Comparison

Sky Force Reloaded vs Populus Run

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

Head to head
About

Sky Force Reloaded

Experience an intense scrolling shooter with explosive action, diverse aircraft, and challenging missions. Master beautiful stages, battle colossal bosses, and customize your plane with hundreds of upgrades. Rescue operatives and collect bonus cards for deeper gameplay.

Highlights
  • 15 beautiful and immersive stages
  • Enormous and intimidating bosses
  • Unlock new difficulty modes
  • Rescue missing operatives
  • Assemble 9 different aircrafts
  • Hunt down 30 bonus cards
  • Hundreds of weapon and equipment upgrades
Features
Read full description

The shoot ‘em up you were looking for! New entry in the series will keep you entertained with all the things you’ve came to love in scrolling shooters. Meaty explosions, incinerating lasers, collosal bosses and diverse aircrafts to pilot. “Sky Force Reloaded” is not your average scrolling shooter. It will draw you in with its beautiful environments and intense effects. It will keep you with its superb gameplay mechanics, progression system and in-game collectibles. It will leave you wishing for more, once it’s over. Fortunately, there’s a lot to do before that happens. * Master 15 beautiful and immersive stages with challenging missions to complete. * Battle enormous and intimidating bosses, laugh when they explode and cry when you explode. * Unlock new difficulty modes, all the way from Normal to Nightmare. * Put yourself in danger to rescue missing operatives from the battlefield. * Assemble and test 9 different aircrafts. Pick your favorite, with its unique features and play style. * Hunt down 30 elusive bonus cards to add even more depth to the gameplay. Some of them will grant permanent benefits, while others will boost your abilities only temporarily. * Install hundreds of upgrades to your weapons, shields and other equipment. Turn your plane into a flying tank. * Complete in-game objectives to unlock 8 assisting technicians. Choose one of them to help you with their special skill. * Spot the wrecks of your fallen friends and get rewards for picking them up. * Appreciate highly polished gameplay and well balanced difficulty curve, whether you consider yourself a casual gamer or a die-hard shmup fanatic. * Enjoy professional voiceover and incredible electronic soundtrack. Welcome to your new favorite shoot ‘em up. Welcome to Sky Force Reloaded!

About

Populus Run

Control a crowd of people in this unique running game. Dodge obstacles, battle quirky bosses, and discover hidden characters. Enjoy the full experience with a one-time purchase.

Highlights
  • Control a crowd of people
  • Dodge giant fast food
  • Slide down pipes
  • Battle rapper bosses
  • Hardcore mode
  • Collect secret characters
  • Original soundtrack
Features
Read full description

Play the opening levels for free with no ads. Unlock the full game forever with a single in-app purchase. Populus Run is the unconventional running game where you control a crowd of people. • Dodge giant fast food • Slide down pipes like at a waterpark • Battle rapper bosses, including Macaron, Donut, and Burger • Test yourself in Hardcore mode • Collect all the secret characters who are hidden in the levels • Show your respect for the upbeat original soundtrack with its choral singing Populus Run was originally released exclusively on Apple Arcade. Now it's available on the App Store. If you've played the game before, your progress and achievements will be carried over.

Screenshots

Sky Force Reloaded4 screens
Populus Run4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Populus Run at none against Sky Force Reloaded's shown. Sky Force Reloaded's advantage is ratings volume (11K vs 1.5K) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). On price, rating, review sentiment and update cadence 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. Sky Force Reloaded sells 5 one-off in-app purchases and Populus Run sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Sky Force Reloaded against 4.7 for Populus Run. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Sky Force Reloaded has 11K ratings behind it against 1.5K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 75% of Sky Force Reloaded's written reviews are positive against 70% of Populus Run's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Sky Force Reloaded ships an update monthly, Populus Run every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and September 28, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Sky Force Reloaded versus Populus Run: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSky Force ReloadedPopulus Run
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (11K ratings) — better4.7 (1.5K ratings)
Positive reviews74.9% of reviews — better69.6% of reviews
Number of ratings11K — better1.5K
Update frequencyMonthlyEvery 4 weeks — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TViPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple TV — better
Requires iOS13.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size687 MB523 MB
Age rating9+9+
DeveloperInfinite Dreams Inc.FIFTYTWO

Customer experience

Sky Force Reloaded

All ratings11,427 ratings
Positive95.0%
Neutral2.1%
Negative2.9%
Written reviews526 reviews
Positive74.9%
Neutral8.0%
Negative17.1%

Populus Run

All ratings1,512 ratings
Positive92.9%
Neutral4.2%
Negative2.9%
Written reviews345 reviews
Positive69.6%
Neutral9.0%
Negative21.4%

User reviews

Sky Force Reloaded

From 11K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Smooth gameplay
  • 🎨 Excellent graphics
  • 💰 Fair monetization
  • 🕹️ Addictive arcade-style action
  • 🎮 Great for mobile gaming

Room to improve

  • 🕰️ Repetitive grinding required
  • 🔁 Difficulty increases too rapidly
  • 🔒 Lack of account sync across devices
  • 🔇 Unresponsive controls at times
  • 📢 Intrusive ads

Populus Run

From 1.5K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Amazing game
  • 👍 Great developers
  • 👍 Fantastic music
  • 👍 Relaxing and fun
  • 👍 Colorful and visually appealing

Room to improve

  • 💰 Paywall after first few levels
  • 🐛 Occasional performance issues
  • 🐛 Compatibility problems on some devices

Bugs and requests

Sky Force Reloaded

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Occasional crashes
  • Inconsistent performance on some devices
  • Syncing issues with saved progress

Requested features

5 requests
  • More level variety
  • Ability to customize controls
  • Landscape mode support
  • Expanded upgrade system
  • Multiplayer or co-op modes

Populus Run

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Freezing on login screen
  • Graphical glitches on certain devices
  • Saved data not restoring properly

Requested features

4 requests
  • Make the full game free to play
  • Add more levels and worlds
  • Improve level selection UI
  • Allow customization of controls

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Sky Force Reloaded

One-time5
  • Precious Cargo$1.99
  • SX2 - Star Doubler$3.99
  • Ads Removal$3.99
Show 2 more
  • Plane Generator$3.99
  • Starter Pack$9.99
1 purchases

Populus Run

One-time1
  • Full Game$3.99

Questions

Is Sky Force Reloaded free?
Sky Force Reloaded is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Populus Run free?
Populus Run is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Sky Force Reloaded or Populus Run?
Sky Force Reloaded is rated higher. Sky Force Reloaded averages 4.8 out of 5 from 11K ratings, while Populus Run averages 4.7 from 1.5K ratings.
Do Sky Force Reloaded or Populus Run have ads?
Sky Force Reloaded shows ads; Populus Run does not.
Which is updated more often, Sky Force Reloaded or Populus Run?
Sky Force Reloaded ships an update monthly, and Populus Run every 4 weeks. Most recently, Sky Force Reloaded was updated on September 29, 2026 and Populus Run on September 28, 2026.

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