Japan’s Nippon TV has announced it will head into MIPTV with a pair of new unscripted formats, Dark Doubt and Turbo Brain, both of which recently aired on Nippon TV to strong ratings.

The Japanese commercial broadcaster will be offering the formats at MIPTV 2022 for the first time to global buyers. The announcement came from Mikiko Nishiyama, managing director of international business development for Nippon TV.

Dark Doubt (60 minutes) is an escape game show with a horror twist, in which seven contestants must work together to navigate pitch-dark stages to complete timed missions in blacked-out locations like a hospital or a school. Secret contestant “moles” are thrown in to add to the thrills and suspense.

Turbo Brain (30-60 minutes) is a quiz show that pits contestants against one another in a one-on-one knockout tournament based on their ability to answer cognitively demanding questions at high speed. Six contestants will compete to be crowned champion.

“In terms of our new unscripted formats, Dark Doubt turns its back on the traditional notion that game shows are just funny and lively. It illustrates how fear is a universal form of entertainment that fascinates people,” said Nishiyama in a release.

“Turbo Brain tests the human brain’s ability to make instantaneous decisions — a function necessary to survive. Viewers can immerse themselves in the show just like the contestants and take a shot at the quiz questions, whose difficulty levels are adjusted exquisitely so that they are tough to answer in a split second.”

In other MIPTV formats news, Israeli content creator and distributor Armoza Formats, part of ITV Studios, has announced the international launch of Drive Therapy (pictured), a new reality format that marks the first format to be announced as part of the company’s MIPTV slate.

In each episode a “backseat therapist,” along with their driver, will pick up three people and drive them to a destination in order to confront something in their lives. During the ride, the therapist will give the passenger new tools to help them re-route their lives. On the way, they’ll stop at meaningful places, ending as they arrive at the final destination with a deeper understanding of themselves.

“Each of us has had points in our lives when we felt like we needed some direction, and our new docureality Drive Therapy will offer participants and viewers just that,” said Salome Peillon, Armoza’s head of sales in a release. “We are excited to bring this co-development, together with our partners at Artza Productions, as part of our MIP slate.”