# Smart Othello vs Mahjong Universe

The clearest difference is rating: Mahjong Universe at 5.0 against Smart Othello's 4.5. Mahjong Universe also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). Smart Othello's advantage is ratings volume (552 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Smart Othello sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Mahjong Universe sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Mahjong Universe holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Smart Othello has 552 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Smart Othello ships an update every 2 months, Mahjong Universe every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and October 28, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Smart Othello | Mahjong Universe |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.5 (552 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/smart-othello/id1056367184/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mahjong-universe/id6785221111/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **552** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 65.3% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 3 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Size | 7 MB | 28 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Mac** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Smart Go, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/290948289) | [George Field](https://appshunter.io/developer/1828914617) |

## What reviewers say

### Smart Othello

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/smart-othello/id1056367184)

Experience the classic strategy board game with this app. Play against friends or a computer with five difficulty levels. Improve your skills with a tutorial and helpful aids, making it easy to learn but challenging to master.

**Highlights:** Five computer play levels, Real-time matches via Game Center, Achievements and leaderboards, Blunder Guard, Hint, undo, and replay functions, Collection of top player games

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pro Pack | $2.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🧠 Excellent AI with challenging difficulty levels
- 💡 Helpful hints and tips for learning
- ↩️ Undo button for reviewing mistakes
- 🎨 Clean, elegant, and intuitive interface
- 📚 Extensive expert database (126,000 matches)

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and freezing
- 🔋 Excessive battery consumption
- 🌐 Online multiplayer doesn't work reliably
- 📧 Support email feature non-functional
- 🎮 Inconsistent difficulty scaling (too easy or too hard)

**Reported bugs**

- App freezes on launch when Game Center is enabled
- Game crashes mid-play on certain difficulty levels
- Online play fails to find opponents or pair players
- App locks up when switching to other applications
- Game Center notifications excessive and intrusive

**Requested features**

- Fix online multiplayer functionality
- Add local 2-player head-to-head mode
- Implement time limits for online moves
- Add option to remove/customize player avatars
- Improve Game Center integration and sync


### Mahjong Universe

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mahjong-universe/id6785221111)

Experience two classic tile games: authentic four-player Mahjong with Hong Kong rules and relaxing Mahjong solitaire. Both are free, playable offline, and require no account. Enjoy a guided learning experience for the real game and an endless adventure mode with an optional subscription.

**Highlights:** Authentic four-player Mahjong, Mahjong solitaire game mode, Offline play, No account required, Illustrated rulebook, Adventure mode with subscription

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Full Adventure | $0.99 | per month |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Smart Othello free?

Smart Othello is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Mahjong Universe free?

Mahjong Universe is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Smart Othello or Mahjong Universe?

Mahjong Universe is rated higher. Smart Othello averages 4.5 out of 5 from 552 ratings, while Mahjong Universe averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Smart Othello or Mahjong Universe have ads?

Neither Smart Othello nor Mahjong Universe shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Smart Othello or Mahjong Universe?

Smart Othello ships an update every 2 months, and Mahjong Universe every 3 weeks. Most recently, Smart Othello was updated on November 2, 2026 and Mahjong Universe on October 28, 2026.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*