$uper $aver

$uper $aver
Premiere Date	May 10, 1989 (#7273D)
Pricing Game Location	Turntable
Previous Premiered Pricing Game	Spelling Bee
Next Premiered Pricing Game	Make Your Move
Finale Date	March 11, 1996 (#9891D)

Contestants tried to be a "Super Saver" simply by saving at least $1 in four purchases.

Gameplay

• The contestant was shown six grocery items, arranged in a circle on the game display. Each item had a false price attached; five of them were marked below their actual retail price (which can be considered to be "bargain" prices), while the sixth item was marked above its actual price. To win a large prize, the contestant had to select four items whose marked prices totaled at least a dollar less than the total of their actual prices, thus "saving" a dollar or more.
• The player selected four items, one at a time. As each item was chosen, its actual price was revealed, and the amount saved was added to a bank on a central screen. If the contestant chose the one item marked above its actual price, that difference was taken away from his or her savings.
• The contestant had to use all four selections regardless of whether they made it to $1 within the first three picks, as they could then pick the lone grocery item marked above the actual price. Unlike similar games of "avoid this item" (e.g. Shopping Spree, Danger Price, Credit Card), picking the marked-up item did not definitively result in a loss (Bob would famously explain that "it is still mathematically possible to win"); if the contestant had picked it but continued to pick the items that saved the most money, the game could still be won. However, this characteristic of the game also led to its retirement.

History

• When the game debuted on May 10, 1989 (#7273D), it wasn't won right away, but it was first won during Season 18. The bell sounds to signify how much money is saved and how much is added into the bank, but the buzzer only sounds to signify how much money is lost from the bank.

Trivia

• The most number of times this game was played in any season was 30 (season 18), while the least number of times this game was played in any season was 5 (season 17).

Malfunctions

• Super Saver was perhaps well known for its infamous malfunctions: the panels did not turn on occasion, the game had unusual white boxes with slanted bottoms at the start of the game, and the "K" in the word "BANK" often remained at the end of the game, resulting in "WIN!" and "LOSE" becoming "WINK" and "LOSK."

Retirement

• Super Saver was retired due to an incident during one of the last playings of the game. Host Bob Barker forgot to specify to the contestant that the game could still be won after choosing the marked-up item. The contestant complained that Bob's failure to disclose this rule to her resulted in her losing the game. The show's staff, after consultation with Standards & Practices, decided to award her the prize. Having concluded it was too easy to miss critical details, Bob, fearful such a mistake would happen again, had the game retired. The retirement had nothing to do with the mechanical problems, although several sources do state so. Bob also explained the rules incorrectly on at least two other occasions, on May 1, 1992 (#8415D), and on February 13, 1995 (#9461D). However, both playings resulted in wins.

Pictures

To view the gallery, click here.

YouTube Videos

A Super Saver Comeback!
A Super Playing of Super Saver!