Masters Of The Maze
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Masters Of The Maze, was a television game show that aired on the Family Channel from 1994 to 1996. The first season was hosted by J. D. Roth, and the second season was hosted by Mario López.
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[edit] First round (both versions)
Three two-member teams competed. Each team chose one member to play the question and answer format of the game, while the other went offstage. At this point, the host showed distorted pictures to the players, each of which became more clear as time progressed. (a la Get the Picture) The first player to buzz in and identify the picture won 10 points, and a chance to answer a question about the picture for 5 additional points. The first two teams to reach 50 points won the right to enter the maze, with the first team doing so earning the right to decide who would go into the maze first. After one team reached 50 points, the other teams played out the rest of the round, but without bonus questions. In the speed round, if a player buzzes in and is incorrect or unable to identify the picture, the host will not showed the rest of the distorted picture to the opponent, instead, a clue is read.
Note: In some early Roth episodes, the picture got clearer over a 10-second time limit. A correct identification was worth as many points as there were seconds remaining, and a chance to double those points on the question.
Before being allowed to enter the maze, the runner was briefed on the maze's layout by the "Lady of the Maze". In the Roth season this was simply the face of an older woman (played by Renae Jacobs); in the Lopez season, the likeness of a younger woman appeared with a high-pitched voice (played by Clea Montvile). The "Lady of the Maze" also appeared again when the runner had reached the halfway point.
[edit] Rules of the J.D. Roth Version
The maze had three sections: the Mirror Maze, the Honeycomb Maze, and the Chamber of Knowledge. The person that answered the questions in the first part of the game was also the one responsible for running through the maze, with his or her team partner guiding them through the maze by moving a giant joystick. This device controlled a computerized voice telling the contestant which direction to go and triggered rumble devices on the outfit the runner wore as an indication on which direction to go. The joystick also had a button that controlled the runner's laser which was used in various parts of the game.
The first section was called the Mirror Maze. In this section, the contestant had to navigate through a series of mirrors. Once the runner reached the end of the Mirror Maze, his or her path was blocked by the "Mirror Man", who would ask the runner a question. A correct answer meant that the runner could pass, while an incorrect answer meant that the runner had to wait five seconds before being allowed to continue.
Once the runner had passed the Mirror Maze, he/she had to find two of several Power Sticks that were hidden in the mountains between the Mirror Maze and the Honeycomb Maze. (Occasionally there was a Power Stick hidden in the Mirror Maze itself.) Once the runner had found two, he/she could then enter the Honeycomb Maze. In this section, the runner had to lower his/her visor, which was essentially a blindfold, and rely on his/her partner to guide him/her through the network of doors and walls.
Once the runner was through the Honeycomb Maze, he/she could raise his/her visor and use one of his/her Power Sticks to enter the Chamber of Knowledge. Once inside, the runner was asked three different true/false questions by three different guardians. A correct answer caused one of the three gates blocking the way out to open. An incorrect answer penalized the runner five seconds, after which the same guardian asked another true/false question. If the runner missed this question, one more true/false question would be asked and if the runner missed all three, the gate would automatically open after five more seconds. Once all three gates were open, the runner could exit the cave (and the maze itself) by inserting his/her remaining power stick in the finish line to stop the clock.
The first team set the time that their opponents had to beat. The second team then entered the maze, and had the amount of time established by the first team to make their way through. If the second team ran out of time, an alarm went off, the game ended immediately, and the first team won. If the second team made it out before time ran out, they won the game. The winners of this version also won the right to play a bonus round.
The bonus round had featured a mountain with five TV screens that constantly flashed "Prize" or "No Prize". The runner faced the first TV on the mountain and told their partner to fire the laser. If the team stopped at least three of the five monitors on "Prize", they won a $500 shopping spree at The Sharper Image in Beverly Hills.
[edit] Rules of the Mario Lopez version
The opening game remained the same, but with extra twists. One was that contestants now shoot the picture using their lazer podium before taking a guess, another was that there's now a special bonus picture at one point in the game in which five bonus points were added to the initial value making it worth 15 points.
The maze, was extended and featured new obstacles. Its four sections were the Mirror Maze, the Ice Cave, the Chamber of Knowledge, and the Lightning Mountain.
The Mirror Maze remained unchanged; however, the run to find the power stick was removed from this part of the game.
Once the runner arrived at the entrance to the Ice Cave, the Lady of The Maze would show the runner a distorted picture (like in the first round). If the runner could identify it within five seconds, he could take the shorter path through the cave; if he failed, he had to take the longer path. In either case, as in the Honeycomb Maze, the runner was required to lower the visor on his helmet. While navigating the Ice Cave, the runner had to find a Power Stick; in addition, he also had to avoid kicking a series of sensors and Mirror Man faces that were placed on the cave floor. If the runner touched, stepped, or kicked one of these objects, several large icicles descended from the cave ceiling, forcing the runner to take a longer detour. Once the player found a Power Stick and made his way through the Ice Cave, he entered the Chamber of Knowledge.
There were now four guardians in this portion of the maze, and only a single correct answer was required to exit. If the runner was incorrect, he had to answer another true/false question, and if he missed that one, he had to wait five seconds before the gates unlocked.
The runner now faced a single television monitor at the base of Lightning Mountain, with faces of the Mirror Man flying on it. The runner had to blast two of these images with his laser before being allowed to run up the mountain and stop the clock. As in the Roth era, the first team set the time that their opponents had to beat. The second team then entered the maze, and had the amount of time established by the first team to make their way through. If the second team ran out of time, an alarm went off, the game ended immediately, and the first team won. If the second team made it out before time ran out, they won the game. The team that won the game automatically won the shopping spree. The bonus round was removed.
In both versions, the winning team received a trophy made from one of the power sticks.
At the end of each episode, the winning runner would win the right to go on a "special journey." This consisted of putting their visor down (and in the Lopez era, their head down as well), and just standing there, and hold on. Because of some CGI trickery, the runner would appear to split into many pieces which would then group into a randomly spinning black (Roth era) or silver (Lopez era) ball which would then float away, either into the video wall (Roth era) or an interdimensional tunnel (Lopez era).
