Comparison

ZeroVector vs Stellar Mercenaries

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

Head to head
About

ZeroVector

Experience an endless retro arcade vertical shoot 'em up with challenging boss battles and power-up stacking. Utilize a unique REVERSAL ability to flip enemy bullets into missiles. Compete in multiplayer Conquest mode to capture sectors for your faction.

Highlights
  • Endless waves of enemies
  • Four unique boss battles
  • Collectible power-ups and upgrades
  • Stackable shields and EMP
  • REVERSAL ability to flip bullets
  • Multiplayer Conquest mode
  • Faction-based sector control
Features
Read full description

ZeroVector is an endless retro arcade vertical shoot ‘em up! Blast your way through endless waves of enemy ships seeing how long you can survive and what high score you can achieve. There are four different bosses to encounter, each with their own firing patterns and strategies to beat. Along the way you pick up and use various items like shields, EMP, bomb, and weapon upgrades. Items like shields and EMP can stack so getting two in succession gives the extra powerful deflector and EMP extend. You have a special REVERSAL ability that charges every 20 seconds. Once charged you tap with a second finger onto the screen (or double tap) and all enemy bullets flip around into seeking missiles helping you escape impossible odds and get epic clears. A multiplayer Conquest mode arrives with the 0.2 update and lets you compete against other players in three factions (red, blue, and purple) to capture and control hexagonal sectors on a global map. Achieve the high score on a sector to capture it for your faction and work together to take control of the map. Scores decay over time and sectors can be replayed to defend them and capturing surrounding sectors helps protect them. It’s an all new innovative multidimensional leaderboard system!

About

Stellar Mercenaries

Engage in offline, vertical scrolling arcade action with this sci-fi RPG. Upgrade your ship, weapons, and abilities to battle rival mercenaries and conquer the solar system. Enjoy endless procedurally generated missions with diverse objectives and challenges.

Highlights
  • Vertical scrolling arcade shooter
  • Offline capable gameplay
  • Upgradable ships and weapons
  • Customizable loadouts
  • Procedurally generated missions
  • Rival mercenary system
Features
Read full description

Ready to vanquish your enemies and change the solar system forever from anywhere? Stellar Mercs is a vertical scrolling, offline capable, action arcade shooter with upgradable ships, weapons, and special abilities. Customize your loadouts for each mission depending on the environments and enemies you'll face! Each mission will reward you with unlocks and cash to continue building your arsenal. You're not the only mercenary out there - the more successful and accomplished you become, the more attention you'll attract. Enemy mercenaries can become persistent arch-rivals, leveling up along side you. Defeating them will net you great rewards, but if you die at their hands, they'll grow even further in power. The fun is never-ending! Fly missions through endless procedurally generated missions with a variety of environments, objectives, hazards, enemies, and rewards. Hijack cargo from speeding space trains, break into heavily guarded research and development space stations to acquire new prototype ships to fly, or defeat mighty leviathan capital ships in your quest to become the wealthiest, most powerful mercenary in the system! Stellar Mercs operates as a single handed action arcade game, so you can play comfortably on the go. SM is offline capable, so even without signal you can keep gaming and conquering the solar system! Configure your spacecraft's loadout and autoshoot your way to victory - focus on maneuvering through hazards and waves of enemies while you employ special abilities for maximum carnage!

Screenshots

ZeroVector4 screens
Stellar Mercenaries4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Stellar Mercenaries at every 3 weeks against ZeroVector's every 4 months. ZeroVector's advantage is ratings volume (145 vs 38) and iOS requirement (10.0 vs 12.0). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads 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. ZeroVector sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and Stellar Mercenaries sells 9 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for ZeroVector against 4.8 for Stellar Mercenaries. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 145 and 38 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 92% of ZeroVector's written reviews are positive against 86% of Stellar Mercenaries's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ZeroVector ships an update every 4 months, Stellar Mercenaries every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
ZeroVector versus Stellar Mercenaries: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterZeroVectorStellar Mercenaries
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (145 ratings)4.8 (38 ratings) — better
Positive reviews91.7% of reviews — better85.7% of reviews
Number of ratings145 — better38
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS10.0 — better12.0
Further details — not scored
Size26 MB198 MB
Age rating4+9+
Developerblackpawn.comQuest Builders LLC

Customer experience

ZeroVector

All ratings145 ratings
Positive92.4%
Neutral2.8%
Negative4.8%
Written reviews24 reviews
Positive91.7%
Neutral4.2%
Negative4.2%

Stellar Mercenaries

All ratings34 ratings
Positive94.1%
Neutral0.0%
Negative5.9%
Written reviews21 reviews
Positive85.7%
Neutral4.8%
Negative9.5%

In-app purchases

2 purchases

ZeroVector

One-time2
  • Remove Ads$0.99
  • Buy blackpawn a taco$0.99
9 purchases

Stellar Mercenaries

One-time9
  • Currency - Small Pack$1.99
  • Starter Pack - Basic$1.99
  • Gem Pack - Small$2.99
Show 6 more
  • Currency - Medium Pack$3.99
  • Stater Pack - Advanced$5.99
  • Gem Pack - Medium$7.99
  • Currency - Large Pack$7.99
  • Gem Pack - Large$15.99
  • Starter Pack - Legendary$15.99

Questions

Is ZeroVector free?
ZeroVector is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Stellar Mercenaries free?
Stellar Mercenaries is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, ZeroVector or Stellar Mercenaries?
Stellar Mercenaries is rated higher. ZeroVector averages 4.7 out of 5 from 145 ratings, while Stellar Mercenaries averages 4.8 from 38 ratings.
Do ZeroVector or Stellar Mercenaries have ads?
Neither ZeroVector nor Stellar Mercenaries shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ZeroVector or Stellar Mercenaries?
ZeroVector ships an update every 4 months, and Stellar Mercenaries every 3 weeks. Most recently, ZeroVector was updated on October 20, 2026 and Stellar Mercenaries on October 24, 2026.

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