Starting A TikTok Game Show

My favorite idea that I have ever had was the idea to start a game show on the social media platform called TikTok. This idea stemmed from me doing small challenges on my account for followers to win a follow back from me. Then one day a person joked in the comment section that I should do a Hunger Games for the followers, and that got the gears in my head turning.

After thinking for a day or two about that comment, I decided that TikTok was an easy spot to try and host an online game show. So then I began The TurtleTok Games. The only actual similarities between the Hunger Games and The TurtleTok Games were that they both end with one victor and happen in a private arena.

I created a separate TikTok account for this game where I advertised to follow before the first round, and that this was a challenge among those who joined. Little did I know that advertising such a challenge would lead to utter chaos.

I made the announcement one night in the first week of April 2021. Some people from my main account on TikTok joined, and I had about 300 followers when I went to sleep. However, to my surprise when I woke up the following count was over twenty thousand. In just one night the games' popularity skyrocketed, and it was all because of a simple challenge.

An Overwhelming Response

As a result of the rapidly growing size of the players I felt very overwhelmed. What had I just started? What had I just gotten myself into? The follow count was growing so fast I could refresh my page and see the number change. Comments came in at a rapid rate asking how the game would actually work, and several were concerned about others cheating.

The introductory video to the game reached over two million views, and people I knew from high school were messaging me that I had come up on their TikTok feed. It was at that moment I knew I had started something big. I had started something that would completely change my life, and it was all just because of an idea.

The final number of followers, and number of players, when the game started was roughly 467,000. I started the game releasing rounds daily where people had to unfollow the account if they lost. Since I had only just come up with the idea, there were several aspects of the game I did not think about.

I had gotten complaints about the schedule of the game, because checking in daily was too much for players to keep up with. I also got complaints about players cheating, and everyone was telling me that I had no idea what I was doing.

A Second Chance

I ended up abandoning that game entirely and deleting the account, because at that point there was no way that the account was going to get down to one follower. However, I knew that my game show was still worth doing, because even with the chaos and hateful comments there were still some fun parts.

I decided I wanted to try the game again. I am not typically a person who gives up easily, and I felt like I had learned a lot from my mistakes and that I could improve. I considered the first game a trial run, and the second game was to be the real thing.

Ever since then, I have been expanding upon the idea of the game, making more seasons, and adding new features to them every time. The TurtleTok Games is something that continues to be a challenge for me, and I think that is one of the reasons I love it so much.

I learn something new and gain experience with every season. I have created a whole community online, and I have become closer to the friends I ended up asking to help. This game show is entertaining for both me and the audience, and there is no doubt that it is my best and most favorite idea I have ever had.