Top 10 WORST Game Shows

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the game shows that should've stayed in the brainstorming room.

#10: “The Million Second Quiz” (2013)

Ryan Seacrest made a successful name for himself as a host of several reality TV programs. Unfortunately, he had no such success with this gem of a show. How do we even begin to explain the premise of this? Contestants answer trivia questions with the hopes of staying put in the infamous money chair. The four players who manage to sit there the longest are able to keep the cash they accumulated. Yes, we’re just as confused as you are. Besides its wonky structure, the non-cohesive questions, and the endangerment of those involved, it’s just straight up boring to watch!

#9: “Flinch” (2019)

Imagine trying to go against your natural instincts for a game show. Contrary to what the title suggests, the goal is for players to stay still. If they flinch, a painful punishment ensues. Whoever reacts the least is crowned the winner. To add to the pressure, each contestant is the guinea pig for one of the three hosts. Meaning whichever person receives the lowest score, the comedian they’re representing gets the ultimate penalty at the end. Sounds delightful! Instead of enjoying the show, viewers are horrified at the consequences. Why are we watching people face their phobias? Who the heck wouldn’t flinch if a washer machine came flying at them? Forget secondhand embarrassment, this is more like secondhand painfulness.

#8: “Labor Games” (2015)

Giving birth is one heck of an experience. Having your loved ones, doctors, and a network TV crew with you perfectly sets the vibe. Wait, one of these isn’t like the others. That’s right, this game show centers on parents answering trivia questions mid-birth. Okay, the prizes benefit the newly born which is great and all, but really? Labor can be super stressful and intimate at times, why would this make great TV? Viewers want to be entertained, not worry about the well-being of someone pushing out a baby. No wonder this only lived to see one season.

#7: “Red or Black?” (2011-12)

Let’s play a game. Choose heads or tails. 3…2…1. The answer is heads. Now, imagine that being the entire plot of a game show. Players must pick either red or black. And then again. And again. Until there’s a winner. Yes, the format gets a little creative by including stunts, like choosing which color joust will win in a tournament or win a tightrope contest. And the involvement of huge numbers of people in the early rounds is different. But popular game shows are exciting because they’re intriguing and get you thinking about how you’d handle the situations. Simon Cowell’s creation is extremely repetitive and gimmicky, making it 100% not worth tuning into. In addition, several players involved had criminal records, which didn’t help matters.

#6: “You're in the Picture” (1961)

When your show premieres the same night as President Kennedy’s inauguration, you’re already facing stiff competition. As it turned out, the pilot crashed so hard that the second episode was a long apology for how bad it was. That was also the final episode of the game show. The premise is that celebrities put their faces in a hole within a painting that depicted famous lyrics or movie scenes. By asking questions to the host, the objective was to guess what picture they were in. It’s not that ridiculous of a plot, but the choices they made for the pictures were…inappropriate to say the least. The show was so poorly received that people were more excited for the commercial breaks than the series itself.

#5: “My Dad Is Better than Your Dad” (2008)

Turning a kid’s joke into an entire TV show is ridiculous. Children cheer on their fathers as they participate in a series of trivia and physical challenges. You can just see the toll some of these games were taking on the fathers’ bodies. It’s hard to watch. Especially when one of the dads ends up having a heart attack mid-challenge. The prize is also extremely underwhelming. All of this hardship for a mountain bike and an Xbox 360? The show couldn’t even give a monetary reward? Come on now! It’s no shock that the show was eventually canceled after only eight episodes. Good riddance.

#4: “Pitfall” (1981-82)

Guessing games can be super fun but this one is just so random. Players had to guess how audience members answered survey questions. If they made it to the pitfall round, they had to go through a complicated process that no one understood involving general trivia and an elevator. The concept made absolutely no sense but turns out it didn’t even matter. The production company went bankrupt before the show even made it on the screen. Winners and Alex Trebek, the future host of “Jeopardy,” never even got paid fully. Talk about a pitfall.

#3: “The Chamber” (2002)

It’s as spooky as it sounds. Players answer questions while being in a container that is either super cold or really hot. There are also other elements brought into the mix such as shocks and lowering oxygen levels. Obviously, this show tanked. Viewers want to leave the episode happy, not like we involuntarily saw a horror movie. The winner of one show won some money AND a trip to the hospital immediately after filming. The conditions were so unsafe that he received monetary reparations from Fox after serving them a lawsuit. So the show is hard to watch for viewers and horrible for contestants to experience? Thank goodness this was canceled after three episodes.

#2: “Three's a Crowd” (1979-80; 1999-2000)

Close work relationships can be a sensitive conversation topic among some couples. This game show takes it a step further by having a husband’s wife and his secretary compete to see who knows him best. There’s three groups of contestants playing simultaneously and whichever team of women gets the most answers right wins. Besides watching marriages fall apart in real time, the concept is rooted in sexism. It doesn’t matter if it’s their colleagues or partners who win, the men receive money regardless. Plus, this is rather humiliating to everyone except the male spouses. No wonder the National Organization for Women spoke out against this disaster. A 1999 revival with different female pairings fared no better.

#1: “Hurl!” (2008)

What a whirlwind of disgust. Competitive eating and vigorous activities are cool enough to watch independently of each other. But combining them to see who’s the last to vomit? We need to have a quick chat with the creator of this show NOW. While some people are more tolerant of puke than others, there’s only a small percentage who like to go out of their way to see it. Also, the food choices are atrocious. PB & J sandwiches and ambrosia salad do not go together! If you really need to have a censored and uncensored version of your game show, maybe don’t air it? Despite the odds, the show aired for eleven glorious episodes.


Which one of these game shows should’ve been canceled immediately? Let us know in the comments down below!