The Jackbox Party Pack 10 review

Along with the annual family shouting match, the fifth unopened bottle of Sherry, and feeling disgusted with yourself for eating a sixth roast potato, The Jackbox Party Pack has become something of an institution in our household over the past few years. A boisterous alternative to breaking out Cluedo or Boggle, it’s always been a joyous way to spend a few hours whilst slowly digesting your way through Boxing Day. No exception, 2023 sees the release of another new pack in The Jackbox Party Pack 10, with five more varied games to enjoy with friends and family alike. As each game makes use of mobile devices as a controller, it’s easy for all involved to grasp the basics and jump in with the minimum of fuss. Not having to try to explain complicated controls to an elderly relative is also a bit of a bonus.

First up then for The Jackbox Party Pack 10 is TeeKO 2, which sees the return of a previous game, once again testing your artistic flair and creative writing skills. The aim here is to design a clothing brand with each player drawing colourful designs and writing catchy slogans. Once these have all been thrown in together, you’ll choose your favourite combination, proudly display it to the audience of players, and see who gets the most votes in a tournament style finish. Reliant on player creativity, this can be a little hit or miss but there’s certainly fun to be had with the right group around you.

Timejinx sees players taking on a more classic style quiz game. You are tasked with guessing (or knowing) the correct year in which an event takes place, with points being gained for the number of years your guess is away from the actual date. The overall aim is to have as few points as possible at the end of the game. Whilst this can prove a little more taxing for younger players, there’s no denying the satisfaction of getting a year absolutely bang on for obscure events. With a couple of rounds involving general knowledge, this has fast become a family favourite from this pack.

Fixy Text is a harder game to describe. With the in-game narrator replying to a received text message, it’s your job to answer as a team, with each player editing in real time against the clock to create the funniest or possibly most offensive reply that their brains can muster. There’s the slight issue that once you’ve added to the jumble of text on-screen, there’s no delete option, meaning that each round, the message looks a lot like something an angry Grandma might send or like a bag of scrabble letters has been dropped on the living room floor. Players vote on each other’s input to the message such as best words or combinations to score points. Again, your mileage may vary based on the creativity of those playing. It’s not a game that I would recommend in the pack and my least favourite of its offerings.

However, Dodo Re Mi is the absolute jewel in the crown of Party Pack 10. This is a riotous rhythm game that I absolutely adore. If you’ve ever played a Rock Band or Guitar Hero game, you’ll feel right at home, with up to eight players choosing their “instruments” from a truly ludicrous mix of sounds, hitting screens as notes drop down. Cats wailing, lips flapping, beatbox drums and chirping birds all fight for position in the audio mix as your band tap, tap, tap their way to victory, which in this case is to score highly enough not be eaten by a carnivorous plant, obviously.

With loads of short songs on offer and instruments available for each skill level, it’s a fast and funny game with potentially hours of content. With the option to download your “best” songs as MP3 files post game, why not share your renditions with friends. You’ll sound like a primary school band rehearsal and you’ll be laughing your ass off whilst doing it. This is definitely my pick of the pack.

The final game is Hypnotorious, in which you play the part of a secretly provided character and must answer prompts in text as that person or thing, such as “Your opening speech in a play” or “The tagline to your biopic”. The aim here is to only give away a little of your character to the other players whilst still working out who they are. There’s a theme between all but one of the players and it’s your job to deduce who the odd one out might be or even if it might be you! A compelling mix of detective work and creative writing, it’s an interesting concept that really needs to be experienced to fully grasp its intricacies.

A solid entry, The Jackbox Party Pack 10 continues the series legacy to provide a fun mix of party minigames. With some lackluster presentation and in-game narrators that start to grate after a few hours play, it’s not all smiles and laughter, but on the whole it’s an entertaining package that will provide a great opportunity to get together with friends and laugh an evening away together. Oh and make sure you play Dodo Re Mi, because it’s an absolute banger.