Inspiration

As a team of four trivia enthusiasts, we grew tired of playing the same old quiz games that hadn’t evolved in years. We thought it was time for a fresh take on trivia apps, something that not only tests knowledge but also fosters social interaction. We envisioned a fun, welcoming space where people could come together through technology to enjoy trivia in a new and engaging way.

Next, we combined the best elements of trivia games we love with the features we felt were missing, like deeper social connectivity and more engaging competitive aspects. We also wanted QuizApp to feel intuitive and seamless, with a native app experience that’s easy to use and accessible to everyone.

What it does

QuizApp lets you compete with friends in fast-paced trivia matches. Each match consists of 5 rounds, with 3 questions per round. Players alternate choosing from 16 different categories, keeping the game varied and engaging. The matches are asynchronous, so you can play at your own pace. You’ll receive push notifications when it’s your turn or when a friend finishes their round, ensuring you stay in the game without needing to be online simultaneously.

On top of the game itself, each player has a personalized profile page where they can track their quiz performance through detailed insights. Players can monitor their progress by tracking medals earned for special achievements and compare their standings on both global and local leaderboards.

How we built it

We built the iOS version of QuizApp using Swift and SwiftUI, leveraging native technologies to create a smooth and engaging user experience. The core game logic runs on our backend, hosted on GCP, ensuring scalability and reliability. An Android version is currently in development.

We’ve integrated a variety of native iOS features (Sign in with Apple, widgets, intents, push notifications, and social sharing,...), to enhance user experience and interaction. By offloading the heavy processing to our servers, the app remains lightweight, fast, and responsive - delivering a seamless trivia experience that feels just right.

The (dream) team: Spyros (Backend), Marc (UI & Marketing), Will (Android), and Stefan (iOS).

Challenges we ran into

One of our biggest challenges early on was defining the scope of the project. Deciding what to include in the first version versus what to save for future releases was tricky. We asked ourselves: What does a trivia app actually need to be fun? What can wait? Ultimately, we aimed to strike the right balance between creating a simple, enjoyable trivia game and building an interactive, feature-packed trivia network.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We’re incredibly proud of our amazing beta testers and the entire dev team. The level of teamwork and collaboration has been nothing short of amazing. Completing this project within the timeframe was a huge achievement, and everyone’s motivation and excitement kept us going. We’re thrilled to have made this app a reality and to showcase it here at the ship-a-ton!

Another achievement we’re incredibly proud of is that QuizApp is fully accessible through VoiceOver, including the entire game flow. Users can navigate and answer questions by swiping right, left, up, or down, with everything explained audibly, ensuring a seamless experience for visually impaired players. More info here.

What we learned

Users will tell you what they want! Launching an early beta gave us the opportunity to gather feedback quickly. Many beta users loved QuizApp from the start and were eager to help shape its future. So the key takeaway is: Ship-a-ton and ship (beta) versions fast!

What's next for QuizApp - Trivia Network

We have soooooo many exciting ideas for QuizApp! Our current focus is on improving stability and performance, but we have plenty of features in the pipeline. We’ve integrated a wishlist into the app, where users can suggest and vote for the features they want to see. Currently, Reactions, Chats, and Jokers are the top-voted features and will likely be the next major additions.