The Shadow Horror vs Crying Suns
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
The Shadow Horror
Explore an abandoned house filled with a terrifying creature. Solve puzzles, uncover mysteries, and improvise defenses to survive the night. Your choices determine your fate against the lurking Shadow Horror.
- Solve puzzles and mysteries
- Identify the lurking horror
- Author's commentary
- Explore freely
- Improvise weapons and defenses
- Non-linear exploration
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Stranded by a breakdown, you explore a nearby abandonded house only to find that you are not alone. A creature not of this world lairs within the walls. As the sun goes down, so do your odds against the Shadow Horror. • Solve puzzles and mysteries. • Name the horror that lurks. • Author's commentary and game-plus content. • Explore entirely at your discretion. • Improvise weapons and defenses. • You don't have to go into the house.
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 rating: Crying Suns at 4.8 against The Shadow Horror's 3.4. Crying Suns also leads on ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (2.2K vs 5). The Shadow Horror's advantage is price ($7.99 vs $8.99). On review sentiment, in-app purchases, monetization model 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
The Shadow Horror costs $7.99 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 3.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Crying Suns has 2.2K ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 67% of The Shadow Horror's written reviews are positive against 73% of Crying Suns's.
The Shadow Horror ships an update every 2 months, Crying Suns monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | The Shadow Horror | Crying Suns |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $7.99 — better | $8.99 |
| Rating | 3.4 (5 ratings) | 4.8 (2.2K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 66.7% of reviews | 72.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 5 | 2.2K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Monthly — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | #74 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 32 MB | 1014 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Hosted Games LLC | Alternative Shift |
Customer experience
The Shadow Horror
Crying Suns
Bugs and requests
The Shadow Horror
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
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
The Shadow Horror
No in-app purchases
Crying Suns
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is The Shadow Horror free?
Is Crying Suns free?
Which has better reviews, The Shadow Horror or Crying Suns?
Do The Shadow Horror or Crying Suns have ads?
Which is updated more often, The Shadow Horror or Crying Suns?
Other comparisons
