Comparison

Glow Explosions ! vs Simon's Bacteria

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

Head to head
About

Glow Explosions !

Tap the screen to create explosions that destroy moving glow dots. Trigger chain reactions to clear the screen and win. A simple yet engaging puzzle game.

Highlights
  • Tap to create explosions
  • Chain reaction gameplay
  • Clear all moving dots
  • Simple tap controls
  • Engaging puzzle mechanics
Features
Read full description

The goal of this game is super simple: you must destroy all moving glow dots in the screen. Just tap somewhere on the screen to create an explosion. All the other dots that will touch the explosion area will also explode, thus creating a chain reaction. You must remove all the glow dots in the screen to win. Are you ready to blow all glow dots?

About

Simon's Bacteria

Features
Read full description

Simon's Bacteria is a turn-based strategy game built around one deceptively simple mechanic: rotate a stone, and watch the board change. HOW IT WORKS Each stone on the board points in one of four directions. On your turn, rotate one of your stones 90° clockwise — it moves into the cell it now points to, and can trigger a chain reaction of captures across the board. Read the board carefully: a single rotation can flip the momentum of the entire game. PLAY TOGETHER Challenge your friends through Game Center and play together across iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Choose your favorite game mode, compete for victories, unlock achievements, and jump straight into a rematch. Your first 3 multiplayer games are free — after that, a one-time purchase unlocks unlimited multiplayer for good. • Multiplayer across iPhone, iPad, and Mac • Three unique game modes • Game Center achievements and statistics • Quick rematches with friends PLAY YOUR WAY • Chaos Mode — a fully randomized board for a classic, unpredictable game every time. • Symmetry Mode — mirrored starting positions for a perfectly fair fight. • Balanced Mode — randomized but evenly distributed starting directions. THREE LEVELS OF AI (VINTAGE 1998) No neural networks, no cloud, no buzzwords — just an honest, old-school game AI in the spirit of 1998, built on classic move-search logic rather than anything fashionable. It adapts to the difficulty you choose — from a forgiving opponent that favors easy captures, to a sharp one that looks several moves ahead and plans around your counter-attacks. DESIGNED TO GET OUT OF YOUR WAY • Clean, focused board — no clutter, no timers pressuring your every move. • Three visual stone styles to match your taste. • Game Center leaderboards and achievements to track your wins. • Your games and stats are saved locally — pick up right where you left off. • No ads. No account required for single-player. No data collection beyond what Game Center itself handles. FREE TO PLAY, OPEN SOURCE Single-player is completely free, forever, with everything unlocked — it's an open-source passion project. Multiplayer includes 3 free games to try it out, then a small one-time purchase for unlimited play. If you'd like to say thanks separately, optional tips are available in the Tips menu; they simply help cover the cost of the Apple Developer license required to bring an open-source project like this one to the App Store. Whether you have two minutes or twenty, Simon's Bacteria rewards careful thinking over fast reflexes. COMING SOON We're actively working on additional board generation modes and new AI difficulty tiers.

Screenshots

Glow Explosions !4 screens
Simon's Bacteria2 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: Glow Explosions ! at 8.0 against Simon's Bacteria's 17.6. On price, ads, in-app purchases 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

Both are free to download. Glow Explosions ! sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Simon's Bacteria sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Scorecard1 real difference · 8 level
Glow Explosions ! versus Simon's Bacteria: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGlow Explosions !Simon's Bacteria
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (2 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequency—Every 11 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS8.0 — better17.6
Further details — not scored
Size24 MB15 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPLAYTOUCHAndrei Kondratev

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Glow Explosions !

One-time1
  • Remove all ADS from the game$1.99
3 purchases

Simon's Bacteria

One-time3
  • Small Tip$0.99
  • Medium Tip$2.99
  • Large Tip$4.99

Questions

Is Glow Explosions ! free?
Glow Explosions ! is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Simon's Bacteria free?
Simon's Bacteria is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Glow Explosions ! or Simon's Bacteria have ads?
Neither Glow Explosions ! nor Simon's Bacteria shows ads.

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