Comparison

Pawnbarian vs Wildfrost

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

Head to head
About

Pawnbarian

Engage in a turn-based puzzle roguelike inspired by chess. Use a deck of chess pieces to battle monsters on a small dungeon board, strategically outmaneuvering enemies. Enjoy quick, challenging sessions with emergent tactical situations and character progression.

Highlights
  • Deck of chess pieces for combat
  • Chess mechanics for gameplay
  • Turn-based tactical situations
  • Card upgrades with treasure
  • Quick 15-30 minute runs
  • Infinite post-run Gauntlet
  • Multiple characters and dungeons
Features
Read full description

Chess-inspired puzzle roguelike. Demo - single IAP unlocks full game. The demo is ad-free. It contains a single character and dungeon. Pawnbarian is a turn-based puzzle roguelike with bite-sized, but challenging sessions. Play cards to control your hero like a chess piece on a tiny dungeon board, outmaneuver enemies with their assortment of tricky abilities, and become the mightiest warrior of the Chesslands! Features - Use a deck of chess pieces to hack and slash through hordes of monsters. - Pick up the basics instantly if you're familiar with chess, or learn in minutes if you aren't. - Carefully plan your moves to navigate challenging, emergent tactical situations. - Spend treasure to upgrade your cards with additional powers. - Blitz through quick 15-30 minute runs - or die trying. - Take on the infinite post-run Gauntlet to see how long you can survive. - Pick from 6 characters to conquer 3 dungeons, all requiring an unique approach. - Progress through Chains, a series of extra difficulty modifiers. Not Features - No permanent upgrades, and not much that needs unlocking. The progress and satisfaction come from your growing mastery of the game's elegant systems! - No complex and varied builds. The shops provide a few key decisions, but the bulk of the roguelike depth lies in how you approach the emergent combat puzzles!

About

Wildfrost

Embark on a tactical roguelike deckbuilder adventure where you build a deck of card companions and elemental items to banish an eternal winter. Explore endless replayability with daily runs, challenges, and a dynamic counter system. Develop your hub town and unlock new content between runs.

Highlights
  • Build a deck with over 160 cards
  • Endless replayability with daily runs
  • Recruit card companions and elemental items
  • Master a dynamic counter system
  • Expand and develop the hub town
  • Unlock new cards and customization options
Features
Read full description

-TRY BEFORE YOU BUY- Play for free until you beat the first boss. Unlock the full game with an in-app purchase. The sun has frozen over. The world has succumbed to the Wildfrost. Now only the town of Snowdwell and its survivors stand as the last bastion against an eternal winter… Build up a deck of powerful card companions and elemental items, as you battle to banish the frost once and for all! * Build your perfect deck with over 160 cards! * Endless replayability with daily runs and challenges * Great for new and veteran card game fans alike, with an all-new tutorial and difficulty scaling ‘Storm Bell’ system * Recruit cute card companions, elemental items and equip powerful charms to aid in your fight against the Wildfrost * Choose your Leader from a variety of tribes, each with randomized skills and stats * Master a dynamic ‘counter’ system to put your strategic skills to the test * Expand and develop the hub town of Snowdwell between runs * Unlock new cards, events, customisation options and more! * Fully updated and ready to play with the latest content - ‘Better Adventures’ & ‘Storm Bells’! * Updated UI for mobile play

Screenshots

Pawnbarian4 screens
Wildfrost4 screens

Verdict

The call

Pawnbarian and Wildfrost both sit at 4.2 stars, but that hides the real split: 83% of Pawnbarian's written reviews are positive against 66% of Wildfrost's. Pawnbarian also leads on iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.6). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence 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

Both are free to download. Pawnbarian sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Wildfrost sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.2 for Pawnbarian against 4.1 for Wildfrost. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 354 and 507 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 83% of Pawnbarian's written reviews are positive against 66% of Wildfrost's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Pawnbarian ships an update every 6 weeks, Wildfrost monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 8, 2026 and September 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Pawnbarian versus Wildfrost: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPawnbarianWildfrost
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (354 ratings) — better4.1 (507 ratings)
Positive reviews83.0% of reviews — better66.1% of reviews
Number of ratings354507 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS11.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size116 MB724 MB
Age rating9+9+
DeveloperJan WojteckiChucklefish Limited

Customer experience

Pawnbarian

All ratings354 ratings
Positive81.4%
Neutral3.7%
Negative15.0%
Written reviews153 reviews
Positive83.0%
Neutral3.3%
Negative13.7%

Wildfrost

All ratings507 ratings
Positive77.7%
Neutral3.4%
Negative18.9%
Written reviews327 reviews
Positive66.1%
Neutral9.8%
Negative24.2%

User reviews

Pawnbarian

From 354 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great concept
  • 🚀 Smooth gameplay
  • 💡 Unique chess-like mechanics
  • 🎨 Excellent art style
  • 🔊 Impressive sound design

Room to improve

  • 🔒 Paywall for full game
  • 🕹️ Steep learning curve
  • 🐛 Inconsistent enemy behavior
  • 🕰️ Limited content in free version

Wildfrost

From 507 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Endless replayability
  • 👍 Unique and charming design
  • 🎨 Gorgeous art and animations
  • 🎶 Fitting and amazing music
  • 🤯 Incredible depth and complexity

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and save data loss issues
  • 👀 Tiny text and UI elements
  • 🔋 High battery consumption
  • 🤕 Overly punishing difficulty

Bugs and requests

Pawnbarian

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Unexpected attacks during player turns
  • Glitches with Apple Pencil input

Requested features

5 requests
  • More levels and dungeons
  • Additional character classes
  • Difficulty settings
  • Achievements/progression system
  • Controller support

Wildfrost

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Game crashing on launch
  • Progress reset after device switch
  • Tutorial stages not functioning properly

Requested features

3 requests
  • Cloud save sync across devices
  • Option to increase font size
  • More content and faction updates

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Pawnbarian

One-time1
  • Full Game$4.99
1 purchases

Wildfrost

One-time1
  • Wildfrost Full Game$6.99

Questions

Is Pawnbarian free?
Pawnbarian is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Wildfrost free?
Wildfrost is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Pawnbarian or Wildfrost?
Pawnbarian is rated higher. Pawnbarian averages 4.2 out of 5 from 354 ratings, while Wildfrost averages 4.1 from 507 ratings.
Do Pawnbarian or Wildfrost have ads?
Neither Pawnbarian nor Wildfrost shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Pawnbarian or Wildfrost?
Pawnbarian ships an update every 6 weeks, and Wildfrost monthly. Most recently, Pawnbarian was updated on September 8, 2026 and Wildfrost on September 26, 2026.

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