Trivia Murder Party has been a staple of Jackbox Games for quite some time now. There’s something about testing your trivia knowledge against your friends in an unsafe setting.
If you’re new to Trivia Murder Party, you and other “unwilling” players are in a life or death situation. Your only way out is the knowledge in your head. Or some good guessing. Or being really good at mini games to stay alive. Jackbox has now introduced Trivia Murder Party III, a standalone title in the overall universe. But there is more than just the trivia questions in this new entry to the series.
Lucky for us, everyone’s favorite murdering game show host [REDACTED] allowed the team to answer a few questions. Don’t worry they are all safe! Or as safe as they can be. Read more below to hear directly from the team.
It’s been a while since we’ve had a Trivia Murder Party, all the way back in 2019. What made now the time to revisit it? More importantly, what made it the right choice for a stand-alone release?
Sydney Hunt, Product Manager: Trivia Murder Party has a lot of fan and studio love. We knew there was a real appetite for a third game, and internally, we were pretty excited about making one. Separately, we’d been talking for a while about things we wanted to try as a studio: online matchmaking, developing a game in 3D, and introducing customization, progression, and rewards.
That’s a lot of new territory to explore, and Trivia Murder Party felt like a really natural fit: a cinematic feel that we were excited to bring into 3D, a format also gave us a way to introduce online matchmaking without some of the challenges that come with player-written answers, and we know there’s a real connection to the dolls, so giving players ways to customize them felt like an easy yes. All these things naturally fit around a series that we and our players already love.
As for standalone, developing these “firsts” for one game gave us room to experiment and learn without adding that complexity across an entire Party Pack. Trivia Murder Party 3 is also a live service game, with plans for ongoing content updates and live events. Having it stand on its own felt like the right fit for both making the game and continuing to build on it after launch.
Murder Party 3 brings us to a summer camp, how did you decide this is the appropriate setting? What films or tropes were the heaviest inspiration?
Spencer Ham, Creative Director: The locations for Trivia Murder Party are important as it not only informs the look and feel of the game, but also the types of minigames we choose. Having already done confined spaces in the previous two games, we wanted to break out and do something familiar but different. A summer camp felt like the obvious choice given its slasher ties and big open world. Believe it or not, it wasn’t our first pitch for a setting, though. The first time we conceptualized a third installment, we had set it in a big conference hall. The idea was that {REDACTED] had lured victims into a fake gaming convention. Maybe some day…
Following the movie feel, there are now plot twists in this murder party, what inspired the decision to include these?
Sydney Hunt, Product Manager: Well, plot twists are a key component of a lot of good movies. How else are you supposed to stay on the edge of your seat? Jokes aside, the inspiration to develop the plot twist system largely follows the same logic. We want each game to feel different from the last, and plot twists give us another way to shake things up and give players something fun and unexpected to deal with while scrambling to stay alive.
With our live service model, we plan to keep adding content over time so there’s always something fresh to come back to. The plot twist system gives us a lot of room to play, and the team already has plenty of ideas. A lot of those “what if we did this?” conversations turn into plot twist ideas. Ultimately, it’s about adding variety so you can keep coming back without anything feeling stale.
Is there a favorite twist among the team?
Caylin Kaunas, Senior Producer: I can’t prove it, but I feel like the team takes some level of delight in consistently scaring me with Jumpscare every single time it’s triggered.
Nate Sandberg, Audio Lead: I love playing the Flashlight Plot Twist. I actually prefer it to normal trivia! It’s hilarious watching everyone scramble for a good spot, and trying to decipher the questions is a fun logic puzzle.
Spencer Ham, Creative Director: I always enjoy playing Flashlight Trivia because it changes the energy of the game. The collaboration (and sometimes frustration) with teammates creates some good tension and laughter with my groups.
How about a favorite mini-game? Especially from the new ones.
Caylin Kaunas, Senior Producer: Pouring was one of the first mini-games we stood up as a team, and I think continues to be a favorite. We’re inching closer and closer to team members being able to frequently hit a perfect 100%!
Nate Sandberg, Audio Lead: I really love Archery! I had so much fun doing sound design for that game, and I’ve added in some fun easter egg sounds that you can hear occasionally if your aim is less than perfect.
Spencer Ham, Creative Director: Trunks because of just how deeply replayable it is. I think our best games have you changing up your strategy over time and I have certainly done that with this game. Also, I like it when things go boom.
