Top 20 Best SNL Game Shows

In this spoof of the real game, everyday people team up with celebrities to answer questions about pop culture. The only problem is that these film and TV personalities are completely inept. With round after round, nobody can seem to guess basic information like famous movie titles. It’s also a fantastic opportunity for the cast to unleash some of their best impressions. Two standout performances here are Bill Hader as Al Pacino and Kristen Wiig as Kathie Lee Gifford. The latter character can’t stop drinking wine or dissing her “Today” co-star Hoda Kotb, while the former says hilarious things with no filter whatsoever. Everything is carried by Kate McKinnon’s spot-on Jane Lynch impersonation and her anger toward the guests.

Some game shows feature a format where geniuses compete against ordinary people. In “Beat the Bookworm,” “SNL” takes this idea and runs with it as the supposed expert receives his comeuppance. The skit builds up the bookworm as somebody who can’t lose, making the change in topics especially funny. He has no clue about pop culture and fails in one question after the other. Showing that book knowledge isn’t everything, the premise comes crashing down for the smarter player as his answers are completely clueless. Aziz Ansari’s performance helps to sell the glorious defeat even better.

With actor Leslie Nielsen as the host, “Snap Decision” is anything but a typical game show. Nielsen’s presenter introduces the contestants with the wrong information and keeps confusing them throughout. He plays it completely straight as the entire concept seems to slowly crumble around him, with no certainty between what’s completely right or wrong. The contestants start to deconstruct the game in hilarious ways as they argue over answers. After Jon Lovitz’s character is disqualified, things get even stranger as the final round breaks down with technical difficulties. The entire time Nielsen couldn’t be better suited to roll with the punches and be effortlessly funny.

When you have a host like Melissa McCarthy on “SNL,” the cast members can pretty much sit back and relax while she steals the show. This sketch isn’t any different as a parody of “Press Your Luck” trades in the whammy for a pie in the face. McCarthy is repeatedly pied as her fellow contestants win big, ensuring that an endless series of messes head her way. The lead performer owns the skit as her character can’t seem to catch a break from the endless desserts. She even receives a water clean-up that’s seriously funny as a physical gag. The whole thing works extremely well as a showcase for the main actress’ comic timing.

With so much content to watch, it’s impossible to know everything on TV. This is one of the main concepts behind the game show “What Is Burn Notice?” Contestants guess what the program is actually about, but are unable to come close to the real answer. The host reminds them that the series in question is popular despite nobody present having any idea about it. Stumping the panel, the recurring joke about “Burn Notice” being obscure to the players never gets old. A visual clue doesn’t really help them all that much until one person makes a last-minute guess. For those who remember the USA property, you’ll really love this random nod to it.

Fans of this classic show will appreciate the attention to detail in this sketch. For their “Wheel of Fortune” parody, the writers take aim at Vanna White’s lack of dialog and Pat Sajak’s frustrations with the contestants. This particular version also explores the funny result when all three competitors can’t solve the puzzle. Even with the host’s hints, the people take turns failing and then passing in a never-ending round. Tom Hanks’ subtle performance as Sajak deserves mention for his slow-burn intensity. Ending the whole skit with a huddle, the presenter sends off his guests with a laughable speech about his personal growth.

Since they had so many new cast members at the time, “SNL” decided to poke fun at them with this game show. Tina Fey must choose between the performers and Arcade Fire members in a super specific and funny idea. There are also specific outfits and props that make the decision even harder. If that isn’t enough, they also include a memorable challenge to see who can do a better Robert De Niro impression. By the end of the sketch, Lorne Michaels makes a hilarious cameo as he reveals that even he can’t tell the difference. It’s a great and rare use of the musical guest that allows more people to flex their comedy skills.

Instead of doing a traditional dating competition, “SNL” chooses to play with the typical rules. One contestant is relatively normal and the others are just duos that openly break the mold. Quickly stealing the game away from the first competitor, Andy Samberg and Justin Timberlake’s R&B singers prepare goofy songs of seduction. There’s also the Festrunk Brothers bringing their wild and crazy energy to the proceedings. As the answers become more insane, the woman choosing seems to be really into it in a funny way. Bill Hader’s chaotic host brings a dose of dark comedy to it all. By the end, it’s become a glorious mess of wacky characters that defy good taste.

Have you ever forgotten someone’s name in a truly embarrassing moment? If so, then this particular idea will be your worst nightmare. This game show asks contestants to provide the names of various people. These include civilians from their personal life that they’re supposed to already know. It’s a clever premise that starts to get better as you realize Paul Rudd’s character can’t remember his own doorman. There are so many additional questions that the show raises including why somebody would go this far to embarrass anyone. Regardless of its logic, the program makes for a truly entertaining and surprising sketch.

Sometimes a sketch dive bombs to the point of being spectacular. This is the case for this game show with Kristen Wiig and Maya Rudolph as two showcase models. They’re supposed to let the contestant know what they lost, but everything goes haywire as Wiig starts to laugh. The increasingly ridiculous prizes don’t help her or Rudolph keep a straight face either. The golf cart gag might be the best part, narrowly avoiding an accident and tearing through the set. Bill Hader can barely stay in character as he hides his laughing throughout the skit.

