Comparison

XCOM® vs Total War

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

Head to head
About

XCOM®

This is a standalone expansion to a critically acclaimed strategy game, offering new soldiers, abilities, enemies, maps, and a multiplayer mode. Players can upgrade their soldiers with genetic modifications and cybersuits, research new weapons, and counter new alien threats.

Highlights
  • New soldier abilities (genetics & cybersuits)
  • New weapons and equipment
  • New enemy types and organization
  • New strategic resource (Meld)
  • New story missions
  • New multiplayer maps, units, and abilities
Read full description

***NOTE: Compatible with iPad 3, iPad mini 2, iPhone 5 and up. WILL NOT be able to run on earlier generations, despite being able to purchase them on those devices*** XCOM®: Enemy Within is a standalone expansion to the 2012 strategy game of the year XCOM: Enemy Unknown and it's now available on iOS devices! Enemy Within features the core gameplay of Enemy Unknown plus more exciting content. Check out the new soldiers, abilities, enemies, maps, missions, and multiplayer mode for the fresh new strategy gaming experience! • New Soldier Abilities: Build new base facilities to unlock unearthly new capabilities for XCOM’s soldiers. The Genetics Lab will allow soldiers to receive powerful genetic modifications, and the Cybernetics Lab allows soldiers to use devastating mechanized cybersuits in battle. • New Weapons and Equipment: Give your operatives an extra tactical edge with new projects from your engineering team and the Foundry. • New Enemy Threats: Adopt new tactics to counter the threats from two new alien types and a deadly new organization known as EXALT. • New Strategic Resource: A valuable new alien resource, known as Meld, has been discovered. Secure it on the battlefield, research a new technology to unlock its power, and use it carefully back at base to unlock new upgrades and weaponry. • New Story Elements: Investigate a terrifying threat in an abandoned fishing village, and defend the XCOM headquarters from alien attack in a series of new plot-driven missions. • New Multiplayer maps, units, and abilities: Create your custom squad from a wider array of options and dominate your opponent in intense, one-on-one, turn-based matches. NOTE: XCOM: Enemy Within is a graphically rich game with advanced features. To OPTIMIZE your playing experience, you may want to turn off other apps before playing. The content of this videogame is fictional and is not intended to represent or depict an actual record of the events, persons, locations, or entities in the game’s setting. The makers and publishers of this videogame do not in any way endorse, condone or encourage engaging in any conduct depicted in this videogame. Follow us on Facebook:  www.facebook.com/xcom Follow us on Twitter: @xcom For more great games visit: http://www.2kgames.com/mobile/ 18+ "запрещено для детей" for Russia Privacy Policy: http://www.take2games.com/privacy/index.html Terms of Service: http://www.take2games.com/legal/ End User License Agreement: http://www.take2games.com/eula/index.html

About

Total War

Experience grand strategy and massive real-time battles set in the Middle Ages. Lead one of 17 playable factions to conquer continents through diplomacy, trade, or warfare. An expansion adds more factions and campaigns across diverse regions.

Highlights
  • Massive real-time battles
  • Intricate turn-based strategy
  • 17 playable factions
  • Diplomacy, trade, and subterfuge
  • Kingdoms expansion with new campaigns
  • Asynchronous multiplayer campaigns
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

READ BEFORE BUYING: Please expand this description and read the full list of supported devices below to confirm that your device is supported. MEDIEVAL II brings Total War’s compelling mix of massive real-time battles and intricate turn-based strategy to iPhone and iPad. Set across three continents during the turbulent Middle Ages, spectacular conflicts and scheming rivals line the path to power as the great kingdoms of the medieval world vie for supremacy. Be it through diplomacy or conquest, trade or subterfuge, you must secure the resources and loyalty required to rule an empire from the shores of Western Europe to the sands of Arabia. THE STRENGTH OF NATIONS Unlock up to 17 playable factions and build them into major world powers through statecraft, subterfuge or all-out war. THE KINGDOMS EXPANSION Available via in-app purchase, this massive expansion includes 24 playable factions across four unique, fully featured campaigns. Wage war from the jungles of the Americas to the deserts of the Holy Land, from the deceptively gentle shores of the British Isles to the frigid Baltic plains. THE HOTSEATS & HALBERDS UPDATE This major update adds a host of balance improvements to Pikemen, Zweihanders and other late-era units, and, for owners of the Kingdoms expansion, introduces asynchronous multiplayer campaigns on a single device. THE ART OF WAR Deploy infantry, archers and cavalry into huge real-time battles, with a full range of medieval weaponry at your command. THE TOOLS OF STATE Use sophisticated diplomacy, lucrative trade agreements and daring agents to forge alliances or destabilise your rivals. THE TEST OF TIME Shape the destinies of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East through five momentous centuries of combat, competition and conquest. THE POWER IN YOUR HANDS Take command, with a brand-new user interface and enhanced touch controls for fingertip control of the battlefield. Or, play with any iPadOS-compatible mouse & keyboard. === Total War: MEDIEVAL II requires iOS 16 or later. You need 4.3GB of free space on your device, though we recommend at least double this to avoid initial installation issues. A further 7.65GB is required to install the Kingdoms DLC. To save space, you can install each campaign individually. Americas: 2.06GB Britannia: 1.66GB Crusades: 2.11GB Teutonic: 1.82GB Supported iPhones: • iPhone 8 / 8 Plus and later • iPhone SE 2nd Generation (2020) and later Supported iPads: • iPad mini 5th Generation (2019) and later • iPad Air 3rd Generation (2019) and later • iPad 5th generation (2017) and later • Any iPad Pro • If you require assistance, please contact our support team at support@feralinteractive.com © 2007–2025 The Creative Assembly Limited. Originally developed by The Creative Assembly Limited. Originally published by SEGA. Creative Assembly, the Creative Assembly logo, Total War, Total War: MEDIEVAL and the Total War logo are either trademarks or registered trademarks of The Creative Assembly Limited. SEGA and the SEGA logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of SEGA Corporation. Developed for and published on iOS by Feral Interactive. iOS and the iOS logo are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. Feral and the Feral logo are trademarks of Feral Interactive Ltd. All other trademarks, logos and copyrights are property of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

