How to get on Million Second Quiz, when does it air, play at home

How to get on Million Second Quiz, when does it air and everything else you need to know. From Andy Warhol’s famous expression about fame (what is it 15 seconds of fame? Or 15 minutes?) to what does the “A” stand for in NATO,  anything and everything is fair game in NBC’s groundbreaking new competition series Million Second Quiz Monday, premiering tonight (Sept. 9) at 8pm ET. Contestants will get a shot at winning up to $10 how to get on Million Second Quizmillion — the largest prize in game show history. Hosted by Ryan Seacrest, the show will be televised live from Times Square with an elaborate hourglass serving as the backdrop. Time is money in this competition and the longer you can stay alive in the game by answering multiple-choice trivia questions, the more money you can win. The game show has an unprecedented interactive element to it too, where viewers can play at home via the Million Second Quiz app (you can download at the App store or at NBC.com) or play along online. The whole thing is a bit overwhelming, so below we breakdown the format of the game, as well as how you can get on Million Second Quiz.

 

Let’s start with explaining the gist of the game … Contestants will test the limits of their knowledge, nerve and endurance as they battle each other in intense head-to-head bouts of trivia for 12 consecutive days and nights. When the millionth second comes to a close, the top four champions will compete in a grand finale and the ultimate winner will claim what producers hype is “the largest prize in game show history.” The money is accumulated by sitting in the “Money Chair” and answering trivia questions against a rival. For each second a player remains in the chair the money meter will add $10 to the total, so the longer a contestant stays in the chair, the more money he/she wins until that person is defeated. There is the possibility that one person could remain in the Money Chair for all 12 days, but that’s somewhat unlikely, as the game is 24/7, which would mean the individual would need to be playing consistently over the course of 12 days. Think about it — when’s the last time you could even stay focused for more than two hours playing Jeopardy! or Trivia Pursuit online? The top four players who have accumulated the largest amounts of money up to that point in the game, will be hanging out next to the hourglass in an area called “winners’ row” and them will try to survive there until the million seconds are up. Other contestants could beat them if they achieve longer runs in the money chair, so expect “winners’ row” to be rather fluid. When the countdown clock hits zero only the four contestants, who have made it to the end, plus the final person in the money chair, cash in their winnings and battle it out for the grand prize.

When does the Million Second Quiz air on TV?
While the competition is actually 24-hours a day for the next 10 days, the actual TV series will only air for one hour each night on NBC, besides the finale, which will be a two-hour competition.
Monday through Saturday, September 9-14 (8-9pm ET)
Monday through Wednesday, September 16-18 (8-9pm ET)
Finale: Thursday, September 19 (8-10pm ET)

How do you play Million Second Quiz at home online?
Download the free Million Second Quiz on your smart phone or tablet. You’ll need to create an account, which you can do through Twitter, Facebook or, if you aren’t social, you can create an account using your email. Once you have an account you can begin playing. You will be asked if you want to play against a friend (from your current social networks) or against a random competitor. I selected random and kicked butt my first round against some gal in Queens. Consider yourself forewarned, you only have 5 seconds to answer each question and that 5 seconds goes faster than you would think (don’t get distracted by the green bar on the top of your screen either, that’s just showing your progression through the 10 questions, it does not show much time you have left). The question will appear for a few seconds then it will reappear again and four potential answers will be displayed below it. There are 10 questions in each bout worth various points (the points get progressively higher as do the questions). At the end of the bout the player with the highest score takes control of a virtual money chair. If you hold on to the money chair long enough and keep kicking butt against your competitors you could be considered as a “line jumper” to play on TV.

How to get on Million Second Quiz as a line jumper?
So here’s the scoop on being considered for a potential line jumper spot. First, you’ve got to be good, like really good, and play a ton of times. You actually have to reach 3,500 points to be considered for a Line Jumper position. I played just one game so far, and I won and I received 210 points for my win. Now the app tells my status: “3,290 points needed to qualify as a Line Jumper.” So if each win yields me 210 points I need about 16 more wins. Here’s what the rules say on when you reach the required points: If you reach that score prior to the end of the Million Second Quiz television show (or such earlier cutoff date as may be announced – the rules state) and choose to make your information and score available to the casting team, and satisfy other eligibility requirements — [like being 18, passing a background check and a slew of other network-just-covering-their-ass types of requirements] — you may ultimately be chosen “via a casting process” [they want a picture of you too!] from among their pool of other “Line Jumper” candidates. It’s a long shot indeed, but if you like trivia it’s a fun game to play along too. Good luck!!!

Photo Credit: Rodolfo Martinez/NBC

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