# Hnefatafl vs Ancient Games

The clearest difference is rating: Ancient Games at 4.6 against Hnefatafl's 4.1. Ancient Games also leads on ratings volume (287 vs 31) and review sentiment (78% vs 68%). Hnefatafl's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Hnefatafl sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Ancient Games sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Ancient Games holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Ancient Games has 287 ratings behind it against 31, 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 78% of Ancient Games's.

Hnefatafl ships an update every 2 weeks, Ancient Games every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Hnefatafl | Ancient Games |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.1 (31 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hnefatafl/id1498725934/reviews) | **[4.6 (287 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ancient-games/id1589948658/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 31 | **287** |
| Positive reviews | 68.0% of reviews | **78.3% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 206 MB | 212 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Philippe Schober](https://appshunter.io/developer/1394832107) | [Sullivan Bousiniere](https://appshunter.io/developer/1455653920) |

## What reviewers say

### Hnefatafl

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hnefatafl/id1498725934)

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:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Remove Ads | $4.99 | one-time |


### Ancient Games

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ancient-games/id1589948658)

Explore and play a collection of ancient board games brought back to life with modern app design. Enjoy offline and online play, collect customizable game pieces, and tackle fun challenges. Save progress across all games with cloud saves.

**Highlights:** Play multiple ancient games in one app, Offline and online multiplayer, AI, friend, and random player matches, Collectible game pieces and boards, Challenges with rule variants, Free cloud saves across games

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| AG+ | $3.99 | per month |
| Ancient Artifact | $0.99 | one-time |
| Purchase Game Edition | $1.99 | one-time |
| Dawn of Civilization DLC | $2.99 | one-time |
| Purchase Game Edition | $2.99 | one-time |
| Skeleton Key | $2.99 | one-time |
| Ur Divine Edition | $3.99 | one-time |
| Purchase Game Edition | $3.99 | one-time |
| Purchase Game Edition | $10.99 | one-time |
| Royal Pass | $12.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🎮 High-quality ancient board games collection
- 🎨 Beautiful graphics and visual design
- 🎵 Appropriate relaxing music and atmosphere
- 👍 Easy to learn gameplay with depth
- 🎯 Multiple difficulty levels and game modes

**What reviewers complain about**

- 📺 Excessive and intrusive advertisements
- 💳 Subscription model for content access
- 🎲 Dice rolls appear non-random or rigged
- 🐛 Frequent freezing and crashing issues
- 🔊 Ads play with sound even when muted

**Reported bugs**

- Game freezes after match completion
- Screen goes dark and becomes unresponsive post-game
- Ad removal purchase only lasts one game
- Paid ad removal still shows advertisements
- Game continues playing after player wins

**Requested features**

- Two-player local multiplayer mode
- Friends list and challenge system
- Leaderboards and ranking system
- Win/loss statistics and game history tracking
- Ability to play offline while waiting for online opponents


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Hnefatafl free?

Hnefatafl is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Ancient Games free?

Ancient Games is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Hnefatafl or Ancient Games?

Ancient Games is rated higher. Hnefatafl averages 4.1 out of 5 from 31 ratings, while Ancient Games averages 4.6 from 287 ratings.

### Do Hnefatafl or Ancient Games have ads?

Ancient Games shows ads; Hnefatafl does not.

### Which is updated more often, Hnefatafl or Ancient Games?

Hnefatafl ships an update every 2 weeks, and Ancient Games every 3 weeks. Most recently, Hnefatafl was updated on October 27, 2026 and Ancient Games on October 24, 2026.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*