Comparison

Retro Bowl vs Arcadia Sports

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

Head to head
About

Retro Bowl

Experience classic American football with simple roster management and on-field playcalling. Manage player egos and lead your team to victory in this retro-styled sports game.

Highlights
  • Roster management
  • Press duties
  • Handling fragile egos
  • On-field playcalling
  • Retro graphics
Features
Read full description

Retro Bowl is the perfect game for the armchair quarterback to finally prove a point. Presented in a glorious retro style, the game has simple roster management, including press duties and the handling of fragile egos, while on the field you get to call the shots. Can you pass the grade and take your team all the way to the ultimate prize? Can you win the Retro Bowl?

About

Arcadia Sports

Experience a collection of retro 8-bit sports-themed arcade games. Enjoy a variety of titles like racing, pool, mini-golf, and bowling, with more games planned for future updates. Optimized for Apple devices.

Highlights
  • 12 retro 8-bit sports games
  • Apple Watch support
  • iCloud progress saving
  • Game Center leaderboards
  • No advertisements
  • 120 fps support
Features
Read full description

Arcadia Sports is a collection of arcade games with a sports theme for Apple Watch, iPhone, iPad, Apple Vision Pro and Apple TV. The collection consists of 12 games (with many more to come): - Beach Ball Match similar balls to form larger ones. Keep them in the box. - Formula Race Compete in the premier racing series and outpace your opponents with skillful overtaking maneuvers. - Hoop Fever Dribble, shoot and score. All with just one finger. - Basket Getting the ball in the hoop is a given. But what if the hoop had to target the ball instead? - 8-Ball Pool Classic 8-Ball in solo mode. Sink balls of one type (solid or striped) first and then the rest, culminating in the 8-ball. - 9-Ball Pool Hit the lowest numbered ball first, but numerical order isn't necessary for pocketing. - Air Hockey Similar to hockey, minus the ice and Zamboni. First to reach 10 points wins. - CyberSoccer Turn-based soccer, a new twist. Each CyberPlayer manages a zone on the field. If the ball lands there, it's their turn. - MiniGolf (Course A) Golf, but downsized with compact courses full of obstacles and challenges. - MiniGolf (Course B) Similar to before, but with different courses (and challenges). - Bowling A classic! Knock down all the pins, preferably in one roll. Easier said than done, right? - RainBowling Bowling meets a rainbow, with explosive pins and obstacles. Not quite the rainbow we remember. Is this a small offering? Don't worry! This is just the beginning. We're already working on new games that will be added to the collection over time. Additional Features: - Advanced support for Apple Watch (Series 3 and later, Ultra and later) - 120 fps support on compatible devices - iCloud support for saving progress - Game Center support for online leaderboards - No advertisements - No tracking

Screenshots

Retro Bowl4 screens
Arcadia Sports4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Retro Bowl at Free against Arcadia Sports's $1.99. Retro Bowl also leads on ratings volume (917K vs 1.6K) and iOS requirement (9 vs 15.0). Arcadia Sports's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 8) and review sentiment (95% vs 69%). On rating, update cadence, ads and chart position 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

Retro Bowl is free to download; Arcadia Sports costs $1.99 up front. Retro Bowl sells 8 one-off in-app purchases. Arcadia Sports asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Retro Bowl against 4.8 for Arcadia Sports. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Retro Bowl has 917K ratings behind it against 1.6K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 69% of Retro Bowl's written reviews are positive against 95% of Arcadia Sports's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Retro Bowl ships an update every 2 months, Arcadia Sports every 4 weeks. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Retro Bowl versus Arcadia Sports: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRetro BowlArcadia Sports
PriceFree — better$1.99
Rating4.8 (917K ratings)4.8 (1.6K ratings)
Positive reviews68.7% of reviews94.7% of reviews — better
Number of ratings917K — better1.6K
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 4 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
Best chart rank#9 — better#16
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV, Apple Watch, Vision Pro — better
Requires iOS9 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size70 MB29 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNew Star GamesRaffaele D'Amato

Customer experience

Retro Bowl

All ratings916,521 ratings
Positive96.9%
Neutral1.5%
Negative1.6%
Written reviews1,965 reviews
Positive68.7%
Neutral8.4%
Negative22.9%

Arcadia Sports

All ratings1,568 ratings
Positive96.2%
Neutral2.6%
Negative1.3%
Written reviews188 reviews
Positive94.7%
Neutral2.1%
Negative3.2%

User reviews

Retro Bowl

From 917K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Amazing game
  • 👍 Simple and easy to understand
  • 🕹️ Addictive gameplay
  • 💰 Great value for money
  • 🕹️ Nostalgic retro style

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
  • 🔄 Repetitive gameplay
  • 🤖 Unbalanced AI difficulty
  • 🔒 Lack of control over defense
  • 🚫 Limited customization options

Arcadia Sports

From 1.6K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Awesome, fun games
  • 🕹️ Retro arcade-style gameplay
  • ⌚ Works great on Apple Watch
  • 💰 Good value for the price
  • 🕹️ Variety of sports mini-games

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional bugs or glitches
  • 🎮 Some controls feel stiff or sensitive
  • 🎮 Lack of multiplayer options
  • 🎮 Repetitive gameplay in some games

Bugs and requests

Retro Bowl

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Saves being randomly deleted
  • Gameplay slowdown and performance issues
  • Inconsistent player and team ratings
  • Buggy controls and responsiveness

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add defensive gameplay
  • Implement more advanced stats and leaderboards
  • Introduce a career/progression mode
  • Allow for custom playbooks and formations
  • Implement a multiplayer mode
Show 1 more
  • Add more team and player customization options

Arcadia Sports

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Game not downloading properly on Apple Watch
  • Basketball game not progressing after high scores

Requested features

4 requests
  • More game variety and new additions
  • Multiplayer support for select games
  • Improved controls and physics for some games
  • Detailed instructions or tutorials for each game

In-app purchases

8 purchases

Retro Bowl

One-time8
  • Unlimited Version$0.99
  • Coaching Credits x 25$0.99
  • Coaching Credits x 50$1.99
Show 5 more
  • Coaching Credits x 75$1.99
  • Coaching Credits x 100$2.99
  • Coaching Credits x 250$4.99
  • Coaching Credits x 500$9.99
  • Coaching Credits x 2000$29.99
None

Arcadia Sports

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Retro Bowl free?
Retro Bowl is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Arcadia Sports free?
Arcadia Sports costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Retro Bowl or Arcadia Sports?
Retro Bowl and Arcadia Sports are both rated 4.8 out of 5 on the App Store, from 917K and 1.6K ratings respectively.
Do Retro Bowl or Arcadia Sports have ads?
Neither Retro Bowl nor Arcadia Sports shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Retro Bowl or Arcadia Sports?
Retro Bowl ships an update every 2 months, and Arcadia Sports every 4 weeks. Most recently, Retro Bowl was updated on September 24, 2026 and Arcadia Sports on September 24, 2026.
Which is more popular, Retro Bowl or Arcadia Sports?
Retro Bowl currently peaks at #9 in the App Store charts, and Arcadia Sports at #16. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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