The Top 5 ‘90s Nickelodeon Game Shows – Ranked

In the ‘90s, did you dream of meeting Marc Summers and getting a pie in the face? Or maybe you wanted to climb to the top of a mountain amidst falling rocks, or go full on Indiana Jones finding an ancient artifact? Nickelodeon featured all sorts of game shows in the ‘90s where kids (and sometimes their families too) could be the stars of the show… at least for one episode.

Today, we’re going to take a look back at the top five of those Nickelodeon game shows where, if you couldn’t be a contestant, you could at least maybe have been an audience member and felt like you were part of the television magic you experienced at home.

5. Wild and Crazy Kids (1990-1992)

Wild and Crazy Kids featured large teams of kids facing off against each other in a series of three games, each hosted by one of the three emcees of the series – Omar Gooding and Donnie Jeffcoat hosted all three seasons, with Annette Chavez joining them in season one, and Jessica Gaynes in the last two seasons. The games were mostly playground-type games with some interesting twists, such as a take on Red Light/Green Light which was re-themed Red Pie/Green Pie where, if someone was caught trying to move when it was “red light” time, they would get a pie in the face. Most notable about this show were the many guest stars that appeared, including Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, and Lark Voorhies.

4. Nickelodeon GUTS (1992 - 1995)

Mike O’Malley and Moira “Mo” Quirk hosted Nickelodeon’s GUTS, which featured three contestants battling in the Extreme Arena to ultimately win it all. The events the kids competed in often were just slightly more extreme versions of regular sports like basketball, baseball, football and soccer. Players would get points depending on how they placed in each round, but the real decider was the final round – the Aggro Crag. The Aggro Crag was a tall fabricated mountain where contestants avoided obstacles and activated “actuators” (basically just light-up buttons) as they climbed to the top. Whoever got the most points in the end after all of the rounds was the big winner — and what did they win? A gold medal and a glowing piece of the Aggro Crag. These shows weren’t about big prizes but rather the fun of competing, duh.

3. What Would You Do? (1991 - 1993)

What Would You Do? was all about audience participation, as there were no pre-picked contestants, but rather various audience members could be selected to participate in certain segments throughout each episode. Marc Summers hosted this show while also hosting Family Double Dare, pulling some double duty action. You may be thinking back, wondering to yourself, what was this show even about? The answer: pie, really. It was all about people getting a pie in the face (often in the Pie Pod), or even going down a slide into a giant pie. Just lots and lots of whipped cream being thrown at people in the guise of various games. One of the most memorable aspects of the show was the Wall O’ Stuff, which was a wall of numbered doors, each hiding a prize or a surprise. Would you get some sweet WWYD merchandise, or a pie in the face? That was always a possibility, because, as we said, this show loved its pie.

2. Legends of the Hidden Temple (1993 - 1995)

If you were a fan of Indiana Jones, then Legends of the Hidden Temple was the show for you — it was essentially a combo of that famous archaeologist’s adventures and trivia a la Jeopardy. Six teams would compete in each episode, which would revolve around a particular artifact, real or fictional. The teams would compete in three different rounds based on the artifact of that episode — whichever team emerged victorious then competed in the final round: The Temple Run, where they attempted to get through the Temple and find the artifact. Just for entering the Temple, the team would get a prize, but if they got the artifact and exited the Temple with it within the time limit, they got a special grand prize, which was usually a fancy trip somewhere. It was pretty rare that the team would actually make it through the Temple successfully, but it did happen every now and then so at least it wasn’t too rigged.

1. Double Dare (1986 - 1993)

Obviously, Double Dare had to take the cake here — it’s the OG Nickelodeon game show, and has had the most spinoffs and variations throughout the years. Indeed, the original Double Dare actually started in the ‘80s, so the one most of us ‘90s kids remember is likely the Family Double Dare version that was produced in the ‘90s. Marc Summers hosted this show that featured both trivia questions as well as physical challenges that were often extremely messy, with the winning team also getting to participate in the bonus round obstacle course, with increasing prizes as each obstacle was completed. Double Dare really put Nickelodeon on the map, tripling viewership for Nickelodeon’s afternoon schedule within just a month of its premiere, and quickly became the highest-rated original, daily program on cable. It was just such a blast to watch — playing along with the trivia, or laughing at the various physical challenges and the thrill of the final obstacle course. Double Dare was awesome, and you can’t convince us otherwise.

What was your favorite ’90s Nickelodeon game show? Do you agree with our ranking? Let us know in the comments!

Omar Gooding, one of the hosts of Wild and Crazy Kids, is the brother of actor Cuba Gooding, Jr.
Double Dare considered both Soupy Sales and Dana Carvey as hosts, but thought Sales would be too old for the role, and Carvey ended up getting Saturday Night Live around the same time. After more than 1,000 applicants tried to get the hosting gig, Marc Summers ended up winning out.
In 2016, Nickelodeon released a live-action television movie based on Legends of the Hidden Temple, which follows three siblings who ditch a jungle tour and find themselves in a real-life obstacle course.
Nickelodeon released a video game version of GUTS in 1994 for the Super NES. One or two players could compete in many of the events that were featured on the TV show. The game was based on actual footage and contains filmed contestants.
Apart from Wild and Crazy Kids and the original version of Double Dare, all of these game shows were filmed at Universal Studios in Florida. Wild and Crazy Kids was filmed in various parks and beaches in the Los Angeles area, and the original Double Dare was filmed in Philadelphia.

Omar Gooding, one of the hosts of Wild and Crazy Kids, is the brother of actor Cuba Gooding, Jr.
Double Dare considered both Soupy Sales and Dana Carvey as hosts, but thought Sales would be too old for the role, and Carvey ended up getting Saturday Night Live around the same time. After more than 1,000 applicants tried to get the hosting gig, Marc Summers ended up winning out.
In 2016, Nickelodeon released a live-action television movie based on Legends of the Hidden Temple, which follows three siblings who ditch a jungle tour and find themselves in a real-life obstacle course.
Nickelodeon released a video game version of GUTS in 1994 for the Super NES. One or two players could compete in many of the events that were featured on the TV show. The game was based on actual footage and contains filmed contestants.
Apart from Wild and Crazy Kids and the original version of Double Dare, all of these game shows were filmed at Universal Studios in Florida. Wild and Crazy Kids was filmed in various parks and beaches in the Los Angeles area, and the original Double Dare was filmed in Philadelphia.