Atheista -

Anyone who was glued to watching this show back in the early-to-mid 90s would definitely attest that this UK-based program was in a league of it’s own back then and even to this day. The show packs an hour-full of excitement, humor, competition and host Richard O’Brien’s signature flair. It’s a game show that doesn’t borrow much from other television shows and that makes it really hard to put in to words.

The Crystal Maze is a vast indoor compound that is further subdivided to four “zones”. These zones have a distinct theme and are interconnected with each other with intricate passageways, tunnels, elevators, bridges and even canals. The four zones are very well setup and the changing environments definitely enhance the viewing experience.

The Aztec Zone is inspired by a South American city back in the height of Aztec civilization. Entry to the Aztec Zone is actually done by rowing a canoe down piranha-infested waters. The Medieval Zone takes its cue from the Dark Ages of Europe and is only lit by torches. It’s all galvanized iron, vats and motors humming at the Industrial Zone, while the Crystal Maze simulates a computerized future in the Futuristic Zone. In later seasons, the Industrial Zone was replaced by the Ocean Zone – a zone that supposedly represents an ocean liner. In the middle of the four zones lies the Crystal Dome – the final destination of all contestants. The team plots their path before the show starts and follow a route of their choosing in cracking the maze.

The revolves around two concepts: a) getting as many crystals as possible and b) retrieve as many gold tickets in the Crystal Dome. A person is elected as a team’s leader before the start of each show. The leader makes decisions on who plays which game and how to manage each team’s crystals. A player wins a crystal for his or her team for every successfully won game. Each crystal is worth five seconds of time inside the Crystal Dome. At the end of the game, all the “free” players will be vying to get gold tickets in the Crystal Dome – ergo, the more crystals (and players) the better.

The challenges in the Crystal Maze covers an entire spectrum – it could involve games that would require physical strength, skill, mental ability or the knack the solve mysteries. Sometimes, these categories overlap and make for a really tough game. Each game lasts two to three minutes and there are three possible outcomes for each game played – a) the player wins the crystal for his/her team (best-case scenario), b) the player fails and gets out before the time is up and c) the player gets locked in because he was unable to get out in time/ he committed an act that would warrant an automatic lock-in (worst-case scenario).

If a player gets locked in, it would be up to the leader to decide whether he wants to “buy” the player’s freedom. Should the leader decide against it, the player will be locked inside the room until a) the leader decides to post bail (this could happen from anytime) or b) the show ends (haha). If the leader gets locked in, another player is named as a replacement and he/she will make the decisions on behalf of the group.

Timekeeping is meticulously followed in the Crystal Maze. Due to the fact that the games are all played against the clock, the creators of the show came up with visually appealing ways to “disguise” the clocks in the show. In the Aztec Zone, a water clock is used to keep the time. Green liquid pours out of a bamboo pipe and in turn drains in clear container. For some reason, the host has a good idea of how much time has elapsed (I guess that’s what the earpiece is for). A larger than usual hourglass is used in the Medieval Zone. Again, O’Brien knows the time – to the second. The Industrial Zone’s timer takes the form of a device that looks like an air pressure gauge, while a funky looking digital timer is used for the Futuristic Zone.

After all the running and playing in the four zones, the “remnants” of the original six will go to the Crystal Dome. Often times, a team will finish the game with around 6 or 7 crystals and with all six members present. The Dome itself stands in an area surrounded by a moat. A metal bridge rises up from the water to let the players in to the Crystal Dome. The won crystals are place in a special table that illuminates the crystals. Every five seconds, a crystal goes off to signify the decreasing time. In this brief amount of time, the team is expected to collect as many gold tickets and put it on a single letter box located at one of the walls of the dome.

Too easy?

I guess that’s why they added ultra-industrial fans at the bottom of the dome to make it harder. To add to this, silver tickets are also flying inside the Crystal Dome. A team will win if they gather more than a hundred gold tickets. Again, as if it’s not hard enough, every silver ticket will be deducted from the total number of gold tickets. Needless to say, teams rarely win.

Winners are awarded prizes that may seem small compared to today’s shows, but adventure packages like skydiving and F1 racing for a day is nothing to scoff at, right? All players (yes, even those who lose) get a commemorative crystal that says I cracked the Crystal Maze.

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StarTv was the first channel to carry it, but fortunately for those who didn’t have cable back in that time (seriously, who did?) local channels RPN9 and PTV4 (now NBN) also included this in their weekend programming.

