Comparison

Dragon Go Client vs Surround

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

Head to head
About

Dragon Go Client

Play the ancient game of Go online with players worldwide. This app provides a fast and simple interface to join, manage, and play full Go games directly from your iPhone. Communicate with opponents and track your ongoing matches.

Highlights
  • Play Go on Dragon Go Server
  • Start and join games
  • View games awaiting your move
  • Tap-to-zoom for precise moves
  • Full game support including scoring
  • In-app messaging with opponents
Features
Read full description

Dragon Go Client is the easiest way to play Go on the Dragon Go Server from your iPhone! The Dragon Go Server (http://www.dragongoserver.net) is a place where people around the world can get together and play the game of Go. Dragon Go Client is the fast, simple way to catch up on your games on the iPhone. Features * Start and join games with other Dragon Go Server players * See the games that are awaiting your move * Tap-to-zoom makes it simple to play the right move, every time * Play full games of Go, from placing handicap stones to scoring * Read, write, and respond to messages from opponents all over the world

About

Surround

Play the ancient strategy game of Go online with a global community. Engage in live or turn-based matches, observe ongoing games, and connect with other players. Receive timely notifications for your games and enjoy a sleek dark mode interface.

Highlights
  • Play live and turn-based Go games
  • Observe ongoing games
  • Chat with other players
  • Home screen widget for correspondence games
  • Notifications for game turns
  • Dark mode support
Features
Read full description

Surround is a client to play Go online with other players on the website online-go.com (Online Go Server - OGS). OGS is a very popular Go Server with a friendly community, and this app aims to provide the best OGS experience on iPhones and iPads. Features: - Play Go with other Go players on OGS, either live games or turn-based (correspondence) games. - Observe other live games that are currently being played. - Chat with other players. - Get a glimpse of your correspondence games on your home screen with a widget. - Receive notifications when it is your turn in correspondence games. - Beautiful dark mode. There are many more features on OGS website that I plan to implement into the app gradually, so I hope to have your support to make it happen faster. Let me know if there is any feature you specifically want to have first. This app offers subscriptions for supporting the app's ongoing development. If you decide to participate in the subscriptions: - Payment will be charged to your Apple ID account at the confirmation of purchase. - The subscription automatically renews unless it is canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. - Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. - You can manage and cancel your subscriptions by going to your account settings on the App Store after purchase. - All purchases are final. I cannot issue refunds for purchases charged to your Apple ID. The Terms of Use can be found at: https://files.honganhkhoa.com/SurroundTerms.html, and the Privacy Policy can be found at: https://files.honganhkhoa.com/SurroundPrivacyPolicy.html.

Screenshots

Dragon Go Client4 screens
Surround4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Surround at 4.5 against Dragon Go Client's 3.9. Surround also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 6 months). Dragon Go Client's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and iOS requirement (10.0 vs 18.0). 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

Both are free to download. Surround sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $0.49 per month. Dragon Go Client asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Surround holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 28 and 76 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 74% of Dragon Go Client's written reviews are positive against 82% of Surround's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Dragon Go Client ships an update every 6 months, Surround fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Dragon Go Client versus Surround: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDragon Go ClientSurround
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.9 (28 ratings)4.5 (76 ratings) — better
Positive reviews74.3% of reviews82.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2876 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterSubscription
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS10.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB39 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNiclas ErikssonHong Anh Khoa

Customer experience

Dragon Go Client

All ratings28 ratings
Positive67.9%
Neutral10.7%
Negative21.4%
Written reviews74 reviews
Positive74.3%
Neutral10.8%
Negative14.9%

Surround

All ratings72 ratings
Positive86.1%
Neutral2.8%
Negative11.1%
Written reviews39 reviews
Positive82.1%
Neutral5.1%
Negative12.8%

Bugs and requests

Dragon Go Client

Reported bugs

21 issues
  • Notifications stopped working completely
  • Notifications no longer work
  • Join a game function did not work
  • No games were shown
  • Shows nothing when attempting to look for a game
Show 16 more
  • App seems to not actually work
  • Nothing happens after submitting a game request
  • No indication that a request was sent
  • Cannot send message to the other person
  • No 'done' or 'submit' button to send message
  • Friend requests not received
  • No interface to find friend requests
  • Client crashes when trying to set up a game
  • App begins to work now (after not working)
  • Makes a move and then board is empty again
  • Impossible to play the game
  • Fails to recognize standard paradigms
  • Confusing interface
  • Cannot join or start games
  • Difficult to look for games
  • App is a little buggy

Requested features

21 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • More integrations of website features
  • Link to current game's online page
  • Push notifications
  • Ability to analyze moves before submitting
Show 16 more
  • Ability to chat with other players
  • Ability to review games within the app
  • Support for other board sizes
  • Option to choose maximum rank difference
  • Send game invites in app
  • Send chat messages when it's opponent's turn
  • Step back through games to review moves
  • View all running games
  • See and join games in the waiting room
  • Chat functionality
  • View/invite from contact list
  • Live updated gameplay for fast play
  • Support for all DGS features
  • Port to larger screens (iPad)
  • Selectable tone for notification
  • Badges

Surround

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Dragon Go Client

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

Surround

Subscriptions4
  • Surround App Supporter$0.491 Month
  • Surround App Supporter$1.991 Month
  • Surround App Supporter$4.991 Month
Show 1 more
  • Surround App Supporter$9.991 Month

Questions

Is Dragon Go Client free?
Dragon Go Client is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Surround free?
Surround is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Dragon Go Client or Surround?
Surround is rated higher. Dragon Go Client averages 3.9 out of 5 from 28 ratings, while Surround averages 4.5 from 76 ratings.
Do Dragon Go Client or Surround have ads?
Neither Dragon Go Client nor Surround shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Dragon Go Client or Surround?
Dragon Go Client ships an update every 6 months, and Surround fortnightly. Most recently, Dragon Go Client was updated on October 23, 2026 and Surround on October 29, 2026.

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