'Wheel of Fortune' fans reveal what they think of new bonus round format — and it's just as expected
The new format added an element of unpredictability, which might not have been present earlier.
Dec. 1 2025, Published 4:52 a.m. ET
The Bonus Round has been largely disappointing for "Wheel of Fortune" fans in the past few months, and now they are calling for some changes. The gameplay has been the same for many years now, and it seems like some viewers have grown tired of seeing the same format play out over and over again, especially in the Bonus Round.
The discussion on Reddit followed a DraftKings Casino Multiplier Tournament on the show from November 24 to 28. In this format, a Bonus Round contestant had to answer five puzzles in 45 seconds, and each correct answer was worth $10,000. Host Ryan Seacrest had to reveal an envelope, but this one was different from the usual ones that contain prize amounts printed inside.
These were multiplier envelopes, and a contestant's prize was multiplied tenfold. This meant that if they got all five puzzles right and the 10x envelope, they’d win half a million dollars. The most recent contestant for this format was a man named Chorsie, who had pulled a 3x envelope and left the show with close to $160,000.
Several fans loved the new format, and some believed that it should be made permanent, as per a report in the Daily Express US. They believed that the new format added an element of ‘randomness’ which the show had been lacking for a long time. They also believed that the show was ‘badly’ in need of a revamp, and an exciting, rapid-fire format like this would have been the perfect solution.
The discussion kicked off in r/WheelOfFortune on Reddit, with one user's question. “Wheel of Fortune tried a completely NEW Bonus Round for DraftKings week! What do you think: Should it be made permanent or should Wheel of Fortune stick with its normal Bonus Round?” they asked. Several fans flocked to the comments section to voice their opinions.
“Honestly, you're right on the money. Wheel is in need of a revamp, badly. The multiplier wedges are nice but they don't fix the main problem: the wheel needs more value randomness to it and it's beyond high time they increased the values to be able to compete prize-wise with other gameshows,” one user wrote.
“I'm not sure if I'm in the unpopular opinion or not here, but I do enjoy the Rapid Fire Bonus Round version,” one more mentioned. “If they got rid of the Triple Toss Up, I could see this as a great update, but they couldn’t make the per-puzzle prize $10K, maybe $1K to $5K,” another viewer explained.
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