Party games are enjoying a neat little resurgence these days, especially online ones in the face of COVID-19. That’s exactly where Wide Right Interactive’s What the Dub?! thrives, providing a great place for creativity while having fun with others. Oh, and it helps if you’re a fan of Mystery Science Theater 3000, of course.
The general purpose of the game is to come up with a clever quip to go along with one of the many flip clips within the game. First, there’s the set-up, in which you see the clip and then the space where you need to provide the dialogue. From there, you’ve got a little time to enter what you think would be the funniest or most clever (or dare we say…both?) comment to say.
From there, a voting period begins, and players decide which is the best particular quip for that clip, in which the top choice gets rewarded.
The game supports up to twelve players. Six jump in as the contestants making the comments, while six more serve as audience members who can partake in the voting. That keeps the pacing for What the Dub?! just about right, so rounds don’t stretch out long enough for the game to become boring. If you want, you can extend entry time for input, just in case you’ve got some players that are a bit on the slow side – or trying to manage a mobile keyboard. Oy.
Connecting is easy. Like the Jackbox games, Wide Right uses a system where players can log into a website for the game, and then enter a unique four-letter code to take part in whatever match-up is happening. This makes What the Dub?! ideal not only for get-togethers with friends, but also for streamers that want to build and connect better with their audience.
Now, considering this is an indie game and some older material would probably take forever to attain the rights to, What the Dub?!’s clips mainly stem from infomercials and public service announcements, as well as some really bad movies that no one wants to take ownership of. While that does take away a little bit from general variety in a game like this, there’s still more than enough content to provide commentary to.
What the Dub?! has a good presentation. It may not be over-the-top like the Jackbox games, but it sets out what it needs to accomplish. The virtual movie theater where you see these atrocious clips is a nice setting; and, again, there’s some fun little variety here in the clips provided. The GLADoS-esque readings of dialogue are kind of cool, too, though a bit weird with some footage. Still, it fits the theme.
Even though it does come across as a one-trick pony – there’s just the dubbing and that’s really about it here – What the Dub?! still scores very well. It’s a terrific party game that (mostly) brings out the creativity in would-be comics or those who cherish the mighty church of Crow T. Robot. What’s more, the price is more than suitable, going for under $10 and providing solid service for online connectivity. It’s definitely the best way to enjoy bad movie clips, compared to, say, trying to watch something seriously and grumbling under your breath.
RATING: 8/10
