Absolutely Drawful

I’ve always considered myself somewhat good at art. I can draw a stick figure, at least. I can also draw lots of other things if I put my mind to it, and really, the only things that hold me back are the fact that I only ever seem to draw on shitty paper with a biro and my own self loathing. Being good at drawing runs in the family… apart from my poor dad, who can’t really draw a stick figure.

But none of that matters. Not when Drawful is around!

Drawful is a game featured in the Jackbox Party Pack, and has its own standalone version with extra features in Drawful 2. There’s other games in the Jackbox Party Pack, but they’re nothing compared to the beauty that is Drawful.

Alright, this is how the game works. Everyone who wants to play, up to 8 players, goes to the website jackbox.tv on their device of choice, all in view of the host’s screen. This is best done on a smartphone or tablet but anything with internet connection, access to a browser and the ability to draw works. You all enter the room code given to you by the host and give yourself a name. You’ll also be asked to draw a picture of yourself (or whatever you want) and this will represent you for the game.

The Drawful narrator will then give you a quick explanation, as well as tell you how many rounds you’ll play. For four or less people, it’s generally three rounds, and it’s two rounds for more people.

Once everyone’s ready, each player will be given a secret caption, which they have to draw in the space given. Once everyone is finished or the minute and a half timer ends, everyone stops drawing. One picture is picked at random, and everyone must guess what the caption was. Once everyone has made a guess, all their guesses are shown, as well as the real answer, and players must choose which answer is correct.

The owner of the drawing gets 1000 points for each person who picks the correct answer, and players also get 500 points if someone else picks their incorrect answer. Bonus points are rewarded if you guess the correct answer right off the bat.

It all sounds oh so simple, but there’s one catch – there’s no undo button. Whatever mess you make on that canvas, it’s staying there. Actually, I lied, there’s a second catch – the captions and prompts are random as fuck. Some captions don’t even make any sense, which is fine most of the time, but because it’s an American game, people who don’t have English as their first language may struggle.

One of the few drawbacks is that after extended amounts of play, you may start to see repeats, and if you’re like me, you’ll be able to rake in tons of points by seeing patterns in the way the captions are written, making you able to spot the real answer regularly. Luckily, Drawful 2 avoids this by allowing users to create their own captions, clues and prompts, meaning you get even more fun.

If you have a tiny weeny phone like I have, you’re going to have trouble drawing. Heck, most people will, even on tablets and brick-sized smartphones. But that’s all part of the fun! Really, the most fun comes from seeing the stupid shit everyone has drawn and all the stupid answers people have given, especially the “what the fuck lol” looks everyone has when they see what we’ve drawn. If your drawing is currently up, the game gives you a nice reassuring message on your screen as well, saying how ‘good’ your art is.

But that’s what makes Drawful so much fun. You could be the worst artist on the planet, but it doesn’t matter. It’s funny. Everyone’s laughing. That’s what matters.

I highly recommend this game. So much so that I really don’t think this article does it justice.

Just make sure you bring some friends.