Comparison

Beneath The Lighthouse vs Ava Airborne

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

Head to head
About

Beneath The Lighthouse

Embark on a serene puzzle adventure as a boy searching for his lost Grandpa. Explore mysterious mechanical contraptions beneath a darkened lighthouse and uncover the truth behind its silence. This game offers a free-to-play experience with ads and a lives system, or a premium unlock to remove ads and the lives system.

Highlights
  • Serene puzzle action gameplay
  • Explore mysterious mechanical wheels
  • Search for a lost Grandpa
  • Free-to-play with ads
  • Premium unlock option
  • Lives system (free version)
Features
Read full description

"I stare at the horizon every night before I sleep hoping to catch a glimpse of the lighthouse.The light reminds me of Grandpa and my summer visits playing on the cliffs. That warm life saving beacon not only saves ships, it keeps me safe too. Grandpa’s there just across the water watching over me. But the lighthouse hasn't shone now for days and the fog is thick! What's happened? It's time to visit Grandpa!" Beneath the lighthouse is a serene puzzle action game about a boy in search of his lost Grandpa. Your journey will take you through mysterious mechanical wheels that lay beneath the lighthouse! **Beneath The Lighthouse is optimized for iPhone5, iPad3, iPad mini2 and iPod Touch 5G or Newer. You can try it on older devices, but we can’t guarantee a smooth rolling experience! -This game is free to play or can be unlocked to a premium experience- Free to Play: We use advertising to monetise the experience. There are no coins/gems/booster to pay for or timers. The free version of the game contains a lives system which is carefully balanced to be fair but that makes the game slightly harder than premium. Premium unlock: We offer a single iAP to unlock the game to a premium experience. The premium version contains no 3rd party ads and we remove the lives system. This game contains cross promotion for other Nitrome games and this is not removed with the IAP for removal of ads.

About

Ava Airborne

Experience a thrilling journey as you guide Ava through a hazardous skyline, defying gravity. Master the skies with various unique flying contraptions and collect trinkets to customize your character. Progress through fifteen pilot levels and discover flying companions.

Highlights
  • Endless flying gameplay
  • Fifteen pilot progression levels
  • Collectible trinkets and companions
  • Unique flying contraptions
  • Hazardous skyline navigation
Features
Read full description

Ava believes she can fly. Immerse yourself in this thrilling journey across a beautiful yet hazardous skyline. Weave between giant bomb-balloons, dive into turbo-charged catapults, bounce off trampolines and launch up into the clouds. Just never touch the floor. Defy gravity. With style. Lovingly crafted by the multi-award winning British indie studio Laserdog, Ava Airborne lets you master the sky with anything you can find: cardboard wings, rocket-propelled boots, an old umbrella, or even a jet-fuelled trombone. ==================== TAKE TO THE SKIES: Glide Ava as far as you can without touching the floor - the further you fly, the bigger the reward! JOIN THE ELITE: Progress Ava through fifteen levels of pilot, from the beginner’s Leaf rank to the ultra-exclusive Ace class! BIRD BUDDIES: Get a little boost from Ava’s flying companions, from Steven the Seagull to Duckington McDuckFace! FALLING BEAUTY: Customise your very own Ava by collecting your very own trinkets, charms and companions! Follow Ava as she flies on Social: - https://www.facebook.com/AvaAirborne/ - https://www.instagram.com/avaairborne/ - https://www.snapchat.com/add/avaairborne © 2018 PlayStack LTD.

