Pixel Starships™ vs Arclight City
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Pixel Starships™
Command every aspect of your starship in a persistent online universe. Build, battle, explore, and manage resources in this 8-bit spaceship management game. Form alliances and conquer with friends.
- Build custom starships
- Command multiple races and factions
- Online player battles
- Manage resources and power
- Explore planets and secrets
- Form alliances
- Program AI for automatic combat
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Featured by Apple in Best New Games! From one of the most successful Mobile Game Kickstarter campaigns of the year comes Pixel Starships! Pixel Starships is the world’s first total spaceship management game in an 8bit massive online universe. In Pixel Starships, you command every aspect of your ship from construction to battles in a single persistent world. Featured Reviews - Touch Arcade - Pixel Starships tasks you with outfitting your very own ship with resource rooms, staff, and weapons. This looks Awesome! MMGN - The graphics in this 8Bit indie game is the best we've seen in a retro style game for a long time PocketTactics - I’m intrigued by the cutaway side-view of the starship with turbolifts and transporters at the ready TechTimes - The World’s First 8-Bit Total Starship Management Game Hits The Online Universe The Discovery Channel - A fully immersive starship captain experience. Key Features - ● Build Epic Starships of your own design. ● Many races, aliens, factions to command and conquer. ● Battle it out with other real players in a single massive online universe. ● Manage diplomacy, recruitment, research, exploration! ● Control ship's power and limited resources. Discover epic weapons. ● Build and deploy support ships to support your Starfleet. ● Cross section full ship control and battles. ● Explore planets, discover secrets of space. ● Form alliances and battle with your friends to achieve victory! ● Program situational AI commands to systems and crew allowing automatic combats and offline play. If you're a fan of Star Wars and Star Trek; if you enjoy games like EVE, Clash of Clans, FTL, or Homeworld, you'll love Pixel Starships! Note - Pixel Starships is totally free to play and is designed for perfect balance for all players. However, there are in-app items that can be purchased for real money to help speed up progress or offer cosmetic improvements. If you don't want this feature, please disable in-app purchases in your device's settings. Note on Auto-Renewing Subscription - Pixel Starships contains a optional Subscription Membership. Members receive extra missions, bonuses, and daily rewards. Membership content is regularly updated. The Monthly Membership Subscription cost is USD $3.99 per month or a similarly adjusted currency price in your local region. Please refer to IAP menu or in app display for localised pricing. Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. The subscription is auto renewable and will renew monthly unless cancelled at least 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. Subscription can be cancelled via iTunes subscription manager. There is also a 7 day free trial for the membership; the free trial period is not transferrable and any remaining free time is cancelled if a paying subscription starts. Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase. EULA: http://www.pixelstarships.com/eula Privacy Policy: http://www.pixelstarships.com/privacypolicy As per Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, you must be at least 13 years of age to play or download Pixel Starships.
Arclight City
Engage in a cyberpunk MMORPG set in a neon-drenched city. Build your gang, explore procedurally generated dungeons, and customize gear. Master turn-based combat and rise to power in this text-based adventure.
- Unique mercenaries with special abilities
- Unlimited weapons and gear customization
- Procedurally generated dungeons
- Turn-based combat
- Anime and pixel art style
- Idle and background progression
- Auto farming
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In the neon-soaked streets of Arclight City, the balance of power is threatened by secret corporations and dangerous underworld figures. The sprawling metropolis is hanging by a thread. It all depends on you and your gang to restore order...or seize control for yourselves. But let's be real, we just want to dominate the city and crush our rivals! This is the cyberpunk MMORPG adventure you've always dreamed of. Explore procedurally generated dungeons, build your gang, customize crazy cyber-gear, and rise to power! Super easy and intuitive controls, smooth gameplay, and immersive rogue-like elements make this the best MMORPG you will find on mobile. Features: - Unique Mercenaries: Each with special abilities to master. - Unlimited Weapons & Gear: Collect, craft, and upgrade an endless array of items to create the ultimate loadout. Make each piece of gear truly unique! - Procedurally Generated Dungeons: Dive into thrilling, ever-changing dungeons! Navigate layouts filled with hidden secrets, valuable treasures, and unexpected threats. Make meaningful choices during dynamic encounters—succeed to earn rewards or face consequences if you fail. Collect hundreds of unique lore notes to uncover the mysteries of Arclight City. Every dungeon brings new traps, puzzles, and enemies, making each adventure unpredictable and exciting. - Turn-Based Combat: Strategize and take turns to defeat your enemies with tactical precision. - Anime & Pixel Art Style: Enjoy a unique blend of anime-inspired visuals and detailed pixel art, making Arclight City stand out with its distinct aesthetic. - Idle & Background Tasks: Progress while you're away! Keep advancing even when the app is closed. - Auto farm: Leave the app open and your character will slowly gather experience and items over time. Download Arclight City today and dive into the neon-drenched world of power, mystery, and adventure. The fate of Arclight City is in your hands!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ratings volume: Pixel Starships™ at 35K against Arclight City's 188. Pixel Starships™ also leads on review sentiment (82% vs 63%) and update cadence (every 9 days vs monthly). Arclight City's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases 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. Pixel Starships™ sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month and Arclight City sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Pixel Starships™ against 4.7 for Arclight City. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Pixel Starships™ has 35K ratings behind it against 188, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 82% of Pixel Starships™'s written reviews are positive against 63% of Arclight City's.
