Comparison

Strategery vs Slay

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

Head to head
About

Strategery

Engage in a rapid world domination game on your iOS device. Compete against AI or friends in strategic battles with customizable options and randomly generated maps for endless replayability.

Highlights
  • Offensive and defensive strategy gameplay
  • Play for short or long sessions
  • Four difficulty settings
  • Online battles with matchmaking
  • Pass-and-play multiplayer
  • Automatically saves games
  • Randomly generated maps
  • Customizable gameplay options
Features
Read full description

Dominate the world. One blob at a time. World domination isn't a very fashionable ambition these days, but that doesn't mean you can't pretend. Strategery is a battle between your pegs and the green, orange, blue, and red blobs that dare to stand in your way. It's also a little bit of App Store history. Strategery first launched in 2008, back when the App Store was barely a few months old. Macworld named it the Best Strategy Game of 2009. Slate called it their latest iPhone gaming habit. Daring Fireball said the gameplay had a great feel. And a Macworld reviewer named Lex Friedman wrote that there was no game he played on his iPhone more. That reviewer now makes Strategery. Life is funny. HOW IT'S PLAYED The world is made of blobs. Every blob holds pegs — your pegs, ideally. Pick a blob you own, point at a neighboring blob you don't, and roll. More pegs, better odds. Win the roll and the blob changes color. Lose it and, well, you still have your other blobs. Keep going until the whole map is your color and everyone else is looking for the rematch button. Your turn, your dice, your questionable decisions Bigger stacks of pegs win more rolls. Usually. Every blob you hold earns you more pegs Last color standing dominates the world. Politely. THREE WAYS TO CONQUER Solo: Play against the computer. It has no friends, no feelings, and no plans this evening. It will happily lose to you all night. (Or not. You choose how clever it gets to be.) Online: Play against your friends. Take turns from wherever you are. A push notification lets you know when it's your move, or when someone has done something regrettable to your blobs. Pass and play: One phone, one couch, several rivals. Hand it over, let them try, and try not to gloat. CLASSIC OR CHAOS Classic is the game you remember: dice, blobs, and your own poor judgment. Chaos adds starred blobs. Capture one and the wheel spins. Your conquest has consequences. Either way, you pick how much world there is to dominate. A WAR WITH NO CASUALTIES Blobs don't bleed. Pegs don't feel pain. Nothing explodes, nobody gets hurt, and the only thing that ever gets conquered is a colorful shape on a map. Somebody's pride may be wounded when you take their last blob, but that's between the two of you. For iPhone and iPad. Contains no violence, several dice, a healthy number of blobs, and a reasonable amount of whimsy. Strategery was originally designed by Sumul Shah, Courtland Idstrom, and Peter Ju. This version comes from Lex Friedman, who is one person and would be delighted by a rating or review. It's not strategy. It's Strategery.

About

Slay

Engage in a turn-based strategy game set in medieval times. Conquer enemy territories, expand your own, and strategically upgrade your units from peasants to powerful barons. Balance resource management to avoid bankruptcy and achieve victory.

Highlights
  • Territory capture and expansion
  • Unit upgrades (Peasants to Barons)
  • Strategic combat and castle sieges
  • Resource management and bankruptcy risk
  • Turn-based multiplayer
  • AI opponents
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Slay is a simple to learn game of strategy and cunning set in medieval times. The island is divided up between the six players, and you must try to capture your enemies' land and link up your own territories to create larger and stronger ones. You begin capturing land by attacking with your peasants. Once your territories become richer you can combine peasants to make stronger and stronger people (Spearmen, Knights and then Barons) who can kill weaker enemy troops, or knock down their castles. Just be careful that you don't create too many expensive men or the territory will go bankrupt! "This game is pure strategy! It's a work of genius. Brilliant AI. Engaging turn-based multiplayer strategy. Sid Meier, eat your heart out!" - GameSpy.com "I love this game! I play it all the time, and when I'm not, I think about wanting to play it." - PocketNow.com "At first glance, Slay looks elementary, but hidden beneath are cunning strategy elements that must be finely balanced for success" - PC Magazine "Deceptively delightful. The graphics are simple, but the strategy is complex." - Download.com For the latest news on all my games follow @SeansGames on Twitter!

