Two-player games between an iPhone and an Android
The iMessage gap
The games people play inside Messages are the right idea: a quick challenge sent to one person, no lobby. They have one problem. They are Messages extensions, so they only exist on Apple devices, and the moment one friend has an Android the whole thing stops working.
Duelo keeps the idea and drops the restriction. The challenge goes to one person, but it lives in an app that is identical on both stores, so which phone either of you owns stops mattering.
How cross-play works here
Both apps are built from one codebase and talk to one server. Every move in a turn-based game is validated there before either phone sees it, so the board can never disagree between an iPhone and an Android. In a race, each of you works your own copy of the same puzzle and only progress crosses the wire. Asynchronous challenges are stored and delivered whenever the other phone next opens the app, whatever kind of phone it is.
Where to start
Pick one live game for when you are both free and one asynchronous game for the rest of the week. The record is per game, so you can be winning one and losing the other.
Duelo, in plain facts
- iPhone and Android, and the two play each other: an iPhone player and an Android player share one board.
- 13 games in one app: word games, puzzles, board games and two live panic games.
- 7 of them work when the other person is asleep: you play, they answer whenever they next open the app.
- Sudoku and Queens are co-op: one shared board, both of you on the same side.
- No strangers, no bots, no matchmaking queue. Every opponent is a person you invited.
- Free, no subscription. A one-off Pro purchase removes ads and adds cosmetics; it cannot buy a win.
- A permanent head-to-head record per friend, per game. It never resets.
- Made by a one-person studio in London. Last updated October 2026.
Questions
Can an iPhone and an Android phone play two-player games together?+
Yes. Duelo runs the same app on both, and one board is shared between the two phones, so an iPhone player and an Android player can duel each other or solve together. All 13 games work across the two platforms.
Why can't my Android friend play the games inside iMessage?+
Games inside iMessage run as Messages extensions, which only exist on Apple devices, so both players need an iPhone. A cross-platform app avoids that: each person installs it from their own store and the game lives in the app, not in the messaging thread.
Do we both need to install the app?+
To keep a running head-to-head record, yes: the record belongs to two accounts. Both installs are free. An invite link opens the right store for whichever phone your friend has.
Does one platform get features first?+
No. Both apps are built from the same code and ship together. A game that exists on iPhone exists on Android the same day.
Do we need to be online at the same time?+
Not for 7 of the 13 games. You play, the result waits, your friend plays the same puzzle later, and the score compares. The board games and the two panic games are live.
Can strangers join?+
No. There is no matchmaking and no public lobby. Every opponent is a person you invited.