The time has come again for a new release of the classic party game, The Jackbox Party Pack 10, and this latest instalment comes with 4 exciting new game modes to play with friends. It’s also great if you are a streamer – chat can join in on the fun. All they need to do is enter the room code shown on the screen and join in, either as a player or an audience member, and even if they missed out on playing in the main cast, they can still win by voting on things as the audience.

Sadly, some people lurk on the internet and will jump at chances like these to spread their hate, but thankfully, Jackbox Games has been on top of that for a while. Players will need a Twitch ID login to join a game, so you will know everyone by their name in chat, and there’s also a family-friendly mode to avoid some pretty major words that can land people in trouble.

There are five game modes in this pack, with Tee K.O. 2 making a comeback. In this fashion throw-down, players will use their devices to design a shirt, and these are then randomly given to other players to add a subject or a description, and then everyone votes for which shirt is best. New features have been brought in for Tee K.O. 2, like being able to change the style of a shirt to a hoodie or tank top, and the ability to change the colour of the shirt and drawing, and just like before it can be played with 3 to 8 players.

I really enjoyed TimeJinx, the new trivia game mode that can be played alone or with up to 7 other players. History is the main topic, and you’ll have to guess what year certain events took place, like what year Dig-Dug came to arcades.

The points system works like golf in that you want to have the lowest score to be declared the winner, and it’s calculated by the difference between the answer and your guess, so if your guess was 13 years off the correct answer, 13 points is added to your overall score. There are also bonus rounds that shave years off, you just need to get the two questions correct and you will either get a 15% or 30% reduction on your total, and luckily, guessing incorrectly during these bonus rounds won’t affect your score.

Hypnotorious is a secret teamwork game, and it’s a bit of a confusing concept at first. 4 to 8 players are given an identity, but you can’t share it with anyone, and this is where the game comes in. You will have to answer questions based on the identity you were given, so you could be answering a question like “What’s the best thing to do on a Saturday?” but you have to provide an answer based on your identity, which could be something strange like a snowman.

Other players will have the same type of role, like a celebrity, a fruit, horror monsters, etc, and while this is all happening, there is one player who hasn’t been assigned a team, but they don’t know that either. They are what is called the Outlier, and finding this person is the main objective. After three turns, everyone will vote on who they think the Outlier is, and if they are correct, big points are awarded. If not, the Outlier takes the points for themselves, so do you think you can see the connection and work out who is the Outlier?

FixyText is a fun and chaotic game mode, where 3 to 8 players are split up into groups after voting on one of four subjects; Unknown Number, Flirty, Serious Business, and Friends and Fam. Players will then receive a message, and as a group, you have to reply. Sounds easy, right? Where’s the challenge? Oh, did I forget to mention the group can all type at once?

Words get messed up, creating a mixture of errors as everyone’s answers are blended together, like the words pineapple and computer making “compeaple.” Like, what even is that? Even more fun is the fact that there is no backspace button, so players can’t correct or erase inputs. The other groups will then vote on the words they liked in the message, and this will add to the team’s score. Once this is all said and done, things switch over for the next team to enjoy the chaos.

Last but not least is Dodo Re Mi, a musical game where you and up to 8 other players are birds that play musical instruments. I spent the most time playing this because I could play it solo. Each instrument comes with a difficulty system, and the best comparison to gameplay I can think of is Guitar Hero. You will have to press the on-device circle as it moves into the correct spot on the board to play the note, and there are notes you can hold down to gain more points.

Depending on the instrument you select, you could only have one note to look out for, but others could have five, but it comes down to reflexes also to get the most points. After each song, a killer plant judges you, and if your music doesn’t make the plant happy, it will eat you. I’ve spent so long in this game because there’s a heap of songs to play and unlock, and I still have a few to unlock. I’ll definitely be returning to Dodo Re Mi. I want to see all the songs available.

The Jackbox Party Pack games are always worth buying, and this 10th version has kept that tradition, offering countless hours of entertainment. Each mode is fun to play, and while I would like to have seen past titles return, I am very happy with the new ones. They’re a great addition to the series.

Written by: Shane Walsh