Lecture Notes: Contestant Elimination Game

Introduction

• Game Setup: 20 contestants start, and every minute one contestant is eliminated.
• Prize Money: $500,000 is at stake.
• Voting System: Contestants vote to eliminate others.

Game Dynamics

• Initial Confusion: Contestants lacked context, leading to random eliminations.
• Strategy Formation: Discussions on targeting contestants who had previously won money in Beast Games.

Social Experiments

• Voting Strategy: Participants suggested eliminating those who took prior bribes.
• Fear of Elimination: Built team strategies to control outcomes.

Key Events

• Elimination Process: Random elimination if no consensus; targets formed based on previous wins.
• Private Communication: Contestants used phones in cubes to strategize but also faced deceit in alliances.
  • Example: Player 14 targets Player 10; Player 19 aims to create chaos.

Elimination Decisions

• Revenge Mechanism: The eliminated could take someone down with them.
• Strategic Voting: Some contestants avoided speaking to avoid being targeted.

Games and Challenges

• Block Stacking Challenge: Stack most blocks without falling to win decision power.
  • Outcome: Player 19 and Player 14 frequently won block stacking challenges.
• Button Press Game: Contestants offered money for self-elimination; prize reduces from pool amount.
  • Outcome: One contestant took $69,000, reducing the pool.

Key Strategies

• Forging Alliances: Vital for survival; betrayals could be costly.
• Decision Making: Critical decisions needed for self-preservation or aiding allies.

Final Rounds

• Final Games: Players faced strategic choices on alliances, risking elimination.
• Handcuff Game: Players decide who moves on by handcuffing themselves.
  • Outcome: Player 19 moves on to the final.
• Final Decision: Contestants must hold buttons; if neither releases, no winner.
  • Outcome: Player 11 sacrifices for Player 19, allowing her to win.

Conclusion

• Selfless Act: Player 11’s decision to let Player 19 win due to her cause for cancer patients.
• Overall Message: Cooperation, empathy, and strategy were crucial throughout the game.