Comparison

Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop vs Pixels

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop

This app empowers Game Masters to run immersive tabletop RPG sessions. It offers tools for tracking player stats, managing encounters, and utilizing battle maps with various customization options. Enhance your game with features like initiative tracking, a random encounter generator, and support for multiple RPG systems.

Highlights
  • Support for multiple RPG systems
  • Initiative, health, and condition tracking
  • Random encounter generator
  • Battle map tools with Fog of War
  • Dice roller and roll tables
  • Content import/export
  • External display support
Features
Read full description

Encounter+ is a system-agnostic virtual tabletop and toolkit for Game Masters. Download game-system packages for D&D 5e, Daggerheart, Pathfinder and other tabletop RPGs from the in-app public repository. Track initiative and hit points, look up monsters and spells, and run battle maps with fog of war, line of sight and dynamic lighting on iPad and iPhone. Start free with initiative tracking, encounter building, campaigns, a searchable library and dice rolls. Unlock battle maps with a one-time purchase, or subscribe to Premium for battle maps, remote play and animated effects. No ads, ever. Free Features: • Downloadable game-system packages from the in-app public repository • D&D 5e and Daggerheart packages include system definitions and System Reference Document (SRD) content • Pathfinder package includes the system definition only • Initiative, health, experience, and condition tracking • Random encounter generator and difficulty calculator • Searchable library for monsters, magic items, spells and your own content • Bookmarks, quick search, and customizable shortcuts • Campaigns, modules and asset packs • Rich page content editor • Dice roller and roll tables • Content import/export • iPad Multitasking, split screen, and drag & drop • External display support via AirPlay • No ads—ever Battle Maps — One-Time Purchase: • Tokens, auras, tiles, and spell areas of effect • Square, hex, and custom grid options • Fog of War and dynamic lighting, with bright and dim lights, token vision and multiple wall types • Apple Pencil drawing tools • Animated video backgrounds Premium — Optional Subscription: • Includes all Battle Map features while subscribed • 3D dice roller with multiple themes and styles • Animated tiles, auras, and spell effects • Weather effects including rain, snow, and fog • Built‑in web server with Remote Play Information about subscriptions: • Eligible subscribers can try Premium free for one week. • Any unused portion of a free trial, if offered, is forfeited when you purchase a subscription. • Payment will be charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. • Your subscription automatically renews unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current subscription period. • Premium features remain available while your monthly or yearly subscription is active. • Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours before the end of the current subscription period. • You can manage or cancel your subscription in your App Store account settings. • Read our terms of service (https://encounter.plus/terms) and privacy policy (https://encounter.plus/privacy-policy) for more information.

About

Pixels

Enhance your tabletop gaming experience with digital dice that offer customizable LED colors and animations. Set up unique profiles for specific rolls, add custom audio cues, and even integrate with smart home devices.

Highlights
  • Customizable LED colors and animations
  • Profile creation for specific rolls
  • Audible roll results
  • Custom audio clip integration
  • Web requests for smart home integration
  • Light and dark mode support
Features
Read full description

Light Up Your Game with Pixels Dice! Enjoy the analog feel of dice in your hand with all new digital features available when connected to this Pixels app. Use the Pixels app to customize LED colors and animations on your dice, using profiles and rules to make things happen exactly how you want to enhance your TTRPG session. Create a “Nat 20” profile that plays a unique animation of rainbow colors whenever you roll a natural 20, or a “Fireball” profile that plays a flickering orange color when your d6 rolls max damage. Use the app’s built-in Speak Numbers profile to make your roll results audible for the whole table! Or add your own audio clips to be played on rolls. Use web requests to communicate with external sites like IFTTT. Create rules that change the colors of your smart light bulbs based on your roll results. — COMING SOON: - ACCESSIBILITY: Improved navigation, screen reader compatibility, and new user settings. Switch between light and dark mode, increase contrast, adjust animation speeds, and more!

Screenshots

Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop4 screens
Pixels3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Pixels at none against Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop's 8. Pixels also leads on rating (4.6 vs 4.3) and iOS requirement (15.1 vs 18.6). Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop's advantage is ratings volume (566 vs 20) and update cadence (monthly vs every 3 months). On price, review sentiment, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Pixels asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Pixels holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop has 566 ratings behind it against 20, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 75% of Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop's written reviews are positive against 71% of Pixels's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop ships an update monthly, Pixels every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop versus Pixels: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterEncounter+ Virtual TabletopPixels
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (566 ratings)4.6 (20 ratings) — better
Positive reviews74.9% of reviews — better71.4% of reviews
Number of ratings566 — better20
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS18.615.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size132 MB58 MB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperQBITSystemic Games, LLC

Customer experience

Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop

All ratings566 ratings
Positive83.4%
Neutral5.1%
Negative11.5%
Written reviews243 reviews
Positive74.9%
Neutral9.1%
Negative16.0%

Pixels

All ratings19 ratings
Positive94.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative5.3%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive71.4%
Neutral0.0%
Negative28.6%

Bugs and requests

Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Map display issues on external screens
  • Inconsistent behavior after updates
  • Inability to restore previous purchases

Requested features

5 requests
  • Ability to duplicate monsters
  • Lair actions for custom monsters
  • Integrated character sheet management
  • Improved map import and editing tools
  • Dice rolling and sound effects

Pixels

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

8 purchases

Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Subscription7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Yearly Subscription7 Days trial$24.991 Year
One-time6
  • External ScreenFree
  • Small Tip$0.99
  • Medium Tip$2.99
Show 3 more
  • Large Tip$6.99
  • Huge Tip$8.99
  • Battle Map Support$10.99
None

Pixels

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop free?
Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Pixels free?
Pixels is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop or Pixels?
Pixels is rated higher. Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop averages 4.3 out of 5 from 566 ratings, while Pixels averages 4.6 from 20 ratings.
Do Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop or Pixels have ads?
Neither Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop nor Pixels shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop or Pixels?
Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop ships an update monthly, and Pixels every 3 months. Most recently, Encounter+ Virtual Tabletop was updated on October 16, 2026 and Pixels on October 10, 2026.

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