RA Tracker vs Magic Chess
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
RA Tracker
This native iOS app allows users to view and track their RetroAchievements.org account. It provides detailed insights into game completion, earned awards, and recent achievements, enhancing the overall gaming experience.
- Track completion progress
- View game awards
- See recently earned achievements
- Discover users with specific achievements
- Get Achievement of the Week notifications
- View user leaderboards
- Manage game backlog
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RA Tracker for RetroAchievements.org is a native application for users to view and track their RetroAchievements account. RA Tracker has many capabilities, all designed around maximizing the RetroAchievements experience and feeling right at home on your iOS Device. - View your completion progress for all games you are earning achievements for - View awards for mastering a game - View all of your recently earned achievements - See users that have earned specific achievements - View the Achievement of the Week and get a notification when a new one is posted! - View the top ten user leaderboard - Add games to the Backlog to keep track of what you want to play - Search for games by console to see what games currently have Achievements to earn - Create a list of games to track completion progress - Follow other RetroAchievements.org users and track their progress and recently earned achievements - Read RANews As the RetroAchievements.org public API evolves, so will RA Tracker. Stay tuned for updates on what is to come next by following iOSLife on Mastodon.
Magic Chess
Experience chess with a magical twist. Every piece has unique spells, adding layers of strategy, resource management, and timing to classic gameplay. Master dozens of abilities and customize your army.
- Unique piece spells and abilities
- Strategic spellbook with buffs and debuffs
- Multiple AI difficulty levels
- Online multiplayer and rating ladder
- Customizable piece skins
- Built-in spellbook reference
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Chess, reimagined. Every piece still moves by the rules you know, but now, every piece has a kit of spells. Magic Chess keeps the depth and discipline of real chess and layers a full spellbook of unique abilities on top, turning every match into a puzzle of timing, resource management, and nerve! FEATURES • A Spellbook Full of Tricks: Learn and master dozens of abilities - buffs, debuffs, board control, resurrection, and more - each with its own cost, cooldown, and counterplay. • Battle-Tested AI: Multiple difficulty tiers to challenge, from a forgiving warm-up to an opponent that punishes every mistake. • Play Online: Challenge friends directly with private match invites, or find an opponent and climb the rating ladder. • Make It Yours: Customize your army in the Dressing Room with unlockable skins for every piece, and earn or purchase in-game currency to expand your collection. • Built-In Spellbook Reference: Never forget what a piece can do; full ability descriptions are always one tap away. Whether you're a lifelong chess player looking for something new, or a strategy fan who wants chess with real teeth, Magic Chess turns the oldest game in the world into something you've never played before. Download free and start casting.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: RA Tracker at none against Magic Chess's shown. RA Tracker also leads on ratings volume (53 vs 2). Magic Chess's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.5) and update cadence (every 4 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, 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
Both are free to download. RA Tracker sells 4 one-off in-app purchases and Magic Chess sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Magic Chess holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: RA Tracker has 53 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 85% of RA Tracker's written reviews are positive against 100% of Magic Chess's.
RA Tracker ships an update every 2 weeks, Magic Chess every 4 days. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.
| Parameter | RA Tracker | Magic Chess |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (53 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 85.4% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 53 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Every 4 days — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 46 MB | 129 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | iOSLife | Project Chaos Global, LLC |
Customer experience
RA Tracker
Magic Chess
Bugs and requests
RA Tracker
Reported bugs
14 issues- Achievement status flags removed from list
- Profile pictures not updating
- Sorting options for achievements not working
- App hangs upon opening occasionally
- Games show as 'Mock Title'/'Mock Console'
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- Followed users list not showing
- Want to play list not showing
- App crashes upon opening on iPhone 12 (iOS 18.2 Beta)
- App crashes on launch with iOS 18
- No screenshot found at top of profile
- Comments button shows 'page not found'
- Wii icon not visible/in consoles section
- Shows games on profile not played, doesn't show played games
- Notifications for unlocking achievements not working/featured
Requested features
14 requests- Show missable/progression/win condition flags on list
- Show time played per game
- Show beaten/mastered status next to games
- Add iPad support
- Search for other games and add to watch/want to play lists
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- Native iPad app
- Landscape mode and controller support
- Universal game search
- View comments under games and achievements
- More widget options (profile, mastery badges, leaderboards, activity)
- Ability to get AotM (Achievement of the Month)
- Apple Watch version
- Notifications for new achievements
- Option to hide unlocked achievements
Magic Chess
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
RA Tracker
- Small Tip$0.99
- Nice Tip$2.99
- Generous Tip$4.99
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- Out of this World Tip$9.99
Magic Chess
- 500 Magic Coins$4.99
- 1200 Magic Coins$9.99
- 2500 Magic Coins$19.99
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- 7000 Magic Coins$49.99









