Walk down any hallway at LHS and it is not uncommon to see a student engrossed with their phone. The question is, what are they doing? Perhaps it is texting, searching for information or more commonly as of late, competing with other fellow students on the trending game Trivia Crack.
Trivia Crack is an online trivia game that can be very addicting, as the name implies. It is currently listed, according to Lily Herman from the The Muse, a career advice website, as “One of the top 70 apps every professional should know about.” As Herman states on her blog, “We’ve been searching the web far and wide to bring you 70 stellar apps that can make your work life totally swell. From organization tools to job search apps to fun little games when you need a break, we’ve got you covered.” Herman lists Trivia Crack as number ten for “just for fun” games.
Trivia Crack is similar to the board game Trivial Pursuit. Six categories are given to test your knowledge. The categories range from academic subjects, such as science, history, geography, and the arts, to sports and entertainment. According to iTunes, “Trivia Crack by Etermax has 100 thousand questions with constant updates. From the moment you start playing Trivia Crack, you’ll notice the bright, sophisticated and intuitive interface, which draws the players in.”
The object of the game is to spin and answer three questions correctly to win a crown. Six crowns leads to winning a match. The game can be played against random opponents or by logging into your Facebook account to challenge a friend to a match.
“It’s really easy to download. Just register with the game’s server and you can start playing. You can tag favorite opponents or just play anyone who pops up,” Maddie Bollinger, a junior at Libertyville High School stated when asked if Trivia Crack was an easy game to start playing.
Once the game is opened, the main page lists all the games that are in progress. The player has the option of starting a new game or playing a current opponent. The player’s profile can be found by tapping the green smiley box at the top left of the gaming summary screen.
“The worst part of the game,” according to Bollinger, “is the number of lives you are given. You can die pretty fast if you spin a category that you are not good at. Also, there are always advertisement pop-ups [referring to the free version of the game], which can be bothersome.”
Trivia Crack regulates the number of lives each person is allotted. Three lives are given to start three games. Lives do replenish at the rate of one per hour. The negative side to Trivia Crack is the lack of instructions. “I’m not quite sure what the game chips count for and the coin count on the summary screen.” Bollinger stated. “I think the coins can be used to buy things, but I don’t have a clue what the chips do. There really was no information for the game at all. You just spin and try to answer the questions correctly.”
For those who need a little help on questions, there are four cheat features available at the bottom of the question screen. These include a time extension, a bomb, which removes two of the four multiple choice options, a reset button, and a skip to the next question button. There is also a challenge feature, which allows the player to steal crowns from an opponent. “I love to challenge people, especially when it is someone I know!” exclaimed junior Emily Schuler.
During the challenge, the challenger is given a series of five consecutive questions. The same questions are given to the challenged opponent. Whoever answers the most questions correctly either maintains the crown or is awarded their opponent’s crown. In the case of a tie, only the opponent is given an extra question to answer. “Depending on whom I’m playing, challenges can be fun. Of course I love when I win and hate when I lose the challenge,” Bollinger stated.
The questions themselves have a broad range of difficulty. If an incorrect response is given, the correct answer will be highlighted in green and a user is done with that game until their opponent has had a turn. As Bollinger stated, “The game doesn’t send push notices out telling you it is your turn. You just have to check it on your own.”
With the ability of having a game at the touch of your finger, Trivia Crack offers a fun and interactive way to check your knowledge. For those interested in other trivia games that offer different categories, check out QuizUp, Logo Quiz, and Trivia Burst, which are all available for your smart phone device.