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Here are some of the games from the Crystal Maze

	Zone: IndustrialType: Skill Time: 3:00 This is easily among the most familiar games in season one. Eight players played this game but only two people came out with the crystal.The game is fairly straight forward – you have to operate a remote controlled buggy through a maze to retrieve the crystal. The back of the buggy has a magnet that can attract the metal “peg” that the crystal is attached to. After you get the crystal attached to the back of the remote-controlled buggy, you have to maneuver it to a window where you can reach and grab the crystal. Yes, all that in 3 minutes. It’s no wonder only 25% of played this got it. If you have no skill in operating RC cars, you wouldn’t have a chance at all.
	Zone: AztecType: Skill Time: 2:00 Using a blow gun, players will have to break marked glass panels (the ones with the white “+” marks). Tiny ball bearings are launched to release the sand that is being held back by the glass panels. The sand that comes is then funneled to a receptacle. Once an adequate weight of mass of sand is produced, the vessel holding the sand will tilt and through a series of ingenious “aztec” artisanship, the crystal will make it’s way down the half-pipe located at the right (see pic).Three of the six players who played got this.
	Zone: FuturisticType: Physical Time: 2:00 Yes, what you’re seeing is true. You have to use a ginormous screwdriver to unscrew the two screws that is keeping this equally enormous clock shut. Where’s the crystal? See the gray smudge just above the six-o’clock position? That’s it. It doesn’t take much brain power to get this one right. You just have to have the strength to lift the screwdriver and the common sense to know which way of turning would losen the screw.Does it sound too hard? Two of four got this one right. C’mon, two minutes?! Gimme a break!
	Zone: MedievalType: Mental/Mystery Time: 2:00 It’s Mumsy! Aside from Richard, Mumsy is the only other person who is featured in the show. She challenges players by asking them questions that require a bit of common sense, quick math and other mental skills that could be used quickly (i.e. no trivia and complex math). She has three questions prepared. Once a player figures out the answer to one question, Mumsy would remove the crystal ball to reveal the crystal. It’s relatively easy. For season 2, 3 out of the 4 players won the game.
	Zone: IndustrialType: Physical Time: 2:00 Yes, that’s a representation of a giant battery. Players will have to hook up the wires with the use of a wrench and nuts to secure them on the positive and negative terminals. An oversized matchbox is provided to help players reach the top of the battery. The white box at the bottom of the picture is a switch that activates a door bell (it only works if the circuit is completed the right way). The door bell in turn allows the crystal to drop from one of the pipes on the wall. A lot of players fail to see where the crystal is. Sometimes, finding the crystal is harder than winning the game. This was the game that was played the most in Season 2. Out of the 9 who tried, 5 got the crystal.
	Zone: Aztec Type: Mystery Time: 2:30 THIS IS ONE OF THE COOLEST GAMES EVER. Armed with nothing more than a cryptic clue on a piece of paper, you have to figure out where the crystal is buried. The board is partitioned by a grid littered with many “landmarks”. Each clue leads to another and the fourth clue will lead you to the crystal. It’s a very nifty linear game – all that in 2 minutes and thirty seconds. The clue is the caption at the side of the picture. START BETWEEN THE PLACES OF WORSHIP… This game has an automatic lock in. To prevent players from removing the pieces like a madman, one is only allowed to make two mistakes. The third one will mean an automatic lock in Well, no one got locked in and 2 out of 3 players got the crystal.
	Zone: Futuristic Type: Mystery Time: 2:00 I’ve always wonder why this was considered as a ‘mystery’ game. The game seems very unrealistic to complete. First, you have to play laser tag against an android who is guarding the crystal. After hitting the android thrice, you still have to unscrew four bolts that are preventing you from reaching in and getting the crystal (that’s what the guy in the picture is doing). This also has an automatic lock in – if the android hits you three times, you’re out.How can you do that in TWO MINUTES?! Well, don’t ask. All four players who played got the crystal. 0_0

Jhed, here are the games that you’re talking about!

Man, I could go on and on about the games.

Want to watch an entire episode?
Part 1 of 6

Part 2 of 6

Part 3 of 6

Part 4 of 6

Part 5 of 6

Part 6 of 6

First episode ever < It’s a joy to watch.

It was fun to reminisce. Please leave comments and tell me if I missed anything. :p

Reference: Andy’s Crystal Maze Page

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