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The QuizUp team is back with a battle royale trivia game
Trivia Royale's animated avatars are a fun spin on Memoji.
Download: Show your friends you're smarter than them with QuizUP
Sometimes you don't need an original idea to make a killer app, as long as you get the presentation right. Take Tinder, for example, which managed to put a whole new spin on internet dating thanks to its slick, simple mobile interface. Now, there are innumerable quiz apps out there for mobile devices, but none quite like QuizUp. Released last month on Android after launching last year on iOS, QuizUp is spreading through this editor's friendship group like wildfire, because what are friends for if not to beat at question-and-answer games and wind them up about it later? It's not just the online multiplayer that makes QuizUp a gem, though -- it's also super easy to use and looks great, too.
Forget trivia night at the local bar, QuizUp's now on Android
Android users looking for something to fill the hole that Flappy Birds once occupied now have a less trivial time sink in the form of QuizUp. As you'd expect from a trivia app worth its salt, it comes loaded with tons of topics (over 400) to choose from, including lifestyle, TV and literature. And, since it's a social game, you can test your expertise in any of those subjects against friends and strangers. If the name QuizUp sounds familiar, it's because the app was released for iOS four months ago and became its creators' first smash hit -- it did for Icelandic studio Plain Vanilla what Angry Birds did for Rovio and Draw Something for Omgpop.
Daily iPhone App: Should you play QuizUp? Hint: The answer is yes
I'm not a fan of quiz games. Actually, let me rephrase that: I didn't think I was a fan of quiz games. When I was first contacted to take a look at QuizUp, I had very little interest in it because, well, it's a quiz game. To me, quiz games are inherently boring, too broad, too long and oftentimes too easy. QuizUp is none of those, which is why QuizUp has been one of the most-played games on my iPhone for the past couple of weeks. QuizUp bills itself as the world's largest trivia game, and with a total of 150,000 questions over a whopping 250 topics, it certainly seems to be earning the title. The actual quiz portion of the game takes place in seven-question bursts that last just a minute or two in total, which is the perfect format for a mobile trivia game. You're always facing off against another player, either a friend you know who has challenged you (or a challenge you are posing to them) or an anonymous online player that the game matches you up against. Whether you win or lose, your score helps you rank up in each category you compete in. Speaking of categories, you can take on topics like science, tech, history and all the standards you've seen in quiz games since the beginning of time... or you can venture in the more obscure areas of knowledge. This is where QuizUp really earns my love. I wasn't expecting to see specific sections devoted to Seinfeld or Futurama, but there they are, complete with questions only the most diehard nerds (like yours truly) would know. This level of care has also been given to individual musical genres, specific bands, various sports, video games and just about any other topic you can think of. Oh, and if you'd like to really show off your knowledge, you can submit your own questions, which will be screened and, if they stack up, could be added to the game itself. At the time of this writing, I am the top-ranked player in the world for Futurama, and the top-ranked player in my home state of Wisconsin for Seinfeld. That's some pretty awesome nerd cred, but it's never guaranteed to stick around for very long. Players are leveling up to catch you all the time, and real-time leaderboards let you see how big of a gap stands between you and the players around you. The QuizUp app also has some added functionality like discussion boards and player-to-player chat which you wouldn't necessarily expect from a trivia game. All-in-all, it's the best trivia game I've ever played on an iOS device, and since it's 100 percent free with the only in-app purchases currently being XP boosts, it's a no-brainer for anyone with a brain.
