Fueled by the massive success of the Lay’s Do Us A Flavor Contest, Lay’s has done away with the contest altogether. In its place, Frito Lay has announced a new “Flavor Swap” campaign that begins next month.

Here’s how it works. Beginning on February 8th, fans will have an opportunity to declare a winner in four head-to-head battles of potato chip flavors, each one pitting a brand new Lay’s flavor against one of Lay’s classic flavors. The new flavors have already been decided; we don’t get to submit our ideas this time around. However, each person casting a vote in Lay’s Flavor Swap will be eligible to receive a $1,000 daily giveaway, and one schmuck will receive $250,000 for simply eating potato chips and clicking a button. The four categories in Lay’s Flavor Swap are Heat, Cheese, Barbecue, and Spice.

Heat Category

Lay’s Fiery Roasted Habanero (New) vs. Lay’s Flamin’ Hot (Old)

Lay’s Fiery Roasted Habanero is the new heat concept, threatening to replace Lay’s Flamin’ Hot which I’m not sure I knew existed. Whereas Lay’s Flamin’ Hot is spiced with jalapeño peppers (according to the imagery on the packaging), Lay’s Fiery Roasted Habanero is spiced with… fiery roasted habanero peppers. This one is pretty straight forward/who cares?

Cheese Category

Lay’s Smoked Gouda & Chive (New) vs. Lay’s Cheddar and Sour Cream (Old)

Lay’s Smoked Gouda & Chive is an exciting new offering in Lay’s Flavor Swap that literally stands no chance against Lay’s Cheddar & Sour Cream. Do you think there’s any way people will let Cheddar & Sour Cream disappear from Lay’s lineup? No way. People are going to vote for Lay’s Cheddar & Sour Cream without even trying Lay’s Smoked Gouda & Chive. I’m excited for the new flavor, but enjoy it while you can because this battle was over before it even started.

Barbecue Category

Lay’s Korean Barbecue (New) vs. Lay’s Honey Barbecue (Old)

This battle is the most intriguing to me. In a similar quandary to the Cheese Category, I’m not so sure people are willing to let Lay’s Honey Barbecue disappear forever. But we really love us some Korean Barbecue in the good ole’ USA, so Lay’s Korean Barbecue has a glimmer of hope. I am positive at least 2,000,000 people created Lay’s Korean Barbecue in the Lay’s Do Us A Flavor Contest, so it’s time to finally put your chips where your mouths are and give it a fair chance.

Spice Category

Lay’s Olive Oil & Herbs (New) vs. Lay’s Sea Salt & Cracked Pepper (Old)

This is another fun one. Lay’s Olive Oil & Herbs is an attempt to recreate that thing we fill up on at any Italian restaurant before our order comes out. Lay’s Sea Salt & Cracked Pepper is a simple combination of ingredients that happens to be one of my favorites. This is the only battle between two kettle-cooked varieties. The full-blooded Italian fatass in me is excited for Lay’s Olive Oil & Herbs, an oily kettle-cooked chip that is flavored with oil.

What This Means: We’re going to have a lot of potato chip reviews for you guys in the near future. All chips should be in stores by the start of the Lay’s Flavor Swap promotion, and voting will run from February 8th to March 21st. If you’d like to see how bad I am at reviewing potato chips, here’s my review of the 2015 Lay’s Do Us A Flavor Finalists that nobody read.

Sources:
Photos from Frito-Lay North America, Flavorswap.com 
Contest details from Frito-Lay North America, PRNewswire.com