Comparison

Squares vs Goban3D

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

Head to head
About

Squares

A strategy game inspired by classics like Othello and Reversi. Players take turns copying or moving squares to capture opponent's pieces, aiming to block all possible moves. Enjoy a variety of boards and play modes.

Highlights
  • 125 unique boards
  • 5 board sizes
  • 1 and 2-player modes
  • Play against device or friend
  • Random board generation
  • Resume previous games
Read full description

*** REVIEWS *** "SQUARES IS AWESOME!" "This gamne is addictive! I pretty much play it all the time!" A simple strategy game like Othello, Reversi & Attaxx. Play against your device or another player. Choose one of your squares and then either copy or move that square into one of the highlighted squares surrounding it. Take over the other player's squares by jumping next to them, and win by making it impossible for the other player to move. Forget about the daily commute - fire up Squares! STILL FREE! Features: - 125 boards - 5 board sizes: 8x10, 8x12, 9x14, 9x16, 10x16 - fits all iPhone displays! - 1 and 2-player modes: play against your device or another player - Random boards - Full boards with no missing places - Skip boards you don't want to play - Bonus squares - Resume a previous game - Compatible with iOS 13+

About

Goban3D

Experience the ancient game of Go with stunning 3D visuals or a clean 2D interface. Play against the world's strongest AI offline, challenge friends online via Game Center, or enjoy local matches on a single device. Offers extensive accessibility features for all players.

Highlights
  • Play Go in 3D or 2D
  • Offline AI play with KataGo
  • Online matches with friends
  • Local pass-and-play mode
  • Multiple board sizes (9x9, 13x13, 19x19)
  • Extensive accessibility features
  • Customizable board and stone textures
Features
Read full description

Goban3D brings the ancient game of Go — also known as 囲碁 (igo), 바둑 (baduk), or 圍棋 (wéiqí) — to iPhone and iPad. Play on a beautifully rendered 3D goban or switch instantly to a clean 2D board. Local matches, private online games with friends via Game Center requested matches, and the world's strongest Go AI, KataGo, all in one app. Whether you've never placed a stone before, want a private match with a friend or club-mate, or are ready to test your skills against the strongest Go engine on the planet — Goban3D is for you. KATAGO AI (FREE, 100% OFFLINE) • The world's strongest open-source Go engine, running natively on Apple Silicon — no internet, no account, no data sent anywhere. The AI is fully on-device • Board sizes 9×9, 13×13, and 19×19 • 26 skill levels: 20 Kyu (complete beginner) through 5 Dan, plus full-strength AI for serious study • Weaker levels use KataGo's Human-style network (trained on human games) so the AI plays like a real person at your rank — not a crippled superhuman • Full-strength mode runs the latest strongest KataGo network published on katagotraining.org as of 15 April 2026 • There's an old Go proverb: "Lose your first 50 games as quickly as possible." Start on 9×9 at 20 Kyu — after 2 or 3 games, winning comes easier than you might think. Each time you win, raise the skill by 1 or 2. KataGo is the best Go teacher ever built, and it speaks every language ONLINE PLAY WITH FRIENDS • Private matches over Game Center with people already in your contacts • Invite a specific friend — no public matchmaking, no strangers • All online games are untimed — take your time and enjoy the game LOCAL PLAY • Two players on one device, pass-and-play • Board sizes: 9×9, 13×13, 19×19 • Handicap stones (0–9) with automatic komi adjustment • Japanese scoring with 6.5 komi — mark dead stones, confirm the score • Untimed by default — take your time and enjoy the game BOARD & VISUALS • 3D board powered by RealityKit — physically-based materials, 60 fps animations for every placement and capture • Instant 2D mode in SwiftUI for low-power play • 4 board textures, 8 stone textures, multiple ground and gridline options — all free • Haptic feedback and authentic wooden stone sound effects • NHK broadcast-style move announcements with optional Go terminology (atari, tsuke, hane, nobi...) ACCESSIBILITY — GO FOR EVERYONE Goban3D makes Go genuinely accessible — across ability, skill level, device, region, and language. No other Go app on the App Store declares any accessibility features. Goban3D has 100% coverage across all seven Apple categories: VoiceOver with full board-position labels, Voice Control, Dynamic Type, Reduce Motion, Reduce Transparency, Sufficient Contrast, and Differentiate Without Color. The app starts in 2D by default, and the 2D SwiftUI board is where the full accessibility stack lives — including complete VoiceOver board navigation. When VoiceOver is on, the 3D toggle is disabled to keep the accessible experience front and centre. A dedicated high-contrast mode and adjustable grid-line thickness help players with low vision. DEVICES • Also runs on Mac and visionOS via "Designed for iPad" • Minimap on smaller iPhones ensures every intersection meets Apple's 44pt minimum tap target, even on 19×19 Free to play, with gameplay that is always ad-free. A brief ad appears on launch and just before scoring mode, so your time on the board is never interrupted. Remove all ads with an optional yearly subscription. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://goban3d.com/en-US/privacy.html

Screenshots

Squares4 screens
Goban3D3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Squares at none against Goban3D's 1. Squares also leads on ratings volume (5 vs 1) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 26.0). Goban3D's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs every 5 months) and rating (5.0 vs 4.6). On price, ads and 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

Both are free to download. Goban3D sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $7.99 per year. Squares asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Goban3D holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Squares has 5 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Squares ships an update every 5 months, Goban3D every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Squares versus Goban3D: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSquaresGoban3D
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (5 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews79.2% of reviews—
Number of ratings5 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size21 MB246 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperChris HaynesAdam Gibbons

Customer experience

Squares

All ratings5 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral20.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews96 reviews
Positive79.2%
Neutral11.5%
Negative9.4%

Goban3D

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Squares

Reported bugs

7 issues
  • Game crashes when AI has one move left
  • Game freezes during gameplay
  • Crashes on app launch in certain versions
  • One-player mode exits to home screen
  • Incorrect win/loss determination
Show 2 more
  • Infinite stalemate moves possible
  • App doesn't load after installation without restart

Requested features

11 requests
  • Difficulty levels or harder AI
  • Online multiplayer mode
  • Custom level/board creation
  • More board layouts
  • Achievements or tournament mode
Show 6 more
  • Campaign mode
  • Multiple player colors
  • Volume adjustment settings
  • Sequel (Squares 2)
  • Local Wi-Fi multiplayer
  • Animation when copying squares

Goban3D

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Squares

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Goban3D

Subscriptions1
  • Remove Ads (Yearly)$7.991 Year

Questions

Is Squares free?
Squares is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Goban3D free?
Goban3D is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Squares or Goban3D?
Goban3D is rated higher. Squares averages 4.6 out of 5 from 5 ratings, while Goban3D averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Squares or Goban3D have ads?
Neither Squares nor Goban3D shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Squares or Goban3D?
Squares ships an update every 5 months, and Goban3D every 4 days. Most recently, Squares was updated on October 23, 2026 and Goban3D on October 15, 2026.

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