Kenan Thompson is an “SNL” game show MVP, and his Steve Harvey impression is among his best. Imagining him as a bumbling oaf, he mispronounces and misunderstands every question he reads to various confused contestants. The earnestness with which he progresses through the questions despite the clearly unfair misreading is absolutely ludicrous, and things appear to boil over when host Gabourey Sidibe decides to take matters into her own hands... literally. The best part about the sketch is that it was inspired by Harvey’s almost equally ridiculous real-life run as a host, which is also worth having a laugh at.

Using Jerry Seinfeld as the host, this “Jeopardy!” parody is complete with lots of gags about stand-up comedy. Every contestant mimics the host’s delivery as they answer questions by completing the joke. Full of riffs about famous subjects like airplanes and cereal, this skit works especially well for comedy nerds. Seinfeld fills every answer with added commentary that feels like a greatest hits compilation of his material. Dana Carvey, Adam Sandler, and Rob Schneider all bring along their own experience with stand-up to enhance the premise. This ensemble’s collective energy keeps this sketch going with one funny bit after the other.

In this fictitious game show, players must finish famous movie quotes. Unfortunately, Charles Barkley’s Blockbuster manager and Kristen Wiig’s strange Rebecca are absolutely clueless. Barkley has little understanding of how the game is played, while Wiig goes off on long and random tangents. Bill Hader, to no one’s surprise, hosts the show as the straight man to their bizarrely inept participants. The questions are essentially akin to playing a game of Scene It, but much easier. Since these quotes are probably common knowledge to even the most casual moviegoer, the brainlessness of the characters is amped up to the max, to wonderful effect.

We all have a handful of celebrities that we mix up with others, but what if you were challenged to differentiate them? Dylan McDermott of “American Horror Story” and Dermot Mulroney of “My Best Friend’s Wedding” are two similar-looking and similar-named actors, and the contestants are baffled trying to discern which is which. The host, who possesses Bill Hader’s impeccable comic timing, is confused by the nonsensical premise, further complicating things by confusing other films. The show gets really crazy when Dermot Mulroney himself makes a cameo, and even he is unsure of which person he is.

Anyone who’s ever caught a glimpse of a Lifetime Original Movie can understand exactly how melodramatic and ridiculous they can be. The funny ladies take center stage in this game show, in which three mothers have to figure out what’s wrong with daughter Tanya. There’s a joke packed into just about every moment, all of which poke fun at Lifetime. It’s a perfect sketch for host Anna Faris, who made a name for herself with her dramatic hilarity in the “Scary Movie” series, a talent she falls back on here. The sketch feels meticulously researched, and it’s even more rewarding to find out that Kristen Wiig later made a Lifetime movie herself with Will Ferrell.

Zach Galifianakis brings his trademark kookiness as a “Game of Thrones” super-fan competing in a quiz show about the hit show. Well, mostly about the hit show. Host O.J. Sampson gives the poor dragon-clad dude questions that aren’t even related to Westeros. The finale is a torture so cruel that only Cersei could have thought it up, as Nikolaj Coster-Waldau makes a cameo only to embarrass the contestant. It’s a fun watch whether you can relate to the “Game of Thrones” fanatics, or Bill Hader’s clearly annoyed host. After all, when you play the game of “Game of Thrones,” you win or get horribly humiliated.

When Tina Fey and Amy Poehler combine forces, the laughs could almost bring Studio 8H crumbling down. The duo returned to SNL and premiered this gem of a sketch, wherein they hosted a show that introduces married men to their future spouses. It’s obviously an awkward subject what with the current wives in the audience, made even more uncomfortable by the fact that all of the future wives are very young. Fey and Poehler’s glee at the contestants’ obvious discomfort raises the comedy, as does the surreal nature of the show itself. The cherry on top is the final gag that the show itself will be responsible for the death of one current wife.

If you can’t tell by now, Kristen Wiig is one of “SNL”’s all-time greats. Mindy Grayson continually participates on “Secret Word,” despite clearly having a poor grasp of the rules. Her flamboyant theatre actress ranks among Wiig’s best characters, always breaking the cardinal rule of the game by outright stating the secret word. The sketch rises above its seemingly single-joke premise with Wiig’s consistently dynamic performance, as well as a slew of peculiar one-off characters that compete against Mindy. It’s sketches like these that exemplify why Wiig and Bill Hader received Emmy nominations for their time on the show, while also providing showcases for various hosts.

Kenan Thompson’s Steve Harvey returns as host in this parody of the real-life “Celebrity Family Feud.” Allowing the cast to pick-and-choose their best impressions gives all the cast members time to shine, with Jay Pharoah and Kate McKinnon always being particularly memorable. The political edition of the sketch stands out as having some of the best impersonations, including guests Darrell Hammond as Bill Clinton and Larry David as Bernie Sanders. It’s one of the best sources of celebrity imitations on the series, allowing for some of the most absurdly comical moments of recent seasons.

“Celebrity Jeopardy!” is not only “SNL”’s best game show parody, it’s one of the series’ most famous recurring sketches, and rightly so. Like “Celebrity Family Feud,” it brought about some of the show’s best celebrity impersonations, none better than Darrell Hammond’s renowned and antagonizing Sean Connery and Will Ferrell’s exasperated Alex Trebek. The unbelievable idiocy of the celebrities always manages to surprise with each iteration, never failing to please the audience. This sketch was followed by a spiritual successor, “Black Jeopardy!,” which is an excellent staple of the more recent seasons. But after all this time, one question is still unanswered: what exactly are potent potables?