Verithiathe honest score on any app
Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

Shadow Fight 3 vs Shadow Fight 4

Shadow Fight 3 4.7★ · Free + IAP 60
Winner Shadow Fight 4
Shadow Fight 4 4.8★ · Free + IAP 65

Shadow Fight 4 offers a more refined combat experience and fewer ads, but both games suffer from significant pay-to-win mechanics and technical issues.

Full reviews: Shadow Fight 3 · Shadow Fight 4

Shadow Fight 3 is praised for its detailed graphics and engaging story, but is heavily criticized for being pay-to-win, excessive ads, and numerous bugs. Shadow Fight 4, while also facing pay-to-win accusations and stability issues, generally offers better graphics, less intrusive ads, and an improved combat system.

Head to head

Features & Gameplay edge: Shadow Fight 4R5R9R13R15
Shadow Fight 3 Shadow Fight 3 is lauded for its detailed graphics, unique weapon styles, and RPG-like progression with diverse game modes R5. However, many users find the combat repetitive, with inescapable combos and overly difficult, rigged AI opponents R9R13. The online PvP is described as 'dead and useless' by some R15.
Shadow Fight 4 Shadow Fight 4 is praised for its combat, realistic death animations, and overall engaging gameplay, with some calling it 'better than Street Fighter' R95. It features unique character fighting styles and good graphics R68. However, players complain about unbalanced heroes, spammy tactics, and a 'backward-walking meta' in competitive play R85.
Ease of Use & User Experience tieR4R6R10R12
Shadow Fight 3 Shadow Fight 3 is criticized for constant lagging, bugs, and freezes, making it 'almost impossible to play at times' R4R12. Users report issues with controls sticking and the game crashing R12. Many also complain about frequent internet connection errors, even on strong Wi-Fi R6R10R18.
Shadow Fight 4 Shadow Fight 4 also suffers from significant crashing and connection issues, with the game frequently kicking players out mid-match R63. Users report unstable connections even with strong Wi-Fi, leading to matches against AI instead of real players . Some find the controls clumsy .
Reliability & Performance tieR4R6R10R12
Shadow Fight 3 Shadow Fight 3 has persistent issues with lag, bugs, and crashes, with some problems like sticking controls reportedly present since 2020 R4R12. Server connection failures are a common complaint R6R10R18. Users also report specific bugs like being unable to open quest chests after updates R19.
Shadow Fight 4 Shadow Fight 4 is plagued by frequent crashes, especially mid-game, and connection problems, leading to lost progress R63. Players experience long matchmaking times and lag during matches . Some note that the game is 'horribly optimized' and takes a long time to download .
Price & Value (Free + IAP) edge: Shadow Fight 4R1R11R12R27
Shadow Fight 3 Shadow Fight 3 is heavily criticized as 'pay-to-win' and 'pay-to-play' R1R27. Users feel forced to spend money to defeat bosses, advance, or get good gear, with events being particularly difficult for free players R27R39R49. Ads are a major issue, appearing after every mission or match and being '5 times longer' than usual R1R11R12.
Shadow Fight 4 Shadow Fight 4 is also widely accused of being 'pay-to-win' . Users state that meaningful character progression requires paying or watching 'TONS of ads' R66. Character prices are considered 'outrageous,' with some costing $31-$40 . There's a 'subscription soft block' that limits access to a large portion of the game for non-subscribers . However, some users report 'very little amount of ads' that are optional R89.
Support & Community tieR4R19R70R91
Shadow Fight 3 Shadow Fight 3 users report that developers 'don't care' about problems and don't help when issues are reported R4. One user reached out to support about not being able to open chests but received no resolution R19.
Shadow Fight 4 Shadow Fight 4 users complain about support not being helpful and taking 'weeks' to respond R70R91. Developers are accused of giving 'auto generated response[s]' and not fixing known issues like matchmaking .
Pick Shadow Fight 3 if

you prioritize a detailed story and RPG elements in a mobile fighting game, and are willing to tolerate frequent ads and a strong pay-to-win aspect R5.

