Brogue vs Gloomgrave
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Brogue
Embark on a challenging 26-level dungeon crawl to find the Amulet of Yendor. Master strategic gameplay with a focus on a smooth learning curve and intuitive design within a classic ASCII/Unicode aesthetic. Experience high fantasy with a variety of creatures and magical items.
- 26-level dungeon crawl
- Strategic depth
- Smooth learning curve
- ASCII/Unicode display
- High fantasy theme
- Permadeath gameplay
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Countless adventurers before you have descended this torch-lit staircase, seeking the promised riches below. As you reach the bottom and step into the wide cavern, the doors behind you seal with a powerful magic... Welcome to the Dungeons of Doom! Brogue is a single-player strategy game set in the halls of a mysterious and randomly-generated dungeon. The objective is simple enough -- retrieve the fabled Amulet of Yendor from the 26th level -- but the dungeon is riddled with danger. Horrifying creatures and devious, trap-ridden terrain await. Yet it is also riddled with weapons, potions, and artifacts of forgotten power. Survival demands strength and cunning in equal measure as you descend, making the most of what the dungeon gives you. You will make sacrifices, narrow escapes, and maybe even some friends along the way -- but will you be one of the lucky few to return alive?" This app offers: Brogue Classic - Brian Walker's original vision and where it all started. Brogue CE - A community effort that fixes bugs and crashes and focuses on QoL. Brogue SE - A new variant by yours truly with original items, monsters, and mechanics "...on the iPad, Brogue is an even more incredible feat than it is on the Mac: there aren’t a lot of roguelikes that can jump from a keyboard to a touch-based interface without coming off worse for wear. It’s every bit as good on the iPad as it is on the Mac." - Cult of Mac "[...] it manages to make use of its ASCII visuals to create some truly impressive-looking environments [...] it’s high fantasy to the core; filled with kobolds, goblins, wands, spell scrolls, and more." - 148Apps "It's a bit weird and clunky, but yeah, it's still Brogue" - Roguelike Radio
Gloomgrave
Embark on a challenging roguelike dungeon crawl with a retro pixel art style. Choose your class, level up your character, and explore procedurally generated dungeons filled with monsters, traps, and loot. Experiment with different builds and perks to survive increasingly difficult depths in your quest for ancient relics.
- Turn-based combat
- Randomly generated dungeons
- Class selection and leveling
- Perks and skills system
- Lootable items and gear
- Diverse monsters and classes
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Gloomgrave is a roguelike turn-based dungeon crawler where you will explore, loot, and fight your way through the ever-shifting dungeon to defeat the evil that lies below. Features Loot everything: weapons, armor, wands, rings, potions, scrolls, and more. Every piece of gear can roll blessed, enchanted, or worse... Procedurally generated dungeons feature hand-crafted rooms and vaults woven into randomized floors so that every run feels fresh Magical glyphs: discover weapons that poison, burn, or paralyze your foes, and armor that punishes those who dare strike you Classic turn-based combat: the dungeon only moves when you do. Take your time, plan your moves, and outsmart every encounter
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Brogue at Free against Gloomgrave's $3.99. Brogue also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs every 8 months) and review sentiment (94% vs 66%). Gloomgrave's advantage is iOS requirement (14.0 vs 18.6). On ratings volume, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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
Brogue is free to download; Gloomgrave costs $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Brogue holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 76 and 84 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 94% of Brogue's written reviews are positive against 66% of Gloomgrave's.
Brogue ships an update every 4 days, Gloomgrave every 8 months. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Brogue | Gloomgrave |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $3.99 |
| Rating | 4.6 (76 ratings) — better | 4.3 (84 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 93.9% of reviews — better | 65.6% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 76 | 84 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 4 days — better | Every 8 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 18.6 | 14.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 28 MB | 101 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 9+ |
| Developer | Seth Howard | Andrew Leyba |
Customer experience
Brogue
Gloomgrave
In-app purchases
Brogue
No in-app purchases
Gloomgrave
No in-app purchases








