# Crying Suns — Space tactical rogue-lite

> Tactical space fleet commander rogue-lite with story-rich exploration and ship battles. (iPhone/iPad app by Alternative Shift.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/crying-suns/id1511788295 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Alternative Shift](https://appshunter.io/developer/394617049)
- Category: Games, Role Playing, Strategy
- Price: $8.99
- Rating: 4.80/5 from 2,136 App Store ratings · 282 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 12+
- Requires: iOS 13.0 · 1014 MB
- Languages: American English, French (France), German (Germany), Japanese, Russian, Chinese (Simplified, China), European Spanish
- Released: 2020-06-25
- Data updated: 2026-08-28
- Monetization: paid
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/crying-suns/id1511788295/reviews.md

## What is Crying Suns?

When FTL meets Foundation and Dune: Crying Suns is a tactical rogue-lite that puts you in the role of a space fleet commander as you explore a mysteriously fallen empire. In this story rich experience inspired by Dune and Foundation, each successful run will uncover the truth about the Empire... and yourself as well.

Main Features:
- Space exploration in a procedurally-generated universe
- Tactical fights between battleships and their squadron fleets
- More than 300 possible story events
- A deep and dramatic storyline structured in 6 chapters
- A dark and disturbing atmosphere inspired by our favorite S-F universes (Foundation, Dune, Battlestar Galactica)

First released on PC and Mac, the indie hit Crying Suns was carefully redesigned for mobile and tablets, including a revamped interface and intuitive touchscreen interactions.

Pay once to get the full Crying Suns experience! No ads, no F2P mechanics! All future updates included.

Supported languages: English, French, German, Spanish, Russian, Simplified Chinese, and Japanese

If you encounter any problem, please contact us at contact@cryingsuns.com with as much information as possible on the issue.

## Key features

- Procedurally-generated space exploration
- Tactical battleship and squadron fleet combat
- Over 300 story events
- Deep, 6-chapter storyline
- Mobile-optimized interface

## Chart rankings

- #55 in Top Paid · Role Playing (US App Store)
- #95 in Top Paid · Strategy (US App Store)

## What do users think of Crying Suns?

Overall sentiment: positive

**Pros**

- 🚀 Fun gameplay
- 🌟 Amazing atmosphere and story
- 👍 Engaging combat system
- 💎 Great value for money

**Cons**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔍 Small text and UI elements
- 🔁 Repetitive gameplay and missions

**Commonly reported bugs**

- Game crashes when using certain ship abilities
- Crashes during end-of-chapter cutscenes
- Progression-blocking bugs preventing access to new content
- Inability to progress past specific story points due to crashes

**Most requested features**

- Zoom functionality for combat screen
- Ability to play own music during gameplay
- Endless mode or sandbox option
- Improved tutorial to explain key mechanics

## Recent user reviews (10 of 282)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/crying-suns/id1511788295/reviews.md

### 5/5 — Amazing strategy game BUT

*2026-08-10, version 3.0.3*

Amazing game but PLEASE let me play my own audio while playing. If I am listening to a podcast or music it pauses when I open the app

### 2/5 — Missed opportunity

*2026-07-31, version 3.0.3*

The concept is good.  The RTS space battles are generally well done.  The difficulty is dreadfully unbalanced.  It is either no challenge on easy or practically unwinnable on normal (sector 1, fighting an enemy with more and higher level squadrons before you’ve had a chance to improve your ship).  There are too many lore stops (where you spend in game resources to get weak stories that don’t even progress the plot and nothing to help in the gameplay).  The overall story is shallow and (SPOILER ALERT) nihilistic.  FTL is a far better game

### 5/5 — best on mobile

*2026-07-19, version 3.0.3*

an almost perfect game, have to be an almost perfect gamer to wrap it

### 5/5 — Amazing!

*2026-07-02, version 3.0.3*

The game I love the most playing! It has been years and I never get tired of it!

### 5/5 — Le jeu est dingue.

*2026-06-27, version 3.0.3*

Vraiment. Laissé de côté pendant quelques mois, j’ai été absorbé quand je suis tombé dedans.

### 4/5 — Letra muy pequeña

*2026-05-27, version 3.0.3*

Es entretenido y con buena historia. Un juego de verdad y no lo que encuentras gratis. Es más para iPad que para iPhone ya que la letra es diminuta y consume muchísima batería

### 5/5 — Worth The Money

*2026-04-27, version 3.0.3*

No micro transactions. Roguelite gameplay that builds death and respawning into the story. Both combat (main gameplay loop) and planet expeditions (mini games) are fun. Only complaint is there a long dialogue at the end of chapter 5 with no save in between. If you don’t finish the dialogue you have to fight the sector boss again. But that’s pretty minor.

