Apex Patrol vs Dark Frequency
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Apex Patrol
Embark on a text-based space adventure as a star cruiser commander. Explore worlds, rescue ships, investigate phenomena, and battle an enemy to save Earth. Your strategic decisions will determine humanity's fate.
- Command a star cruiser
- Visit colonial worlds
- Rescue imperiled vessels
- Investigate stellar phenomena
- Battle a ruthless foe
- Text-based adventure
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Command a star cruiser! Visit colonial worlds, rescue imperiled vessels, investigate stellar phenomena and prepare your ship to battle a ruthless foe. Only you and your crew can save Earth from utter destruction in this text-based adventure.
Dark Frequency
Battle corrupted beasts with a celestial hammer in a dark, mythic world. This roguelite action survival game features endless waves of enemies, stackable upgrades, and permanent progression. Every run offers a unique challenge, making you stronger with each death.
- Roguelite action survival gameplay
- Intense hammer combat mechanics
- Endless waves of enemies
- Stackable upgrade system
- Permanent progression with Sigils
- Unique Boons for altered gameplay
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The Forge has shattered. The Glass-Beasts have risen. And you are the only thing standing between the world and eternal darkness. You are Crucible-Born, a being of molten glass and beast-soul, hammered into existence by The Ancient One. Armed with a celestial hammer, you must fight through endless trials of corrupted Glass-Beasts, reclaim the scattered Shards, and rekindle the Forge before the world goes cold forever. Every run is different. Every death makes you stronger. Forge your own path through a brutal roguelite system where no two runs play the same. Between waves, choose powerful upgrades that shape how you fight. Stack abilities, build synergies, and discover combinations that turn you from a lone survivor into an unstoppable force of the Forge. Fight with purpose. Strike with weight. Swing your hammer in fast, punishing arcs or charge a ground-shattering slam that sends shockwaves through entire enemy groups. Movement, timing, and positioning matter, dodge through enemy lines, dash to safety, and learn the rhythms of each beast before they overwhelm you. Grow beyond a single run. Spend your earned Shards on permanent Sigils that carry power across every future run. Unlock Boons, game-changing abilities that fundamentally alter how you play. Each session leaves you stronger, more prepared for the next. You will experience Endless waves of Glass-Beasts with scaling difficulty Upgrade system with stackable abilities and unique Boons Permanent progression through Sigils that grow with every run Intense hammer combat A dark, mythic world dripping in forge fire and shattered glass. The Forge remembers every trial.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Dark Frequency at Free against Apex Patrol's $6.99. Dark Frequency also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.0) and ads (none vs shown). Apex Patrol's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and ratings volume (6 vs 1). On 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
Dark Frequency is free to download; Apex Patrol costs $6.99 up front. Dark Frequency sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Apex Patrol asks for nothing beyond the download.
Dark Frequency holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Apex Patrol has 6 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 91% of Apex Patrol's written reviews are positive against 100% of Dark Frequency's.
Apex Patrol ships an update every 10 months, Dark Frequency every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Apex Patrol | Dark Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $6.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.0 (6 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 90.9% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 6 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 10 months | Every 6 days — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 31 MB | 214 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Hosted Games LLC | Unmbox Studios |
Customer experience
Apex Patrol
Dark Frequency
In-app purchases
Apex Patrol
No in-app purchases
Dark Frequency
- Ember Purse$1.99
- Content Extension Pack$3.99
- Forge Reserve$4.99
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- Shards Vault$7.99
Questions
Is Apex Patrol free?
Is Dark Frequency free?
Which has better reviews, Apex Patrol or Dark Frequency?
Do Apex Patrol or Dark Frequency have ads?
Which is updated more often, Apex Patrol or Dark Frequency?
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