Commercial Free Fun

There isn't a person on Earth who doesn't have a special place in their heart for Wheel of Fortune. Where else can you see Pat Sajak and Vanna White and guess answers like "Sugar and Spice Girls?" The long running game show has seen many video game incarnations, but none have really captured the essence and excitement of the show quite like this one has. A few times I got a little too excited, and I had to remind myself that it was just a game!

I'd Like To Buy A Vowel

I doubt there are many people out there who don't know what Wheel of Fortune is all about. To be on the safe side, however, I'll explain the all of the rules and rounds and what not. For those who already know, consider this your refresher course and pay attention! You might learn something you didn't know or had forgotten. We're having a quiz on this later!

Each round presents you with a category such as occupation or event of movie title. Blank squares will light up on the board to show you how many letters there are in each part of the puzzle. You have three options: you can spin the wheel, buy a vowel, or attempt to solve the puzzle.

Given that you have no money to buy a vowel, and you haven't uncovered any letters that would help you solve the puzzle, you're best off just spinning the wheel. When you do, you'll either get a dollar amount, bankrupt, lose a turn, or free spin. Bankrupt takes all of the money you've earned in that round, lose a turn takes a turn, and free spin grants you one free spin, provided that you guess a correct consonant. If you land on a dollar amount, you get a chance to guess a letter. If you guess correctly, you receive that dollar amount for every instance of that letter that is in the puzzle. If the letter you guess is not in the puzzle, you lose a turn.

Once you get some money, you can start purchasing vowels. Vowels cost a flat $250, regardless of how many instances of that vowel you uncover. This can be a smart move early on in the game, as letters such as "E" and "A" are among the most common in the alphabet, and revealing those will help immensely in solving the puzzle. Be careful, though, because if you buy a vowel that isn't in the puzzle, you lose a turn and still have to pay for it.

Once you reveal enough letters so that you feel confident you know the answer, click the "solve" button, and use the keyboard to input the missing letters. If you get it right, you win the round! If you don't, you lose a turn.

Making The Rounds

A game of Wheel of Fortune consists of four rounds, assuming you correctly solve all of the puzzles. In Round 1, one of the spaces on the wheel consists of a small 10,000 peg, surrounded on both sides by bankrupt tabs. In Round 2, or the Jackpot Round, there is a constantly rising jackpot that can be won by landing on the Jackpot space and guessing a correct letter. There is also a prize space, and the prize can be any amount of cash. In Round 3, the Mystery Round, players can land on a mystery space. If they do so, and correctly guess a letter, they are given the option of revealing the mystery tab, which can be either a cash prize or a bankrupt. Finally there is a fourth round, but I don't want to spoil everything!