Comparison

Play History vs MANDATE

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

Head to head
About

Play History

Features
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December 31, 1999. Tomorrow the century begins โ€” and you already know how it goes: the crash, the boom, the wars, the walls. The only thing history hasn't decided is where you'll be standing. Play History is a turn-based game about carrying your capital through the 21st century intact. You begin on January 1, 2000, somewhere among 57 real jurisdictions, and you make one move per year to 2025. Each year asks four questions โ€” in the order that actually decides a fortune: โ€ข Business โ€” what you build, and where. โ€ข Savings โ€” what you hold, and in which currency. โ€ข Tax residency โ€” where you live on paper. โ€ข Citizenship โ€” which passport, and where you stand politically. Then the year resolves against real history. The dot-com collapse. Lehman. Crimea. COVID. The war. The crises are non-negotiable, and everyone plays the same ones โ€” the only question is whether you saw them coming. EVERY NUMBER CARRIES A RECEIPT This is not a slot machine. Every gain and loss is grounded in the historical record โ€” real index returns, real exchange rates, real rules โ€” and every figure links to its source. If a number looks wrong, flag it. PLAY YOUR OWN CENTURY, TOGETHER Start solo in seconds, no account needed. Or host a world and let friends join by code. Play is asynchronous: your year resolves the moment you commit, and everyone moves at their own pace โ€” no clocks, no waiting, no kicks. Join a running world late and you still start in 2000; the Hall of Fame ranks by multiple, not size, so a modest start is a legitimate strategy. THE CHRONICLE Reach 2025 and your run is written up as a short chronicle drawn from your own ledger โ€” the story of the century you actually played. Free to start. A one-time in-app purchase unlocks the back half of the century (2013โ€“2025) when you're ready to keep going. Play History โ€” the whole century on one desk.

About

MANDATE

Features
Read full description

MANDATE is a realist, hard-edged government simulation. Choose a nation, take office, and try to keep your mandate while the economy, approval, and stability tend to erode. - 3D globe to pick a playable nation - Cabinet with budgets, programs, and a bulletin - Crises and fiscal pressure that actually bite - Mandates up to 24 months (12 in the demo) UI chrome is available in many languages; event and program copy may still fall back to English or Italian depending on locale. The books matter: deficits and surpluses move debt, inflation, and approval. It is not unwinnable - on easier difficulties, governing well yields a clear victory - but without constant course corrections the system drifts worse on its own.

Screenshots

Play History4 screens
MANDATE3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Play History at daily against MANDATE's every 3 weeks. MANDATE's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 26.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Both are free to download. Play History sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and MANDATE sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Play History ships an update daily, MANDATE every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences ยท 4 level
Play History versus MANDATE: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPlay HistoryMANDATE
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyDaily โ€” betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod โ€” better
Requires iOS26.015.0 โ€” better
Further details โ€” not scored
Size9 MB57 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperOnym OรœParide Di Lazzaro

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Play History

One-time1
  • Q1 XXI$3.99
3 purchases

MANDATE

One-time3
  • Extended Mandate$1.99
  • Unlock Mandate$3.99
  • World Roster$3.99

Questions

Is Play History free?
Play History is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is MANDATE free?
MANDATE is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Play History or MANDATE have ads?
Neither Play History nor MANDATE shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Play History or MANDATE?
Play History ships an update daily, and MANDATE every 3 weeks. Most recently, Play History was updated on October 31, 2026 and MANDATE on October 31, 2026.

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