Karateka Classic vs Apple Knight 2
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Karateka Classic
Experience a classic side-scrolling martial arts adventure from 1984. Fight as a lone hero to rescue a princess from an evil warlord, overcoming relentless guards and a challenging hawk. Relive the original charm or discover this iconic game for the first time.
- Side-scrolling combat
- Classic 1984 gameplay
- Save the princess quest
- Challenging enemy AI
- Original Apple II experience
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A side-scrolling karate classic from 1984! The first game by the creator of Prince of Persia, Karateka arrives on iOS with all the challenge and charm of the original Apple II experience. Fight as the lone hero to save the princess from the evil warlord Akuma. His relentless guards and pesky hawk will challenge your skill whether you remember the original, have played the remake, or are experiencing Karateka for the first time.
Apple Knight 2
Engage in fast-paced hack-and-slash combat in this action-packed platformer. Explore dungeons, battle enemies with a variety of weapons and abilities, and uncover hidden secrets. Customize your character with unique skins and unlock helpful pets to aid you in your adventures.
- Hack-and-slash combat
- Unlockable weapons and skins
- Special abilities and pets
- Story and Adventure modes
- Parrying and dodging mechanics
- Hidden secrets in levels
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A fast, fluid hack-and-slash platformer packed with intense combat! Experience fast-paced action in this thrilling platformer. Battle enemies, explore dungeons, and unlock weapons, unique skins, special abilities, and pets. Every level is packed with secrets, challenges, and fun combat. Game Features: - Weapons, Skins, Abilities, and Pets Choose from a wide variety of weapons, skins, abilities, and pets with a wide variety of stats and bonuses! Each weapon has a unique special ability. Pets assist you in combat. Skins offer various passive boosts. - Multiple Game Modes Explore the Story Mode or jump into a randomized Adventure Mode. - Combat Mechanics Parry enemy melee attacks with precision and deflect projectiles using your trusty sword. - Dodging & Dashing Master the art of dodging enemy melee and ranged attacks with swift dashes. - Hidden Secrets Discover 2 secret areas in every level, packed with treasures. - Special Abilities Unlock special abilities to defeat enemies from a distance. Each sword also comes with its own unique ability as well. - Fun enemy AI: Enemies can sense the player approaching from behind, yet they are foolish enough to run into spike pits.! - Controller Support Play now!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Apple Knight 2 at Free against Karateka Classic's $0.99. Apple Knight 2 also leads on rating (4.8 vs 4.3) and update cadence (every 8 days vs every 46 months). Karateka Classic's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 15) and ads (none vs shown). 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
Apple Knight 2 is free to download; Karateka Classic costs $0.99 up front. Apple Knight 2 sells 15 one-off in-app purchases. Karateka Classic asks for nothing beyond the download.
Apple Knight 2 holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Apple Knight 2 has 3.5K ratings behind it against 88, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 79% of Karateka Classic's written reviews are positive against 89% of Apple Knight 2's.
Karateka Classic ships an update every 46 months, Apple Knight 2 every 8 days. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Karateka Classic | Apple Knight 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.3 (88 ratings) | 4.8 (3.5K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 79.1% of reviews | 89.4% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 88 | 3.5K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 46 months | Every 8 days — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Best chart rank | #186 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 8.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 13 MB | 148 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 12+ |
| Developer | DotEmu | Limitless LLC |
Customer experience
Karateka Classic
Apple Knight 2
User reviews
Karateka Classic
From 88 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Faithful recreation of the classic Apple II game
- 🎮 Responsive and intuitive controls
- 🕹️ Authentic retro feel with monochrome display options
- 💰 Affordable price point
Room to improve
- 🐛 Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions
- 🔍 Lack of visual updates or modern enhancements
- 🕹️ Difficulty may be too high for some new players
Apple Knight 2
From 3.5K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Great gameplay
- 🎨 Excellent graphics and visuals
- 🕹️ Intuitive controls
- 🕹️ Smooth combat mechanics
- 🕹️ Satisfying parry system
Room to improve
- 🐛 Revive ad not always working
- 🤑 Difficulty of progression without spending money
- 🤔 Removal of some features from the original game (e.g., female character, difficulty modes, endless mode)
- 🔇 Disappointing music compared to the original game
- 🤏 Small UI elements on smaller devices
Bugs and requests
Karateka Classic
Reported bugs
3 issues- Black screen or missing graphics on certain devices
- Rewind function not working as expected
- Sound issues or loss of audio
Requested features
3 requests- Support for external keyboards and controllers
- Leaderboards and competitive features
- Difficulty options or accessibility settings
Apple Knight 2
Reported bugs
4 issues- Sound and music settings not working properly
- Coin count not displaying correctly after switching items
- Cloud save issues causing loss of progress and coins
- Parry mechanic not registering consistently
Requested features
6 requests- Bring back the female character option
- Reintroduce difficulty modes and endless mode
- Add a restart button to the menu
- Implement a world map feature
- Introduce class-based gameplay (e.g., knight, mage, archer)
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- Restore the weapon special abilities from the original game
In-app purchases
Karateka Classic
No in-app purchases
Apple Knight 2
- Zombie$1.99
- Cursed Knight$1.99
- Box of Coins$2.99
Show 12 moreShow fewer
- Box of Crowns$2.99
- Skelly$2.99
- Knight$2.99
- Roma Invictus$3.99
- Redsteel Knight$3.99
- Unlock Premium$4.99
- Elite Ninja$4.99
- Crate of Coins$9.99
- Crate of Crowns$9.99
- Unlock All Skins$9.99
- Truckload of Coins!$19.99
- Truckload of Crowns!$19.99
Questions
Is Karateka Classic free?
Is Apple Knight 2 free?
Which has better reviews, Karateka Classic or Apple Knight 2?
Do Karateka Classic or Apple Knight 2 have ads?
Which is updated more often, Karateka Classic or Apple Knight 2?
Other comparisons
