Comparison

Idle Alchemist vs Supernova

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

Head to head
About

Idle Alchemist

Features
Read full description

Become a master alchemist. Stir living cauldrons, summon rare ingredients, and brew ever-more-powerful potions in a cozy, beautiful idle game — play in minutes a day, or watch it grow while you're away. THE GREAT WORK • Brew dozens of potions across a deep recipe tree • Summon ingredients and discover new combinations • Auto-brewing keeps the cauldrons working offline GROW YOUR ARCANE EMPIRE • Unlock pets, runes, apprentices, and the Tower • Send familiars on expeditions for rare loot • Rebirth to grow exponentially stronger ALWAYS SOMETHING NEW • A seasonal pass with painted rewards • Daily quests, weekend events, and live-ops • Guilds, leaderboards, and weekly boss raids • Hand-painted art for every ingredient, potion, pet, and rune Relaxing, gorgeous, and endlessly deep. Begin the Great Work today. MASTER'S PATH SUBSCRIPTION (OPTIONAL) Master's Path is an optional auto-renewing monthly subscription. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. It renews automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period, and your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours before the period ends. Manage or cancel any time in your App Store account settings. The game is fully playable for free. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.paritycrest.com/legal/privacy

About

Supernova

An idle space tycoon game where you fuse hydrogen to grow and detonate stars. Earn permanent power-ups with each supernova to accelerate future runs. Features offline progress and a visually evolving star.

Highlights
  • Fuse hydrogen to create and grow stars
  • Offline progress and production
  • Visually evolving star stages
  • Prestige system with supernova cinematics
  • Deep multiplier stacking and research upgrades
  • Daily missions and streaks
  • Fully offline gameplay
Read full description

Fuse hydrogen into a living star. Grow it. Then blow it up — on purpose. SUPERNOVA is a premium-feel idle game about running a cosmic forge. Tap to spark fusion, build 12 generators from Hydrogen Wisp to Singularity Seed, and watch your star physically evolve — protostar, blue giant, red supergiant — until it is ready to collapse. Detonating it is the point: every supernova grants Neutron Cores, permanent power that makes each new universe faster than the last. WHY YOU'LL STAY • Real progress while you're away — production continues offline (extend the cap up to 24 hours with research), and a welcome-back doubler greets your return • A star that actually changes — five visual stages, rendered live, no canned art • Prestige that feels like a finale — a hand-built supernova cinematic, then a stronger start • Numbers that get gloriously big — Million, Septillion, and far beyond • Milestones every few minutes early on, deep multiplier stacking later • Daily missions and streaks that respect your time • 20 research upgrades that shape every run FAIR BY DESIGN • No ads. None. • No energy bars, no forced waits, no progress walls • Fully offline — no account, no sign-in, no internet required • Nothing collected, nothing tracked • Optional purchases exist (time warps, photons, a one-time Supporter Pack), and the entire game is balanced to be completed without spending anything THE LOOP 1. Tap your star and let generators forge Stardust 2. Hit ownership milestones — each one doubles a generator's output 3. Buy research, stack a Photon Surge boost, fill your Piggy Bank 4. Reach collapse readiness... and go SUPERNOVA 5. Keep your Neutron Cores forever. Start again, faster. Built by a solo developer in SwiftUI and SpriteKit. Every pixel is procedural — no asset packs, no stock art. Dark theme, tuned haptics, Reduce Motion respected. Your first universe is waiting. It starts with one atom.

Screenshots

Idle Alchemist4 screens
Supernova4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Supernova at none against Idle Alchemist's shown. Supernova also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 2 months) and device support (5 vs 2). Idle Alchemist's advantage is iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). On price and in-app purchases 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. Idle Alchemist sells 10 one-off in-app purchases and Supernova sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Idle Alchemist ships an update every 2 months, Supernova every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Idle Alchemist versus Supernova: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterIdle AlchemistSupernova
PriceFreeFree
Rating—4.4 (63 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—77.8% of reviews
Number of ratings—63 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetization—Free with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, Vision Pro — better
Requires iOS15.1 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size103 MB15 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperParity Crest LtdHUGO ANATOLE PAUL MORICEAU

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Idle Alchemist

One-time10
  • Aether Pouch$0.99
  • Gold Coin Purse$0.99
  • Crystal Pack$2.99
Show 7 more
  • Aether Chest$3.99
  • Gold Strongbox$3.99
  • Phoenix Feathers$4.99
  • Master Alchemist Bundle$9.99
  • Mooneye Pearl$9.99
  • Aether Vault$14.99
  • Gold Dragon Hoard$14.99
10 purchases

Supernova

One-time10
  • 50 Photons$0.99
  • Time Warp: 4 Hours$1.99
  • Break the Piggy Bank$2.99
Show 7 more
  • Automation Core$3.99
  • Supporter Pack$4.99
  • Time Warp: 24 Hours$4.99
  • 300 Photons$4.99
  • 700 Photons$9.99
  • Time Warp: 7 Days$14.99
  • 1600 Photons$19.99

Questions

Is Idle Alchemist free?
Idle Alchemist is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Supernova free?
Supernova is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Idle Alchemist or Supernova have ads?
Idle Alchemist shows ads; Supernova does not.
Which is updated more often, Idle Alchemist or Supernova?
Idle Alchemist ships an update every 2 months, and Supernova every 2 days. Most recently, Idle Alchemist was updated on October 14, 2026 and Supernova on October 12, 2026.

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