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iSketch is a browser-based drawing game for all ages, similar to Pictionary, designed by Robert Wahlstedt. Players take turns in drawing a word or topic (using a mouse or tablet) while the rest try to guess. Puzzles come in over 20 languages and over 200 themes and range from easy to expert. Aside from the standard game rooms, players can create custom rooms where they tailor game settings to their needs, and select non-standard settings or word lists. Players are also presented with a private 'studio' where they can practice, and share drawings with others.
Uncommon among online games, iSketch is free of advertisement and no registration or setup is required to play, although it is advisable to read the game instructions first. In general, player mentality is social: rules are mostly enforced by the players themselves, and it is not uncommon for player communities to spring up around certain rooms.
According to the version history on the site, the game was first released in 1999.
Moderation
Users of iSketch have the ability to moderate the game in order to ensure fairness and adherence to the rules. Regular players who have played a set number of games can warn an artist who violates the rules. An artist that receives warnings from three individual players loses their turn to draw. Subsequent offences by the same artist require only one vote to invoke the turn loss.
Users are also able to boot players from rooms using a similar voting method. Players lose the ability to vote off their fellow players if they abuse this functionality.
Administrators also exist within the game. They are notified whenever a user votes to kick one of their fellow players, and they may intervene if felt necessary. Administrators may support the decision of the voting user and assist them, or warn them if they are abusing the moderation facilities.
Administrators can also ban persistent offenders.
Social Networkng
iSketch has a number of social chatrooms as well, that is to say, rooms that do not offer a drawing option and instead exist solely for social networking purposes. iSketch users can come to these rooms, either regulated or user-created, to take a break from the game and talk with other iSketch enthusiasts online.
The "boot" function can be used in these rooms by the "room operators", the creaters of a user-created room and those they appoint to the operator position. The operators have the ability to kick users who violate common courtesy, and the ability to change the room parameters.
Known issues
Due to limited server capacity, one might see this message when trying to log on: "The server is currently full. Please try again later."
Playing iSketch on a Linux operating system is not yet possible because there is no Shockwave variant available. There has been some reported limited success with CrossOver Office.
Cheating can easily be carried out if a group of users enter the same room and share answers of the subject they are drawing via an instant messenging service or a chat room. This is almost always a form of griefing, as there is little incentive to do this. This can be a problem if the other users do not know how to use the "boot" mechanism effectively.
External links
- Play iSketch (requires Macromedia Shockwave)
- MSNiSketch group Largest user group for iSketch players
- iSketch Forum Global community of iSketch players
- iSketch-Italian Italian community of iSketch players
- French site of iSketch friends The big french site and forum
- iSketch gallery
- Dutch iSketch Forum Dutch community of iSketch players (with gallery, guestbook and photo's of players).
- iSketch Tools ZeBadger's iSketch tools. Various tools for the iSketch community, icon storage (that auto resizes for iSketches strict rules), a gallery of iSketcher's drawings etc.
"ISketch"