MTV2 Version
A win in the first two rounds is worth $500, and $1,000 in round three. The Secret Square (renamed the "G-Spot") takes place in round two, with a $1,000 cash bonus awarded for correctly answering the question (but does not count towards the player's score). If time runs out in the middle of a round, each square on the board is worth $100 and the contestant with the higher score wins.
The winning contestant then picks one of the three rows, with each celebrity in that row providing an answer to a multiple-choice question. The contestant must pick the celebrity with the correct answer to win a $2,500 bonus.[2]
VH1 Version
Two celebrities associated with the hip hop music genre play the game and win money for members of the studio audience. To make their decision, the celebrity who is in control must press one of two buttons in front of them: a green button to lock in agree or red to disagree. In addition, starting in Season 3, the questions have props to aid the celebrities.
A win is worth $1,000 ($500 in some episodes) in the first round and $2,000 ($1,000 in some episodes) in the second. In addition, each captured square is worth a random cash amount revealed when a star is chosen. In Season 1, cash amounts range from $300 to $900 ($100 to $500 in some episodes) in round 1 and $500 to $1,500 ($300 to $900 in some episodes) in Round 2. Starting in Season 2, cash amounts range from $500 to $1,500 in round 1 and $500 - $2,000 in Round 2. The Secret Square returned in Season 3 (renamed the "Hidden Square)", played in game 1. As before, picking that square and giving a correct judgement wins a bonus prize. The celebrity contestant with the higher score after the second round (or when a sounder alerts that time in the entire game is up, no matter which round of the game is being played) wins the game and plays the bonus round with their designated audience member.
Bonus Round
In Season 1, the bonus round is called "three-in-a-row" where the winning celebrity and audience member try to obtain a tic-tac-toe, which then doubles the total winnings from the main game. Squares on the game board randomly flash, which is then stopped using a button pressed by the team. The team's symbol is then placed in the square, and the process repeats. If the team can obtain a tic-tac-toe in five spins, the team's winnings from the main game are doubled.
In Season 2, the Bonus Round is called "Pick That Dough". In the round, the audience member chooses three celebrities to form a tic-tac-toe on the board. Each celebrity is holding a record sleeve which contains a disc. Eight of the discs contain a cash prize ranging from $1 to $5,000 which is added to the money already won. The final disc's prize is either a tropical vacation, a new car or, in one episode sponsored by Burger King, an additional cash prize of $25,000. Whatever prizes are revealed by the three celebrities are awarded to the audience member. If the grand prize disc is not chosen by the player, the identity of the disc's holder is revealed at the end of the show.
Season 3's bonus round is called "Square Secrets". The celebrities are asked before the show to reveal a secret about themselves. The celebrity contestant and their partner are tasked to pick three of the squares in a tic-tac-toe formation. Once chosen, the host reveals a secret that is attributed to only one of the three celebrities and asks the team to choose the celebrity to whom it is attributed. If the team is correct, the audience member receives an additional $10,000 or in some select episodes which are sponsored, the winner receives an additional $25,000.