<p>Gamified quizzes are increasingly used by university teachers to improve the cognitive, behavioral and affective outcomes of their students. However, the specific game elements of the quizzes that promote these outcomes have not been clearly identified. This paper therefore seeks to study the effect of two game elements: the mode of interaction with the quiz application (active/passive) and the mode of collaboration between students when answering the quiz (individual/collaborative). University students (<i>n</i> = 98) were asked to complete a gamified quiz during a class session in a two-factor experimental design. The impact of these game elements were assessed according to cognitive (knowledge acquisition, cognitive engagement), behavioral (student–teacher interactions, technology acceptance) and affective (emotions) outcomes. Our results showed that active interaction with the gamified quiz improved knowledge acquisition, student–teacher interaction and technology acceptance. Moreover, collaboration reduced student boredom during the lesson and reinforced the effect of the active mode on knowledge acquisition. Our work therefore provides a better understanding of the effects of two major game elements in gamified quizzes on academic success.</p>