#You Don't Know Jack: Full Stream

[captainfightingflower]

Monetization be dammed; my girl CANNOT do a little trolling!

[askseriousrainbow]

The second half of the Top 100! We're getting close to number 1. This is numbers 50-41.

Link to part 1. Link to part 2. Link to part 3. Link to part 4. Link to part 5. Link to part 7. Link to part 8. Link to part 9. Link to part 10.

50. TMNT: Shredder's Revenge

Beat-em-ups are fun, and this one is one of the best, in my opinion. The game has 6-player co-op, 7 playable characters, and many levels of pure beat-em-up bliss. I've enjoyed my time with it, and the story is great. Not to mention, the OG Turtle voices are great.

49. The Plutonia Experiment

Yes. Just Plutonia on its own. TNT: Evilution is boring. Plutonia got Dario Casali a job at Valve. Sure, it's harder than DOOM II, but I do love the little tricks it uses, which for the most part work better than DOOM II's tricks. But it's lower because there is a barrier to entry. (TWO Arch-Viles in the first friggin' map? On HURT ME PLENTY?!) It's infamous for Go 2 It, though. Good luck, Doom Slayer, you'll need it.

48. Team Fortress 2

Alright. I was originally considering this to be in the top 10 because of how many hours played and friendships were made because of TF2, but I can't justify it in this list. I still love TF2 and it's my second-most played game on Steam, but I don't play it often these days.

47. Hitman Blood Money

Agent 47's fourth outing is easily one of his best, and has been the inspiration for the style of the World of Assassination trilogy among other things. The stealth is fantastic and even though you shouldn't go for combat, it's not bad. The way to make things look like an accident greatly vary the game.

46. Serious Sam 3: BFE

I love Serious Sam 3, it's the game that introduced the Devastator weapon to the Serious Sam arsenal. While the return to Egypt can be disappointing for some, but I actually enjoy it. I usually have my game put on “Vivid” color mode. The boss battle at the end of the game is enjoyable as well. JETPACK!

45. Deus Ex

You know that gag that says every time you mention Deus Ex, someone reinstalls it? It's totally true. Deus Ex is a game of choices, you can choose to be pacifist or go in guns blazing, and you really don't know who to trust. It's a creative thriller and it's one of the best.

44. Crazy Taxi

YA YA YA YA YA! Crazy Taxi is just one of those arcade games that's just fun. It's you, your cab, your fares, and a big open map. You're encouraged to drive recklessly, but still not run into things, to raise your fare.

43. You Don't Know Jack: Full Stream

The third version of YDKJ in the modern era, Full Stream fixes what was wrong with YDKJ 2015, makes it more accessible to people, makes Screws feel more important, remakes the Jack Attack to fit with the “device as controllers” mechanic, and just feels like a tighter YDKJ game.

42. SimCity 3000 Unlimited

I like 3000 more than 2000, because its advisors are actually characters that guide you into the right way of governing your city, the addition of garbage and neighbor deals, the refinement of how to build zones, the addition of farms, just EVERYTHING. I built more successful cities in 3000 than in 2000, so I think that has something to do with it.

41. Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri

More than just “Civilization IN SPACE!”, Alpha Centauri took the Civ formula, tweaked it, added some hard science-fiction, created diverse factions with different goals, made it plausible, and just went to town. This is how you create a spiritual successor to a game.

Look forward to part 7! :D

Link to part 1. Link to part 2. Link to part 3. Link to part 4. Link to part 5. Link to part 7. Link to part 8. Link to part 9. Link to part 10.

[whocaresifwearecrazy]

He tried his best...Monday mornings are NO ONE'S friend!

Just snap open a fortune cookie and he'll be wide awake and good to go

~Monday Morning in Jackbox Studio~

Schmitty: *preparing coffee for everyone*

Cookie: "It's one of those mornings..."

Cookie: "The kind of morning where you've been up for twenty minutes, and it feels like twenty days..."

Cookie: "If I can just make it to my coffee, I'll be alright..."

Cookie: "It's in sight..." *sluggishly pulls himself over to where Schmitty is*

Schmitty: *looks over* "Come on, Cookie! You can make it!"

Cookie: *flops asleep on the ground*

Schmitty: *giggles to himself* "So close, and yet so far"

(12:30 pm, 2/6/2024)

^ Better luck next time, Cookie.

