# Gladiabots vs Recursive

The clearest difference is rating: Recursive at 4.9 against Gladiabots's 4.5. Recursive also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs every 2 weeks) and price ($2.99 vs $3.99). Gladiabots's advantage is review sentiment (87% vs 71%) and ratings volume (90 vs 28). On ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Gladiabots costs $3.99 and Recursive $2.99 up front. Gladiabots sells 5 one-off in-app purchases and Recursive sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Recursive holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 90 and 28 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 87% of Gladiabots's written reviews are positive against 71% of Recursive's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Gladiabots ships an update every 2 weeks, Recursive every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Gladiabots | Recursive |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $3.99 | **$2.99** |
| Rating | [4.5 (90 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/gladiabots/id1469623947/reviews) | **[4.9 (28 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/recursive-programming-puzzles/id1550504475/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **90** | 28 |
| Positive reviews | **87.2% of reviews** | 71.4% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | **Every 4 days** |
| Monetization | **Free with in-app purchases** | Paid |
| Size | 182 MB | 4 MB |
| Requires iOS | **9.0** | 14.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac** |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Sebastien Dubois](https://appshunter.io/developer/1469623946) | [Kidori](https://appshunter.io/developer/1550451304) |

## What reviewers say

### Gladiabots

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/gladiabots/id1469623947)

Design the AI for your robot squad and deploy them in strategic combat. Refine your tactics through a single-player campaign and online multiplayer modes. Customize your robots and compete in various game modes without ads or pay-to-win mechanics.

**Highlights:** Create and program robot AI, Customize robot crew, Single player campaign, Online multiplayer modes, Multiple game modes, Tournament creation, Asynchronous multiplayer

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

**In-app purchases (5)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Hello World Pack | $0.99 | one-time |
| Script Pack | $1.99 | one-time |
| Algorithm Pack | $4.99 | one-time |
| Automaton Pack | $8.99 | one-time |
| Neural Network Pack | $17.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 💡 Innovative programming concept
- 🧠 Great for learning logic/programming
- 👍 Satisfying to see AI work
- 🚀 Deep and complex gameplay
- 😊 Rewarding when AI works

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Steep learning curve
- 🤔 UI can be confusing
- 📚 Tutorials can be complex
- 💸 Some find it expensive
- ⚠️ English-only wiki/hints

**Reported bugs**

- iOS version not up-to-date
- AI logic bugs/unexpected behavior
- Screen not fitting iPad Pro
- Game not running on older iPads

**Requested features**

- Korean language support
- Option to toggle FPS (30/60)
- Add more robots
- "Quit" confirmation button in training


### Recursive

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/recursive-programming-puzzles/id1550504475)

A challenging puzzle game where you guide robots to collect gems by creating simple programs. Master recursion and logic with a minimalistic, easy-to-learn language and diverse level elements.

**Highlights:** Learn a simple programming language, Solve puzzles with robots and gems, Master recursion concepts, Explore diverse level elements, Challenging, hard puzzles

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 10 hint credits | $0.99 | one-time |
| 20 hint credits | $1.99 | one-time |
| 40 hint credits | $2.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Gladiabots free?

Gladiabots costs $3.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Is Recursive free?

Recursive costs $2.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Gladiabots or Recursive?

Recursive is rated higher. Gladiabots averages 4.5 out of 5 from 90 ratings, while Recursive averages 4.9 from 28 ratings.

### Do Gladiabots or Recursive have ads?

Neither Gladiabots nor Recursive shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Gladiabots or Recursive?

Gladiabots ships an update every 2 weeks, and Recursive every 4 days. Most recently, Gladiabots was updated on October 25, 2026 and Recursive on October 24, 2026.

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