LaunchBox vs RAWG
LaunchBox
launchbox-app.com
RAWG
rawg.ioSide by side
| Figure | LaunchBox | RAWG |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $149/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | — | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| Android | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 8 | 3 |
| Spec score · Game Databases | 9.0 (#1) | 7.8 (#6) |
| Company | LaunchBox is made by Unbroken Software, LLC. | RAWG's API terms identify the service provider as Behind the Games, UAB, at Jovaro g. 7-2, 03104 Vilnius, Lithuania. |
| Product | LaunchBox is a game collection frontend and manager for modern PC games and emulated console games. | RAWG describes itself as a video game database and game discovery service that shares its games, search, and machine-learning recommendations through an API. |
| Support | The maker points users to technical support forums, how-to video tutorials, bug reporting, and feature requests. | The API page offers email support on the Business plan and priority email support on Enterprise, and directs other API questions to email or Discord. |
Plans
LaunchBox
- StarterFree
- Starter (Windows)Free
- Regular$30, paid once
- Regular (Windows)$30, paid once
- Bundle (Windows and Android)$35, paid once
- Windows and Android bundle$35, paid once
- Lifetime$75, paid once
- Lifetime (Windows)$75, paid once
In their own words
LaunchBox
LaunchBox is a game collection frontend and manager for modern PC games and emulated console games. It can import Steam and GOG games, ROM files, and MS-DOS games, then retrieve box art and metadata from its Games Database along with fan art, screenshots, and logos. Collections can be arranged and filtered by genre, platform, ESRB rating, developer, and publisher, with custom status and source fields. The Windows app supports Windows 10 and higher, with Windows 10 and 11 described as fully supported. LaunchBox for Android is free for collections of 100 games or fewer; it shares the games database, media, and portable XML data with Windows, and Windows data can be exported to Android. Premium adds themes, Big Box mode, gamepad automation, startup and pause screens, and display customization. The Regular Windows license costs $30 as a one-time purchase and includes a year of free updates. The maker says Premium is DRM-free and can be deployed to as many personal devices as desired. Windows data can also be moved by copying the app to another folder or computer.
RAWG
RAWG is a video game database and discovery service that provides game data, search, and machine-learning recommendations through an API, alongside its web platform. Its API page lists 500,000+ games across 50 platforms, including mobile. Records can include descriptions, genres, release dates, store links, ESRB and Metacritic ratings, playtime, gameplay videos, system requirements, and downloadable content and franchise information. RAWG says similar-game recommendations use computer vision; player activity data includes Steam average playtime and RAWG player counts and ratings. Every API request requires an API key. The Free plan is for non-commercial projects, allows up to 20,000 requests per month, and requires backlinks to RAWG where data is used. Business costs $149 a month and allows commercial use with up to 50,000 monthly requests. Terms permit free commercial use for startups and hobby projects at or below 100,000 monthly active users or 500,000 page views per month; larger projects are directed to request commercial terms. Attribution with an active RAWG hyperlink is required, and resale or redistribution to other businesses is prohibited.