Eclipse vs Caverna
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Eclipse
Lead a vast interstellar civilization in a strategic 4X game. Explore, expand, exploit, and exterminate your rivals to achieve galactic domination. Features customizable species, technologies, and ship designs for a unique experience.
- Official board game adaptation
- Deep 4X gameplay
- Customizable species, tech, and ships
- Up to 6 players (human/AI)
- Asynchronous multiplayer
- In-game tutorial
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The galaxy has been a peaceful place for many years. After the ruthless Terran–Hegemony War, much effort has been employed by all major spacefaring species to prevent the terrifying events from repeating themselves. The Galactic Council was formed to enforce precious peace, and it has taken many courageous efforts to prevent the escalation of malicious acts. Nevertheless, tension and discord are growing among the seven major species and in the Council itself. Old alliances are shattering, and hasty diplomatic treaties are made in secrecy. A confrontation of the superpowers seems inevitable—only the outcome of the galactic conflict remains to be seen. Which faction will emerge victorious and lead the galaxy under its rule? The shadows of the great civilizations are about to eclipse the galaxy. A game of Eclipse Second Dawn places you in control of a vast interstellar civilization, competing for success with its rivals. You will explore new star systems, research technologies, and build mighty spaceships. There are many potential paths to victory, so you need to plan your strategy considering the strengths and weaknesses of your species, while paying attention to the other civilizations' endeavors. Eclipse other civilizations and lead your people to victory! Exciting Gameplay: Challenge AI opponents or play against friends in real-time or turn-based. Tutorial & Help: Whether you're an experienced Eclipse player or a beginner, the game features a detailed tutorial that walks you through the basics step-by-step. Online Domination: The Eclipse app allows you to compete against friends or rivals from around the world. The app gives you the opportunity to compete with players from all over the world. The "Eclipse-2nd Dawn" app has been carefully designed to seamlessly bring the charm of the board game to your device. The intuitive interface ensures a smooth gaming experience for both experienced players and novices. This is the new version, which corresponds to the original board game "Eclipse - 2nd Dawn for the Galaxy" that makes the gameplay even more diverse and challenging. FEATURES * Official iOS version of the 'Eclipse - Second Dawn for the Galaxy' boardgame * Deep and challenging 4X (eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, and eXterminate) gameplay * 7 species with different strengths and weaknesses * Customizable star systems, technology tree and ship designs * Up to 6 players (human or AI) * Asynchronous multiplayer with push notifications * 3 AI difficulty levels * In-game tutorial & manual Eclipse received multiple awards: Eclipse: Second Dawn for the Galaxy 2021 Geek Media Awards Game of the Year for Experienced Gamers Winner 2021 Geek Media Awards Game of the Year for Experienced Gamers Nominee 2020 Charles S. Roberts Best SciFi Fantasy Board Wargame Winner 2020 Charles S. Roberts Best SciFi Fantasy Board Wargame Nominee Eclipse base game * 2011 Charles S. Roberts Best Science-Fiction or Fantasy Board Wargame Nominee * 2011 Jogo do Ano Nominee * 2012 Golden Geek Board Game of the Year Winner * 2012 Golden Geek Golden Geek Best Strategy Board Game Winner * 2012 International Gamers Award - General Strategy: Multi-player Nominee * 2012 JoTa Best Gamer Game Audience Award * 2012 JUG Game of the Year Winner * 2012 Ludoteca Ideale Winner * 2012 Lys Passioné Winner * 2012 Tric Trac Nominee
Caverna
Lead a dwarf tribe to expand their cavern home and cultivate the surrounding forest. Dig deeper for resources, furnish rooms to grow your tribe, and forge weapons for adventures. Cultivate fields, breed animals, and increase your wealth to become the strongest tribe leader.
- Dwarf tribe management
- Cavern expansion and furnishing
- Resource cultivation and mining
- Animal breeding and farming
- Weapon forging and adventures
- Worker action system
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Caverna by Uwe Rosenberg makes you the head of a dwarf tribe, living in a small cavern. You cultivate the forest in front of your cavern and dig deeper into the mountain throughout the game. By furnishing rooms in your caverns you make space to grow your tribe and and create new goods from your resources. Deeper into the mountain you will find fountains as well as ore and gem mines. It's on you to decide how much ore and gems you want to mine, giving you the opportunity to forge weapons and go on adventures; a new way to do things in the game instead of using actions with your workers. Outside your cavern you can clear the forest, cultivate fields, fence pastures and grow crops or breed animals. All this in order to increase your wealth and become the strongest and best tribe leader of them all!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Caverna at 4.1 against Eclipse's 3.2. Caverna also leads on update cadence (every 6 days vs every 3 months) and review sentiment (61% vs 33%). Eclipse's advantage is price ($9.99 vs $11.99). On ratings volume, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Eclipse costs $9.99 and Caverna $11.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Caverna holds the better App Store score, 4.1 against 3.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 15 and 12 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 33% of Eclipse's written reviews are positive against 61% of Caverna's.
Eclipse ships an update every 3 months, Caverna every 6 days. Both last shipped on September 23, 2026.
| Parameter | Eclipse | Caverna |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $9.99 — better | $11.99 |
| Rating | 3.2 (15 ratings) | 4.1 (12 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 33.3% of reviews | 61.1% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 15 — better | 12 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 6 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Best chart rank | #105 | #81 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 157 MB | 450 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | BrettspielWelt | DIGIDICED |
Customer experience
Eclipse
Caverna
In-app purchases
Eclipse
No in-app purchases
Caverna
No in-app purchases








