I recently had the opportunity to sit down with some fellow games journalist and dive into the upcoming Jackbox Party Pack 12 and some of its new game modes. I’ll admit, it’s been a couple of years since I really got some Jackbox time in. But I used to play them all the time with family and friends both locally and remotely, so I was excited to see what new was coming with the upcoming pack.
During my hands-on with Jackbox Party Pack 12’s Debate and Switch, I had to debate whether White Monster was the best Monster flavor. Now, I’m a White Monster fan, but the best?
My argument quickly devolved into the “healthier” or “sugar-free” being relatively pointless for an energy drink. A “healthier” Monster sounds like an oxymoron of sorts to me. Why bother at that point? Most of the other players agreed with my take, though there were a couple of straggling White Monster Absolutists.
Debate and Switch gives these kinds of disagreements a town hall and an audience. Between two and eight players submit opinions, with pairs arguing for or against a topic. Everyone else moves their characters to whichever side they support, so you can see who you’ve persuaded and who’s refusing to budge. Spectators can also submit comments that appear onscreen for the debaters to use or ignore.
The switch comes after the first debate, when players can edit a word in the topic and the debaters have to adjust their arguments. Jackbox’s example changes “We need more spiders!” to “We need hotter spiders!” This little tweak can quickly spice things up.
Imagine the first debate is something like “Vanilla is the best flavor of ice cream.” Obviously not true, but for examples sake, the switch would allow someone to change any word of that debate to create a new one, but just one word. “Chocolate is the best flavor of ice cream.” (Also obviously not true) or you could get even more creative like “Vanilla is the vanillaest flavor of ice cream” or even “Vanilla is the best flavor of ice spice”. I don’t even know what that means, but surely it would be a fun debate.
I’m really excited to try Debate and Switch with friends. Don’t get me wrong, I love my fellow writers, but a mode like this really shines when playing with friends and cleverly changing debates to tailor to inside jokes, etc.
Of course this is one those modes who won’t be suited to everyone, primarily those who aren’t comfortable being under pressure. I personally enjoyed it, but I know typically with Jackbox the modes that are bettered by having people actually engage via voice or video are often the most fun, but usually the most niche.
Hyperface was also available for a hands-on demo, but due to timing I wasn’t able to take part. In Hyperface, players edit selfies or stock photos to match a prompt, stretching, shrinking, and drawing on faces before everyone votes for their favorite of them all. It looks like a lot of fun, and I’m sorry I missed the chance to give it a go. For sure looking forward to it in the Jackbox Party Pack 12 though when it releases on PC, consoles, and mobile devices on October 15, 2026!