Pick Shadow Fight 4 if

you prefer a more modern fighting game with better graphics, more fluid combat, and fewer mandatory ads, even if it still has pay-to-win elements and technical issues R68R89R95.

Evidence note: Both games have a significant number of negative reviews, often citing similar issues like pay-to-win mechanics, technical problems, and frustrating gameplay. Shadow Fight 4, being newer, has a slightly higher lifetime rating, but recent reviews for both are heavily skewed negative, particularly regarding monetization and stability.

Frequently asked

Is Shadow Fight 3 pay-to-win?
Yes, many users describe Shadow Fight 3 as 'pay-to-win' or 'pay-to-play,' stating that it's difficult to defeat bosses, advance, or get good equipment without spending money, especially in events R1R27R39R49.
Does Shadow Fight 4 have a lot of ads?
While some users report 'very little amount of ads' that are optional in Shadow Fight 4 R89, others indicate that meaningful progression often requires watching 'TONS of ads' R66 or that ads play in the background R114.
Which game has better graphics?
Shadow Fight 4 is generally praised for its 'nice graphic design' and 'beautiful' animations R68R85, with some users noting its 'more realistic' death animations R95, suggesting an improvement over Shadow Fight 3's detailed but older visuals R5.
Are there connection issues in Shadow Fight 3 or 4?
Both Shadow Fight 3 and Shadow Fight 4 suffer from frequent connection issues; users report 'Internet Connection Error' and unstable connections in SF3 R6R10R18, while SF4 players experience constant 'connection issues' and 'unstable connection' even on strong Wi-Fi R63.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R5] Shadow Fight 3 5/5 · US THE BEST: THIS IS LIKE THE MOST DETAILED MOBILE GAME IVE EVER PLAYED SO I RECOMMEND THIS
  2. [R9] Shadow Fight 3 3/5 · US An absolute (NOT) classic.: This game is repetitive, just the same fight over an over spamming the same combo and missing one move and getting pulled into an inescapable combo for the rest of eternity and that makes me want to GENUINELY eat bugs but otherwise it's mid, people who call this classic and say bring back 2017 should realize they were 3 days old in 2017😂
  3. [R13] Shadow Fight 3 1/5 · US Bots are unreasonably difficult in adventure mode, the developers are terrible. · translated
  4. [R15] Shadow Fight 3 3/5 · US Good game but…: I got this game around when it came out and it was absolutely amazing. But now it just so mid. The online pvp is pretty much dead and useless and as someone that complete the story there is quite literally nothing to do. The void battles aren’t worth it cause you have to GRIND to even get good rewards. It’s not worth it. You used to be able to quickly get up to higher ranks in rank
  5. [R4] Shadow Fight 3 2/5 · US Lag bugs freezes: This game constantly lags and has tons of bugs. It’s almost impossible to play at times really annoying and the developers really don’t care you tell them that the game has a problem and they don’t help.
  6. [R6] Shadow Fight 3 3/5 · US Internet Connection Error: I cannot play when connected to Wi-Fi. I am forced to use mobile data, but even then, it's very unstable and only works sometimes. This issue needs to be fixed urgently.
  7. [R10] Shadow Fight 3 1/5 · US Không hài lòng: Lúc nào cũng mang yếu dù wifi rất mạnh chả chơi dc
  8. [R12] Shadow Fight 3 3/5 · US Bugs/button sticks: The “control” button to move around sticks in certain spots. I know for a fact thats been there since 2020…and the fact the game continues to crash. What’re we doing besides adding 60 ads popping up every time you back out of something? Holy smoly jimbo. Worse than youtube and twitch ads brother.
  9. [R1] Shadow Fight 3 2/5 · US P2W: Cool game, events seem a bit rigged. Equipment is HELLA important. You could beat a better geared person but that might mean hitting then 5 times as many times before they land a very few good blows. Commercials are like 5 times longer and don’t give the option to exit even when complete.
  10. [R11] Shadow Fight 3 4/5 · US Very good GSME: Very fun game with lots of different things to do but has way to many adds.It seams like the more you play the game the more often you get ad at first there were practically never adds but now I get them after every mission.
