Comparison

Backpack Legends Adventure RPG vs Ariana and the Elder Codex

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

Head to head
About

Backpack Legends Adventure RPG

Manage your inventory strategically to survive and battle in a vast open world. Organize loot, build your town, and choose from various hero classes to embark on an epic adventure.

Highlights
  • Strategic backpack system
  • Vast open world exploration
  • Town building and idle rewards
  • Multiple hero classes
  • Epic gear collection
  • One-handed controls
Features
Read full description

Are You Ready to Pack Your Way to Glory? Welcome to Backpack Legends, the ultimate game where your inventory management skills determine your survival! Forget complex team controls—here, you are the sole hero, and your backpack is your greatest weapon. ORGANIZE TO SURVIVE - Experience a unique blend of casual adventure and tactical puzzle gameplay. - Strategic Backpack System: Your bag is limited, but your loot is endless! Arrange swords, bows, magic staffs, and axes into the grid. Where you place your items matters—find the perfect synergy to maximize your effectiveness. EXPLORE A VAST OPEN WORLD Embark on a heroic journey across diverse landscapes, inspired by classic adventure titles. - Diverse Landscapes: Travel through lush Grasslands, freeze in the Icy Tundras, and brave the fiery Lava Lands. Every zone brings new monsters and hidden secrets. - Dungeon Crawler: Dive deep into dangerous dungeons. Defeat massive Bosses to unlock rare artifacts and expand your backpack slots. BUILD YOUR TOWN & IDLE REWARDS A hero needs a home. Rescue villagers and restore peace to the kingdom! - Town Building: Use your gathered resources to reconstruct the village. Build Mines, Blacksmiths, and Markets to support your journey. - Idle System: Too busy to fight? Your town produces gold and gems even when you are offline. Upgrade your buildings to boost your hero's stats effortlessly. CHOOSE YOUR HERO - Class Variety: Whether you prefer the brute strength of a Warrior, the arcane power of a Mage, the deadly aim of an Archer, or the swift strikes of an Assassin—the choice is yours. - Epic Gear Collection: Hundreds of unique items to collect, including helmets, armor, boots, and mystical accessories. KEY FEATURES: - One-Handed Control: Simple, intuitive controls perfect for playing on the go. - Deep Strategy: Optimize your loadout before every major fight. - Vibrant Graphics: Stunning visual effects and a colorful fantasy world. - Regular Updates: New weapons, heroes, and map zones added frequently. The world is overrun by darkness, and only a hero with a perfectly packed bag can save it. Can you fit everything you need to win? Download Backpack Legends now and start your adventure! https://www.facebook.com/backpack.legends https://discord.gg/QnFCZWhe6y https://www.facebook.com/groups/backpack.legends

About

Ariana and the Elder Codex

Embark on a 2D action RPG adventure as a magical librarian who enters ancient books to restore lost magic. Battle monsters, master elemental spells, and customize your abilities to save the world.

Highlights
  • 2D side-scrolling action RPG
  • Dynamic anime action combat
  • Master elemental magic and transformations
  • Customize spellbook with 30+ spells
  • Craft magic items and accessories
  • Time attack and repair point challenges
  • Metroidvania exploration
Read full description

