# ao vs Patience Balls

The clearest difference is rating: Patience Balls at 4.7 against ao's 3.3. Patience Balls also leads on review sentiment (68% vs 47%) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. ao sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and Patience Balls sells 7 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Patience Balls holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 153 and 557 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 47% of ao's written reviews are positive against 68% of Patience Balls's.

ao ships an update every 2 months, Patience Balls every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | ao | Patience Balls |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [3.3 (153 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ao/id937945761/reviews) | **[4.7 (557 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/patience-balls/id1630926274/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 153 | **557** |
| Positive reviews | 47.3% of reviews | **68.2% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 3 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 134 MB | 274 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [General Adaptive Apps Pty Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/937589555) | [Ricardo Mendonca](https://appshunter.io/developer/1491604251) |

## What reviewers say

### ao

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ao/id937945761)

Engage in a puzzle game with expanding and contracting circles. Solve over 200 levels with unique challenges and surprises. Compete for medals and leaderboards, or skip tricky levels.

**Highlights:** Expanding and contracting circles, 200 levels with unique challenges, Leaderboard and medals, Level skipping and unlocking, Replay passed levels

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

**In-app purchases (8)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| ao Legend, monthly | $1.99 | per month |
| ao Legend, yearly | $19.99 | per year |
| Skip Level | $0.99 | one-time |
| Skip 3 levels | $1.29 | one-time |
| Remove All Ads | $1.99 | one-time |
| Skip 5 levels | $1.99 | one-time |
| Unlock All Levels | $3.99 | one-time |
| Unlock all + remove ads | $10.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🤩 Fun and addictive gameplay
- 👍 Simple yet challenging
- 🎶 Good background music
- ✨ Minimalist design
- 💯 Highly recommended

**What reviewers complain about**

- ❓ Confusing gameplay
- 😩 Frustrating difficulty
- 👎 Repetitive gameplay
- 💸 Unfair monetization
- 😵 Overwhelming ads

**Reported bugs**

- Game doesn't work
- App freezes
- Level 1 fails
- Dots don't rotate
- Automatic fail

**Requested features**

- Clearer instructions on how to play
- Make levels less impossible
- Fix the huge dot problem
- Add numbers on the balls
- More original game concepts


### Patience Balls

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/patience-balls/id1630926274)

Engage in a minimalist physics puzzle game designed for a calming and meditative experience. Solve intricate labyrinths and mazes using precision, patience, and logic. This game offers a serene escape while sharpening your reflexes and problem-solving skills.

**Highlights:** Relaxing Zen-like Gameplay, Mind-Teasing Labyrinths and Mazes, Physics-Based Challenges, Precision and Logic Puzzles, Beautiful Minimal Graphics, Unlockable Achievements, Global Leaderboards

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

**In-app purchases (7)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 250 Gems | $0.99 | one-time |
| Patience Balls Premium | $1.99 | one-time |
| 400 Gems | $1.99 | one-time |
| Remove ads and get 1000 gems | $2.99 | one-time |
| Remove ads and get 1000 gems | $3.99 | one-time |
| Remove ads and get 1000 gems | $4.99 | one-time |
| Remove ads and 2500 Gems | $7.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is ao free?

ao is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Patience Balls free?

Patience Balls is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, ao or Patience Balls?

Patience Balls is rated higher. ao averages 3.3 out of 5 from 153 ratings, while Patience Balls averages 4.7 from 557 ratings.

### Do ao or Patience Balls have ads?

Both ao and Patience Balls show ads.

### Which is updated more often, ao or Patience Balls?

ao ships an update every 2 months, and Patience Balls every 3 weeks. Most recently, ao was updated on November 1, 2026 and Patience Balls on November 3, 2026.

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