Comparison

The Sandbox Evolution vs Apple Knight 2

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

The Sandbox Evolution

Create and destroy 8-bit worlds with a vast array of elements and physics. Design intricate landscapes, add life, introduce technology, and even compose music. Share your creations and play games made by others.

Highlights
  • Build 8-bit 2D pixel worlds
  • Over 170 elements with unique interactions
  • Add life with AI characters and foliage
  • Introduce technology and destructive elements
  • Create pixel art and compose music
  • Share and browse user-created worlds
  • Design custom game levels
Read full description

Build or destroy your own universe out of 8-bit blocks! Play the #1-pixel world creation game & build anything you can imagine! There are no limits to your creativity. Craft or destroy amazing worlds with your godly touch in The Sandbox Evolution, the #1 pixel art world creation game. Build anything you can dream up with advanced physics, over 500 elements and fully controllable heroes. In The Sandbox Evolution, worlds are up to 10x bigger. Create rich pixel worlds complete with ambient life, traps, platforms and enemies. You can even make your own pixel art! THE SANDBOX EVOLUTION FEATURES: CREATE YOUR WORLD PIXEL AFTER PIXEL! - Build 8-bit 2D pixel worlds up to 10x bigger than the previous Sandbox - Start from scratch or use predefined templates - Mix & match over 170 elements to discover their unique interactions - Manipulate Mud, Water, Sand, Fire, Metal, Electricity, Acid, Lava & more - Craft wonders like the Parthenon & Giza Pyramid - Control Heroes with different skillsets to shoot, fly & more ADD LIFE & BUILD YOUR WORLD - Bring life to your worlds with Dogs, Bears, Cows, Sabertooth Tigers & more - Spread foliage & numerous tree varieties to bring beauty to your new world - Decorate Houses, Castles & Igloos - Make dynamic life with AI Humans - Turn your world into Zombie Apocalypse if you want INTRODUCE TECHNOLOGY - Add tech like Batteries, Crosswires, Resistance, Bulbs, Heaters, Coolers, LEDs & Sensors - Destroy everything you can with C4, Meteorites, Nitro & TNT CREATE ART - Draw retro style pixel art using 100 colors - Compose your own chiptune songs BROWSE THE GALLERY & SHARE ONLINE - Share your worlds with other players - Search worlds by keyword or tags (pixel art, music, arcade & more) - Filter & find the Newest or Hottest creations - Rate & bookmark your favorite levels - Follow your favorite creators THE GAME MAKER YOU WANTED - Start with ready-to-use 4x4 pixel blocks then add platforms, traps & enemies - Create your own levels with Controllable Heroes, Platforms, Blocks, Spikes & more - Create PAC-MAN mazes - Make your own 8bit pixel platformer or infinite runner game. Add a hero & BOOM! You’ve made your very own game in less than a minute :) CAMPAIGNS & DAILY QUESTS - Experience the creation of the universe through a full campaign of 13 levels - Explore & fight with the Caveman to recover his child in the Caveman Campaign - Dash to victory in the Runner Campaign & try to get #1 on the leaderboards - Learn how to draw pixel art like a real artist in the zen drawing Pixel Art Campaign - New Daily Quests, pulled from the best player creations. Challenge the best in the world, or build your levels for a chance to be featured JOIN OUR COMMUNITY OF 745,000 FANS! - Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/thesandboxgame - Like us on Facebook: http://facebook.com/thesandboxgame SUBSCRIPTION PRICING Get access to exclusive Create Modes, Stories and Element with our monthly subscription! - Sandbox Premium: 1 month recurring subscription for $4,99 (USD). The prices is for customers in the United States. Pricing in other countries may vary and charges will be converted to the local currency depending on the country of residence. Payment will be charged to your account after confirmation of purchase. The subscription is renewed unless your turn it off 24 hours before the end of the current period. Users can manage their subscription and auto-renewal by checking the user’s account settings after the purchase in the App Store. No cancellation of the current subscription is allowed during the active subscription period. More info: https://support.apple.com/HT207865 Privacy Policy: https://thesandbox.helpshift.com/a/the-sandbox-2/?s=legal-terms&f=privacy-policy Terms of use: https://thesandbox.helpshift.com/a/the-sandbox-2/?s=legal-terms&f=terms-of-use&l=en

About

Apple Knight 2

Engage in fast-paced hack-and-slash combat in this action-packed platformer. Explore dungeons, battle enemies with a variety of weapons and abilities, and uncover hidden secrets. Customize your character with unique skins and unlock helpful pets to aid you in your adventures.

Highlights
  • Hack-and-slash combat
  • Unlockable weapons and skins
  • Special abilities and pets
  • Story and Adventure modes
  • Parrying and dodging mechanics
  • Hidden secrets in levels
Features
Read full description

A fast, fluid hack-and-slash platformer packed with intense combat! Experience fast-paced action in this thrilling platformer. Battle enemies, explore dungeons, and unlock weapons, unique skins, special abilities, and pets. Every level is packed with secrets, challenges, and fun combat. Game Features: - Weapons, Skins, Abilities, and Pets Choose from a wide variety of weapons, skins, abilities, and pets with a wide variety of stats and bonuses! Each weapon has a unique special ability. Pets assist you in combat. Skins offer various passive boosts. - Multiple Game Modes Explore the Story Mode or jump into a randomized Adventure Mode. - Combat Mechanics Parry enemy melee attacks with precision and deflect projectiles using your trusty sword. - Dodging & Dashing Master the art of dodging enemy melee and ranged attacks with swift dashes. - Hidden Secrets Discover 2 secret areas in every level, packed with treasures. - Special Abilities Unlock special abilities to defeat enemies from a distance. Each sword also comes with its own unique ability as well. - Fun enemy AI: Enemies can sense the player approaching from behind, yet they are foolish enough to run into spike pits.! - Controller Support Play now!

