Superliminal vs POOLS™
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Superliminal
Experience a first-person puzzle game where perception is reality. Solve impossible challenges by thinking creatively and embracing the unexpected in a dreamlike world with a unique narrative.
- First-person perspective puzzles
- Optical illusion mechanics
- Perspective-based challenges
- Intriguing voiced narrative
- Subdued and surreal world design
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*NOTICE - TRY BEFORE YOU BUY* - Play the beginning for free. A one-time in-app purchase unlocks the full game. No ads. Falling asleep at 3AM, you close your eyes to the cheesy commercial of Dr. Pierce's dream therapy program. You wake up in an unfamiliar enviornment, only to realize that you're stuck in a dream - a dream where perception is reality. Welcome to Superliminal. Superliminal is a first-person puzzle game inspired perspective and optical illusions. Players tackle impossible puzzles by thinking outside the box and learning to expect the unexpected. This game features a wonderfully subdued world, an intriguingly voiced narrative, and things that are really weird.
POOLS™
This app offers a slow, reflective, and immersive experience focused on exploration and atmosphere. It evokes feelings of unease and curiosity through its unique environments, inspired by liminal spaces and internet phenomena. Discover changing worlds and subtle narratives without traditional gameplay mechanics.
- Slow, reflective exploration
- Atmospheric and immersive environments
- Inspired by liminal spaces
- Unfolding narrative through exploration
- Six distinct chapters
- Unique sound design
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Explore, admire and listen. That’s it. Uncanny. Relaxing. Unnerving. Eerie. Immersive. POOLS isn’t a traditional game. it’s slow, reflective, and intentionally uneventful, perhaps a bit like virtual museum. So take your time. Breathe. POOLS unfolds slowly, rewarding patience and quiet attention. No monsters chasing you or jumping at your screen. Yet it can feel oppressive at times by invoking quiet fears of getting lost, the dark, tight spaces and the strange beauty of liminal space architecture. There's no typical story. But as you explore and advance further, you start to notice that the game's world changes around you, deeper you go… Rooms look and feel… different. Base game features six chapters, each lasting 10-30 minutes. Inspired by the internet phenomena Liminal spaces, Found footage and The Backrooms, especially the Poolrooms concept. One of the original artists behind the Poolrooms concept is Jared Pike.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Superliminal at every 8 days against POOLS™'s every 2 months. Superliminal also leads on rating (4.7 vs 4.5). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads 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. Superliminal sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and POOLS™ sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Superliminal holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.3K and 1.6K respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 72% of Superliminal's written reviews are positive against 79% of POOLS™'s, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Superliminal ships an update every 8 days, POOLS™ every 2 months. Both last shipped on September 29, 2026.
| Parameter | Superliminal | POOLS™ |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (1.3K ratings) — better | 4.5 (1.6K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 71.7% of reviews | 78.8% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 1.3K | 1.6K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 8 days — better | Every 2 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, Mac — better |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 — better | 15.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 1.9 GB | 1.9 GB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 9+ |
| Developer | Noodlecake | Tensori |
Customer experience
Superliminal
POOLS™
User reviews
Superliminal
From 1.3K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Very good execution
- 👍 Interesting puzzle features
- 👍 Unique and creative gameplay
- 👍 Excellent visuals and narration
- 👍 Therapeutic and mind-bending experience
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔋 High battery consumption
- 👎 Unintuitive and difficult controls
- 👎 Overpriced for the content
- 👎 Misleading as a 'free' game
POOLS™
From 1.6K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Immersive experience
- 🔒 No ads
- 👍 Incredible attention to detail
- 👍 Realistic graphics and sound
- 👍 Eerie and creepy atmosphere
Room to improve
- 🐛 Boring after a while
- 🐛 Lack of variety in environments
Bugs and requests
Superliminal
Reported bugs
5 issues- Crashes on loading screens
- Glitches with objects and navigation
- Unremovable red line on screen
- Inconsistent and buggy door behavior
- Saving and progress issues across devices
Requested features
5 requests- Add controller support
- Improve camera controls and sensitivity
- Provide more levels and content
- Add a hint system or tutorial
- Optimize performance and stability
POOLS™
Reported bugs
2 issues- Unable to move on iPad Pro
- Glitches reported
Requested features
3 requests- Expand to different Backrooms-inspired themes
- Add a multiplayer mode
- Introduce more interactive elements (e.g., monsters, items to discover)
In-app purchases
Superliminal
- Full Game$7.99
- Full Game Unlock$7.99
POOLS™
- POOLS: Full Game$9.99
