Comparison

Sublight Empire vs Kriegspiel

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

Head to head
About

Sublight Empire

Experience a unique 4X space strategy game where actions and events unfold over years due to the speed of light limitations. Explore, colonize, and conquer star systems to achieve galactic dominance.

Highlights
  • Relativistic speed of light mechanics
  • Real-time command propagation delays
  • Explore and colonize star systems
  • Defend and conquer colonies
  • Classic 4X gameplay
  • Galactic conquest objective
Features
Read full description

Einstein's theory of relativity states that nothing is faster than light. This also applies to this game. Information is radio signals propagating at the speed of light. These radio signals transmit your commands and the events you receive. Spaceships move at a fraction of the speed of light. So it takes years for a command or a spaceship to reach its destination. When a battle takes place, you won't know about it until years later. Apart from this, it is a classic 4X game. In the beginning you rule a single star system and you are exploring and colonizing the surrounding systems. Later on you will meet your opponents and you will have to defend and conquer colonies. To win the game, you must conquer 2/3 of all stars.

About

Kriegspiel

Engage in a strategic board game inspired by Napoleonic warfare. The objective is to capture enemy arsenals by deploying lines of communication and blocking enemy movements on a large game board. Offers online and local multiplayer, as well as AI practice.

Highlights
  • 20x25 game board
  • Capture enemy arsenals to win
  • Deploy lines of communication
  • Block enemy lines
  • Online multiplayer
  • Local multiplayer
  • AI practice mode
  • Level editor
Read full description

Inspired by the military theory of Carl von Clausewitz and the European war campaigns of Napoleon, Kriegspiel is a chess-variant played by two opposing players on a 20 x 25 game board. Capture the enemy's Arsenals to win. Deploy your Lines of Communication to keep friendly units in contact. Block enemy lines for strategic advantage. "The surprises of this Kriegspiel seem to be inexhaustible," wrote French Situationist Guy Debord. In Debord's view the game represents the totality of factors at play in wartime maneuvers, what he called "the dialectic of all conflicts." -- Play 2P online against another player -- Play 2P in person on the same device -- Practice against the computer -- Level editor for customizing formations -- Language support for French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Turkish, and English Kriegspiel is produced and maintained by Alexander R. Galloway. The game is noncommercial. There are no in-app purchases. No advertisements. No Patreon. No GoFundMe. No monetization of player data. There is literally no possible way to take your money.

Screenshots

Sublight Empire4 screens
Kriegspiel4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Sublight Empire at 5.0 against Kriegspiel's 4.6. Kriegspiel's advantage is ratings volume (66 vs 2). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Sublight Empire holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Kriegspiel has 66 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Sublight Empire versus Kriegspiel: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSublight EmpireKriegspiel
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better4.6 (66 ratings)
Positive reviews—74.2% of reviews
Number of ratings266 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsEvery 6 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB59 MB
Age rating4+9+
DeveloperEnrico UngerAlexander Galloway

Customer experience

Sublight Empire

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Kriegspiel

All ratings60 ratings
Positive88.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative11.7%
Written reviews31 reviews
Positive74.2%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.8%

In-app purchases

None

Sublight Empire

No in-app purchases

None

Kriegspiel

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Sublight Empire free?
Sublight Empire is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Kriegspiel free?
Kriegspiel is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Sublight Empire or Kriegspiel?
Sublight Empire is rated higher. Sublight Empire averages 5.0 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while Kriegspiel averages 4.6 from 66 ratings.
Do Sublight Empire or Kriegspiel have ads?
Neither Sublight Empire nor Kriegspiel shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Sublight Empire or Kriegspiel?
Sublight Empire ships an update every 6 months, and Kriegspiel every 6 months. Most recently, Sublight Empire was updated on November 4, 2026 and Kriegspiel on November 2, 2026.

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