I've been playing video games pretty much nonstop ever since I got my first 360. I love racing games, MMOs, and shooters, but I'll play just about anything.
Reviewed by Benjamin Barr
Supercell sprung to wild success overnight with Clash of Clans, and they didn’t wait too long before producing more games. Clash Royale shares a similar name and many other similarities, where Brawl Stars has arguably been their most successful game outside the Clash IP. In this article we’ll take a look at all three games, how they compare/differ, which is the best for you, and some FAQs! Let’s get started.
Supercell Games Explained
Before we dive into the analysis here, here’s a rundown of each of these three games!
Clash of Clans
Clash of Clans is a base-building game where you get to produce troops to defend your base and attack other ones. Taking time to strategically build up your base with proper defenses takes a lot of time, but that’s a part of the appeal of Clash of Clans. There are tons of buildings (both defensive and utility ones), and the way you lay them out greatly affects your base’s survival rate in battle. When it’s all said and done, Clash of Clans is all about defending your base and destroying other ones.
Clash Royale
Clash Royale is a more fast-paced game than Clash of Clans. Instead of spending hours building up your base, you’ll hop right into 1v1 battles. In these battles, you’ll get to use a custom deck of “cards” which you drag onto the battlefield to attack enemy towers. But the battles in Clash Royale are far more interactive than the ones in Clash of Clans. You’ll have to have fast reaction time to keep your towers standing, in addition to learning the ins and outs of all the game’s various troops (which are mostly pulled from Clash of Clans’ troops).
Brawl Stars
Brawl Stars is very different from the other two games featured in this article. Unlike the other two, which function more as strategy games, Brawl Stars is full on action. That’s not to say that there isn’t a lot of strategy to it, but it’s a different form. Brawn Stars drops players into an arena in which they must outlast all enemy players to be the last person (or team) standing or complete some other team objective. It’s more similar to a shooter game than anything, so it certainly stands out compared to many other mobile games.
How Are They Similar?
Just because the same company made all three of these games, doesn’t mean they’re all that similar. However, there are actually quite a few places you can tell the same company made them. You can especially see these similarities between Clash of Clans and Clash Royale.
Clash of Clans has a lot of troops you can use to protect your base or attack others, and many of those troops appear in Clash Royale as well. From Archers to Barbarians to Giant, many troops are used in both games. But, since Clash of Clans and Clash Royale are so different in terms of gameplay, this doesn’t make them feel too similar at all. It’s fun to see familiar troops across both games, especially if you’re someone who’s played one of the two a lot, but not the other. Supercell also does a good job of adding in fun little info about the troops’ lore, which you can check out in-game. This all makes the world of each game feel more connected, allowing fans of one game to easily enjoy the other as well.
With Brawl Stars, there’s not a whole lot that you could consider similar. It does have the same vibe as the others, but the gameplay is just too different to consider otherwise. Brawl Stars reminds us more of a shooter game, since the action is so fast-paced and in-your-face.
Where Do They Differ?
In terms of gameplay, these three games are nothing alike. We have a base building game (Clash of Clans), a real-time strategy (Clash Royale), and an arena shooter (Brawl Stars). Clash of Clans is the most slow-paced of the three, with a long-term strategy style that forces you to think far in advance. Clash Royale and Brawl Stars, however, are much more fast-paced. In Clash Royale and Brawl Stars, you have to react in real-time to the actions of your opponents, timing your own plays in reaction to theirs. The multiplayer feels more like a non-mobile game in Clash Royale and Brawl Stars, where Clash of Clans is essentially the definitive mobile gaming experience.
Which is Best for Me?
