Mars Quest vs Gargoyle Ruins
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Mars Quest
Embark on a challenging retro adventure guiding an astronaut through alien-infested Martian levels. Experience nostalgic 8-bit graphics and music while avoiding obstacles and increasing speed. Compete with friends via Game Center.
- 8-bit retro music
- Guide astronaut through levels
- Avoid aliens and obstacles
- Smart level progression
- Increasing speed challenges
- Game Center scores and achievements
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A must-have if you grew up in the eighties or if you are a C64, Atari, arcade or 8-bit lover. Nostalgic feelings guaranteed! *** REVIEWS *** - SlideToPlay.com: "Mars Quest is a good choice if you need to get your nostalgia on" - AppsOnTapp.com: "a fun and addicting retro game" - AppFavour.com: "Today's Best Apps August 18th 2012" *** WHAT PLAYERS SAY *** - "Super fun game that can be played over and over again. I'm ultra picky about games I let take up valuable space on my iPhone, but this one is a must!" - "A great little arcade game that I enjoy playing" - "Fun game, addictive" - "Once you start, you dont want to stop playing :)" *** FEATURES *** - Game Center scores and achievements - 8-bit retro music - Guide the astronaut safely through all levels - Avoid all aliens and obstacles on Mars - Think smart to advance to the next level - Be careful when the speed level increases!
Gargoyle Ruins
Embark on a retro adventure inspired by classic tabletop arcade games. Solve a kingdom's mystery, rescue kidnapped girls, and defeat evil forces through challenging gameplay and engaging story.
- Retro VFD tabletop arcade style
- Story Mode with mystery and upgrades
- Arcade Mode with global leaderboards
- Over 50 upgradeable items
- 40 challenging achievements
- Multiple death scenarios
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Step into the boots of a true hero in Gargoyle Ruins, the prequel to Game Stew's first title and TouchArcade's Arcade 2012 Game Of The Year--Tower of Fortune! With your companion by your side it is your hero's duty to save a wealthy kingdom where girls are kidnapped by gargoyles once a year. Solve the mystery and defeat the evil forces in this retro VFD tabletop arcade game inspired by the early Game & Watch games! Features - Retro-style visuals with funny animation and detailed 8-bit art - 7 fun and challenging games to enjoy including Princess Rescue, Dead Man’s Gold, Queen’s Chamber, and more - Play Story Mode to unveil the mystery behind the troubled kingdom as you equip the hero and upgrade the game with over 50 pieces of content to take on the next rewarding challenge - Arcade mode lets you challenge other player's high scores and see your ranking in the world - From getting stabbed, drowned, or burned, prepare to die in more than 13 unique ways during your journey - 40 challenging achievements to conquer if you have what it takes to be a hero ----------------------------------------------------------- Facebook http://www.facebook.com/TowerofFortune Gameplay Movie http://youtu.be/8cv-TIUTgyc
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Mars Quest at Free against Gargoyle Ruins's $1.99. Mars Quest also leads on rating (4.0 vs 3.3) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 8 months). Gargoyle Ruins's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On in-app purchases, 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
Mars Quest is free to download; Gargoyle Ruins costs $1.99 up front. Mars Quest sells 5 one-off in-app purchases and Gargoyle Ruins sells 8 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Mars Quest holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 3.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Mars Quest has 91 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 68% of Mars Quest's written reviews are positive against 52% of Gargoyle Ruins's.
Mars Quest ships an update fortnightly, Gargoyle Ruins every 8 months. Both last shipped on November 1, 2026.
| Parameter | Mars Quest | Gargoyle Ruins |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $1.99 |
| Rating | 4.0 (91 ratings) — better | 3.3 (4 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 68.5% of reviews — better | 51.5% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 91 — better | 4 |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly — better | Every 8 months |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases — better | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | 12.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 98 MB | 23 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | First Class Media B.V. | Game Stew |
Customer experience
Mars Quest
Gargoyle Ruins
In-app purchases
Mars Quest
- Remove advertising$0.99
- 1 extra life$0.99
- 5 extra lives$1.99
Show 2 moreShow fewer
- 10 extra lives$2.99
- 25 extra lives$4.99
Gargoyle Ruins
- 1000G$0.99
- 2500G$1.99
- 7500G$4.99
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- 25000G$9.99
- 42000G$14.99
- 62000G$19.99
- 85000G$24.99
- 150000G$29.99
