Make way Farmville and Draw with Friends, because a new Facebook friendly app called Bitstrips is gaining popularity. Currently, Bitstrips is the number one downloaded free app in the Apple Store.

Bitstrips is an app that allows users to create cartoon characters of themselves and their friends to place in comic strips. The app can also be used as part of a status update or greeting card.

“What makes them popular is the fact that they are very easy to make and use. You can put as much or as little creativity into making them as you want, and it’s an easy way to make fun of your friends in a different way,” said Caitlin Wong, senior and Bitstrips user.

While making a Bitstrips account, users must first create an avatar, or a cartoon representation themselves. Like many other avatar run games, Bitstrips has a mixture of customizable options.

“Once you make an avatar, you have access to the avatars of your Facebook friends that are also using Bitstrips,” Wong said.

After personalizing their own avatar, users are then free to make a one-paneled comic that places them and one friend in a comical type of situation.

“There are a lot of pre-made options or situations for the comics that you can choose and then edit so that they fit your preferences. A lot of them are pretty random and funny,” Wong said.

Bitstrips is not without its problems, however. It is currently only available to smart phone Facebook users. So although the application is planning on creating a non-Facebook sign in option in the future, its popularity may dwindle by the time this update is in place.

“It seems like they are already declining in popularity,” Wong said.

In addition, its recent rise in popularity has caused its website to crash, and its tutorial videos leave something to be desired. Only time will tell if Bitstrips retains its popularity.

Have you tried Bitstrips? If so, let us know what you think in the comments below.