Comparison

Hyper Light Drifter vs ScourgeBringer

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

Head to head
About

Hyper Light Drifter

Embark on an action-adventure RPG journey through a vast, ruined world filled with danger and lost technologies. Explore, battle vicious enemies, and uncover secrets in this hand-animated, visually stunning experience.

Highlights
  • Hand-animated visuals
  • Vast, ruined world exploration
  • Challenging combat
  • Weapon upgrades and skills
  • Branching paths and secrets
  • Evocative soundtrack
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Finally, Heart Machine's award winning slash-'em-up arrives to iOS in the most polished and refined version yet, the Special Edition. ► Winner of the Audience Award and Excellence in Visual Art awards of the prestigious Independent Games Festival. ► 14 + nominations among the Best Visual Design, Best Audio and Best original Game categories. ► 9/10 Destructoid - A hallmark of excellence. There may be flaws, but they are negligible and won't cause massive damage. ► 9.5/10 Game Informer - The combination of soundtrack, art, and combat creates a rabbit hole worth your full exploration. ► Eurogamer Recommended - Heart Machine's slash-'em-up is punishing and precise - and incredibly beautiful. ► 9/10 GameSpot - It is more than simply pretty; Hyper Light Drifter uses its visuals to both guide and relax you. The grandest vistas calm your pulse between difficult, breathless combat sequences. ► 8.5 Polygon - Hyper Light Drifter deftly mixes contemplative moments with breakneck action. ► 5 Stars Darkstation - The top-down action-RPG Hyper Light Drifter is an amazing game: gorgeous, a fascinating world to explore, tight controls, beautiful music, and the faith in the player for you to figure things out on your own. Echoes of a dark and violent past resonate throughout a savage land, steeped in treasure and blood. Drifters of this world are the collectors of forgotten knowledge, lost technologies and broken histories. Our Drifter is haunted by an insatiable illness, traveling further into the lands of Buried Time, hoping to discover a way to quiet the vicious disease. Hyper Light Drifter is an action adventure RPG in the vein of the best 16-bit classics, with modernized mechanics and designs on a much grander scale. Explore a beautiful, vast and ruined world riddled with dangers and lost technologies. Features: ● 120 fps gameplay on iPad Pro / 60 fps on iPhone and iPad. ● Compatible with MFi controllers. ● Game Center achievements. ● Haptic Vibration. ● From each character to subtle background elements, everything is lovingly hand-animated. ● Easy to pick up, difficult to master; enemies are vicious and numerous, hazards will easily crush your frail body, and friendly faces remain rare. ● Upgrade weapons, learn new skills, discover equipment and traverse a dark, detailed world with branching paths and secrets abound. ● Evocative soundtrack composed by Disasterpeace. ● All the content from the original game + more weapons, enemies and areas from the Special edition.

About

ScourgeBringer

Embark on a fast-paced roguelite platforming adventure in a post-apocalyptic world. Control Kyhra, a skilled warrior, as she battles ancient machines and monstrous foes to uncover the secrets of a mysterious entity and potentially save humanity.

Highlights
  • Fast-paced rogue-platforming gameplay
  • Fluid platforming controls
  • Frantic combat system
  • Hordes of enemies and giant bosses
  • Ever-changing dungeon exploration
  • Uncover mysteries and secrets
Features
Read full description

ScourgeBringer is a fast-paced free-moving roguelite platformer. Help Kyhra to explore the unknown and slash her way through ancient machines guarding the seal of her past, and maybe the redemption of humanity. Set in a post-apocalyptic world where a mysterious entity wreaked havoc on all humanity, ScourgeBringer puts you in the shoes of the deadliest warrior of her clan: Kyhra. Help her to explore the unknown and slash her way through ancient machines guarding the seal of her past, and maybe the redemption of humanity. Key Features: • Dive into fast-paced rogue-platforming gameplay described by Eurogamer as "Dead Cells meets Celeste" • Slash and shoot your way smoothly with super fluid platforming controls • Sharpen your skills with a frantic combat system focused on attacks only • Dash forward to the otherworldly adaptive sounds of Joonas Turner (Nuclear Throne, Downwell, Broforce...) • Defy hordes of unspeakable enemies and giant bosses holding the secrets of the Scourge • Explore the infinite depths of an ever-changing dungeon • Uncover mysteries and find mementos of previous explorers to unlock reality defining secrets

Screenshots

Hyper Light Drifter4 screens
ScourgeBringer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Hyper Light Drifter at none against ScourgeBringer's shown. Hyper Light Drifter also leads on ratings volume (6.7K vs 485) and review sentiment (83% vs 70%). On rating, update cadence, in-app purchases and chart position 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