### 5/5 — Brilliant game

*2026-04-23, version 3.0.3*

I didn’t expected such a great game. They speak about “runs” so I was expecting an easy game that you would then play in different difficulties. But doing different runs is part of the main game. The story is great and the strategical part of the game challenging. I loved playing it!

### 2/5 — Not made for iPhones

*2026-04-04, version 3.0.3*

I can imagine this would be a great game on a computer or iPad, but it’s a waste of money on the iPhone. Can’t read any of the text (too tiny) and the graphics are too small to tell the difference between ship types and details). I lasted a couple of hours before deleting.

### 5/5 — Jeu genial, difficile et addictif, histoire au top

*2026-03-13, version 3.0.3*

Je ne me lasse pas de jouer a Crying Suns, jeu que l’on découvre avec plaisir au gré de son histoire tres bien ficelée et auquel on revient pour réussir les chapitres en mode difficile. Le jeu est déjà ardu lorsque l’on débute, mais on progresse vraiment au fur et à mesure des parties, et ca c’est un bonheur.

## Frequently asked questions about Crying Suns

### What kind of game is Crying Suns?

Crying Suns is a tactical rogue-lite game where you play as a space fleet commander. It combines space exploration in a procedurally generated universe with strategic battles between battleships and their squadrons. The game features a deep, story-rich experience inspired by classic science fiction novels.

### What are the main features of Crying Suns?

Key features include space exploration in a procedurally generated universe, tactical fights between battleships and their squadron fleets, over 300 possible story events, and a deep, dramatic storyline structured in 6 chapters. It also boasts a dark atmosphere inspired by sci-fi universes like Foundation and Dune.

### How much does Crying Suns cost?

Crying Suns is a premium game that you pay for once to get the full experience. There are no advertisements or free-to-play mechanics, and all future updates are included with your purchase.

### Is Crying Suns available on mobile devices?

Yes, Crying Suns was originally released on PC and Mac and has been carefully redesigned for mobile and tablets. It features a revamped interface and intuitive touchscreen interactions for a smooth mobile experience.

### What is the story of Crying Suns about?

The game puts you in the role of a space fleet commander exploring a mysteriously fallen empire. Each successful run helps uncover the truth about the Empire and your own identity, within a narrative structured across six chapters and influenced by iconic sci-fi works.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 3.0.3 — 2023-12-18

Gameplay
​
- Fixed displayed duration of the Engine Disruptor weapon effect when used with the Tactical Weapon officer ability
- Fixed Prag Mah beacons displayed incorrectly with the Pirate transponder
​
Interface, Graphics and Sounds
​
- Fixed a blocking bug that would occur when the player had no more fuel and too many officers at the same time
- Fixed ending bosses exhibiting regular human officiers
​
BugFix Major
​
- Fixed a bug that prevented players to receive the Hammer class battleship when finishing chapter 4
​
BugFix Minor
​
- Fixed a misplaced mask in the Intel Broker tutorial
- Fixed some translations
- Other various bug fixes

### 3.0.1 — 2023-06-16

Various bug fixes and improvements

### 3.0.0 — 2023-05-17

The “Last Orders'' update is the final free extension for Crying Suns. 
It includes 2 new character factions, the Prag Mah (a caste of relentless imperial judges and executioners) and the Phalanx (an order of deadly mercenary warriors), but also many new contents to discover:

• 2 New playable Battleships with a totally new playstyle for each faction
• 4 New special officers (2 for each faction)
• 12 New battlefield items (weapons, units, auxiliary systems, etc.)
• 30 New events related to the new factions
• New Achievements to unlock
• New “quality of life” features and other various improvements

If you already own Crying Suns, it should update the new content automatically without any impact on your current save. Last Orders update is included free for anyone who purchases the game from this point forward.

### 2.2.4 — 2021-04-19

- New feature: players can now export & import save files, allowing the manual loading of a PC/Mac save on Mobile or a Mobile save on PC/Mac (see new item in Options menu)
- The game is now paused when the app enters background activity
​- Fixed a crash when entering a red system

### 2.2.0 — 2020-12-11

Performance optimizations
Various bug fixes

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## More apps by Alternative Shift

- [Not Not - A Brain-Buster](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/not-not-a-brain-buster/id1107589341)
- [Not Not 2 - A Brain Challenge](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/not-not-2-a-brain-challenge/id1575206039)

All apps by Alternative Shift: https://appshunter.io/developer/394617049

## Related topics

[ftl](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/ftl) · [alternative games](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/alternative-games)

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-28.*