Short answer:
they’re all the same core idea — race your pawn to the far side of a grid while dropping walls to send your opponent the long way around.
Quoridor is the classic tabletop game that popularized the mechanic.
Blocade and
Barricade are two separate, unaffiliated mobile games built on that same idea. If you heard about
Blocade and want to make sure you’ve got the right one: it’s spelled
B-L-O-C-A-D-E (no “r”), and you can
play it free here.
The 10-second version
Quoridor = the original board game. Blocade = a free, mobile-first take with bots, daily puzzles, and online ranked play. Barricade = a different studio’s app in the same genre. Same idea, different products — and Blocade and Barricade are not affiliated.
How they compare at a glance
A dash (—) means it varies by app or version. Feature sets change over time; this reflects Blocade as of 2026. | Blocade | Quoridor | Barricade |
|---|
| What it is | Free mobile + web game | Physical board game (1997) | A mobile app by another studio |
| Core idea | Race across; wall your rival | Race across; wall your rival | Race across; wall your rival |
| Board | 9×9 grid | 9×9 grid | Grid, race-and-wall |
| Walls | 10 each; can’t fully block | 10 each; can’t fully block | Walls block paths |
| Play vs bots | Yes — full difficulty ladder | No | — |
| Daily puzzles | Yes | No | — |
| Online ranked | Yes — Elo ladder | No | — |
| Price | Free to play | Buy the box | Free download |
| Affiliated with Blocade? | — | No (public-domain mechanic) | No — separate company |
What is Quoridor?
Quoridor is an abstract-strategy board game first published in 1997 by Gigamic. Two (or four) players each race a pawn from their home row to the opposite side of a 9×9 board, and on any turn can instead place a wall to lengthen an opponent’s route — with the one rule that you can never wall someone off entirely. It’s the game that made the “move-or-wall” mechanic famous, and because that mechanic itself isn’t owned by anyone, it’s been reimagined many times since.
What is Blocade?
Blocade is a free, modern take on that race-and-wall idea, built for your phone and the web. It keeps the classic rules and adds the things a great mobile game needs: a ladder of
bots to practice against (from gentle to ruthless),
daily puzzles drawn from real positions,
online ranked matches with an Elo rating and global leaderboards, and post-game review that grades your moves. You can start instantly in a browser — no download, no sign-up — and the full app is free on iOS and Android. Learn the rules in our
How to Play Blocade guide.
What is Barricade?
Barricade is a different mobile game, made by a separate studio, that’s built on the same race-and-wall genre. It isn’t affiliated with Blocade in any way — the two are independent products that happen to share a public-domain mechanic (the same way many apps are all “solitaire” or all “chess”). We mention it only because the names sound alike, so if you were looking for Blocade specifically, this page is the right place — the game is spelled Blocade, no “r”.
So which should you play?
•
Want the physical board game to play at a table? Get Quoridor, the classic.
•
Want to play free on your phone or browser — with bots to practice against, daily puzzles, and online ranked matches? That’s Blocade.
•
Just here to try it right now? You can play Blocade in your browser in one tap, then take your streak to the app.
Blocade vs Barricade vs Quoridor: FAQ
Is Blocade the same as Barricade?
No. They’re two separate, unaffiliated mobile games that share the same public-domain race-and-wall mechanic. The game called Blocade (no “r”) is the one at playblocade.com.
Are Blocade and Barricade made by the same company?
No — they’re made by different, unrelated studios and are not affiliated.
Is Blocade just a Quoridor clone?
Blocade uses the classic Quoridor-style mechanic (which isn’t owned by anyone) and builds a modern, mobile-first game around it: bots, daily puzzles, online ranked play, and move-by-move review.
What’s the difference between Blocade and Quoridor?
Quoridor is the 1997 tabletop board game. Blocade is a free digital game built on the same idea, playable on iOS, Android, and the web, with single-player bots and online multiplayer that a physical board can’t offer.
Is Blocade free?
Yes. Blocade is free to play in your browser (no sign-up) and free to download on iOS and Android. An optional Plus subscription removes ads and unlocks extras.
Play Blocade free