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Jack games get shorter and shorter...

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 16 / 18
Date: December 04, 2000
Author: Amazon User

It seems that every time Jellyvision releases a new JACK game, there are fewer questions, and therefore less gameplay.

Jack 5 has 600 questions -- while Jack 4: The Ride had 800 questions. I recall the first Jack having 1000 questions and an expansion pack.

So why the decrease in questions? Likely to clear up disk space for additional features like online play (nearly a pointless exercise given the number of people out there who enjoy cheating), better graphics and animations, new question types, and theme episodes.

And of course, Schmitty's back as host, so the game can't be all bad.

But still -- the previous edition of Jack had 33% more questions and came on 2 CDs for the same price. What gives, Sierra? Yes, I'll keep buying Jack games even if there are only a couple of hundred questions in each box -- and maybe that's the problem.

I, like many trivia fans, enjoy the irreverent humour and off-colour questions in the Jack games -- and make no mistake, there's a good chance you will be offended by this game at some point -- and even with the perception of lower value, I'll still buy these games.

However, if you are new to the Jack series, I would recommend JACK XXXL -- 2400 questions for the same price. And any game you haven't played before is a new game, right?

Entertaining But Not Much Else

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: January 16, 2002
Author: Amazon User

The game its self is fun but th overall quality of the game is not much to be proud of. The questions are whimsical and whitty and the graphics are decent. The one major problem I had with this game was the fact that the things that the host said were so long that you just wanted to strangle him. Also, since there is not a very large volume of questions within the game's library, the game cannot be played very much. You will begin to get repeats with in the first 3 times one plays the game. The original version of You Don't Know Jack is a much better version of this game. The reasons why are because one has the option to play a 7 or 21 question game which is much better than the 15 or so question game of this newer version.
Graphics: 80.1% (B-)
Entertainment Value: 76.7% (C)
Overall: 77.0 % (C)

A GOOD ol' game of You Dont Know Jack

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: April 09, 2002
Author: Amazon User

This edition of "You Don't Know JAck" is very different from the other installments. In my opinion the 5th Dementia is no - way as much fun as the 4th volume (The Ride). The one very cool feature of this game is that it allows you to play online. Good luck though finding people, becuase its not everyday someone plays this game anymore. I suggest that this game is worth your [money] and I'm sure you'll love the hilarious humor used throughout the game.

Tweaked Jack. New ideas that take up space.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: January 13, 2001
Author: Amazon User

YDKJ the 5th Dementia is doing it's best to take the JACK trivia games into brand new territory. On one level it succeeds and on a few others it doesn't. First off the greeter has changed to an annoying and sometimes befuddled schmoe with an annoying echo in his voice. Sandy from Louder! Faster! Funnier! was perfect, cool and got down to the point.

Next you are able to skip through some of the formalities at the begining but then you can't customize your character's personality which I believe has something to do with playing over the net. (That or it is a spacewasting novilty) Schmitty is also back as the host. I'll give him his credit that he does a good job, but Cookie and Nate (past hosts) shoot out jokes and beratement at rapid fire, no sweat, and don't drag out they're punchlines. Time to bring them back. At least the game does provide a few more barbs to fling at us which is good.

That aforementioned personality for your characters comes at two BIG prices. RAM and space. Unless your computer is a RAM or maybe a mhz monster, the game does have a bit of slow down but not enough to make the game unplayable. The game also has reached another new low, question size. At 600 it is the lowest amount ever for a Jack game! Others have on average 800 and 1000 questions.

On the bright side, they have brought back the variable money prizes from THE RIDE. no longer just fixed like they have been for a while, each player rings in to set a certain dollar value, which is combined to make the total prize. $2500 to $10000 or higher dollar amounts are capable. The game does bring two new and surprisingly good question types. Bug Out has players ringing in on items that don't belong to a listed subject. Right or wrong answers determine how much you steal from your opponants or how much they can rob you. Anagram is a varient on the infamous Gibberish question. Unscramble the phrase to have it spell a similar saying. Sooner your're right the more you make.

To sum up this review, 5th Dementia brings in some good and some bad. I can't blame the creaters for trying to rework the formula, but they need to scrape off some fat, put more questions back in and rework a few ideas. 5th Dementia is indeed a different Jack but it's just not King Jack.

Not Windows XP compatible?!?

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: December 27, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I got this game a few days ago and still have not been able to play it. I've been to the YDKJ web page and have read several posts there from people who are having the same problems I'm having. I've contacted Sierra and have yet to hear back from them.

How could is this game???? I wish I could tell you one way or another!!!!

