Comparison

Gem Rush Strategy Board Game vs Thrive Board Game

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

Head to head
About

Gem Rush Strategy Board Game

Engage in a fast-paced strategy board game where players race to dig gems by building rooms and using unique player skills. Offers competitive, cooperative, and solitaire modes with online and pass-and-play multiplayer.

Highlights
  • Over 60 room abilities
  • 20 unique player skills
  • Competitive, cooperative, and solitaire modes
  • Online and pass-and-play multiplayer
  • Cross-platform multiplayer
  • Asynchronous gameplay option
  • 4 AI difficulty levels
Features
Read full description

The Classic Board Game comes to your iPhone and iPad! This mountain is rich in mystic gems. Combine gems to open up new rooms, providing new ways to dig up gems. Race against other players or race together against the clock to dig the greatest mine in this fast-paced, easy-to-learn strategy game. FEATURES: - Leverage more than 60 room abilities - 20 unique player skills adorned with dwarven poetry - Competitive, cooperative, and solitaire game modes (1-7 players) - Online and pass-and-play multiplayer options - Cross-platform multiplayer (mobile and PC) - Play a quick game and watch the action unfold, or play an asynchronous game where you only need to take one turn per day - 4 levels of AI to play with or against - Faithful adaptation of the Gem Rush board game, programmed by the designer REVIEWS OF THE BOARD GAME (first edition) "The gameplay is great, I think it's a super fun game...This is a great tile-laying exploration game, one that I would very much recommend..." Zee Garcia - The Dice Tower https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sFqPxqdgj4 "It's a nice little filler game...it's all about optimizing your turns, making sure you're in a position where you can maximize your options depending on which cards you're going to draw." Ricky Royal - Box of Delights https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8h_RxwPD3TA "A simple, light game...the gives me enough to think about and keep me engaged. I personally like the fact that the game feeds me constantly new problems to solve." Marco Arnaudo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXzd2r-sOwA HOW TO PLAY On your turn, move up to 3 steps in the mine, then do one action. Building Rooms Building rooms is the main way to score points! If you move into a room that doesn't exist yet, you have to build it. Spend cards from your hand that include all the gems on the door you're building. (Most cards have 2 gems, and can be spent as either or both!) Choose the rotation of the new room and add it to the mine. Collecting Gems For your action, use a room's special ability to draw more gem cards. Different rooms have different rules for drawing cards, so choosing the right room for your situation is key! (If you can't find a useful room, you can always draw a single card instead.) At the start of your next turn, if you have more than 4 cards, you'll have to discard down to 4. Winning In Rush Mode, the players race against each other. Have the most points at the end of the round when anyone reaches the point target. In Crisis Mode, the players race against the clock. You'll be forced to "burn" cards from the deck every turn, removing them from the game. Reach the target score before the cards are all gone!

About

Thrive Board Game

A two-player abstract strategy board game that reinvents classic gameplay with unique piece building and over 100 variable setups. Experience strategic depth with AI opponents, pass-and-play, and an innovative augmented reality mode.

Highlights
  • Abstract strategy gameplay
  • Play vs AI
  • Pass and Play mode
  • Over 100 variable setups
  • Augmented Reality Mode
Features
Read full description

A board game for two players where beauty meets strategy. Your purpose is not simply to endure, but to Thrive. Build your own chess piece with classic abstract strategy game-play, reinvented. * Play vs AI * Pass and Play * Over 100 variable setups * Augmented Reality Mode

Screenshots

Gem Rush Strategy Board Game4 screens
Thrive Board Game4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Thrive Board Game at 5.0 against Gem Rush Strategy Board Game's 4.3. Thrive Board Game also leads on price ($1.99 vs $6.99) and iOS requirement (11.4 vs 15.6). Gem Rush Strategy Board Game's advantage is update cadence (every 5 months vs every 42 months) and ratings volume (4 vs 1). On ads, in-app purchases, monetization model 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

Gem Rush Strategy Board Game costs $6.99 and Thrive Board Game $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Thrive Board Game holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 1 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Gem Rush Strategy Board Game ships an update every 5 months, Thrive Board Game every 42 months. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Gem Rush Strategy Board Game versus Thrive Board Game: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGem Rush Strategy Board GameThrive Board Game
Price$6.99$1.99 — better
Rating4.3 (4 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews75.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings4 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 5 months — betterEvery 42 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.611.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size173 MB141 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperQuicksilver Software, Inc.Martin Grider

Customer experience

Gem Rush Strategy Board Game

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive75.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative0.0%

Thrive Board Game

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Gem Rush Strategy Board Game

No in-app purchases

None

Thrive Board Game

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Gem Rush Strategy Board Game free?
Gem Rush Strategy Board Game costs $6.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Thrive Board Game free?
Thrive Board Game costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Gem Rush Strategy Board Game or Thrive Board Game?
Thrive Board Game is rated higher. Gem Rush Strategy Board Game averages 4.3 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Thrive Board Game averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Gem Rush Strategy Board Game or Thrive Board Game have ads?
Neither Gem Rush Strategy Board Game nor Thrive Board Game shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Gem Rush Strategy Board Game or Thrive Board Game?
Gem Rush Strategy Board Game ships an update every 5 months, and Thrive Board Game every 42 months. Most recently, Gem Rush Strategy Board Game was updated on October 24, 2026 and Thrive Board Game on October 19, 2026.

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