Comparison

Istanbul vs Hadrian's Wall Tracker

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

Head to head
About

Istanbul

Compete as a merchant to collect rubies by trading goods and managing assistants across a bustling bazaar. Strategically move your merchant and assistants through various locations, each offering unique actions. Plan your moves carefully to outmaneuver opponents and achieve victory in this acclaimed board game adaptation.

Highlights
  • Collect rubies by trading goods
  • Manage merchant and assistants
  • Explore 16 bazaar locations
  • Increase wheelbarrow capacity
  • Acquire special abilities
  • Play against AI or friends
  • Cross-platform online multiplayer
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

The official digital adaptation of one of the best board games in history – Istanbul. Istanbul is, without a doubt, one of the best board games to have ever been published. The long list of its awards and honors speaks for itself: 2015 Nederlandse Spellenprijs Best Expert Game Nominee 2014 Swiss Gamers Award Winner 2014 Meeples' Choice Nominee 2014 Kennerspiel des Jahres Winner 2014 International Gamers Award - General Strategy: Multi-player Nominee 2014 Hra roku Nominee 2014 Gouden Ludo Winner 2014 Golden Geek Board Game of the Year Nominee 2014 Golden Geek Best Strategy Board Game Nominee 2014 Golden Geek Best Family Board Game Nominee In our 2018 digital version we have maintained all of the features that made Istanbul the fan favorite that it is, but also expanded upon it with a number of tools and features only available on the digital platform. We maintained the authentic board game feeling with the convenience you can expect from an electronic device. So what is the game about? Can you be the first merchant to collect a certain number of rubies? • Run, collect and trade goods across the bazaar • Take control over your assistants • Increase your wheelbarrow capacity • Acquire special abilities to increase the advantage over your competitors • Buy rubies or trade goods for them In Istanbul, you lead a group of one merchant and his four assistants through 16 locations in the bazaar. In each such a location, you can carry out a specific action. The challenge, however, is that to take an action, you must move your merchant and an assistant there, then leave the assistant behind to handle all the details while you focus on larger matters. If you want to use that assistant again later, your merchant must return to that location to pick him up. Thus, you must plan ahead carefully to avoid being left with no assistants and thus unable to do anything… What can you expect? • Official Istanbul game - 100% original rules • Adaptation of TOP 100 board game of all time by BGG ranking • Play with AI, with friends or both • Great artwork by Andreas Resch • Languages: English, German, Dutch, Polish, French, Korean, Japanese, Chinese Simplified, Spanish • Pass and play mode • Cross-platform online multiplayer with synchronous and asynchronous modes • Opponents' last moves replay • 3 levels of difficulty AIs with individual strategies • Preset or random generated game boards • Atmospheric music and sounds • Unique, original board game experience • Intuitive gameplay • Colorblind mode • Over 70 achievements • iPhone X support

About

Hadrian's Wall Tracker

This app aids players of a board game by providing setup reminders for each year. It also tracks Pict attack locations drawn from fate cards, helping players strategize Cohort placement.

Highlights
  • Yearly setup reminders
  • Pict attack location tracking
  • Cohort placement strategy aid
  • Flip and write board game companion
Features
Read full description

This is a tracker for the Hadrian's Wall flip and write board game. It offers a reminder for the setup phase of each year and also allows you to keep a count of the Pict attack locations each time you draw a fate card, to help with deciding where to place Cohorts

Screenshots

Istanbul4 screens
Hadrian's Wall Tracker1 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Istanbul at 73% against Hadrian's Wall Tracker's 0%. Istanbul also leads on rating (4.7 vs 1.0) and ads (none vs shown). Hadrian's Wall Tracker's advantage is price (Free vs $6.99) and in-app purchases (none vs 1). On update cadence 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

Hadrian's Wall Tracker is free to download; Istanbul costs $6.99 up front. Istanbul sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Hadrian's Wall Tracker asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Istanbul holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Istanbul has 458 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 73% of Istanbul's written reviews are positive against 0% of Hadrian's Wall Tracker's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Istanbul ships an update every 6 weeks, Hadrian's Wall Tracker every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard10 real differences · 1 level
Istanbul versus Hadrian's Wall Tracker: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterIstanbulHadrian's Wall Tracker
Price$6.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (458 ratings) — better1.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews72.8% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings458 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesAd-supported — better
Best chart rank#169 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS13.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size451 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAcram DigitalCraig Higginson

Customer experience

Istanbul

All ratings452 ratings
Positive94.7%
Neutral2.2%
Negative3.1%
Written reviews151 reviews
Positive72.8%
Neutral9.3%
Negative17.9%

Hadrian's Wall Tracker

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

Bugs and requests

Istanbul

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Certain cards/tiles not working as intended
  • Game crashing or freezing during play
  • Online/multiplayer functionality issues
  • Tutorial getting stuck or not working properly

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add the Mocha & Baksheesh and Letters & Seals expansions
  • Implement a companion tool to randomize the board setup
  • Add push notifications for online game turns
  • Support for more languages

Hadrian's Wall Tracker

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Istanbul

One-time1
  • Mocha & Baksheesh$5.99
None

Hadrian's Wall Tracker

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Istanbul free?
Istanbul costs $6.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Hadrian's Wall Tracker free?
Hadrian's Wall Tracker is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Istanbul or Hadrian's Wall Tracker?
Istanbul is rated higher. Istanbul averages 4.7 out of 5 from 458 ratings, while Hadrian's Wall Tracker averages 1.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Istanbul or Hadrian's Wall Tracker have ads?
Hadrian's Wall Tracker shows ads; Istanbul does not.
Which is updated more often, Istanbul or Hadrian's Wall Tracker?
Istanbul ships an update every 6 weeks, and Hadrian's Wall Tracker every 2 months. Most recently, Istanbul was updated on October 24, 2026 and Hadrian's Wall Tracker on October 12, 2026.

Other comparisons