Fair points, I think you're right. I actually think it's probably a combination of what I mentioned and you mentioned. And definitely don't mean to make little

Fair points, I think you're right. I actually think it's probably a combination of what I mentioned and you mentioned. And definitely don't mean to make little of people who are in tough financial situations. But as you said, the sustained popularity is independent of the value of the prize - because it's free I think. Imagine, hypothetically, that you had to pay a one time up front fee of $5 for a lifetime pass to hunt for these cash stashes. You would still have all the game elements, all the challenge, but participation would drop off significantly because it wasn't free.