Comparison

Kriegspiel vs Orbitfall

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

Head to head
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.

About

Orbitfall

Features
Read full description

A real-time strategy game that fits in one hand and finishes in six minutes. Orbitfall is played on a small planet, so the horizon is the fog of war. You can see who owns what from anywhere — but not how strong they are, and never what is happening on the far side. Spinning the world to scout is a real move, not a camera flourish. You command places, not units. Drag from one base to a connected one and a share of its garrison marches. Every base builds a single troop type, and the three beat each other in a circle: Lancers beat Sentries, Sentries beat Bulwarks, Bulwarks beat Lancers. What you build is a bet on what is coming. FIVE KINDS OF GROUND Cores build fastest and hold the most — lose one and the match ends. Foundries out-produce everything else. Bastions defend at double. Reactors pay for your powers. Relays lift the fog and move troops faster. THREE WAYS TO WIN Take their Core. Hold 65% of the planet for twenty seconds. Or simply have more standing when the clock runs out. WHAT IS IN IT • Campaign — eight hand-built worlds, each teaching exactly one idea • Skirmish — three planet sizes, five difficulties, every planet seeded and repeatable • Daily Planet — one world a day, the same for everyone, scored and streaked • Versus — live multiplayer over Game Center. Free. The difficulty ladder is tuned against a simulated beginner rather than by feel, so the early tiers are genuinely approachable and the late ones genuinely are not. EMBER — OPTIONAL Eight volcanic worlds where a molten band circles the planet every seventy-five seconds. Under it, bases build nothing and lose troops. Either side of it, they build at double rate. The two zones cover the same share of the world, so it changes when you can act rather than how much you have. One purchase, no subscription, and the first world is free. Nothing in Ember is an advantage — no unit, stat or economy differs from the free game, so nothing bought can be pointed at another player. No accounts. No ads. No analytics. No timers. No energy meters.

Screenshots

Kriegspiel4 screens
Orbitfall4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Kriegspiel at none against Orbitfall's 1. Kriegspiel also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). Orbitfall's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 6 months). On price, 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. Orbitfall sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Kriegspiel asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Kriegspiel ships an update every 6 months, Orbitfall weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Kriegspiel versus Orbitfall: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterKriegspielOrbitfall
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (60 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews74.2% of reviews—
Number of ratings60 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size59 MB3 MB
Age rating9+12+
DeveloperAlexander GallowaySean MacDiarmid

In-app purchases

None

Kriegspiel

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Orbitfall

One-time1
  • Ember Campaign$4.99

Questions

Is Kriegspiel free?
Kriegspiel is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Orbitfall free?
Orbitfall is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Kriegspiel or Orbitfall have ads?
Neither Kriegspiel nor Orbitfall shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Kriegspiel or Orbitfall?
Kriegspiel ships an update every 6 months, and Orbitfall weekly. Most recently, Kriegspiel was updated on October 7, 2026 and Orbitfall on October 2, 2026.

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