:o(

You dont know jack - the ride

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 5
Date: March 06, 2002
Author: Amazon User

The Ride is probably the best of the YDKJ series. I have played everyone of the games since they came out years ago. And hands down the Ride is the most hillarious one yet. I would like to see more questions on the others and more knee slappin' comedy. I can't wait for another YDKJ to come out that is as funny as the Ride, with the same or simalar game play.

YDKJ keeps getting better!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 7
Date: November 09, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Well... the YDKJ just keeps getting better. Not only have the graphics and sound improved, the online play of this game truly will blow you away.

The online play is really easy with great chat options. The game will pair you up instantly with another player and you play a full 15 question game.

I recommend this game to anyone who loves crazy trivia games and the YDKJ series. If you only own one trivia game, let this be the one...

Something tells me SIERRA are the ones who Don't Know Jack

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 6 / 24
Date: April 27, 2001
Author: Amazon User

What can I say, I love useless trivia, and ever since it first hit the scene, YDKJ has been one of my all-time favorite games for its combination of a mish-mash of it with in-your-face humor, sarcastic hosts, and game-show antics that rival anything you can find on television. Jellyvision and Berkeley have always done a fantastic job, even when they happened to hit snags every so often: YDKJ TV, YDKJ Sports, nixing Fiber Optic Field Trips in favor of similiar, but not quite as humorous, "specials," and the question segues from Volume 2 spring to mind.

Unfortunately, it appears as if Sierra has, as usual, finally decided to let their anti-Macintosh values affect the mix with the latest batch of games.

Neither 5th Dementia nor Jack 2001 sport Macintosh versions for a game that has, in the past, seemed to be very steadfastly cross-platform. I honestly never thought the day would come when this would change, and yet, here it is. Hopefully this will change, but if it is in fact due to Sierra's meddling, I doubt that it will.

First, they don't give us Half-Life. Now they RUTHLESSLY take away You Don't Know Jack. I suppose they were planning on recycling the same old "We couldn't get both versions of the game to network" excuses if it were ever to cause the same amount of PR trouble...news flash, lamebrains: we like a game that we can only network against other Mac users better than NO GAME AT ALL!

And Sierra wonders why Mac gamers hate them so much...really, I'd wonder if I met a Mac gamer who was aware of their habits who DIDN'T hate Sierra. It seems like a fair trade-off: You don't give us good games that we want, we reply by dishing you out heaping spoonfulls of verbal abuse and negative PR. Really, the logic should be quite clear to anyone who isn't...how shall I say this? A complete pinhead?

As for the game itself, it's still good...but so far, it feels like the low point of the series. Previous releases had consistent themes and graphics when it came to overall appearence. 5th Dementia doesn't. Previous releases had no fewer than 800 questions. 5th Dementia doesn't. Previous releases had hosts that whipped contestants around, like Cookie and Nate. 5th Dementia doesn't. Previous releases HAD A MAC VERSION. 5TH DEMENTIA DOESN'T (I CAN'T stress this enough!)!

The game itself, when not held up against earlier games in the series, is good. But this lack of a Mac version is really stupid and most likely unnecessary. I'll cross my fingers and hope that it'll come around and improve once more in both areas...but I'm not too confident that that'll happen.

If there were a Mac version, 5th Dementia could earn at LEAST a three out of five, if not a four. But without one, it gets, quite deservingly, a ONE out of five instead.

Play Volume 1. Play XL (XXL, etc.). Play Volume 2, Volume 3, and the Ride. Play Movies. Maybe even play Sports and TV. Heck, even play Offline. But as long as there are no new releases for Mac, steer clear of 5th Dementia, 2001, and any other follow-ups indefinetely. This kind of discrimination should NOT be reinforced. It should be punished.

That's MY 2 cents.

If anyone needs me, I'll be playing the GOOD Jacks: ya know, the ones that SUPPORT MAC OS.

Someone Doesn't Know Jack...think it's Sierra

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: January 16, 2002
Author: Amazon User

Sierra offers little if any help on fixing the compatibility issue for YDKJ5 and Windows XP.

If you want a good laugh, compare their solution to the one Microsoft provides. You don't need a keen eye to notice that one of the tech support people cut and paste from their website, of course leaving out the key phrase "This behavior is by design." Beware XP users!

The second-worst Jack Game

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: April 15, 2001
Author: Amazon User

The first-worst is of course Volume 2 because of Buzz, but the host is not the cause of the horribleness of this game (schmitty's cool). The problem is, it's too slow. What's up with that, on the ride, it seemed to go through 13 questions BOOM-BOOM-BOOM. But however many questions it has, it goes through them BOOM------BOOM------BOOM, and that isn't normal Jack. It's Redeaming quality is the internet play. They did such a great job on that. If they can keep that being good while still having a fast-paced trivia game, it would be better.

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