MonsterScan vs Barcode Beasts
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
MonsterScan
Explore the real world as your playground by scanning barcodes to discover and collect unique monsters. Engage in strategic turn-based battles, test your skills in mini-games, and advance through ranks to become a prestigious adventurer.
- Scan real barcodes to create unique monsters
- Monsters with varying rarities and stats
- Strategic turn-based battles
- Challenging mini-games with rewards
- Temporary boosters for higher rarity monsters
- Player progression and rank system
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MonsterScan is a collectible adventure game where the real world becomes your playground. Scan barcodes and discover unique monsters generated from each scan. Each creature has its own rarity and stats, making every summon different and special. Build your collection, improve your odds with temporary boosters, and face intense turn-based battles where strategy, energy management, and status effects make all the difference. Test your skills in different mini-games, earn rewards, and advance as an adventurer while unlocking increasingly prestigious ranks within the MonsterScan world. Whether exploring, battling, or solving challenges, MonsterScan offers a dynamic experience that evolves with you. KEY FEATURES • Scan real codes. Turn everyday barcodes into unique monsters. • Monsters with different rarities. Common, rare, epic, mythical, and legendary, each with their own stats. • Strategic turn-based battles. Manage health, stamina, and special abilities to defeat your opponents. • Challenging mini-games. Prove your skill in various challenges and earn additional rewards. • Temporary boosters. Increase your chances of obtaining high rarity monsters for a limited time. • Progression and player ranks. Advance as an adventurer as you complete your quest. Every scan and every game counts. MonsterScan uses the device's camera exclusively for scanning barcodes. No images or personal information are collected.
Barcode Beasts
Transform your surroundings into a monster hunting ground by scanning product barcodes. Engage in turn-based battles, collect unique creatures, and level up your character to become the ultimate scanner.
- Scan any product barcode to summon creatures
- Turn-based monster battles
- Collect 84+ unique beasts
- Level up and customize character stats
- Unlockable attacks and combat loadouts
- Build and track your Bestiary
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WELCOME TO BARCODE BEASTS The world is surrounded by barcodes and beasts lie within. Transform your world into a monster hunting ground! Barcode Beasts turns every product barcode into a gateway to encounter wild creatures waiting to be challenged. SCAN ANYTHING Use your camera to scan barcodes on groceries, books, packages - anything! Each barcode summons a unique beast ready for battle. BATTLE AS A SCANNER Fight beasts you discover directly in turn based battles with your own skills. Master 18 unlockable attacks, manage your Battle Stamina wisely, and exploit enemy weaknesses to claim victory. DISCOVER 100 UNIQUE BEASTS AND RISING From the eerie Gravemite to the electrifying Voltgrub, discover and defeat a roster of mysterious creatures with distinct abilities and personalities. Build your Bestiary and track your stats against every beast you encounter! LEVEL UP & GET STRONGER Earn XP from every battle. Increase your stats, unlock powerful new attacks, customize your combat loadout and items to give you the upper hand. Become the best and most powerful scanner. TEST YOUR SKILLS Take on challenging dungeons and defeat 5 rooms of increasingly tougher beasts. ARE YOU READY? BECOME A SCANNNER TODAY! Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Barcode Beasts at 4.8 against MonsterScan's 1.0. Barcode Beasts also leads on update cadence (every 5 days vs every 8 months) and ratings volume (19 vs 1). MonsterScan's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4). On price, ads, 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
Both are free to download. Barcode Beasts sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. MonsterScan asks for nothing beyond the download.
Barcode Beasts holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Barcode Beasts has 19 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
MonsterScan ships an update every 8 months, Barcode Beasts every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | MonsterScan | Barcode Beasts |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 1.0 (1 ratings) | 4.8 (19 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | — | 98.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 1 | 19 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 8 months | Every 5 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 15.1 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 191 MB | 129 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 9+ |
| Developer | David Martinez Gallardo | MATTHEW LAWRIE LAFFERTY |
Customer experience
MonsterScan
Barcode Beasts
In-app purchases
MonsterScan
No in-app purchases
Barcode Beasts
- 100 coins$0.99
- 500 coins$3.99
- 1500 coins$9.99
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- Booster pack$19.99
Questions
Is MonsterScan free?
Is Barcode Beasts free?
Which has better reviews, MonsterScan or Barcode Beasts?
Do MonsterScan or Barcode Beasts have ads?
Which is updated more often, MonsterScan or Barcode Beasts?
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