Hyper Light Drifter costs $4.99 and ScourgeBringer $5.99 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 — 4.9 for Hyper Light Drifter against 4.8 for ScourgeBringer. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hyper Light Drifter has 6.7K ratings behind it against 485, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 83% of Hyper Light Drifter's written reviews are positive against 70% of ScourgeBringer's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Hyper Light Drifter ships an update every 6 weeks, ScourgeBringer every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Hyper Light Drifter versus ScourgeBringer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHyper Light DrifterScourgeBringer
Price$4.99 — better$5.99
Rating4.9 (6.7K ratings) — better4.8 (485 ratings)
Positive reviews83.3% of reviews — better69.6% of reviews
Number of ratings6.7K — better485
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidAd-supported — better
Best chart rank#172#164 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size813 MB153 MB
Age rating12+9+
DeveloperAbylight S.L.Plug In Digital

Customer experience

Hyper Light Drifter

All ratings6,721 ratings
Positive97.5%
Neutral1.0%
Negative1.6%
Written reviews545 reviews
Positive83.3%
Neutral5.0%
Negative11.7%

ScourgeBringer

All ratings485 ratings
Positive96.9%
Neutral1.4%
Negative1.6%
Written reviews69 reviews
Positive69.6%
Neutral15.9%
Negative14.5%

User reviews

Hyper Light Drifter

From 6.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🔥 Gorgeous game
  • 👍 Engaging gameplay
  • 🎨 Beautiful art style
  • 🎶 Excellent soundtrack
  • 🤯 Challenging but fair

Room to improve

  • 🤖 Unclear controls/tutorials
  • 🤕 Frustrating difficulty
  • 🤔 Lack of story explanation
  • 🤖 Unresponsive touch controls
  • 🤕 Imprecise aiming/platforming

ScourgeBringer

From 485 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎨 Excellent art style and charming graphics
  • ⚡ Smooth, fast-paced, fluid combat system
  • 🎮 Great controller support and button mapping
  • 🎵 High-quality music and sound design
  • 🧩 Engaging roguelike gameplay with solid skill tree

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes on various iOS devices
  • 🔊 Audio cuts out when other apps play sound
  • ❌ No sound on some devices (iPhone Air)
  • 🎮 Touch controls feel awkward and imprecise
  • ⚙️ Non-customizable controls limit accessibility

Bugs and requests

Hyper Light Drifter

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Game crashes when fighting in the tower
  • Background glitches and visual issues
  • Inconsistent frame rate on some devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add controller remapping
  • Improve touch control responsiveness
  • Provide more story context
  • Adjust difficulty settings
  • Add widescreen support for newer devices

ScourgeBringer

Reported bugs

9 issues
  • Game crashes immediately on launch (purple screen)
  • Crashes on iPad Pro with iOS 17.1.2
  • Crashes when connecting wired controller
  • Crashes during intense particle effects (3rd floor boss)
  • Save and exit reduces HP to 1 unexpectedly
Show 4 more
  • iCloud save only syncs one direction (iPad to iPhone)
  • Touch controls cause accidental dashes
  • Smashed bullets scatter instead of following directional input
  • Game won't load or launch on some devices

Requested features

12 requests
  • Customizable control mapping
  • Dash button option instead of swipe mechanic
  • Static joystick position during combat
  • Controller support for all devices
  • Casual/easier difficulty modes with progression
Show 7 more
  • More endgame content and new zones
  • Additional enemies and bosses
  • More store items and healing methods
  • Better balance for early game resources
  • Option to play personal music during gameplay
  • Traditional roguelike mode with item-based skill trees
  • Right-side dash option for touch controls

In-app purchases

None

Hyper Light Drifter

No in-app purchases

None

ScourgeBringer

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Hyper Light Drifter free?
Hyper Light Drifter costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is ScourgeBringer free?
ScourgeBringer costs $5.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Hyper Light Drifter or ScourgeBringer?
Hyper Light Drifter is rated higher. Hyper Light Drifter averages 4.9 out of 5 from 6.7K ratings, while ScourgeBringer averages 4.8 from 485 ratings.
Do Hyper Light Drifter or ScourgeBringer have ads?
ScourgeBringer shows ads; Hyper Light Drifter does not.
Which is updated more often, Hyper Light Drifter or ScourgeBringer?
Hyper Light Drifter ships an update every 6 weeks, and ScourgeBringer every 2 months. Most recently, Hyper Light Drifter was updated on October 12, 2026 and ScourgeBringer on October 10, 2026.
Which is more popular, Hyper Light Drifter or ScourgeBringer?
Hyper Light Drifter currently peaks at #172 in the App Store charts, and ScourgeBringer at #164. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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