Comparison

Monster Dash vs Ancient Tails

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

Head to head
About

Monster Dash

Embark on an action-packed adventure running and gunning through monster hordes. Master simple controls to blast enemies with powerful weapons across diverse worlds. Discover hidden awards and enjoy uninterrupted gameplay.

Highlights
  • Run and gun gameplay
  • Powerful weapons
  • Diverse worlds
  • Unique enemies
  • Hidden awards
  • Simple controls
Read full description

Sprint, Jump and Blast your way through Monster Dash, an action-packed game by the creators of Jetpack Joyride and Fruit Ninja. Experience the classic game resurrected from the dead! With simple controls, just two buttons, making it easy-to-learn but hard to master. Join Barry Steakfries and his iconic Machine Gun Jetpack in a world full of menacing monster mayhem, as you run and gun your way through hordes of zombies, vampires and more with the most explosive and powerful weapons you can find! UNIQUE FEATURES: • Clear your path with punchy and powerful Weapons! • Uninterrupted gameplay without ads or in-app purchases • 5 different exotic worlds to survive • Unique enemies to defeat in each world • 62 Hidden Awards and Accolades to discover Download Monster Dash now and embark on an action-packed, monster-slaying, adventure… with a dash of nostalgia. Do the dash, do the Monster Dash! WHAT'S HALFBRICK+ Halfbrick+ is a mobile games subscription service featuring: ● Exclusive access to the highest-rated games ● No ads or in app purchases ● Brought to you by the makers of Award-winning mobile games ● Regular updates and new games ● Curated by hand - for gamers by gamers! Kick off your Guest Access with 60 minutes of gameplay! If you like what you see, start your One Month free trial and play all our games without ads, in app purchases, and fully unlocked games! Your subscription will auto-renew after 30 days, or save money with an annual membership! If you have any questions, please contact our support team https://support.halfbrick.com **************************************** View our privacy policy at https://halfbrick.com/hbpprivacy View our terms of service at https://www.halfbrick.com/terms-of-service

About

Ancient Tails

Embark on a retro-inspired platforming adventure to defeat feline foes. Stun enemies with head-butts while dodging hazards like bouncing balls and motorbikes. Relive classic gameplay with modern polish.

Highlights
  • Retro platforming gameplay
  • Head-butt enemies to stun
  • Dodge bouncing balls and motorbikes
  • Inspired by 80s/90s classics
  • Single-player adventure
Features
Read full description

Ancient Tails is a platform game inspired by a number of classic titles from the eighties and nineties. Your task is to stun enemy creatures by head-butting them, but watch out for bouncing balls and motorbikes!

Screenshots

Monster Dash4 screens
Ancient Tails4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Monster Dash at Free against Ancient Tails's $1.99. Monster Dash also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 7 months). Ancient Tails's advantage is review sentiment (100% vs 62%) and in-app purchases (none vs 19). On ads, device support and iOS requirement 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

Monster Dash is free to download; Ancient Tails costs $1.99 up front. Monster Dash sells 17 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Ancient Tails asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Monster Dash ships an update every 3 weeks, Ancient Tails every 7 months. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Monster Dash versus Ancient Tails: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMonster DashAncient Tails
PriceFree — better$1.99
Rating4.4 (2.1K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews61.8% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2.1K — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 7 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationSubscriptionPaid — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better
Requires iOS12.0 — better13.0
Further details — not scored
Size127 MB116 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperHalfbrick StudiosRichard Bannister

Customer experience

Monster Dash

All ratings2,120 ratings
Positive85.5%
Neutral4.0%
Negative10.5%
Written reviews709 reviews
Positive61.8%
Neutral10.3%
Negative27.9%

Ancient Tails

Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Monster Dash

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Progress and purchases disappearing after updates
  • Game Center integration not working properly
  • Spawning enemies too close to the player

Requested features

3 requests
  • Bring back the original pixel art style
  • Add more unlockable weapons and gadgets
  • Implement a classic mode without energy/stamina system

Ancient Tails

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

17 purchases

Monster Dash

Subscriptions6
  • Halfbrick+$2.991 Month
  • Halfbrick+ (Trial)1 Month trial$2.991 Month
  • Halfbrick+ (Early Adopter)6 Months trial$2.991 Month
Show 3 more
  • Halfbrick+ (Yearly discount)$2.991 Month
  • Halfbrick+3 variants$29.991 Year
  • Halfbrick+1 Year trial$29.991 Year
One-time11
  • The Mega Magnet$0.99
  • Special Ammo Gadget$0.99
  • Small Gem Pack$1.99
Show 8 more
  • Fruit Ninja Blade$1.99
  • Weapon Bundle 1$1.99
  • Weapon Bundle 2$1.99
  • Apocalypse Starter Pack$2.99
  • Medium Gem Pack$3.99
  • Incredibubble$3.99
  • Large Gem Pack$8.99
  • Halfbrick+$99.99
None

Ancient Tails

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Monster Dash free?
Monster Dash is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Ancient Tails free?
Ancient Tails costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do Monster Dash or Ancient Tails have ads?
Neither Monster Dash nor Ancient Tails shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Monster Dash or Ancient Tails?
Monster Dash ships an update every 3 weeks, and Ancient Tails every 7 months. Most recently, Monster Dash was updated on October 23, 2026 and Ancient Tails on October 24, 2026.

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