Comparison

Starborne Frontiers vs Foundation

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

Head to head
About

Starborne Frontiers

Command a fleet of over 100 unique spaceships in this epic space strategy game. Explore a vast universe, engage in tactical battles, and uncover the secrets of the mysterious Abyss. Upgrade your ships, recruit powerful captains, and compete against other players.

Highlights
  • Collect and upgrade over 100 unique spaceships
  • Lead your crew into tactical space battles
  • Explore the non-linear Abyss for secrets and treasures
  • Engage in 6 diverse game modes
  • Master challenging boss encounters
  • Recruit captains with unique abilities
Read full description

Take the command seat and become a legendary space commander in Starborne: Frontiers! Collect over 100 ships and build the ultimate fleet. Lead your crew into battle and carve your path through the Starborne: Frontiers universe. Experiment with fleet strategies and deploy the perfect ship for every challenge as you unlock new game modes with powerful boss encounters. Will you join the explorers daring enough to breach the Abyss? Push past the barrier and uncover its secrets and hidden treasures. Key features - Next-level graphics on mobile - A diverse collection of captains with unique abilities and rich backstories - Non-linear exploration in the Abyss - 6 unique game modes to discover - Master your strategy to conquer bosses with challenging mechanics. Game modes - Story-rich campaign: Start your journey in the campaign and uncover the secrets of the galaxy and your ultimate purpose as a fleet commander. - Bounties: Take on the galaxy’s most wanted by tackling bounties and collecting legendary gear for your ships. - PvP Arena: Is your fleet strong enough? Test their strength against commanders across the galaxy and ascend the ranks to earn epic rewards. - Alliance play: Join forces with fellow commanders and take on the impenetrable vault boss. Can you work together to get past its unyielding barrier? - Anomalies: As you progress, discover strange anomalies and defeat them to earn Skill boosts. - Journey into the Abyss: What secrets will you uncover? On the battlefield, put your tactical skills to the test by choosing from limitless fleet combinations and formations. As you conquer the galaxy, recruit more powerful spaceships and take them to the next level by upgrading and ranking them up. Level up their skills using Skill Neurons and learn new abilities and targeting patterns. On your journey collect powerful equipment for your ships, from weapons to generators, and mix and match pieces to theory craft the ultimate build. Explore the Abyss As you conquer the frontier, slowly uncover the secrets of the Abyss, a resource-rich void guarded by the ruthless Harvester bosses. Uncover its mysteries before diving in head first to save the galaxy. The Abyss is a non-linear tower-like game mode that you can explore on your own terms. Choose which path to take, and make command decisions that determine your rewards. As you travel to each node, unveil areas of the map once covered by a mysterious fog. Locate the gatekeeper and defeat them to unveil the wormhole and descend to the next depth. The further you venture into the void, the better the rewards. Complete depths and earn achievements for valuable loot and unearth implants that can be used to augment your captains. Engage in intense battles with special requirements and master your strategy to emerge victorious. Can you keep only one enemy alive? Play your cards right, and you could uncover the fragments of a legendary ship. Embark on an epic adventure, dominate the battlefield, and put your tactics to the test. What are you waiting for? Forge the ultimate fleet and become a legendary space commander today! Visit our website: starborne.com/frontiers For updates, strategy discussions, and more, join our growing community on Discord: discord.gg/playfrontiers Follow us on Facebook: facebook.com/StarborneFrontiers Terms of Service: frontiers.starborne.com/terms_and_conditions/terms_of_service Privacy Policy: frontiers.starborne.com/terms_and_conditions/privacy_policy

About

Foundation

Embark on an epic sci-fi adventure in a falling Galactic Empire. Command your starship, explore uncharted space, and dominate a saga blending deep strategy with intense action. Uncover secrets, build your fleet, and shape the future of humanity.

