Many annual franchises run the risk of becoming stale, with each new installment less impressive and less creative than the last. The Jackbox Party Pack games are an exception to the rule. While some of the party games are hit-or-miss, each Jackbox Party Pack has been a safe bet for game nights and parties. The new Jackbox Party Pack 10 keeps the franchise's momentum going strong, giving fans five more party games that should keep them and their friends laughing for hours.
Each Jackbox Party Pack has a headlining new game, with this year's big headliner being Tee K.O. 2. The original Tee K.O. Was featured all the way back in Jackbox Party Pack 3, challenging players to come up with wild t-shirt designs that could then be turned into real-world shirts. Tee K.O. 2 retains the basic premise as its predecessor, but expands things with more opportunities to mix-and-match slogans and shirt designs on top of giving players the option to select hoodies and tank tops along with t-shirts.
For those unfamiliar with Tee K.O., it challenges players to draw whatever they'd like and come up with whatever kinds of slogans they can think of, and then jumbles them together. This way, player A may have to work with slogans from player B, but the drawings of players C and D. The designs then face off in head-to-head showdowns, with the winners determined by vote until a final victor is chosen. The battles are fittingly goofy, with a Jackbox Party Pack take on Mortal Kombat's Fatalities included to help keep things interesting.
Tee K.O. 2 is superior to the original Tee K.O. In terms of features, though it is the buggiest game in the new Jackbox Party Pack. There is an issue where chunks of a design will randomly disappear, and sometimes, entire designs on a shirt will go missing with nothing but the slogan remaining. Unfortunately, this wasn't the only technical issue we ran into with Jackbox Party Pack 10.
Another issue can be found with the game Fixytext, which challenges players to simultaneously write text messages and laugh at the chaotic phrases they come up with, kind of like mad libs. Fixytext stresses that players aren't supposed to be able to delete anything they write, but in our testing, we had no problem using backspace. This seemed to defeat the purpose of the game, though Fixytext is definitely the dud of the bunch anyway. Most Jackbox Party Pack games have at least one party game that's abandoned by game night groups, and Fixytext will likely fit the bill this time around, though it is good for a few laughs.
Luckily, the remaining three games in Jackbox Party Pack 10 are all bangers. Hypnotorious is a clever twist on the social deduction genre, where everyone is assigned an individual identity and must successfully group themselves with others who fall into the same category without revealing exactly who they are. For example, one of the categories may be Athletes, and so one player could be Michael Phelps, another might be Tiger Woods, and another might be Pele. The game then asks questions that players have to answer in character, and those answers are then used to figure out where everyone needs to go. The twist is that one player is an impostor whose character doesn't fit with the other categories, and it's up to the group to figure out who that is and shun them to get the maximum points.
Once players have had their fill of Hypnotorious, they can check out Time Jinx, the obligatory trivia game in The Jackbox Party Pack 10. Jackbox Party Pack trivia games are reliably fun, and Time Jinx is no exception. In it, players have to make their best guess for when certain real-world events took place. The farther they are from the correct time, the more points they get, with the scoring system working like golf, meaning the goal is to have the lowest score possible. Time Jinx is simple fun and another solid Jackbox trivia game.
There have been many trivia, social deduction, and word games in past Jackbox Party Pack titles, so some fans may be hoping for something fresh in Jackbox Party Pack 10. Those wanting a new Jackbox Party Pack experience need look no further than Dodo Re Mi, which is what happens when Jackbox meets Guitar Hero. The bizarre music/rhythm game has everyone using their phones to play ridiculous instruments Guitar Hero-style, but the twist is that players are birds trying to convince a carnivorous plant not to eat them by performing well.
Dodo Re Mi players all play their instruments individually, but it's a group effort to please the plant and avoid getting eaten. A nice touch is that the instruments have varying difficulty levels, so a wide range of players can play Dodo Re Mi and have a good time. The instruments all make unique sounds that come out of everyone's phones, which can make the game loud and obnoxious at times, but also hilarious depending on what instruments players have selected. As far as Jackbox Party Pack party games go, Dodo Re Mi also has the most replay value, as it has a nice selection of songs that players actually have to unlock, encouraging repeat plays.
The Jackbox Party Pack 10 has three excellent party games in Hypnotorious, Time Jinx, and Dodo Re Mi, with Tee K.O. 2's only drawbacks being its familiarity and the occasional technical issue. Mileage with Fixytext will vary, but it will likely be the least-played out of the new batch of party games. This puts Jackbox Party Pack 10 on par with the other games in the series, which means it's a great party game experience that will become a fan favorite at game nights.
The Jackbox Party Pack 10
- Released
- October 18, 2023
WHERE TO PLAY
The Jackbox Party Pack 10 features five new party games, including the long-awaited sequel to Jackbox Party Pack 3's popular Tee K.O.
- Genre(s)
- Party Game, Strategy
- Hypnotorious is social deduction done well
- Tee K.O. 2 offers more apparel options
- Dodo Re Mi offers fun rhythm twist
- Trivia fun with Time Jinx
- Some bugs in games
- Fixytext is least memorable
The Jackbox Party Pack 10 launches October 19 for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X. The Best War Games was provided a PC code for this review.