Later this week we will see the exciting annual release of the newest and brightest Jackbox Party Pack – this time it’s number nine! Having had an opportunity to view footage and trial some of the games in the pack ahead of launch, here is a brief overview of what you can look forward to. And don’t forget to check back for the full review upon launch!
Junktopia
Jackbox fans will recognise some elements of Junktopia as being a fantasy spin on Bidiots, crossed with the player-inspired design and sales elements of Patently Stupid. In this game, you buy an item of junk from the store, name the item and give it an entertaining background and details, then showcase the item to your peers who will appraise if against the competition. More votes equal more value, and of course, the player with the most money at the close of the game wins wins. These player-driven minigames with comedic themes have done the Jackbox games well over the past few instalments, and Junktopia doesn’t look to be an exception to the quality of thematic setup fans will have become accustomed to. Best played with like-minded individuals, Junktopia looks as though it will be a hit.
Roomerang
Roomerang is a roleplaying game designed with a reality tv-inspired theme. Players will create a persona, acting as their character would through different scenarios and trying to win the love and approval of onlookers. Every Big Brother fan’s dream. An added challenge here is you must try to keep your points up without knowing how you are doing compared to others, much like the “real life” shows. Simply, you must answer questions and behave as your character would and try to win. Challenges in this game also breed advantages, which certainly can’t hurt your chances. It is also important to remember that your fellow players will vote out housemates that they do not take to until there is one winner. However, throughout the game new contestants (see previously booted housemates) will arrive to mix up the meta. As ever, it is ultimately pointing that winning the game. This is something different for Jackbox which I thoroughly look forward to getting hands-on with.
Nonsenory
One of the new games which I was excited to get hands-on with, Nonsensory is a game which challenges you to be in tune with your friends’ thinking in order to score. Very similar to the popular board game Wavelength, in Nonsensory you are given a task and an intensity level and have to write an answer which represents the pairing. Other players then have to guess the number from one to ten which represents the intensity of what they have written, or indeed drawn. It is a hilarious game which drives heavy debate and breeds certain confusion, but one which truly challenges you to back your opinions and hopes that your friends do too. The prompts range from good/bad advice to representative drawing or otherwise, so there is a huge mix of fun to be had in this rapidly extreme and nonsensical title.
Fibbage 4
Fibbage 4, as the name suggests, is a now-Jackbox classic. An absolute fan favourite bluffing game, Fibbage is a title where players offer up false answers to obscure questions to try and trick their friends. A funny fact or unusual piece of trivia with a true but unlikely answer is presented, and players earn their points for both finding the correct answer and for fooling their peers. New to Fibbage 4 are fan-submitted questions, which truly mix up the meta by providing scenarios in which no player can possibly know the real answers in advance. Movie questions and a special double-prompt finale are also new to the game, and it will be interesting to see how this foundational Jackbox minigame has evolved further still into its current form.
Quixort
Quixote is the new team game in Party Pack 9, and one of my favourite new titles too. On a simple level, the game challenges two teams to put prompts in the correct order. These prompts may be anything from people in a category, the order of lines in speeches, the lyrics in songs, movie release dates or one of many, many more possibilities. Not every category transpires to be as obvious as it may seem, though, and the appearance of fake answers to weed out into round 2 certainly ups the ante as the game progress. One of the most fun features of this game is the unstoppable inception of heated debate amongst teams trying to sort through categories against the clock. The Tetris-style appearance of each new prompt on the timeline only adds to the pressure too, and it soon becomes clear who on your team cannot handle the heat! Great, clean, general knowledge fun, Quixort will be a real winner from Party Pack 9 for sure.
Other notable features
The return of Jackbox is once again supported by great, ongoing localisation, and more importantly the careful integration of accessibility features. Jackbox Games have championed accessibility for years, and Party Pack 9 continues the theme with options such as the removal of times from games, subtitles, audio-described room codes and instructions, text sizes and much more. A lot of overt consideration has gone into ensuring anyone can play and enjoy the games to the best of the developers’ abilities, and for this, they should be heartily commended.
Verdict before launch
As ever, The Jackbox Party Pack 9 offers an array of entertaining and comedic minigames, each of which is fundamentally different to the last and bears its own unique merits. The couple I have tried hold up to the high standards that these games have set over the years, and I certainly can’t see fans being disappointed. Launching on October 20th, I for one can’t wait to jump into the full game at launch.
Developer: Jackbox Games
Publisher: Jackbox Games
Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Linux, macOS
Did you enjoy reading our preview of a game before the game gets its final release and its final version? if yes, click here to find more early previews.
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