# Sword Sonata vs ABEND

The clearest difference is rating: ABEND at 5.0 against Sword Sonata's 4.3. ABEND also leads on update cadence (every 6 days vs every 3 months). Sword Sonata's advantage is review sentiment (75% vs 50%) and price ($1.99 vs $4.99). On ads, in-app purchases, monetization model and device support there is nothing between them.

Sword Sonata costs $1.99 and ABEND $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ABEND holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Sword Sonata has 15 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 75% of Sword Sonata's written reviews are positive against 50% of ABEND's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Sword Sonata ships an update every 3 months, ABEND every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Sword Sonata | ABEND |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **$1.99** | $4.99 |
| Rating | [4.3 (15 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sword-sonata/id6479972079/reviews) | **[5.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/abend-meltdown/id6737458201/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **15** | 2 |
| Positive reviews | **75.0% of reviews** | 50.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | **Every 6 days** |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Size | 35 MB | 155 MB |
| Requires iOS | **11.0** | 16.6 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 9+ | 9+ |
| Developer | [Jampot Software co., ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/590341509) | [Laszlo Pinter](https://appshunter.io/developer/1362589788) |

## What reviewers say

### Sword Sonata

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sword-sonata/id6479972079)

Engage in fast-paced, turn-based roguelike combat by strategically planning skill actions. Collect new abilities, upgrade existing ones, and gather items to overcome dungeon challenges and defeat bosses. Experience high replayability with diverse actions, characters, and randomized rewards.

**Highlights:** Turn-based combat, Action planning and arrangement, Roguelike dungeon crawling, Skill acquisition and upgrades, Item collection, Multiple characters and actions

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### ABEND

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/abend-meltdown/id6737458201)

Engage in a puzzle roguelite where you play as a rogue AI escaping a government mainframe. Clear rows to attack enemies, chain combos for devastating effects, and collect upgrades to survive escalating dangers across procedurally generated floors. Your choices determine the AI's fate and the narrative's outcome.

**Highlights:** Tetromino-based combat system, 24 enemy programs with unique attacks, 5 playable AI characters with unique abilities, Procedurally generated floors with branching paths, Branching narrative with 4 endings, 10 Ascension levels for endless replayability, Authentic retro terminal aesthetic

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Sword Sonata free?

Sword Sonata costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is ABEND free?

ABEND costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Sword Sonata or ABEND?

ABEND is rated higher. Sword Sonata averages 4.3 out of 5 from 15 ratings, while ABEND averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.

### Do Sword Sonata or ABEND have ads?

Neither Sword Sonata nor ABEND shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Sword Sonata or ABEND?

Sword Sonata ships an update every 3 months, and ABEND every 6 days. Most recently, Sword Sonata was updated on September 21, 2026 and ABEND on September 23, 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.*