Comparison

The General vs Dark Blades

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

Head to head
About

The General

Experience a classic board game of strategic warfare against a computer opponent. Outwit your enemy by capturing their flag first, using bluffing and deception as you position your troops unseen.

Highlights
  • Lead troops into battle
  • Capture enemy flag
  • Computer opponent
  • Bluffing and deception
  • Unseen troop positioning
Features
Read full description

In this version of the classic board game you lead your troops into battle against the computer opponent in a race to capture your enemy's flag before he gets yours. Initially you can't see how the enemy has positioned his troops and he can't see yours which gives ample opportunity for bluffing and deception from both sides. "4 out of 5. We recommend the program to board game lovers." - Download.com "It's like chess spliced with Minesweeper and Guess Who. Bearing in mind how important subterfuge and bluffing are in the original game, the silicon opponents provided are remarkably sharp." - EuroGamer.com For the latest news on all my games follow @SeansGames on Twitter!

About

Dark Blades

This tool helps you create and manage characters for the tabletop role-playing game Blades in the Dark. It provides access to all seven character types within the game's industrial fantasy setting.

Highlights
  • Character creation
  • Character management
  • All seven character types
  • Tabletop RPG tool
  • Blades in the Dark companion
Features
Read full description

Character Manager for Blades in the Dark. Blades in the Dark is a tabletop fantasy role-playing game by John Harper, set in a fictional city of Doskvol, inspired by Victorian London and Gothic fiction. The default setting of Blades in the Dark, Doskvol, is a roughly 19th century level of technology combined with urban fantasy. An industrial world under perpetual night, long after some great catastrophe has relegated the sun to storybooks, and resulted in the ghosts of the dead lingering in the world. Players take the role of members of a criminal organization such as thieves, smugglers, or merchants of some illicit goods, and grind their way up the criminal underworld by seizing money, territory and infamy. Tool to create and manage your Blades in the Dark characters. All seven character types are available to you. The use of the original book is necessary.

Screenshots

The General4 screens
Dark Blades4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Dark Blades at Free against The General's $1.99. Dark Blades also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 56%). The General's advantage is rating (4.5 vs 4.0) and in-app purchases (none vs 1). On 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

Dark Blades is free to download; The General costs $1.99 up front. Dark Blades sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. The General asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

The General holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: The General has 8 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 56% of The General's written reviews are positive against 100% of Dark Blades's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

The General ships an update every 3 months, Dark Blades every 10 months. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard9 real differences · 1 level
The General versus Dark Blades: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterThe GeneralDark Blades
Price$1.99Free — better
Rating4.5 (8 ratings) — better4.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews56.5% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings8 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 3 months — betterEvery 10 months
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS10.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size26 MB86 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSean O'ConnorCarlos Vlchez Domnguez

Customer experience

The General

All ratings8 ratings
Positive87.5%
Neutral12.5%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews124 reviews
Positive56.5%
Neutral16.1%
Negative27.4%

Dark Blades

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

The General

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Dark Blades

One-time1
  • Dark Blade Premium$4.99

Questions

Is The General free?
The General costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Dark Blades free?
Dark Blades is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, The General or Dark Blades?
The General is rated higher. The General averages 4.5 out of 5 from 8 ratings, while Dark Blades averages 4.0 from 1 ratings.
Do The General or Dark Blades have ads?
Dark Blades shows ads; The General does not.
Which is updated more often, The General or Dark Blades?
The General ships an update every 3 months, and Dark Blades every 10 months. Most recently, The General was updated on October 26, 2026 and Dark Blades on October 14, 2026.

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