Comparison

Five Elements Chess vs Phantom Words

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

Head to head
About

Five Elements Chess

Engage in strategic spell-duels with this match-three game inspired by Five Elements theory. Enjoy a calm, Zen-like visual style with a blend of strategy and luck. Compete locally or online against other players.

Highlights
  • Five Elements theory integration
  • Match-three gameplay
  • Deep strategy
  • Zen-inspired visuals
  • Local and online PvP
Features
Read full description

Five Elements Chess is a spell-duel game that combines the Five Elements theory and match-three gameplay. Features • Simple rules, deep strategy • Calm, Zen-inspired visual style • A balance of strategy and luck that anyone can enjoy • Local and online PvP

About

Phantom Words

Unscramble letters by sliding rows and columns to form words. Discover hidden letters as you play, with increasing complexity and new mechanics introduced. Offers multiple game modes for varied challenges.

Highlights
  • Sliding row and column puzzles
  • Hidden letter discovery
  • Progressive difficulty
  • Multiple game modes (Classic, Endless, Daily, Lightning)
  • iCloud sync across devices
  • Game Center leaderboards
Features
Read full description

We made Phantom Words for anyone who loves that small, satisfying moment when a jumble of letters suddenly turns into a word. Each board begins scrambled, with most of the letters hidden behind ghost tiles. Slide rows and columns like a 2D Rubik’s Cube, then look for words running across or down the board. Whenever you make one using a tile for the first time, another letter appears. Once every tile is used, the puzzle is complete. Longer words are worth more, while tiles lose value each time you use them. Yellow means a tile is nearly spent; red means you’ve leaned on it too often. Later boards introduce gaps that split rows and columns, multi-letter tiles that keep their letters together, wildcards that can stand in for any letter, and locked tiles that stay fixed until you use them in a word. And if a solution feels messy, you can always come back and find a more elegant one. There are four ways to play: • Classic has 99 handmade levels with increasing difficulty and evolving mechanics. • Endless starts small and procedurally grows while you play. • Daily Challenge gives everyone a new board each day, plus a streak to keep going. • Lightning Mode is the same word hunting, but against the clock. Classic, Endless, and Daily Challenge aren’t timed, so there’s no rush. You get a full score breakdown after each level and can replay it whenever you want. Your progress and settings sync across your devices with iCloud. There are also Game Center leaderboards if you care about high scores. There are no ads, and the whole game is free. If you enjoy it and would like to support us, you can buy us a coffee. We hope you enjoy discovering the words we’ve hidden for you.

Screenshots

Five Elements Chess4 screens
Phantom Words4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: Phantom Words at free against Five Elements Chess's free with in-app purchases. Five Elements Chess's advantage is update cadence (daily vs every 4 days) and ratings volume (74 vs 7). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads 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. Five Elements Chess sells 3 one-off in-app purchases and Phantom Words sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Five Elements Chess against 4.9 for Phantom Words. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Five Elements Chess has 74 ratings behind it against 7, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Five Elements Chess ships an update daily, Phantom Words every 4 days. Both last shipped on October 11, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Five Elements Chess versus Phantom Words: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFive Elements ChessPhantom Words
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (74 ratings)4.9 (7 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings74 — better7
Update frequencyDaily — betterEvery 4 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.6 — better16.6
Further details — not scored
Size280 MB137 MB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperBeijing Jiao Dian Chuang Yi digital technology Co.,Ltd.Fleon Labs

Customer experience

Five Elements Chess

Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Phantom Words

All ratings7 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews13 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Five Elements Chess

One-time3
  • Time Skin Pack$1.99
  • Five Elements Chess full game$3.99
  • Seasons Skin Pack$3.99
3 purchases

Phantom Words

One-time3
  • Kind Supporter$2.49
  • Generous Supporter$4.99
  • Huge Supporter$9.99

Questions

Is Five Elements Chess free?
Five Elements Chess is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Phantom Words free?
Phantom Words is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Five Elements Chess or Phantom Words?
Phantom Words is rated higher. Five Elements Chess averages 4.8 out of 5 from 74 ratings, while Phantom Words averages 4.9 from 7 ratings.
Do Five Elements Chess or Phantom Words have ads?
Neither Five Elements Chess nor Phantom Words shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Five Elements Chess or Phantom Words?
Five Elements Chess ships an update daily, and Phantom Words every 4 days. Most recently, Five Elements Chess was updated on October 11, 2026 and Phantom Words on October 11, 2026.

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