Musket Smoke vs Evolution Board Game
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Musket Smoke
Engage in turn-based tactical warfare inspired by Napoleonic battles. Outmaneuver opponents with a rich array of strategic options, including smoke, artillery, cavalry, and flanking maneuvers. Play solo against AI or asynchronously online with friends.
- Turn-based tactical gameplay
- Solo skirmish maps with AI
- Asynchronous online multiplayer
- Online campaign mode
- Pass n Play option
- Full match replays
- ELO-like leaderboards
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Flank and charge with friends! Simple, fun and rich with tactical options. Musket Smoke is a turn-based, war game with an unusually interactive UI allowing for enormous tactical options. Smoke, artillery, cavalry charges, morale and flanking. It’s all here and dead simple to play. Features: • Solo training skirmish maps with AI. • Take turns online, with friends, asynchronously. • Special training zone for first-time-online players. • Online campaign - the core feature. • Pass n Play. • Full replay for online matches. • Competitive ELO like leaderboards. • Manual, tutorial, help video. • Universal app. • In-game video recoding for newer devices. • 4 round 'Mingle Phase' before deciding on who you want to play online. • Just 'Friendly Pass' with those not suitable for your first battles. It's the ideal system for great match-ups. Musket Smoke is a tactical online turn based war game. It supports both single player and multi player but the competitive asynchronous matches are the primary focus. The board game design was 'inspired by' Napoleonic warfare but streamlines it to be fast and furious, optimized for online play. This is a ‘people first’ war game with a focus on usability and visually rich tactical options. ------------------------------------------------------- What people are saying about Musket Smoke: (US) “Hands down the most fun game I have played on the iPad period. I’m a sucker for historical wargames and musket smoke is one of the best I have played virtual or otherwise. I enjoy it so much, I plan on making some chits and buying a hex board to play it on table top!” (Canada) “One of the best strategy titles available for the iPad. Immense amounts of strategy, replayability and detail. One of the few must have titles of strategy gamers” (Ireland) “This is the first game that have regularly played online matches. While the mechanics are quite simple, you can really get yourself into to some interesting situations, especially when playing the campaign.” (Australia) One night in Naarden. This game is a blast. The campaign mode will have you on the edge of your seat, whether you're battling one of the top ten players or a newcomer. Mini matches are great fun, and the variety of armies and tactics is amazing. Even the AI is fun to play against, if you want to learn the game or perfect your strategies. Musket Smoke is a one of a kind game and will forever be in our hearts." (Croatia) “Real Strategy. Great game for the strategy gamers.” (Germany) “Seems simple at first glance, but at second glance turns out this game as a strategic, round-based strategy game … Who loves it with his favorite drink in peace weigh all options to try out individual solutions, while relaxing on the couch at sit and then burning it waits his opponent makes his turn, this game is highly recommended !!!” (Greece) “Fast, easy, deep. recommended!” (Japan) “This is without a doubt one of the most fun and most polished, with deep strategy, but easy-to-get-into-gameplay turn-based stragegy games around. And the async multiplayer is seamless.” (Austria) “... show me a better wargame today!”
Evolution Board Game
Adapt your species to survive and thrive in a dynamic ecosystem. Evolve traits to overcome environmental challenges and outcompete opponents. Experience a rich campaign, challenging multiplayer, and endless replayability with thousands of species combinations.
- Adapt species to survive
- Evolve traits and abilities
- Compete in dynamic ecosystems
- Engaging single-player campaign
- Online multiplayer matches
- Thousands of species combinations
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Evolution continues to evolve! New changes mean faster, fluid games and more content to explore. Adapt, survive, and thrive in a changing world enhanced by incredible art and thoughtful, balanced mechanics. Inspired by the award-winning board game with more than 3 million players, Evolution has arrived on iOS. "#1 Digital Board Game of the year" -Ars Technica "Best Mobile Strategy Game of the year" -Pocket Gamer NATURAL SELECTION IN ACTION In the game Evolution, you adapt your species to survive and stay one step ahead of opponents. -Watering hole running dry? Evolve a long neck to reach food in the trees. -Staring down a Carnivore? Develop a hard shell to fend off an attack. -Evolve up the food chain to become a the most successful species. TRY BEFORE YOU BUY! Unlike most board games, evolution lets you try the game for free first. Freeplay includes the tutorial, the easy and intermediate AI opponents, five campaign levels, and 1 multiplayer game a day. Pay a one-time cost to unlock unlimited functionality such as the Weekly Challenges, the Hard & Expert AI, Pass and Play, the full Campaign, Private Multiplayer Games and Asynchronous Games, and unlimited Matchmade Games. CHALLENGING AND ADDICTIVE Do you evolve protection from Carnivores, or find a way to eat if there is no Food in the Watering Hole? The ecosystem is constantly changing, and you’ve got to figure out what your opponents are up to. INTERACTIVE TUTORIAL Our friendly professor will guide you from one watering hole to the next on our learn-as-you-play tutorial, showing you how to survive in evolution before sending you off to make a name for yourself. Hone your skill as you progress from lowly Biology Intern to competing for the