Comparison

Hive® Game vs Backgammon 008

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

Head to head
About

Hive® Game

Experience the award-winning strategy board game digitally. This app offers a faithful adaptation of the classic game, featuring challenging AI, all official expansions, and customizable visuals. Perfect for both new players and seasoned veterans.

Highlights
  • Official Hive® rules and design
  • Includes all three official expansions
  • Advanced RustyBlade™ AI
  • Adjustable difficulty for beginners
  • Video tutorial by game creator
  • Customizable visual settings
  • Local network play
Features
Read full description

"What impresses me most about this Hive® app is how the AI plays with true strategic depth—enough to challenge even seasoned Hive veterans. The developers have captured the purity of the game beautifully: no clutter, no distractions, just clean design that lets the elegance of Hive shine through. A thoughtful, well-crafted adaptation." – John Yianni, creator of Hive® The award-winning tabletop classic Hive® is now in your pocket. Created with the blessing of the game’s designer, John Yianni, this app delivers a clean, focused, and beautifully polished digital Hive® experience. Hive® is a captivating strategy game often described as “nature’s chess.” There is no board — the game itself is built from the creatures you place. Your goal is simple: surround your opponent’s Queen Bee while keeping your own safe. Easy to learn, endlessly deep to master. OFFICIAL HIVE® EXPERIENCE Faithful to the vision of its original designer, this app captures the award-winning rules and timeless elegance of Hive® without compromise. THE COMPLETE HIVE® Play Hive® exactly as intended. Alongside the base game, all three official expansion pieces are included: Mosquito, Ladybug, and Pillbug. THE RUSTYBLADE™ AI Don’t settle for predictable opponents. RustyBlade™ is a bold, aggressive AI engine that plays with initiative and intent. It doesn’t aim for safe draws — it fights for victory. Expect intense, uncompromising strategic battles. PERFECT FOR BEGINNERS TOO New to Hive®? The fully adjustable difficulty lets RustyBlade™ become a patient training partner. Learn the ropes with a video tutorial by John Yianni (the creator of Hive), while the illustrated rulebook and Undo feature allow you to learn, experiment, and improve without pressure. ELEGANT & FULLY CUSTOMIZABLE A sleek design that adapts to your style. Choose your preferred board orientation (flat or pointy-top), select custom colors, and adjust wood grain intensity. Responsive controls, subtle animations, and haptic feedback ensure a smooth, immersive experience that brings the hive to life. UNIVERSAL PURCHASE Unlock the Elite Edition once and enjoy it on your iPhone, iPad, and Mac. ELITE EDITION: - Full access to all official expansions: Mosquito, Ladybug, and Pillbug. - Test your skills against advanced RustyBlade™ AI difficulty levels. - Personalize your experience with premium backgrounds and visual settings. - Detailed player statistics. - Game Center support (friend-invite matches only). - Local network play over the same Wi-Fi network. - Family Sharing: Share the Elite experience with your family at no extra cost. The Hive is humming. The army is ready. Are you? Official Website: https://hivegameapp.com

About

Backgammon 008

Features
Read full description

Backgammon, and nothing else. No loot boxes. No coins, gems, or energy timers. No power-ups, no pay-to-win, no ads interrupting a game. Open it, tap Quick match, play. PROVABLY FAIR DICE Most backgammon apps ask you to trust their dice. This one lets you check. Every roll is committed to before it happens and revealed afterwards, signed so it can't be changed retroactively. Any match menu has "Verify dice" — you can confirm for yourself that the dice you got are the dice that were sealed in before you rolled. PLAY SOMEONE YOUR OWN STRENGTH Matchmaking is rating-based, so a first-timer isn't thrown at a veteran. Ratings follow the FIBS system used by serious backgammon players, and they move faster while you're new and settle as you play. Global and regional leaderboards show where you stand. PRACTICE ANY TIME Three bot strengths, unrated, whenever you want them. Pick the match length when you start rather than digging through settings. FULL RULES Doubling cube, gammons and backgammons, Crawford rule, match play or a single game. Drag or tap to move. Undo before you commit. Auto-roll and auto bear-off if you want the game to keep up with you. PLAY A FRIEND Create a match, send the id, they join. Unrated, so ratings can't be traded back and forth. CIVIL BY DESIGN Chat is a short list of set phrases and a few emoji — enough to say "good roll" or "well played", impossible to use for abuse. Mute it entirely if you prefer silence. A 45-second move clock keeps games moving. Sign in with Game Center to carry your profile between devices, or just play — an account is made for you either way. Ads support the app. One purchase removes them permanently. That's the only thing ever sold here.

Screenshots

Hive® Game4 screens
Backgammon 0084 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Backgammon 008 at none against Hive® Game's 1. Hive® Game's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and device support (4 vs 2). On price 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. Hive® Game sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Backgammon 008 asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Hive® Game versus Backgammon 008: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHive® GameBackgammon 008
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (280 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews64.6% of reviews—
Number of ratings280 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 11 days—
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.6 — better26.5
Further details — not scored
Size11 MB5 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGiantStep Kft.Vahe Shahoian

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Hive® Game

One-time1
  • Elite Edition$9.99
None

Backgammon 008

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Hive® Game free?
Hive® Game is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Backgammon 008 free?
Backgammon 008 is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Hive® Game or Backgammon 008 have ads?
Backgammon 008 shows ads; Hive® Game does not.

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