# Square Valley vs One Million Checkmates

The clearest difference is price: One Million Checkmates at Free against Square Valley's $2.99. Square Valley's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

One Million Checkmates is free to download; Square Valley costs $2.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Square Valley ships an update every 2 weeks, One Million Checkmates fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Square Valley | One Million Checkmates |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $2.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | **[4.8 (94 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/square-valley/id1609779877/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **94** | — |
| Positive reviews | 84.6% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Fortnightly |
| Monetization | Paid | — |
| Size | 125 MB | 143 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Ryan Becijos](https://appshunter.io/developer/1609779879) | [Luke Salamone](https://appshunter.io/developer/1894432834) |

## What reviewers say

### Square Valley

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/square-valley/id1609779877)

Shape unique lands by strategically placing tiles like houses, farms, and natural elements. Connect them with roads and rivers while overcoming placement challenges. Progress through levels to unlock new tiles and face increasingly complex world-building puzzles.

**Highlights:** Tile placement for world creation, Connect tiles with roads and rivers, Strategic planning and puzzle solving, Three chapters with 45 levels, Unlock new tiles and overcome obstacles, Replay levels for higher scores, Sandbox mode for custom experiences

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🎮 Engaging tile placement puzzle mechanics
- 🎵 Relaxing and pleasant background music
- 🎨 Beautiful minimalist art style and visuals
- 😌 Calming and stress-relieving gameplay
- 💰 No ads or in-app purchases

**What reviewers complain about**

- ❓ Unclear tile descriptions and requirements
- 🎲 High randomness can lead to unwinnable scenarios
- 📊 No real-time score feedback during gameplay
- 🐛 Occasional scoring calculation bugs
- 📱 Portrait-only mode (no landscape on iPad)

**Reported bugs**

- Leaderboard freezes when displaying top 10 scores
- Tile scoring miscalculations (e.g., Cherry Orchard, Fir Grove)
- Tutorial bug where selected tiles change unexpectedly
- Some tiles don't work as described in requirements
- Scoring feedback unclear until level completion

**Requested features**

- More levels and chapters
- Landscape/iPad support with larger maps
- iCloud synchronization across devices
- Real-time score feedback per tile placement
- Glossary with detailed tile explanations


### One Million Checkmates

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/one-million-checkmates/id6762503545)

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Square Valley free?

Square Valley costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is One Million Checkmates free?

One Million Checkmates is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Do Square Valley or One Million Checkmates have ads?

Neither Square Valley nor One Million Checkmates shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Square Valley or One Million Checkmates?

Square Valley ships an update every 2 weeks, and One Million Checkmates fortnightly. Most recently, Square Valley was updated on October 27, 2026 and One Million Checkmates on October 25, 2026.

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