Jackbox Party Pack 6 Review One Killer Time The Nerd Stash

Title: Jackbox Party Pack 6

Developer: Jackbox Games

Publisher: Jackbox Games

Genre: Party, Quiz

Available On: PS4, Xbox One, Steam, Nintendo Switch

Version Tested: Steam

Official Site: Jackbox Games

Release Date: October 17th, 2019

Where To Buy: Steam, PlayStation Store, Microsoft Store, Nintendo eShop

Jackbox is back again this year with possibly one of their best in the new Jackbox Party Pack 6. This is your neighbor’s worst nightmare as it’s hard not to play without screaming at unsafe levels.

Jackbox 6 uses your phone (or whatever) as controller by going to Jackbox.tv on a web browser. Most games require at least three players to start. But fear not, the title is stream friendly and anyone can join by entering the room code displayed at the start of every game.

Jackbox 6 is an expensive endeavor. This comes from the many sessions of therapy you’ll need after learning how little your friends trust you in Push The Button or fearing any human contact after being backstabbed from every angle in Trivia Murder Party 2.

The latest entry comes with some new games as well as some long-awaited sequels. There’s so much going right with this that it’s easy to ignore some of the hiccups along the way. This is possibly the most fun you can have being driven insane this year without having to put on clown paint.

The Party is Looking Jacked

Trivia Murder Party 2 is the sequel to one of the most talked-about games from the third entry in the series. The premise is simple, survive a haunted complex by answering a series of deadly questions. It’s cutthroat as players are trying to kill each other constantly between trivia rounds.

This sequel is more streamlined than before and improvement with more varied mini-games between questions. If there’s fault this time around, it’s that the mode is a bit too fast-paced, not giving some breathing time for WTF moments.

I want to look at my killer’s eyes and curse them as they screw me over. Unfortunately, everybody screwed me in Trivia’s mini-games, so I would end up cross-eyed even trying. Anyway, this quick-paced minor gripe doesn’t overshadow the great sequel.

Speaking of sequels, Push The Button is the spiritual successor to Fakin It, which is possibly Jackbox’s most replayable title. This time around, you are thrown in a spaceship that has the A.I getting corrupted by an alien virus. You must see which of your friends is disguised as the alien and eject them into space by–you guessed it, pushing the button. This is intergalactic take on Mafia is one wild game as your group figures out what’s what. There can be as many as three aliens depending on how many people are playing.

This title is no doubt a blast to play but falls short to its predecessor in one area, the questions. They are kind of generic and less risque this time around. There is also a problem those not being tested being idle, buy my groups were so into things, it went unnoticed.

You don’t need 6ix9ine as a teammate as it’s easier than ever you sus out who the Alien (Faker) is because of the “meh” questions. What kept my human group losing wasn’t the overpowered yet somehow balanced alien tools. No, just the inability to stop ejecting me into space and work together.

Ever heard of the definition of insanity? My group clearly didn’t but it doesn’t matter as you can make up words in the next game, Dictionarium.

Pick Your Poison

Dictionarium is a cool game that keeps building upon itself. It could easily go wrong, as many games do when asking people to make stuff up on the fly. However, this helps guide you in a way like our next game does that’ll help the creatively challenged.

Joke Boat is an entertaining romp into the world of stand up comedy. Just as Mad Verse City had people channel their inner B-Rabbit from 8 Mile, this brings out your Carrot Top. Fill in a joke and during later rounds, rewrite other people’s jokes.

Something that should have been cringy, turned out pretty funny and replayable experience. The only thing I can foresee being an issue that I didn’t see in my playthroughs are possible repeating setups.

Role Models is… something else alright. Almost every Party Pack has a weak link or a throwaway game and this is definitely the latter. My mouse cursor will never go over this name again for the same reason it doesn’t to check my bank balance. I don’t need to hurt myself like that.

Meat and Potatoes

The biggest problem Jackbox developed in recent entries was the focus on streamer friendly games. They suffered in the local aspect to appeal to something that would be useful to a smaller segment of players. Some mechanics, even whole premises, began to revolve around streaming. This began to feel more invasive than supplementary.

Jackbox 6 feels like a local party game again, with most games this year focusing on fun. The graphics and sound design here are just fantastic as you can’t help but tap your feet and stare mesmerizingly at the screen. Even in the weakest entry here (Role Models) has vibrant colors and pretty cool UI.

The best thing about these games is that everyone has their favorites. The worst one for me might be the best one for you. These are diverse experiences that vary on what kind of group you are playing with.

What I Mean Is…

Verdict: Overall, Jackbox Party Pack 6 is a return to form, featuring an engaging host of modes and less streamer centric games. There are some gripes this time around like the questions and prompts not being as outrageous as in past iterations of the same time.

However, this pack still makes for one of the most entertaining times you can have in front of the tube this year. This year takes some gambles that pay off and are worth dropping the cash on.

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