# Ark Nova vs Summoner Wars Online

The clearest difference is price: Summoner Wars Online at Free against Ark Nova's $10.99. Ark Nova's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 33) and ratings volume (1.3K vs 112). On rating, review sentiment, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Summoner Wars Online is free to download; Ark Nova costs $10.99 up front. Summoner Wars Online sells 33 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Ark Nova asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Ark Nova against 4.7 for Summoner Wars Online. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Ark Nova has 1.3K ratings behind it against 112, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 73% of Ark Nova's written reviews are positive against 78% of Summoner Wars Online's.

Ark Nova ships an update fortnightly, Summoner Wars Online every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Ark Nova | Summoner Wars Online |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $10.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | **[4.8 (1.3K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ark-nova/id6449233549/reviews)** | [4.7 (112 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/summoner-wars-online/id6460980567/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **1.3K** | 112 |
| Positive reviews | 72.9% of reviews | **78.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Fortnightly** | Every 4 weeks |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free with in-app purchases** |
| Best chart rank | **#36** | — |
| Size | 682 MB | 252 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 17.6 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 9+ |
| Developer | [Dire Wolf Digital](https://appshunter.io/developer/815343758) | [Plaid Hat Games LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1702237055) |

## What reviewers say

### Ark Nova

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ark-nova/id6449233549)

**Currently charting:** #36 Top Paid · Board, #105 Top Paid · Strategy (US App Store)

Design and manage a modern zoo to support global conservation efforts. Build enclosures, house animals, and utilize unique cards for special abilities. Compete to create the most successful zoological establishment.

**Highlights:** Plan and design a modern zoo, Build enclosures and accommodate animals, Support global conservation projects, Utilize 255 unique cards (animals, specialists, projects), Upgrade action cards for gameplay, Increase zoo appeal and scientific reputation

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great implementation overall
- 👍 Lots of fun
- 👍 Good animations
- 👍 Choice of modes
- 👍 Clean, modern and enjoyable design

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Tile placement/rotation issues on iPad
- 🐛 Building placement UI issues
- 👎 Difficult to read board state on mobile
- 👎 Lack of simultaneous view for key game info
- 👎 Cumbersome to create games with friends

**Reported bugs**

- iPad Flash exit issue
- Rewards screen being blocked by other UI elements

**Requested features**

- Option to enable larger UI buttons for modal panels
- Full screen mode
- Option to reverse zoom direction
- Improved card readability/zoom


### Summoner Wars Online

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/summoner-wars-online/id6460980567)

Engage in strategic fantasy battlefield combat by summoning units and outmaneuvering opponents. Build custom decks with countless unit types and spells to challenge players online or play through single-player campaigns.

**Highlights:** Online multiplayer matches, Custom deck builder, Single-player story campaigns, AI opponent challenges, Summoning units, Fantasy battlefield combat

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (33)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 Month Subscription | $2.99 | per month |
| Thornhold Drey Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Moonsteppe Wolves Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Drakesun Rebellion | $3.99 | one-time |
| Guild Dwarves | $3.99 | one-time |
| Isle Vekkid Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Spectral Conclave | $3.99 | one-time |
| The Filth Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Chosen Grove Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Shimmersea Fae Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Wayfarers Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| The Forged Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Obsidian Dwarves Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Vanguards Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Breakers Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Fungal Dwarves Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Sand Goblins Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Eternal Council Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Skyspear Avians Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Swamp Orc Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Crimson Order Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Cave Goblins Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Phoenix Elves Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Mountain Vargath Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Tundra Orcs Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Polar Dwarves Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Cloaks Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Savanna Elves Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Fallen Kingdom Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Shadow Elves Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| High Elves Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Deepwood Groaks Faction | $3.99 | one-time |
| Storm Goblins Faction | $3.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- ♟️ Deep tactical gameplay with chess-like strategy
- 🎨 Well-designed factions with unique playstyles
- ⚖️ Excellent faction balance and asymmetric design
- 🎮 Engaging asynchronous multiplayer gameplay
- 🆓 Free-to-play model with reasonable pricing

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Menu navigation traps (can't exit shop/deck editor)
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues
- 🐛 AI gets stuck during single-player games
- 🐛 Tutorial crashes before completion
- 🐛 Server connection losses

**Reported bugs**

- Menu navigation traps - unable to exit shop or deck editor without closing app
- Game crashes to main menu during gameplay
- Story mode crashes and deletes campaign progress
- Tutorial crashes before completion
- AI freezes and becomes unresponsive mid-game

**Requested features**

- Russian language translation
- Hard difficulty level for AI
- Difficulty scaling for single-player AI
- Ability to resign from matches
- Offline mode support


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Ark Nova free?

Ark Nova costs $10.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Summoner Wars Online free?

Summoner Wars Online is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Ark Nova or Summoner Wars Online?

Ark Nova is rated higher. Ark Nova averages 4.8 out of 5 from 1.3K ratings, while Summoner Wars Online averages 4.7 from 112 ratings.

### Do Ark Nova or Summoner Wars Online have ads?

Neither Ark Nova nor Summoner Wars Online shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Ark Nova or Summoner Wars Online?

Ark Nova ships an update fortnightly, and Summoner Wars Online every 4 weeks. Most recently, Ark Nova was updated on October 22, 2026 and Summoner Wars Online on October 20, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*