How to Create a Game Like Who Wants to Be a Millionaire

Basic Setup

• 1

  Decide on a prize. If you don't have access to $1 million, the amount can be whatever you can want: "Who Wants to Win $10," or a new DVD player or even a bag of jelly beans.

• 2

  Create the stages. Any "Millionaire" game needs a gradual escalation toward the ultimate grand prize. It doesn't necessarily need to be 15 steps, but it should be enough to make it challenging. If you are playing for $10, each new question could be worth $1. For a DVD player, the first prize could be a blank DVD-R and the second prize a cheap bad movie. For jelly beans, the opening prize could be three beans. Don't forget to make plateaus such as $1,000 and $32,000 on "Millionaire" to make sure the contestant is rewarded with something as the game progresses.

• 3

  Find questions. They may be general trivia, but if you are playing with friends, you may decide to pick a topic you are all familiar with, such as sports or entertainment. If appropriate, consider tailoring the questions to the prize, such as movie questions for the DVD player or food questions for the jelly beans. Whatever you choose, make sure the questions are multiple choice and progress from being very easy to very hard.

• 4

  Create a contestant-selection game. You can do "fastest finger" if you want, but this is an opportunity for you to be creative: Ask yourself how you will determine who gets to be worthy to sit in the hot seat for the chance to win $10? Ideas include a race to the hot seat; a rock, paper, scissors tournament; or having the host close his of her eyes and point. The possibilities are endless.

• 5

  Find a host. The host should be a snazzily dressed people person with a knack for coining catch phrases. Finding one who probably won't know most of the answers is a good idea so he or she can better empathize with or appreciate the achievement of the contestants. Finding someone with a New York accent is a plus.