# A Dark Room vs Shattered Pixel Dungeon

The clearest difference is update cadence: Shattered Pixel Dungeon at fortnightly against A Dark Room's every 2 months. Shattered Pixel Dungeon also leads on chart position (#10 vs #46) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). A Dark Room's advantage is price ($1.99 vs $4.99). On rating, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.

A Dark Room costs $1.99 and Shattered Pixel Dungeon $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for A Dark Room against 4.9 for Shattered Pixel Dungeon. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2.7K and 4.2K respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 93% and 93% positive.

A Dark Room ships an update every 2 months, Shattered Pixel Dungeon fortnightly. Both last shipped on October 30, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | A Dark Room | Shattered Pixel Dungeon |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **$1.99** | $4.99 |
| Rating | [4.8 (2.7K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/a-dark-room/id736683061/reviews) | **[4.9 (4.2K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shattered-pixel-dungeon/id1563121109/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 2.7K | **4.2K** |
| Positive reviews | 92.7% of reviews | **92.9% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free** |
| Best chart rank | #46 | **#10** |
| Size | 103 MB | 134 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **13.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 12+ | 9+ |
| Developer | [Amirali Rajan](https://appshunter.io/developer/736683064) | [Evan Debenham](https://appshunter.io/developer/1562920988) |

## What reviewers say

### A Dark Room

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/a-dark-room/id736683061)

**Currently charting:** #46 Top Paid · Role Playing, #82 Top Paid · Adventure (US App Store)

Awaken in a mysterious world with a throbbing head and blurry vision. Follow the voices' instructions to survive and explore this text-based adventure. Experience a game free from ads, loot boxes, in-app purchases, and tracking, fully playable with VoiceOver.

**Highlights:** Text-based adventure, Survival mechanics, Exploration, Resource management, VoiceOver compatible, No ads or IAP

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### Shattered Pixel Dungeon

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shattered-pixel-dungeon/id1563121109)

**Currently charting:** #10 Top Paid · Role Playing, #16 Top Paid · Adventure, #89 Top Paid · Games, #144 Top Paid (US App Store)

Embark on a challenging roguelike dungeon crawl with six unique heroes. Explore procedurally generated levels, collect hundreds of items, and battle diverse enemies and bosses. Master unique hero mechanics and unlock powerful abilities to survive the depths.

**Highlights:** Six unique heroes with distinct playstyles, Procedurally generated dungeons and randomized enemies, Hundreds of items to collect, upgrade, and craft, Talent trees and subclass progression for heroes, Challenging bosses and optional achievements, Regular content updates

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Endless replayability
- 👍 Polished and well-designed
- 🎨 Excellent pixel art and aesthetics
- 💡 Innovative mechanics and depth
- 🕹️ Challenging yet rewarding gameplay

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🤯 Extremely challenging and punishing
- 🕰️ Runs can feel too long
- 🤖 Overpowered enemy mechanics (e.g. evasion)

**Reported bugs**

- Sound effects not working on iOS
- Occasional crashes or freezes

**Requested features**

- Permadeath optional mode
- Ability to continue progress across devices
- More character classes and customization options


## Frequently asked questions

### Is A Dark Room free?

A Dark Room costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Shattered Pixel Dungeon free?

Shattered Pixel Dungeon costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, A Dark Room or Shattered Pixel Dungeon?

Shattered Pixel Dungeon is rated higher. A Dark Room averages 4.8 out of 5 from 2.7K ratings, while Shattered Pixel Dungeon averages 4.9 from 4.2K ratings.

### Do A Dark Room or Shattered Pixel Dungeon have ads?

Neither A Dark Room nor Shattered Pixel Dungeon shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, A Dark Room or Shattered Pixel Dungeon?

A Dark Room ships an update every 2 months, and Shattered Pixel Dungeon fortnightly. Most recently, A Dark Room was updated on October 30, 2026 and Shattered Pixel Dungeon on October 30, 2026.

### Which is more popular, A Dark Room or Shattered Pixel Dungeon?

A Dark Room currently peaks at #46 in the App Store charts, and Shattered Pixel Dungeon at #10. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*