Comparison

Hnefatafl vs Master Backgammon

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

Head to head
About

Hnefatafl

Experience an ancient Scandinavian strategy board game where one army tries to capture the king while the other defends him. Offers deep tactical gameplay with numerous historical and custom variants. Play against AI, friends offline, or other players online with cross-platform support.

Highlights
  • Numerous historical and custom variants
  • Offline play against AI or human opponents
  • Online multiplayer with cross-platform support
  • Ingame chat for online play
  • Match browser and history
  • Achievements and ELO scores
Features
Read full description

Hnefatafl is an ancient Scandinavian board game whose variants were played all over medieval Europe before chess was even invented. In those so called Tafl games two different sized armies fight each other. The invading black army tries to capture the white king, while the defending white army tries to protect their king and help him escape. Often also called the Game of the Vikings Hnefatafl tells many stories, like the Moskowites invasion of Sweden or the Viking hordes pillaging Britain. But no matter what the story is one thing always stays the same: The hunt for the king. Even though the rules aren't complicated the game offers fascinating strategies and rewards tactical play. Try to surround the enemy pieces, plan ahead, lay traps and force your opponent into surrender. Will you capture the king for gold and glory? Can the loyal guards hold back the invading forces and secure the flight of their king? You can create your own custom variants -- with over 200,000 different variants possible! The online multiplayer supports crossplatform play. Play on any supported platform with just a single account*. This game features: - Variant "Hnefatafl" - Variant "Hnefatafl - Copenhagen" - Variant "Hnefatafl - Historical" - Variant "Hnefatafl - Berserk" - Variant "Hnefatafl - Fetlar" - Variant "Old Hnefatafl" - Variant "Simple Tafl" - Variant "Sea Battle 11x11" - Variant "Sea Battle 13x13" - Variant "Tablut" - Variant "Tablut - Historical ("Saami")" - Variant "Linnaeus' Tablut" - Variant "Foteviken Tablut" - Variant "Ard Ri" - Variant "Historical Ard Ri" - Variant "Brandubh" - Variant "Historical Brandubh" - Variant "Magpie" - Variant "Tawlbwrdd" - Variant "Historical Tawlbwrdd" - Variant "Tyr 13x13" - Variant "Tyr 15x15" - Variant "Tyr 19x19" - Variant "Coppergate 15x15" - Variant "Alea Evangelii" - Variant "Historical Alea Evangelii" - Custom variants for offline and Online Play* - Offline play for two humans - Offline play against various computer opponents - Offline play between two computer opponents - Online Play* - Ingame Chat for Online Play* - Crossplatform Online Play* - Achievements* - ELO scores* - Match Browser to find the right opponent - Match History to review your past matches - Annotate and share matches - Tutorial/Rules included *) These features require the creation of a free Fellhuhn account, valid on all supported platforms. This app is supported by advertisement which can be disabled through an one-time purchase of IAP.

About

Master Backgammon

Master Backgammon offers a classic board game experience with multiple game modes, including single games without the doubling cube and longer matches that utilize it. Track your progress with a built-in history log of game results.

Highlights
  • Single games (no doubling cube)
  • 5-game matches (with doubling cube)
  • 9-game matches (with doubling cube)
  • History log of game results
Features
Read full description

Game options: (1) Single games--no doubling cube (2) 5 game matches--uses doubling cube (3) 9 game matches--uses doubling cube History log kept of game results.

Screenshots

Hnefatafl4 screens
Master Backgammon4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Hnefatafl at Free against Master Backgammon's $2.99. Hnefatafl also leads on update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months) and ratings volume (30 vs 1). Master Backgammon's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.0) and in-app purchases (none vs 1). On 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

Hnefatafl is free to download; Master Backgammon costs $2.99 up front. Hnefatafl sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Master Backgammon asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Master Backgammon holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hnefatafl has 30 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 68% of Hnefatafl's written reviews are positive against 100% of Master Backgammon's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Hnefatafl ships an update every 2 weeks, Master Backgammon every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard9 real differences · 1 level
Hnefatafl versus Master Backgammon: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHnefataflMaster Backgammon
PriceFree — better$2.99
Rating4.0 (30 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews68.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings30 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size224 MB36 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPhilippe SchoberKen Fox

Customer experience

Hnefatafl

All ratings30 ratings
Positive73.3%
Neutral6.7%
Negative20.0%
Written reviews25 reviews
Positive68.0%
Neutral12.0%
Negative20.0%

Master Backgammon

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Hnefatafl

One-time1
  • Remove Ads$4.99
None

Master Backgammon

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Hnefatafl free?
Hnefatafl is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Master Backgammon free?
Master Backgammon costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Hnefatafl or Master Backgammon?
Master Backgammon is rated higher. Hnefatafl averages 4.0 out of 5 from 30 ratings, while Master Backgammon averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Hnefatafl or Master Backgammon have ads?
Hnefatafl shows ads; Master Backgammon does not.
Which is updated more often, Hnefatafl or Master Backgammon?
Hnefatafl ships an update every 2 weeks, and Master Backgammon every 2 months. Most recently, Hnefatafl was updated on September 29, 2026 and Master Backgammon on October 4, 2026.

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