[ihatearbys]

TRUTH TALK 23/7 NATE i imagine shes a little insane from sleep deprivation , my birthdays in 6 days idk what to do uhm happy wednesday

[artroidsart]

What do you mean I drew the original 4 years ago???

One good way to get out of art block is to remake an old piece. I figured, since my Cookie and Binjpipe designs have changed a LOT, this would be a good one to remaster. It's wild looking back on my old Jackbox artwork, seeing how much my art style has changed. The eyes are rounder, the anatomy has improved, and I found new ways to add shading and lighting!

I'm so happy with how this remake came out. The expressions alone came out so well! Here's the original for comparison:

[yooitsyorick]

You shut my noises off. Now I'll shut you off.

[rrawrrxd]

i finally finished up my refs for the art fight!!! yay!!!!

i had to redraw them cuz i didn't like half of the first attempt lol. and i did it in three days. lol.

the first ones did have some text on them btw, i think i'll post it separately

[sergle]

hey ! just wanted to jump in and let you know jacksfilms moderations have kindly asked not to spread around images/videos of sniperwolf outside of his home ! they've asked so for privacy reasons (even if it's censored)

yo!! I don't wanna violate anyone's privacy by circulating sensitive info / stuff being saved for legal reasons, obv that's why I used a screenshot where almost everything is censored except her caption and username- but I checked on his twitter to see if he posted/liked any statements about asking ppl to delete posts w that pic, and the video he posted a couple hours ago also shows another censored version of that same screenshot of the front of his house. so I'm not sure where that info is from? that said, if it is true then I can delete the post where the censored screenshot is posted but. like. since this is tumblr, the post and the imbedded images are still going to exist on ppl's reblogs of it, even if I deleted it all wholesale. it's not like on twit where if you QRT something, and it's deleted later, the tweet you quoted turns into a dead link while your comment still remains.

[captainfightingflower]

Why You Don’t Know Jack: Full Stream’s Escape the Simulations fall flat and is mediocre at best (and how they did the concept better in the same game).

You Don’t Know Jack: Full Stream, especially it’s special episode dubbed “Escape the Simulations” is a fan favorite, yet “favorite” does not mean “objectively good”, which ETS is not. 

It’s not bad to like ETS, and you’re allowed to like it, i’m not saying you shouldn’t, or that you’re stupid if you genuinely enjoy it. I’m here to explain to you why, by it’s execution and delivery, how it fails, and how a single voice line from the same game completely outdoes what ETS attempted to accomplish.

Spoilers for You Don’t Know Jack: Full Stream’s Escape the Simulations below Keep reading:

The episode having a random chance to show up hurts it’s impact and just causes players distress.

It was revealed in a Reddit AMA that it was decided that making Escape the Simulations a part of the same special episode pool as Fraiser Frenzy or Featuring Jimmy Fallon that has a chance to appear every 1/69 times You Don’t Know Jack: Full Stream is played was the better option over it happening if you played enough games of You Don’t Know Jack: Full Stream in succession because more players would get to experience it.

This was an awful decision, honestly. You Don’t Know Jack: Full Stream’s Escape the Simulations would have benefited FAR more if it was kept to something that only occurred if you played YDKJ: FS several times in a row, as the ending line claiming that you’re also stuck, along with Cookie, would have hit so much harder if you had to play it multiple times in a row without breaks. Making you realize that, in a way, Creepy Voice is right, instead of it coming off a cheesy villainy!

You could even improve it further by doing it Trivia Murder Party 2 Escape Room style, where once you trigger Escape the Simulations: it won’t trigger again unless you reinstall the game. Giving it an ominous feeling that you weren’t suppose to witness it at all and solving the issue of it stressing out players who experienced it previously.

Speaking of stressing out players: there has been several accounts of players who can’t play YDKJ: FS without tensing up, anxious that question 4 will be that question. If the game you’re playing is a game that is built to be played multiple times over has an event that causes players to get so stressed out that they can’t play your game anymore: then there’s a problem with the event!

Fun fact: YDKJ: FS was the first Jackbox Game game i’ve ever played (if you’re curious, the first question i got was the Polydactyly meme format one), so there’s a chance that ETS could’ve been my FIRST EVER experience with Jackbox Games as a whole! It’s no mystery that ETS is for the fans who like the lore, but Jackbox Games’ fanbase is largely casual players who don’t know it even has lore! 

