, either Split or Steal. Human players discuss strategy between each other and, again, can either tell the truth or lie. If there is an AI player the game shows a screen suggesting the probability of a SPLIT / Steal answer. After the chat the players submit one ball. * If both players submit SPLIT then the cash is shared between them

  • If both players submit STEAL then neither of them gets any money
  • If one player submits SPLIT and the other submits STEAL then the player who submitted STEAL takes all the jackpot

That's all there was to the TV show and that's all there is to the game. Jasper Carrott announces the winner, the game displays half a dozen credits screens and then returns to the main menu.

Groups +

Screenshots

Credits (DVD Player version)

20 People (19 developers, 1 thanks)

Presented by
Music by
Production Manager
Executive Producers
Producer
Series Producer
Head Of Consumer Products
Licensing Manager
Product Developer
Project Manager
Marketing Manager
Managing Director
Producers
Design
Authoring
Quality Control
With Special Thanks to

Reviews

Players

Average score: 2.7 out of 5 (based on 1 ratings)

Just like the TV show - and I didn't like that

The Good
Credit where it's due, this game follows the format of the TV show closely and with the 'Golden Wheels' the game designers have found a neat way of getting around the problem of dealing with the hidden balls.

I didn't like the TV show the game is based on and consequently I didn't see much of it, however other family members did like it so at some points it was impossible to escape. From that hazy memory I have to say that the music and introduction sequence used in the game were either the same as was used in the TV show or pretty close to it. In addition all the show's features, or at least those that I remember, are here too, the Ball Bank, the lovely assistant with 'Killer Balls', the forced tension of the voting, the final round where the jackpot diminishes irritatingly and so on.

The Bad
The game lacked atmosphere and that I'm afraid comes down to the presenter. With some DVD game shows the presenter still manages to use some inflection in their voice as if they are really interested in what's going on, Chris Tarrant who hosts the UK Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? series is a good example of a good host who does this effortlessly. In this game there was nothing like that, in fact for most of the time it seemed that the presenter wasn't looking at the camera but at an autocue just beneath it.

The Bottom Line
It's not challenging and there's no skill involved, but then there wasn't in the TV show either. If you think the TV show was great then you'll probably enjoy a trip down memory lane playing this game.

For me it's an average DVD game based on a TV show I didn't like.

DVD Player · by piltdown_man (235969) · 2017

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  • MobyGames ID: 96146
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Game added by piltdown_man.

Game added September 20, 2017. Last modified March 9, 2023.