# Hero Realms vs Payback Arcade

The clearest difference is rating: Payback Arcade at 5.0 against Hero Realms's 4.3. Payback Arcade also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 60%) and in-app purchases (none vs 13). Hero Realms's advantage is ratings volume (219 vs 3). On price, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Hero Realms sells 13 one-off in-app purchases. Payback Arcade asks for nothing beyond the download.

Payback Arcade holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hero Realms has 219 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 60% of Hero Realms's written reviews are positive against 100% of Payback Arcade's.

Hero Realms ships an update every 2 weeks, Payback Arcade every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Hero Realms | Payback Arcade |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.3 (219 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hero-realms/id1396367189/reviews) | **[5.0 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/payback-arcade/id6762797497/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **219** | 3 |
| Positive reviews | 60.2% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | **Every 9 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 432 MB | 40 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 16.6 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [White Wizard Games](https://appshunter.io/developer/893447128) | [Great Guy Games, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1895016605) |

## What reviewers say

### Hero Realms

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hero-realms/id1396367189)

Engage in strategic deckbuilding combat, recruiting champions and using gold to acquire new cards. Battle opponents online or cooperatively against AI, with a single-player campaign available. Level up your hero and unlock new classes and missions.

**Highlights:** Deckbuilding combat, Recruit champions, Online PVP, Cooperative online play, Single player campaign, Hero leveling system

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

**In-app purchases (13)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 80 Gems | $0.99 | one-time |
| 200 gems | $2.29 | one-time |
| Four Journeys Campaign | $3.99 | one-time |
| 500 Gems | $4.99 | one-time |
| Hero Realms: Call to Arms | $4.99 | one-time |
| Journeys Expansions | $4.99 | one-time |
| Journeys Promo Expansion | $4.99 | one-time |
| Dungeons Expansion | $7.99 | one-time |
| 1200 Gems | $9.99 | one-time |
| Hero Realms Base Set | $9.99 | one-time |
| 2500 Gems | $19.99 | one-time |
| 6500 Gems | $49.99 | one-time |
| 14000 Gems | $99.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Great game mechanics
- 🚀 Smooth and polished app
- 💡 Diverse game modes (PvP, co-op, campaign)
- 👍 Faithful adaptation of the physical card game
- 💡 Character progression and leveling system

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Bugs and crashes
- 🔒 Lack of local multiplayer (pass-and-play)
- 💰 Expensive in-app purchases for additional content
- 🌐 Lack of language support (e.g., no French, Spanish)
- 🔍 Unclear tutorial and explanations of game mechanics

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes when trying to play online
- Inability to access purchased content
- Freezing and black screen issues
- Incorrect character level progression
- Matchmaking problems and long wait times

**Requested features**

- Add more expansions and additional content
- Implement a friends list and social features
- Improve the campaign mode with more levels and challenges
- Add an option to check the contents of your deck before playing
- Implement a turn timer to prevent players from stalling


### Payback Arcade

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/payback-arcade/id6762797497)

Experience a competitive card game of insults and comebacks digitally. Practice solo to master the game, then challenge others online and climb the leaderboards to prove your punchline prowess. Enjoy fast-paced card battles optimized for mobile devices.

**Highlights:** Digital card game adaptation, Solo practice mode, Online multiplayer matches, Leaderboards, Optimized for phone and iPad, Save profile and progress with Apple ID

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Hero Realms free?

Hero Realms is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Payback Arcade free?

Payback Arcade is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Hero Realms or Payback Arcade?

Payback Arcade is rated higher. Hero Realms averages 4.3 out of 5 from 219 ratings, while Payback Arcade averages 5.0 from 3 ratings.

### Do Hero Realms or Payback Arcade have ads?

Neither Hero Realms nor Payback Arcade shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Hero Realms or Payback Arcade?

Hero Realms ships an update every 2 weeks, and Payback Arcade every 9 days. Most recently, Hero Realms was updated on October 17, 2026 and Payback Arcade on October 14, 2026.

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