Comparison

Nether Earth vs Starbase Orion

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

Head to head
About

Nether Earth

Engage in real-time strategic warfare against an alien race using giant military robots. Build your forces, capture factories, and conquer enemy bases in this classic isometric strategy game.

Highlights
  • Real-time strategy gameplay
  • Robot unit construction
  • Order-based combat
  • Factory capture and production
  • Isometric graphics
  • Conquer enemy bases
Features
Read full description

Nether Earth is one of the earliest computer strategy games taking place in real time. It was released for the Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum and Commodore 64 in 1987. It was published in the United Kingdom by Argus Press Software and re-released in Spain by Mind Games Espana S.A. The player takes the control of the human side in a war against the mysterious Insignian race. All of the warfare is carried out by enormous military robots. The player controls a flying machine which can fly over any part of the play-area. The player must build robots and give them orders to attack Insignian robots and capture neutral or enemy factories to increase production and thus aid the war effort. The ultimate objective is to capture all the enemy bases and thus win the war. Everything takes place in real-time with the action being ongoing rather than turn-based. Because the player's view of the battlefield is limited to where their flying-machine is, much of the front-line fighting is left to the machines whilst the player concentrates on building more robots. The game is displayed in forced-perspective isometric graphics.

About

Starbase Orion

Engage in a deep 4X space strategy experience. Explore, expand, and conquer the galaxy by colonizing worlds, designing ships, and outmaneuvering opponents in turn-based combat. Features a robust AI and multiplayer options for galactic domination.

Highlights
  • Explore new worlds
  • Expand your empire
  • Exterminate rivals
  • Design custom ships
  • Engage in turn-based combat
  • Diplomacy and espionage
  • Multiplayer via GameCenter
Features
Currently charting
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"The best 4X game currently available for mobile" - PocketTactics.com "This one is geek heaven" - AppAdvice.com "Master of Orion in Your Pocket” - GamePro.com "Starbase Orion has an epic-feeling" - TouchArcade.com "Starbase Orion is here, and it's glorious." - TUAW.com Explore. Expand. Exterminate. Can you defeat your friends and become the ruler of the galaxy? Starbase Orion is an old-school 4X space strategy game that draws inspiration from titles such as Master of Orion and Galactic Civilizations. Lead your empire from the birth of its space age; colonize new worlds, explore new horizons, and discover other players attempting to do the same. It is a race to the stars where only one empire can declare victory over the galaxy. New to 4X Strategy Games? No Problem Starbase Orion includes a hand tailored tutorial mission perfect for those new to the genre. It features high-quality voice acting provided by the very talented Maurice Thomas. Aged like a Fine Wine With nearly a five year life span the dedicated community of Starbase Orion players and the developer have produced twenty-four fantastic updates. Each update has introduced new features and player suggested functionality to make the game better, more strategic, and more immersive. Strong Single-Player Experience Compete against a battle-tested artificial intelligence. Our AI was derived from our entry into to 2010 Google AI contest, where it placed in the top 15% of thousands of competing intelligences. Go head-to-head against a single AI opponent, or ramp up the carnage with a 4 way free-for-all. GameCenter Multiplayer Turn-Based Games Starbase Orion was designed to provide a fantastic multiplayer experience. Launch the game, sign into GameCenter, and start a new multiplayer game. No need to coordinate play times or seek out other players. Just go play, when you want and on your terms. Choose Your Race, Or Create Your Own There are five uniques races included; Human, Draske, Vass, Cyban, and Isather. You can also create your own custom race by picking and choosing between different race characteristics. Intense Space Combat Design your ships from a variety of weapons, hull, and systems. Send them into battle against the enemy. Give them orders, then watch the battle in unfold as they duke it out in the dark expanses of space. Diplomacy, Espionage, Free Agents Direct confrontations not your cup of tea? Negotiate your way to victory through diplomatic endeavors. Confound your enemies with an army of spies. Contract one of the many power and unique leaders to help you to victory. iCloud Support Starbase Orion is built from the ground up for iOS 5. It supports iCloud so that your saved games are instantly available on all of your devices. Start a game at home on your iPad, then pick it up again the next day on your iPhone. Simple, streamlined, fantastic. Universal - You Bought the Cool Gadgets, Go Play on Them Full support for iPad, iPhone, iPod, standard and Retina displays. Play when you want, where you want. Guaranteed Pricing While it is quite common for apps to become “free for a day”, Starbase Orion is not one of those apps. The standard price for Starbase Orion is $7.99 USD; it will never run a “free for a day” campaign. Tens of thousands of players have placed their confidence in us by purchasing Starbase Orion, and this is our guarantee to you. Guaranteed Free Updates We have a lot more planned for Starbase Orion. We plan to release all updates for free, without any hidden fees or In-App Purchases.

Screenshots

Nether Earth4 screens
Starbase Orion4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Starbase Orion at 4.7 against Nether Earth's 3.6. Starbase Orion also leads on update cadence (every 3 months vs every 23 months) and review sentiment (81% vs 54%). Nether Earth's advantage is price ($0.99 vs $7.99). On ads, in-app purchases, monetization model 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Nether Earth costs $0.99 and Starbase Orion $7.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Starbase Orion holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Starbase Orion has 329 ratings behind it against 13, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 54% of Nether Earth's written reviews are positive against 81% of Starbase Orion's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Nether Earth ships an update every 23 months, Starbase Orion every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Nether Earth versus Starbase Orion: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNether EarthStarbase Orion
Price$0.99 — better$7.99
Rating3.6 (13 ratings)4.7 (329 ratings) — better
Positive reviews54.0% of reviews81.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings13329 — better
Update frequencyEvery 23 monthsEvery 3 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
Best chart rank—#189 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.011.2 — better
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB239 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperAleksejs VoloviksChimera Software, LLC

Customer experience

Nether Earth

All ratings13 ratings
Positive69.2%
Neutral0.0%
Negative30.8%
Written reviews63 reviews
Positive54.0%
Neutral9.5%
Negative36.5%

Starbase Orion

All ratings329 ratings
Positive91.2%
Neutral4.9%
Negative4.0%
Written reviews316 reviews
Positive81.3%
Neutral7.0%
Negative11.7%

Bugs and requests

Nether Earth

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Starbase Orion

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes and save file corruption
  • UI issues with overlapping text and unresponsive controls
  • Multiplayer matchmaking and connectivity problems

Requested features

5 requests
  • More ship classes and customization options
  • Expanded tech tree and research system
  • Deeper diplomacy and espionage mechanics
  • Manual control of ship combat
  • Improved end-game content and victory conditions

In-app purchases

None

Nether Earth

No in-app purchases

None

Starbase Orion

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Nether Earth free?
Nether Earth costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Starbase Orion free?
Starbase Orion costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Nether Earth or Starbase Orion?
Starbase Orion is rated higher. Nether Earth averages 3.6 out of 5 from 13 ratings, while Starbase Orion averages 4.7 from 329 ratings.
Do Nether Earth or Starbase Orion have ads?
Neither Nether Earth nor Starbase Orion shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Nether Earth or Starbase Orion?
Nether Earth ships an update every 23 months, and Starbase Orion every 3 months. Most recently, Nether Earth was updated on October 27, 2026 and Starbase Orion on October 26, 2026.

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