History Main / SadisticGameShow

[[folder:Literature]]
* As its title might suggest, the conceit of the ''Literature/KillerPuzzles'' book ''Titus O'Skinty's Gruesome Game Show'' is that all the puzzles are games on one of these, and the reader is the unfortunate contestant.
* Creator/RobertSheckley 's short story "The Prize of Peril" is set in a future society which has many game shows that put the contestant in harm's way. The protagonist has worked his way onto the titular game show, in which he is hunted on live TV by a group of killers. Viewers can call in tips to either help him or help the killers. The story was an inspiration for both the novel and the film ''Film/TheRunningMan''.
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* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'': The Winchesters get TrappedInTVLand by The Trickster[[spoiler:/Gabriel]]. Among the shows/scenarios they're forced to act out is being contestants on a Japanese SadisticGameShow named Nutcracker. You get something wrong, you get smacked in the nuts by a mallet device they're both strapped to.

* ''Manga/TomodachiGame'' revolves around a group of friends who are abducted and [[MortonsFork essentially forced]] by a CreepyMascotSuit to play a series of games [[SecretTestOfCharacter designed to make them distrust one another]] in order to pay off the shared "debt" they're told one of them agreed to as the entry fee. Later on it's shown that the whole thing is livestreamed [[PrivilegeMakesYouEvil for the amusement of their rich backers]].

* In ''Franchise/{{Danganronpa}}'', [[spoiler:the franchise as a whole [[TrumanShowPlot turns out to be]] a Sadistic Game Show in which the contestants kill each other and then [[VotedOffTheIsland vote off who they think is the killer]]. The whole thing is broadcast live in a RealityTV format by the Ultimate Despair to spread despair to the citizens of the post-apocalyptic world]]. As of ''VisualNovel/DanganronpaV3KillingHarmony'', [[spoiler:it’s been going on for ''[[FranchiseZombie 53 seasons]]'', and the main characters, as it turns out, volunteered for the show. Their true selves were erased and they were given special talents to make the show interesting. Although supposedly ''V3'' takes place in an alternate universe, and this is according to an UnreliableExpositor]].

The show may look fun to watch, but actually doing the show is torture. Ultimately, the goal is now not just to win, but to survive, both physically and mentally. It doesn't help that the GameShowHost is a SmugSmiler who puts on an air of mock cheerfulness while savoring the contestants' torment and encouraging the audience to enjoy the ''{{Schadenfreude]]''. In some cases, the show is rigged so that the competitors can't even win the prize money, which means that they just subjected themselves to torture and/or humiliation AllForNothing.

Our protagonist is a huge fan of a popular game show that's either been on for some time or just started. S/he has always wanted to be a contestant on the show, and finally decides to audition. After being chosen, our protagonist finally gets to live out their dream... only to realize that what they see on TV and reality are two different things.

The show may look fun to watch, but actually doing the show is torture. Ultimately, the goal is now not just to win, but to survive, both physically and mentally. It doesn't help that the host has this faux air of punchable cheeriness which encourages the audience to watch it more. In some cases, the show is rigged so that the competitors can't even win the prize money, which means that they just subjected themselves to torture and/or humiliation [[AllForNothing for nothing]].

* The premise of ''Film/TheRunningMan'' has Ben Richards (Played by Creator/{{Arnold Schwarzenegger}}), a wrongfully disgraced police helicopter pilot in post-apocalyptic 2019 competing in the eponymous DeadlyGame for his freedom along with two of his prison friends, then later a TV network employee who found out he was framed. In the game, "Runners" have to evade "Stalkers" in an arena with the promise of being pardoned by the state. This turns out to be a lie as it is revealed that Runners that avoided getting killed by Stalkers were later killed and their corpses left to rot in the arena. The one behind it all is Damon Killian, who ultimately gets taken down by Richards in true Schwarzenegger style.

* In ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'', one episode the Winchesters get TrappedInTVLand by The Trickster[[spoiler:/Gabriel]]. Among the shows/scenarios they're forced to act out is being contestants on a Japanese SadisticGameShow named Nutcracker. You get something wrong, you get smacked in the nuts by a mallet device they're both strapped to.

* ''The WesternAnimation/TimonAndPumbaa'' episode "You Bet Your Tuhkus" has the titular duo competing on the eponymous game show. The host of the show convinces the duo to cheat (so that they can be disqualified for being caught cheating, which happened to the first pair of contestants). While Timon is willing to do so, Pumbaa refuses, and as a result, the show devolves into a torturefest, as every wrong answer results in punishment for the other character.