Imagine how many families wanted to try out YDKJ: FS, only to be confused at why the host is in a cube and the lady is threatening him very ominously when all they wanted was to play trivia, turning them off from the game, or even the YDKJ franchise entirely, assuming that’s what the game was usually like.

It benefits no one and only lessens the impact of Escape the Simulations to have it just occasionally happen 1/69 games if another special episode isn’t picked.

The acting does not instigate any fear or urgency.

When trying to convince your audience that the character they care about is in danger: it’s crucial that the character SOUNDS like they are in danger. In Trivia Murder Party 2: Phil did an amazing job making Schmitty sound genuinely terrified and listening to the lines alone genuinely feels like someone is being held a gunpoint to read them.

You might say “Well maybe Tom just can’t act distressed as well as Phil can.”, and i raise you the time Schmitty decided to pull a prank on Cookie by tricking him into thinking Old Man killed himself right in front of him: Cookie sounded GENUENLY in distress during his little prank, which proves that Tom IS able to make Cookie sound like he’s distressed, meaning that this choice to make Cookie unnaturally calm when his life is threatened is ether bad voice directing, or intentional. 

binjpipe being “big evil corporation is bad” is the writers picking low-hanging fruit when they own a ladder.

Binjpipe being obviously bad and having the twist being that they are obviously bad does not make for a good twist, and the writers have the ability to make infinitely more creative twists!

Binjpipe would have been more interesting if instead of it being an obviously evil company, it spoofed brands that intentionally advertise themselves strangely. Because while generic adds come and go from your brain pretty easily, strange ads like Little Baby’s Ice Cream stick with you, resulting in much better advertisements!

If binjpipe’s whole shtick was to market themselves as being very clearly evil, when in reality they aren’t, would make for some genuinely effective in-universe advertising! And, if you want: you could even say that Escape the Simulations is just a massive marketing stunt to get more people talking about binjpipe (which if that’s the case, then it clearly worked and would explain Cookie just not being as freaked out as he should be). It’s already canonically implied that they are financially struggling and that they are REALLY bad at marketing themselves, so it wouldn’t be to crazy to assume they’d pull something like that, and it would make for a better, infinitely more creative twist overall if it were true! 

Why should we treat Truth Talk 23/7 as a credible source NOW?

Truth Talk 23/7 (despite it reducing Nate Shapiro into a conspiracy nut) is a radio-styled show that shows up occasionally after games of YDKJ: FS. Clearly a spoof on conspiracy radio shows, due to him asking callers if they are sheep or weasels (or a pair of cargo shorts) or him going through his neighbors mail & garbage (which you might say is just a reference to the Funky Trash question type, which it is, but Nate Shapiro never was in a game that DID the Funky Trash question type, so he’s just dumpster diving for the hell of it) which is highly illegal by the way to go through people’s mail.

So when Nate goes on spiels on how not to go by the dates dictated by Big Calendar or how he is the voice of reason in a world that no longer exists: we shouldn’t to take him seriously. But suddenly, when he’s talking about binjpipe: he’s credible???

You guys just suddenly believe this tinfoil hat wearing paranoid nutjob, who has been doing nothing but rattling off conspiracy theories, that binjpipe’s terms of service is written in blood or that he got sent ancient Sumerian scrolls that translate to “binjpipe: Consumer of worlds”?! That’s like...typical conspiracy nonsense! Like how Disney is run by the devil, or that Pepsi flipped reads out “is dead”.

“But Cookie was gone for several packs!” So what?

Schmitty was gone for several packs too, yet nobody asked where he was! Even when it was revealed he was kidnapped this whole time: some of y’all still believe that he was just acting and not actually in danger! “But didn’t Schmitty appear in Full Stream?” Yeah, and his program is streaming old YDKJ commercials: his voice lines could have been very easily pre-recorded before his kidnapping, as shows take a while to get greenlit IRL. 

Not to mention [REDACTED] is a freelance writer for binjpipe, could it be so hard to believe that he forced Schmitty to record those lines too? I mean the whole program by concept doesn't feel like something Schmitty would wanna do if you check his past characterization. But that's a hot take for another post.

