EmberForge vs SIDES
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
EmberForge
Build a blacksmithing empire by tapping to earn gold and hiring workers. Unlock new producers, upgrade your forge, and progress through multiple prestige systems. Earn rewards offline and compete on leaderboards.
- Tap-to-earn core gameplay
- Multiple tiers of producers
- Reforge and Ascension prestige systems
- Offline earnings
- Achievements and daily rewards
- Leaderboards
- Cosmetic forge skins
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Build a blacksmith empire, one tap at a time. EmberForge is a classic idle tycoon and incremental clicker with a forge theme: tap the forge to earn gold, hire Apprentices and Blacksmiths to keep it flowing while you're away, and unlock ever more powerful producers as your empire grows all the way up to the legendary Eternal Crucible. FEATURES • Simple, addictive tap-to-earn core loop • 13 tiers of producers with deep upgrade paths • Reforge system — prestige for permanent Ember Shard bonuses • Ascension — a second prestige layer for players who've maxed out Reforging • Achievements and a daily reward streak • Game Center leaderboards — compare gold and Reforges with everyone else • Unlockable cosmetic forge skins • Offline earnings — your forge keeps working while you're away FAIR MONETIZATION EmberForge never locks gameplay behind a paywall. Every producer and upgrade is earnable through play. In-app purchases are limited to cosmetics and optional convenience (including an optional Ember Shard Pack), never pay-to-win. Rewarded ads are entirely opt-in. Start forging.
SIDES
Control a triangle that must survive for sixty seconds in an arena. Defeat the boss, which has one more side than you, to transform into it and gain new abilities. Progress through increasingly complex shapes and challenges.
- Shape progression
- Boss battles
- One-thumb controls
- Persistent upgrades (Resonance)
- Offline play
- Optional rewarded ads
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You are a triangle. The arena fills. Survive sixty seconds and the boss walks in — the shape with one more side than you. Beat it, and you become it. Every vertex is a weapon mount. Ascend from triangle to square to pentagon and beyond, into stars, star polygons, mandalas and the solids — each form multiplies your whole arsenal, and each boss is the next you. ONE THUMB. Kite, collect, and pick your draft between rounds. Sixty-second rounds, a run in ten minutes, a deep climb in an hour. RESONANCE. Every climb pays flux; flux buys permanent Resonance — sharper edges, a harder hull, faster blood. The ladder remembers your best form and lets you start from it. THREATS AND BOUNTIES. Four threat levels, a Wanted ladder that stacks handicaps for more flux, relic chests with real downsides, daily signals, seasonal skins. No account. Plays offline. Your save follows you through iCloud. Ads are optional, rewarded and never personalised. Game Center achievements and leaderboards.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: SIDES at 5.0 against EmberForge's 3.7. SIDES also leads on device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). EmberForge's advantage is ratings volume (6 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. EmberForge sells 8 one-off in-app purchases and SIDES sells 5 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
SIDES holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: EmberForge has 6 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
| Parameter | EmberForge | SIDES |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.7 (6 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 50.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 6 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 days | — |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 6 MB | 16 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 9+ |
| Developer | BRAXTON REED CHANDLER | Shai Ankori |
In-app purchases
EmberForge
- Auto Tapper$1.99
- Starter Bundle$1.99
- Obsidian Skin$1.99
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- Remove Ads$2.99
- Efficient Offline$2.99
- Gilded Skin$2.99
- Dragonfire Skin$4.99
- Ember Shard Pack$4.99
SIDES
- Flux Pocket$0.99
- Founder's Pack$2.99
- Flux Case$3.99
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- Prism Premium$4.99
- Flux Vault$7.99









