All Jackbox games from party packs 1-5, ranked. This is my personal opinion, based on a combination of playing with friends, family, and people I don't know well.
TL;DR: Buy Pack 3, then 5, then 4, then Drawful 2, then 2. Overall Pack Ranking: 5>3>2>4>1.
RANKINGS:
- Skip 'em:
23) Word Spud - All hail the quantum legume (Pack 1) [3-8 players]
22) Earwax - You know what's funny? Fart sounds. (Pack 2) [3-8 players]
21) Lie Swatter - Pretty much just true/false Kahoot. (Pack 1) [2-100 players]
20) Zeeple Dome - An action game. I really appreciate Jackbox trying new things, and you can tell that a lot of time was put into getting this one to work. If no one had ever played a game before except Jackbox, this one would be great. However, if you want to make a good action game, it takes more time and design than a typical Jackbox game, because the action genre has been refined and strengthened for so long. So it's bad and you should skip it. (Pack 5) [1-6 players]
19) Bracketeering - This one is good because it can play up to 16 players, unlike the rest which play up to 8 or so. Other than that though, it's just Quiplash again with less creative prompts. If you're not streaming with a large audience, don't bother. (Pack 4) [3-16 players]
18) You Don't Know Jack 2015 - Classic trivia game with tech issues. Only plays 4 players, and timing based challenges don't work well - YDKJ Full Stream basically fixes every problem this one has. Honestly, every game in pack 1 either gets a vastly superior sequel or sucks. (Pack 1) [1-4 players]
- The Ones you should try at some point:
17) Survive the Internet - It's basically Quiplash but you have to come up with the prompts. Can be funny if your group is either extremely clever or absolutely brutal. Also, the announcer is like half asleep or something. (Pack 4) [3-8 players]
16) Civic Doodle - Depends on who you're with. Pretty fun if everyone likes drawing, is good at art, and tries at least a little, but mostly you end up with an amalgamation of a canvas and/or a lot of penises. (Pack 4) [3-8 players]
15) Bomb Corp - The game's great, except it only supports 4 players. I have so many great 4 player games on Steam that we usually pass on this one. (Pack 2) [2-4 players]
14) Guesspionage - Kinda like Family Feud meets The Price is Right, or something. One person guesses the percentage of people who _____, others vote on if they think it's higher or lower. I like this one quite a bit, but it's not for everyone. (Pack 3) [2-8 players]
13) Fakin' It - I never could get into this one, but a lot of my friends like it. A social deduction game where one person tries to act like they know what's going on when they don't. Usually comes down to chance for me, but maybe I'm just bad at it. (Pack 3) [3-6 players]
- The Real Ones:
These are all fantastic games. Which one is best really depends on who you're playing with, and as such these all could extremely easily shift positions.
12) Split the Room - This scratches a similar itch as Fibbage, but adds to it by creating discussion. Finish a "would you rather" style question, and try to split the audience's opinions. Best played with a large group of people you know fairly well. The art style is a highlight of this one; they really nailed the Twilight Zone aesthetic. (Pack 5) [3-8 players]
11) Bidiots - You have to make art, and then bid on other people's art. The drawing isn't really a part of the game, and it only has 6 players, but the sheer strategic chaos is an absolute blast with the right people. I also find that this game is one of the best options for kids around age 7 to 13 or so. (Pack 2) [3-6 players]
10) Fibbage: Enough About You - There are 5 and a half games in Party Pack 4; this is the half. It takes Fibbage 4 and replaces the factoid trivia with personal trivia about the people you're playing with. Obviously only works if you play with people you know. It has all the good parts of Fibbage, but deepens it with an extra layer of personal humor. Hard to find the right group for this one, but one of the best when you do. (Pack 4) [3-8 players]
9) Drawful 1 & 2 - Super fun drawing games; a lot like Fibbage but with guessing what drawings are meant to be instead of factoids. Almost always a hit. However, it also suffers from some of the same problems as Fibbage. Since the drawings are less focused on being pretty or funny and more on being accurate, it can't quite reach the level that the creative-based games can, with the right group. (Pack 1, Standalone) [3-8 players]
8) Mad Verse City - Quiplash but you have to rhyme / Survive the Internet but good. You're given an adjective, and it inserts it into a line, then you have to add another line to make a rhyming couplet, and you do this twice. I find it a bit harder to be really creative and hilarious here when compared to Quiplash, as it puts more weight on your shoulders to do the heavy lifting. If your group is really, really clever (or totally brutal), this game can beat out Quiplash any day. (Pack 5) [3-8 players]
