The Jackbox Party Pack 3
AKA How to Determine How Vulgar Your Friends Are
Jackbox Party Pack 3 is a video game for people who dislike video games. You don’t have to use a controller; just use your phone! You don’t need skill; just wing it like the rest of us. It’s not even a real video game; it’s the bastard child of a trivia bar game and Cards Against Humanity (trying to pretend it’s as innocent as Apples to Apples). Invite your friends; invite your family; don’t invite your neighbor. Everyone can join in the fun.
That’s Jackbox’s immediate appeal. Over generations of consoles, I have tried to engage non-gamers with any “accessible” game I have come across, be it Mario Party, Mario Kart, Nintendoland, Wii Sports, Just Dance, or even 1-2-Switch. No game has had as much success in drawing in a diverse crowd as Jackbox has. Although none of its five glorified board/trivia games carry the depth or complexity of a typical video game, they still wield some magical, universal appeal. As such, despite its awkward appearance, Jackbox earns its designation as a party game, just like the games listed before it (minus one or two, if you catch my drift).
Deal-breakers:
Before getting to the individual games, it’s important to recognize Jackbox’s barriers to entry. If you don’t have the following three elements, this game hates you. You will need:
- A party of people. Ideally, you will have five or more people to play altogether because anything less is a get-together, and it’s not called Jackbox Get-Together Pack for a reason. Most games can fire off with at least three people, but the fun factor is diminished.
- Devices for each person. Be it a smart phone, a tablet, or a computer, each person needs a device with which to read prompts, write, and draw.
- Wi-Fi. For most people, Wi-Fi is not a concern because they obviously have Wi-Fi to download the game in the first place. However, Jackbox is literally unplayable without internet, and if you use crappy Wi-Fi, you run the risk of disconnections or missed prompts.
The games:
Quiplash 2:
The favorite among my crowd, Quiplash 2 challenges you to answer age-old prompts like “How the dinosaurs really died,” and “The worst way to spell Mississippi.” You can answer however you wish, but your answers will then be pitted against another player who had the same prompt. The players who did not respond to the prompt will then vote for the best one, so make sure your responses tickle your audience’s funny bones (or raunchy bones, depending on the depravity of your group). Whoever receives the most votes over three rounds wins.
Of all the games on Jackbox, Quiplash is the most easily accessible and routinely elicits laughs due to how crazy answers can be. Like Cards Against Humanity, you’ll come across some uninspired prompts which lead to equally underwhelming responses, but the majority of the prompts are suitably suggestive or creative. Like the other Jackbox offerings, Quiplash games are pretty quick, allowing you fire off a few more rounds without sucking up too much time.
Trivia Murder Party:
Perhaps the least inspired of the bunch, Trivia Murder Party is a trivia game with a tongue-in-cheek horror theme. Your goal is to outlive everyone else and escape from your captor, who provides the game’s incessantly annoying narration. Answering multiple-choice questions correctly guarantees your survival while a wrong answer leads you to a mini game. These mini-games offer simple tasks (drawing, solving math problems, cutting off a finger), and if you mess up here, you’re knocked out of the game.
Trivia Murder Party is harmless enough to be enjoyable, but no one in my group has walked away from it eager to play again. Trivia fans may be a bit disappointed with it because the questions draw a little too frequently from pop culture topics, even for a trivia game. The aesthetic doesn’t offer much either, and your captor/narrator becomes increasingly grating with each round. Stockholm syndrome will certainly not be an issue here. Incidentally, this is the only game you can play by yourself, so there’s that.
Guesspionage:
For those who enjoy guessing percentages of survey results, Guesspionage is the game for you. Supposedly, Jackbox Games surveyed a bunch of people on the internet about random topics, and now you and your friends will take turns guessing how many people reported liking brownies with nuts or nutless brownies (among other important issues). One person guesses the exact percentage of people who prefer “nut brownies,” and everyone else guesses if this estimate is higher or lower than the actual result. Points are divvied out based on how close guesses are, and whoever has the most points wins.
No one likes this game. Some may think they do, but after a few additional playthroughs, they recognize the error of their thinking. Guesspionage is a simpler, worse version of Family Feud. And just like Family Feud, you aren’t trying to figure out how many people from the general populace still own functioning VCRs. No, you’re trying to predict how many people who take surveys for Jackbox Games still own functioning VCRs. Unless you study the habits of online survey takers, you’re going to rely on some luck to win this game.
Fakin’ It:
In a round of Fakin’ It, everybody except one person is given a prompt which they must answer by holding up fingers, making faces, pointing at someone, or raising their hands. For instance, the prompt could be, “Point to the person who has the most knowledge of Star Wars.” Each person then points based on who they think fits the prompt. The catch is one person did not receive any prompt at all, and this person is the faker. Based on everyone else’s reaction, the faker must quickly participate and pretend as if they also received the prompt. The group then has three chances to decide who the faker is. Points are given out based on how long the faker evades capture and who correctly guessed the faker. Multiple players will get a chance to be the faker before points are totaled and a winner is chosen.
Fakin’ It has potential to be an uproarious experience but is bogged down by its lack of direction and obtuse prompts. In all of my play groups, most people didn’t fully understand how to play until the game was over, and by that point, they weren’t interested in playing another round. Fakin’ It could be an immersive game, filled with bluffing, colluding, and accusations, but the quick pace of the game immensely limits these interactions. Plus, when faced with prompts like, “Hold up five fingers if your name starts with a J, seven if it doesn’t,” your chances as the faker are crippled. A dedicated play group could really enjoy this game, but finding the dedicated people is another task altogether.
Tee K.O.:
Finally, Jackbox 3‘s obligatory drawing game, Tee K.O., sees you and your group pitted against each other to create the best t-shirt. This mode cycles through four stages. In the first, you draw whatever comes to mind, be it dragons, patterns, or inappropriate anatomy. Next, you are tasked with producing slogans for the t-shirts. Again, these slogans can be anything, from “Well, you tried,” to ” Just leave it for later.” Then, you will receive t-shirt designs and slogans created by the other players, and from these, you will choose the best t-shirt/slogan pair. The last stage displays everyone’s final product together, with players voting for their favorite. Whoever’s t-shirt is left standing is declared the winner.
In my play groups, Tee K.O. Is typically cited as everyone’s first or second favorite game, usually because the end results can be incredibly wacky. Interestingly, Jackbox Games includes an option to buy actual copies of the winning shirt, so you and your friends can proudly wear whatever abominations you birth. Because the game places no limitations on what people can draw or write, house rules are recommended to provide direction to your play sessions and to avoid the inevitable barrage of penis drawings.
What’s the verdict?
In many ways, Jackbox Party Pack 3 and its brethren are better suited for websites which review board games, not video games. Almost all of these games could be translated to paper and pen, packed into brightly colored boxes, and sold at your local Wal-Mart. Although this is not a flaw by any means, it should influence your decision to buy Jackbox. If you’re looking for the next great party game, Jackbox is a solid substitute to card games and an even better candidate for drinking games. For those looking for a more traditional multiplayer video game, this box can be left untouched.
Arbitrary Statistics:
- Score: 7
- Time Played: Over ten hours
- Number of Players: 1-8
- Games Like It on Switch: The other Jackbox Party Packs, Use Your Words