Deadlock vs DUAL!
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Deadlock
Engage in intense 3D online multiplayer battles as a dualstick shooter. Compete in daily and weekly tournaments to earn unlock points and customize your arsenal with over 30 weapons and armor pieces. Practice offline in survival or bot matches before joining global arenas.
- 3D online multiplayer action
- Daily and weekly tournaments
- Over 30 weapons and armor
- Offline practice modes
- Multiple gameplay modes
- Ranked progression system
- Game Center integration
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From Crescent Moon, makers of the hit titles Aralon: Sword and Shadow and Gears, comes a new breed of Multiplayer game. Step into the world of DEADLOCK, the most Epic 3d online dualstick shooter on the App Store! Join in on the action and play against thousands of other players in online matches. Compete in daily and weekly tournaments to win unlock points. Over 30 different weapons, armor, and attachments - including different pistols, rifles, machine guns, grenades, scopes,and flashbangs! Practice your shooting skills before entering in online matches by playing Survival Mode and Bot Matches offline! System Requirements: Game Center, iOS 4.1 or higher, iPhone 3GS and up, iPad 1 or iPad 2 Features: - Gorgeous 3d Graphics - Up to 8 player online multiplayer action. - Over 30 weapons including assault rifles, sub machine guns, grenades and more. - Robust loadout system including multiple weapon attachments, and armor. - 3 Gameplay modes at launch including Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch and Capture & Hold - 30 ranks to earn with rewards for each rank you earn. - Asynchronous Online Tournaments – automatically be entered into new tournaments running every day and every week to win unlock points which can be used to unlock new weapons and items. - Gamecenter integration for tournaments and achievements, character stat tracking. - Character synchronization between multiple devices (iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch) - 7 Maps Like Facebook.com/CrescentMoonGames and follow @cm_games on Twitter for more great games and deals!
DUAL!
Engage in local multiplayer fun with friends using your mobile devices. Connect via WiFi or Bluetooth to play competitive or cooperative games by shooting from one screen to another. Enjoy classic duels, team defense, or goal-scoring challenges.
- Local multiplayer over WiFi or Bluetooth
- Competitive and cooperative modes
- DUEL: Classic standoff
- DEFEND: Cooperative defense
- DEFLECT: Goal-scoring game
- Unlockable color sets
- Stats, achievements, and leaderboards
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Between people, across screens. DUAL is a local multiplayer game where two players use their mobile devices to shoot from one screen to the other. It's easy to pick up and play any of the competitive or cooperative modes: DUEL, DEFLECT, and DEFEND. Features: + Battle locally over WiFi or Bluetooth. + DUEL - Tilt your phone, dodge bullets, charge, and shoot your friends in this classic duel standoff. + DEFEND - Work together to defend the middle from an onslaught of attackers. + DEFLECT - Score goals by blasting, banking, and curving the ball from one screen to the other. + Only one person needs to have the full version unlocked to play DEFEND and DEFLECT with another player. + Collectable color sets unique to your device; unlock them all by playing against different people. + Single one-time in-app purchase to unlock the full game, and restore it on all your devices using the same account. + Stats, achievements, and leaderboards. "Working together right next to each other really brings back the magic of couch gaming." - Chris Carter, Destructoid "...it's a really fun way to engage with another live human, up-close and personal." - Rick Broida, CNET "You play it with someone, anywhere, and it actually brings you closer together..." - Chris Priestman, Kill Screen "...sending bullets across to someone else’s phone as you sit opposite them has a curious sense of technological magic to it." - Chris Charlton, Kaijupop Quick Troubleshooting Guide: + Make sure your WiFi is enabled and both players are on the same WiFi network. + Use Manual IP Discovery from the WiFi lobby if unable to find each other while on the same WiFi network. + To restore your purchase go to the Unlock screen and select the Restore Purchases button.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Deadlock at monthly against DUAL!'s every 3 months. Deadlock also leads on rating (4.3 vs 4.1) and review sentiment (75% vs 65%). On price, ratings volume, 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. Deadlock sells 4 one-off in-app purchases and DUAL! sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Deadlock holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4K and 2.4K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 75% of Deadlock's written reviews are positive against 65% of DUAL!'s.
Deadlock ships an update monthly, DUAL! every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Deadlock | DUAL! |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (4K ratings) — better | 4.1 (2.4K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 75.0% of reviews — better | 64.7% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 4K — better | 2.4K |
| Update frequency | Monthly — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 4.1 — better | 11.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 77 MB | 14 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Crescent Moon Games LLC | Seabaa, Inc. |
Customer experience
Deadlock
DUAL!
User reviews
Deadlock
From 4K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great game
- 👍 Fun and addictive
- 🔥 Awesome gameplay
- 💯 Best shooter on iOS
- 🎮 Unique controls
Room to improve
- 🐛 Crashes frequently
- 🔌 Connection issues
- ⏱️ Slow matchmaking
- 🤖 Unbalanced matchmaking
- 💰 Difficult to earn unlock points
DUAL!
From 2.4K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fun
- 👍 Super entertaining and quick to play
- 👍 Great well designed game
- 👍 Amazing!
- 👍 Very creative
Room to improve
- 🐛 Connectivity Issues
- 🐛 Doesn't Connect Anymore
- 🐛 can't connect
- 🐛 Pairing doesn't work
- 🐛 Doesn't work
Bugs and requests
Deadlock
Reported bugs
5 issues- Unable to log in
- Losing connection during matches
- Unlock points not registering properly
- Crashes on loading screens
- Laggy performance
Requested features
5 requests- More maps and game modes
- Easier way to earn unlock points
- Offline progression
- First-person mode
- Ability to kick players from matches
DUAL!
Reported bugs
7 issues- Trying to connect is not working with others
- Cannot play with others on the same network
- Restore purchases not working
- Couldn't play in class
- I can't move
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- Login screen freezes
- Incompatible with older devices
Requested features
10 requests- 💡 Add more game modes
- 💡 Add single player mode
- 💡 Add online multiplayer
- 💡 Add more ships/characters
- 💡 Add joystick controls
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- 💡 Add more free ships/characters
- 💡 Add AI/bots to play against
- 💡 Add more levels/difficulty
- 💡 Add worldwide/online multiplayer
- 💡 Add team/doubles mode
In-app purchases
Deadlock
- 4 Unlock Points$0.99
- 16 Unlock Points$2.99
- 40 Unlock Points$4.99
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- 120 Unlock Points$9.99
DUAL!
- Full Game Unlock$2.99









