Anyone who has been on Facebook in the last week has probably started seeing a curious influx of cartoons in their news feeds.

Bitstrips, originally launched as a Facebook app in December 2012, allows users to create old-style newspaper comics starring themselves and their friends and publish the customized comics online.

The mobile app was originally released for iPhone in late September, but saw a huge surge in popularity this week after the release of an iOS update and a version for Android.  Bitstrips currently holds the No. 1 spot for free downloads in both the App Store and the Google Play store, according to app analytics firm App Annie.

After downloading the app, users can create their own customized cartoon avatars, specifying details like face shape, clothing, hair color and more. From there, users can choose from more than 1,000 templates and script their own cartoon scenarios by filling in the comics’ captions and word bubbles.

Bitstrips encourages users to “add a costar” by designing an avatar for a friend not on the app or by connecting with fellow Bitstrips users and their avatars. Once finished, the cartoons can be published via social media.

It’s easy to see why the app has taken off: It’s clever, easy to use and surprisingly addictive.   New templates, added each day, range from quirky to relatable to timely scenarios — look out for a lot of Halloween comics this week.

At the same time, the app has come under fire for glitches and slow loading times, averaging a rating of just 1.5 stars in the iOS App Store and a slightly better but still less-than-ideal 3.7 for the Android app. The sudden influx of new downloads was a blessing but also a curse for Bitstrips’ creators: Both the Facebook and mobile apps have been down several times in the past week due to server overload.

While it remains to be seen whether Bitstrips will continue to be successful, the app creators have big plans. In an interview with VentureBeat, Bitstrips vice president of marketing Shahan Panth called Bitstrips “the next step in the evolution of social media” thanks to its ability to express a wider range of emotions or experiences.

Eventually, Panth said, Bitstrips characters may be translated into real life in the form of stuffed toys.

“The next big brand is you and your friends,” he said.  “You are the next superhero.”

Published on October 27, 2013 at 11:46 pm

Contact Linda: lggorman@syr.edu