Comparison

Space Grunts vs Loop Hero

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Space Grunts

Engage in a unique blend of fast-paced arcade action and strategic turn-based combat. Explore a distressed moon base, battling aliens and robots to uncover its secrets. Utilize a variety of weapons and consumables to survive and complete your mission.

Highlights
  • Turn-based gameplay
  • Arcade action
  • Roguelike shooter elements
  • Alien and robot combat
  • Weapon and consumable collection
  • Secret areas and routes
Features
Read full description

Support, tip and tricks: http://www.orangepixel.net "This is a turn-based game for people who don't like turn-based games, and a roguelike shooter for people who hate roguelike shooters." - TouchArcade 4/5 Space Grunts combines fast paced arcade action with turn-based gameplay. The year 2476, Earth's space-federation has been building moon-bases across the galaxy. One of those moon-bases has been sending a distress signal. Space Grunts are a group of intergalactic "problem" solvers, sent to investigate.. You play one, out of a team, of Space Grunts, and your mission is simple: find your way into the moon-base, and figure out what has happened. You'll have to fight your way through aliens, robots, security drones and base-systems. Find the lower levels of the moon-base, and get to the core of the problems. Consumables A large collection of consumables can be found all over the moon base from weapon enhancers, to destructive toys, armor, explosives, system-hacks, and more. Use the items wisely to advance deeper into the moon-base. Weapons Starting with three standard Grunt weapons, you will be able to enhance them for more fire-power and range. On your way you'll also find alternate weapons, and melee weapons. Secrets There are various ways to complete the game, anomalies leading to weird places, underground routes, and mysterious items to transport you to other area's of the moon-base. On top of these there are secret rooms and area's located all over the base, so never a dull moment! Can you find the core of the problems? MFI support Got questions? need tips or help? visit our forums: http://orangepixel.net or connect and say hi: twitter.com/orangepixel facebook.com/orangepixel

About

Loop Hero

This roguelike RPG lets you strategically place cards to build unique expedition loops for your hero. Collect loot, expand your camp, and unlock new classes and abilities to break an endless cycle of chaos. Experience a dark fantasy story with retro pixel art, optimized for mobile play.

Highlights
  • Randomly generated expedition loops
  • Card-based strategic placement
  • Loot collection and equipment management
  • Camp expansion and upgrades
  • Unlockable classes and cards
  • Retro pixel art style
  • Mobile-optimized interface
Features
Read full description

*Try Loop Hero for free and unlock the full game for the whole adventure!* The Lich has thrown the world into a timeless loop and plunged its inhabitants into never ending chaos. In this roguelike RPG, wield an expanding deck of mystical cards to place enemies, buildings, and terrain along each unique expedition loop for the brave hero. Recover and equip powerful loot for each class of hero for their battles and expand the survivors' camp to reinforce each adventure through the loop. Unlock new classes, new cards, and devious guardians on your quest to shatter the endless cycle of despair. FEATURES - Explore an endless number of paths: bring your hero on randomly generated loops and never experience the same run twice. - Shape your expeditions into darkness: build your deck and place your cards to script your hero’s trials and tribulations. - Loot as you loop to rebuild the world: recover your memories as you collect equipment and resources to become stronger, reconstruct your camp and get your reality back. - Plunge into a gloomy universe: discover a melancholic dark fantasy story told through a retro pixel art direction and recollect the memories of this world. - Break the cycle: triumph over mighty bosses to free the world from the Lich’s neverending time loop. CAREFULLY REDESIGNED FOR MOBILE - Revamped interface – exclusive mobile UI with complete touch control - Game Center achievements - Cloud Save – Share your progress between iOS devices - Compatible with MFi controllers - iPhone 15 Optimization (including Pro Max)

