# Machinal Instinct vs AR

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: AR at none against Machinal Instinct's 9. AR also leads on ads (none vs shown). Machinal Instinct's advantage is update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 3 months) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 18.0). On price and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Machinal Instinct sells 9 one-off in-app purchases. AR asks for nothing beyond the download.

Machinal Instinct ships an update every 3 weeks, AR every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Machinal Instinct | AR |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.6 (707 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/machinal-instinct/id1438524773/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **707** | — |
| Positive reviews | 51.4% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 weeks** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Size | 337 MB | 5 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.0** | 18.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Pomelo Games](https://appshunter.io/developer/899606172) | [Ackee](https://appshunter.io/developer/576984875) |

## What reviewers say

### Machinal Instinct

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/machinal-instinct/id1438524773)

Engage in fast-paced mech battles in a global tournament where animal pilots command powerful machines. Customize your fighting style with various weapons and upgrade your mech with unlockable parts to climb the global leaderboard.

**Highlights:** Select from 6 mech pilots, Customize melee and ranged weapons, Win supply boxes for rewards, Unlock and combine upgradable mech parts, Battle in 3 different arenas, Climb the global leaderboard

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

**In-app purchases (9)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Gems x80 pack | $0.99 | one-time |
| Starter Pack | $3.99 | one-time |
| Gems x500 pack | $4.99 | one-time |
| Starter Pack | $5.99 | one-time |
| Starter Pack | $7.99 | one-time |
| Gems x1,200 pack | $9.99 | one-time |
| Gems x2,500 pack | $19.99 | one-time |
| Gems x6,500 pack | $49.99 | one-time |
| Gems x14,000 pack | $99.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Smooth animations
- 👍 Fun and engaging gameplay
- 🕹️ Accessible controls
- 💎 Great fighting game fundamentals

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Inconsistent attack targeting
- 🔧 Buggy mechanics and controls
- 🕰️ Short match duration
- 🤖 Mostly playing against bots
- 📺 Excessive ads and monetization

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes on startup
- Freezing at loading screens
- Matchmaking issues
- Inconsistent performance

**Requested features**

- Longer match duration
- Real-time multiplayer mode
- More character and weapon variety
- Customizable controls
- Additional game modes (e.g. endless, team battles)


### AR

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ar-td/id6755936869)

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Machinal Instinct free?

Machinal Instinct is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is AR free?

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

### Do Machinal Instinct or AR have ads?

Machinal Instinct shows ads; AR does not.

### Which is updated more often, Machinal Instinct or AR?

Machinal Instinct ships an update every 3 weeks, and AR every 3 months. Most recently, Machinal Instinct was updated on October 22, 2026 and AR on October 24, 2026.

---

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