Boom! (American game show)

Format

Three contestants work together as a team to disarm six bombs, one at a time, by answering a single question for each. Every question offers several answer choices, but only one is wrong. Each possible answer is linked to a wire of a different color on the bomb. The team must cut only the wires matching the correct answers before the bomb’s timer runs out.

Before a question, the category is announced, and the team picks one player to handle it. That player cuts a wire, which briefly pauses the timer. After a three-second pause, the result is shown. If the player cuts every correct wire, the bomb is defused and the team’s bank grows. But if the player cuts the wrong wire or time expires, the bomb “explodes,” spraying its contents all over that player and the studio. That player is out of the game, and no money is added to the bank.

Everyone on stage—players and host—wears safety goggles. Audience members in the front rows also wear goggles and plastic rain ponchos to stay clean. The bombs are typically filled with sticky, hard-to-clean food items like pizza sauce, maple syrup, or gravy.

Each player must attempt at least one of the six bombs. If all three are eliminated before the sixth bomb, the game ends and the team leaves with nothing. The value of each bomb, the time limit, and the number of answer choices increase with each question, as shown in a table.

If at least one player remains after the sixth bomb, the team can either take their winnings and stop or try a seventh question to defuse the Mega Money Bomb. The host reveals the category for this final question to help them decide. This question has ten answer choices: seven correct and three incorrect, with a 90-second time limit. One player cuts the wires while the other two can offer advice, and all three must stand over the bomb. Any player—even one eliminated earlier—may be chosen to cut the wires. If the team succeeds, their entire bank is quadrupled. If they fail, the bank is cut in half.

The maximum possible winnings are $500,000, achieved by defusing all seven bombs.