Element vs Crying Suns
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Element
Engage in a visually stunning space strategy game designed for busy players. Mine resources, build units, and battle enemies to escape a decaying solar system and reach new frontiers.
- Real-time strategy gameplay
- Space exploration and combat
- Resource mining and management
- Unit building and deployment
- Visually stunning graphics
- Accessible for short play sessions
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Element is a realtime strategy space game for people who don't have time to play realtime strategy space games. Home no longer provides a means to survive. A fight for resources to escape our system has begun. The future lies beyond… Element is a visually stunning realtime strategy space game with a focus on sharp, accessible gameplay. Element is for lovers of beautifully crafted, original looking games. It is for people who are into space and strategy games but don’t have hours of time to invest. It’s also for gamers who enjoy launching missiles and blowing things up :) You are escaping a decaying solar system. You must visit each planet, mine enough element, and defeat the enemy to progress to the outer planets and beyond. Generate energy, mine element, build attack and defense units, and destroy the enemy while maintaining a balance between earth, air and water. Element A Flightless Game by John O'Reilly & Greg Harding. © 2014-2018 Flightless Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Available for iPhone, iPad, and MacOS. http://elementgame.com http://www.flightless.co.nz http://twitter.com/flightlessnz element@flightless.co.nz
Crying Suns
Command a space fleet in a tactical rogue-lite inspired by classic sci-fi. Explore a procedurally generated universe, engage in strategic ship battles, and uncover a deep storyline across six chapters. Experience a rich narrative and atmospheric gameplay designed for mobile.
- Procedurally-generated space exploration
- Tactical battleship and squadron fleet combat
- Over 300 story events
- Deep, 6-chapter storyline
- Mobile-optimized interface
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When FTL meets Foundation and Dune: Crying Suns is a tactical rogue-lite that puts you in the role of a space fleet commander as you explore a mysteriously fallen empire. In this story rich experience inspired by Dune and Foundation, each successful run will uncover the truth about the Empire... and yourself as well. Main Features: - Space exploration in a procedurally-generated universe - Tactical fights between battleships and their squadron fleets - More than 300 possible story events - A deep and dramatic storyline structured in 6 chapters - A dark and disturbing atmosphere inspired by our favorite S-F universes (Foundation, Dune, Battlestar Galactica) First released on PC and Mac, the indie hit Crying Suns was carefully redesigned for mobile and tablets, including a revamped interface and intuitive touchscreen interactions. Pay once to get the full Crying Suns experience! No ads, no F2P mechanics! All future updates included. Supported languages: English, French, German, Spanish, Russian, Simplified Chinese, and Japanese If you encounter any problem, please contact us at contact@cryingsuns.com with as much information as possible on the issue.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Element at $1.99 against Crying Suns's $8.99. Element also leads on iOS requirement (10.0 vs 13.0). Crying Suns's advantage is update cadence (monthly vs every 10 months) and rating (4.8 vs 4.6). On review sentiment, 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
Element costs $1.99 and Crying Suns $8.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Crying Suns holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 474 and 2.1K respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 72% and 73% positive.
Element ships an update every 10 months, Crying Suns monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 26, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Element | Crying Suns |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1.99 — better | $8.99 |
| Rating | 4.6 (474 ratings) | 4.8 (2.1K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 72.4% of reviews | 72.8% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 474 | 2.1K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 10 months | Monthly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | #43 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 10.0 — better | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 139 MB | 1014 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Flightless | Alternative Shift |
Customer experience
Element
Crying Suns
User reviews
Element
From 474 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🎮 Fun and engaging gameplay mechanics
- 🎨 Beautiful minimalist low-poly graphics
- 🧠 Strategic depth with simple learning curve
- ⚡ Quick, bite-sized gaming sessions
- 🎯 Intuitive controls and UI design
Room to improve
- ⏱️ Extremely short campaign (4 hours completion)
- 🔄 Repetitive gameplay after initial planets
- 💰 Expensive for content length ($5 price point)
- ⚙️ Tracking and progress system doesn't work properly
- 🎮 Unbalanced gameplay - can destroy enemy base instantly
Crying Suns
From 2.1K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fun gameplay
- 🌟 Amazing atmosphere and story
- 👍 Engaging combat system
- 💎 Great value for money
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔍 Small text and UI elements
- 🔁 Repetitive gameplay and missions
Bugs and requests
Element
Reported bugs
5 issues- Progress tracking doesn't register completed mines
- Game crashes frequently on iPad Pro M1
- Purchase transaction issues and money deduction without delivery
- UI text too small on iPhone XR and newer models
- Tutorial doesn't adequately explain mechanics
Requested features
12 requests- Multiplayer/PvP mode
- More levels and planets
- Random world generator or sandbox mode
- Local co-op gameplay
- Skirmish/custom difficulty modes
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- Infinite/survival mode
- Alien races or unique planet variants
- Sequel or prequel
- Bonus missions for capturing all mines
- Special upgrades for captured planet ores
- Larger UI text scaling for iPhone
- Post-game content or endless mode
Crying Suns
Reported bugs
4 issues- Game crashes when using certain ship abilities
- Crashes during end-of-chapter cutscenes
- Progression-blocking bugs preventing access to new content
- Inability to progress past specific story points due to crashes
Requested features
4 requests- Zoom functionality for combat screen
- Ability to play own music during gameplay
- Endless mode or sandbox option
- Improved tutorial to explain key mechanics
In-app purchases
Element
No in-app purchases
Crying Suns
No in-app purchases
