Comparison

POOLS™ vs Backrooms Union Multiplayer

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

Head to head
About

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.

Highlights
  • Slow, reflective exploration
  • Atmospheric and immersive environments
  • Inspired by liminal spaces
  • Unfolding narrative through exploration
  • Six distinct chapters
  • Unique sound design
Features
Read full description

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.

About

Backrooms Union Multiplayer

Explore the eerie, maze-like dimensions of the Backrooms with friends or solo. Scavenge for resources, survive lurking horrors, and uncover the mysterious purpose of the Union. Each level offers new challenges, traps, and unpredictable encounters.

Highlights
  • Multiplayer co-op exploration
  • Scavenge for critical scraps
  • Survive lurking horrors and monsters
  • Explore maze-like dimensions
  • Uncover Union's secrets
  • Unpredictable challenges and traps
Features
Read full description

Step into the eerie world of Backrooms Union Multiplayer, a unique multiplayer horror game that immerses you in the spine-chilling, maze-like dimensions of the Backrooms. As part of the Union, you and your team are tasked with exploring these endless, shifting corridors, scavenging for critical scraps, and surviving the lurking horrors. Whether you choose to go solo or collaborate with friends, every decision matters as you delve deeper into the unknown. Each level of the Backrooms presents a fresh challenge. Maze-like environments keep you disoriented, while deadly traps and relentless monsters test your courage and strategy. The Backrooms are unpredictable, with surprises hiding around every corner, ensuring no two experiences are alike. Every level is a new test of survival, with sinister entities and hidden mysteries waiting to be uncovered. In Backrooms Union Multiplayer, your mission goes beyond mere survival. The Union’s true purpose remains shrouded in mystery. Why are you sent into these terrifying realms? What secrets is the Union hiding? As you gather scraps and uncover fragments of information, you’ll piece together the chilling truth behind the organization and their connection to the Backrooms. This game combines the heart-pounding tension of survival horror with co-op multiplayer. Whether you're working with your team to evade monsters or navigating solo through the darkness, Backrooms Union Multiplayer promises a thrilling and unpredictable experience. Inspired by the mysteries of the Backrooms and creepypasta lore, it offers a rich, suspenseful adventure for horror fans. Surprises and challenges await at every turn. Will you and your team uncover the truth and make it out alive, or will the Backrooms claim you? Test your courage, wit, and teamwork in Backrooms Union Multiplayer—a horror experience like no other

Screenshots

POOLS™4 screens
Backrooms Union Multiplayer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: POOLS™ at none against Backrooms Union Multiplayer's shown. POOLS™ also leads on review sentiment (79% vs 49%). Backrooms Union Multiplayer's advantage is update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). On price, rating, ratings volume and in-app purchases 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. POOLS™ sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Backrooms Union Multiplayer sells 8 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for POOLS™ against 4.6 for Backrooms Union Multiplayer. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.6K and 3.1K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 79% of POOLS™'s written reviews are positive against 49% of Backrooms Union Multiplayer's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

POOLS™ ships an update every 2 months, Backrooms Union Multiplayer every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
POOLS™ versus Backrooms Union Multiplayer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPOOLS™Backrooms Union Multiplayer
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (1.6K ratings)4.6 (3.1K ratings) — better
Positive reviews79.4% of reviews — better49.2% of reviews
Number of ratings1.6K3.1K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size1.9 GB281 MB
Age rating9+12+
DeveloperTensoriPedro Crispim

Customer experience

POOLS™

All ratings1,616 ratings
Positive87.9%
Neutral3.1%
Negative9.0%
Written reviews626 reviews
Positive79.4%
Neutral6.4%
Negative14.2%

Backrooms Union Multiplayer

All ratings3,058 ratings
Positive90.1%
Neutral3.3%
Negative6.6%
Written reviews183 reviews
Positive49.2%
Neutral12.6%
Negative38.3%

User reviews

POOLS™

From 1.6K App Store ratings

What 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

Backrooms Union Multiplayer

From 3.1K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Fun and collaborative gameplay
  • 🕹️ Good amount of horror elements

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Items phasing through the ground
  • 🚫 Unable to use bats to kill monsters
  • 🚫 Inability to play with friends on different platforms
  • 💢 Too many ads
  • 🚫 Multiplayer not working properly

Bugs and requests

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)

Backrooms Union Multiplayer

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Items phasing through the ground
  • Multiplayer not working
  • Ads breaking game audio
  • Portal being busy even when closed

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add ability to kill monsters with bats
  • Improve multiplayer functionality
  • Reduce number of ads
  • Add more level varieties, entities, and rooms

In-app purchases

1 purchases

POOLS™

One-time1
  • POOLS: Full Game$9.99
8 purchases

Backrooms Union Multiplayer

One-time8
  • Gold 1$0.99
  • Gold 2$1.99
  • Gold 3$3.99
Show 5 more
  • Starter Pack$4.99
  • Remove Ads$4.99
  • Gold 4$7.99
  • Gold 5$24.99
  • Gold 6$49.99

Questions

Is POOLS™ free?
POOLS™ is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Backrooms Union Multiplayer free?
Backrooms Union Multiplayer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, POOLS™ or Backrooms Union Multiplayer?
Backrooms Union Multiplayer is rated higher. POOLS™ averages 4.5 out of 5 from 1.6K ratings, while Backrooms Union Multiplayer averages 4.6 from 3.1K ratings.
Do POOLS™ or Backrooms Union Multiplayer have ads?
Backrooms Union Multiplayer shows ads; POOLS™ does not.
Which is updated more often, POOLS™ or Backrooms Union Multiplayer?
POOLS™ ships an update every 2 months, and Backrooms Union Multiplayer every 3 weeks. Most recently, POOLS™ was updated on October 17, 2026 and Backrooms Union Multiplayer on October 15, 2026.

Other comparisons