But when Cookie was gone: everyone was all “Where’s Cookie? When’s Cookie coming back? Is Cookie okay?”, dude could have just taken a vacation! Wouldn’t be the first time he’s taken a vacation. Him being absent for a couple of packs means Jack! Not to mention Tom needs to take breaks too, he can’t just voice Cookie in every pack, that would kill his voice long-term.

“The binjpipe part was a joke” and the missed potential of Creepy Voice.

At the end of You Don’t Know Jack: Full Stream’s second trailer, when Creepy Voice states that The Jackbox Party Pack 5 is only on binjpipe, Cookie states that the binjpipe part is a joke, Creepy Voice questions this and Cookie reinstates that it is, which causes Creepy Voice to sound genuinely hurt by this as they question it again, resulting in Cookie yelling that it is.

This added dimension to Creepy Voice, if implemented in ETS, could’ve added a layer of tragedy to their character instead of just “spokesperson to evil corporation is just a mouthpiece for the evil corporation's evil”. If Creepy Voice was also trapped along with Cookie, or was living a giant lie, and reset right before they reset Cookie: then it would make their claim that we’re also trapped feel so much more saddening and make Creepy Voice so much more empathetic and humanized, as well as separate them from binjpipe the company and gave them a distinct character of their own.

Also, Creepy Voice should’ve been a co-host. “But isn’t Creepy Voice a co-host already?” Well no, Creepy Voice doesn’t alternate between Cookie through the game like other co-hosts do, and them hosting a question type doesn’t mean anything since side-characters like Milan or Old Man also have their own question types. They are a side character like Helen or Mavis, it’s just the fact that they are really the ONLY recurring side character in YDKJ: FS that makes them feel like they are a co-host.

If Creepy Voice did host alongside Cookie, not only would it mark them as the first female-presenting character to host in the YDKJ series: but it would also make people feel more attached to them if they bounced off each other more, or if Creepy Voice occasionally insulted you for getting questions wrong. Which would make ETS feel so much more like a betrayal and hence more impactful.

Lore heavy episodes aren’t Jackbox Games' strong suit, and never will be.

Jackbox Games, especially back during it’s Jellyvision days, always thrives on cumulative lore building, where individual voice lines add up and snap together into very detailed characters. That’s how the original 5 YDKJ hosts manage to feel like actual people instead of just fictional characters! This results in accessible lore that does not feel intrusive for the styles of game Jackbox Games creates, which are ether trivia or party games.

Due to the fact that these are party games: they do NOT lend themselves to lore heavy episodes, which includes You Don’t Know Jack: Full Stream. Every time they attempt to do a lore heavy episode: it just falls flat and does nothing but confuse casual players. It’s just pandering to the hardcore fans, pandering that fundamentally does not work for the styles of games they create. Remember: these are casual party games at their core: not detailed story-driven epics where you expect them to lore dump on you.

Yet, what if i told you that there IS a better handled version of Escape the Simulations, one styled just like their typical cumulative lore right in this very game?

The better “Escape the Simulations” present in You Don’t Know Jack: Full Stream.

One of the possible introductions Cookie Masterson can do when you start a game is one where he states that he has been trapped in the game for decades and that he misses his family. On it’s own it seems like another quirky intro in a sea of quirky intros, yet that’s where Jackbox’s signature cumulative lore kicks in.

In You Don’t Know Jack Vol.6: The Lost Gold, when first booting up the game: it’s established that The Captain, the game’s sign-in host, got trapped inside YDKJ: TLG while looking for Jack’s Gold, cursed to be the game’s sign-in host until someone raises the flag to free him, yet because players will want to keep playing: he gets recaptured after a run-in with a gorilla.

Now, decades means that at least 2 decades had passed, and since it has been shown that time between installments is the same in universe as it is IRL (unless stated otherwise), we can compair the game’s release dates.

The first game he appeared in was You Don’t Know Jack Vol.1, which came out in 1995, The Jackbox Party Pack 5 came out in 2018, that’s over 20 years apart, making it at least two decades.

Cookie was a sign-in host in that game.

This reveal, unlike Escape the Simulations, feels EARNED, like those 23 years built up to this single voice line. The writers knew what they were doing with this line, and the amount of horror it brings while making perfect sense with previously established lore cannot be understated.

