The contents (i.e., the values) of all of the cases are known at the start of the game, but the specific location of any prize is unknown. The main game revolves around the opening of a set of numbered briefcases, each of which contains a different prize (cash or otherwise). In other countries, there is only one preselected contestant who will play the main game without any preliminary contest. Via a short trivia round or a random selection, one player is selected to be the contestant for the main game with his case.
There are also some versions with the number of players equal to the number of cases, each player receives one case. This was the format used by the Dutch show "Miljoenenjacht" (Hunt/Chase for Millions) which initiated the "Deal or no Deal" game (originally the Dutch show was based on a German format called "Die Chance deines Lebens" (The Chance of your Lifetime) which was based on trivia questions and did not have the briefcase element at all). In some countries, there is a preliminary contest in which the studio audience is whittled down to one final contender by several trivia question rounds, this final contender then proceeds to the main game. The gameplay of the show differs from country to country. Thus, the contestant "wins" depending on whether the player should have taken one of the deals or should have held onto the original case or box until the very end. Throughout the game, the player is offered an amount of money or prizes to quit, being asked the titular question, "Deal or no deal?" If the contestant rejects every deal and eliminates all the other cases or boxes, the player keeps the money that was in the original case or box. The contestant then chooses the other cases or boxes, one at a time, to be immediately opened and removed from play. After the player for the case game is determined, this contender claims (or is assigned) one case or a box at the start of the game, without its contents being revealed.
the "case game" or "main game" ) which is played with up to 26 cases (or, in some versions, boxes), each containing randomly assigned sums of money. The centerpiece of this format is the final round (a.k.a. Deal or No Deal is the name of several closely related television game shows, the first of which (launching the format) was the Dutch Miljoenenjacht ( Hunt/Chase for Millions) produced by French content production company Banijay (formerly Endemol (Shine)).