Comparison

Max vs Aetherline Protocol

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

Head to head
About

Max

A 2D pixel-art top-down shooter where you play as a retired agent fighting a ruthless regime. Experience intense action, strategic combat, and a gripping narrative with an instant-death system that requires precision and speed.

Highlights
  • 2D pixel-art graphics
  • Top-down shooter gameplay
  • Strategic combat
  • Gripping narrative
  • Instant-death system
  • Challenging levels
Features
Read full description

Max: Countercoup is a 2D pixel-art top-down shooter that delivers intense action, strategic combat, and a gripping narrative. Step into the shoes of a retired special operations agent, pulled back into the shadows by a thirst for justice as he faces a ruthless regime. Set against the backdrop of a brutal late 20th-century conflict, you’ll go up against a militarized dictatorship that seized power through a coup d'état, aiming to crush freedom and impose total control. Unravel their true motives and lead the fight to take back the nation in a high-stakes counter-coup! The gameplay is designed to test reflexes and strategic thinking, featuring a brutal instant-death system that demands precision and speed. Players must navigate challenging levels filled with ruthless enemies, adapting their tactics to engage in intense, full-scale firefights!

About

Aetherline Protocol

Features
Read full description

Aetherline Protocol is a fast horizontal space shooter built around glowing vector combat, handcrafted sectors, giant multi-phase bosses, and permanent ship progression. Fly through seven hostile sectors, weave through dense attack patterns, collect scrap energy, and trigger frame-specific super weapons when the screen turns against you. Every battlefield is drawn in a sharp neon style with terrain, hazards, particle bursts, synth audio, and boss encounters tuned for quick arcade runs. Features: - Seven campaign sectors with distinct enemies, hazards, and boss fights - Endless Survival mode with escalating rift corruption and recurring bosses - Six ship frames with unique handling, opening weapons, and super attacks - Six weapon families, wing drones, power-ups, shields, and screen-clearing abilities - Permanent Aether Point upgrades through an Armory progression tree - Lore briefings, boss dossiers, and collectible data fragments - Game Center leaderboards and achievements - Optional rewarded ads for bonus points, next-run frame trials, Nova charge, and continues - Optional Remove Ads purchase that removes banner/interstitial ads and grants 1000 Aether Points Aetherline Protocol is designed as an arcade-first sci-fi shooter: drag to fly, fire automatically, switch weapons, charge your special, and push deeper into the rift.

Screenshots

Max4 screens
Aetherline Protocol4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Max at none against Aetherline Protocol's 4. Max also leads on ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.6). Aetherline Protocol's advantage is update cadence (every 9 days vs every 4 months). On price 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. Aetherline Protocol sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Max asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Max ships an update every 4 months, Aetherline Protocol every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on September 30, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 5 level
Max versus Aetherline Protocol: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMaxAetherline Protocol
PriceFreeFree
Rating1.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 9 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better17.6
Further details — not scored
Size140 MB31 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperVladyslav OmelechkoLe Nguyen

In-app purchases

None

Max

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

Aetherline Protocol

One-time4
  • Aether Cache$0.99
  • Aether Vault$4.99
  • Remove Ads$4.99
Show 1 more
  • Aether Reactor$9.99

Questions

Is Max free?
Max is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Aetherline Protocol free?
Aetherline Protocol is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Max or Aetherline Protocol have ads?
Aetherline Protocol shows ads; Max does not.
Which is updated more often, Max or Aetherline Protocol?
Max ships an update every 4 months, and Aetherline Protocol every 9 days. Most recently, Max was updated on September 30, 2026 and Aetherline Protocol on September 21, 2026.

Other comparisons