Street Smarts

A question is posed, and the studio contestants must predict which of the three "savants" gave the correct answer. A correct prediction earns $100. Three questions are asked in this round, and sometimes two "savants" will have answered a question correctly. Sometimes, as an aside, Nicotero will call for a wrong-answer clip to be played to add humor to the show.

This is similar to the first round, but the object is to predict who got the question wrong; for each question, only two of the "savants" are considered (one of whom answered correctly), and correct predictions are now worth $200.

Also, a Dunce Cap is in play in Round Two; Once the question is posed, an in-studio contestant can hit their buzzer if he/she thinks that his/her opponent does not know the answer. The person hitting his/her buzzer usually placed the Dunce Cap on his/her opponent. The "dunce" is allowed to hear the question in its entirety, and must then answer the question within 5 seconds. If the dunce gets the question wrong, $200 goes to the person who hit the buzzer. However, if the dunce does know the answer, then the "dunce" gets the $200 and is allowed to place the dunce cap on his/her opponent (that is, the person who hit the buzzer originally). In either case, the cap must be worn for the remainder of the round. Also, only one dunce cap opportunity is available.

The third round saw the two contestants choose one of the "savants" to work with for the entire round. The round was known as "Pick Your Pony" for the first three seasons and "Pick Your Brain" in the final two seasons. Each question goes to an individual contestant, who must predict whether their "brain/pony" got the question right or wrong. Three questions are asked of each contestant, for a total of six in the round. Correct predictions are now worth $300. The Dunce Cap is back in this round, regardless of whether it was used in the previous round. Once again there is one dunce per round, but dunces are now worth $300.

The "right" reference is indicated in green; the "wrong" reference in red.

Before the final commercial break, a question is asked. During the commercial, the contestants each choose, in secret, 1) which "savant" they wish to pick, 2) whether they got the question right or wrong, and 3) the amount of their score that they wish to wager. A correct prediction adds the contestant's wager to his/her score, while an incorrect prediction loses the wager. High scorer at the end of the game keeps their money, and, in season 5, has the opportunity to risk their winnings for the possibility of a slot in the season-ending Tournament of Champions (see below). An exception to this rule occurs when celebrities play for charity: the winning player's charity receives the money won, with a minimum of $1,000; the losing player's charity receives $500, regardless of the actual score.

The theoretical maximum win on Street Smarts was $4,600, this required getting all predictions right, an all-in bet on the "Wager of Death," and winning both "Dunces."

If the game ended in a tie at more than $0, one final question was asked to both studio contestants. The first player to buzz-in chooses to either answer the question or pass it to his/her opponent. If the buzzing player chooses to answer, he or she must answer based on the information given to that point; if he or she passes, the other player is allowed to hear the entire question. A correct answer by the responding contestant wins the game; answering incorrectly awards the game to their opponent. The tiebreaker only takes place if the players have money; if both players have $0, then the game is over and nobody wins.

In all celebrity episodes, the game ends in a tie and both charities receive the same amount.

For the first season of Street Smarts, the contestants sat in chairs and recorded their answers in the first two rounds using a mechanical trilon and a Right/Wrong paddle for the "Pick Your Pony" round. For the Wager of Death, the contestants would write their wagers, their chosen savants and predictions down on writable flip cards. Meanwhile, television screens positioned next to their chairs would show the score.

Beginning in season two and continuing for the remainder of the series, the contestants stood behind a desk for the whole show and recorded their answers by way of pushing buttons.