Pixel Starships™ ships an update every 9 days, Arclight City monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Pixel Starships™ | Arclight City |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (35K ratings) — better | 4.7 (188 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 81.9% of reviews — better | 62.5% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 35K — better | 188 |
| Update frequency | Every 9 days — better | Monthly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 450 MB | 8 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 9+ |
| Developer | Savy Soda Pty Ltd | Ching Huang |
Customer experience
Pixel Starships™
Arclight City
User reviews
Pixel Starships™
From 35K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Decent game with no pay wall harassment
- 🚀 Great little game
- 🚀 Good game
- 🚀 Straight gas
- 🚀 Amazing game
Room to improve
- 🐛 Glitchy
- 🐛 Horrible backend, would not recommend for slower devices
- 🐛 Cleverly disguised ad farm
- 🐛 Needs some fixing
- 🐛 Unfair in battle
Arclight City
From 188 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- ✨ Captivating and fun gameplay
- 🌌 Great cyberpunk aesthetic
- 🎵 Excellent soundtrack
- 🎮 Better mechanics than previous game
- 👍 Casual and fun for cyberpunk fans
Room to improve
- 📉 Poor moderation and punishment
- 💰 Pay-to-play mechanics
- ⏳ Slow energy/psychosis removal
- 🚫 Zero to none drop rates
- 🔞 Embarrassing soft-core pornographic content
Bugs and requests
Pixel Starships™
Reported bugs
8 issues- Crew abilities not working as intended
- Losing resources and trophies due to connection issues
- Ads not rewarding the promised amount of Starbux
- Scrolling issues when rearranging ship layout
- Inconsistent loading times
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- Missions consuming daily allowance even on error
- Starbux purchases not being credited
- Resources not properly credited after selling on the market
Requested features
17 requests- Lower how much bux people can ask for items and resources
- Set a limit on bux that's not too ridiculous
- Add more galaxies to explore
- Add larger ships
- Add smaller support craft that can fight alongside the main ship
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- Add a faction war mode with 3v3 or 5v5 battles
- Add a way to have multiple ships in your fleet
- Add a ranking system for top players and top ships
- Add more ship customization options
- Add a way to remove items from the market
- Add a panel to view all crew stats
- Add a button to fix all modules at once
- Add multiple AI preset options for combat
- Add a way to fight against your own ship to test vulnerabilities
- Add a permanent live PvP mode
- Add a way to change the email associated with an account
- Add a daily login bonus that increases over consecutive days
Arclight City
Reported bugs
4 issues- Unplayable on iPhone X and up due to screen issues
- Cannot access settings without finishing tutorial
- Screen shape issues on newer iPhones
- Nothing works when clicked unless in-game purchases are made
Requested features
10 requests- Add more soundtrack tracks
- Improve moderation and punishment system
- Implement character/avatar updates with equipment
- Add more dungeons and special keys for entry
- Add male mercenaries to the team
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- Reduce the prevalence of anime girls in art
- Add PvP to the game
- Improve social features and community aspects
- Add more music
- Change icon and app store pictures to differentiate from previous game
In-app purchases
Pixel Starships™
- One Month Membership7 Days trial$3.991 Month
- Special Offer$1.99
- Clip of Starbux$4.99
- Special Offer$4.99
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- Season Pass$8.99
- Roll of Starbux$9.99
- Special Offer$9.99
- Stash of Starbux$19.99
- Special Offer$19.99
- Case of Starbux$49.99
Arclight City
- premium1$1.99
- premium2$4.99
- premium3$9.99
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- premium4$19.99
- premium5$49.99
- premium6$99.99
Questions
Is Pixel Starships™ free?
Is Arclight City free?
Which has better reviews, Pixel Starships™ or Arclight City?
Do Pixel Starships™ or Arclight City have ads?
Which is updated more often, Pixel Starships™ or Arclight City?
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