Comparison

Bloons 2 vs Starchess

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

Head to head
About

Bloons 2

Engage in a puzzle-solving skill game where you pop balloons using various weapons. Master different lands and overcome new bloon challenges with intuitive controls. Enjoy addictive gameplay across multiple devices.

Highlights
  • Dozens of bloon puzzles
  • 8 unique lands
  • Arsenal of darts
  • Anti Grav and Monkey Ace
  • Camo Bloons
  • 108 levels
  • Universal build
Features
Read full description

Bloons 2 is now free to play for a limited time! Celebrating the release of Bloons TD 5, pop your way through dozens of awesome bloon puzzles for free! Follow Bloons on Twitter to receive the latest news and information @bloonsiphone Bloons 2 is the follow up to the number 1 iOS smash hit Bloons and is brought to you by the team behind Bloons TD 5. Everyone's favourite Monkey is back and this time he's bringing with him some all new weapons in the battle against the Bloons. He's going to need all the help he can get though as the Bloons also have a few new surprises in store. Armed with an arsenal of darts, battle through 8 unique lands in an attempt to pop as many Bloons as possible. Can you master the Anti Grav, pilot the Monkey Ace precisely or perfect the timing to pop Camo Bloons before they disappear? Well it's time to find out as Bloons 2 has it all. Some levels require precision, some require skill and others require puzzle solving skills. One thing is for certain though popping Bloons is so much fun! Bloons 2 is a highly addictive puzzling skill game which will have you begging for just one more go and for the first time ever it's universal. That's right now you can enjoy the game in all it's high definition glory on iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch. Have you got what it takes to beat the Bloons? Featuring: * Simple yet highly addictive gameplay. * Intuitive touch controls. * Universal build with retina display and full screen iPad resolution. * 9 uniquely themed worlds. * 108 levels of one more go madness. * All new Bloons and shot types including Bees, Anti Gravi and Monkey Ace.

About

Starchess

Experience chess with a unique twist on a three-dimensional board. Pieces gain new movement capabilities, allowing for strategic plays in up, down, and diagonal directions. Enjoy a fresh challenge to your chess skills.

Highlights
  • Three-dimensional chess board
  • Traditional chess rules
  • Expanded piece movement (up, down, diagonal)
  • Unique strategic gameplay
Read full description

Starchess has all of the same rules as traditional chess but now on a three-dimensional board. Pieces can move up, down and diagonally.

Screenshots

Bloons 24 screens
Starchess4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Starchess at 100% against Bloons 2's 47%. Starchess also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.8) and in-app purchases (none vs 9). Bloons 2's advantage is ratings volume (2.1K vs 1) and iOS requirement (3.2 vs 13.0). On price, update cadence, ads 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

Both are free to download. Bloons 2 sells 9 one-off in-app purchases. Starchess asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Starchess holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Bloons 2 has 2.1K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 47% of Bloons 2's written reviews are positive against 100% of Starchess's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on October 11, 2026 and September 28, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Bloons 2 versus Starchess: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBloons 2Starchess
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.8 (2.1K ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews47.2% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2.1K — better1
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 4 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better
Requires iOS3.2 — better13.0
Further details — not scored
Size18 MB60 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNinja KiwiNathan Lane

Customer experience

Bloons 2

All ratings2,083 ratings
Positive64.2%
Neutral14.2%
Negative21.6%
Written reviews231 reviews
Positive47.2%
Neutral19.5%
Negative33.3%

Starchess

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Bloons 2

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Unresponsive touch controls
  • Incompatible with iPad 3 and 4
  • In-app purchases not working

Requested features

3 requests
  • Update for newer iOS versions
  • Add level editor
  • Bring back older Bloons games

Starchess

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

9 purchases

Bloons 2

One-time9
  • Instant Solution$0.99
  • Instant Skip$0.99
  • Hourly Solutions$1.99
Show 6 more
  • Instant Solution and Skip$1.99
  • Hourly Skips$2.99
  • Infinite Solutions$3.99
  • Hourly Solutions and Skips$3.99
  • Infinite Skips$5.99
  • Infinite Solutions and Skips$7.99
None

Starchess

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Bloons 2 free?
Bloons 2 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Starchess free?
Starchess is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Bloons 2 or Starchess?
Starchess is rated higher. Bloons 2 averages 3.8 out of 5 from 2.1K ratings, while Starchess averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Bloons 2 or Starchess have ads?
Neither Bloons 2 nor Starchess shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Bloons 2 or Starchess?
Bloons 2 ships an update every 4 months, and Starchess every 4 months. Most recently, Bloons 2 was updated on October 11, 2026 and Starchess on September 28, 2026.

Other comparisons