Magic Number (stylized as Magic #) is a game where a contestant tried to set a number between prices of two prizes.
Gameplay
- The contestant is told which is the least expensive of the two and which is the most expensive of the two. The contestant must then find a "magic number" - a number that falls between the two prices. The magic number has to be higher than the prize on the left and lower than the prize on the right. Exact numbers are inclusive (and it has happened once) - to win both prizes. To do so, the contestant raises and lowers a lever attached to the prop that will increase or decrease the number displayed on a readout. When the contestant is finished setting the magic number, the actual retail price of both prizes are shown one at a time. If the magic number isn't higher than the prize on the left or lower than the prize on the right, they lose the game. But if the magic number is higher than the prize on the left and lower than the prize on the right, they win both prizes.
History
- Magic Number used a chime and then the winning bells whenever a win has occurred early on.
- The chime was eliminated and only the winning bells sounded when a win has occurred.
- On one occurrence, on October 21, 1997, as the contestant stopped the Magic Number at 1429 but (as she pulled the lever lower) she did not notice she actually misadjusted it just below the center, causing the number to go down one at a time on its own. Noticing this, Bob and the contestant briefly had to move far from the game until he said if she wanted to go lower, and did so, stopping at 1140 and fixed the game, but the contestant wanted a higher Magic Number, and went higher and stopped at 1230. On top of that, she won the game.
- In the mid 2000s, the sound effect for the number display counting up or down sounded very different.
Trivia
- Like Gas Money and More or Less, Magic Number has never been the first pricing game to start any show. Because it needs time to start up, the game can be no earlier than 2nd on the show.
- The most number of times this game was played in any season was 26.
Gallery
