Comparison

Avernum HD vs Arcane Quest HD

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

Head to head
About

Avernum HD

Embark on an epic fantasy role-playing adventure in a vast underworld. Explore enormous environments, uncover a fascinating story, and make choices that lead to freedom or revenge. This game offers over 30 hours of engaging gameplay.

Highlights
  • Epic fantasy role-playing adventure
  • Enormous underworld world
  • Fascinating story with 30+ hours of gameplay
  • Three separate game-winning quests
  • Dozens of side quests and magical artifacts
  • Rich game system with spells and character traits
Features
Read full description

"Avernum: Escape From the Pit is an amazing game which will provide hours of fun. I would even go so far as to say it’s a nearly perfect example of a role-playing game." -AppleTell "8/10" - Inside Mac Games "Fans looking to get into the Avernum series will do very well with Escape from the Pit, and while the improvements beyond the game engine and visuals are relatively modest, there's still a lot to enjoy even if you've played through the game once before already." - GameBanshee "The game’s strong writing carries it through, and earns it a place among the greatest indie RPGs. 9.0/10" - Game Chronicles "It is a tribute to indie gaming as a whole that a game made by such a tiny team can swell into such an involving, engrossing and glorious fantasy epic. - 9/10" - The Digital Fix "If you're looking for a complex single player RPG and value content at the expense of visuals, don't miss this title. 8/10" - Impulse Gamer "Spiderweb Software have provided a vast world in which to get lost, and a hefty quest in which to sink your teeth, which will reward those who can overlook its lack of finesse with many hours of enjoyable adventure." - Indie Game Magazine "Take this one with you on car trips, use it to replace your TV shows on summer break, whatever. No self-respecting fan of RPGs should be without it." - Technology Tell Avernum: Escape From the Pit HD is an epic, indie fantasy role-playing adventure. It is optimized for the iPad and features an enormous world, a fascinating story, and 30+ hours of gameplay. Avernum is the first chapter in an epic tale, the story of imprisonment, rebellion, and the struggle for freedom against overwhelming odds. Avernum: Escape From the Pit features: Epic fantasy adventure in an enormous underworld. Huge outdoors and eighty towns and dungeons. Three separate game-winning quests. Seek safety, escape or revenge. Do just one of them or all three! Unique races and settings make Avernum different from any adventure out there. Dozens of side quests and hundreds of magical artifacts. Rich game system with over 50 spells and battle disciplines and a multitude of beneficial character traits to choose from. The Story: You have been banished to the underworld, never to see the light of day again. The surface is ruled by the cruel Emperor Hawthorne, master of the Empire. All of the known lands are subject to his brutal command. Everyone who speaks out, who misbehaves, who doesn’t fit in is cast into the dark, volcanic pits of Avernum, far below the surface. There, you are expected to die, a victim of starvation, horrible monsters, or simple despair. But not all of the Avernites have surrendered. With magic and steel, they are forging a new nation deep underground. You can join them and fight for safety. Or freedom. Or even, if you dare, revenge on the surface-worlders who tried to destroy you.

About

Arcane Quest HD

Embark on a classic board game-style RPG adventure, reminiscent of 90s masterpieces. Battle monsters, customize heroes with spells and equipment, and explore hundreds of quests. Create and share your own adventures with the integrated quest editor.

Highlights
  • Classic board game RPG style
  • 8 legendary hero classes
  • Over 50 quests
  • Hero customization with equipment and spells
  • Quest editor to create and play custom adventures
  • Full 3D HD graphics
Features
Read full description

Delve into this classic board game style RPG, a tribute to the masterpieces of the 90’s which defined the genre. Play in the original dice rolling tabletop style, defeat hordes of orcs, undead, giants and many other terrible creatures. Featuring: - 8 legendary heroes classes to choose from - Over 50 quests to play to entertain for hundreds of hours - No IAP unlockable content, the game is 100% free - Tons of equipment and spells options to customize your heroes - Try the quests editor! Create and publish your own quests, or play the adventures created by other players! - Fully translated into English, French, German, Italian and Spanish Originally released on 2012, Arcane Quest comes back in full 3D high definition graphics, and tons of gameplay enhancements. A truly tribute to the great classics like HeroQuest, D&D and all the titles that defined an era of table top RPGs. Want some more? Try the other chapters of the series! Arcane Quest 2 and Arcane Quest 3 are both available for free to download!

