In the first two seasons, two teams of five competed in a match of three rounds in a best-of-three format. This was altered significantly for season three, see "Other Rule Changes and Amendments" below. A round ended when one of the two teams loses all five of its members. The first round was a standard match played with two dodgeballs. In the second round, often called the "Big Ball Round", a third ball twice the diameter of the other two was added into play. This ball was often used to deflect attacks. In the third round, "Dead Man Walking", the Big Ball was removed and in its place was an orange headband worn by one member of each team, in turn being designated the "Dead Man Walking". In the first and second seasons, if the Dead Man Walking was eliminated for any reason, the team he represented lost the game and consequently the match.
Elimination
In each of the three seasons, there were multiple ways for a player to be eliminated and sent to the sideline. Some variations in these regulations existed in the three seasons, but for the most part these rules remained the same. The following are ways in which a player could be eliminated:
- Getting hit with a ball, with an exception where players were allowed to stay if the ball hit them in the head
- Throwing a ball which an opponent catches (in this case, a person previously eliminated can come back in, but the number of people in the playing arena cannot exceed 5)
- Dropping a ball being used to deflect a ball thrown by an opposing player
- Crossing over the center line or (in seasons one and two) stepping outside the boundary
There were also two ways of returning to the game after being eliminated. The first, as previously mentioned, was if a player caught a ball. At this point, one of his teammates would come back onto the court, but one team could not have more than five players. The second way was called a regeneration. In the first season, if all but one member of the team were eliminated, the last player had the opportunity to hit a target aptly named the "regeneration target" and, if this was accomplished before he was eliminated, all of his teammates returned to the court. In the second season, this was changed to the last player having to stay alive for 20 seconds. In both cases, a team could only regenerate once per round. Lastly, in the third season, this rule was changed again. If the last player standing managed to stay alive for 30 seconds, only one of his teammates returned, but if the last player was eliminated, four team members returned to the game. However, this could be done an unlimited number of times.
Other rule changes and amendments
For the second season, there were two more main changes. Firstly, there was a 5-second delay of game warning. If a team held more than one ball for over 5 seconds, one of its players would be issued a "yellow card" and ejected from the court.
The second rule stated that if a player, in the opinion of the referee, was impeding the flow of play of the game by stalling, refusing to throw the ball, or attempting to force a play on the opposing team, the referee(s) could give that player a "yellow card". Two yellow cards meant that the player in question was ejected from the rest of the match. This second rule was introduced early in the second season and was called the "Benedetto Amendment" after player David Benedetto, who deliberately placed two balls immediately on his opponents' side of the court, forcing the opponents - in compliance with the above-stated five-second-rule - to approach the balls and allowing him to hit them at point blank range, a tactic which was deemed unfair by the show's producers. Although Michael 'Handsome' Constanza had used this same tactic in an Episode 3 game of Season 1, there was no five-second rule back then, so it was not as abusive.
In the third season, many significant changes were made to the rules. First, the teams would add two players each, increasing the number of players from five to seven. Still however, only five members of the team would be allowed on the court at any given time. The players who came on the court rotated; e.g. if four of a team's five players were eliminated, and the final player regenerated a teammate, the sixth member came onto the court.
The main change in this season was the format of the matches. Instead of 3 rounds which ended when all of the players on one of the teams were eliminated, the matches would be divided into four six-minute quarters, leading to a total of 24 minutes per match. The victor would not be decided by the fastest elimination of an entire team, but rather, the team with the most points at the end of the match. Eliminating an opposing player in any way granted the team one point. A bonus point was awarded for wiping out the entire opposing team.
Other small changes were added. For example, if a player received a yellow card for yelling at the referee, holding a ball for too long, disobeying the instructions given, etc., he would have to stand in a small square while a player on the other team would be given a free shot at him. If the penalized player was hit, the opposing team scored a point, but if that player left the square's boundaries, two points were awarded. Another small change was in the court itself. In previous seasons, the boundaries had been on the left, right, and front for each team. In this season, the left and right boundaries were replaced by walls, making the court more similar to that of many indoor sports, such as indoor soccer or ice hockey.
In the second quarter, the Big Ball was put in play, similarly to the first two seasons. Since the big ball was used mainly for defending and was difficult to throw, two bonus points were awarded for a kill with the big ball throw.
In the third and fourth quarters, the teams were on the side opposite of that on which they started. In the fourth quarter, the orange Dead Man Walking headbands came into play. One player on each team would be required to wear the headband at all times. Every time a Dead Man Walking was eliminated, the other team gained two bonus points, but the headband was simply transferred to a teammate. When two minutes remained in this quarter, there would be a break in the game where the teams were allowed to switch players on the court with ones on the bench (but each team retains the same number of players that were on the court before). At the end of the fourth quarter, the team with the most points would be declared the victor and win $5,000.
If after the fourth quarter, a tie was reached, the game went into overtime, in which each team chose three players to represent them on the court. There were no regenerations, and catching a ball would not bring in a new player—once a player was out, he stayed out for good. The team which could outlast the opposition was declared the winner of the match.
In the third season, referees were able to give players red cards, much like in soccer. If a player was given a red card, he would be out for the rest of the game. Players were given red cards if they behaved in a particularly improper manner too serious for a yellow card, such as physical contact with an opponent in a harsh manner. Red cards were uncommon, but had been given multiple times. One player, Brian DeCato, was even suspended for the season for repeated offenses.
In season 1, each team played 5 matches; afterwards all 8 competed in the playoffs with 1st facing 8th, 2nd facing 7th, etc. The winners of these playoffs won $10,000.
In season 2, each team played 10 matches, and the top 3 teams from each division advanced to the playoffs. In the first round, the #2 and #3 seed in each division faced off against each other. The winner of these matches faced the #1 seed of their respective division (who earned a bye in round 1) in a playoff match for $5,000. Then the 2 division winners would face off in the championship match for an additional $20,000 ($25,000 total).
In season 3, each team played 10 matches as in the previous season, with the winners of each match receiving the prize money of $5,000. The four teams with the best records advanced to the playoffs, where the winners of the semifinals received another $5,000. The grand champions added an additional $10,000 to their prize money total. A team could win up to $65,000 for winning every match of the season.
