How to Choose Which Jackbox Party Pack to Buy

Updated

Choose a pack by matching its five games to the people in your room: drawing games for a loud, visual crowd, writing games for quick wits, trivia for competitive groups, and hidden-identity games for players who like bluffing. Then weigh how new the pack is and whether the site currently lists a discount. The official site describes each pack as containing five original games and says it has made 10 different packs so far, with The Jackbox Party Pack 12 and The Jackbox Party Pack 11 both marked "OUT NOW."

Start With the Game Type Your Group Enjoys

The site groups its titles into drawing, writing, trivia, and hidden-identity games, and says it mixes them "designed to appeal to everyone in the room, Zoom call, or Twitch stream." Use that as your first filter.

If your group likes… Look for packs featuring… Example from the site
Drawing and laughing at bad art Drawing games Drawful (named among the studio's hits)
Fast typing and joke-writing Writing games Quiplash, Fibbage
Trivia with a twist Trivia games Trivia Murder Party, Legends of Trivia (in Pack 11)
Bluffing and social deduction Hidden-identity games Suspectives (in Pack 11)

A practical approach: list the two or three games your group would actually replay, then pick the pack that contains the most of them. Since every pack holds five games, you will usually get one or two you skip — that is normal, not a reason to avoid a pack.

Check What Is Newest or Currently Featured

Newer packs are the easiest to buy with confidence because the site is actively promoting them and their games are the ones being updated.

  • The Jackbox Party Pack 12 is listed as "OUT NOW" and is described as five brand-new party games. The site frames it as the current centerpiece of game night.
  • The Jackbox Party Pack 11 is also "OUT NOW" and includes Hear Say (voice recording), Doominate (ruining wholesome jokes), Cookie Haus, Suspectives (social clue sleuthing), and Legends of Trivia (collaborative trivia).
  • Trivia Murder Party 3 appears in the blog as an Early Access title receiving patch notes, so if you specifically want the newest trivia content, check its current status on the site before buying a pack for it.
  • A separate 2D comedy game about a long-armed thief is marked "COMING SOON," so it is not yet a reason to pick a pack.

If your group is new to Jackbox entirely, a current pack is the safer first purchase: it is the one the studio is supporting and promoting right now.

Look for Discounts Before You Buy

The site's blog mentions a Steam Autumn Sale with "up to 65%" off party games. That is a signal that packs go on sale periodically, so check the Shop section and the blog before paying full price. The site does not list current prices on the pages reviewed here, so confirm the price and platform at checkout rather than assuming a pack is cheap or free.

One Thing That Does Not Affect Your Choice

Only the host needs to own the game. The site states that other players "don't need to buy anything to join your game — just make sure everybody can see the host screen." So do not pick a pack based on how many friends will play; pick it based on which games they will enjoy.

A Quick Decision Path

  1. Name the one game type your group will play most (drawing, writing, trivia, or hidden identity).
  2. Find the pack containing the strongest example of that type — Pack 11, for instance, covers trivia, writing, and hidden identity in one purchase.
  3. If you have no strong preference, default to the newest pack (Pack 12) since it is the currently featured release.
  4. Before checkout, check the Shop page and blog for an active sale.
  5. Confirm the platform you will host on, since the site references "major platforms" without listing them on this page.

Following these steps, you can pick a pack in a few minutes and avoid buying one whose games your group will never open.