# Vampire Survivors vs RetroArch

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: RetroArch at none against Vampire Survivors's 7. RetroArch also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 3 weeks) and device support (5 vs 3). Vampire Survivors's advantage is rating (4.6 vs 4.3). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Vampire Survivors sells 7 one-off in-app purchases. RetroArch asks for nothing beyond the download.

Vampire Survivors holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 5.2K and 1.9K respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 70% and 69% positive.

Vampire Survivors ships an update every 3 weeks, RetroArch weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 9, 2026 and November 8, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Vampire Survivors | RetroArch |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.6 (5.2K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/vampire-survivors/id6444525702/reviews)** | [4.3 (1.9K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/retroarch/id6499539433/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **5.2K** | 1.9K |
| Positive reviews | **69.7% of reviews** | 69.1% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 961 MB | 652 MB |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple TV** |
| Age rating | 12+ | 9+ |
| Developer | [Poncle](https://appshunter.io/developer/1655125278) | [Libretro](https://appshunter.io/developer/1209876090) |

## What reviewers say

### Vampire Survivors

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/vampire-survivors/id6444525702)

Survive endless waves of monsters in this roguelike survival RPG. Mow down thousands of enemies, gather gold for upgrades, and become a powerful warrior. Explore diverse stages and choose your weapons to become the last survivor.

**Highlights:** Minimalistic gameplay, Bullet hell survival, Gold collection for upgrades, Hundreds of monsters, Weapon and skill upgrades, Couch co-op mode

**In-app purchases (7)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Emerald Diorama | Free | one-time |
| Legacy of the Bloodmoon | $0.99 | one-time |
| Legacy of the Moonspell | $0.99 | one-time |
| Tides of the Foscari | $1.79 | one-time |
| Emergency Meeting | $2.49 | one-time |
| Operation Guns | $2.49 | one-time |
| Ode to Castlevania | $3.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Faithful port of PC version
- 👍 No intrusive ads, only optional ones
- 👍 Great value, tons of content for free
- 🚀 Smooth performance, handles late-game well
- 👍 Retro pixel art style with charm

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and progress loss when switching apps
- 🐛 Occasional freezing and performance issues
- 🔋 No suspend/resume feature, runs reset when app is closed

**Reported bugs**

- Merchant UI not working properly
- Certain level mechanics (Infernas) causing soft-locks
- Movement and controls sometimes unresponsive

**Requested features**

- Add suspend/resume functionality to save progress
- Implement cross-save between devices
- Add controller support for better controls


### RetroArch

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/retroarch/id6499539433)

This application serves as a versatile frontend for emulators and game engines, supporting a vast array of systems through downloadable cores. It offers advanced features like netplay, save states, and customizable controls for an enhanced gaming experience.

**Highlights:** Supports numerous gaming systems via libretro cores, Netplay for multiplayer gaming, Save states and fast forward/rewind, Controller support and key remapping, Customizable shaders and overlays, RetroAchievements integration, AI translations for games

**Features:** Game Controller support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Smooth emulation performance
- 🎮 Wide range of supported systems
- 🕹️ Controller support
- 💯 Comprehensive emulation features
- 🔓 No ads or tracking

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🤯 Steep learning curve
- 🤖 Unintuitive user interface
- 🐛 Stability issues and crashes
- 🔌 Slow loading times
- 🤷‍♂️ Inconsistent core support

**Reported bugs**

- N64 games not loading textures properly
- Crashes when changing settings or cores
- Bios files not being recognized
- Inconsistent performance across devices
- Saved settings not persisting

**Requested features**

- Add support for PS2, GameCube, and 3DS emulation
- Improve iCloud/cloud storage integration
- Implement customizable button layouts
- Add a more user-friendly setup wizard
- Provide better documentation and tutorials


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Vampire Survivors free?

Vampire Survivors is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is RetroArch free?

RetroArch is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Vampire Survivors or RetroArch?

Vampire Survivors is rated higher. Vampire Survivors averages 4.6 out of 5 from 5.2K ratings, while RetroArch averages 4.3 from 1.9K ratings.

### Do Vampire Survivors or RetroArch have ads?

Neither Vampire Survivors nor RetroArch shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Vampire Survivors or RetroArch?

Vampire Survivors ships an update every 3 weeks, and RetroArch weekly. Most recently, Vampire Survivors was updated on November 9, 2026 and RetroArch on November 8, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*