Ruck Zuck (game show)
German adaptation of a short-lived U.S. game show.
Ruck Zuck, the German version of the short-lived U.S. show Bruce Forsyth's Hot Streak, was produced by Reg Grundy's company. The show had four hosts over time: Werner Schulze-Erdel, Jochen Bendel, Matthias Euler-Rolle, and Oliver Geissen. Désirée Nosbusch hosted a 1992 kids version, Kinder Ruck Zuck, on Tele 5.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- game show
- Composer
- Ray Ellis; Marc Ellis
- Camera
- Multi-Camera
- Company
- Reg Grundy Productions (1988–2005); UFA Show & Factual
- Network
- Tele 5 (1988–1992, 2004–2005)
- RTL II (1993–1995)
- tm3 (1996–2000)
- RTLplus (2016–2018)
Facts from the source article.
Rules
The game is played identically to its short-lived U.S. counterpart. Two teams of five players each, men versus women, compete. The team leader, who changes each round, chooses one of two words; the other team receives the unchosen word. The remaining players wear headphones with music so they cannot hear. The goal is to describe the word down the line; if a describer repeats a keyword or phrase already used, that half of the round stops and scoring ends. Each successful transfer earns points. The first three rounds are worth 1 point each; round 4 is worth 3 points. The team with the most points after four rounds wins and proceeds to the bonus round. In case of a tie, a tiebreaker round is played: the champion sees a word, and the captain may play or pass it; the team that plays must describe it all the way down to win, or the opponent wins.
Bonus Round
In the bonus game, the host gives the team captain a word or phrase. The captain then provides four words that the partners might associate with that word, while the teammates wear headphones. Afterward, the teammates have 20 seconds (five seconds each) to say as many related words as possible, hoping to match the captain's four words. Each correct match earns money. The winning team plays until defeated or after six wins.
Kinder Ruck Zuck (Tele 5, 1992)
Due to the show's success, a children's version titled Kinder Ruck Zuck aired on Tele 5 in 1992, hosted by Désirée Nosbusch. German children competed, playing the same way as the adult version but for a trip to Euro Disneyland. In the bonus round, the designated captain wore headphones while each teammate gave one word fitting the category; the captain then had 15 seconds to guess all four words to win the trip for the team.
More in Television Series by Reg Grundy Productions
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