Comparison

The Backrooms experience vs Poolrooms

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

Head to head
About

The Backrooms experience

Navigate an infinite, terrifying maze filled with lurking entities and unsettling sounds. Your goal is to escape this nightmarish world by hiding from dangers and solving puzzles. Experience true horror as you try to find a way out of the endless, monotone environment.

Highlights
  • Infinite maze exploration
  • Entity avoidance and hiding
  • Atmospheric horror sound design
  • Multiple distinct stages
  • Stealth mechanics
Features
Read full description

This infinite maze like world can make you insane and no one has ever been able to escape the Backrooms. Can a super average dude escape this maze what they call "The Backrooms". In The Backrooms Experience you go through the true horror people go through when they end up in The Backrooms and are desperate to find a way out! Hide from the so called "Smilers" and try to run from unknown entities that haven' t been discovered yet. Go through many different stages, from the endless maze, with the buzzing sound and yellow monotone colours, to Swimming pools where something is lurking in the water. If you hear anything lurking near you, you better don't make any sound or you will be as good as dead! The mono-yellow, endless background noise of fluorescent lights constantly buzzing, may drive you insane but always watch your back, you don't know what's wandering around!

About

Poolrooms

Explore a surreal, water-filled liminal space with tiled walls and floors. Your goal is to find hidden buttons to unlock doors and escape this unsettling environment. Immerse yourself in high-quality graphics and atmospheric sound design.

Highlights
  • Liminal space exploration
  • Puzzle-based escape
  • High-quality graphics
  • Atmospheric sound design
  • Interactive environment
Read full description

Explore the Poolrooms: Wander through vast areas with ankle-deep water, surrounded by white ceramic tiles covering the walls, floors, and ceilings. Find the Exit: As the lone explorer, your mission is to escape this unsettling environment. Scattered throughout the level are buttons that, when activated, open various doors leading you closer to freedom. Can you find your way out? High-Quality Graphics: Experience the Poolrooms like never before with our high-quality graphics that bring this liminal space to life. Every detail, from the reflection of water on the tiles to the eerie silence, is designed to create an immersive experience that will captivate your senses. Immersive Experience: Lose yourself in the atmosphere of the Poolrooms. The game's sound design and visual effects work together to create a deeply immersive experience that will keep you on the edge of your seat as you explore and seek escape. Can you escape the Poolrooms? Embark on an unforgettable journey through one of the most mysterious levels of the Backrooms. ------------------------- Features: - Liminal Space Exploration: Navigate the surreal and eerie Poolrooms, a unique level of the Backrooms. - Challenging Puzzles: Activate buttons to unlock doors and find your way to the exit. - Stunning Graphics: Enjoy high-quality visuals that enhance the immersive experience. - Atmospheric Soundtrack: The ambient soundscape adds to the sense of mystery and suspense.

Screenshots

The Backrooms experience4 screens
Poolrooms4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Poolrooms at none against The Backrooms experience's 1. Poolrooms also leads on rating (4.3 vs 3.9) and update cadence (every 2 days vs every 16 months). On price, ratings volume, 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. The Backrooms experience sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Poolrooms asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Poolrooms holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 3.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 74 and 78 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 60% of The Backrooms experience's written reviews are positive against 77% of Poolrooms's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

The Backrooms experience ships an update every 16 months, Poolrooms every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
The Backrooms experience versus Poolrooms: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterThe Backrooms experiencePoolrooms
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.9 (74 ratings)4.3 (78 ratings) — better
Positive reviews60.0% of reviews77.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings7478 — better
Update frequencyEvery 16 monthsEvery 2 days — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesAd-supported — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS11.0 — better12.0
Further details — not scored
Size492 MB218 MB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperMilan JanssenJEAN MICKAEL DARIE

Customer experience

The Backrooms experience

All ratings49 ratings
Positive73.5%
Neutral14.3%
Negative12.2%
Written reviews40 reviews
Positive60.0%
Neutral22.5%
Negative17.5%

Poolrooms

All ratings75 ratings
Positive85.3%
Neutral5.3%
Negative9.3%
Written reviews109 reviews
Positive77.1%
Neutral14.7%
Negative8.3%

Bugs and requests

The Backrooms experience

Reported bugs

12 issues
  • Joystick for turning is bad
  • Cannot turn around in some levels
  • Smilers in level ! are in the ground
  • Joystick on the right is super slow
  • Joystick for turning is not sensitive enough
Show 7 more
  • Codes not working in poolrooms
  • Color code not working in poolrooms
  • Entities make the same default sound
  • Wallpaper on level 0 looks weird
  • Level 0 leads to exit
  • Joystick thing for turning
  • Cannot get away from smilers when they are in front

Requested features

17 requests
  • Add more levels
  • Add a story line
  • Add more monsters
  • Improve graphics
  • Add a volume off button
Show 12 more
  • Add a jump button
  • Add randomization
  • Make Level ! more challenging with smilers chasing
  • Add more monsters in the backrooms
  • Make monsters chase you
  • Add more levels, like level 188
  • Update the 'look around' feature
  • Add a sensitivity slider
  • Add more monster variety
  • Make entities have unique sounds
  • Make puzzles clearer (e.g., hospital level cubes)
  • Add more variety to levels, avoid repeats

Poolrooms

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

The Backrooms experience

One-time1
  • Remove ads$0.99
None

Poolrooms

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is The Backrooms experience free?
The Backrooms experience is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Poolrooms free?
Poolrooms is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, The Backrooms experience or Poolrooms?
Poolrooms is rated higher. The Backrooms experience averages 3.9 out of 5 from 74 ratings, while Poolrooms averages 4.3 from 78 ratings.
Do The Backrooms experience or Poolrooms have ads?
Both The Backrooms experience and Poolrooms show ads.
Which is updated more often, The Backrooms experience or Poolrooms?
The Backrooms experience ships an update every 16 months, and Poolrooms every 2 days. Most recently, The Backrooms experience was updated on November 7, 2026 and Poolrooms on November 8, 2026.

Other comparisons