Nobel Prize! EXPLORE THE CAMPAIGN Explore the mysteries of Evolution Island and discover distinct Boss opponents. As you move through the campaign you’ll unlock new “Apex Species” that are masters of specific strategies; defeat them to add them to your menu of single-player opponents. MATCH MADE MULTIPLAYER One click and the game will match you with players of similar skill in a fast paced online game. Make friends in the game and set up custom games, or rank up in the ongoing seasonal tournaments and see how far you can go. ENDLESS REPLAYS, ONE PRICE This isn't a collectible card game, the full set of cards are included in the base game. Thousands of possible species combinations evolve from 17 unique trait cards, meaning no two games are ever the same. PACE & POLISH With a smooth user interface and fast, informative animations, Evolution was built to satisfy a quick fix of intense strategic battles. Easy to learn, almost impossible to master, one game and you’ll find yourself addicted. Evolution isn’t just a top tier strategy game – it’s a whole new animal. "Best Digital Board Game of the year" -Vulture "A powerhouse game poised to steal the thunder of some of the most popular games on the app store" -Touch Arcade
Screenshots
Verdict
Musket Smoke and Evolution Board Game both sit at 4.8 stars, but that hides the real split: 97% of Musket Smoke's written reviews are positive against 59% of Evolution Board Game's. Musket Smoke also leads on iOS requirement (9.0 vs 13.0). Evolution Board Game's advantage is ratings volume (4.8K vs 104). On price, rating, update cadence 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
Both are free to download. Musket Smoke sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Evolution Board Game sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Musket Smoke against 4.7 for Evolution Board Game. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Evolution Board Game has 4.8K ratings behind it against 104, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 97% of Musket Smoke's written reviews are positive against 59% of Evolution Board Game's.
Musket Smoke ships an update every 2 weeks, Evolution Board Game every 11 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 11, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Musket Smoke | Evolution Board Game |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (104 ratings) — better | 4.7 (4.8K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 97.3% of reviews — better | 59.2% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 104 | 4.8K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Every 11 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 9.0 — better | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 198 MB | 531 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 9+ |
| Developer | Woodie Dovich | North Star Digital Games |
Customer experience
Musket Smoke
Evolution Board Game
User reviews
Musket Smoke
From 104 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- ♟️ Deep tactical strategy gameplay
- 👥 Welcoming and helpful community
- 🎮 Easy to learn, hard to master
- ⚔️ Napoleonic era warfare authenticity
- 🔄 Asynchronous multiplayer functionality
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional glitches and bugs
- 🌧️ Weather effects (rain) affect all games simultaneously
- 👤 Limited player base for matchmaking
- 🎮 Steep learning curve for newcomers
- 🎯 Experienced players dominate online matches
Evolution Board Game
From 4.8K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Excellent digital implementation of the board game
- 🎨 Beautiful artwork and animations
- 🤖 Challenging and well-designed AI opponents
- 🕹️ Smooth and intuitive gameplay
- 📚 Helpful tutorial and campaign mode
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues
- 🔌 Battery-draining performance
- 💰 Expensive in-app purchases for full game access
- 🤖 Overpowered AI opponents in some cases
- 🤝 Limited multiplayer options and matchmaking
Bugs and requests
Musket Smoke
Reported bugs
5 issues- Glitches causing turn replays
- Controlling opponent troops unintentionally
- Campaign download failures
- Multiplayer synchronization issues
- Wind indicator missing from solo play despite manual reference
Requested features
12 requests- Larger maps with more units
- Additional campaign scenarios
- Map editor functionality
- Offline campaign mode with full features
- More solo/single-player content
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- Ability to purchase additional maps
- Bigger army sizes (10,000+ units)
- Improved matchmaking system with game availability info
- Friend system in-game
- Historical battle scenarios
- More unit variety and customization
- Better solo training to reflect multiplayer unpredictability
Evolution Board Game
Reported bugs
4 issues- Campaign progress not saving properly
- Inability to create new accounts
- Multiplayer games freezing or crashing
- UI elements overlapping or not scaling correctly
Requested features
5 requests- Add local pass-and-play multiplayer
- Implement more customization options for creatures
- Introduce new gameplay modes and expansions
- Improve online matchmaking and stability
- Optimize performance for older devices
In-app purchases
Musket Smoke
- Mini Campaign: Naarden$2.99
Evolution Board Game
- Venom$0.99
- Stained Glass Cards$2.99
- Promo Card Bundle$3.99
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- Arms Race Promo Pack$3.99
- Alone and Unafraid Promo Pack$3.99
- Evolution Full Game$6.99
- Climate$6.99
- Flight Upgrade$6.99
- Base Game & Climate Upgrade$9.99
- Ultimate Bundle$19.99
Questions
Is Musket Smoke free?
Is Evolution Board Game free?
Which has better reviews, Musket Smoke or Evolution Board Game?
Do Musket Smoke or Evolution Board Game have ads?
Which is updated more often, Musket Smoke or Evolution Board Game?
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