7) Trivia Murder Party - You can tell a lot of work went into this one. Some people aren't super into the B-movie horror aesthetic, and it's super common to be way in first the entire game - and then on the last round, lose due to a ghost stealing your body at the last second. Other than that (if you like trivia) it's a blast. The trivia is fairly standard; the penalties for answering wrong are what makes this game so fun. I personally like YDKJ:FS better just because it's funnier. (Pack 3) [1-8 players]
- The Big Boys:
6) You Don't Know Jack: Full Stream - This game is just really good trivia. If you like trivia, you will like this game. If you don't like trivia, you will probably like this game anyway because it presents itself in such a compelling way. It's a bit of an anomaly because it's funny even if nobody you're playing it with is funny. (Pack 5) [1-8 players]
5) Monster Seeking Monster - Pro tip - this game is way better if you play it as a social deduction game rather than a dating game. Just use a random username and don't tell anyone who you are. An absolute blast this way, either super awkward or straight broken if you play it the other way. This game really nails the balance between strategy, communication, and social deduction. It's also really a game you need to sit down and pay attention to play. (Pack 4) [3-7 players]
4) Fibbage 1, 2, & 3 - I've never played Fibbage 3 with anyone who didn't enjoy it. It's completely fair with no random chance, tons of opportunity for hilarious (but plausible) lies, and the 70s aesthetic that 3 has is superb. If you can't pick a Jackbox game to play, this one will always be fun. However, like Drawful, it can't quite reach the level of some of the more creativity-based games in the packs. This one is probably the best game to play with the family. (Packs 1, 2 & 4) [2-8 players]
3) Tee K. O. - In the group I normally play with, this could easily be number 1. However, in some groups i've played with, it sucks. Because of the freedom of the game, you need a group that can both be really clever and draw somewhat well. If you get that, it's unmatched. Tips: Game is best played with 5 players, and drawing characters or faces of some sort usually results in the best shirts. (Pack 3) [3-8 players]
2) Patently Stupid - This game takes mixes the cleverness of Quiplash with the creativity of TeeKO and adds improv. The recipe for a fabulous game. The only issues with it are minor ones: it goes on for too long, the tutorial won't totally skip, and it's hard to draw anything that looks good because you can only use a pen that's too fat and one color of highlighter. (Pack 5) [3-8 players]
1) Quiplash 1 & 2 - This is basically the soul of Jackbox. This game can be bad if A) you play with people who are not clever or B) you play with people you would make sure to be polite around. Get yourself a clever group of friends and it's truly hilarious. (Also, coming up with two funny things in 60 seconds is one of the most stressful activities of all time) (Packs 2 & 3) [3-8 players]
Pack Summary:
Pack 1 - Skip it. Two games are trash, the other three get superior sequels.
Pack 2 - Honestly, this pack might be number 1 or 2 if it just wasn't so obsolete. Quiplash and Fibbage get sequels, Earwax sucks, and Bomb Corp is 4 player. Get it on sale for Bidiots and Bomb Corp.
Pack 3 - This pack is great because it's the only pack where NONE of the games are bad. Every other pack has at least one game that just takes up space. It's also got some of the most variety, with a "be funny" game, a trivia game, a creativity-based drawing game, a decision game, and a social deduction/communication game [Pack 4 and 2 both have no real trivia, Pack 1 has no "be funny", Pack 5 has no social deduction]. I'd say that although Pack 5 may be better, this one you should get first.
Pack 4 - This one you should definitely pick up at some point, as it has the best Fibbage, Monster Seeking Monster, and Enough About You. The other 3 games suck. Get it at a good discount.
Pack 5 - This one is basically tied with Pack 3. It's got four games in my 12 game rotation compared to three games in Pack 3, but it also has a dud. Another thing about this pack is that all the games (except for YDKJ) are pretty complex to play, especially when compared to something like Quiplash which is just "write a funny".
Thanks for reading! Not sure why I wrote all this, I'm supposed to be studying right now. The ways of a master procrastinator are mysterious.
Submitted December 01, 2018 at 06:44PM by AgentClyde https://ift.tt/2FRod9T
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