In this iteration of Murder Party it seems like we also get some lore dropped about [REDACTED]. We also get more about [REDACTED]’s mother. She’s quite the… character to say the least. An overbearing mother for sure. We see how she sent [REDACTED] down a certain path in life. What was the discussion like about having a mother figure so deeply included?
Spencer Ham, Creative Director: Having established [REDACTED]’s relationship with his parents in TMP 2, I wanted to build off that. Both of his parents were overbearing, but he was definitely much closer to his mother. It felt like an organic crossover to the Friday the 13th universe to have his dead mother’s voice invade his thoughts during moments of failure, like when everybody gets the question right, when nobody dies, etc.
This most recent entry also brings matchmaking for players. While it’s still early, how have players reacted to this so far?
Sydney Hunt, Product Manager: Matchmaking was a big new feature for us, so we were really excited to launch it and see players respond positively. What’s been most exciting is seeing fans of the series find each other and play together, with more opportunities to engage deeply with the game without being limited by who’s around or whose schedules line up. Of course, with any new feature, we’re paying close attention to any friction players run into so that we can understand what’s working, what could be smoother, and how we can evolve the system over time.
You’ve stated that the community is going to be so important in the development of the game. Has there been anything surprising to you so far about the feedback?
Caylin Kaunas, Senior Producer: If anything, I’ve been surprised and delighted by the level of thought our community has put into feedback so far. In our early Steam Next Fest demo we had removed the concept of ghosts in an effort to make the gameplay a bit more streamlined. But we heard back right away about how much ghosts as a mechanic meant to players, and the various ways as to how that changes their play experience. It was that level of detail across the board that made it an easy decision for us to pursue, and it’s been that way about other elements as well!
Sydney Hunt, Product Manager: Given we’re exploring territory we haven’t tackled before as a studio, it’s been really impressive to see how our community has partnered with us to refine these new features. Sometimes feedback reads as “I didn’t like this” or “I’m not sure why this worked the way it did,” and that’s always helpful. But there’s something really impressive about our community’s ability to deeply reflect on those experiences and view the game much in the way our devs do. Our players share really thoughtful, specific details on their experience and receiving that feedback can feel like working through those areas with someone who’s on our team. It feels like a real partnership, and it makes the whole process feel a little more special.
Now that there are lots of customizations in the game, is there ever potential for additional community content? Perhaps some skins or maybe even mini game ideas? Perhaps even player photos for additional jump scares when that plot twist is activate?
Caylin Kaunas, Senior Producer: What’s most exciting about Trivia Murder Party 3 so far is the fact that we’re in early access, and the team is ready to continue to explore and improve so much more of the game as we go. While we don’t explicitly have “community submitted skins!” on our roadmap, it never means we won’t, which is so exciting for a Jackbox game. I think players should stay on the lookout for community updates since we may have some specific ideas we’d love their input on to craft.
Sydney Hunt, Product Manager: We definitely plan to expand the content in this game, from cosmetics to new Killing Floor minigames, plot twists, and trivia, and we’re always receptive to player ideas as the game evolves!
Can [REDACTED] ever be stopped? Does the team need rescuing?
Sydney Hunt, Product Manager: [REDACTED] is a wonderful host, and the development team is happy, healthy, and answering these questions voluntarily. There is no need to send help. We’ve been asked to emphasize that last part. Please keep an eye on the Steam page for updates, news, and continued confirmation that we’re all alive and doing great. Checking regularly would mean a lot to us. Just knowing someone on the outside is keeping track. Please remember how many of us there were.
He’s a great leader, [REDACTED] that is.
Everyone here is having a great time.
Let’s be honest, we love working on this game.
Praise and bonuses are frequent.
Ultimately, this is the most rewarding job I’ve ever had.
Sincerely, Nate Sandberg, Audio Lead.
!
Thank you to the team for answering our questions. Of course an even bigger thanks to [REDACTED] for letting them speak with us. Perhaps one day we’ll get our own chance of checking out his summer camp on our own. Okay yes, we will, just hope we make it back safely. [REDACTED] will completely let us return back in one piece to share the word right? Right?
Can’t wait for our review? No problem! Trivia Murder Party III is out now in Early Access on Steam. Stay tuned to Gamer Social Club for our upcoming early access review of Trivia Murder Party III. Want to join in on a game night? Consider joining our Discord for game nights!