  11. [R27] Shadow Fight 3 3/5 · US Event and new duel: So I love the game it’s great really fun but the only issue is that is not free to play friendly most the stuff you have to spend days grinding for just to have a small chance to get it and most the good stuff are locked behind pay walls and most the hard challenges in events are hard if you don’t have the sets you pay for
  12. [R19] Shadow Fight 3 1/5 · US Chest and rewards: I am unable to open any of my 3 chest after earning countless keys through duels or throughout the game I tried uninstalling and refreshing it also reached out to support but I am still unable to open my chest
  13. [R70] Shadow Fight 4 2/5 · US DONT PUT MONEY IN THIS GAME!!! It takes extra on small purchases.: I had money taken when I never subscribed. I played the side games for extra diamonds. Weeks of work and grinding with real money. They never delivered. You write for support no help. The game itself is good. But it’s a scam.
  14. [R91] Shadow Fight 4 1/5 · US Trash: a finished game, just like the developers. It's very clear that those with fatter wallets who only blow money on this messed up game win. There's no proper matchmaking; a person with 200 trophies on a character can already have a level 10 character and a level 10 brawler. The game doesn't register most dodges and hits. Why do the developers only look for where to shove more donations? No FTP. Support takes weeks to respond. · translated
  15. [R39] Shadow Fight 3 3/5 · GB Pay to win: The game is good but u can’t defeat the bosses without spending money this game is pay to win.
  16. [R49] Shadow Fight 3 1/5 · US TRASH: Pure pay to win trash of a game. If you don't pay of grind your soul out, you won't do a thing in this stupid game. Like you can't even win events without paying. Winning events give you gears but what's the point if you have to pay first? And skill? There is nothing called skills in this stupid game. Pay to be good or be trash that's the Motto of this game. Wannabe pioneer of a game compan
  17. [R66] Shadow Fight 4 3/5 · US Game itself is alright: Combat is OK. The “story” mode is fine albeit a little generic. The rouge-like elements keep it interesting enough. The real problem is the progression. If you want to advance your characters meaningfully you either have to pay or watch TONS of ads. Otherwise it’s a slow monotonous grind. Also the matchmaking is not the best. You will usually get matched with people who you
  18. [R89] Shadow Fight 4 5/5 · US NO WORDS: It’s like a street fighters but better. Very little amount of ads. They are optional. There’s this coin that’s lets you skip ads. Overall, really great game.
  19. [R114] Shadow Fight 4 3/5 · GB Background advert sound’s constantly playing: So this is my most played game for sure on my phone, completed shadow fight 2 and 3 and have extensively played this one. Never had too much of a problem, of course there are issue in match ups from time to time, my only complaint is that the most recent update has advert sound effects constantly playing in the background which has made listening to a
  20. [R68] Shadow Fight 4 5/5 · US Nicest game i have ever played: Nice graphic design
  21. [R85] Shadow Fight 4 1/5 · US The Game Shines. The inside Doesn’t.: I’ve played Shadow Fight Arena for years, and I’m honestly tired of pretending this game is in a good state. The graphics are beautiful, the animations are great, and the characters look amazing. Everything else feels like it’s going backwards. The game is filled with camping, baiting, spamming, passive gameplay, and mechanics that reward players for doing as
  22. [R95] Shadow Fight 4 5/5 · US Fun!: I love how they make the deaths more realistic instead of playing the same death animation for every hit. Like other games
  23. [R18] Shadow Fight 3 3/5 · US Server connection failed issue: Why is this server connection failed issue not being addressed by you? I just returned, planning to top up and play, but this happened. · translated
  24. [R63] Shadow Fight 4 3/5 · US Very fun but terrible crashing and connection issues: This game is extremely fun and perfectly fits the shadow fight franchise but its constantly crashing. It also overheats my phone a lot and i constantly get error messages about there being connection issues which doesnt allow me to play the game at all

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store