Star Realms vs Group Thing
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Star Realms
Engage in thrilling space combat with this popular deckbuilding game. Build your deck, outmaneuver opponents, and conquer the galaxy. Offers both single-player campaigns and multiplayer battles.
- Deckbuilding gameplay
- Player vs Player combat
- AI battles
- Campaign mode
- Online multiplayer
- Pass and Play mode
Read full descriptionHide full description
Star Realms is a hugely popular space combat deckbuilding game. Download and play today to find out why Star Realms is the winner of SXSW 2014 Board Game of the Year, 7 Golden Geek Awards from BoardGameGeek, including Best Mobile Game, and 2 Dice Tower awards! Reviews: "My readers are going to have a seizure about how good Star Realms is." -Owen Faraday, pockettactics.com “Good on all levels, thumbs up!” -Tom Vasel, The Dice Tower “This game is superb! I think it’s a brilliant game. Beautiful artwork, second to none.” -Tim Norris, Grey Elephant Gaming “What can I say? Star Realms is excellent.” - Lenny, ISlaytheDragon.com “I desperately wanted to play again and again. It's just consistently fun every time.” -The Critical Boardgamer Star Realms combines addictive deck building game play with exciting Trading Card Game (TCG) style combat! Designed by Magic the Gathering Hall of Famers Darwin Kastle and Rob Dougherty (of the Ascension Deckbuilding Game), Star Realms provides tons of playability for free, and a one-time upgrade to be able play with your friends and more on any device. Free Version •Universal Application: Play on iPhone, iPod, iPad, iPad Mini, and Ipad Air. •Addictive Deckbuilding Game with Player VS Player Combat. •Tutorial teaches you to play in minutes. •Stunning visuals. •Play VS the AI. •6 mission campaign mode. Full Game Additional Features •Play the AI on 3 different difficulty settings. •9 additional campaign missions. •Battle friends face to face with Pass and Play. •Online play with global rankings. •Challenge a friend online.
Group Thing
Spark engaging conversations with curated question packs. Break the ice, explore deeper topics, and create lasting memories with friends, family, or teams. Features trivia and customizable gameplay.
- Curated conversation starter packs
- Trivia packs for general knowledge and entertainment
- Customizable gameplay options
- Sleek and intuitive user interface
- Group engagement for teams and friends
Read full descriptionHide full description
Great for Gatherings! Looking for an easy way to spark engaging conversations? Whether it’s connecting with friends, strengthening team dynamics, or deepening personal relationships, Group Thing has you covered. With thoughtfully curated packs of conversation starters, Group Thing helps you break the ice, dive into deeper topics, and create lasting memories. FEATURES: • Variety of Packs: Explore collections like Deep Connections, Fun & Lighthearted, and Love, each designed to bring people closer through conversation. Dive into topics like childhood memories, personal growth, future dreams, and more! • Trivia Fun: Challenge yourself and your friends with trivia packs covering General Knowledge, Entertainment, History & Culture, and more! • Customizable Gameplay: Choose from different packs and collections, personalize your experience, and enjoy hours of meaningful conversation. • Beautiful UI: Enjoy a sleek, intuitive interface with smooth interactions, designed to make your experience seamless. • Group Engagement: Perfect for teams, friends, family gatherings, or even as a fun date night companion. Why Group Thing? Group Thing is a tool to help you foster real connections, whether you’re building trust within a team, strengthening bonds in a relationship, or simply getting to know someone better. Thought-provoking, fun, and sometimes challenging, each question is crafted to help you open up and discover new things about yourself and others. Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Group Thing at 100% against Star Realms's 57%. Group Thing also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.6) and update cadence (every 4 days vs every 11 days). Star Realms's advantage is ratings volume (4.5K vs 7) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. Star Realms sells 12 one-off in-app purchases and Group Thing sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Group Thing holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Star Realms has 4.5K ratings behind it against 7, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 57% of Star Realms's written reviews are positive against 100% of Group Thing's.
Star Realms ships an update every 11 days, Group Thing every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Star Realms | Group Thing |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (4.5K ratings) | 5.0 (7 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 56.9% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 4.5K — better | 7 |
| Update frequency | Every 11 days | Every 4 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 16.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 505 MB | 14 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | White Wizard Games | Rubotic, Inc. |
Customer experience
Star Realms
Group Thing
Bugs and requests
Star Realms
Reported bugs
4 issues- Game freezes and crashes on launch
- Online games getting stuck or timing out
- Inability to scrap or play certain cards
- Incorrect card behavior and interactions
Requested features
4 requests- Add undo/rewind functionality
- Improve offline/single-player experience
- Implement better matchmaking and player communication
- Provide more detailed game statistics and analytics
Group Thing
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Star Realms
- High Alert: Invasion$1.99
- Crisis: Bases and Battleships Set$1.99
- Crisis: Events Set$1.99
Show 9 moreShow fewer
- Crisis: Heroes Set$1.99
- Crisis: Fleets and Fortresses$1.99
- Command$1.99
- Gambit Set$3.99
- Cosmic Gambit$3.99
- High Alert: First Strike$3.99
- Full Version$4.99
- Colony Wars$4.99
- Frontiers$4.99
Group Thing
- Group Thing Unlimited3 Days trial$5.991 Month









