Ping. The notification that I have been waiting for all day has finally arrived. I quickly unlock my phone and rush to the app to begin playing the game I anticipate for hours; HQ Live Trivia. Question after question, I guess my way to the correct answers until I finally make it to the last one. I cross my fingers as my stress reaches an all-time high- until my finger slips and I answer a second too late! With devastation, I yell out in defeat. My time in HQ is over, and I win no money once again.

Each day and night, the game goes online and becomes flooded with thousands and even millions of players. However, most are eliminated before they reach near to the 1,000 to 15,000 dollar prize that is split at the end of the game. According to The Verge, the live 12 question game was made by the creators of another popular app, Vine.  

Evidently, there is a societal obsession with this simple yet fun game. No matter where you go in school, the public, or even within your own household- you may find people crouching over their phones for the slight chance to win some cash. The fun graphics, music and hosting of the live game show puts players into a whole new world that may seem lively but is without any real substance.

Despite the fun and temporary joy HQ brings, I believe that the game could be greatly improved if there was a more engaging way to win. After weeks of almost winning by using my intuition to answer the questions, my hopes for a chance of the prize have been beaten down. The host Scott Rogowsky’s extremely cheerful dialogues during the show add to the pain of losing, yet my friends and I continue to return every night to play.

Whether it’s Flappy Bird, Pokemon Go or HQ, the society of today loves new immersive app experiences. Overall, society as a whole should reevaluate their reasons for playing games like HQ. While dynamics such as technology, games and smartphones take a hold of our lives, we should step out, face the world and experience what fun life has to bring instead.