Screenshots

Arcane Quest HD4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Arcane Quest HD at Free against Avernum HD's $9.99. Arcane Quest HD also leads on device support (3 vs 1) and ratings volume (171 vs 45). Avernum HD's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ads (none vs shown). On rating, update cadence 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

Arcane Quest HD is free to download; Avernum HD costs $9.99 up front. Arcane Quest HD sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Avernum HD asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Avernum HD against 4.6 for Arcane Quest HD. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 45 and 171 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 93% of Avernum HD's written reviews are positive against 85% of Arcane Quest HD's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 17 months. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Avernum HD versus Arcane Quest HD: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAvernum HDArcane Quest HD
Price$9.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (45 ratings) — better4.6 (171 ratings)
Positive reviews93.4% of reviews — better84.5% of reviews
Number of ratings45171 — better
Update frequencyEvery 17 monthsEvery 17 months
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS12.0 — better13.0
Further details — not scored
Size172 MB152 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperSpiderweb SoftwareNex Game Studios OU

Customer experience

Avernum HD

All ratings41 ratings
Positive92.7%
Neutral2.4%
Negative4.9%
Written reviews136 reviews
Positive93.4%
Neutral2.2%
Negative4.4%

Arcane Quest HD

All ratings171 ratings
Positive92.4%
Neutral3.5%
Negative4.1%
Written reviews71 reviews
Positive84.5%
Neutral4.2%
Negative11.3%

User reviews

Avernum HD

From 45 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great turn-based RPG
  • 👍 Excellent alternative to D&D
  • 👍 Massive world to explore
  • 👍 Huge amount of content
  • 👍 Fantastic game

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes
  • 🐛 Upside-down orientation on iPad Pro
  • 🐛 Difficulty selecting enemies in combat
  • 🐛 Frustrating pathfinding issues

Arcane Quest HD

From 171 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Faithful HeroQuest recreation
  • 👍 Free to play
  • 👍 Smooth gameplay
  • 👍 Simple mechanics, deep strategy
  • 👍 Nostalgic feel

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Repetitive gameplay
  • 🐛 Lack of persistent progression
  • 🐛 Minor bugs
  • 🐛 Some features not working as expected
  • 🐛 Difficulty spikes/unclear difficulty

Bugs and requests

Avernum HD

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Automatic party death at start of game
  • Compatibility issues on older iPads

Requested features

4 requests
  • Pinch-to-zoom functionality
  • Automatic saving during gameplay
  • More quick spell slots
  • iCloud save sync

Arcane Quest HD

Reported bugs

8 issues
  • Scroll of Speed not working
  • Invisible weapons (e.g., black sword)
  • Weapons that shouldn't be usable with shields still can be
  • Game closes when answering texts, losing progress
  • Purchased items (e.g., +1 health ring) not working
Show 3 more
  • No way to rest/heal within a dungeon
  • Minor bugs in general
  • Character status graphics hidden on iPhone screen

Requested features

17 requests
  • More content/development
  • Improved character progression across dungeons
  • Better tutorial for scrolls and magic items
  • Ability to sell potions and spells
  • Character naming and appearance customization
Show 12 more
  • Fix for scroll of speed bug
  • Fix for invisible weapon bug
  • Fix for weapon/shield compatibility bug
  • Fix for game closing on text message
  • Clearer indication of dungeon difficulty
  • Option to skip movement rolls outside combat
  • Option to send characters to exit after clearing level
  • Dark mode option
  • More enemy variety
  • More visually distinct levels
  • Improved UI for smaller screens (iPhone)
  • Consideration for colorblind accessibility

In-app purchases

None

Avernum HD

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Arcane Quest HD

One-time1
  • Support Package$1.99

Questions

Is Avernum HD free?
Avernum HD costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Arcane Quest HD free?
Arcane Quest HD is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Avernum HD or Arcane Quest HD?
Avernum HD is rated higher. Avernum HD averages 4.7 out of 5 from 45 ratings, while Arcane Quest HD averages 4.6 from 171 ratings.
Do Avernum HD or Arcane Quest HD have ads?
Arcane Quest HD shows ads; Avernum HD does not.
Which is updated more often, Avernum HD or Arcane Quest HD?
Avernum HD ships an update every 17 months, and Arcane Quest HD every 17 months. Most recently, Avernum HD was updated on October 23, 2026 and Arcane Quest HD on October 24, 2026.

Other comparisons