Screenshots

Beneath The Lighthouse4 screens
Ava Airborne4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Ava Airborne at none against Beneath The Lighthouse's shown. Ava Airborne also leads on update cadence (every 10 days vs every 4 months) and ratings volume (255 vs 70). Beneath The Lighthouse's advantage is rating (4.2 vs 3.9). On price, review sentiment, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

Both are free to download. Beneath The Lighthouse sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Ava Airborne sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Beneath The Lighthouse holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 3.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 70 and 255 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 57% of Beneath The Lighthouse's written reviews are positive against 50% of Ava Airborne's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Beneath The Lighthouse ships an update every 4 months, Ava Airborne every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Beneath The Lighthouse versus Ava Airborne: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBeneath The LighthouseAva Airborne
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (70 ratings) — better3.9 (255 ratings)
Positive reviews56.8% of reviews — better49.5% of reviews
Number of ratings70255 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 10 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS11.08.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size205 MB151 MB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperNitromePlaystack Ltd

Customer experience

Beneath The Lighthouse

All ratings69 ratings
Positive73.9%
Neutral11.6%
Negative14.5%
Written reviews227 reviews
Positive56.8%
Neutral16.7%
Negative26.4%

Ava Airborne

All ratings255 ratings
Positive69.4%
Neutral10.6%
Negative20.0%
Written reviews636 reviews
Positive49.5%
Neutral16.5%
Negative34.0%

User reviews

Beneath The Lighthouse

From 70 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Smooth gameplay
  • 👍 Beautiful graphics
  • 🎨 Unique and creative concept
  • ⏱️ Satisfying to complete levels
  • 🎵 Great soundtrack

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and freezes on some devices
  • 💸 Intrusive ads
  • 🕹️ Challenging controls
  • 🔁 Repetitive gameplay
  • 🕰️ Levels can be frustratingly difficult

Ava Airborne

From 255 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎨 Beautiful graphics and art style
  • 🎶 Relaxing and enjoyable background music
  • 🕹️ Smooth and intuitive gameplay
  • 💎 Unique and fun flying contraptions
  • 🎁 Generous free content and no forced ads

Room to improve

  • 🔁 Repetitive obstacles and hazards
  • 🤯 Difficulty spike as progress is made
  • 💰 Expensive in-app purchases for new contraptions
  • 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs
  • 🕰️ Long wait times between runs

Bugs and requests

Beneath The Lighthouse

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Inability to skip intro
  • Screen rotation issues
  • Crashes after completing levels
  • Glitches with character model

Requested features

5 requests
  • More levels
  • Ability to listen to own music
  • Difficulty settings
  • Checkpoint system
  • Improved performance on older devices

Ava Airborne

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Contraption menu getting stuck or unresponsive
  • Inconsistent candy/mileage tracking and rewards
  • Crashes when attempting to watch rewarded videos

Requested features

4 requests
  • More varied environments and level designs
  • Ability to permanently unlock contraptions
  • Option to disable hazards for a relaxing mode
  • Clearer explanations of contraption abilities

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Beneath The Lighthouse

One-time1
  • Premium Unlock$3.99
10 purchases

Ava Airborne

One-time10
  • Handful of Sweets$1.99
  • Rocket Chair$1.99
  • Sweet-O-Tron 9000$2.99
Show 7 more
  • Sweet-O-Tron 9000$3.99
  • Bag of Sweets$4.99
  • Rupooza$4.99
  • Jar of Sweets$9.99
  • Bleep Bloop$9.99
  • Shoebox of Sweets$19.99
  • Barrel of Sweets$54.99

Questions

Is Beneath The Lighthouse free?
Beneath The Lighthouse is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Ava Airborne free?
Ava Airborne is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Beneath The Lighthouse or Ava Airborne?
Beneath The Lighthouse is rated higher. Beneath The Lighthouse averages 4.2 out of 5 from 70 ratings, while Ava Airborne averages 3.9 from 255 ratings.
Do Beneath The Lighthouse or Ava Airborne have ads?
Beneath The Lighthouse shows ads; Ava Airborne does not.
Which is updated more often, Beneath The Lighthouse or Ava Airborne?
Beneath The Lighthouse ships an update every 4 months, and Ava Airborne every 10 days. Most recently, Beneath The Lighthouse was updated on November 1, 2026 and Ava Airborne on November 2, 2026.

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