Comparison

Ascension vs Everdell

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

Head to head
About

Ascension

Engage in a strategic deck-building card game where you acquire cards to gain Renown and unlock powerful Boons. Battle against the Fallen One alone or with friends, with expansions available to deepen the experience.

Highlights
  • Deck-building card game mechanics
  • Single-player and multiplayer modes
  • Unlock powerful Boons and Legendary status
  • Cross-platform online play
  • Offline AI opponents
  • Multiple expansions available
Features
Read full description

***Legends Expansion Now Available!** Return to the world of Vigil as the Muses of Malevolence rise to bring ruin. Legendary Heroes from Ascension’s past have returned to guide you, granting their power to those who prove worthy. Each card you acquire or defeat grants Renown with its factions, advancing you on the Legendary Track. As your Renown grows, unlock powerful Boons from Legendary Characters and, at the pinnacle of a faction’s track, gain Legendary status with the power to acquire or defeat one card from that faction for free each turn. Ascension: Deck Building Game, is the award winning deck building card game for mobile. Play alone or with friends to battle against the Fallen One for honor and victory. Conceived and designed by Magic: The Gathering tournament champions, Ascension will provide hours of engaging and strategic game play for enthusiast and experienced gamers alike. 2011 Golden Geek award winner (Best Mobile/Handheld Game) Pocket Gamer Bronze Award 2011 Dice Tower Awards Awards: Best Digital Boardgame Best Interface and Graphic Design - 2011 Best Online Multiplayer - 2011 Highlights: • Universal Application: Plays on phones and tablets • Beautifully detailed cards • Full asynchronous support for multiplayer online games • Cross-platform online play • Play against multiple offline A.I. opponents • Multiple expansions available to purchase to expand the Ascension experience! *AN INTERNET CONNECTION AND PLAYDEK ACCOUNT ARE REQUIRED FOR ONLINE PLAY.* Per our Terms of Service, you must be 13 years old or older to use the Playdek online games service. Also by Playdek: - Twilight Struggle - D&D: Lords of Waterdeep - Labyrinth: The War On Terror - Fort Sumter - Fluxx Having an issue? Looking for support? Please contact us at: support@playdekgames.com You can follow us on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram! Facebook: /playdek You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/playdek Twitter: @playdek Instagram: @playdek

About

Everdell

Build a fantastical city by gathering resources, constructing buildings, and recruiting critters. Compete against others or AI in this strategic card-based city-building game adapted from a popular board game. The player with the highest-scoring city after four seasons wins.

Highlights
  • Worker placement for resource gathering
  • Strategic card play for city building
  • Build Constructions and recruit Critters
  • Cross-platform multiplayer
  • AI play and Solo Challenges
  • Four-season game progression
Features
Read full description

From Everfrost to Bellsong, many a peaceful year has passed in Everdell — but the time has come for new territories to be settled and new cities to be established... Adapted from the award-winning board game from Tabletop Tycoon, Everdell is a fantastical city building game combining worker placement and strategic card play to create a new civilization. Gather resources to build fanciful Constructions and recruit colorful Critters to make your city thrive. Each card in your city scores points, and after four seasons have passed the highest-scoring city wins! Face off against other founders in cross-platform multiplayer games, or test your civic wits with AI play and Solo Challenges! On each turn, you'll take one of three actions: 1.) Place a Worker. Send one of your helpful workers out into the valley to gather resources! Berries, Twigs, Resin, Pebbles...and of course Cards! You'll need them all to help your new civilization grow. 2.) Play a Card. Your city can hold up to 15 Construction and Critter cards. Cards generate resources, open up new abilities, and score points to win the game! Discover combos and synergies to race past your opponents. 3.) Prepare for the Next Season. When the seasons change, your workers come home and get ready for the next round. But plan your city carefully! After four seasons, the Winter Moon returns and the game will end. There are buildings to construct, lively characters to meet, events to host— you will have a busy year ahead of you! Will the sun shine brightest on your city before the winter moon rises? Welcome to Everdell!

