The Cha$e Is On (Cha$e)

Member Name: Xbox_Tipster

Product:	Cha$e
Date:	28/01/09 (194 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Never been done before -- Fun to watch -- Well edited -- Interesting

Disadvantages: Aired on SciFi (American TV station) - however available via streams + youtube.

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WHAT IS CHA$E
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Cha$e is a new American TV show that is being aired on the SciFi channel - Tuesdays 10pm (3am UK time).

Cha$e is a 'real life video game' that puts members of the public ('runners') up against 'hunters' where the aim of the game is to simply evade the hunters for 60 minutes and reach the finish point first - there is only one winner who gets a cash prize of $25,000 + any bonuses they got during the game.

Each episode takes place on a different game-board (location), which are in Los Angeles - locations so far have included Descanso Gardens, San Pedro Harbor and Universal Theme Park.

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WHAT HAPPENS DURING THE 60 MINUTES
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Throughout the 60 minutes the runners have to constantly be on the look-out for the Hunters that are patrolling the game-board, because as soon as they are spotted the Hunter(s) will chase them until the runner is either out of sight, or caught. If the Hunter chasing the Runner touches any part of the runners body, that runner will be instantly eliminated from the game. New Hunters are released onto the game board throughout the 60 minutes, I think it's about one every 10 minutes.

Simply out-running a hunter is not the only way to get rid of them though. During the 60 minutes, sometimes the runners will be contacted on their cell phones that they are each given at the start of the game. The host of the game (Trey Farley) will then give them a specific challenge to try complete within a time-limit.

The challenges they are given seem to be different every episode, the ones that I have seen include navigating their way through a lazer maze (triggering a lazer sounds an alarm that attracts the Hunters), memory test (watching a colour sequence and then repeating it back), breaking into blocks of ice to retrieve a key, and being told a location of where a utility is but they have to search the area to find them.

These challenges are optional, but for those that complete them they are rewarded with certain Utilities to help evade the Hunters. Not everybody takes part in the challenges though because they aren't able to find the location - Trey Farley tells them where the location is, but they have to use their map reading skills to get there...and avoid any hunters on the way.

To spice things up the runners are also sometimes called on their cell phones to tell them that they must complete a task within a time limit or else they will face a consequence. For example the last episode I watched they were told they had to find another runner of the opposite sex and connect each others backpacks together - doing this would stop a beacon being activated (flashes red & sounds like an alarm) that was attached to each of the players backpacks. Runners are able to locate where each other are as they can call each other on their cell phones. The runners that failed to disarm their beacons were sitting ducks when their beacons became activated because all the hunters could hear and see exactly where they were hiding, so escaping the hunters became a lot harder for them and ultimately more interesting to watch.

Runners can earn themselves bonus money throughout the game by collecting various money flags scattered across the game-board (worth about $1,000 each), so this encourages people to keep moving around and not stay in one place.

So, now you're probably wondering what the "utilities" are that I mentioned can be used to evade the Hunters..

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UTILITIES
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The utilities that the runners can earn throughout the 60 minutes are:

*Deflector*

The deflector is usually the first utility the runners can earn during their challenges, to use it the runner must point it at the chasing hunter and pull the trigger which will cause the Hunter to turn 180 degrees and walk off in the opposite direction to the runner. The deflector can only be used once.

*Freeze Ray*

Using the freeze ray is the same as the deflector - aim at the hunter and pull the trigger, this will cause the hunter to stop in their tracks and be frozen to the spot for 60 seconds. The freeze ray can also only be used once.

*Sonic Stunner*

The sonic stunner is perfect for when a runner is being chased by multiple hunters. To use it the runner must aim the sonic stunner in the hunters direction and pull the trigger, this will have the same affect as the freeze ray but it works on multiple hunters. The sonic stunner can also only be used once.

*Invisibility Glasses*

When a runner puts on their invisibility glasses they become invisible to the hunters for 2 minutes. If the glasses are removed during that time they no longer work - it's amazing to see how many people forget this and get caught because they lifted their glasses to read their maps.

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THE HUNTERS
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So who are the hunters ? Well they're actors who each have a different skill, so each one poses a different threat to the runners. The hunters names and skills are:

Amazon - Speed Runner
Grant - Sprinter
Icey - Endurance
Scott - Agility
Vazquez - Jumper
Wong - Stealth
Kim - Speed Runner (he is extremely fast!!)
T-Bo - Parkour

Once you've watched a few episodes you'll learn which are the most dangerous hunters, some of them are really good to watch due to their running speed - especially Kim because he's lightning quick, I'd hate to be running away from him.