Screenshots

The Sandbox Evolution4 screens
Apple Knight 24 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Apple Knight 2 at 89% against The Sandbox Evolution's 40%. Apple Knight 2 also leads on rating (4.8 vs 3.8) and update cadence (every 8 days vs every 2 weeks). The Sandbox Evolution's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 15.0). On price, ratings volume, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. The Sandbox Evolution sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Apple Knight 2 sells 15 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Apple Knight 2 holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 9.6K and 3.4K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 40% of The Sandbox Evolution's written reviews are positive against 89% of Apple Knight 2's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

The Sandbox Evolution ships an update every 2 weeks, Apple Knight 2 every 8 days. Both last shipped on October 17, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
The Sandbox Evolution versus Apple Knight 2: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterThe Sandbox EvolutionApple Knight 2
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.8 (9.6K ratings)4.8 (3.4K ratings) — better
Positive reviews40.4% of reviews89.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings9.6K — better3.4K
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 8 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS8.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size248 MB148 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperPIXOWL INC.Limitless LLC

Customer experience

The Sandbox Evolution

All ratings9,599 ratings
Positive68.8%
Neutral7.1%
Negative24.2%
Written reviews1,579 reviews
Positive40.4%
Neutral11.2%
Negative48.4%

Apple Knight 2

All ratings3,402 ratings
Positive94.8%
Neutral3.0%
Negative2.2%
Written reviews263 reviews
Positive89.4%
Neutral3.4%
Negative7.2%

User reviews

The Sandbox Evolution

From 9.6K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Addictive and creative
  • 👍 Endless possibilities
  • 💡 Custom character creation

Room to improve

  • 🔒 Premium content locked behind paywall
  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
  • 🔋 High battery consumption
  • 💰 Expensive premium subscription

Apple Knight 2

From 3.4K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great gameplay
  • 🎨 Excellent graphics and visuals
  • 🕹️ Intuitive controls
  • 🕹️ Smooth combat mechanics
  • 🕹️ Satisfying parry system

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Revive ad not always working
  • 🤑 Difficulty of progression without spending money
  • 🤔 Removal of some features from the original game (e.g., female character, difficulty modes, endless mode)
  • 🔇 Disappointing music compared to the original game
  • 🤏 Small UI elements on smaller devices

Bugs and requests

The Sandbox Evolution

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Inability to save custom elements
  • Premium content not unlocking properly
  • Glitches with water and hazards
  • Crashes on startup or level load

Requested features

6 requests
  • More free content and elements
  • Improved stability and performance
  • Larger level sizes
  • Custom animation tools
  • Multiplayer functionality
Show 1 more
  • More enemy and boss variety

Apple Knight 2

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Sound and music settings not working properly
  • Coin count not displaying correctly after switching items
  • Cloud save issues causing loss of progress and coins
  • Parry mechanic not registering consistently

Requested features

6 requests
  • Bring back the female character option
  • Reintroduce difficulty modes and endless mode
  • Add a restart button to the menu
  • Implement a world map feature
  • Introduce class-based gameplay (e.g., knight, mage, archer)
Show 1 more
  • Restore the weapon special abilities from the original game

In-app purchases

10 purchases

The Sandbox Evolution

Subscriptions1
  • Premium Monthly Subscription$4.991 Month
One-time9
  • Basic Elements Pack$0.99
  • Ecstasy Pack$1.99
  • Bag of Mana$1.99
Show 6 more
  • All Campaigns Pack$2.99
  • All Disasters Pack$2.99
  • Zombie Pack$2.99
  • Inner Self Pack$4.99
  • All Elements Pack$9.99
  • All Mana Elements Pack$9.99
15 purchases

Apple Knight 2

One-time15
  • Zombie$1.99
  • Cursed Knight$1.99
  • Box of Coins$2.99
Show 12 more
  • Box of Crowns$2.99
  • Skelly$2.99
  • Knight$2.99
  • Roma Invictus$3.99
  • Redsteel Knight$3.99
  • Unlock Premium$4.99
  • Elite Ninja$4.99
  • Crate of Coins$9.99
  • Crate of Crowns$9.99
  • Unlock All Skins$9.99
  • Truckload of Coins!$19.99
  • Truckload of Crowns!$19.99

Questions

Is The Sandbox Evolution free?
The Sandbox Evolution is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Apple Knight 2 free?
Apple Knight 2 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, The Sandbox Evolution or Apple Knight 2?
Apple Knight 2 is rated higher. The Sandbox Evolution averages 3.8 out of 5 from 9.6K ratings, while Apple Knight 2 averages 4.8 from 3.4K ratings.
Do The Sandbox Evolution or Apple Knight 2 have ads?
Apple Knight 2 shows ads; The Sandbox Evolution does not.
Which is updated more often, The Sandbox Evolution or Apple Knight 2?
The Sandbox Evolution ships an update every 2 weeks, and Apple Knight 2 every 8 days. Most recently, The Sandbox Evolution was updated on October 17, 2026 and Apple Knight 2 on October 17, 2026.

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