Screenshots

XCOM®4 screens
Total War4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: XCOM® at $4.99 against Total War's $14.99. XCOM® also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and update cadence (monthly vs every 2 months). Total War's advantage is rating (4.9 vs 4.3) and review sentiment (77% vs 62%). On ratings volume, ads, chart position 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

XCOM® costs $4.99 and Total War $14.99 up front. Total War sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. XCOM® asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Total War holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 5.6K and 7.4K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 62% of XCOM®'s written reviews are positive against 77% of Total War's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

XCOM® ships an update monthly, Total War every 2 months. Both last shipped on October 27, 2026.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
XCOM® versus Total War: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterXCOM®Total War
Price$4.99 — better$14.99
Rating4.3 (5.6K ratings)4.9 (7.4K ratings) — better
Positive reviews61.9% of reviews77.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings5.6K7.4K — better
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#86#64 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS9.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size3.3 GB1.9 GB
Age rating17+12+
Developer2KFeral Interactive Ltd

Customer experience

XCOM®

All ratings5,601 ratings
Positive83.9%
Neutral2.5%
Negative13.6%
Written reviews451 reviews
Positive61.9%
Neutral7.8%
Negative30.4%

Total War

All ratings7,244 ratings
Positive97.4%
Neutral1.3%
Negative1.3%
Written reviews719 reviews
Positive77.3%
Neutral7.0%
Negative15.7%

User reviews

XCOM®

From 5.6K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Excellent port of the PC game
  • 👍 Great gameplay and strategy
  • 💎 Addictive and replayable
  • 🎮 Faithful to the XCOM franchise
  • 🔝 Best strategy game on iOS

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
  • 🔍 Difficult to control on small screens
  • 🔋 Battery draining
  • 🗺️ Limited map selection compared to PC
  • 🔇 Sound issues and lack of audio options

Total War

From 7.4K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Best Total War Game
  • 👍 Wonderful game!
  • 👍 Creative Assembly's Masterpiece Goes Mobile
  • 👍 Top tier mobile game
  • 👍 Brilliant game

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes every other battle on IPad Pro
  • 🐛 Glitchy
  • 🐛 Crashes often
  • 🐛 Naw it needs mad fixing
  • 🐛 Troop placement bugs

Bugs and requests

XCOM®

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Tutorial getting stuck
  • Crashes when returning to base
  • Inability to move soldiers to elevated positions
  • Unresponsive menus and UI
  • Progression-blocking bugs

Requested features

5 requests
  • Controller support
  • Improved camera controls
  • Full screen support for newer devices
  • Update to fix compatibility issues
  • More customization options

Total War

Reported bugs

11 issues
  • Crashes every other battle on IPad Pro
  • Glitchy
  • Crashes often
  • Naw it needs mad fixing
  • Troop placement bugs
Show 6 more
  • Armies disappearing when garrisoning
  • Battles freezing on certain turns
  • Settlement selection issues
  • Upside down screen orientation
  • Flood bug causing permanent movement issues
  • Diplomacy not working properly

Requested features

14 requests
  • Bring back titles
  • New Feature : Civil War
  • DLC
  • Expansion
  • Need more units
Show 9 more
  • New Possible Factions (Existing)
  • FIXES NEEDED ASAP
  • Help with opening the app
  • Where re you guys?
  • Please add graphics settings
  • Controls/gameplay improvements
  • Make unit formation easier
  • Papal States and other factions as playable
  • Add expansions like Kingdoms

In-app purchases

None

XCOM®

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Total War

One-time1
  • Kingdoms Expansion$6.99

Questions

Is XCOM® free?
XCOM® costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Total War free?
Total War costs $14.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, XCOM® or Total War?
Total War is rated higher. XCOM® averages 4.3 out of 5 from 5.6K ratings, while Total War averages 4.9 from 7.4K ratings.
Do XCOM® or Total War have ads?
Neither XCOM® nor Total War shows ads.
Which is updated more often, XCOM® or Total War?
XCOM® ships an update monthly, and Total War every 2 months. Most recently, XCOM® was updated on October 27, 2026 and Total War on October 27, 2026.
Which is more popular, XCOM® or Total War?
XCOM® currently peaks at #86 in the App Store charts, and Total War at #64. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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