The Jackbox Party Pack 7 developed and published by Jackbox Games is finally available and it has brought a new collection of minigames to most modern systems. The new Jackbox collection has a couple of interesting games, but they never quite match up to the greatness of earlier Jackbox entries in the series.
The Jackbox series has become a staple multiplayer franchise, as it allows people to play fun minigames while on stream, but in a way that encourages interaction and in-jokes between friends. The Jackbox titles only require one copy of the game, as everyone uses their smartphone as a controller. The Jackbx Party Pack 7 comes with five games - Quiplash 3, The Devils and the Details, Champ'd Up, Talking Points, and Blather 'Round.
Quiplash 3
Premise: The players are given a sentence with blank words. They need to come up with funny words and the other players vote on their favorite answers.
Quiplash 3 is the first game on the list in The Jackbox Party Pack 7 and it's easily the worst of the bunch. The aim of the game is to try and make generic or unfunny phrases amusing, and that task is going to be easier/harder depending on how funny the group is and how drunk they are. Quiplash 3 just doesn't give the players the chance to flex their comedy muscles, as it barely uses the video game medium to be entertaining. There is a custom mode where players can submit their own questions for their next game of Quiplash 3, but at that point, the group may as well just use pen and paper.
The Devils And The Details
Premise: The players are the members of a devil family posing as mortals. They need to complete tasks throughout the day by playing minigames, some of which require the cooperation of other family members. Individual devils can also work on solo missions to earn points for themselves. The family has to balance working together to finish group tasks and survive each day, with completing solo tasks in order to ensure they win the game after three days have passed.
The Devils and the Details is the trickiest game in The Jackbox Party Pack 7 to pick up, as there are a lot of active elements at once, especially with a large group. A lot of direct communication is required in order to complete some of the minigames and there can be a lot of shouting over each other. The minigames themselves run the gamut from rubbing the Switch screen to complex affairs that are straight out of Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes, and the pacing of these games keeps things fresh in each round. A group of new players might have trouble picking it up, but it's worth sticking with. It might take a couple more rounds than usual to catch everyone up to speed, but it's a lot of fun once everyone is on the same page and trying to balance co-operation with backstabbing.
Champ'd Up
Premise: The players are given a title and they have to draw a Street Fighter/superhero-style character that matches the title. They are then shown an image of a rival player's character and have to come up with an enemy design for them. The other players then vote on which one better matches the title. In the second round, tag teams are introduced, where new titles are introduced and players can re-use character designs from earlier rounds.
Champ'd Up is similar to games like Bidiots and Drawful, as players need to guess the meaning behind each other's drawings. The fighting game aspect is well-done and it opens a lot of opportunities for in-jokes, especially when some rounds directly reference players in the room. The pen/color selection is also great for creating striking characters. Champ'd Up has the potential to be the best game in The Jackbox Party Pack 7, but it's held back by some major glitches that prevent the drawings from being displayed during each round. This means that one of the most crucial aspects of the game isn't present at launch, which is a shame, and we hope the developers fix the issues quickly.
Talking Points
Premise: The players come up with titles for TED Talk-style speeches. One of the other players has to complete the speech, while another assists by providing pictures that go along with it, Powerpoint style. The other players give points depending on how much they like the speech.
Talking Points is one of the best games in the collection, but it's definitely not for people who are afraid of speaking in public. Creating funny speech topics for the other players and giving them images they have to respond to on the fly opens the door to all kinds of jokes, and the ad-libbers in the group will adore the possibilities. The only weak aspect is relying on player votes for the scores, making it better suited for larger groups than smaller ones, as the contestants need to appeal to the whole group instead of a single player.
Blather 'Round
Premise: This is similar to Password. A player is given a name for something (like Gandalf or the Eiffel Tower), and they have to use clues from pre-determined words to give the other players hints. They can add more clues as the game progresses, some of which can reference the incorrect guesses. The game will detect when a correct answer is inputted, awarding points.
Blather 'Round is an amusing game, as assembling clues from the available words and trying to match them to player guesses is a lot of fun, with everyone trying to solve the same puzzle at once. The game could use some design improvements, such as tightening up the UI to make it easier to scroll through words on the phone. The game could also be a bit more forgiving with its interpretations of answers. It will usually accept an answer with a single misspelling, but it won't accept answers that are close in meaning. These gripes aside, it's a strong entry in the collection.
Overall, The Jackbox Party Pack 7 is a mixed bag. Champ'd Up will be the best game in the collection once the technical issues are resolved, while the other games are more dependant on specific setups. The only bad game in the collection is Quiplash 3, but few of the other games match the greatness of the earlier Jackbox titles. The Jackbox Party Pack 7 will be entertaining to those who have played the other entries in the series to death, but it doesn't live up to the pedigree of the earlier games.
The Jackbox Party Pack 7 is available now for Amazon Fire, Android, iOS, Nintendo Switch, PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Screen Rant was provided with a digital code for the Switch version of the game for the purposes of this review.