Fort Boyard (TV Series) - The Treasure Room

The Treasure Room

The Treasure Room (Treasure Chamber in Ultimate Challenge) is the climax to each episode of Fort Boyard. The gold is stored here, which is guarded by Boyard's tigers (except in Ultimate Challenge).

Once the Fort’s gong sounds for a second time, the game time is over. When the gong is struck (by La Boule) the tigers are taken away by Monique, the gate to The Treasure Room rises and will only stay open for 2:00 minutes in UK series 1 to 4, the time stated did not include the 20 seconds before the gate started to rise or 3:00 minutes in UK series 5. The 3 minutes includes 20 seconds before the gate started to rise (to open canisters/organise team). The gate takes 30 seconds to open and close fully for every version of Fort Boyard worldwide.

The French version have extra games which are played in order to win extra time in The Treasure Room. Four or six members of the team play a game each against the "Master of Darkness", if they win they will be get extra time in the Treasure Room, making it a full 4 minutes. From 2011 onwards, the duels against the "Master of Darkness" can reduce the team's time to 2:00 and give them a maximum time of 4:00.

If by this time the team has still not figured out the password from the clues won, they can "sacrifice" players in exchange for extra clues to help them. The sacrificed players have to reach the clue by putting their hand into one of the tiger-shaped hand traps around the Treasure Room entrance; once their hands are inside they cannot release them and participate in collecting the gold.

The contestants now have to spell out the password on the giant alphabet on the floor of the Treasure Room by standing on the corresponding letters on the grid and using cannonballs if there are not enough players. The team must also ensure the word is spelled correctly, as a mistake could cost them the prize.

Once this is done, Monique rotates the tiger's head (a statue), and the word will either be declared correct or incorrect, and the gold is released if the word is correct.

Then the contestants have the remaining time to collect as much gold as they can and place it in a bucket outside of the Treasure Room. It is only what is in this bucket that they get to keep; any that lands on the floor is not counted. When the time is nearly up in the Treasure Room, a bell rings, and the gate begins to close slowly. The contestants have to leave before the gate shuts completely because when the door shuts the tigers are released back into the Treasure Room. (the release of the tigers is delayed until the contestants are out of the Treasure Room, a portcullis is pulled in some version's to block the tigers from being released). In the 1990 French version, and in the 2006 Russian version of the show, contestants were locked in the Treasure Room. The gold collected were lost as a result.

If, however, they declare an incorrect word, the gold is not released and instead the gate to the treasure room begins to close immediately, prompting the contestants to make a quick escape, and they complete the game with no winnings.

The won gold is then weighed and converted into currency; this makes the contestants’ prize money. In most countries, the money won by the team is given to a charity.

Some countries, including Spain, Argentina, the UK, and Belgium, give the money directly to the members of the team. Some give vacations instead of money, dependent on how much the team won.

In France, between 1990 and 1992, the treasure was given to the team, but since 1993, the whole prize goes to charity. Then again in 2010, the prize money was given to the contestants.