Contestants playing a game at Game Show Face Off (Courtesy of Game Show Faceoff)
Have you always watched game shows and said, ‘I’d be good at that.’ Well, get ready to step into the spotlight. Game Show Faceoff, NH’s first live interactive game show studio, opened at the Mall at Fox Run in Newington and offers contestants the chance to compete in a game show experience.
Game Show Faceoff, which was featured on “NH Chronicle” in July, began about seven months ago. It is the brainchild of Larry Vannata, the founder of New England Team Building
in Portsmouth.
The firm offers interactive entertainment experiences for company meetings, private parties and corporate conferences. Vannata’s other brands include Portsmouth Team Building, Monkey Mind Escape Rooms, and Portsmouth Scavenger Hunts.
“People were asking for game shows, and we’ve been sold out every weekend,” Vannata says.
Inspired by popular television game shows, Game Show Faceoff immerses players in a Hollywood-style studio complete with dazzling lights and an audience. Participants can choose from a variety of games that test their knowledge, speed, and teamwork with trivia and physical challenges, from a Family Feud inspired game to ones resembling Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy.
Vannata, who dons a sequin coat while hosting shows, previously worked in the corporate world. “I started Portsmouth Team Building two years ago as a side gig and then made the decision to leave the corporate world,” he says. “My wife [Jennifer] and I manage these businesses. I’ve never been an outgoing person and being a gameshow host was never something I planned to do, but my wife says it’s a good fit.”
“We believe in creating immersive experiences for our customers,” he says. “They come into our gameshow studios hopefully forgetting about everything else and become immersed in the adventure and activity itself.”
Vannata says game shows are the next wave of interactive entertainment that began with escape rooms. He is looking to create franchises for Game Show Face Off in Manchester and Nashua.
“People love trivia. And this is the next step beyond that because it’s interactive,” Vannata says.
Game Show Faceoff is open to the public on Fridays and Saturdays, with private events available for groups and corporate outings at other times of the week.
For more information or to book a game show experience, visit gameshowfaceoff.com.