Quiplash

Quiplash is a party game by Jackbox Games for three to eight people. Instead of quizzing knowledge, it has the group invent their own answers to short questions and sentence starters, as funny as possible. A vote then decides which idea wins.

The game runs on a shared screen. Smartphones or tablets serve as input devices, so participants don't need their own controllers.

Quiplash was released for PC on Jun 30, 2015. Versions for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One followed in Sep 2015. A dedicated Apple TV app arrived in Oct 2015. The Nintendo Switch version came out on Jul 23, 2020.

Jackbox also offers Quiplash for Amazon Fire TV. The original's game mechanics stay the same in these versions.

Quiplash has been released for PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV. The PC version covers Windows, macOS and Linux. For Xbox Series and PS5, being able to play older console versions should not be equated with a separate re-release.

Apple TV and Fire TV are standalone versions. A smartphone with a browser, by contrast, is mainly the input device for a running game and not a replacement for the main game.

Everyone answers absurd prompts with their own text. Two answers compete against each other at a time. The rest of the group picks the better idea instead of looking for a set solution. This way the humour comes from the players rather than from a fixed question list with correct answers.

Votes earn points and decide who wins the round. Spontaneous and unusual ideas can also hold their own against carefully worded answers.

For the original Quiplash, Quip Pack 1 adds extra questions. The pack expands existing games rather than replacing one. On Steam it is available as separate add-on content for Quiplash.

For the PC version, Steam lists a dual-core processor at 2 GHz, 125 MB RAM, 110 MB of free storage and a broadband internet connection. The originally listed Windows 7 is no longer supported by the current Steam client. If you play the Steam version now, you need a newer operating system.

Quiplash gives short prompts and unfinished sentences. Players type their ideas on their phone or tablet. This can produce wordplay, surprising twists or deliberately absurd suggestions. There are no trivia questions with only one correct answer.

Answers appear in pairs on the shared screen. Anyone not taking part in the current duel can vote. Setting the suggestions directly against each other makes the group's reactions the decisive part of the game.

Alongside the three to eight active players, an audience of up to 10,000 people can vote. Viewers do not enter their own regular answers, but they can influence the result. This makes Quiplash suitable for game nights with more people present than free player slots.

Players use a smartphone or tablet as the input device. The main game runs on a PC, a console or a suitable TV and shows questions, answers and results. An internet connection is required.

Jackbox gives about 15 minutes per game. The short format makes it possible to play several rounds in a row and swap participants between games.

The original Quiplash can be played in English. Questions and the interface are not available in German. For a German-speaking group, players can write their own answers in German, but they need to understand the English prompts.

According to Jackbox, Quiplash has settings for family-friendly games and moderation of answers. Especially when playing with larger groups or viewers, this makes it easier to handle inappropriate entries.

Viewers of a broadcast can also vote via the audience feature. Active players are limited to a maximum of eight, while the audience helps decide the result. Questions and answer duels must be visible to everyone on the shared game screen.

Quiplash comes from Jackbox Games, the studio behind the party games Fibbage, Drawful and YOU DON'T KNOW JACK. The mix of shared screen, written answers and smartphone input shapes many Jackbox games.