Trade show trivia games: when a quiz is enough and when you need a real game
Trivia is the fastest booth game to deploy, and NakNick made it free and self-serve with QuizBooth: AI writes your questions, you share a QR code, and the leaderboard does the work. That is a real product, and for a simple quiz it is hard to beat. But a quiz asks questions while a game teaches through play. A visitor answers three questions and leaves. A player spends minutes inside a world built around your product, and the questions are one beat inside that experience. This page compares the three ways to run trivia at a booth, a free self-serve quiz, trivia inside a template game, and trivia inside an original arcade game, so you can pick the one that fits the goal.
The three ways to run trivia at a booth
| Free self-serve quiz (QuizBooth) | Trivia inside a template game (NakNick) | Trivia inside an original arcade game (EventBitz) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you get | An AI trivia builder you run yourself: enter your brand or topic, AI writes the questions, you review and edit them, then share a QR code or link | A fixed genre mini-game with your logo and colors, plus trivia as a $350 add-on | An original arcade game built around your product story, with trivia as one beat inside the game |
| Typical cost | Free to start; no credit card, no trial clock | $400 to $700 template, plus $80 to $250 campaign hosting, plus $350 for in-game trivia | About $5,000 simple branded; about $15,000 original custom; trivia built in |
| Timeline | Live in minutes | Launch-ready in 3 to 5 business days | Concept in 2 to 5 business days; build 2 to 4 weeks plus about 2 weeks refinement |
| What attendees learn | The answers to your questions, and your brand name on the quiz | Your logo and colors on a fixed mechanic, plus trivia questions about your product | Your product story, taught through play, then tested by the questions |
| Lead capture | Players submit their email to enter the leaderboard or claim a prize; leads export to your list | Email capture at entry or exit, listed as a $300 extra for template games | Name and phone plus score and qualifier, exported after the event |
| Best for | A simple quiz at one show, built today, with no budget | A branded phone game with a quiz round, fast and cheap | A booth centerpiece where the quiz proves the product story the game just taught |
What QuizBooth actually is
QuizBooth is NakNick's free self-serve AI trivia game builder, at quizbooth.games. The pitch is plain: skip the brief, build it yourself, live in minutes. You enter your brand, product, industry, or event topic. AI creates trivia questions in seconds. You review and edit them before publishing. Players scan a QR code, answer, and compete on a live leaderboard. They submit their email to enter the leaderboard or claim a prize, and leads export to your list. You can also export the AI-generated questions as JSON and use them as in-game trivia in your own game, during loading screens, bonus rounds, or between levels.
QuizBooth's own page makes the honest case against the spin wheel: a wheel is one spin and done, it teaches people to expect a discount. Trivia holds attention for multiple questions, teaches players something real about your product along the way, and rewards knowledge instead of luck. That is true, and it is the right argument for a quiz. The question this page answers is what comes after the quiz.
What a quiz cannot do
A quiz asks questions. It does not give the visitor a world to play in, a mechanic to master, or a score worth coming back to beat. People answer, check the leaderboard, and move on. The product story lives only in the questions, and questions are easy to skim. A quiz also cannot show a product in action: it cannot let someone feel a workflow bottleneck, a habit loop, or a system under load, because there is nothing to play with, only something to answer.
That is fine when the goal is a quick engagement and a list of emails. It is not enough when the goal is that the visitor understands the product. Understanding comes from doing, and a quiz is the thinnest form of doing.
Trivia inside a real game
At EventBitz, trivia is a beat inside a full arcade game, not the whole event. In Paper Jam, a 90-second match-3 round is followed by three trivia questions worth 350, 450, and 550 points, and the points stack into the round total on the leaderboard. The game teaches the office world through play, the questions test what the player picked up, and the score gives them a reason to play again. In Stack Smart, a quiz after each round pays bonus points, so the questions are part of the score chase, not a form with a prize attached.
The order matters. The game comes first and earns the attention. The questions come second and use it. A visitor who has just played for 90 seconds is already invested, so the questions land differently than they do on a cold quiz. And the leaderboard carries both the gameplay score and the trivia points, so the competition is about the whole round, not one right answer.
What it costs
On price alone, QuizBooth wins: it is free to start. A NakNick template with in-game trivia costs $400 to $700 for the template, plus $80 to $250 for campaign hosting, plus $350 for the trivia add-on. An EventBitz simple game costs about $5,000 once and is yours to reuse, with trivia built in. This page exists because price is not the whole decision. The question is what the quiz is for: a list of emails from a quick engagement, or proof that the visitor understood the product story the game just taught.
Which one should you pick
Questions to ask before you choose
- What should the visitor understand after playing, not just what should they answer?
- Does the trivia test the product story, or is it general knowledge with our logo on it?
- Who owns the quiz and the game after the event, and what does reuse cost?
- What lead data is captured, and how is it delivered after the event?
- Can we see the game running on a big booth screen before we buy?
Frequently asked questions
Is QuizBooth really free?
Yes, free to start. QuizBooth is NakNick's self-serve AI trivia builder: no credit card, no trial clock, live in minutes, per their site. You enter your brand or topic, AI writes the questions, you review and edit them, then share a QR code or link.
What is the difference between QuizBooth and a NakNick custom game?
NakNick's own FAQ puts it plainly: QuizBooth is a self-serve trivia platform built for fast deployment and repeat use, while NakNick's custom games are bespoke interactive experiences built specifically around a brand, campaign, or event.
How does EventBitz use trivia in its games?
Trivia is a beat inside a full arcade game, not the whole event. In Paper Jam, a 90-second match-3 round is followed by three trivia questions worth 350, 450, and 550 points, and the points stack into the round total on the leaderboard. In Stack Smart, a quiz after each round pays bonus points. The game teaches the product through play and the questions test it.
How much does in-game trivia cost?
QuizBooth is free to start. NakNick lists in-game trivia as a $350 add-on for template games, on top of a $400 to $700 template and $80 to $250 campaign hosting. At EventBitz, trivia is built into the game: a simple branded game starts at about $5,000 and an original custom game at about $15,000.
Can a trivia game capture leads?
Yes. In QuizBooth, players submit their email to enter the leaderboard or claim a prize, and leads export to your list. In an EventBitz game, players register name and phone plus their score, and the full list is delivered after the event. Only names and scores show on the public leaderboard.