BS Football vs Retro Bowl — Arcade Football or Front-Office Football?

Last updated October 2026.

TL;DR

Retro Bowl and BS Football both put you in charge of a football team, but they are built around opposite halves of the job. Retro Bowl is an arcade game: you play quarterback on offense in charming 8-bit style, and the management layer is light. BS Football is a front-office simulator: the games are simulated (or play-called), and the depth is in scouting, drafting, the salary cap, trades, and building a dynasty over many seasons. If you love Retro Bowl's team-building moments and want much more of that, BS Football is the next step.

At-a-Glance Comparison

Feature	BS Football	Retro Bowl
Core gameplay	General manager simulation	Arcade on-field offense
You control players on the field	No (you can call plays live)	Yes, on offense; defense is simulated
Scouting	3-tier scouting with Deep Scout	Light
Draft	Full seven-round draft	Draft picks
Roster management	Contracts, hard cap with dead money, trades with 31 AI GMs	Trades, cuts, free agency, team morale
Rosters	Current NFL rosters or historical eras	Teams based on NFL counterparts
Platforms	Any browser, desktop or mobile	iOS, Android, Nintendo Switch, web
Price	Free (optional Premium)	Free to play with a paid unlimited version

What Retro Bowl Does Best

Retro Bowl, from New Star Games, launched on iOS and Android in January 2020 and later came to Nintendo Switch and the web. It became a phenomenon, topping Apple's free app chart in late 2021, and the Switch version scores 84 on Metacritic. The appeal is obvious: pick-up-and-play passing with a satisfying feel, short sessions, and just enough management (trades, cuts, free agency, morale, and press conferences) to make you care about your roster. New Star also released Retro Bowl College in 2023, with 250 college programs and a scholarship budget instead of a salary cap.

What BS Football Does Best

BS Football is all front office. Every draft involves real uncertainty because prospects are revealed through tiered scouting, and you have to decide where to spend your scouting resources. Contracts count against a hard cap with dead money, so a bad signing hurts for seasons. Thirty-one AI front offices run their own strategies, players develop and age, and your owner sets objectives that can get you fired. When a game matters, you can take over play calling with Call the Play; otherwise you can sim an entire season in minutes.

The Key Difference: Hands vs Head

Retro Bowl rewards your thumbs: reading coverage and dropping a throw into a window. BS Football rewards long-term judgment: knowing when to rebuild, which rookie to extend, and whether a trade-deadline rental is worth your second-round pick. Many players enjoy both. They scratch different itches.

Who Should Choose Retro Bowl

• You want to play the games yourself
• You want quick, arcade-style sessions on your phone
• You like a light management layer, not a deep one

Who Should Choose BS Football

• Your favorite part of Retro Bowl is building the roster
• You want a real draft, real scouting, and a real salary cap
• You want to build a dynasty over many seasons
• You want a free game with no download

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a Retro Bowl with more GM features?

If you want deeper management than Retro Bowl offers, a dedicated GM simulator like BS Football is the natural step up: full scouting, a seven-round draft, a hard salary cap with dead money, trades with AI front offices, and multi-season player development.

Can I play BS Football on my phone like Retro Bowl?

Yes. BS Football runs in your phone's browser with no app download, and your franchise saves as you go.

Does BS Football let me control players?

No. You do not move players on the field. You can call plays live with Call the Play, or let the simulation run.

Is BS Football free?

Yes. The full game is free to play, with an optional Premium tier for extras like ad-free play and more scouting points.

Play BS Football Free in Your Browser