# Mr. Crab 2 vs Once Upon a Tower

The clearest difference is rating: Once Upon a Tower at 4.7 against Mr. Crab 2's 4.1. Once Upon a Tower also leads on ratings volume (3.3K vs 715). Mr. Crab 2's advantage is iOS requirement (10.0 vs 12.0). On price, review sentiment, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Mr. Crab 2 sells 10 one-off in-app purchases and Once Upon a Tower sells 24 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Once Upon a Tower holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 715 and 3.3K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 71% of Mr. Crab 2's written reviews are positive against 75% of Once Upon a Tower's.

Mr. Crab 2 ships an update monthly, Once Upon a Tower every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Mr. Crab 2 | Once Upon a Tower |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.1 (715 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mr-crab-2/id1075872386/reviews) | **[4.7 (3.3K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/once-upon-a-tower/id1209083773/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 715 | **3.3K** |
| Positive reviews | 71.4% of reviews | **75.1% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Monthly | **Every 3 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 158 MB | 226 MB |
| Requires iOS | **10.0** | 12.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV |
| Age rating | 4+ | 9+ |
| Developer | [Illusion Labs](https://appshunter.io/developer/297694604) | [Pomelo Games](https://appshunter.io/developer/899606172) |

## What reviewers say

### Mr. Crab 2

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mr-crab-2/id1075872386)

Embark on a beautiful adventure with a superhero crab and his friends to rescue lost baby crabs. Master jumping, navigate challenging passages, and outsmart evil enemies. Collect fun customizations and earn gold medals by mastering timing and quick thinking.

**Highlights:** Rescue baby crabs, Master jumping and timing, Navigate challenging levels, Customize crabs with hats and masks, Collect gold medals, Unlock free levels

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, iMessage stickers, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Unlock Roxy | $1.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Mr. Frog | $1.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Nib-Nib | $1.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Arnold | $1.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Swampy | $1.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Lucy | $1.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Woody | $1.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Skully | $1.99 | one-time |
| Lolly | $1.99 | one-time |
| All Levels | $6.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Nostalgic and childhood-related
- 🎨 Great graphics and visuals
- 🕹️ Fun and addictive gameplay
- 🐇 Cute and lovable characters

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Paywall for additional levels
- 🔁 Repetitive gameplay after a while
- 🐛 Crashes and technical issues
- 📺 Too many ads required to progress

**Reported bugs**

- Levels not loading properly
- Purchases not restoring correctly
- Controls and inputs not responsive
- Incompatibility with newer devices

**Requested features**

- More free levels to play
- Ability to reset progress
- Multiplayer or co-op mode
- Improved level design and variety


### Once Upon a Tower

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/once-upon-a-tower/id1209083773)

Break free from your tower prison in this adventure game. Armed with a war hammer, you'll battle enemies and escape a dragon. Your rescue is up to you!

**Highlights:** Tower escape adventure, Battle enemies, Fight a dragon, Princess protagonist, Offline gameplay

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (24)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Oscura | $0.99 | one-time |
| Sigrid | $0.99 | one-time |
| Noriko | $0.99 | one-time |
| Lives Pack x10 | $0.99 | one-time |
| Myrina | $0.99 | one-time |
| Loriel | $0.99 | one-time |
| Denise | $0.99 | one-time |
| Ali'i | $0.99 | one-time |
| Lilith | $0.99 | one-time |
| Dragon scales x20 | $0.99 | one-time |
| Lives Pack x25 | $0.99 | one-time |
| Rita | $0.99 | one-time |
| Linda | $0.99 | one-time |
| Muffin | $0.99 | one-time |
| Xochi | $0.99 | one-time |
| Nzinga | $0.99 | one-time |
| Draculina | $0.99 | one-time |
| Lives Pack x25 | $1.99 | one-time |
| Lives Pack x60 | $3.99 | one-time |
| Dragon scales x100 | $3.99 | one-time |
| Lives Pack x200 | $4.99 | one-time |
| Lives Pack x200 | $9.99 | one-time |
| Lives Pack x1,500 | $49.99 | one-time |
| Lives Pack x9,999 | $99.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 💕 Addictive gameplay
- 🎨 Beautiful graphics
- 🎮 Simple but engaging mechanics
- 🚀 Great time killer
- 👍 Empowering female characters

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and freezes
- 🔍 Unclear instructions/tutorials
- 🔁 Repetitive levels
- 💰 Aggressive monetization with ads
- 🤖 Unresponsive controls

**Reported bugs**

- Game freezes when watching ads
- Progress resets after crashes
- Challenges not tracking properly
- Compatibility issues on older devices

**Requested features**

- More character/princess variety
- Ability to save progress
- Difficulty settings
- Multiplayer mode
- Level editor


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Mr. Crab 2 free?

Mr. Crab 2 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Once Upon a Tower free?

Once Upon a Tower is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Mr. Crab 2 or Once Upon a Tower?

Once Upon a Tower is rated higher. Mr. Crab 2 averages 4.1 out of 5 from 715 ratings, while Once Upon a Tower averages 4.7 from 3.3K ratings.

### Do Mr. Crab 2 or Once Upon a Tower have ads?

Both Mr. Crab 2 and Once Upon a Tower show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Mr. Crab 2 or Once Upon a Tower?

Mr. Crab 2 ships an update monthly, and Once Upon a Tower every 3 weeks. Most recently, Mr. Crab 2 was updated on October 29, 2026 and Once Upon a Tower on October 31, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*