Screenshots

Ascension4 screens
Everdell4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Ascension at Free against Everdell's $9.99. Ascension also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). Everdell's advantage is rating (4.8 vs 3.4) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 3 months). On ratings volume, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

Ascension is free to download; Everdell costs $9.99 up front. Ascension sells 10 one-off in-app purchases and Everdell sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Everdell holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.1K and 2.9K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 60% of Ascension's written reviews are positive against 76% of Everdell's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Ascension ships an update every 3 months, Everdell every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on October 25, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Ascension versus Everdell: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAscensionEverdell
PriceFree — better$9.99
Rating3.4 (1.1K ratings)4.8 (2.9K ratings) — better
Positive reviews60.0% of reviews76.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1.1K2.9K — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank—#20 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size1.2 GB384 MB
Age rating9++4
DeveloperPlaydek, Inc.Dire Wolf Digital

Customer experience

Ascension

All ratings1,103 ratings
Positive57.0%
Neutral8.7%
Negative34.3%
Written reviews822 reviews
Positive60.0%
Neutral9.6%
Negative30.4%

Everdell

All ratings2,686 ratings
Positive96.2%
Neutral1.5%
Negative2.2%
Written reviews309 reviews
Positive76.1%
Neutral11.0%
Negative12.9%

User reviews

Ascension

From 1.1K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great game
  • 👍 Awesome adaptation of the physical game
  • 🕹️ Engaging gameplay
  • 💰 Reasonable in-app purchase prices
  • 🕰️ Excellent time killer

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and bugs
  • 🔄 Slow AI turns
  • 🔒 Issues with restoring purchases
  • 🔍 Cluttered UI, hard to read cards
  • 🔋 High battery consumption

Everdell

From 2.9K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Smooth and seamless gameplay
  • 🎨 Beautiful visuals and animations
  • 🎶 Soothing soundtrack
  • 🕹️ Faithful digital adaptation of the board game
  • 🏆 Challenging and enjoyable solo challenges

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional bugs and glitches
  • 📱 Small text and UI elements on mobile devices
  • 🔙 Lack of undo/cancel functionality
  • 🤖 AI opponent issues (e.g., auto-regenerating critters)

Bugs and requests

Ascension

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Purchases disappearing after updates
  • Restore function not working
  • Crashes when certain cards are played
  • Constructs getting stuck in the middle of the screen
  • Game freezing and logging out users

Requested features

5 requests
  • Increase honor pool limit for online games
  • Add custom deck building options
  • Optimize for iPhone X and newer devices
  • Provide option to revert to old art style
  • Improve online multiplayer experience

Everdell

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Inability to play certain cards or use locations
  • Game freezes or crashes during online play
  • Incorrect scoring or card interactions
  • Placement issues with workers and cards

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add support for expansions and additional content
  • Allow players to choose their character/critter
  • Implement a confirm/undo button for actions
  • Improve zoom and readability on smaller screens
  • Add push notifications for online games

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Ascension

One-time10
  • Storm of Souls expansion$0.99
  • Promo Pack 1$0.99
  • Immortal Heroes expansion$0.99
Show 7 more
  • Ascension Promo Cards - Pack 4$0.99
  • Rise of Vigil$0.99
  • Darkness Unleashed expansion$0.99
  • Realms Unraveled expansion$0.99
  • Dawn of Champions$0.99
  • Dreamscape$0.99
  • Return of the Fallen expansion$1.99
2 purchases

Everdell

One-time2
  • Glimmergold$5.99
  • Bellfaire$8.99

Questions

Is Ascension free?
Ascension is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Everdell free?
Everdell costs $9.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Ascension or Everdell?
Everdell is rated higher. Ascension averages 3.4 out of 5 from 1.1K ratings, while Everdell averages 4.8 from 2.9K ratings.
Do Ascension or Everdell have ads?
Neither Ascension nor Everdell shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Ascension or Everdell?
Ascension ships an update every 3 months, and Everdell every 3 weeks. Most recently, Ascension was updated on October 25, 2026 and Everdell on October 25, 2026.

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