Battle Builder vs OpenSpades and BetterSpades
"Ace of Spades" means two different games. The free classic game (versions 0.75 and 0.76) lives on through open-source clients such as OpenSpades and BetterSpades. The later commercial 1.x game, Ace of Spades: Battle Builder, is what this revival brings back. Both are great; they just don't play together.
At a glance
| Classic 0.75 (OpenSpades, BetterSpades) | Battle Builder 1.x (this revival) | |
|---|---|---|
| Game | The original free Ace of Spades classic. | The later commercial game, first sold on Steam as Ace of Spades and later titled Battle Builder. |
| Clients | Open-source OpenSpades and BetterSpades (plus the original 0.75 client). | The original Steam/non-Steam client, and the new BattleSpades client. |
| Servers | Classic servers such as piqueserver. | BattleSpades. |
| Network protocol | 0.75 / 0.76. | Protocol 168. Not compatible with 0.75. |
| Classes | One soldier with rifle, SMG or shotgun. | Commando, Marksman, Engineer, Miner, Specialist, Medic, Rocketeer and mode classes. |
| Modes | CTF and Territory Control, plus server scripts. | Ten modes, from Team Deathmatch to Occupation, plus Classic CTF. |
| Building | Single blocks and digging. | Blocks, block lines, class constructs (prefabs), drills, dynamite and collapsing structures. |
| Game files | Freely available. | Needs your own copy of Battle Builder. |
Which one should you play?
- You loved classes, jetpacks, drills, zombies or the Map Creator: that's Battle Builder. Start at How to play Ace of Spades.
- You loved one soldier, a spade and pure CTF on the classic maps: that's the classic game. OpenSpades and BetterSpades are the way to play it, and Battle Builder's own Classic CTF mode is a close cousin on seven classic-style maps.
- You want both: they install side by side and don't interfere with each other.
Classic CTF inside Battle Builder
Battle Builder shipped a Classic CTF mode for classic fans: everyone plays the Deuce with the Classic Rifle, SMG or Shotgun on maps such as Trenches, Hiesville and WW1. It still runs on Battle Builder's engine and protocol, so it's not a way to join 0.75 servers. See game modes.
Where to find each project
Common questions
Can OpenSpades join Battle Builder servers?+
No. OpenSpades and BetterSpades speak the classic 0.75/0.76 protocol, while Battle Builder uses protocol 168. They can't join each other's servers.
Is BattleSpades a fork of OpenSpades or pyspades?+
No. BattleSpades is a from-scratch, clean-room server for the Battle Builder protocol, built from measurements of the original client. Some community skins in the revival's crates were originally made for OpenSpades and are credited to their authors.
Which one is more popular?+
The classic game has had an active open-source community for years. Battle Builder only became playable again with the revival's Beta 0.1 in September 2026, so its player base is still growing.