Highlights
  • Interstellar trader/bounty hunter/political strategist role
  • Cinematic narrative events reacting to player choices
  • Mothership construction and customization
  • Crew management and bonding
  • Space exploration with landing shooter combats
  • Fleet construction and RTS galaxy wars
  • Alliance participation in interstellar conflicts
Features
Read full description

(This game includes in-game purchases (including random items).) Ignite engines, buckle up, and now dive into the epic sci-fi universe of Isaac Asimov’s Foundation—the beloved novels that also inspired the acclaimed Apple TV+ series. As the Galactic Empire falls, new factions rise. The fate of humanity is in your hands. Command your starship, explore uncharted space, and dominate this sci-fi saga blending deep strategy with intense action! Immersive Story: The Master Trader's Galactic Odyssey -Play a unique role as an interstellar trader/bounty hunter/political strategist navigating between the Empire, Foundation, other factions and rebels, uncovering the secrets of Seldon’s Plan and confronting with the mysterious enemy the Mule. -Experience cinematic narrative events that react to your decisions — your choices may shape the future of the galaxy. Mothership Simulation: A Sweet Space Home -Construct your spaceship! Build different cabins to offer everything you need to survive: food, water recyclers, and oxygen farms... With cannons armed on, it's time to pilot your mobile space haven into the blue sky! -Foster bonds with your crew, handle emergencies together and breathe life into ship. Every daily greeting adds a little more belonging to your adventures through space. Star Crew: A Band of Vagabonds -Encounter heroes of various backgrounds and appearances in space and invite them onboard: a robot with encyclopedic knowledge but misses sarcasm, the legendary space cowboy, even the most wanted criminal.... Roam the cosmos together and write your legend among the stars! Space Exploration: Thrilling Landing Shooter Combats -Go explore the galaxy freely, discover tons of floating space ruins and fascinating planets, and get ready for a breathtaking landing battle to unlock hidden secrets! -Deploy 3-hero strike teams in dynamic landing missions, with various strategic combinations to spark their potential! Use precise control and tactical prowess to overcome alien threats. Galaxy Wars: A Rising Trade Empire -Construct a variety of combat crafts and strategize your fleet formation to exploit and protect your galaxy's trade routes from threats and rivals. -Join powerful alliances and showcase your RTS skills in large-scale interstellar conflicts. Rise as a dominant force in the galactic economy. EMBARK NOW! Within the Foundation universe: Write Your Sci-Fi Legend • Build your Ideal Flagship • Build Trade Networks • Command Elite Fleets • Forge Your Galactic Destiny!

Screenshots

Starborne Frontiers4 screens
Foundation4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Foundation at none against Starborne Frontiers's shown. Foundation also leads on chart position (#18 vs unranked) and ratings volume (8.5K vs 1.3K). On price, rating, review sentiment and update cadence 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. Starborne Frontiers sells 48 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Foundation sells 9 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Starborne Frontiers against 4.6 for Foundation. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Foundation has 8.5K ratings behind it against 1.3K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 56% of Starborne Frontiers's written reviews are positive against 62% of Foundation's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Starborne Frontiers ships an update every 10 days, Foundation fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Starborne Frontiers versus Foundation: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStarborne FrontiersFoundation
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (1.3K ratings) — better4.6 (8.5K ratings)
Positive reviews56.3% of reviews61.6% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1.3K8.5K — better
Update frequencyEvery 10 days — betterFortnightly
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#18 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better
Requires iOS16.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size914 MB3.6 GB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperSolid Clouds hfFunPlus International AG

Customer experience

Starborne Frontiers

All ratings1,273 ratings
Positive96.0%
Neutral1.6%
Negative2.4%
Written reviews112 reviews
Positive56.3%
Neutral12.5%
Negative31.3%

Foundation

All ratings8,491 ratings
Positive92.5%
Neutral1.4%
Negative6.1%
Written reviews1,889 reviews
Positive61.6%
Neutral6.6%
Negative31.8%

User reviews

Starborne Frontiers

From 1.3K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fun game with interesting progression
  • 🚀 Nice design reminiscent of other space games
  • 🚀 Awesome game, lots of fun
  • 🚀 Great SCI-FI feel to hero collecting
  • 🚀 Reasonable gatcha pity with generous rewards

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Constant crashes and disconnections during fights
  • 🐛 Unstable and buggy, especially after updates
  • 🐛 Crashes on loading screens and during battles
  • 🐛 Crashes on older devices and iOS
  • 🐛 Frequent crashes making the game unplayable

