Balls Duel vs Ascent
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Balls Duel
Engage in a competitive game where players aim to find the optimal trajectory to outmaneuver their opponents. Master your aim and strategy to achieve victory.
- Competitive gameplay
- Trajectory aiming
- Strategic opponent beating
- Skill-based challenges
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A new way of beating your opponent. Find the best trajectory.
Ascent
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Ascent is a block puzzle played in reverse. Each piece starts on a launch pad under the board. You aim it, launch it, and it flies up until it hits the ceiling or the blocks already stacked there. Fill a row of 10 to clear it. After every clear, reverse gravity pulls the blocks below up into the gap. That rise can complete more rows, so one good launch can set off a chain of cascades. HOW TO PLAY - Drag to move the piece left or right. - Tap ROTATE to turn it, and LAUNCH to send it up. - Clear full rows to score, and set up the next clear as you go. - If a block reaches the floor, the run is over. TWO MODES - Rush: a red line comes down from the top and pushes your stack toward the floor, faster over time. Every clear pushes it back up. - Zen: the red line stays at the top and there is no clock. Stack and clear at your own pace. FEATURES - A 10 by 20 board and 10 piece shapes, from 2 to 4 blocks each - See the next 5 pieces so you can plan your stack - Multi-row clears score more, and clearing again within 2 seconds raises your combo multiplier - In Rush, big clears and combos push the red line back further - Online leaderboards for Rush and Zen: pick a name once, no account or sign-in - Play offline. The leaderboard needs a connection and takes your best score on your next online run - A short interactive tutorial on your first run - Particles, screen shake and a short freeze-frame on every clear - Sound effects with a mute button - Free to play, supported by ads WHY IT WORKS AS A BRAIN GAME Every launch is a small planning puzzle: which column, which rotation, and which row you are setting up for the next clear. In Rush you plan with the red line closing in. In Zen you can take all the time you want. If you like block puzzles, stacking games and arcade puzzles, try the one where the stack builds from the top down. Privacy Policy: https://dangnguyen.app/ascent/privacy Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Ascent at none against Balls Duel's 1. Balls Duel's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). On price, update cadence, ads 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
Both are free to download. Balls Duel sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Ascent asks for nothing beyond the download.
Balls Duel ships an update every 3 weeks, Ascent monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Balls Duel | Ascent |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (5.8K ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 25.6% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 5.8K — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Monthly |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 241 MB | 60 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Voodoo | Dang Nguyen |
Bugs and requests
Balls Duel
Reported bugs
4 issues- Game freezes or crashes after reaching top leaderboard
- Leaderboard and progression issues
- Black screen or unresponsive controls
- Inconsistent performance and lag
Requested features
4 requests- Increase difficulty as player progresses
- Add multiplayer mode
- Improve coin/upgrade system
- Allow skin/level customization
Ascent
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Balls Duel
- No ads$2.99
Ascent
No in-app purchases









