Review copy provided by the publisher
The last year has been extremely good to fans of party games and it hasn’t stopped yet. What the Dub?! is one of the most ludicrous ideas I’ve heard for a video game but once I played it, I fell in love. Mixing hilarious video clips with a Cards Against Humanity style of gameplay, it instantly caught the hearts of not just me but the other players that I played with. It’s the perfect medicine for those of us that are really feeling the weight of this pandemic that seems neverending.
Gameplay
The game is actually extremely simple in its presentation which I found really nice. There’s never too much going on on the screen so that even non-gamer types can enjoy a few games as well. Each game starts with a player hosting it from their gaming platform. From there, players (including the host) will connect to the lobby using their phone, tablet, or computer by going to the PlayWTD website and using the on-screen 4-digit code.
Next comes an instructions video that gives players the rules and how-tos of the game. There are also prompts through each game on the players’ devices to keep them in the loop. All you have to do is watch each video on the TV that at some point will have a “missing audio” area for which you’ll have to create the funniest sentence to fit in it. And if on the off chance you missed what the people in the video said, you can view the transcript on your device. As you’d assume, madness happens every single time and even though the videos are family-friendly, the answers can get quite mature. It all depends on who’s playing but it can get pretty hilarious.
There’s something about hearing the text-to-speech Siri-like voices saying some of this stuff. It adds to the comedy in such a perfect way. Another funny addition is the little sounds that you can add to your scripts such as farts noises or toilets flushing. During these writing parts, the game will have a timer that runs down. It can get tight on time but luckily there are settings that you can enable that make it so that there’s an extended timer. You can also pause the game as well which helps if someone is falling behind.
After everyone submits their sentences, the game runs through each one and then you get to vote. The winners are given points and as it goes and each round sees increases in the point’s worth. There are traditionally five rounds a game but you can increase or decrease them in the options as well. Finally, once the last round is done, the winner is crowned as well as the loser being singled out and mocked.
This is an extremely funny game that does its own fair share of making the game enjoyable on its own. There are jokes throughout it being made about the players and it can cut deep especially if you’re falling behind. Even in the end credits after each game gives a character name to each player. The winner is the winner, the loser is the loser but the players in between will get a title like “Naked Guy #2” or something. It really feels like the dev team at Wide Right Games was extremely funny and knew just how to slip players into the mood to cause trouble.
Visuals
I’m both parts surprised and concerned about just how perfectly set up most of these scenes in What the Dub?! are. The dev team did a lot of research taking clips from B-movies, PSAs, or industrial films in order to make this title feel as if there’s never a low point. The presentation of the transitions between clips and the end credits is extremely cool too. They give out some old movie vibes and really set the tone.
Audio
Just like the visuals, the audio fits the tone and feel of the game perfectly. The sounds are hokey, old, and definitely cheesy. It’s a great cherry on top of the cake.
Replayability
With over 300 different video clips to dub over there’s so much replayability. I love the fact that all you need is one gaming platform and a device for each player. It makes it extremely easy to pick up. I’m also hoping that we may see some DLC offering more clips and sounds in the future. The game has a lot of great possibilities going forward and I don’t see it ending here.
What It Could Have Done Better
There was really only one issue that we experienced as we played the game. Because you access the game on a website we did lose connection to it at times. It was easy to reconnect but it was annoying when it happened, which was often. I’m hoping that an app is released to remedy this though.
Verdict
What the Dub?! is a truly unique gaming experience that I’d love to see more of. It’s a hilarious title that brings players together in the pursuit of making each other laugh. It’s wholesome and doesn’t try to do something larger-than-life but that’s why it’s so awesome. It’s campy, silly, and really really cringy in the best way. This is a must-try!
