Comparison

Barbearian vs Elderand

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

Head to head
About

Barbearian

Embark on a thrilling hack'n'slash adventure in a vibrant, hand-drawn world. Battle through over 100 levels, collect loot, and build an army to uncover the secrets of a strange new realm and find your way home.

Highlights
  • 100+ action-packed levels
  • Loot collection and weapon upgrades
  • Rescue prisoners and build an army
  • Colossal boss monster battles
  • Configurable controls with controller support
  • Cloud save support
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Barbearian is a fast-paced hack'n'slash with massive battles in a colorful, hand-drawn world. Hijacked to a to strange world. Forced to fight for your life. Discover the secrets of the Arbitrators and find your way back home! Features: - 100+ levels full of action and adventure - Collect loot, purchase upgrades and experiment with numerous weapons - Rescue prisoners and build your own army - Encounter colossal boss monsters and take them down - Plenty of challenge, not for the easily discouraged! - Fully configurable controls with MFi controller support - Cloud save support Press: - "If you're a fan of real-time combat games Barbearian is easy to recommend" "5.0/5.0" -- Pocket Tactics - "When people ask where the good premium games are, Barbearian is one I will point to, with gusto." "5.0/5.0" -- Touch Arcade - Metacritic: 89, 5th best iOS game of 2018 No IAP, ads or hidden costs.

About

Elderand

Embark on a brutal, skill-based action platformer in a Lovecraftian world. Wield diverse weapons and customize your character with RPG elements to battle terrifying creatures and explore a dark, hand-drawn pixel environment. Collect loot to upgrade your arsenal and uncover the land's secrets.

Highlights
  • Skill-based combat
  • Metroidvania exploration
  • Lovecraftian horror themes
  • RPG character customization
  • Diverse weapon arsenal
  • Hand-drawn pixel art
  • Loot collection and crafting
Features
Read full description

Become the hero of an epic quest in Elderand, a metroidvania that will test your will and skill. Heads will literally roll in this gruesome, retro-inspired action platformer, where only the strong will survive in brutal, skill-based combat against terrifying creatures. Through the darkness and madness, promised glory awaits. Wield a variety of killing instruments and abilities to test your metal against towering, bone-chilling bosses. Explore a twisted Lovecraftian world shrouded in darkness and madness. RPG elements allow you to customize your battle experience to your liking, from your character’s appearance to skills, stats, and weapons. Slay or be slain as you collect glory and treasure in this nightmarish 2D world. Glory and riches await those who can spill the required blood and guts to collect it. KEY FEATURES: •Wield an arsenal of killing devices, including whips, swords, daggers, axes, bows, and more. From a magical staff that shoots bursts of energy to a giant sword, different weapons have different stats and capabilities, so find the ones that you enjoy battling beasts with the most! •Satisfying Metroidvania-style exploration meets terrifying Lovecraftian creatures in this detailed hand-drawn pixel world with glorious gothic aesthetics and handcrafted level design. •RPG elements let you customize your experience to best suit your play style, from your character’s appearance to their skills, stats, and weapons. Collect loot from exploration and fallen enemies and then use it to upgrade your weapons via crafting. •Travel to the many corners of this perilous land, such as an inviting village with merchants, a forest, a temple prison, floating islands, a cursed Cathedral, and the hellscape that is Elderand itself. •More than 60 different enemy types and around a dozen bosses for your slaying pleasure. •Collect lost letters and other correspondence from the poor souls who came before you to learn more about the darkness taking hold of this grim land.

Screenshots

Barbearian4 screens
Elderand4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Elderand at weekly against Barbearian's monthly. Elderand also leads on price ($6.99 vs $8.99). Barbearian's advantage is chart position (#179 vs unranked) and ratings volume (163 vs 36). On rating, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases 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

Barbearian costs $8.99 and Elderand $6.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.2 for Barbearian against 4.2 for Elderand. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 163 and 36 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 67% of Barbearian's written reviews are positive against 74% of Elderand's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Barbearian ships an update monthly, Elderand weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Barbearian versus Elderand: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBarbearianElderand
Price$8.99$6.99 — better
Rating4.2 (163 ratings)4.2 (36 ratings)
Positive reviews66.9% of reviews73.7% of reviews — better
Number of ratings163 — better36
Update frequencyMonthlyWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#179 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.411.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size163 MB818 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperKimmo Factor OyPlug In Digital

