# Nimtastic vs SmartGo One

The clearest difference is rating: SmartGo One at 4.8 against Nimtastic's 4.0. SmartGo One also leads on update cadence (every 10 days vs every 3 months) and ratings volume (2K vs 8). Nimtastic's advantage is iOS requirement (11.0 vs 26.0). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Nimtastic sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and SmartGo One sells 47 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

SmartGo One holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SmartGo One has 2K ratings behind it against 8, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 75% of Nimtastic's written reviews are positive against 77% of SmartGo One's.

Nimtastic ships an update every 3 months, SmartGo One every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on October 3, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Nimtastic | SmartGo One |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.0 (8 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nimtastic/id938327160/reviews) | **[4.8 (2K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/smartgo-one/id1465746992/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 8 | **2K** |
| Positive reviews | 75.0% of reviews | **76.6% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | **Every 10 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 15 MB | 154 MB |
| Requires iOS | **11.0** | 26.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Stewart Lynch](https://appshunter.io/developer/428795637) | [Smart Go, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/290948289) |

## What reviewers say

### Nimtastic

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nimtastic/id938327160)

Master the classic mathematical game of strategy. Learn to win by taking turns removing objects from distinct heaps. Impress your friends with your newfound strategic prowess.

**Highlights:** Mathematical strategy game, Turn-based gameplay, Object removal from heaps, Learn winning strategies, Impress friends

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Remove Ads | $0.99 | one-time |


### SmartGo One

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/smartgo-one/id1465746992)

Learn, play, and improve at the ancient game of Go. This app offers adjustable board sizes, a strong AI opponent, and tools to study professional games and solve Go problems. It's designed for players of all skill levels, from beginners to masters.

**Highlights:** Adjustable board sizes (9x9 to 19x19), Strong KataGo game engine, Study professional game records, Solve Go problems and tutorials, Pattern matching for move suggestions, Territory estimator, Game recording and annotation

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (47)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| SmartGo One Pro – Monthly | $4.99 | per month |
| Pro Games and Features | $29.99 | per year |
| Just Enough Japanese 1 | Free | one-time |
| Key Concepts in Life and Death | $2.99 | one-time |
| Go Problems Master Collection | $3.99 | one-time |
| Go Problems Add-on 2: Medium | $3.99 | one-time |
| Go Problems Add-on 1: Easy | $3.99 | one-time |
| Go Problems Add-on 3: Hard | $3.99 | one-time |
| Counting Liberties | $4.99 | one-time |
| The Monkey Jump | $4.99 | one-time |
| Double Digit Kyu Games | $5.99 | one-time |
| Go: A Complete Introduction | $5.99 | one-time |
| How Not to Play Go | $5.99 | one-time |
| Encyclopedia of Go Principles | $5.99 | one-time |
| Want to Play Go? Level 1 | $5.99 | one-time |
| Black to Play 30-25 Kyu | $5.99 | one-time |
| The Workshop Lectures 1 | $5.99 | one-time |
| Rethinking Opening Strategy | $6.99 | one-time |
| Learn to Play Go 1 | $7.99 | one-time |
| Learn to Play Go 2 | $7.99 | one-time |
| Learn to Play Go 3 | $7.99 | one-time |
| Correct Joseki | $7.99 | one-time |
| “The Theory of Go” | $7.99 | one-time |
| Learn to Play Go 4 | $7.99 | one-time |
| Buddhist Philosophy Game of Go | $8.99 | one-time |
| Graded Go Problems 1 | $9.99 | one-time |
| Graded Go Problems 2 | $9.99 | one-time |
| Want to Play Go? Level 2 | $9.99 | one-time |
| Basic Techniques of Go | $9.99 | one-time |
| Graded Go Problems 3 | $9.99 | one-time |
| Get Strong at Life and Death | $9.99 | one-time |
| Mastering Mini Go by Mark Tomlinson | $11.99 | one-time |
| Fuseki Revolution | $11.99 | one-time |
| Fundamental Principles of Go | $11.99 | one-time |
| The Basics of Life and Death | $11.99 | one-time |
| Joseki Revolution | $11.99 | one-time |
| Life and Death | $11.99 | one-time |
| A Survey of the Basic Tesujis | $11.99 | one-time |
| Tesuji | $11.99 | one-time |
| Tesuji for Beginners | $14.99 | one-time |
| AlphaGo to Zero, vol. 4 | $14.99 | one-time |
| Trouble Master, volume 2 | $14.99 | one-time |
| Trouble Master, volume 1 | $14.99 | one-time |
| AlphaGo to Zero, Vol. 2 | $14.99 | one-time |
| Invincible | $24.99 | one-time |
| Essential Go Proverbs | $24.99 | one-time |
| Pro – Lifetime Unlock | $99.00 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Awesome app
- 👍 Great for playing and learning Go
- 📚 Excellent integration with Go books
- 🔍 Powerful analysis and review features
- 💻 Seamless experience across devices

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes and stability issues
- 🤔 Unintuitive user interface for beginners
- 💰 Paywall for full 19x19 board and some features
- 🤖 AI too strong for novice players

**Reported bugs**

- Illegal move detection issues on certain board positions
- Problems with missing variations or incorrect answers
- Inconsistent behavior when passing moves

**Requested features**

- Add read-only mode
- Improve move suggestion explanations
- Introduce difficulty settings for AI
- Integrate online play functionality
- Provide more randomness in AI moves


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Nimtastic free?

Nimtastic is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is SmartGo One free?

SmartGo One is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Nimtastic or SmartGo One?

SmartGo One is rated higher. Nimtastic averages 4.0 out of 5 from 8 ratings, while SmartGo One averages 4.8 from 2K ratings.

### Do Nimtastic or SmartGo One have ads?

Neither Nimtastic nor SmartGo One shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Nimtastic or SmartGo One?

Nimtastic ships an update every 3 months, and SmartGo One every 10 days. Most recently, Nimtastic was updated on October 3, 2026 and SmartGo One on October 19, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*