I just stumbled across an episode of the 2014 version of "A prendre ou à laisser." It is the first version outside the UK to incorporate a "bonus" post-game extra box, which in their case is Box 25 due to there being 24 boxes in the main game. I found it a bit lack-luster from the beginning, and I think the board and possible Box 25 options will show why.

Board:

€0.01
€0.05
€0.10
€0.50
€1
€5
€10
€25
€50
€100
€250
€500
JACKPOT
€2,000
€3,000
€4,000
€5,000
€7,500
€10,000
€15,000
€20,000
€25,000
€50,000
€100,000

Box 25 Options:
DOUBLE
MONEY BACK
NOTHING

And before anyone gets their hopes up, the Jackpot is not an extra large amount. It is simply the French equivalent of Pachitos, which allows the player to win a "jackpot" of €1,000 + €500 for every day it goes unclaimed of they find the box within their first 3 selections. However, after that the box is worth absolutely NOTHING to the player. In of itself, I personally think that is a good addition to the game, especially as the jackpot is not at risk when Box 25 is bought.

Another thing I like about this version is the offers. It follows a 6-5-4-3-2-1-1 offer set-up, which I personally think is the perfect balance that creates some good decisions throughout. Also, the French Banker now makes mid-game Banker's Gambles, which is referred to as the "Comeback" offer. This is definitely a good mechanism of getting games to fit the 1 hour time-slot. In addition, the French Banker still knows what's in the boxes and makes SWAP offers, making for some brilliant mind games throughout.

Now that I have that out of the way, let's discuss the huge flaw of this version; it is undoubtedly and ridiculously CHEAP! Not only is the top prize a mere €100,000 (compared to the €500,000 that the previous French version offered), but it's exposed from the beginning with the 3rd largest amount being €25,000. This means that roughly 75% of games won't have a five figure offer throughout, especially given how cheap this Banker can sometimes be. This makes for some pretty boring games to say the least. Also, the Box 25 options are HORRIBLE, as not only will most players not buy it, but it also doesn't allow blue winners a shot at any consolation. Given that most games will be low-tariff throughout, this version really could have done with at least a +€5,000 option for Box 25.

So all in all this is an OK version of Deal, but I certainly have no intention of recapping it even if my schedule clears up in the future.

EDIT: As last Friday's game conformed, if the player has the Jackpot in their box, they will win the current value of the Jackpot. However, it will still have €500 added to it the next day as it wasn't won as a bonus.

If there was a Canadian version of Deal in the '80s, it would've been even cheaper, with a top prize of $5,000 or less. Canadian game shows were notoriously cheap back in the day.

That being said, I think €100,000 might the lowest top prize ever offered on any version of Deal. If you look at some other versions, you'll see that the minimum is usually 200,000 or 250,000 of that country's currency.

Previous versions of APOAL offered up to €1 million, so this is definitely a huge comedown. And a bonus box with only three options is a terrible idea. You need at least five options in there in order to make the contestants give it some consideration.

I can't see this version lasting very long. It might end up being very short-lived, just like the Irish version. At least that version has a top prize of €250,000, though.

Also, is Arthur back as the host? He was quite good on the older versions of APOAL.

One more question: What happened to your Affari Tuoi recaps? I enjoyed reading them.