Customer experience

Barbearian

All ratings163 ratings
Positive75.5%
Neutral6.1%
Negative18.4%
Written reviews133 reviews
Positive66.9%
Neutral11.3%
Negative21.8%

Elderand

All ratings36 ratings
Positive77.8%
Neutral11.1%
Negative11.1%
Written reviews38 reviews
Positive73.7%
Neutral7.9%
Negative18.4%

User reviews

Barbearian

From 163 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎮 Engaging hack-and-slash gameplay
  • 🎨 Beautiful hand-drawn graphics and animations
  • ⚔️ Satisfying combat mechanics with varied weapons
  • 🪖 Strategic army-building and minion management system
  • 🎯 Well-designed difficulty scaling and adjustable settings

Room to improve

  • 🎮 Controls feel unresponsive and imprecise
  • 📱 Movement joystick too small and difficult to use
  • 💀 Punishing death penalty (lose 30% of loot)
  • ⏱️ Slow character movement speed
  • 💸 High price point ($8.99-$11) for content length

Elderand

From 36 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great game overall
  • 🗺️ Deep lore and world-building
  • 🎵 Amazing music and audio
  • ⚔️ Challenging yet approachable combat
  • 🎮 Excellent controller support (mostly)

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Game crashes frequently
  • 🐛 Controls can be buggy and unresponsive
  • 🐛 Dash function sometimes not working
  • 🐛 Game freezes intermittently
  • 🐛 Bosses getting stuck in animations

Bugs and requests

Barbearian

Reported bugs

10 issues
  • Game crashes frequently during gameplay
  • Movement joystick unresponsive on iPhone X and newer models
  • Character moves in wrong direction or doesn't move at all
  • Game freezes mid-stage causing progress loss
  • Master class button doesn't appear on subsequent playthroughs
Show 5 more
  • Notch compatibility issues on iPhone X (corners cut off)
  • Controller settings reset after customization
  • Game slows down during large-scale battles
  • Gamepad controls occasionally malfunction
  • Progress loss after crashes

Requested features

15 requests
  • Cloud save/iCloud sync between iOS devices and Apple TV
  • Pause button during gameplay
  • Adjustable joystick size and position
  • Multiplayer or co-op mode
  • Additional levels and sequel content
Show 10 more
  • More weapon variety and character customization
  • Improved minion AI and effectiveness
  • More diverse soundtrack
  • Difficulty settings visible in all versions
  • Better character and gameplay tutorials
  • DLC or expansion content
  • Endgame content for post-completion play
  • Revive potions for in-game use
  • Italian language support
  • Russian language support

Elderand

Reported bugs

11 issues
  • Permanent crashes
  • Character spawning underneath level
  • R button for subweapon not working on Steelseries Nimbus
  • Dash function not working
  • Game freezing for a moment
Show 6 more
  • Bosses getting stuck in attack animations
  • Campfire menu broken (cannot select options)
  • Lost save data after updates
  • D-pad moves on screen and becomes unusable
  • Joystick teleports to random spots
  • Virtual joystick bug with attack key

Requested features

7 requests
  • Full controller remapping for bindings
  • Multiplayer PvP 'Invasions' system
  • Cloud saves (iCloud)
  • Adjustable button layout and size
  • Ability to track materials acquired
Show 2 more
  • New game+ option
  • Boss replayability

In-app purchases

None

Barbearian

No in-app purchases

None

Elderand

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Barbearian free?
Barbearian costs $8.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Elderand free?
Elderand costs $6.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Barbearian or Elderand?
Barbearian and Elderand are both rated 4.2 out of 5 on the App Store, from 163 and 36 ratings respectively.
Do Barbearian or Elderand have ads?
Neither Barbearian nor Elderand shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Barbearian or Elderand?
Barbearian ships an update monthly, and Elderand weekly. Most recently, Barbearian was updated on October 13, 2026 and Elderand on October 14, 2026.

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