MEMBERSHIP REQUIRED - Exclusive to Crunchyroll Mega and Ultimate Fan Memberships STEP INTO A LIVING NOVEL AND RECLAIM THE WORLD'S LOST MAGIC! Dive into an enchanting fantasy world in Ariana and the Elder Codex, a gorgeous 2D side-scrolling action RPG. Take on the role of Ariana Virellis, a young, powerful magical librarian who protects a vast library and possesses the unique ability to venture inside the world’s ancient books. When the Seven Hero Codices are vandalized, magic vanishes from the realm. Now, Ariana must travel inside these corrupted tomes—experiencing their stories as a living fantasy novel brought to life. Defeat monsters, repair the damaged pages, and restore magic to civilization! DYNAMIC 2D ANIME ACTION & RPG COMBAT Enjoy a fast-paced 2D action platformer blending hack-and-slash combat with tactical JRPG depth. Explore beautiful worlds, exploit elemental weaknesses, and cast powerful spells to break enemy posture. Once they are stunned, unleash devastating combos for massive critical damage! MASTER ELEMENTAL MAGIC & TRANSFORMATIONS Master a deep magic system governed by opposing elements: Fire, Water, Earth, and Wind. As you restore each corrupted codex, you unlock the ability to trigger a stunning elemental form change. Transform Ariana by channeling a chosen element, dramatically boosting your spell power, unlocking new navigation skills, and causing explosive elemental bursts on impact. CUSTOMIZE YOUR SPELLBOOK With 30+ unlockable magic spells and abilities, you can completely customize your strategy. Mix, match, and equip your spells across six dynamic slots to build a loadout that perfectly suits your personal playstyle. Prefer a defensive tank build or an all-out elemental mage setup? The choice is yours. CRAFT POWERFUL MAGIC ITEMS & ACCESSORIES Mitigate environmental hazards and brutal challenges by unlocking, crafting, and equipping unique Magic Items. Equip up to five accessories within your equipment cost limit to gain crucial buffs like reduced knockback, enhanced critical hit rates, faster health recovery, and massive elemental stat boosts. THRILLING TIME ATTACK & REPAIR POINT CHALLENGES The adventure is about more than combat. Take on specialized platforming trials at Altered Points throughout the world. Sprint through tight, technical time attack platformer layouts, dodging traps and utilizing precision movement to reach the exit as quickly as possible. Clear these Repair Points efficiently to earn permanent HP upgrades and powerful rewards! KEY FEATURES: A Gorgeous Living Novel: Fall in love with an exquisite, hand-drawn art style that makes every stage feel like an illustration come to life. Intense Boss Battles: Face formidable guardians requiring sharp reflexes, smart spell timing, and quick dodging. Metroidvania Exploration: Revisit previously unreachable areas across interconnected side-scrolling worlds as you unlock new elemental mobility and librarian magic. Epic Story-Driven Adventure: Immerse yourself in rich fantasy library lore, deep NPC interactions, and an emotional tale of restoration. Are you ready to fix history and save magic? Download Ariana and the Elder Codex today and begin your magical librarian adventure! ---- Crunchyroll Premium members enjoy an ad-free experience, with full access to Crunchyroll's library of over 1,300 unique titles and 46,000 episodes, including simulcast series that premiere shortly after airing in Japan. In addition, membership offers special benefits including offline viewing access, discount code to Crunchyroll Store, Crunchyroll Game Vault access, streaming simultaneously on multiple devices, and more! https://www.crunchyroll.com/games/privacy/ https://www.crunchyroll.com/games/terms/

Screenshots

Backpack Legends Adventure RPG4 screens
Ariana and the Elder Codex4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Backpack Legends Adventure RPG at 4.5 against Ariana and the Elder Codex's 3.0. Backpack Legends Adventure RPG also leads on ratings volume (61 vs 6) and review sentiment (60% vs 50%). Ariana and the Elder Codex's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and ads (none vs shown). On price, device support and iOS requirement 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. Backpack Legends Adventure RPG sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Ariana and the Elder Codex asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Backpack Legends Adventure RPG holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Backpack Legends Adventure RPG has 61 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 60% of Backpack Legends Adventure RPG's written reviews are positive against 50% of Ariana and the Elder Codex's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Backpack Legends Adventure RPG ships an update weekly, Ariana and the Elder Codex every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Backpack Legends Adventure RPG versus Ariana and the Elder Codex: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBackpack Legends Adventure RPGAriana and the Elder Codex
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (61 ratings) — better3.0 (6 ratings)
Positive reviews59.6% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings61 — better6
Update frequencyWeeklyEvery 3 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size584 MB1.2 GB
Age rating9+12+
DeveloperONDI TECHNOLOGY JSCCrunchyroll, LLC

Customer experience

Backpack Legends Adventure RPG

All ratings59 ratings
Positive89.8%
Neutral3.4%
Negative6.8%
Written reviews52 reviews
Positive59.6%
Neutral9.6%
Negative30.8%

Ariana and the Elder Codex

All ratings5 ratings
Positive40.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative60.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Backpack Legends Adventure RPG

One-time10
  • Welcome Pack 1$0.99
  • LVL 5 Pack$4.99
  • Starter Pack$4.99
Show 7 more
  • Ironclad Pack$9.99
  • LVL 10 Pack$9.99
  • Battle Pass Premium$9.99
  • Welcome Pack 3$14.99
  • LVL 15 Pack$19.99
  • Battle Pass Premium Plus$19.99
  • Chest of Gems$29.99
None

Ariana and the Elder Codex

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Backpack Legends Adventure RPG free?
Backpack Legends Adventure RPG is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Ariana and the Elder Codex free?
Ariana and the Elder Codex is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Backpack Legends Adventure RPG or Ariana and the Elder Codex?
Backpack Legends Adventure RPG is rated higher. Backpack Legends Adventure RPG averages 4.5 out of 5 from 61 ratings, while Ariana and the Elder Codex averages 3.0 from 6 ratings.
Do Backpack Legends Adventure RPG or Ariana and the Elder Codex have ads?
Backpack Legends Adventure RPG shows ads; Ariana and the Elder Codex does not.
Which is updated more often, Backpack Legends Adventure RPG or Ariana and the Elder Codex?
Backpack Legends Adventure RPG ships an update weekly, and Ariana and the Elder Codex every 3 days. Most recently, Backpack Legends Adventure RPG was updated on November 5, 2026 and Ariana and the Elder Codex on October 31, 2026.

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