Comparison

Gryphon Chess vs CombatChess

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

Head to head
About

Gryphon Chess

Features
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Gryphon Chess is a new take on the board game classic. Novel mechanics and tactics await for you to collect and explore! Three factions vie for power: the industrious and methodical Empire, the elusive creatures of the Woodland, and the tough and stubborn Saurians. Each faction has unique pieces, play styles, and strategies to learn. [Special Features] COLLECT AND UPGRADE PIECES Collect and upgrade unique pieces as you play and progress. (Yes, even gryphons - or griffons - or griffins... any way you spell it, make sure you know where they're at!) As you upgrade pieces, they'll gain additional movement patterns and abilities. CUSTOM SETS Create custom faction-specific sets. Mix and match pieces from the standard set and each faction to suit your strategy, but beware! Your opponent will have their own custom set and pieces. [Strategic Gameplay] SHARPER MATCHES With three additional win conditions, Gryphon Chess matches are typically quicker and more pointed. With custom sets, each match becomes a real-time puzzle.

About

CombatChess

Experience chess with a twist: captures lead to real-time pixel brawls where the winner claims the square. Manage action cards strategically to win fights and defend your pieces. Features a robust chess engine and arcade-style combat mechanics.

Highlights
  • Real-time pixel brawls for captures
  • Action cards for strategic combat
  • Persistent damage on pieces
  • Six-button arcade combat system
  • King can fight to avoid checkmate
  • Full-rule chess engine (Stockfish)
  • Turn-based online multiplayer
Features
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It's chess. With fists. Combat Chess is real, full-rules chess until a capture is contested. Then both pieces drop into a real-time brawl, and the winner keeps the square. No piece goes quietly. Not even the king. ACTION CARDS: FIGHT FOR THE SQUARE You start every match with 3 Action Cards. When your piece is captured, spend one to force a fight instead of just losing it. Win the brawl and the capture is repelled your piece holds the square and the attacker is removed. Cards are spent win or lose and never refill mid-match, so card management is a whole extra layer of strategy. Run dry, and captures land like ordinary chess. FIGHTS THAT MATTER - Fighting power scales with chess value: pawns brawl at 75 HP, knights and bishops at 125, rooks at 175, queens at a monstrous 275, kings at 300. - Damage persists for the ENTIRE match. Wound the queen now, hunt her down later a health bar follows every piece that has fought. - A pawn can topple a queen. It just takes near-flawless play. SIX-BUTTON ARCADE COMBAT - Left punch (fast jab) and right punch (slow, heavy cross). - Side-matched blocking read the tell and guard the correct side to absorb 80% of the hit. - Timed dodges perfect timing negates all damage and charges your meter. - A stamina system that punishes button-mashing. Burn out and you're exhausted: unable to act and taking 1.5x damage. - Land perfect dodges to unlock the SUPER a single power shot worth 2.5x a heavy punch. Spam loses. Reads win. THE KING NEVER FALLS QUIETLY - In check, you can move out of danger or spend a card to send your king to fight the checking piece directly. - Checkmate isn't automatically the end. It triggers a mandatory final fight: your king duels the mating piece at 300 HP, no card needed. Win the last stand and the mate is broken. This cuts both ways: to beat you, your opponent must finish the job in the ring. A REAL CHESS ENGINE UNDERNEATH - Complete standard chess: castling, en passant, promotion, check, checkmate, and every standard draw rule. - Powered by the Stockfish engine, tunable from 600 to 3190 Elo - friendly beginner to superhuman, with a strength slider for every difficulty in Settings. - Single-player works fully offline. Sound and haptics are yours to toggle. CHALLENGE FRIENDS ONLINE - Turn-based multiplayer through Game Center: invite friends, run several matches at once, and take your time. - Get notified when an opponent moves, captures, or starts a fight with daily reminders before the 4-day forfeit window closes a stalled match. - Built for turn-based play: when you contest a capture, the fight resolves instantly on your own device against a computer-controlled version of your opponent's piece fighting with its true HP and power, including damage it already carries. No waiting around, and your opponent sees a full recap on their turn. EVERY MATCH ON RECORD - Match history with wins, losses, draws, win rate, streaks, per-difficulty records, fight stats, and your biggest upset.

Screenshots

Gryphon Chess4 screens
CombatChess4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: CombatChess at none against Gryphon Chess's 4. CombatChess also leads on update cadence (every 5 days vs every 3 weeks). Gryphon Chess's advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (13.4 vs 17.0). On price and ads 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. Gryphon Chess sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. CombatChess asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Gryphon Chess ships an update every 3 weeks, CombatChess every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on December 21, 2025 and September 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Gryphon Chess versus CombatChess: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGryphon ChessCombatChess
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—5 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS13.4 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size69 MB99 MB
Age rating4+9+
DeveloperAnimeeples LLCPUNCHMAN, LLC

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Gryphon Chess

One-time4
  • Handful of Gems$0.99
  • Pile of Gems$4.99
  • Crate of Gems$9.99
Show 1 more
  • Barrel of Gems$19.99
None

CombatChess

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Gryphon Chess free?
Gryphon Chess is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is CombatChess free?
CombatChess is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Gryphon Chess or CombatChess have ads?
Neither Gryphon Chess nor CombatChess shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Gryphon Chess or CombatChess?
Gryphon Chess ships an update every 3 weeks, and CombatChess every 5 days. Most recently, Gryphon Chess was updated on December 21, 2025 and CombatChess on September 9, 2026.

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