Screenshots

Strategery4 screens
Slay4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Slay at 4.6 against Strategery's 3.9. Slay also leads on monetization model (free with in-app purchases vs paid) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 18.0). Strategery's advantage is update cadence (daily vs every 3 months) and chart position (#43 vs #168). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads 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

Strategery costs $4.99 and Slay $4.99 up front. Strategery sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and Slay sells 12 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Slay holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 342 and 266 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 68% of Strategery's written reviews are positive against 74% of Slay's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Strategery ships an update daily, Slay every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 18, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Strategery versus Slay: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStrategerySlay
Price$4.99$4.99
Rating3.9 (342 ratings)4.6 (266 ratings) — better
Positive reviews68.0% of reviews74.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings342 — better266
Update frequencyDaily — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#43 — better#168
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size53 MB26 MB
Age rating4+9+
DeveloperLex FriedmanSean O'Connor

Customer experience

Strategery

All ratings342 ratings
Positive71.6%
Neutral2.6%
Negative25.7%
Written reviews485 reviews
Positive68.0%
Neutral7.2%
Negative24.7%

Slay

All ratings266 ratings
Positive90.6%
Neutral2.3%
Negative7.1%
Written reviews537 reviews
Positive74.5%
Neutral6.7%
Negative18.8%

User reviews

Strategery

From 342 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Online play
  • 💡 Challenging gameplay
  • 👍 Simple and addictive
  • 👍 Great strategy game
  • 👍 Excellent game

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and bugs
  • 🔋 Battery draining
  • 🔒 Online play issues
  • 🔒 Cannot create account
  • 🔒 Multiplayer not working

Slay

From 266 App Store ratings

What we love

  • ⭐ Classic and timeless game
  • 🕹️ Simple yet engaging gameplay
  • 🧠 Challenging and strategic
  • ⏱️ Great for quick play sessions
  • 🔁 High replayability with many maps

Room to improve

  • 🎨 Dislike for recent graphical updates
  • 🔍 Difficulty distinguishing territories
  • 🔊 Annoying sound effects
  • 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs

Bugs and requests

Strategery

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Game freezes when opponent is eliminated
  • Armies disappear after switching apps
  • Cannot log in or create account
  • Game crashes on newer iOS versions

Requested features

8 requests
  • Pinch to zoom for maps
  • More map options and sizes
  • Ability to redeploy armies
  • Online multiplayer with random opponents
  • Ability to play more than 2 players online
Show 3 more
  • Stats and leaderboards
  • Automatic army placement option
  • Ability to skip replay at end of game

Slay

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Multiplayer not working
  • Progress not saving in custom levels
  • Graphical issues on newer devices

Requested features

6 requests
  • Option to revert to classic graphics
  • Ability to choose starting color
  • Larger/randomized map sizes
  • Online/multiplayer mode
  • Level editor or custom map creation
Show 1 more
  • Stats tracking and achievements

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Strategery

One-time2
  • $3 tip$2.99
  • War Chest$9.99
12 purchases

Slay

One-time12
  • Snowflakes$0.99
  • Countries 1$0.99
  • Countries 2$0.99
Show 9 more
  • Patterns 1$0.99
  • Patterns 2$0.99
  • Patterns 3$0.99
  • Patterns 4$0.99
  • US States$0.99
  • Mythical Creatures$0.99
  • Whole row of 18 pages$9.99
  • Whole 3rd row$9.99
  • Whole 4th row$9.99

Questions

Is Strategery free?
Strategery costs $4.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Slay free?
Slay costs $4.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Strategery or Slay?
Slay is rated higher. Strategery averages 3.9 out of 5 from 342 ratings, while Slay averages 4.6 from 266 ratings.
Do Strategery or Slay have ads?
Neither Strategery nor Slay shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Strategery or Slay?
Strategery ships an update daily, and Slay every 3 months. Most recently, Strategery was updated on October 19, 2026 and Slay on October 18, 2026.
Which is more popular, Strategery or Slay?
Strategery currently peaks at #43 in the App Store charts, and Slay at #168. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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