# POOLS™ vs Thirsty Nellan

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Thirsty Nellan at none against POOLS™'s 1. POOLS™'s advantage is device support (4 vs 2) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 26.5). On price, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. POOLS™ sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Thirsty Nellan asks for nothing beyond the download.

POOLS™ ships an update every 4 weeks, Thirsty Nellan every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 12, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | POOLS™ | Thirsty Nellan |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.5 (1.8K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pools/id6670792878/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **1.8K** | — |
| Positive reviews | 80.3% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 4 weeks | **Every 3 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Size | 1.9 GB | 24 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.6** | 26.5 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Tensori](https://appshunter.io/developer/1767614989) | [Thirsty Nellan Productions](https://appshunter.io/developer/499087849) |

## What reviewers say

### POOLS™

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pools/id6670792878)

Explore, admire, and listen in this slow, reflective experience. It's an intentionally uneventful journey through uncanny and eerie environments, rewarding patience and quiet attention. Discover a world that subtly changes as you advance, inspired by internet phenomena like liminal spaces and The Backrooms.

**Highlights:** Exploration-focused gameplay, Relaxing and reflective atmosphere, Eerie and uncanny environments, Slow-paced, uneventful experience, World changes as you advance, Six chapters, 10-30 minutes each

**Features:** Game Controller support, Family Sharing, Vision Pro support, iPhone Duo support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| POOLS: Full Game | $9.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Immersive experience
- 🔒 No ads
- 👍 Incredible attention to detail
- 👍 Realistic graphics and sound
- 👍 Eerie and creepy atmosphere

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Boring after a while
- 🐛 Lack of variety in environments

**Reported bugs**

- Unable to move on iPad Pro
- Glitches reported

**Requested features**

- Expand to different Backrooms-inspired themes
- Add a multiplayer mode
- Introduce more interactive elements (e.g., monsters, items to discover)


### Thirsty Nellan

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/thirsty-nellan/id6801449698)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is POOLS™ free?

POOLS™ is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Thirsty Nellan free?

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

### Do POOLS™ or Thirsty Nellan have ads?

Neither POOLS™ nor Thirsty Nellan shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, POOLS™ or Thirsty Nellan?

POOLS™ ships an update every 4 weeks, and Thirsty Nellan every 3 weeks. Most recently, POOLS™ was updated on November 12, 2026 and Thirsty Nellan on November 6, 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.*