Comparison

Pixel Shelter vs Exploding Piggies

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

Head to head
About

Pixel Shelter

Build and manage an underground shelter to survive a zombie apocalypse. Recruit survivors, assign jobs, and manage resources like energy, water, and food. Defend your haven and make strategic choices to ensure humanity's survival in a detailed pixel-art world.

Highlights
  • Underground shelter construction
  • Resource management (energy, water, food)
  • Survivor recruitment and job assignment
  • Shelter defense
  • Pixel-art aesthetic
  • Survivor interaction and messages
Features
Read full description

Welcome to the thrilling world of Pixel Shelter, a pixel-art survival experience where you must build, manage, and endure the zombie apocalypse! This is an early version of the game, and development is still ongoing. Features and content may be missing or subject to change, and performance may vary. We appreciate your understanding! Immerse yourself in an engaging underground builder where survival, strategy, and resource management blend into one gripping adventure. Dreamed of managing your own shelter? Look no further! In Pixel Shelter, you’ll construct your underground refuge, floor by floor, ensuring the survival of your residents in a post-apocalyptic world. Our Unique Gameplay Offers You The Chance To: - Play as a shelter overseer, strategically expanding your underground base while managing crucial survival resources like energy, water, and food. - Recruit survivors, each with their own skills and personalities, to help maintain and develop your shelter. - Assign jobs to your residents, ensuring the efficient operation of key facilities needed for survival. - Collect and manage resources wisely to keep your shelter running and your people alive. - Defend your shelter and protect survivors who seek your help. Pixel Shelter is more than just a survival game; it’s a thriving underground society where every choice matters. Every resident, every floor, and every resource plays a crucial role in your survival strategy. Want to build a high-tech research lab? Or a cozy underground garden? The choice is yours! Interact, explore, and thrive in Pixel Shelter! - Peek into the thoughts of your survivors with their own unique messages and updates. - Enjoy the detailed pixel-art aesthetic that brings your underground haven to life. In Pixel Shelter, creativity and strategy will determine your survival. Carve out your place underground, ensure your shelter’s success, and outlast the apocalypse! The future of humanity is in your hands—are you ready to build and survive?

About

Exploding Piggies

Features
Read full description

Exploding Piggies is a fast, one-touch arcade game about controlled chaos. Pop pigs, build streaks and trigger explosive chain reactions before 20 misses end your run. Easy to start. Hard to master. Completely ad-free. CHAIN THE CHAOS Pop nuclear pigs to blast nearby targets, unleash ultra strikes and turn a single tap into a screen-clearing combo. BATTLE FOUR BOSSES Take on the Hog-Ship, Steam Balloon, Cyber Hog and Fortress. Each encounter changes the rules with armor, weak spots, escorts, split phases and a ticking clock. LEARN EVERY PIG Some pigs need multiple taps. Others unleash nuclear blasts or electrical bursts. Choose the right target before the board overwhelms you. MAKE IT YOURS Give your piggies custom names, add your own cropped photo and discover or unlock 14 playful skins—from Ninja and Cyber Neon to Celestial Monarch. POWER UP YOUR RUN Spend earned rubies on Nuclear Strikes, Ultra Nuclear Strikes and Refills when a run is on the line. COMPETE AND COMPLETE Climb the global Game Center leaderboard, unlock 50 achievements and chase goals for scores, streaks, flawless runs, bosses, special pigs and more. SYNC YOUR PROGRESS Keep high scores, rubies, unlocked skins, power-ups and challenge progress in sync with iCloud. WATCH THE WORLD REACT The sky shifts from bright days to sunsets, eclipses and deep night while expressive sky mascots celebrate your streaks—and panic when pigs slip past. SEE HOW YOU DID Every game-over summary shows your score, level, pigs popped, special-pig counters and best streak. No ads. Just piggies.

Screenshots

Pixel Shelter4 screens
Exploding Piggies4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Exploding Piggies at none against Pixel Shelter's 12. Exploding Piggies also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 2 months). Pixel Shelter's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). 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. Pixel Shelter sells 12 one-off in-app purchases. Exploding Piggies asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Pixel Shelter ships an update every 2 months, Exploding Piggies fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Pixel Shelter versus Exploding Piggies: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPixel ShelterExploding Piggies
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (97 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews77.1% of reviews—
Number of ratings97 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size136 MB26 MB
Age rating12+9+
DeveloperNimbleBit LLCSaurabh Goyal

Bugs and requests

Pixel Shelter

Reported bugs

1 issue
  • Graphical bugs

Requested features

1 request
  • Keep equipment after rebuild

Exploding Piggies

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

12 purchases

Pixel Shelter

One-time12
  • Expansion Pack$1.99
  • Broadcast Pack$1.99
  • VIP Pack 1$2.99
Show 9 more
  • Welcome pack$2.99
  • Bux Pack 1$4.99
  • Expansion Pack$4.99
  • BUX Pack 2$9.99
  • VIP Pack 2$9.99
  • Expansion Pack$9.99
  • BUX Pack 3$19.99
  • Broadcast Pack 4$19.99
  • VIP Pack 3$79.99
None

Exploding Piggies

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Pixel Shelter free?
Pixel Shelter is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Exploding Piggies free?
Exploding Piggies is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Pixel Shelter or Exploding Piggies have ads?
Pixel Shelter shows ads; Exploding Piggies does not.
Which is updated more often, Pixel Shelter or Exploding Piggies?
Pixel Shelter ships an update every 2 months, and Exploding Piggies fortnightly. Most recently, Pixel Shelter was updated on October 22, 2026 and Exploding Piggies on October 9, 2026.

Other comparisons