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HOW TO WIN
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Well as mentioned before, you must survive the whole 60 minutes to emerge the winner, but you must also be the first to reach the finish point. Throughout the game the runners will be given clues as to where the finish point will be, and in the last 2 minutes they are told the exact location.

Getting to the finish line is not easy though as every single hunter is on the game board looking for them - including the final hunter who is known as the 'spotter' because he or she is on a vehicle driving around the game board (when this hunter locates a runner, they tell all the other hunters the location of the runner they've spotted) , so during these final 2 minutes of the game it's the perfect time to use the invisibility glasses if the runners have them. The runner who reaches the finish line first wins $25,000 + any bonus money they collected (money flags).

If everybody is caught by the hunters and no-one reaches the finish line by the 60th minute (the exit point is open for 2 minutes) - there is no winner and everybody goes home empty handed. Also, it doesn't matter how much bonus money anyone earns if they are eliminated, because if you're eliminated from the game - you go home with nothing. It is winner takes all.

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MY OPINION
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At first I thought the concept of the game sounded a bit cheesy, but after watching a few episodes I must say I'm slightly hooked on it ! The members of the public all have different professions, ranging from secretaries to marathon runners. I always have my favorite person that I want to win each show, although I have to say my favorites have never won so far !

It's interesting to see what each Runner has to say about themselves before the game starts, some of them are really cocky and some are relatively shy. I think the most hilarious episode I've seen is where they had a marathon runner on the show and he was convinced he was going to win and was slagging off the other contestants saying they had no chance, but within about 5 minutes he came within range of a hunter and was mouthing off to the hunter to chase him and he got caught straight away - what a tit !

It's also really interesting to see how each runner plays the game, some of them assemble themselves into little groups and work together, whereas other runners decide to go it alone. Sometimes people pair up together, but then one of them will be devious and deliberately get the person they are teaming up with caught. I've even seen some runners ask to "borrow" the other runners map and then run off with it as soon as they've got it !

The people that don't group up with others are great to watch because they are clearly in it to win it and often you'll see them jogging away after being chased by a hunter and they'll come across a group of runners walking together heading in the direction of the hunter and he/she will tell the group there isn't any hunters where they've just come from. Then it's great fun to see them walk straight into the hunter and get chased around the map like headless chickens.

Each show is edited really well - to give it more of a video game feel they've put cameras on each of the hunters so you can see through their eyes. The editing team have then put a graphics interface around the hunters camera footage that says stuff like "searching..." and then "...target located" when they spot someone, and "...target lost" when/if a runner escapes. During chase scenes the camera work is also good as they quickly cut between the hunters view and the runner trying to escape - it makes it pretty tense if you're hoping the person doesn't get caught, but they always cut to commercial breaks during the crucial moment which I guess is pretty clever of them so you don't change the channel !

Each show is kept fresh due to being at a different location with new runners, one of the shows I've seen was even done at night-time which made it quite interesting as it was harder for the runners to spot the hunters coming. The latest episode has more of a team feel to it, as it is a "twins episode" where a bunch of twins go up against each other trying to win. I haven't seen this episode yet, but I imagine it will be very interesting to watch and see how the twins work together or if they infact trick their twin into getting caught. May the best twin win i guess ... !

Cha$e might not be everybody's cup of tea, but I find it a welcome change to the soaps & reality shows that are constantly being aired on our TV's. It's an interesting show to watch with plenty of action that keeps me hooked throughout. I think it's probably more appealing to younger audiences, but I don't see why all ages shouldn't enjoy the show - give it a try sometime.

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WHERE CAN I WATCH IT
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Well of course this is an American show, so you can't watch it on TV over here in the UK, however there are other ways.

Firstly, you can use streaming websites. Personally I've watched all the episodes over at http://www.justin.tv (at 3am ... yup I do stay up that late sometimes!)

Secondly, you can watch them on youtube. Here is a link to somebody that has all the current episodes (Season 1 - 6 episodes) uploaded:

http://uk.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=1B7FFA2A9B AF1080

^ Uploaded in good video quality also.


Enjoy, and let me know what you think if you watch the show ! :)

Summary: A great new gameshow that's full of challenges and excitement.