See also: FAQs

Purpose of the Game:
Survivor Hamilton: Old Meets New is just a game, similar but uniquely different to CBS’ wildly popular Survivor reality game show. At a high level, 2 tribes of individuals, some friends, some strangers, will build virtual relationships using social media, compete in online teamwork challenges posted on this website, and each episode the losing tribe will vote out one of their own. This will continue until only 2 survivors remain, when a jury of voted-out players will determine the winner.

The Social Aspect:
By agreeing to play the game, you are confirming your willingness to attempt to build relationships and short/long term strategies and alliances with your tribemates via web, text, chat, phone, video, etc., but level at which you engage is up to you. Everyone will have a different strategy, and while your host will set up opportunities for your tribe to get to know eachother better, it is not mandatory to put a high level of effort into this game – you may just be voted out if no one trusts you. If you just want to check the website a couple times a week, and join a WhatsApp group, that’s ok. If you want to set up recurring video conferences with your alliance before every Tribal Council, that’s fine too. Your strategy is up to you, but you’ll need to own the results.

Immunity Challenges:
Without going into too much detail, problem-solving challenges of various types will be posted on the website on Mondays & Thursdays between 5-9pm EST, and it will be up to your tribe to work together to solve the puzzles, and send your responses via the method described by your host in the time allotted. These challenges will be designed to test different skillsets, utilizing both individual effort and team coordination to win. Each challenge will be posted with specific instructions for how to submit responses, and what the winning criteria will be. The challenges are designed to be completely fair to each tribe, but specific advantages earned in Reward Challenges may have an impact. Participation in these challenges is mandatory, but may not require everyone’s efforts each week, so please pay close attention to the Challenge description and rules. The results of the Immunity Challenge will be posted on Monday and Thursday nights, with complete details on top and bottom performers, and the strategies each tribe adopted.

Reward Challenges:
On an infrequent basis, Reward Challenges will be posted on the website, with specific instructions on how to win, and some information on what the tribal or individual reward will be. These challenges are designed to give your tribe more opportunities to connect with eachother, and to introduce twists and advantages to the game in a fair and transparent manner. These challenges may be posted on any off-day of the week (Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays), at any time of day, and will be completely optional. The rewards will range from challenge advantages to hidden immunity idols and beyond, and will be inspired by the CBS television show, but adapted for Survivor Hamilton.

Tribal Council:
Each week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays, the tribe that loses the Immunity Challenge will need to vote someone out of their tribe. You will do this by sending your vote to your host by the allotted time – likely 8pm, but we’ll adapt to personal schedules where possible. Votes will be accepted only in the 60-minute period prior to Tribal Council. We will read the votes live on video conference, and discuss what’s been happening with your tribe.

Your host would also like to interview eliminated Survivors each week for a few minutes along with last season’s winner Meg, asking about what happened, tribal dynamics, and predictions for the rest of the game. While this activity will share that players’ personal views of the game to that point, we will be very cautious about spoiling any active players’ secrets.

Game Schedule:
Please be aware that this is a highly involved game, and to keep it moving at a brisk pace, the following schedule will be adopted:

Sundays: No Formal Activities
Mondays: Immunity Challenge
Tuesdays: No Formal Activities
Wednesdays: Tribal Council
Thursdays: Immunity Challenge
Fridays: No Formal Activities
Saturdays: Tribal Council

Merge and Finale:
At some point near the halfway point of the game, the 2 tribes will merge into 1, and we will shift from tribal to Individual Immunity Challenges, which will award one player with Individual Immunity. That player can not be voted out of the game. Voting will continue until there are only 2 players left in the game, at which point, at the Finale, the jury of those players that made it to the merge will vote for a winner.

The Prize:
This will be determined based on feedback from the selected players. If players decide to pay a small amount, we will be able to provide a prize and potentially other Survivor Hamilton swag, fully dependent on our bankroll. If everyone just wants to play for fun, we can do that too.

Other Important Notes:
Registration: A registration link will be provided prior to player selection, which will ask for high-level personal information from the player, which will go onto their Player Page.
Not Participating in an Immunity Challenge: There will be no individual penalty for missing an Immunity Challenge, but your absence could result in your team losing and you paying the price at Tribal Council.
Not Participating in a Tribal Council Vote: If you do not vote by the allotted time when your tribe is scheduled to vote someone out, your absence will count as a forfeiture and you will be eliminated from the game immediately. For this reason, it is important to set reminders for yourself, and provide your host with your vote with time to spare.
Hidden Immunity Idols: An HII will be played at the time of vote submission, with a clear indication of which player you are protecting. Any votes cast against that person will not count, and the player with the next highest vote total will be eliminated.
In the Event of a Tie: The players with the highest number of votes against will not vote, the remaining players will re-vote only for one of those 2 highest vote-getters. If the result is a tie again, the 2 highest vote-getters are granted Immunity, and the remaining players will compete in a simple challenge, wherein the loser will be eliminated.
Twists: Throughout the game, there will be a handful of twists designed to shake up the dynamics of the tribes. They will be scheduled ahead of time as part of the overall season blueprint, and should be treated as neither fair or unfair, just a twist that could have hurt or helped anyone’s game.
Playing with Integrity: Though Survivor Hamilton is just a game, many hours are invested, and friendships can be challenged by tough votes and “betrayals”. Please treat the game functionally like a game of Sorry! – there is a winner and a bunch of losers and the fun is in the journey you take along the way. Spoiling other players’ secrets and strategies after you’ve been voted out can ruin their game and experience. Don’t take it too seriously, and never intimidate or be inappropriate with your fellow players. Your host will find out, and you’ll be removed from the game if anyone is made to feel uncomfortable.

Now, please use the comments section to ask any questions you have about the game. We will respond to them promptly.

MH