As I have mentioned
before, I love playing Qrank on my iPhone. It was named one of my
Top 10 Favorite Apps. It is a daily trivia game that Shane also has recently begun playing. I was trying to explain to him some of the strategies I use to maximize my scores. I thought I would share them here also.
Before I even open Qrank to play, I check on Twitter for Qrank's "Hint of the Day." Sometimes it helps, and sometimes not. There is also another hint on Facebook, but I never check on that one.
Each day there are four categories of 20 questions, though you only answer 15 questions during a game. There are 8 easy questions worth 200 points, 8 medium questions worth 400 points, and 4 hard questions worth 1,000 points. Behind three of the questions is a 3X and two 2Xs. The point value of those questions is multiplied by 3 or 2 times their normal value. There are also 5 "Power-Ups," which are helps available to use during the game and found on the bottom of the screen.
 | Reveals bonuses hidden behind question in one row |
To begin each game, I use two of the "Power-Ups" at the start. The first lets you select a row of questions to see if there is a 3X or 2X bonus hidden. I always choose the second row of the easy questions. Because you only answer 15 of the 20 questions, I only answer 3 of the easy questions to maximize the number of points I can get.
 | Reveals the subject categories for one row |
The second help I use reveals the subject categories for one row. I always choose the top row of the easy questions. The only advantage this give is that if there is a category I am not particularly good at, namely Sports, I can avoid it. Because I always answer all the medium and difficult questions, it doesn't matter where the bonuses or what the categories are in those sections.
 | Freezes timer for 10 seconds |
 | Reveals how other players answered this question |
 | Eliminates two wrong answers |
I use the other three "Power-Ups" for the 1,000 point hard questions, especially if they have a 3X or 2X bonus. The snowflake freezes the timer. When the answers appear after the some time to read the question, the longer you take to answer the question, the lower the points. The snowflake gives you 10 extra seconds, and when the question is worth 3,000 points, that can be very helpful to your score.
You can use the other two "Power-Ups," if you need to, in concert with the snowflake. The percent symbol shows you how others have answered the question. This is not always helpful, as many times a majority of the people get a question wrong. The other help eliminates 2 wrong answers, which makes a total guess much easier.
Another symbol that may be helpful is the small leaf on some of the questions. It lets you know that question is about current events. If you keep up with current events, this might be a question you can answer. However, it is a trivia game, so some of the current events are a bit obscure.
Friend me on Qrank by searching for "BlueSpongeRun." Good Luck!
