John Mad Run vs Dan The Man Platformer
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
John Mad Run
Embark on a relentless fight for survival as John, a target with deadly skills. Wield powerful weapons like a laser and sword to decimate hordes of enemies, master your reflexes to dodge traps, and leave a trail of bloody destruction.
- Intense run'n'gun gameplay
- Unlockable laser weapon
- Melee combat with a sword
- Dodge deadly traps
- High-octane enemy elimination
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John knows far too much to be left alive. So they are coming for him. But what they don't know is that he's not easy meat. Join John in his fight to the death. Unlock the insanely powerful laser to eliminate dozens of enemies at a time. Feel the absolute might of a sword - the weapon that never jams, never has to be reloaded and is always ready. Train your dexterity, avoid deadly traps and rend your enemies into bloody pieces. ○○○ More from Happymagenta: · Spyglass - outdoor GPS with augmented reality · Scany - WiFi scanner and network utility
Dan The Man Platformer
Embark on a retro-style arcade adventure with a compelling story, upgradeable skills, and an arsenal of weapons. Engage in a classic beat-em-up cooperative multiplayer mode, either with a friend or a quick match, to defeat hordes of enemies and epic bosses.
- Cooperative multiplayer mode
- Retro arcade gameplay
- Upgradeable fighting skills
- Epic arsenal of weapons
- Funny story
- Boss fights
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MULTIPLAYER UPDATE Wait what?! That's right! MULTIPLAYER has finally come to Dan The Man! Our most requested feature of all time comes in the form of a classic "beat up a horde" style coop mode. Grab a friend and relive the glory days of retrocoop split screen... online! Don't have any friends? Dan the Man has you covered. Just search for a quick match and get an instant brawl buddy! We are sure you'll agree that two Dans are better than one, as you both co-operative take to down an Army of Soldiers, Robots, Bats, and even Epic Bosses to clean up the streets of fury. Just make sure you take all the coins! With more than 10 MILLION installs and growing each day, it’s easy to see why Dan the Man has been awarded as one of the “Best of Games for 2016” across the major mobile platforms! With a cracking funny story, awesome upgradeable fighting skills and an epic arsenal of weapons that will make even the most heroic of heroes envious, Dan The Man's arcade fight fest has enough enemies and boss fights to satisfy every hardcore gamer. What are you waiting for? Join the epicness! Be legendary! PLAY NOW! *** Catch up on the story before you play the game! Watch each stage of the web series: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLuNyw_z6mVdXCUK05PYmwYQ3Yozs9hsGs *** This game contains optional in-app purchases. You can disable this feature in the settings menu of your device. View our privacy policy at http://halfbrick.com/pp Views our terms of service at http://halfbrick.com/tos
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Dan The Man Platformer at 4.8 against John Mad Run's 4.2. Dan The Man Platformer also leads on ratings volume (162K vs 12) and update cadence (every 4 weeks vs every 3 months). John Mad Run's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and ads (none vs shown). On price and device support 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. Dan The Man Platformer sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. John Mad Run asks for nothing beyond the download.
Dan The Man Platformer holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Dan The Man Platformer has 162K ratings behind it against 12, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 62% of John Mad Run's written reviews are positive against 79% of Dan The Man Platformer's.
John Mad Run ships an update every 3 months, Dan The Man Platformer every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 7, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | John Mad Run | Dan The Man Platformer |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (12 ratings) | 4.8 (162K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 62.2% of reviews | 78.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 12 | 162K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 4 weeks — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — better |
| Requires iOS | 8.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 41 MB | 150 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Happymagenta UAB | Halfbrick Studios |
Customer experience
John Mad Run
Dan The Man Platformer
User reviews
John Mad Run
From 12 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🎮 Addictive and fun gameplay mechanics
- 🎨 Retro pixel art style with good graphics
- 🎵 Great soundtrack and audio design
- 💰 Minimal in-app purchases and ads
- ⚡ Simple and easy to pick up controls
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and freezes
- 🐛 Screen display issues (half screen visibility)
- 🐛 Unresponsive and buggy controls
- 🐛 Weapon firing lag and unresponsiveness
- 🐛 Secondary weapon (knife/sword) stops working mid-run
Dan The Man Platformer
From 162K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Fun gameplay
- 🚀 Engaging story
- 💡 Unique character customization
- 🎨 Retro pixel art style
Room to improve
- 🕰️ Long wait times for levels
- 📺 Excessive ads
- 💰 Paywall for premium features
- 🐛 Crashes and bugs
Bugs and requests
John Mad Run
Reported bugs
13 issues- App crashes on launch (iOS 17)
- Screen only displays half the game interface
- Controls unresponsive to swipe inputs
- Firing mechanism requires rapid tapping to work
- Knife/sword stops functioning after 2-3 runs
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- Sound cuts out intermittently
- Jump and movement inputs not registering
- Progress and high scores not saving
- Weapons not unlocking after Facebook likes
- Game glitches when clicking ads
- Save data deleted after updates
- Secondary weapon control loss on restart
- Enemies shooting before appearing on screen
Requested features
11 requests- More weapons and gun variety
- Character customization and outfit options
- Power-ups and special abilities
- Boss encounters and story mode
- Multiple level maps and scenery changes
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- Armor and health upgrades
- Skill tree system
- Different difficulty levels
- Invincibility frames after getting hit
- Button controls as alternative to swipe gestures
- Weapon selection library system
Dan The Man Platformer
Reported bugs
3 issues- Checkpoint ads not loading
- Weapons getting stuck in the environment
- Inconsistent performance on older devices
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to save progress across devices
- Offline mode without ads
- More varied enemy types and boss fights
- Separate story mode for hard difficulty
In-app purchases
John Mad Run
No in-app purchases
Dan The Man Platformer
- PREMIUM SPECIAL OFFER$0.99
- 1,000 Gold Coins$0.99
- Premium (remove ads)$2.99
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- Starter Pack 1$3.99
- Barry Steakfries$4.99
- 5,500 Gold Coins$4.99
- BARRY + PREMIUM$5.99
- Winter Campaign$5.99
- Fright Zone$5.99
- 12,000 Gold Coins$9.99
Questions
Is John Mad Run free?
Is Dan The Man Platformer free?
Which has better reviews, John Mad Run or Dan The Man Platformer?
Do John Mad Run or Dan The Man Platformer have ads?
Which is updated more often, John Mad Run or Dan The Man Platformer?
Other comparisons