Foundation

From 8.5K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great game
  • 🚀 Awesome gameplay
  • 👍 Brings back the show
  • 👍 Fun and interactive
  • 👍 Visually fantastic

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and freezes
  • 🐛 Buggy and unstable
  • 💰 Heavily monetized
  • 🤖 Questionable use of AI
  • 🤷‍♀️ Doesn't match the ads

Bugs and requests

Starborne Frontiers

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Constant crashes during battles
  • Crashes on loading screens and campaign stages
  • Account login issues and progress resets
  • Compatibility problems on older devices

Requested features

4 requests
  • Better explanation of tactics and mechanics
  • More online content and player-to-player interaction
  • Improved stability and reduced crashes
  • Ability to load saved game when switching devices

Foundation

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Game freezes during tutorial
  • Crashes after completing first chapter
  • Frequent disconnections

Requested features

3 requests
  • Add Russian language support
  • Improve performance on older devices
  • Reduce in-game monetization

In-app purchases

48 purchases

Starborne Frontiers

Subscriptions2
  • Bit License$4.991 Month
  • Credit License$14.991 Month
One-time46
  • Defense Contract$0.99
  • Fleet Upgrades2 variants$1.99
  • Energy Boost2 variants$2.99
Show 43 more
  • Rookie Expansion$2.99
  • Starter Promotion$2.99
  • Command Enhancement$2.99
  • Legendary Skills Bundle$2.99
  • Starter Epic Unit$3.99
  • Small Pack 2$3.99
  • Tactical Tokens$3.99
  • Expedited Enlist$4.99
  • Rookie Armada$4.99
  • Starter Equipment$4.99
  • Seasonal Starter Deal2 variants$4.99
  • Small Bundle 8$4.99
  • Small Bundle 3$4.99
  • Small Bundle 1$4.99
  • Small Bundle 6$4.99
  • Small Bundle 5$4.99
  • Small Bundle 10$4.99
  • Small Bundle 7$4.99
  • Small Bundle 4$4.99
  • Small Bundle 2$4.99
  • Implant Package$4.99
  • Small Bundle 9$4.99
  • Starter Epic Units$5.99
  • Small Cache 8$5.99
  • Small Cache 6$5.99
  • Ultimate Starter$6.99
  • Commander Pass$9.99
  • Weekly Recruit Bundle$9.99
  • Arm Up$9.99
  • Rookie Offer$9.99
  • Medium Pack 2$9.99
  • Medium Pack 7$9.99
  • Admiral Pass$19.99
  • Recruitment Offer$19.99
  • Substantial Bundle 4$19.99
  • Seasonal Value Deal$24.99
  • Substantial Cache 7$24.99
  • Substantial Cache 2$24.99
  • Substantial Cache 3$24.99
  • Substantial Cache 8$24.99
  • Substantial Cache 5$24.99
  • Substantial Cache 1$24.99
  • Huge Bundle 7$49.99
9 purchases

Foundation

One-time9
  • Purchase Packs$0.99
  • Purchase Packs$1.99
  • Purchase Packs$2.99
Show 6 more
  • Purchase Packs2 variants$4.99
  • Purchase Packs2 variants$9.99
  • Purchase Packs$19.99
  • Purchase Packs$29.99
  • Purchase Packs$49.99
  • Purchase Packs2 variants$99.99

Questions

Is Starborne Frontiers free?
Starborne Frontiers is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Foundation free?
Foundation is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Starborne Frontiers or Foundation?
Starborne Frontiers is rated higher. Starborne Frontiers averages 4.7 out of 5 from 1.3K ratings, while Foundation averages 4.6 from 8.5K ratings.
Do Starborne Frontiers or Foundation have ads?
Starborne Frontiers shows ads; Foundation does not.
Which is updated more often, Starborne Frontiers or Foundation?
Starborne Frontiers ships an update every 10 days, and Foundation fortnightly. Most recently, Starborne Frontiers was updated on September 22, 2026 and Foundation on September 24, 2026.

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