# Gladiator Rising vs Crust Crusaders

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Crust Crusaders at none against Gladiator Rising's 4. Crust Crusaders also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs every 4 months) and review sentiment (78% vs 65%). Gladiator Rising's advantage is ratings volume (2.6K vs 261). On price, rating, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Gladiator Rising sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Crust Crusaders asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Gladiator Rising against 4.5 for Crust Crusaders. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Gladiator Rising has 2.6K ratings behind it against 261, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 65% of Gladiator Rising's written reviews are positive against 78% of Crust Crusaders's.

Gladiator Rising ships an update every 4 months, Crust Crusaders every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 2, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Gladiator Rising | Crust Crusaders |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.6 (2.6K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/gladiator-rising/id1333928862/reviews)** | [4.5 (261 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/crust-crusaders/id1581451981/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **2.6K** | 261 |
| Positive reviews | 65.0% of reviews | **77.5% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | **Every 4 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Ad-supported** |
| Size | 99 MB | 60 MB |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 12+ | 9+ |
| Developer | [Happii Gamer Studios Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1331663692) | [Astro Hound Studios](https://appshunter.io/developer/1327010785) |

## What reviewers say

### Gladiator Rising

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/gladiator-rising/id1333928862)

Engage in strategic turn-based combat against procedurally generated opponents across five chapters. Equip and utilize a variety of items to hone your warrior skills and achieve ultimate victory in this challenging roguelike RPG.

**Highlights:** Procedurally generated gladiators, Five chapters of progression, Item buying and equipping, Turn-based RPG combat, Strategic gameplay

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Small Donation | $0.99 | one-time |
| Remove Ads | $1.99 | one-time |
| Medium Donation | $2.99 | one-time |
| Large Donation | $8.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fun gameplay
- 👍 Challenging and addictive
- 🤺 Gladiator theme
- 💎 Good value for a free game

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔨 Progression-blocking issues
- 🕹️ Unresponsive controls
- 🤯 Frustrating difficulty spikes

**Reported bugs**

- Game crashes when opening ad chests
- Unable to progress past 3rd or 4th fight
- Character instantly dying when sleeping
- Inventory and skill issues on reloading

**Requested features**

- More character classes and abilities
- Improved save/load system
- Better in-app purchase options
- Expanded post-game content


### Crust Crusaders

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/crust-crusaders/id1581451981)

Engage in a unique shoot 'em up roguelike where your chosen pizza toppings grant special abilities. Navigate through challenging levels, utilizing one-touch controls to defeat evil vegetables and save the planetary pie. Every playthrough offers a fresh experience.

**Highlights:** Topping-based ability system, Roguelike gameplay, Auto-rotate controls, One-touch gameplay, Defeat evil veggies

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🍕 Fun space pizza-themed game
- 👍 Addictive and challenging gameplay
- 🎨 Appealing pixel art style
- 🎵 Great soundtrack

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Bugs and glitches (soft-locks, power-ups not appearing, etc.)
- 🔍 Unclear hit detection/hitboxes
- 🔋 Crashes and performance issues on some devices
- 💸 Presence of NFTs

**Reported bugs**

- Soft-locks when selecting toppings
- Power-ups not appearing
- Crashes and performance issues on older devices
- Inconsistent hit detection

**Requested features**

- More levels and content updates
- Ability to spend coins after maxing out upgrades
- Difficulty settings or game modes
- Better visual/audio feedback when taking damage
- Joystick or control customization options


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Gladiator Rising free?

Gladiator Rising is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Crust Crusaders free?

Crust Crusaders is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Gladiator Rising or Crust Crusaders?

Gladiator Rising is rated higher. Gladiator Rising averages 4.6 out of 5 from 2.6K ratings, while Crust Crusaders averages 4.5 from 261 ratings.

### Do Gladiator Rising or Crust Crusaders have ads?

Both Gladiator Rising and Crust Crusaders show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Gladiator Rising or Crust Crusaders?

Gladiator Rising ships an update every 4 months, and Crust Crusaders every 4 days. Most recently, Gladiator Rising was updated on October 2, 2026 and Crust Crusaders on September 21, 2026.

---

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