Comparison

Inkboxes vs Dots and Boxes

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

Head to head
About

Inkboxes

This game reimagines a classic pencil-and-paper box-claiming challenge with a digital twist. Enjoy various game modes, customizable boards, and a sharp AI opponent, all playable offline. It offers a visually appealing experience with themes and animations, and tracks your progress privately on your device.

Highlights
  • Classic and reimagined game modes
  • Customizable board sizes
  • Challenging AI opponent
  • Pass & Play multiplayer
  • Two visual themes
  • Progress tracking
  • Offline play
Features
Read full description

Claim boxes. Build chains. Outsmart the Inkmaster- AI. Inkboxes takes the classic pencil-and-paper game and turns it into a beautiful, fast, on-device experience. Connect the dots, claim boxes, chain combos, and outsmart a razor-sharp AI — no account, no sign-up, no internet required. FOUR WAYS TO PLAY • Classic — the timeless rules, refined. • Blitz — race the clock in a timed showdown. • Power-Up — special moves that shake up the board. • Streak — line up your marks N-in-a-row (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal). PLAY YOUR WAY • Board sizes from 3×3 up to 10×10 — plus a custom grid. • Face a sharp AI across four difficulties: Easy, Medium, Hard, and Expert. • Or go head-to-head in Pass & Play on a single device. BEAUTIFUL BY DESIGN • Two hand-crafted themes: warm Paper (light) and vivid Neon (dark). • Satisfying haptics, chain-celebration bursts, and smooth animations. • Universal — looks stunning on iPhone and iPad, portrait or landscape. TRACK YOUR PROGRESS • Wins, losses, streaks, boxes claimed, and best times. • Eight achievements to unlock as you master the board. PRIVATE BY DEFAULT • Everything lives on your device. No accounts, no tracking, no data collection. Rediscover the game everyone knows — reimagined for your pocket. — Remove Ads is available as an auto-renewing subscription: • Yearly — $12.99/year • Monthly — $2.99/month Payment is charged to your Apple ID at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel anytime in your device's Account Settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://neoninkbox.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://neoninkbox.com/privacy

About

Dots and Boxes

Features
Read full description

Dots and Boxes, exactly the way you played it in school. With zero ads, ever. Four opponents that play fair: beginner actually lets you learn, hard wins by strategy, not by magic. When you lose, you'll know why. 100% offline. No account, no subscription, no waiting for opponents that never show up. HOW IT WORKS Draw a line between two dots. Close the fourth side of a box and it's yours, and you go again. Most boxes wins. A grid of dots, just like in your old exercise book. PLAY AGAINST REAL STRATEGY • Beginner: makes mistakes. Perfect for your first games. • Easy: plays solid moves, but doesn't plan ahead. • Medium: knows chains. A fair fight for everyday play. • Hard: plays perfectly, double-cross included. And when it wins, you see why: every sacrifice is marked right on the board. Want to know what the expert would do? The Tactics Coach shows the best move and explains it in one sentence. ONE PUZZLE A DAY The Daily Puzzle: one puzzle per day, the same position for everyone. No server, no account. Generated right on your device. Keep your streak alive, and revisit past days in the archive. TWO PLAYERS, ONE OR TWO DEVICES Pass-and-play on iPhone and iPad: device in the middle, and go. Or play on two devices side by side, connected directly, no internet required. Both need to be in the same room. There is no online play against strangers, and we won't pretend there is. PAY ONCE, HAVE EVERYTHING The full game is a single purchase of $1.99. That's it. Forever. The free version is a real game, not a demo: two-player mode, three computer opponents and the Daily Puzzle, unlimited, no ads. The one-time upgrade adds the hard opponent, large boards, statistics, the Daily Puzzle archive, and the Tactics Coach. No subscription. Nothing expires. Nothing nags. WHAT THIS APP DELIBERATELY DOESN'T HAVE No ads. No subscription. No account. No tracking. No energy system. No daily quests. No online matchmaking, and no waiting for an opponent who never arrives. Just the game. Support: boxly@aid3r.com Privacy in one sentence: this app collects no data, because there is no server.

Screenshots

Inkboxes4 screens
Dots and Boxes4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Dots and Boxes at none against Inkboxes's shown. Inkboxes's advantage is iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). On price, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Inkboxes sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Dots and Boxes sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Inkboxes versus Dots and Boxes: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterInkboxesDots and Boxes
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 8 days—
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.1 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size55 MB2 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperECOMXCHANGEMV PRIVATE LIMITEDaid3R Core GmbH

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Inkboxes

Subscriptions2
  • Remove Ads (Monthly)$2.991 Month
  • Remove Ads (Yearly)$12.991 Year
1 purchases

Dots and Boxes

One-time1
  • Boxly Premium$1.99

Questions

Is Inkboxes free?
Inkboxes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Dots and Boxes free?
Dots and Boxes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Inkboxes or Dots and Boxes have ads?
Inkboxes shows ads; Dots and Boxes does not.

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