Comparison

GnollHack vs Direhollow

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

Head to head
About

GnollHack

Experience a remastered classic roguelike adventure with turn-based gameplay and modern enhancements. Explore procedurally generated dungeons, master deep item and magic systems, and face challenging permadeath as you quest to recover a stolen artifact.

Highlights
  • Turn-based roguelike gameplay
  • Modern user interface
  • Procedurally generated dungeons
  • Rich class and race system
  • Deep item and magic system
  • Challenging permadeath mode
Features
Read full description

ABOUT GnollHack is a remastered and enhanced version of the classic roguelike game NetHack, one of the most iconic games developed in 1980s and 1990s. With GnollHack, you get: - Traditional roguelike with turn-based gameplay - Modern user interface - Legendary strategic depth of NetHack - Endless replayability - Several new features, enhancing your gameplay experience STORY In GnollHack, you are a hero sent by your deity into the perilous Dungeons of Doom, tasked with recovering the stolen Amulet of Yendor from the clutches of the malevolent god Moloch, who has hidden it in the fiery depths of the underworld. Along your journey, you will encounter formidable enemies, discover great magical artifacts, and strive for glory. You must either triumph or perish in the attempt. ROGUELIKE GAMEPLAY Explore procedurally generated dungeons filled with monsters, traps, and treasures. RICH CLASS AND RACE SYSTEM - 13 classes: wizard, barbarian, rogue, etc. - 5 races: human, elf, gnoll, etc. DEEP ITEM AND MAGIC SYSTEM Hundreds of items, spells, and artifacts with diverse effects. CHALLENGING PERMADEATH (Classic Mode Only) Death is permanent, requiring players to adapt, plan, and learn from mistakes to progress further. TUTORIALS AND GAMEPLAY INFORMATION - GnollHack wiki: https://wiki.gnollhack.com SUPPORT - Discord: https://discord.gg/cQuExnzUQy

About

Direhollow

Experience a faithful mobile remake of the classic 1980 roguelike game. Navigate unforgiving dungeons, face a complete bestiary, and strive to claim the Amulet of Yendor with true permadeath. Enjoy the authentic ASCII graphics and a free, fair gameplay experience.

Highlights
  • Faithful remake of classic roguelike
  • True permadeath with save deletion
  • Complete A-Z bestiary
  • Loot and identify mechanics
  • Authentic ASCII graphics
  • Touch-first controls
Features
Read full description

Direhollow is a faithful mobile remake of Rogue — the 1980 game that started the roguelike. The same Dungeons of Doom. The same A–Z bestiary. The same unforgiving permadeath. Rebuilt for a phone: touch-first, free, and true to the original. We modernize the shell, not the rules. THE REAL GAME, ON A PHONE The same seeded dungeons, the same monsters, the same merciless math — with a 3×3 move pad, pinch-to-zoom, a tap-driven pack, and saves that actually survive a phone call. WHAT YOU'LL FIND DOWN THERE • True permadeath — one life, one seed. The save is deleted on death. No reloading an earlier turn. • The full bestiary — the complete A–Z roster, depth-ordered exactly as the original intended. • Loot & identify — per-run appearances for scrolls, potions, rings, and wands. Learn them, or risk them. • The Amulet of Yendor — descend to claim it, then climb back to the surface alive. Few will. • True ASCII — the authentic 1980 glyph grid. No tiles, no remix. The terminal classic, on a phone. FREE, AND FAIR No pay-to-win. No energy timers. No reloads sold back to you. The whole game is earned — exactly as it was in 1980. ——— "Rogue" is used here only descriptively, to say what kind of game this is. Direhollow is an independent work inspired by the BSD-licensed original; it is not affiliated with or endorsed by any trademark holder.

Screenshots

GnollHack4 screens
Direhollow4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Direhollow at 5.0 against GnollHack's 4.7. Direhollow also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 85%). GnollHack's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs fortnightly) and ratings volume (112 vs 4). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Direhollow holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: GnollHack has 112 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 85% of GnollHack's written reviews are positive against 100% of Direhollow's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

GnollHack ships an update every 4 days, Direhollow fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
GnollHack versus Direhollow: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGnollHackDirehollow
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (112 ratings)5.0 (4 ratings) — better
Positive reviews85.2% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings112 — better4
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterFortnightly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size776 MB71 MB
Age rating9+9+
DeveloperHyvän mielen pelit ryHYMEL VENTURES LLC

Customer experience

GnollHack

All ratings112 ratings
Positive94.6%
Neutral2.7%
Negative2.7%
Written reviews27 reviews
Positive85.2%
Neutral3.7%
Negative11.1%

Direhollow

All ratings4 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

GnollHack

No in-app purchases

None

Direhollow

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is GnollHack free?
GnollHack is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Direhollow free?
Direhollow is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, GnollHack or Direhollow?
Direhollow is rated higher. GnollHack averages 4.7 out of 5 from 112 ratings, while Direhollow averages 5.0 from 4 ratings.
Do GnollHack or Direhollow have ads?
Neither GnollHack nor Direhollow shows ads.
Which is updated more often, GnollHack or Direhollow?
GnollHack ships an update every 4 days, and Direhollow fortnightly. Most recently, GnollHack was updated on November 7, 2026 and Direhollow on October 31, 2026.

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