Games - Extreme Dodgeball

Home > Listing Index > Games > Extreme Dodgeball

	Games - Extreme Dodgeball

Extreme Dodgeball is an American television show that debuted on Game Show Network in 2004. At this time, GSN has declined to renew the show for another season. It is also featured on the British television channel Challenge.

Standard Rules

Two teams of five compete in a match of three rounds in a best-of-three format. A round ends when one of the two teams loses all five of its members. The first round is standard and is played with two dodgeballs. In the second round, often called the "Big Ball Round," a third ball which is twice the diameter of the other two is added into play. This ball is often used to deflect attacks. In the third round, "Dead Man Walking," the Big Ball is removed and in its place is an orange headband that is placed on one member of each team who is designated the "Dead Man Walking." In the first and second seasons, if the Dead Man Walking is eliminated, the team he represents loses the game and consequently the match.

Elimination

In each of the three seasons, there were multiple ways for an athlete to be eliminated and sent to the sideline. Some variations in these regulations exist in the three seasons, but for the most part these rules remain the same. The following are ways in which a member of a team can be eliminated:

Getting hit with a ball
Throwing a ball which an opponent catches (in this case, a person previously eliminated can come back in, but the number of people in the playing arena cannot exceed 5)
Using a ball to deflect an opponent's ball when the ball being held by the player is dislodged upon being hit
Crossing over the center line or (in seasons one and two) stepping outside the boundary

There are also two ways of returning to the game after being eliminated. The first was previously mentioned: if a player catches a ball, one of their teammates can come back onto the court, until five members are on the court. The second way is called a regeneration. In the first season, if all but one member of the team were eliminated, the last player had the opportunity to hit a target aptly named the "regeneration target" and, if this was accomplished with 30 seconds, bring all of his teammates back onto the court. In season two, this rule was changed. The last player on the court only had to stay alive for 20 seconds to regenerate his team. In both cases, a team could only regenerate once per round. Lastly, in the third season, this rule was changed again. If the last player standing is able to not be eliminated for 30 seconds, only one of his teammates can return. If he is eliminated, four team members return to the game. However, this could be done unlimited times.

Rule Changes and Amendments

In the second season, aside from the changes already mentioned, there were two main changes: Firstly, there is a 5 second delay of game warning. If a team held more than one ball for over 5 seconds, one of the players would be out. The second rule stated that if a player, in the opinion of the referee, was impeding the flow of play of the game by stalling, refusing to throw the ball, or attempting to force a play on the opposing team, the referee(s) could give that player a "yellow card" (two yellow cards meant that the player in question was out). This second rule was introduced in the early stages of the second season and is called the Benedetto Amendment, after player David Benedetto whose wise, however sly, tactics were considered unfair play.

In the third season, many significant changes were made to the rules. First, the teams would add two players each, increasing the number of players from five to seven. Still, however, only five members of the team would be allowed on the court at any given time.

Other small changes were added. For example, if a player received a yellow card for yelling at the referee, holding a ball for too long, disobeying the instructions given, etc., he would have to stand in a small square while a player on the other team would be given a free shot at him. Another small change was in the court itself. In previous seasons, the boundaries had been on the left, right, and front for each team. In this season, however, the left and right boundaries were removed and the court became similar to that of many indoor sports, such as indoor soccer or ice hockey.

The main change in this season was the format of the matches. Instead of 3 rounds which ended when all of the players on one of the teams were eliminated, the matches would be divided to four, six-minute quarters. The victor would not be decided by the fastest elimination of an entire team; rather, the team with the most points at the end of the 24 minutes. If a player eliminates any opponent in any way, his team gains one point. Bonus points are given in special circumstances (i.e. when a team wipes out the entire other team, if a player "kills" an opponent with the Big Ball by throwing, and killing the Dead Man Walking).

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Extreme Dodgeball ]

Searches on eBay

extreme dodgeball