Comparison

Backgammon Classic Board Live vs Catan Universe

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

Head to head
About

Backgammon Classic Board Live

Experience the classic board game with progressive skill levels and competitive online play. Master the game through solo challenges or compete against players worldwide with an ELO ranking system. Enjoy fair play with random dice rolls and customizable graphics.

Highlights
  • 10 progressive skill levels
  • Competitive online play with ELO rankings
  • Solo mode for skill mastery
  • Pass & Play for local multiplayer
  • One-tap checker movement
  • Fair play with random dice rolls
  • Customizable board skins and themes
Features
Read full description

Master Backgammon — rise through 10 skill levels from Novice to Grandmaster and compete online with ELO rankings! 10 SKILL LEVELS Challenge yourself with progressive difficulty that grows with you: • 10 levels — from Novice to Grandmaster • Unlock new levels as you win matches • Track your progress and statistics for each level • Perfect for beginners learning the game or experts seeking a challenge COMPETITIVE ONLINE PLAY • ELO Rating System — climb the ranks against real players worldwide • Fast matchmaking — find opponents in seconds • Play friends in private rooms GAME FEATURES • Solo Mode — master your skills through 10 progressive levels • Pass & Play — challenge a friend on the same device • Online Mode — compete with players around the world • One-Tap Movement — intuitive checker controls • Fair play guaranteed — 100% random dice rolls • Doubling Cube — with Crawford rule support • Beautiful graphics — multiple board skins and themes • Premium sound — immersive music and effects FREE TO PLAY All game modes and features are completely free. No paywalls, no pay-to-win — just pure backgammon skill. Supports Portrait and Landscape on all iPhone and iPad devices. Download now and start your journey to Grandmaster!

About

Catan Universe

Experience the classic board game and its card game counterpart on your mobile device. Trade, build, and settle on the island of Catan, competing against players worldwide. Unlock expansions and new game modes for endless strategic fun.

Highlights
  • Trade, build, and settle
  • Play across multiple devices with one account
  • Faithful adaptation of board and card games
  • Design your own avatar
  • Chat with players and form guilds
  • Participate in seasons and win prizes
  • Unlock achievements and rewards
Features
Read full description

Play your favorite game CATAN anytime and anywhere: the original board game, the card game, the expansions and ‘CATAN – Rise of the Inkas‘, all in one app! After a long voyage of great deprivation, your ships have finally reached the coast of an uncharted island. However, other explorers have also landed on Catan: The race to settle the island has begun! Build roads and cities, trade skillfully and become Lord or Lady of Catan! Go on a journey to the Catan universe, and compete in exciting duels against players from all over the world. The board game classic and the Catan card game bring a real tabletop feeling to your screen! Play with your Catan Universe account on the device of your choice: You can use your login on numerous desktop and mobile platforms! Become part of the huge worldwide Catan community, and compete against players from all over the world, and on all supported platforms. The board game: Play the basic board game in multiplayer mode! Join two of your friends for a maximum of three players and face all the challenges in “Arrival on Catan”. Make things even more exciting by unlocking the full Basegame; the expansions “Cities & Knights” and “Seafarers”, each for up to six players. The special scenario pack containing the scenarios “Enchanted Land” and “The Great Canal” adds even more variety to your games. The game edition ‘Rise of the Inkas‘ is another exciting challenge for you, as your settlements are doomed in their heyday. The jungle swallows the signs of human civilization, and your opponents seize their chance to build their settlement at the location they crave for. The card game: Play the introductory game of the popular 2 player card game “Catan – The Duel” online free of charge or master the free “Arrival on Catan”, to permanently unlock the single player mode against the AI. Get the complete card game as an in-game purchase to play three different theme sets against friends, other fans friends or different AI opponents and submerge yourself into the bustling life on Catan. Features: - Trade – build – settle – Become Lord of Catan! - Play on all your devices with one account. - Faithful to the original version of the board game “Catan”, as well as the card game “Catan – The Duel” (aka “Rivals for Catan”) - Design your own avatar. - Chat with other players and form guilds. - Participate in seasons and win amazing prizes. - Play to earn numerous achievements and unlock rewards. - Get additional expansions and play modes as in-game purchases. - Get started very easily with the comprehensive tutorial. Free-to-play content: - Basic game free matches against two other human players - Introductory game free matches Catan – The Duel against a human player - “Arrival on Catan”: Master the challenges in all areas of the game to get more red Catan suns. - You can use Catan suns to play against the computer. Your yellow suns recharge on their own. ***** Questions or suggestions for improvements: Mail to support@catanuniverse.com We are looking forward to your feedback! For more information on news and updates: www.catanuniverse.com or visit us on www.facebook.com/CatanUniverse *****

