A RISK expert from the US has shared their theory on how to win big on Deal or No Deal following the return of the beloved game show.
The new series, hosted by Stephen Mulhern, gives contestants the chance to face up to the mysterious Banker and win a cash-prize of up to £100,000, previously £250,000 in the original Channel 4 show hostel by Noel Edmonds.
In the show, each contestant is presented with 22 of the show’s iconic red boxes, which are each sealed with an unknown sum of money inside ranging from 1p to £100,000.
The player has to slowly eliminate the other boxes throughout the game, until they end up with one, which they hope will contain one of the “Big Five” which are the top five amounts of £10,000, £25,000, £50,000, £75,000 and £100,000.
Meanwhile, the Banker — a mysterious figure who only exists at the other end of the phone — will try to buy the boxes off the contestant.
Being successful at Deal or No Deal largely depends on luck, but risk expert Jared Stock, who works as a software developer and data scientist at Thoughtworks in New York, believes there’s a way to win big every time.
Jared called Deal or No Deal “the greatest game show ever conceived” before sharing his theory with MailOnline.
He began: “Contestants are constantly balancing risk and reward, betting on what value they have in their case and adjusting their tolerance for risk based on what values are found.
“The suspense and drama as we watch someone pick cases and agonise over whether to accept huge sums of money is very entertaining.”
Of course, it has a lot to do with odds and the more of the Big Five boxes there are left in the game as the number of boxes still in play decreases, the better chance the contestant has of opening a winning box at the end.
Players also have the option of making a deal with the Banker. When there are less than ten boxes left in the game and all or most of the Big Five are still in play, the Banker will be offering high sums to buy those boxes.
Jared said players shouldn’t rule out making deals.
“The best contestants in my view are the ones who can adapt their thinking as the state of the board changes.
“People who go in stubbornly and say ‘I know I have the jackpot, so I’m not taking any offers’ are almost always wrong and often end up watching their game implode,” he said.
“The most consistently bad decision people make on this show is to stubbornly keep playing a really risky board instead of taking a perfectly good offer when it comes,” Jared added.
So, while the game largely depends on luck, knowing how to adapt your strategy is also important.
“Knowing when to take the money takes just as much guts, if not more, than just shouting ‘no deal’ at the Banker.
“Luck is pretty much baked in once you pick your case, so timing and guts are the real trick,” he concluded.
This means that even if you don’t have a jackpot box, you could still walk away with some serious cash.
