skribbl.io is a multiplayer browser-based drawing-and-guessing game made by developer ticedev. It is made for 2-20 players and offers many options for customizability in private rooms: 28 languages, length of time to draw (15-240 seconds), number of rounds (2-10 rounds), word modes (normal, hidden, combination), word count (1-5 choices), and number of hints given per word (0-5 hints).
Players can type and guess the current word being drawn as many times as they want with no penalty for incorrect guesses. At the top of the screen, there is an indicator that shows a space for each letter of the word so that players can discern how long the answer is and if the answer contains multiple words. There is a timer that indicates how much time there is left for the drawer to draw and for the other players to guess. The faster a player guesses the correct word, the more points they get. The drawer is also rewarded points based on how fast the others guess and how many guess correctly (a proxy to measure how good the drawing is). During each round, all players will get the chance to draw. The score is updated and displayed in real time for each player.
The room host can also add in a list of custom words delimited with a comma. This lends itself particularly well for private groups of friends that share a list of inside jokes or a common interest. For example, I had lots of fun playing with friends who all liked Pokemon and we used a custom word list of all the first generation Pokemon. The game also works well when joining a random room and playing with strangers because the words are generic enough so that it is highly likely everyone knows them, and the drawer is provided with three choices of words to pick from in case they are less familiar with certain words or cannot think of ways to draw them. Playing with strangers is also an enjoyable experience because the timer keeps the pressure steady and players are usually all invested in the game’s “magic circle”. In the case that there is a player that is rude and harassing others, there is a “kick” option where the other players can vote to kick the player out of the room.
The time pressure, generic list of given words, high levels of customizability, simple rules, and competitive aspect synergize well to make the game fast-paced, entertaining, and enjoyable. I like the fact that the drawer is awarded for “good” drawings based on speed and accuracy of others’ guesses so that they have incentive to provide the simplest, fastest, and clearest drawing possible. I also like the thumbs up/down portion feature of the interface, where the players who are guessing can “judge” the drawing of the player who is currently drawing. The judging has no hard-coded in-game consequences, but it does provide the player with affirmation if they are drawing well (“keep doing what you’re doing” / “thank you for the clear drawing”) or incentive to draw better the next time around (“that drawing was really confusing” / “no one understood that”).
I also like how you can see a record of everyone else’s guesses because you can watch as all players hone in on a specific idea/path as they get closer to guessing correctly, which gets exciting as everyone starts to catch on and it becomes a high-pressure race to type and guess faster than everyone else. Either that, or everyone gets thrown off as they hurtle towards wrong answers, misled by everyone else. It’s also fun because people can type in anything into the chat (as long as it’s appropriate) so there can be a bit of banter as well. The chatbox mechanic lends itself to some interesting dynamics because it grants the game a satisfying mix of co-op and competitive play – the initial moments of guessing are cooperative as people try to feel out the answers and then shifts into rapid, tense competition as the answer becomes more clear and the players stab at their keyboards furiously to get the answer first.
Another thing I enjoy are the simple sound cues to signal when a new round is starting and when you make a correct guess. I think hearing is one of my keenest senses and I appreciate any simple, recognizable sound cues that solidify the flow and status changes of games. If I zone out a bit, the “boop boop boop boop” sound effect that indicates the start of a new drawing brings me back into the magic circle and recenters my attention.
Compared to things like Pictionary, skribbl.io offers more “organized chaos”, immediate affinity and comfort around strangers in random rooms (the online setting, kick functionality, chatbox). There’s a large range of vulnerability that the game accommodates – playing with complete strangers is easy due to the simple rules, mechanics, and universal word list, and playing with close friends and acquaintances is very enjoyable because of the customizability of private rooms.
All in all, I think skribbl.io is a wonderfully simple game that has a low barrier to entry due to rules and mechanics that are easy to understand, infinite replayability, a healthy dose of competition, and comfort in various settings, whether it be with strangers or with friends.
