Game Reviews

You Don't Know Jack

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You Don't Know Jack

The You Don’t Know Jack trivia series has been around for about two decades. Its foray onto the iPhone isn’t revolutionary or new, but it does squeeze the guessing fun onto the mobile.

Like one of those pub trivia games, You Don’t Know Jack pits you up against ten rounds of questions. The answers are narrowed down into four multiple choice options.

The quicker you answer the question, the more points you get. Wait until the time runs out or pick the wrong answer and you lose points. The game ends with a sudden death level where you must match two identical items.

Irreverent pop culture

The idea is simple, but You Don’t Know Jack’s real strength is its charm. The announcer is always cracking jokes and the questions are incredibly contemporary – the April 2011 release has references to Charlie Sheen, William and Kate, and other stuff that just happened.

The flip side is that the ideas will be stale in a month. You Don’t Know Jack will have new 'episodes' in the future, though its unclear whether they will be free upgrades or pay-to-play.

There are 20 stages here with each with their own ten questions and sudden death rounds, so there's plenty of play.

Best in short bursts

Fast-paced, frantic, and glib, You Don’t Know Jack is made for brief playing sessions. A round takes about five minutes, and the silliness can get annoying after a round or two.

The biggest omission is a multiplayer mode. Curiously, at the end of each round the game suggests buying another version of You Don’t Know Jack to play multiplayer.

True multiplayer may eventually hit the iPhone version, but for now the game is a fun, if limited, single-player title.

You Don't Know Jack

Though limited by its mystifying lack of multiplayer and the shelf life of its pop references, You Don't Know Jack is a fun quiz game
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Damon Brown
Damon Brown
Damon Brown has been speaking the mobile game gospel since 2003 for Playboy, New York Post, and many other outlets. Damon writes books when he isn't busy gaming or Twittering. His most popular book is Porn & Pong: How Grand Theft Auto, Tomb Raider and Other Sexy Games Changed Our Culture.