Two contestants, one usually a returning champion, competed to uncover and solve hidden word puzzles with the help of a four-celebrity panel. The puzzles, which varied in length from two to six words, were concealed behind a grid of six monitors above the panel, and a star was positioned at the corner of each monitor. There were 12 stars in all, arranged in four columns of three with one column above each celebrity's seat. Each monitor contained all or part of only one word, and the last word on the top row did not continue onto the bottom one. The object for the contestants was to light the stars around the monitors. To begin play, the home audience was shown how many words were in the puzzle and a certain number of stars (originally two, later four) were lit at random. The contestant in control, usually the challenger, chose a celebrity and a position (top, middle, bottom). The star in that position was lit, and Marshall then asked a question to the chosen celebrity. The contestant either had to correctly agree or disagree with the given answer, in much the same manner as
Hollywood Squares and
Battlestars. Choosing correctly allowed the contestant to keep control and pick again, but making a wrong decision passed control to the opposing player. Once all four stars around a monitor were lit, the part of the puzzle it was concealing required a correct agree/disagree choice from one of the contestants to reveal and the celebrity underneath the star would remain in play until one was given. Once the puzzle piece was uncovered, the contestant that revealed it was given a chance to guess the puzzle or continue playing as an incorrect guess passed control to his/her opponent. Play continued on a puzzle until one player solved it or all six monitors were uncovered, with the player who uncovered the last monitor winning the game by default. The first contestant to solve two puzzles won the match and a prize package, and went on to play the Blitz Bonanza. Rather than featuring models, celebrity guests often modeled and demonstrated prizes while being described by the announcer, which would be preceded by a message on the game board monitors describing the prize(s). Each episode of
All-Star Blitz was played to a time limit. If time was called during a puzzle, the contestant in control was given the option of whether or not to guess the puzzle. Choosing not to guess ended the game, and the solution to the puzzle was revealed. Guessing incorrectly gave the option to the opponent. Regardless of the decision and its outcome, play resumed on the next episode with either a new puzzle or the Blitz Bonanza as dictated by the rules. ==Blitz Bonanza==