FriendO - Your best friends, discovered

Zift Advisory

FriendO is a quiz app where players can create and send individual quizzes to friends. The app is not anonymous, but answers to questions are private between two individual players. It is free to download in iTunes and Google Play. The FriendO app is rated for teens, though it is a mature app, and is not safe for kids.

About FriendO - Your best friends, discovered

What is FriendO - Your best friends, discovered?

FriendO – The Best Friend Game is a quiz game that tests how well friends know each other.

Users answer questions about themselves in different categories and send them to their friends on the app. FriendO players have a ranking board that shows who their top friends are. Answering questions correctly will move you up your friends’ boards.

Individual quizzes and a person’s answers are not publicly displayed. The app is not anonymous, but answers to questions are private between two individual players.

Players can "nudge" their friends if they get impatient while waiting for them to take their turn. They can also direct message each other through the game.

FriendO is certainly not the first app of its kind, but it’s different from other friend quiz apps because it’s not anonymous. You can see each person’s answers to questions about you, which helps to keep FriendO players accountable for what they say about others.

Is FriendO - Your best friends, discovered safe for my kids?

FriendO is not safe for kids, but may be appropriate for mature teens. This game creates an element of competition to friendships, which may not be a good thing for teens who are especially concerned about their social lives.

Players can see their friends’ ranking board of top friends and know where they stand in comparison to others. Quantifying and ranking friendships always has the potential to lead to hurt feelings.

Some age appropriate categories include topics like “My Sports” and “What I Watch.” Special categories like "Flirty" or "Star Wars" can be unlocked after a player invites 3 new users to download the game. The "Flirty" category is more appropriate than the name suggests. Questions in this category include "Do I prefer bleach white teeth" and "Which would I rather hold" with answer options of "your hand," "your sweater," "your books," or "your door."

The app has some definitely has some not safe for work question categories that are labeled as "Mature," but can be accessed by anyone. "Dirty," "My Love Life," and "Dating" include questions like "If you and I were together right now, what would we be doing" with the answer options "Netflix and Chill," "Straight To It," "Slow and Low," and "Nothing of the sort."

If a player chooses to unlock the "dating" category, the app gives a warning that says "some categories include adult content that could potentially contain strong or offensive language" and will prompt them to indicate if they are "under 17" or "17+."

There is no way to verify your age, so any player can select 17+. The dating category includes questions like "I'd date my dog if he/she could speak" and "What's my favorite pillow talk conversation."

Users can also direct message each other between questions. The messages are saved in the app and cannot be deleted by a user. The fact that the game is not anonymous and players' inability to delete direct messages make each player accountable for what they say about others. Accountability is always a good thing online because it decreases the possibility of cyberbullying.

Due to some inappropriate content, the FriendO app is not safe for kids. However, this app may be safe for mature teens to use responsibly.