Trivia Murder Party III Early Access Review – Jackbox’s New Beginnings?

If you’ve never heard of Jackbox Games, I’d be genuinely shocked. Jackbox has made a name for itself by being the ultimate friendslop game creator. With 11 party packs full of games released (and the 12th on its way in October), Jackbox has cemented its place as one of the best for group hangouts, thanks to its ease of access and ability to play on your own mobile devices.

Alongside the greats of Quiplash and Fibbage, though, is Trivia Murder Party, of which there have been two so far. However, Trivia Murder Party III is here in Early Access, and it’s making a splash all on its own. Yes, you heard that right. Instead of being released in a five-game party pack, Trivia Murder Party 3 will be released as a standalone game.

The news that Trivia Murder Party 3 will be released on its own was quite surprising, since it has always been part of a party pack when it was featured before. Honestly, I was not sure there was enough content for it to be released on its own. When looking at previous games that are included in the party packs, I would be rather disappointed if 95% of them were released on their own. There are, of course, a few standout games that I think could potentially hold on their own, but it has me wondering… why? What is the point in releasing a standalone game when you are known for your party pack games?

Trivia Murder Party 3 takes us to Camp Mass Acres for summer camp. Who doesn’t love a good trivia party at summer camp? It’s a fun, themed idea that I think the other Trivia Murder Party games lacked. Our serial killer trivia show host returns, and he’s as hungry as ever to add to his kill count.

Trivia Murder Party 3, right off the bat, is standing out from the other games. The first big change I noticed when I launched the game is that it’s in 3D. This was really surprising, since previous Trivia Murder Party games have all been 2D. The Steam page even warns that the system requirements are higher than usual and tells players to check them before purchasing.

The next big change I immediately noticed is that players can customize their characters. My friends and I had an absolute ball with this. You can pick your character and even dress it in different clothing. There is a leveling system, so there are more characters, outfits, and fun stuff to unlock for customizing your character. Once I was done creating my character, I realized that there are different emotes that can be customized as well. The group’s favorite emote was the passing gas one – go figure.

Lastly, the biggest change coming to Trivia Murder Party 3 is online matchmaking. This is very different from the local multiplayer Jackbox is known for, and it will be the first Jackbox game with an online matchmaking system. So, if you’re itching to play but have nobody to play with, you can play Trivia Murder Party 3 at any time you’d like.

Trivia Murder Party 3 feels really good to play, especially if you have a great group of people to play with. The game now has rounds that depend on how many people are left, which is a nice addition. The questions get harder as the rounds go on, and more people start answering incorrectly. According to the Steam page, it also has more questions than the previous games.

We encountered some of the same knockout games from previous entries, such as “Math” and “Chalices”. These are traditional Trivia Murder Party games that we were happy to see again, but we also got a couple of new games that freshened things up a bit. Overall, though, I’m still not convinced Trivia Murder Party 3 stands on its own.

Visually, the game looks great. I think it has some of the coolest, most appealing visuals Jackbox has ever put out. But let’s be honest… I’m not looking at Jackbox for amazing, groundbreaking 3D graphics. When I pull up a Jackbox game, I want to have fun with friends and honestly couldn’t care less what the graphics look like in my trivia game. Instead, I want funny questions, nail-biting competition, and memories that will last forever.

A friend made a strong point I think we should consider: why buy standalone Trivia Murder Party 3 when Jackbox Party Pack 6 will cost about the same, and you get five games (including Trivia Murder Party 2) for the price of this one? After thinking about that, I genuinely don’t see this game excelling as much as Jackbox hopes. Personally, I think Trivia Murder Party 3 should have been wrapped into Jackbox Party Pack 13, or something similar.

I think the story base they have going on is a really cool feature. Going to summer camp and playing some trivia can be very nostalgic for a lot of people. The gameplay is fun, but it doesn’t stand out enough from the previous Trivia Murder Party games to wow me. The graphics, as noted, are amazing, and I think the 3D makes Trivia Murder Party 3 unique, but not enough for me to spend money on it.

The music and sound design are good, but nothing really called out to me. It felt basic and expected, especially after playing the previous games. The technical aspects were all just fine; I had no issues running the game on the highest settings. I didn’t spot any major bugs; most were small, like emotes being a little slow or misplaced. Nothing unexpected for an Early Access game.

I think Trivia Murder Party 3 is a good game overall, but I honestly cannot justify spending $14.99 on it right now. In its current state, it feels like the same game we all know and have come to love from The Jackbox Party Packs, but as a standalone entry it just feels like a money grab. You’re really just paying for some 3D graphics, some new questions, and a few new minigames. I think Jackbox needs to offer more for people to get their money’s worth buying this game.

Angel reviewed Trivia Murder Party 3 on PC in Early Access with a provided review code. This review is based on the version of the game available at the time of writing and will not be changed.