Comparison

Crying Suns vs Northgard

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

Head to head
About

Crying Suns

Command a space fleet in a tactical rogue-lite inspired by classic sci-fi. Explore a procedurally generated universe, engage in strategic ship battles, and uncover a deep storyline across six chapters. Experience a rich narrative and atmospheric gameplay designed for mobile.

Highlights
  • Procedurally-generated space exploration
  • Tactical battleship and squadron fleet combat
  • Over 300 story events
  • Deep, 6-chapter storyline
  • Mobile-optimized interface
Read full description

When FTL meets Foundation and Dune: Crying Suns is a tactical rogue-lite that puts you in the role of a space fleet commander as you explore a mysteriously fallen empire. In this story rich experience inspired by Dune and Foundation, each successful run will uncover the truth about the Empire... and yourself as well. Main Features: - Space exploration in a procedurally-generated universe - Tactical fights between battleships and their squadron fleets - More than 300 possible story events - A deep and dramatic storyline structured in 6 chapters - A dark and disturbing atmosphere inspired by our favorite S-F universes (Foundation, Dune, Battlestar Galactica) First released on PC and Mac, the indie hit Crying Suns was carefully redesigned for mobile and tablets, including a revamped interface and intuitive touchscreen interactions. Pay once to get the full Crying Suns experience! No ads, no F2P mechanics! All future updates included. Supported languages: English, French, German, Spanish, Russian, Simplified Chinese, and Japanese If you encounter any problem, please contact us at contact@cryingsuns.com with as much information as possible on the issue.

About

Northgard

Lead a Viking clan to explore, settle, and conquer a mysterious new continent. Manage resources, assign jobs, and survive harsh winters and dangerous foes. Choose your clan's path to victory through conquest, trade, or devotion.

Highlights
  • Build and manage settlements
  • Assign Vikings to jobs
  • Resource management and survival
  • Territory expansion and discovery
  • Multiple victory conditions
  • Story mode campaign
  • Multiplayer modes
Read full description

Northgard is a strategy game based on Norse mythology in which you control a Clan of Vikings fighting for the control of a mysterious newfound continent. After years of tireless explorations, brave Vikings have discovered a new land filled with mystery, danger and riches: NORTHGARD. The boldest Northmen have set sail to explore and conquer these new shores, bring fame to their Clan and write history through conquest, trading, or devotion to the Gods. That is, if they can survive the dire Wolves and Undead Warriors roaming the land, befriend or defeat the giants, and survive the harshest winters ever witnessed in the North. FEATURES • Build your settlement on the newly discovered continent of Northgard • Assign your vikings to various jobs (Farmer, Warrior, Sailor, Loremaster...) • Manage your resources carefully and survive harsh winters and vicious foes • Expand and discover new territory with unique strategic opportunities • Achieve different victory conditions (Conquest, Fame, Lore, Trading...) STORY MODE: RIG’S SAGA The Viking High King is murdered and his Regal Horn is stolen by a man named Hagen. This event kickstarts a saga that will take Rig, his son and heir accompanied by his right-hand man Brand through the new continent of Northgard. The continent where he will make new friends and foes and discover a much greater threat than Hagen, and the reasons behind his father’s assassination. MULTIPLAYER • Play with or against other Mobile players with up to 6 players • Includes Duel, Free for All and Teamplay modes CHOOSE YOUR CLAN In order to complete the 11 campaign chapters, the player will have to master the specificities of the 6 first clans and tame the unforgiving wilderness of Northgard. More clans are joining the fight for Northgard! • Clan of the Snake: Act from the shadows and take the lead with cunning guerilla tactics • Clan of the Dragon: Embrace the old ways and please the gods with sacrifices • Clan of the Kraken: Harness the bounty of the sea and unleash its brutal might You can unlock the clans of the Snake, Dragon and Kraken separately by buying the DLCs, or together with the Scale Bundle. • Clan of the Horse: Devote yourself to the art of blacksmithing and craft powerful Relics • Clan of the Ox: Equip ancestral equipment and prove the might of your forefathers • Clan of the Lynx: Adopt Nature’s way and lure mythical preys into ambushes You can unlock the Clans of the Horse, Ox and Lynx separately by buying the DLCs, or together with the Fur Bundle. • Clan of the Squirrel: Gather ingredients to prepare special recipes and survive the harsh winters • Clan of the Rat: Embrace the way of the Shamans and work for the clan • Clan of the Eagle: Occupy a large territory, venture outside and gather resources Unlock the clans of the Squirrel, Rat and Eagle separately by buying the DLCs, or together with the Winter Bundle. Carefully redesigned for mobile • Revamped interface • Game Center achievements • iCloud - Share your progress between iOS devices If you experience any issue with Northgard, please contact our customer support at support@playdigious.mail.helpshift.com and give us as much as possible information on your problem.

