You Don't Know Jack is out for PC, Xbox 360, and PS3, and it's pretty awesome. If you've played the online game from the past two or three years, you know what to expect in gameplay: They've ditched the whole "Pick one of three categories" format from the olden days, and each game's categories are already set out for you in a specific order. Each question starts out at $2K in round one, and $4K in round 2- the cash prize for each question goes down (by hundreths of seconds) the longer it takes to answer- this means you'll end up scoring odd amounts of money all throughout the game. Dis or Dat pays off at $300 an answer plus a time bonus, and Jack Attack answers are $4K. There's 10 questions plus a Jack Attack in each game.
PROS
-Because the game comes prepackaged with 73 episodes, it means each game seems a little more polished. Only 5 episodes will be open at a time, so you kinda have to go in order, and it makes you play more to see what new gems Cookie has in each episode.
-Xbox Live play. Nice
-The bulk of ads you hear in the background noise during the opening were commercials from YDKJ: The Ride.
-I miss buzzing in, but having all 4 players play on every question means my friends don't have to sit and watch me dominate. (For local multiplayer, does everyone play on the Dis or Dat?)
-Cookie.
-11 questions is a good balance for those who miss picking a 7/21 question game.
-3 planned add-on packs (10 episodes each) at $5 a pop.
-Apparently, Big Button controller support.
MEH
-In each game, there's a predetermined "Wrong Answer of the Day" sponsored by some ridiculous company (the wrong answer always fits with the product). If you find it, you get double the full amount for the question (so $4K in round 1, $8K in round 2).
-Dis or Dat is the only surviving bonus round/game of the 7 or 8 they've had during the series (impossible question, 3 way, Bingo, etc).
-The Screw just pushes a player to answer within 5 seconds- there's no screen distortion like in the old days. I guess it gives the screwee a shot in hell, but that's why you use the screw in the first place- to take away that shot.
CONS
-Three of the pros above combine to make the only real con: because each game is canned and there's no more "question bank", players can easily memorize questions in the game. It makes it easier to get the Achievements, but it's still pretty cheap. I played an episode the other day, then went to play online and ended up with the same exact episode. There are only 73 episodes, yet there's already a player with a 143-0 win record. Because most episodes are locked upon startup, it's not even like the computer can try and figure out which open episodes each players has, and then match players up by unplayed episodes.
-The PC version is restricted to 2 players, no online play, and no expansion packs. If you can help it, get the console version.
Overall, though, it's a better party game than before, and it's something my friends have gladly played. They've done so many things right with this version that I already can't wait for the new Volume 2...unless they just keep adding new packs to this version, which I'll gladly accept, too. Mission accomplished, Jellyvision.
My Xbox Gamertag is Quizmaster87 if you want to experience a first hand beatdown.
