Comparison

Exception; vs Despot's Game

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

Head to head
About

Exception;

Engage in a unique single-player game where you program AI units to overcome challenges and defeat enemies in a virtual world. Strategize and code different unit types to progress through levels and uncover the secrets of a seemingly perfect system.

Highlights
  • AI programming gameplay
  • Strategic unit control
  • Challenging single-player levels
  • Virtual world exploration
  • Uncover system secrets
Features
Read full description

Exception is a game about AI programming. During the game, the player assists the units to defeat their enemies in the virtual world. However, the player needs to control the units by programming instead of controlling them directly. This is a challenging single-player game. In each level, the player needs to think about the strategy and program the units accordingly. The player needs to program different types of units to beat the level. ************************** In a virtual world where everything operates steadily under an omnipotent system, you will play the role of an operator named 159, who oversees and maintains the system. Nevertheless, there is no perfect system. You find an exception in the program one day. What is stranger is that the program made a request… You will discover the secret underneath this cyber world. ************************** [LEVEL SOLUTION] [WHEN] Success Rate = 100% [DO] Next level :D [WHEN] Success Rate ≠ 100% [DO] Optimize it :3 [/LEVEL SOLUTION] ************************** Contact us:support@kunpo.cc [Code monkeys change the world]

About

Despot's Game

Build a dystopian army and guide them through a challenging labyrinth. This roguelike strategy game focuses on item and mutation choices, with automatic combat. Permadeath means starting over, but a secret multiplayer mode awaits those who conquer the game.

Highlights
  • Army building
  • Item and mutation customization
  • Automatic combat
  • Roguelike/roguelite gameplay
  • Permadeath with world regeneration
  • Secret multiplayer mode
Features
Read full description

Available for free: 4 levels of the game and 10 attempts per day in Brawl mode. The full version can be unlocked with one payment in the game. *Supported Devices: iPhone 8 Plus, Apple iPad Pro 12.9 (2015) and above. iPod Touches are not supported. Let's play a game: I'll give you some puny humans, and you try to help them make it through my labyrinth. No, you won't be controlling them in battles - they'll fight automatically! My game is about strategy and praying to RNGesus, not mashing buttons. You can buy items for the humans: swords, crossbows, coffins, stale pretzels. Plus, I'll let you give them cool mutations! A few Topochlorians in the blood and some Crocodile Skin never hurt anyone. There's one catch, though: if you die, you have to start over entirely, and the whole world will be generated again from scratch. Yes, my game is a roguelike game. Well, roguelite, if you're a nerd who loves compartmentalizing us creators into strict genres. I almost forgot: my game has a multiplayer mode, too! But I'm not going to tell you anything about it, because King of the Hill is a special secret multiplayer mode that only unlocks once you beat the game. * sincerely, with disrespect for puny humans, your local evil AI: d'Spot

Screenshots

Exception;4 screens
Despot's Game4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Exception; at 82% against Despot's Game's 36%. Exception; also leads on rating (4.8 vs 3.4) and in-app purchases (none vs 1). Despot's Game's advantage is price (Free vs $2.99). On update cadence, ads and device support 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

Despot's Game is free to download; Exception; costs $2.99 up front. Despot's Game sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Exception; asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Exception; holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Exception; has 2.7K ratings behind it against 119, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 82% of Exception;'s written reviews are positive against 36% of Despot's Game's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Exception; ships an update fortnightly, Despot's Game monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Exception; versus Despot's Game: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterException;Despot's Game
Price$2.99Free — better
Rating4.8 (2.7K ratings) — better3.4 (119 ratings)
Positive reviews82.1% of reviews — better36.4% of reviews
Number of ratings2.7K — better119
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS8.0 — better13.0
Further details — not scored
Size79 MB456 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperKunpoTINYBUILD LLC

Customer experience

Exception;

All ratings2,654 ratings
Positive97.2%
Neutral1.4%
Negative1.4%
Written reviews190 reviews
Positive82.1%
Neutral7.4%
Negative10.5%

Despot's Game

All ratings119 ratings
Positive59.7%
Neutral8.4%
Negative31.9%
Written reviews198 reviews
Positive36.4%
Neutral8.6%
Negative55.1%

User reviews

Exception;

From 2.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Interesting and challenging gameplay
  • 🚀 Smooth and fluid animations
  • 💡 Unique programming-based mechanics
  • 🤖 Good introduction to programming concepts
  • 🎨 Visually appealing design

Room to improve

  • 🔒 Most levels locked behind paywall
  • 🐛 Inconsistent bot behavior
  • 💰 Game feels like a demo with limited content

Despot's Game

From 119 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Epic game, epic difficulty
  • 🚀 Fun without end!
  • 👍 Great game, different
  • 👍 Nice game

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes around level 7-8
  • 🐛 Crashes frequently, losing progress
  • 🐛 Crashes on start
  • 🐛 Crashes, can't save progress
  • 🐛 Crashes, unplayable

Bugs and requests

Exception;

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Bots not responding to commands as expected
  • Scripting errors when retreating

Requested features

4 requests
  • Sandbox mode to create custom levels
  • Hint system for difficult levels
  • Ability to sync progress across devices
  • Multiplayer or co-op modes

Despot's Game

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes on start
  • Crashes during gameplay
  • Crashes, losing progress

Requested features

3 requests
  • Add save/continue option
  • Fix crashes
  • Lower the price

In-app purchases

None

Exception;

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Despot's Game

One-time1
  • Despot's Game: Full Version$9.99

Questions

Is Exception; free?
Exception; costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Despot's Game free?
Despot's Game is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Exception; or Despot's Game?
Exception; is rated higher. Exception; averages 4.8 out of 5 from 2.7K ratings, while Despot's Game averages 3.4 from 119 ratings.
Do Exception; or Despot's Game have ads?
Neither Exception; nor Despot's Game shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Exception; or Despot's Game?
Exception; ships an update fortnightly, and Despot's Game monthly. Most recently, Exception; was updated on October 17, 2026 and Despot's Game on October 12, 2026.

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