VVVVVV vs The Ensign
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
VVVVVV
Experience a critically acclaimed indie platformer where you control gravity to navigate a challenging world. Avoid enemies and traps by flipping your surroundings. A retro-inspired adventure with a unique mechanic.
- Gravity flipping mechanic
- Challenging platforming
- Retro pixel art style
- Award-winning indie game
- Unique level design
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From the creator of Super Hexagon - VVVVVV, the hit 2010 indie platformer, now available on iOS! Winner of Indiecade's 2010 award for Most Fun/Compelling Game. "One of the best platformers I've ever played." - Anthony Burch, Destructoid 10/10 "This game is incredible." - Michael Rose, Indiegames.com "The very best videogames in existence leave you with a whole mess of memories that are so varied and entertaining that you can leaf through them like a photo album. VVVVVV is one of those games." - Quintin Smith, Rock Paper Shotgun
The Ensign
Embark on a challenging narrative-driven adventure where your choices have dire consequences. This game offers a fully accessible experience for VoiceOver users, delivering a difficult yet rewarding gameplay loop.
- 100% VoiceOver playable
- Challenging gameplay
- Narrative-driven
- No ads
- No data collection
- No in-app purchases
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death awaits. their humanity makes them strong. - 100% playable via VoiceOver - Pre-sequel to the #1 viral smash hit, A Dark Room. - Made with love by indie game developers. - No ads. - No data collection. - No IAP. - No crippled gameplay. - No data requirements. - No elevated device privileges. - Stupid difficult, but that's why you'll love it.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: The Ensign at every 2 months against VVVVVV's every 18 months. The Ensign also leads on chart position (#69 vs unranked) and review sentiment (86% vs 75%). VVVVVV's advantage is iOS requirement (6.0 vs 11.0). On rating, ratings volume, ads 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
VVVVVV costs $2.99 and The Ensign $1.99 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 — 4.5 for VVVVVV against 4.6 for The Ensign. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 187 and 552 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 75% of VVVVVV's written reviews are positive against 86% of The Ensign's.
VVVVVV ships an update every 18 months, The Ensign every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 28, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | VVVVVV | The Ensign |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $2.99 | $1.99 — better |
| Rating | 4.5 (187 ratings) | 4.6 (552 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 74.8% of reviews | 86.2% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 187 | 552 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 18 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | #69 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 6.0 — better | 11.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 83 MB | 32 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | +12 |
| Developer | Distractionware Limited | Amirali Rajan |
Customer experience
VVVVVV
The Ensign
User reviews
VVVVVV
From 187 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fun, worth the money, amazing
- 👍 Great gameplay, story, and characters
- 🎶 Amazing soundtrack
Room to improve
- 🐛 Old, outdated port with issues
- 📱 Controls not optimized for mobile
- 🔍 Blurry graphics, low resolution
The Ensign
From 552 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🌟 Compelling story and world-building
- 🤖 Unique and challenging gameplay
- 🎮 Rewarding progression and sense of accomplishment
- 💎 Excellent prequel to A Dark Room
- 🧠 Encourages strategic thinking and decision-making
Room to improve
- 🤯 Extremely difficult and punishing at times
- 🔁 Frustrating to restart from the beginning after dying
- 🕹️ Lack of checkpoints or save options
- 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs
- 🧭 Unclear navigation and objectives at times
Bugs and requests
VVVVVV
Reported bugs
3 issues- Impossible user-created levels
- Teleporter issues and softlocks
- Frequent crashes and performance problems
Requested features
3 requests- Add controller support
- Update for newer iOS versions
- Implement level editor
The Ensign
Reported bugs
3 issues- Game crashing when trying to collect loot
- Inconsistencies between item descriptions and inventory
- Saved progress being lost after closing the app
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to save progress and resume later
- Difficulty settings or optional modes
- More narrative depth and character development
- Improved accessibility and UI for visually impaired players
In-app purchases
VVVVVV
No in-app purchases
The Ensign
No in-app purchases
