Comparison

Esfera Chess vs Arach Chess

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

Head to head
About

Esfera Chess

Experience chess on a unique 3D spherical board with 132 hexagonal and pentagonal cells. Enjoy familiar pieces with entirely new strategic possibilities due to the curved surface. Play against AI, a friend locally, or learn with an interactive tutorial.

Highlights
  • 132-cell geodesic sphere board
  • Familiar chess pieces, new strategy
  • Local AI and pass-and-play modes
  • Interactive 10-step tutorial
  • Animated piece movements
  • Full iPad support
Features
Read full description

Chess reimagined on a sphere. Two armies clash on a geodesic world of 132 hexagonal and pentagonal cells — familiar pieces, completely new strategy. Every piece you know from chess is here — kings, queens, rooks, bishops, knights, and pawns — but the curved surface changes everything. There are no edges, no corners, and no safe back rank. Attacks come from every direction. PLAY LOCALLY Challenge the built-in AI, or pass-and-play with a friend on the same device. Pick your color before every game. LEARN An interactive 10-step tutorial teaches every piece type hands-on. Tap a piece to see where it can move. An in-game rules reference is always available. FEATURES - 132-cell geodesic sphere with translucent surface - Pinch to zoom, swipe to rotate, two-finger twist - Animated piece movements with auto-rotating globe - Cinematic intro sequence - Sound effects for moves, captures, and check - Full iPad support - No ads. No pay-to-win. Just chess on a sphere.

About

Arach Chess

Command an army of animals with unique skills to defeat enemies in this strategy game. Engage in single-player battles against the computer or challenge friends and strangers in multiplayer matches. Utilize magical abilities and strategic terrain placement for victory.

Highlights
  • Command animal army with unique skills
  • Single-player vs. computer
  • Multiplayer vs. friends or random opponents
  • Dragon and Wyvern magic abilities
  • Terrain placement for defense and power-ups
  • Variety of animal units with distinct attacks
Features
Read full description

You're an ancient Celtic Arach (Celtic Dragon), and you're in command of an army of animals. Each with a unique set of skills to help you defeat your enemies! Play single player strategy game against the computer. Play Multiplayer against your friends or a random foe! Use your Dragon's magic fireball and heals to lead your army to victory! Use your Wyvern's magic fireball to harm your most powerful enemies! The Unicorn and Wulver heal and bite! The Lion and Bear have very strong claw attacks! The Elephant is an unstoppable tank! The Eagle will menace your foes from the air! Place Mountains and Volcanoes for added defense! The Dragon and Wyvern gain power to their magic when sitting on a Volcano. Good Luck!!!!!!

Screenshots

Esfera Chess2 screens
Arach Chess4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Esfera Chess at none against Arach Chess's 1. Esfera Chess also leads on rating (4.4 vs 4.0) and ratings volume (11 vs 1). Arach Chess's advantage is update cadence (every 3 months vs every 92 months) and review sentiment (100% vs 84%). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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. Arach Chess sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Esfera Chess asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Esfera Chess holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Esfera Chess has 11 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 84% of Esfera Chess's written reviews are positive against 100% of Arach Chess's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Esfera Chess ships an update every 92 months, Arach Chess every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Esfera Chess versus Arach Chess: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterEsfera ChessArach Chess
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (11 ratings) — better4.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews84.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings11 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 92 monthsEvery 3 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB127 MB
Age rating4+9+
DeveloperSquzWulveagfin Games, LLC

Customer experience

Esfera Chess

All ratings11 ratings
Positive81.8%
Neutral9.1%
Negative9.1%
Written reviews25 reviews
Positive84.0%
Neutral4.0%
Negative12.0%

Arach Chess

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Esfera Chess

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Arach Chess

One-time1
  • Full Game$0.99

Questions

Is Esfera Chess free?
Esfera Chess is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Arach Chess free?
Arach Chess is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Esfera Chess or Arach Chess?
Esfera Chess is rated higher. Esfera Chess averages 4.4 out of 5 from 11 ratings, while Arach Chess averages 4.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Esfera Chess or Arach Chess have ads?
Neither Esfera Chess nor Arach Chess shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Esfera Chess or Arach Chess?
Esfera Chess ships an update every 92 months, and Arach Chess every 3 months. Most recently, Esfera Chess was updated on October 17, 2026 and Arach Chess on October 2, 2026.

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