Shafted (Dryicor)

Shafted was a Dryicoran game show broadcast on DTV 1 from 2003 until 2006. Presented by Aatto Räikkönen and based on the of the same name, it challenged players to win up to 104,2m Kr by deceiving their opponents and answering questions correctly, because, as Räikkönen put it, DTV "forgot to cap the prize limit".

The show was a surprise runaway success upon launch. Many people wanted to take part and viewing figures reached over 19 million on an episode in 2004 (unheard of since Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? hit its peak in 2002). After it was axed in 2006 due to declining ratings, DTV announced the show would be revived later in 2021, with slightly different gameplay.

Gameplay
The game begins with six players and is played in five rounds. In the first round, each player must secretly declare how much money they would like to receive, to a maximum of 25 000 Kr. Once the amounts are revealed, the person who has asked for the largest amount is immediately eliminated from the game and receives nothing. Each of the other five is credited with the amount they requested.

In each of the next three rounds, the host reads the first few words of a question and invites the players to wager a portion of their totals. Once the wagers are entered, the host reads the entire question and the player who made the largest wager has to answer it. A correct answer adds the wager to their total, while a miss deducts it. Once the host has asked as many questions as there are players still in the game, the leader chooses one opponent to eliminate with no winnings. The totals of all remaining players are then increased to match that of the leader.

At the beginning of the third round, each player is given an option to "Shift," or force an opponent to answer a question meant for them. Each player can use this option once during the third or fourth rounds.

However, an complete question can be on a very different matter from that suggested by its incomplete prompt. An example from the 2001 pilot of the British version:


 * Prompt: Which Dickens character...
 * Question: Which Dickens character's namesake made the Statue of Liberty disappear? (Answer: David Copperfield)

In the fifth and final round, the two remaining players stand at podiums facing each other in a form of the prisoner's dilemma, with the leader's total at stake. A brief snippet of a backstage interview with each player is shown to the audience, after which both of them must secretly decide to "share" or "shaft." Their choices are revealed to the home viewers, but not to the audience, host, or players, and they are then given a chance to discuss the situation and change their decisions if they wish. Their final choices determine the fate of the jackpot.


 * If both choose "share," each wins half the money.
 * If one chooses "share" and the other "shaft," the shafting player wins all the money.
 * If both choose "shaft," neither wins any money.

Highest winners
On a Series 3 episode on 9 April, 2004, Elizabeta Lämpää amassed 1 855 000 Kr from her game, however, both Elizabeta and Walter Fällönen shafted each other out, and they left with nothing.

On a Series 4 episode on 29 September, 2005, Ray Pöllönen shared his 961 000 Kr with Reijo Laksonnen, and they both left with 480 500 Kr.

On a Series 3 celebrity special on 8 February, 2004, Timo Brondevik successfully shafted 510 000 Kr from Sarah Jones.