The Mole (TV Series) - Format

Format

Each installment of The Mole involves a number of contestants, averaging around twelve. During each episode, the contestants participate in a number of challenges, each assigned a monetary value. If the contestants, as a team, complete the challenge, that money is added to the final prize for the game. However, one of these contestants has been selected by production to be the Mole; his or her job is to try to prevent the other players from winning challenges without revealing himself or herself to others. The Mole may be told ahead of time of how to do this or what challenges to expect, while at other times the Mole must decide whether to intervene or not.

At the end of each episode, the contestants take a quiz regarding the identity of the Mole and his or her involvement in the previous activities. The player who scores the lowest on this quiz, or was slowest to answer in case of a tie, is eliminated from the game. The winner of the game is the one that answers the most questions correctly on the final quiz given when there are only three players remaining (including the Mole), and is awarded the total amount of money won over the course of the game.

While success in the challenges is important in order to build up potential winnings, it is also critical to stay in the game by scoring better than opponents on the quiz, usually by attempting to draw their suspicions of the Mole's identity toward oneself. Since the Mole must use subterfuge to misdirect attention from his/her attempts to derail the team, disingenuous attempts to emulate the Mole must be subtle, while still noticeable and suspicious.