Overview, Theme, and Formal Elements
For this competitive analysis, I analyzed Trivia Crack because it is a trivia-based social game in a similar category to my group’s game, Risky Quizness.
Trivia Crack is a mobile game created by Etermax. The game’s themes involve trivia and social play with a lighthearted and casual feeling. These themes are apparent in the formal elements. Trivia crack is a player v. player game. The objective of the game is to race against your opponent to be the first player to “collect” all characters of each of the six different trivia categories. Characters can be collected by answering questions correctly and can be thought of as a type of currency. The conflict in the game arises from competing with the opponent. The rules and procedures guide the flow of the game and determine the scoring system. Answering trivia questions are a core gameplay mechanic, and rounds involve alternating between players.
Type of Fun
Trivia allows for asynchronous play between players, which leads well to a casual feeling. The difficulty of the questions was not too niche or difficult. So, this added to the lighthearted nature of the game. The casual nature of the game is further highlighted by the colorful graphics and characters for each category of trivia questions. This suggests that the most prominent type of fun in Trivia Crack is submission, where the game is used as a pastime that allows players to unwind and not think too hard.
Graphic Design Decisions
This game uses many colorful graphics and integrates playful characters into the gameplay. Furthermore, the use of a spinner and the dynamic animations add to the feeling of friendliness and lightheartedness that the game is portraying. The graphic design complements the theme well and the submission type of fun of the game.
Comparison to Other Games
There are many games in a similar category as Trivia Crack. For example, our game, Risky Quizness shares similarities such as answering trivia questions being a core gameplay mechanic, some interaction between players, and different categories of questions. However, a key difference is that Risky Quizness places more emphasis on the interaction and discussion which happens between players while players in Trivia Crack interact more passively. Trivia Crack is also similar to quiz games such as Jeopardy. Jeopardy also features different categories of questions, but a key difference is that it focuses on challenge and competition while Trivia Crack focuses more on submission as fun.
Handling of Abuse
Trivia Crack allows for players to block players and report questions as a means of handling abuse. This is important in facilitating safe gameplay.
Making the Game Better
Trivia Crack could be made to be less cluttered. As the game evolved over time and adopted a freemium model, it became more cluttered with different play modes, advertisements, and extras like powerups, coins, and “pets”. These elements can confuse the player, detracting from the core experience.
