Comparison

Half Heart vs Alien Barrage

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

Head to head
About

Half Heart

A simple, engaging game where players must keep two characters together. Avoid obstacles that separate them and press to connect, release to disconnect.

Highlights
  • Character connection mechanic
  • Obstacle avoidance
  • Simple press-and-release controls
  • Engaging gameplay loop
Read full description

* Meet the half, feel the love. * Cannot live without the other part. * Avoid things that break you. * Press to Meet, Release to Separate.

About

Alien Barrage

Defend Earth from relentless alien invaders in this fast-paced retro arcade shooter. Dodge plasma, collect powerups, and survive challenging boss battles. Compete on global leaderboards for the highest score and wave survived.

Highlights
  • Touch-and-drag controls with automatic firing
  • Endless escalating waves of alien enemies
  • Bonus Rounds and Boss Battles
  • Collectible powerups and screen-clearing bombs
  • Unlockable ships and difficulty modes
  • Game Center leaderboards and achievements
Features
Read full description

Defend Earth from endless alien waves in this fast-paced retro arcade shooter. Collect powerups, survive boss battles, and climb the global leaderboards. Touch and drag to move your ship while it fires automatically, dodge incoming plasma, and clear wave after wave of invading aliens before they reach the bottom. What starts as a classic arcade battle quickly escalates into a tougher survival challenge, with faster enemies, more pressure, and bigger rewards the longer you last. Alien Barrage mixes traditional formation-based waves with special events that keep every run fresh. Every 4th level is a Bonus Round, where aliens break formation and streak across the screen in unpredictable patterns for extra points. Every 7th level is a Boss Level, featuring a massive enemy that absorbs heavy damage, fires missiles, and gets tougher each time it returns. Powerups can turn the tide in an instant. Collect Rapid Fire to double your fire rate, Spread Shot to blast multiple enemies at once, Shield to absorb a hit, and Extra Life to stay in the fight longer. When things get desperate, unleash a bomb to clear the screen and save your run. Choose how you want to play with Easy, Normal, and Hard difficulty modes, each offering a different challenge level and score potential. Fly the default Classic Ship or unlock the Dual Cannon ship for permanent double firepower. Compete on Game Center leaderboards for top score and highest wave survived, challenge your friends, and unlock achievements as you play. Whether you want a quick arcade session or a long high-score grind, Alien Barrage delivers classic shooter action with modern progression and competitive replay value. Features: - Touch-and-drag controls with automatic firing - Endless escalating waves of alien enemies - Bonus Rounds every 4th level - Boss battles every 7th level - UFO encounters, swooping aliens, and missile attacks - Four powerups: Rapid Fire, Spread Shot, Shield, and Extra Life - Screen-clearing bombs for clutch moments - Classic Ship plus unlockable Dual Cannon ship - Game Center leaderboards and achievements - Three difficulty modes for casual play or hardcore score chasing

Screenshots

Half Heart4 screens
Alien Barrage4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Half Heart at none against Alien Barrage's 6. Half Heart also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.6). Alien Barrage's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 3 months vs every 35 months). On price, rating, ratings volume 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. Alien Barrage sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. Half Heart asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Half Heart against 5.0 for Alien Barrage. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 1 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Half Heart ships an update every 35 months, Alien Barrage every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 4 level
Half Heart versus Alien Barrage: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHalf HeartAlien Barrage
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings)
Number of ratings11
Update frequencyEvery 35 monthsEvery 3 months — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationAd-supported — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better17.6
Further details — not scored
Size97 MB45 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperBeijing Ningdom Technology Co., Ltd.arnold biffna

In-app purchases

None

Half Heart

No in-app purchases

6 purchases

Alien Barrage

One-time6
  • 3 Revives$0.99
  • 10 Revives$1.99
  • 10 Extra Bombs.$1.99
Show 3 more
  • Dual Shooter Ship$2.99
  • 40 revives$4.99
  • 100 Revives$9.99

Questions

Is Half Heart free?
Half Heart is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Alien Barrage free?
Alien Barrage is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Half Heart or Alien Barrage?
Half Heart and Alien Barrage are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 1 and 1 ratings respectively.
Do Half Heart or Alien Barrage have ads?
Half Heart shows ads; Alien Barrage does not.
Which is updated more often, Half Heart or Alien Barrage?
Half Heart ships an update every 35 months, and Alien Barrage every 3 months. Most recently, Half Heart was updated on October 24, 2026 and Alien Barrage on October 22, 2026.

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