Screenshots

Backgammon Classic Board Live4 screens
Catan Universe4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Catan Universe at none against Backgammon Classic Board Live's shown. Catan Universe also leads on chart position (#152 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 18). Backgammon Classic Board Live's advantage is rating (4.2 vs 3.8) and update cadence (every 11 days vs every 2 months). On price, ratings volume, 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

Both are free to download. Backgammon Classic Board Live sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Catan Universe sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Backgammon Classic Board Live holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 3.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 53K and 31K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 25% of Backgammon Classic Board Live's written reviews are positive against 13% of Catan Universe's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Backgammon Classic Board Live ships an update every 11 days, Catan Universe every 2 months. Both last shipped on November 1, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Backgammon Classic Board Live versus Catan Universe: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBackgammon Classic Board LiveCatan Universe
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (53K ratings) — better3.8 (31K ratings)
Positive reviews24.6% of reviews — better12.6% of reviews
Number of ratings53K — better31K
Update frequencyEvery 11 days — betterEvery 2 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank—#152 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS1812.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size104 MB901 MB
Age rating17+9+
DeveloperAdikusUnited Soft Media Verlag GmbH

Customer experience

Backgammon Classic Board Live

All ratings53,149 ratings
Positive79.9%
Neutral4.9%
Negative15.2%
Written reviews3,378 reviews
Positive24.6%
Neutral8.0%
Negative67.4%

Catan Universe

All ratings30,848 ratings
Positive68.8%
Neutral6.2%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews3,384 reviews
Positive12.6%
Neutral14.0%
Negative73.4%

User reviews

Backgammon Classic Board Live

From 53K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fast-paced gameplay
  • 👍 Clean and intuitive interface
  • ✨ Enjoyable for backgammon enthusiasts

Room to improve

  • 🎲 Questionable dice roll algorithms
  • 🤖 Suspected use of bots or rigged AI
  • 🤯 Frustrating and unbalanced gameplay
  • 💰 Excessive advertisements and monetization

Catan Universe

From 31K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great representation of board game
  • 👍 Lots of game modes and expansions
  • 🎨 Good visual design

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and glitches
  • 🔁 Unreliable connectivity and server issues
  • 🤖 Unfair and unbalanced AI
  • 💰 Expensive in-app purchases

Bugs and requests

Backgammon Classic Board Live

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Incorrect piece movement tracking
  • Freezing or crashing during gameplay
  • Inconsistent behavior when resigning a game

Requested features

4 requests
  • True random dice rolls
  • Ability to play longer matches
  • Option to disable doubling cube
  • Chat functionality for online play

Catan Universe

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Game freezes and gets stuck during play
  • Frequent log-out and login issues
  • Inconsistent enforcement of game rules
  • Disappearing resources and settlements

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add ability to mute group chat
  • Improve trade interface and AI trading behavior
  • Randomize dice rolls and resource distribution
  • Provide more customization options for game setup

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Backgammon Classic Board Live

One-time1
  • Remove Ads$2.99
6 purchases

Catan Universe

One-time6
  • 200 Catan Gold$2.99
  • 300 Catan Gold$3.99
  • 500 Catan Gold$4.99
Show 3 more
  • 900 Catan Gold$7.99
  • 1700 Catan Gold$14.99
  • 3000 Catan Gold$26.99

Questions

Is Backgammon Classic Board Live free?
Backgammon Classic Board Live is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Catan Universe free?
Catan Universe is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Backgammon Classic Board Live or Catan Universe?
Backgammon Classic Board Live is rated higher. Backgammon Classic Board Live averages 4.2 out of 5 from 53K ratings, while Catan Universe averages 3.8 from 31K ratings.
Do Backgammon Classic Board Live or Catan Universe have ads?
Backgammon Classic Board Live shows ads; Catan Universe does not.
Which is updated more often, Backgammon Classic Board Live or Catan Universe?
Backgammon Classic Board Live ships an update every 11 days, and Catan Universe every 2 months. Most recently, Backgammon Classic Board Live was updated on November 1, 2026 and Catan Universe on November 1, 2026.

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