Screenshots

Crying Suns4 screens
Northgard4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Crying Suns at none against Northgard's 12. Crying Suns also leads on review sentiment (73% vs 61%). Northgard's advantage is chart position (#23 vs #78) and price ($7.99 vs $8.99). On rating, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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

Crying Suns costs $8.99 and Northgard $7.99 up front. Northgard sells 12 one-off in-app purchases. Crying Suns asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Crying Suns holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2.2K and 3.7K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 73% of Crying Suns's written reviews are positive against 61% of Northgard's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Crying Suns ships an update monthly, Northgard every 6 weeks. Both last shipped on October 29, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Crying Suns versus Northgard: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCrying SunsNorthgard
Price$8.99$7.99 — better
Rating4.8 (2.2K ratings) — better4.6 (3.7K ratings)
Positive reviews72.6% of reviews — better61.4% of reviews
Number of ratings2.2K3.7K — better
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 6 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#78#23 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.0 — better13.6
Further details — not scored
Size1014 MB892 MB
Age rating12+9+
DeveloperAlternative ShiftPlaydigious

Customer experience

Crying Suns

All ratings2,136 ratings
Positive95.6%
Neutral1.5%
Negative2.8%
Written reviews285 reviews
Positive72.6%
Neutral9.5%
Negative17.9%

Northgard

All ratings3,606 ratings
Positive90.2%
Neutral3.2%
Negative6.6%
Written reviews1,052 reviews
Positive61.4%
Neutral11.5%
Negative27.1%

User reviews

Crying Suns

From 2.2K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fun gameplay
  • 🌟 Amazing atmosphere and story
  • 👍 Engaging combat system
  • 💎 Great value for money

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
  • 🔍 Small text and UI elements
  • 🔁 Repetitive gameplay and missions

Northgard

From 3.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great game
  • 👍 Fantastic strategy game
  • 👍 Challenging and fun
  • 👍 Excellent port to mobile
  • 👍 Lots of replayability

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes
  • 🐛 Buggy menus and UI
  • 🔋 Battery draining
  • 🐛 Glitchy audio
  • 🐛 Saves getting deleted

Bugs and requests

Crying Suns

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Game crashes when using certain ship abilities
  • Crashes during end-of-chapter cutscenes
  • Progression-blocking bugs preventing access to new content
  • Inability to progress past specific story points due to crashes

Requested features

4 requests
  • Zoom functionality for combat screen
  • Ability to play own music during gameplay
  • Endless mode or sandbox option
  • Improved tutorial to explain key mechanics

Northgard

Reported bugs

6 issues
  • Game crashes frequently
  • Menus and UI are buggy
  • Audio glitches and cuts out
  • Saves get deleted unexpectedly
  • Multiplayer is unreliable
Show 1 more
  • Achievements are not working properly

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add multiplayer mode
  • Improve tutorial and instructions
  • Add controller support
  • Optimize performance and stability
  • Add Chinese language support
Show 1 more
  • Improve clan/unit selection and management

In-app purchases

None

Crying Suns

No in-app purchases

12 purchases

Northgard

One-time12
  • Clan of the Rat$2.95
  • Clan of the Squirrel$2.99
  • Clan of the snake$2.99
Show 9 more
  • Clan of the Dragon$2.99
  • Clan of the Horse$2.99
  • Clan of the Ox$2.99
  • Clan of the Kraken$2.99
  • Clan of the Lynx$2.99
  • Clan of the Eagle$2.99
  • Scale Bundle$6.99
  • Fur Bundle$6.99
  • Winter Bundle$6.99

Questions

Is Crying Suns free?
Crying Suns costs $8.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Northgard free?
Northgard costs $7.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Crying Suns or Northgard?
Crying Suns is rated higher. Crying Suns averages 4.8 out of 5 from 2.2K ratings, while Northgard averages 4.6 from 3.7K ratings.
Do Crying Suns or Northgard have ads?
Neither Crying Suns nor Northgard shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Crying Suns or Northgard?
Crying Suns ships an update monthly, and Northgard every 6 weeks. Most recently, Crying Suns was updated on October 29, 2026 and Northgard on October 29, 2026.
Which is more popular, Crying Suns or Northgard?
Crying Suns currently peaks at #78 in the App Store charts, and Northgard at #23. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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