* In ''WesternAnimation/BigMouth'', Nick has an anxiety attack and [[AllJustADream envisions himself]] as the sociopathic host of a game show in a BadFuture where people publicly debase themselves in exchange for "basic human services", such as performing incest in front of a live studio audience over a HealthcareMotivation.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheBatman'': In "Q&A", the villainous Cluemaster kidnaps three people and forces them to participate in a trivia show against him where, if they lose, he will drop them into a pit of acid. As it turns out, Cluemaster is actually Arthur Brown, a child genius who had a winning streak on the trivia show "Quiz Me Quick" until he made a tiny mistake in one of his answers that finally made him lose. He threw a fit and [[PsychopathicManchild never got over it]]. The three people he kidnapped were also on the old show, and he holds them responsible for him losing.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfJimmyNeutronBoyGenius'': In ''Win Lose Kaboom'', Jimmy and his friends enter a game show where the losers see their [[EarthShatteringKaboom planet explode]].
* On ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty'', Earth is forced to participate in an intergalactic singing competition by the Cromulons, with the home planet of the losers being [[EarthShatteringKaboom destroyed]].
* ''WesternAnimation/TotalDrama'' lives and breathes on this. The contestants are put through absurd and life-threatening challenges presented by a shamelessly sadistic host who makes the show "interesting" by [[ScrewTheRulesIMakeThem paying lip service to his own rules and guidelines]] and doesn't care about [[DisposableIntern the many interns killed]] in the process of setting up and testing new challenges. HilarityEnsues as contestants are subjected to numerous AmusingInjuries and frequent humiliation.

* ''WesternAnimation/RegularShow'': The episode "Fool Me Twice". The game show Mordecai, Rigby, and Benson go into pretty much speaks this trope, being a ''Series/TakeshisCastle'' {{expy}} with [[DeadlyGame a deadly obstacle course and an insane host trying to beat them to death]].
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Kaeloo}}'': In Episode 58, Mr. Cat goes on a game show hosted by Kaeloo to prove that he is always right about everything by answering a bunch of difficult questions; Kaeloo rigs the game show to make him lose by inviting [[TheDitz Stumpy]] to participate as his partner. During the show, Mr. Cat is consistently tortured, and by the time the final challenge is over, he almost passes out. [[spoiler: He wins, but it's a PyrrhicVictory.]]

* ''Anime/ErgoProxy'': In episode 15, Vincent wakes up as a contestant on a game show as he is questioned on a variety of random trivia and is threatened with death if he fails.

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* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' episode "Thirty Minutes Over Tokyo", the Simpsons, stranded in Japan without any money, participate in ''The Happy Smile Super Challenge Family Wish Show" in order win tickets back to Springfield. The game includes such challenges as "Ow, that hurts!", "Why are you doing this to me!", and "Please let me die!".

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' 's episode "Thirty Minutes Over Tokyo", the Simpsons, stranded in Japan without any money, participate in ''The Happy Smile Super Challenge Family Wish Show" in order win tickets back to Springfield. The game includes such challenges as "Ow, that hurts!", "Why are you doing this to me!", and "Please let me die!".
* ''WesternAnimation/RegularShow'': The episode "Fool Me Twice". The game show Mordecai, Rigby, and Benson go into pretty much speaks this trope.

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!Examples

* ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty'' has the whole Earth being forced to participate in a reality music competition called "Planet Music" with no prior knowledge of the rules and with the threat of being destroyed. It doesn't help that all of Earth's musicians died when the head Cromulonian first visited Earth.

* In an episode of ''Series/IloveLucy'', Lucy racks up debts of almost $500 dollars, and to make the money she signs up for the game show "Females are Fabulous," where the previous winner shows up wrapped up in bandages from her stunt of going over Niagara Falls in a barrel. Lucy's challenge is to convince Ricky that an actor is her first husband (marriage and divorce were more [[SeriousBusiness serious]] [[ValuesDissonance back]] in TheFifties), however, after a misunderstanding with a hobo, the actor pretending to be Lucy's husband finally shows up. Just as Ricky is threatening to leave, the actor says Lucy beat the challenge, and awards her the $500 dollars she was promised. Ricky then uses the money to settle her debts, and assures her she has some change coming back to her, $1.

* ''Series/{{Victorious}}'': In "Brain Squeezers" the entire cast go on the titular gameshow despite having never seen it before. Whilst initially seeming an ordinary gameshow, it turns out the penalties for getting questions wrong are flat out dangerous including: dropping heavy objects on their heads, blasting them witlh puss, getting hit in the chest with a bowling ball and getting punched in the face. As well as this host sometimes randomly orders additional punishments, other members sometimes randomly also get punished for wrong answers, and at one point they drop a toilet on someone's head half way through them giving the correct answer (something the host dismiss as "things go wrong"). By the end the entire cast are bruised, beaten, bandaged, bleeding and/or tared and feathered. To top it all off, it turns out the contest is rigged so its impossible to win the money.

* In ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'', one episode the Winchesters get TrappedInTVLand by The Trickster[[spoiler:/Gabriel]]. Among the shows/scenarios they're forced to act out is being contestants on a Japanese SadisticGameShow named Nutcracker. You get something wrong, you get smacked in the nuts.

* In ''Franchise/DanganRonpa'', [[spoiler:the franchise as a whole [[TrumanShowPlot turns out to be]] a Sadistic Game Show in which the contestants kill each other and then [[VotedOffTheIsland vote off who they think is the killer]]. The whole thing is broadcast live in a RealityTV format by the Ultimate Despair to spread despair to the citizens of the post-apocalyptic world]]. As of ''VisualNovel/NewDanganRonpaV3'', [[spoiler:it’s been going on for ''[[FranchiseZombie 53 seasons]]'', and the main characters, as it turns out, volunteered for the show. Their true selves were erased and they were given special talents to make the show interesting. Although supposedly V3 takes place in an alternate universe, and this is according to an UnreliableExpositor]].