Since all of these games are free, there’s no reason you can’t try all three to see which you like the most. But if you want to streamline the process a bit, here’s a section that should help figure out which to start with.
| Clash of Clans | Clash Royale | Brawl Stars |
|---|---|---|
| Base-building | Real-time strategy | Arena shooter |
| Great for large-scale multiplayer | Great for large-scale multiplayer | More focused on smaller groups |
| Slow and methodical | Fast-paced | Fast-paced |
| Less battles, more base building and management | Battle-focused and naturally more competitive | Battle-focused and naturally more competitive |
The biggest distinction here is the genre of game (top row), but it’s important to remember that all three of these games could be categorized into multiple areas. Clash of Clans is certainly a base-building game first, but it’s also a strategy game. Clash Royale is an RTS, but so is Brawl Stars technically, even if it’s more of a shooter. For this distinction, we simply categorized the games based on how they feel as a whole. Your individual experience could change slightly depending on how you choose to play.
When we say that Clash of Clans and Clash Royale both excel in large-scale multiplayer, what we mean is that they can be played with huge groups of friends. Wanna play a game with everyone in your work group or class? Just make a Clash of Clans or Royale clan and help each other out! In Brawl Stars, however, you can have a more focused multiplayer experience that more closely resembles a console game. You can drop into a game with a couple friends and battle it out, then find new people and do it all over again without worrying about troops. It’s the better choice if you have one or two friends you want to play a mobile game with, where Clash of Clans and Royale are better for big groups.
There’s also the pace of the game(s) to consider. We’ve already covered this, but it’s worth mentioning again because of how much it impacts the experience. Clash of Clans is a slow-paced game that takes a long time to level up in. Clash Royale and Brawl Stars can also take a long time to rank up in, but give more instant satisfaction. It’s much easier to load into Clash Royale or Brawl Stars and immediately have fun, where Clash of Clans requires you to plan things out more long term.
The last part of the chart above mentions how competitive the games are, but this is also subjective. Any of these can be played at a competitive level, but Clash Royale and Brawl Stars promote competitive play more because of how they’re designed. Since you don’t battle as much in Clash of Clans, the competitive e-sports style of gameplay isn’t as popular. The quickplay style of Clash Royale and Brawl Stars leads to a naturally more competitive atmosphere. But you can still play them casually and for fun, of course.
Supercell Games FAQ
For the small questions that might come up, here’s a list of answers!
Who is Clash Royale / Clash of Clans / Brawl Stars Made For?
Supercell games have a reputation for being good multiplayer mobile games for the whole family. There’s not much you could consider offensive or upsetting in these games, so they’re really made for everyone. From children to grandparents, anyone can play and enjoy these games.
Are they Competitive Games?
As with most games these days, there’s a competitive and casual side to each. If you want to take it seriously and get really good, there’s certainly room for that. But you can also just play them for fun, without worrying too much. However you want to play, there’s something for you here.
Is Clash Royale a Sequel to Clash of Clans?
Nope! Even though they do share a lot of the same troops, Clash Royale is not a sequel. You don’t need to know anything about the other game to play one of them. If you are a fan of one of them but haven’t tried the other, you’ll surely find something to like in the other though based on the general vibe of the games if nothing else.
Is Clash of Clans / Clash Royale / Brawl Stars Still Getting Updated?
Absolutely! If there’s anything Supercell does well, it’s updating their games frequently. You can get into any of these games and know for sure there will be updates to keep things fresh. There are also regular balance changes that keep the game exciting. These changes impact the game greatly, which allows it to maintain a healthy meta (usually). With how much cash these games pull in for Supercell, it’s unlikely they’ll stop updating them anytime soon.
Is Clash of Clans / Clash Royale / Brawl Stars Pay-to-Win?
The short answer is no, since you can absolutely play all of these for free at the same level as people who spend money. But all three of these games do promote players spending money to get an in-game advantage. These advantages come in different forms, but often include stuff like leveling up troops quicker than normal, buying characters, and battle passes. If you want to play at a high level, it will take a while to get there without spending money. But you can get there, and many people do. Brawl Stars has less of a pay-to-win reputation than the Clash games, but there is still some level of it there, too. Many people refer to these as “freemium” games, but since they’re still free, it’s at least understandable.
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