Main game

Each episode features seven contestants, one being a returning champion, who compete to win a jackpot over the course of seven rounds. Only one contestant is allowed to answer a question at a time; if the contestant answers a question correctly, control is passed to the next contestant in a clockwise fashion. Each round continues until two questions are answered incorrectly by one contestant, after which the contestant who gave a second incorrect answer must challenge another contestant to an elimination duel known as the "Scalata Doppia" ("Double Climb"). For the duration of the duel, each contestant has 45 seconds (60 seconds until 18 December 2022) to correctly identify as many words as possible from a standard list of definitions; the first letter of each word is automatically given (with one letter added to the word every two seconds until a correct response is given or until one letter remains), and the contestant in control can make as many guesses as possible (the round is played in a chess clock format). Correctly identifying a word freezes the contestant's timer and passes control to the other contestant. When a contestant has no time left on their clock, they are eliminated from the game and leave with no money; the eliminated contestant's money sum is transferred to the contestant who won the duel.

"Il Tris" (The Tris, round 1)

In this first round of the game, since 2 January 2024, each contestant must guess the exact sequence of three words. In case of an error, the game passes to the opponent who, if he guesses correctly, passes the hand to the next player. If no one knows the answer, the host will communicate the correct answer. The three contestants who are the first to make two mistakes will be at risk of elimination: the reigning champion will decide the two who will compete for remaining in the game, through the double climb.

"Chi, Come, Cosa" (Who, How, What, round 2)

In this game, proposed in 2022, the contestant must complete the headline of a bizarre news story, choosing between two possible answer options. At the end of the round, the player who has collected two mistakes will be at risk of elimination and will have to play the double climb.

"I Fantastici Quattro" (The Fantastic Four, round 3)

In this round, the host shows four years to the five contestants (from 1920 onwards), and they have to match an event to the correct year. The first contestant to give two incorrect answers is at risk of elimination.

"La parola" (The Word, round 4)

In this round, the four remaining players are offered two little-known words in the Italian language, along with a rotating cylinder containing nine definitions. One at a time, the contestants must determine whether or not the definition fits the assigned word. Each word is played until the correct definition is given; the player who completes the definition first automatically advances to the next round. Two such words are played in this round; the two players who did not solve any definitions must face off against each other in the elimination duel for the final spot in the next round.

"Il Triello" (round 5)

In this round, the three contestants have to answer seven questions in seven categories. Every question has a value between €10,000 and €30,000. The player has ten seconds to answer a question with four options. If he/she misses or runs out of time, the game passes to another contestant who, if he/she answers correctly, adds the amount of that question to his/her total. At the end of the game, the two contestants with the highest totals advance to the sixth round.^[2] In the event of a tie for the last place at the end of this round, the two tied contestants have to face off against each other for the third spot in that round (with the time limit reduced to 30 seconds); a tie between all three competitors for first place must be broken by having two contestants face off against each other at a time, with the loser of the first duel facing off against the contestant who gave the last correct answer in the round during the second duel.

From the 2019–2020 season onwards, a mystery option associated with an unknown category was added (indicated onscreen by a question mark) where the competitor who chooses this option, once the matter has been disclosed, can decide whether to assign a value of €20,000 (two options), €40,000 (three options), or €60,000 (all four options) to the question. Only the contestant who selected the mystery category can play the question; if they answer correctly, they add the value to their jackpot, whereas if they answer incorrectly, the question is discarded, with the value of the question being equally divided between the other two challengers, thus €10,000 each if the question had two answers, €20,000 each if it had three and €30,000 if all four answers were shown.^[2] Furthermore, the three competitors who qualify for the "Triello" acquire the right to return for the next episode, with the winner of the next round being immune from the first round of the next game. From the 2022-2023 edition, the two competitors with the highest prize pool qualify for the next game.

In the case of tie between two contestants, there will be a double climb which will last 30 seconds and the one who wins the tie-breaker will go to the next game.

"I 100 secondi" (100 seconds, round 6)

In this round, introduced from the 2024 season, replacing the Jab, the two finalist contestants must answer a series of questions in order to access the final game. The contestant with the highest prize pool begins and must answer a barrage of direct response questions in 100 seconds. If the player does not know the answer or makes a mistake, he gives the playing hand to his opponent who, if he gives the correct answer, keeps the playing hand. However, if neither of them answers the question correctly, the answer is revealed by the host and the player keeps the game hand.

At the end of the round, the competitor who has kept the playing hand until the time runs out will go to the final game.

"La Ghigliottina" (The Guillotine, round 7)

The final round, which was introduced in the 2005–06 season, was the idea of Stefano Santucci, the creator of the show. The contestant is presented with five pairs of words (one pair at a time), of which only one in each pair is the correct word. The jackpot is retained for every correct response and is halved for every incorrect response. Once all five pairs are played, the contestant is given 60 seconds to study the five correct words and then must write a word that bears a thematic connection to the other five words. If the word that was written is identical to the word on the host's card, the contestant wins all of the prize money they have retained; if the word does not match the one on the host's card, the contestant leaves empty-handed and returns to the next episode.^[2]