Rogue vs iNethack2
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Rogue
Experience the classic dungeon crawling game that defined a genre. Explore procedurally generated levels, battle monsters, and collect loot. Choose between ASCII, simple, or full graphic tile modes for a retro adventure.
- ASCII, simple, or full graphic tile modes
- Menu-based commands
- BlueTooth keyboard support
- Pinch-to-zoom graphics
- Faithful classic experience
Read full descriptionHide full description
A favorite on college Unix systems in the early to mid-1980s, Rogue popularized the dungeon crawling computer game dating back from 1980 (and spawned entire class of derivatives known collectively as "roguelikes"). gandreas software now presents the classic for all your iOS devices (10.0 or newer required): - Playable in either "ASCII" mode, simple graphic characters or fully graphic tile mode - Designed for simple "menu" based commands, or can be driven entirely via a BlueTooth keyboard for full retro mode. - Graphics can be zoomed in/out via pinch - Completely faithful Rogue experience (all the levels, monsters, potions, scrolls, etc...) Explore the Dungeons of Doom and retrieve the Amulet of Yendor, or die trying!
iNethack2
Embark on a single-player dungeon crawl to collect treasure, find the Amulet of Yendor, and survive perilous mazes. This port offers graphical tilesets, touch controls, and customizable shortcuts for an enhanced roguelike experience.
- Single-player dungeon exploration
- Treasure collection and escape
- Multiple graphical tilesets
- Touchscreen gesture controls
- Customizable keyboard shortcuts
- Bones file sharing integration
Read full descriptionHide full description
"NetHack is a single player dungeon exploration game. Your goal is to grab as much treasure as you can, retrieve the Amulet of Yendor, and escape the Mazes of Menace alive." -- iNethack2 is an iOS port of Nethack 3.6.7. Original port in 2009 by Dirk Zimmermann which was called iNethack. Updated by Jeff King to work on modern devices, and renamed iNethack2. Initial 3.6 update by Joe Doucette. Various other contributions from the open source community. iNethack2 features: · 9 graphical tilesets (plus IBMGraphics mode, and regular ASCII mode in color and monochrome) · 1 animated tileset: DawnHack Animated · Touchscreen gesture controls: swipe to pan, pinch to zoom · Customizable keyboard shortcut controls · Hearse (bones file sharing) integration · Works on iOS12+ Some facts about NetHack: · The first version of NetHack was released in 1987 · NetHack was a roguelike before people used the term roguelike · You can play NetHack for years and still make new discoveries · NetHack is one of the greatest games of all time
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: iNethack2 at Free against Rogue's $1.99. iNethack2 also leads on rating (4.4 vs 2.9) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 59 months). Rogue's advantage is iOS requirement (10.0 vs 12.0). On ads, in-app purchases 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
iNethack2 is free to download; Rogue costs $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
iNethack2 holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 2.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: iNethack2 has 137 ratings behind it against 22, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 60% of Rogue's written reviews are positive against 84% of iNethack2's.
Rogue ships an update every 59 months, iNethack2 every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 8, 2026 and October 6, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Rogue | iNethack2 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 2.9 (22 ratings) | 4.4 (137 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 60.0% of reviews | 84.1% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 22 | 137 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 59 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — better | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 10.0 — better | 12.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 29 MB | 15 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 9+ |
| Developer | gandreas software | Future Shock Software LTD |
Customer experience
Rogue
iNethack2
User reviews
Rogue
From 22 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🎮 Classic dungeon crawling gameplay
- 👍 Faithful recreation of the original Rogue
- 🎨 Graphical and ASCII modes
- 🤖 Gesture-based controls
- 🆓 Free app
Room to improve
- 🐛 Bugs with throwing/using items
- 🤔 Confusing controls and interface
- 🔄 Lack of save/load functionality
- 🤖 Gesture-based controls can be finicky
- 🚫 Crashes and app stability issues
iNethack2
From 137 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🎮 Faithful port of classic NetHack game
- 📱 Well-designed touch interface for mobile
- 🎨 Multiple tileset options available
- ♾️ Infinite replayability and depth
- 🆓 Free to play with no paywalls
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and freezes
- 💾 Game files corrupted or lost unexpectedly
- ⌨️ Limited external keyboard support
- 🎮 Clunky movement controls
- 🖱️ Double-tap sensitivity issues
Bugs and requests
Rogue
Reported bugs
4 issues- Crashes when using wands/staves
- Throwing items selects wrong item
- Getting stuck in rooms with no exits
- Losing progress after crashes
Requested features
5 requests- Difficulty settings
- Character class selection
- Expanded item/monster variety
- Improved map navigation
- Save/load functionality
iNethack2
Reported bugs
14 issues- Game crashes when using inventory (I command)
- Crashes on Plane of Water during save restore
- File corruption errors when switching apps
- Game freezes with Chinese pinyin keyboard input
- Crashes when equipping rings
Show 9 moreShow fewer
- Crashes when dropping items
- Crashes when accessing discoveries list
- Cannot open level files error (501mobile.50)
- Game unrecoverable after certain actions
- Double-tap causes unintended character movement
- Floor tiles not rendering in corridors
- Crashes on iOS 11+ when dropping items
- Waiting for logfile access message loops
- Game crashes immediately on startup for some users
Requested features
17 requests- Separate button labels from command values
- External Bluetooth keyboard support
- Directional pad for movement
- Swipe-based movement controls
- Character name customization
Show 12 moreShow fewer
- Pet naming functionality
- Partial item stack management
- Cloud save synchronization across devices
- iPad Magic Keyboard support
- Japanese language localization
- Toggle for sparkle effects
- Multiple simultaneous game saves
- NetHack version 3.6+ support
- Slash'Em port for iOS
- Voice over support for accessibility
- Options file editing capability
- Discoveries list access without crashes
In-app purchases
Rogue
No in-app purchases
iNethack2
No in-app purchases