It sucks that this brilliant voice line is overshadowed by the underwhelming Escape the Simulations, while ETS tries too hard to add unnecessary tension that doesn't work within the confines of a trivia game; this voice line doesn't overstay it's welcome, allowing it to be dismissed by casual players, but giving just enough information for diehards to take notice. Yet that's just how the cookie crumbles.

Now that is my long winded rant about You Don’t Know Jack: Full Stream’s Escape the Simulations and how it’s flawed, apparently it’s been retconned in The Jackbox Party Pack 9, and good riddance! It was an awful episode that inadvertently causes war flashbacks to people whenever the word "Content" is spoken in conversation.

But apparently, there was yet another binjpipe focused episode in there, if people spamming the fanart tag with "Binjpipe hungers" as soon as the patch (which Jackbox experimenting with the "release now, patch later" moto is ALSO another hot take for another post) released.

Honestly, Jackbox should take binjpipe out back and shot and only dangle it's corpse as a cheeky background reference instead of trying to be serious with a joke streaming service! I could go deeper, like how the ETS could have made for a killer ARG if tied in the game more with the website (yet with their attempt at the Weapons Drawn. "ARG" which was just a treasure hunt since they broke the first rule of an ARG which is "Don't say it's an ARG", i'm glad they didn't.), or how i would write Creepy Voice as a co-host, but this hot take is getting a bit too hot for the kitchen.

What are your opinions on You Don't Know Jack: Full Stream's Escape the Simulations? Do you disagree and think it's objectively a good special episode? If so, what makes it good objectively? Do you agree with my take, but not one of my reasons, or have another reason as to why it doesn't work? Or do you have your own ideas on how to improve Escape the Simulations? Or is it just conceptually a failure and cannot be saved? Let me know, i'd love to have a civil discussion about this! Anyways, thanks for listening to my Talking Points.

[alanna-artroid]

Alrighty, let me gather some facts!

*digs through the rubble*

Cookie is canonically bisexual! He's both directly said this, and has been shown to be attracted to both guys and girls.

The Old Man is revealed to be Schmitty's father. He and Schmitty's mom had a one-night stand in France, leading to Schmitty being born out of wedlock.

Buzz and Nate are cousins!

Cookie is lactose-intolerant but eats dairy products anyway. (I understand this is common in lactose-intolerant people)

Schmitty was married to a lady named Sandy. It's commonly believed they are divorced now since we never hear from her anymore and Schmitty describes being neglected on their wedding night. So things probably didn't go well for them.

On a more uplighting note, there is a line where Schmitty teasingly says he loves Cookie, much to the latter's annoyance.

The VAs for Cookie and Nate are actually brothers! (Tom Gottlieb for Cookie and Harry Gottlieb for Nate)

Before he became the main host, Cookie was the sign-in guy for You Don't Know Jack. He was the guy who would ask how many players there were, what your names were, and how long you wanted the game to be.

Cookie's favorite food is fortune cookies. (on brand) He's also a big fan of Pringles.

Guy owns a tower in Mad Verse City. (You can destroy it)

I want to learn more about jackbox and ydkj loooore

I only learned bits and pieces

I yearn knowleeedge

[mariegolddoesthings]

"I can't let the algorithm change me. Not this time."

I wasn't lying when I said I'd make that wallpaper!

I had to compress the file because this was one of my BIGGEST projects yet. Like legit this thing was a whopping 23.3MB.

Click for better quality!

[bliz-lol]

I just decided to imagine Nate as a villain. And I wanted something related to a bijpipe.

here Nate "broke down"

[ihatearbys]

some stamps i made awhile ago that i only posted to deviantart + some new ones

[interoteme]

have you tried turning it off and on again

[artroidsart]

When was the last time I drew THIS fella? It's been ages!

I've been wanted to touch-up my Cookie Masterson design for a hot minute. With a bunch of new faces on the Jackbox scene, I've seen some really cool designs! Gave me some inspiration for my own work. Nothing too crazy, just a few changes.

I changed him from a natural red-head to a brunette, since that seems to be the general idea among artists. Instead, I thought it'd be cool if he dyed his hair during Champ'd Up, as a way to keep Binjpipe off his trail. His natural color is gradually growing back as of Fibbage 4. In other news, ya boy has freckles now! (Now he's a chocolate chip cookie!) I also made him a bit chubby, he IS a big eater after all.

[beepsparks]

This is a certified Binjpipe moment, okay I think I am done with the important characters related to YDKJ yay!!