Screenshots

Space Grunts4 screens
Loop Hero4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Loop Hero at Free against Space Grunts's $3.99. Loop Hero also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.2) and ratings volume (3.9K vs 15). Space Grunts's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 15.0). On review sentiment, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Loop Hero is free to download; Space Grunts costs $3.99 up front. Loop Hero sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Space Grunts asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Loop Hero holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Loop Hero has 3.9K ratings behind it against 15, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 76% and 75% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Space Grunts ships an update every 5 weeks, Loop Hero every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Space Grunts versus Loop Hero: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSpace GruntsLoop Hero
Price$3.99Free — better
Rating4.2 (15 ratings)4.9 (3.9K ratings) — better
Positive reviews75.9% of reviews — better75.0% of reviews
Number of ratings153.9K — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS8.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size52 MB228 MB
Age rating12+9+
DeveloperPascal BestebroerPlaydigious

Customer experience

Space Grunts

All ratings15 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral6.7%
Negative13.3%
Written reviews58 reviews
Positive75.9%
Neutral12.1%
Negative12.1%

Loop Hero

All ratings3,939 ratings
Positive97.4%
Neutral0.7%
Negative1.8%
Written reviews288 reviews
Positive75.0%
Neutral6.6%
Negative18.4%

User reviews

Space Grunts

From 15 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Masterpiece quality
  • 🚀 Fast and snappy gameplay
  • 💡 Great tribute to roguelikes
  • 💡 Huge variety of items/enemies
  • 💡 Strategic depth required

Room to improve

  • 🔊 Terrifyingly loud sound effects
  • 🐛 Virtual D-pad bugged (left direction)
  • 🐛 Controls can be funky/iffy
  • 🐛 Virtual controls nightmare
  • 🐛 Virtual D-pad dead zone

Loop Hero

From 3.9K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Excellent mechanics
  • 👍 Great replayability
  • 👍 Charming graphics
  • 👍 Unique and enjoyable experience
  • 👍 Smooth gameplay

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Sound doesn't work
  • 🐛 Crashes and freezes
  • 🐛 Unresponsive after certain actions
  • 🐛 Difficulty reading small text
  • 🐛 Accidental card placement

Bugs and requests

Space Grunts

Reported bugs

7 issues
  • Virtual D-pad bugged (left direction)
  • Update loop
  • Something wrong with left on directional pad
  • No sound on iPad 3
  • Sensitive movement issue on iOS version
Show 2 more
  • Virtual joystick issues
  • Game progress resets after using other apps

Requested features

23 requests
  • Fix controls, especially left direction
  • Implement class specific leaderboards
  • Add a wait command
  • Add shootable doors
  • Re-implement class specific leaderboards
Show 18 more
  • Add MFi controller support
  • Add more monsters
  • Add weapons to find and swap
  • Add a wait button
  • Add swipe movement/tap to shoot control scheme
  • Implement a swipe-type mechanic for controls
  • Add diagonal shooting
  • Improve on-screen controls
  • Add tutorial
  • Improve graphics
  • Add more variety to weapons
  • Add save mid-dungeon
  • Add controller fix for sensitive movement
  • Add Vita version
  • Add dark mode
  • Add more variety to weapons
  • Add wait button
  • Add swipe movement/tap to shoot control scheme

Loop Hero

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Game crashes after defeating first boss
  • Unplayable after initial progress
  • Inability to progress past trial version

Requested features

4 requests
  • Portrait mode
  • More classes/build diversity
  • Improved UI/overlay customization
  • Chinese language support

In-app purchases

None

Space Grunts

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Loop Hero

One-time1
  • Unlock Full Game$6.99

Questions

Is Space Grunts free?
Space Grunts costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Loop Hero free?
Loop Hero is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Space Grunts or Loop Hero?
Loop Hero is rated higher. Space Grunts averages 4.2 out of 5 from 15 ratings, while Loop Hero averages 4.9 from 3.9K ratings.
Do Space Grunts or Loop Hero have ads?
Neither Space Grunts nor Loop Hero shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Space Grunts or Loop Hero?
Space Grunts ships an update every 5 weeks, and Loop Hero every 2 weeks. Most recently, Space Grunts was updated on November 7, 2026 and Loop Hero on November 4, 2026.

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