Android Gamer: Popular trivia app QuizUp now available for Android

Hi, my name is Sean and I’m a trivia addict. Being well aware of this fact, my iOS-wielding friends have been lording QuizUp over me for the last few months. That’s why I was thrilled to find out that I can finally exact my revenge upon them, because QuizUp is now available in the Play Store.

If you haven’t heard of QuizUp, the quick explanation is that it’s head-to-head trivia with a human opponent. You can play against your opponent live or, if they aren’t available at that moment, you can play out your round and let them get to it later.

The questions are multiple choice with four potential options. Each question is worth 20 points if you answer immediately, with the value decreasing as a 10-second clock ticks away. There are 6 standard questions in each match and then a final question that’s worth up to 40 points. A full game typically takes between 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Each match gives you XP that builds your level in a given topic and rewards you with different titles to flaunt on your profile.

The volume of questions is one of the strengths of QuizUp: There are over 200,000 questions currently available in over 400 topics. The creators are continually growing this collection, with more questions added every single week to keep things current and varied. For example, right now there’s a category for “The Oscars 2014.” Whatever your area of expertise may be, QuizUp is guaranteed to have at least one topic on it. If it is missing something that you feel you have a mastery of, you can become a contributor by submitting suggestions for topics and questions.

The social aspect of QuizUp is fairly compelling and is something that the game’s makers are definitely trying to stress with the app. They offer Facebook and Google+ sign-in, but you aren’t required to use either. There are discussion boards for each topic that you can participate in and a chat feature so that you can trash talk or offer your congratulations to your opponent after each match.

There are in-app purchases available, but I would describe them as extremely nonintrusive. You can buy are XP Boosters that allow you to level up faster. Each one lasts for an hour and cost either $2.50 for a 2x boost, $5 for a 3x boost or $7.50 for a 4x boost. I’m happy to gain XP the slow way, but the app is free and the developers have to make money somehow, so the most diehard players will probably shell out to juice their level.

I’ve been participating in the beta for the last few days and I can see how people easily get hooked on this game. There are so many different levels to compete on, including individual matches, leader boards, levels within a topic, achievements and the quirky titles that you earn. According to the app makers, users average about 30 minutes of play a day, which is impressive engagement.

QuizUp is also a great-looking app, though its iOS roots do show through quite a bit. However, that’s not really a problem since you’re usually answering questions and jumping around the topic lists. I do hope that at some point they make more nods to Android design conventions, but I understand that app makers want a cohesive look across platforms.

The company behind the app, Plain Vanilla Games, received $22 million in funding thanks to the success of their iOS app, so it’s safe to say that they will be able to feed your insatiable appetite for trivia for the foreseeable future.

If you do download the app, let us know what you think. And if you’d like to stake out a challenge on a specific topic, I’m sure some of your fellow Android and Me fans would love to take you on.

(Playboard) | (Play Store)