Survivor should use certain challenges each season like Big Brother

Survivor does see some competition staples return in either back-to-back seasons or in a string, but they should keep some constants each year.

Through the first dozen or so seasons of Survivor, no matter what went on with the season in terms of tribe demographics or location, you could expect some sort of endurance challenge. Usually, the goal was to hold onto something or hold a pose under strict conditions, testing the Final Three (rarely, Final Four) in their final test before the penultimate Tribal Council.

Eventually, Ian Rosenberger and Tom Westman broke this tradition by competing on their “Hold Onto a Buoy Forever” challenge well into 11 hours, with Ian saying he could have gone on until morning had he not let up. It was since adapted to add levels of intensity to create a long final stage, thus shrinking the long-term “endurance” of a challenge and, eventually, abandoning it altogether.

Since those days, the Survivor challenge team typically draws upon a collection of older challenges and updates them for that season, usually slapped together all over the place. The Final Immunity Challenges is even changed up now, mixing in “stack a bunch of letters on a wobbly surface,” “run through a maze,” “run through obstacle tower,” and “stack a bunch of bowls while navigating a tripwire maze.”

It’s a very different approach from what Big Brother does, as they approach challenges with a “similar, yet different” approach. Considering the whole theme of the show, in general, is “Expect the Unexpected,” the competitors roughly know what competitions will happen down the road, and roughly when, but have season themes throw wrenches in the strategy to thwart them.

Some of the series staples for the Head of Household competition (safe from eviction, nominate two players to be voted out that week) include a “hold onto ____” challenge, a “True or False” quiz live after an eviction, a “fill up your basin with goo on a slippery track” challenge midway through the season, mental competitions where you have to remember the days in which events happen, and the final competition section where you pick “True” or “False” on a jury member’s statement.

Veto staples for Big Brother include OTEV (bring an anthropomorphic animal an object representing two former houseguests that fit the description), BB Comics (memory competition based on comic book covers of all the houseguests), Hide and Go Veto (hide your veto symbol somewhere on the first floor of the house) and similar “what day did this happen” comps.

Sure, there is a format difference between Survivor and Big Brother (three separate episodes a week minimum for the latter, two seasons a year for the former), but I believe that the island-based competition can learn a thing or two from the house-based competition in building up an entrenched marvel and expectation surrounding a limited number of challenges.

For starters, having Survivor challenges repeat builds up the reverence of those moments. Players “making it to ____” would become a benchmark, and it gives the audience something to look forward to. It would help to solidify parts of the game’s lore, especially if these competitions are named on the show and built up to be important moments of each season.

Better yet, because of the back-to-back filming format for the show, all you’d need to do is switch up a section or two of the format and keep with it into the next season. One example for the Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers and Ghost Island seasons is the “Discy Business” challenge where tribe members must hold up a disc on four separate angles and place blocks, one by one, to spell out “REWARD” or “IMMUNITY.” This is a modification on “A Bit Tipsy;” an Individual Immunity Challenge where players compete for themselves.

Survivor used to hold tradition in high regard, but the show has abandoned most staples to focus on getting more gameplay into the show. The Rites of Passage, the Auction, the Endurance Challenge, an age-diverse cast; even the castaway intro has been abandoned. With every tradition thrown away, the show abandons more and more of what earned audiences’ hearts almost two decades ago. Now, Loved Ones showing up at ~Final Eight remains the only guaranteed thing.

If producers are going to get rid of “fluff” and focus on gameplay and strategy, one concession to make is to develop a sense of tradition within Survivor challenges. Here are some I would love to see become a staple of the show. To avoid becoming overdone with two seasons a year, these would be staples once every other season (unless specified):

• Touchy Subjects: Once per season, bring back the reward challenge where castaways answer questions based on who they thought most represented the answer (“Who do you hope to never see after the game?”). The format can be tinkered with to match the season’s theme, and it naturally creates drama and second-guessing of everyone’s game status.
• Auction: Once per season, the auction reward represents strategy and low-stakes wagering for hungry players. To avoid people holding onto money for an idol clue, each auction has three advantages hidden in six concealed objects. One is an idol clue, one is an Immunity advantage, one is empty, the other three are food rewards.
• Get a Grip: An early merge challenge should be the “hold onto a pole for as long as possible.” It’s an iconic Immunity Challenge that deserves its spot at least once a year.
• Kicking and Screaming: Tribal challenge where two players must drag an opposing player off a pole and across a finish line to score points. Increases physical intensity within tribes.
• Crate Idea: Tribal challenge where you need to spell out your tribe’s name while building a massive staircase using heavy boxes. Requires 3D spatial awareness, strength and endurance, plus it reinforces tribal teamwork. Reward or immunity.

• Teeter Tower: A player balances their plank while building a tower using cards to reach a certain height in order to win. Requires dexterity, patience and minimal endurance; all of which are pushed to their limits nearing the end of the game. Can be for reward or immunity.
• Hot Pursuit: Tribes chase either other on a track carrying weight. As certain players got tired, they would need to pass off their 20lb bags to someone else, as one tribe would race to the other. It focuses on strength and endurance, and you can alter it the number of competitors.
• Shoulder the Weight: Three tribe members would hold up a bar with weight added by the other tribe, strategically, across the remaining castaways at set times. Massively tailored to strength, it also requires strategy, as forcing someone on the other tribe out means more weight across fewer competitors. An early tribe challenge that becomes a staple.
• Big-ass Maze: If Survivor isn’t doing an endurance challenge to cap off the competition, at least save the long, crawling maze for the finale. Retrieving puzzle pieces across a multi-layered maze pushes the castaways to the edge as they need speed, mental and emotional strength, and focus to earn their spot to the Final Tribal Council.

With roughly two-dozen challenges a season and two seasons a year, Survivor can afford to keep a few familiar challenges throughout a filming year so that fans have constants to look forward to. Anything to set it apart beyond “race through an obstacle course and complete a slide puzzle” is great in my eyes.