Comparison

Brain Dots vs Nerve

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

Head to head
About

Brain Dots

A challenging puzzle game where you draw lines and shapes to make two balls collide. Collect different drawing tools and create your own levels to test the skills of players worldwide. It's a test of logic and flexible thinking.

Highlights
  • Bump two balls to clear stages
  • Draw lines and shapes freely
  • Collect over 25 varieties of pens
  • Create and share custom stages
  • Review and share victory moments
  • Tests logical thinking and flexibility
Features
Read full description

Over 50 million downloads! The only thing you need to do is to “bump two balls.” Will you be able to clear these simple-looking but actually difficult stages? ▼ The rules are simple! ◆ Let's bump the two balls All you need to do to clear a stage is to “make the blue and red balls bump”. Draw lines and shapes freely to move and roll the balls. Flexible thinking is going to become the key to victory. ◆ Let's collect pens Starting off with a simple pencil, moving onto color pencils, crayons and so on. We have prepared more than 25 varieties of pens of different colors and sizes. Collect various pens and walk through the stages. ◆ Share the moment of victory You can review the moment you cleared a stage on video or picture. Share it on SNS to show off your superior skills to your friends. Not to mention that watching your friends’ gameplay might also become a hint!? ◆ Create Stages Create your own stages and see if users all over the world can solve them. Over 3 million stages already created! ◆ Your brain abilities will be tested This game, continuing after Brain Wars, also tests your logical thinking and the flexibility of your mind. As this game includes the elements of riddle and “Escape the Room” type of games, we would recommend Brain Dots to people who enjoy brain-type puzzles, cards and strategy games. It might also have an impact on your children’s intellectual growth and preventing brain deterioration? ▼ Languages 15 languages! Brain Dots is played all over the world! Japanese / English / Korean / Traditional Chinese / Simplified Chinese / Spanish / French / Portuguese(Brazil) / Swedish / Finnish / Russian / Vietnamese / Thai / Indonesian / Hindi ▼ Latest information Twitter:@braindots_app Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/braindotsapp

About

Nerve

Features
Read full description

TEST YOUR NERVES IN THE ULTIMATE NEON CIRCLE-PACKING CHALLENGE Nerve - Circle Puzzle Arcade is an intense, high-stakes arcade puzzle game where precision timing and spatial strategy collide. Touch and hold to spawn and expand glowing neon circles on a dark canvas. The longer you hold, the larger the circle grows—and the higher your score multiplier! But beware: the moment you touch a wall or an existing circle, your circle bursts! HIGH-RISK, HIGH-REWARD GAMEPLAY Score is based directly on circle area—making bold, expansive plays immensely rewarding, but safe play visibly worthless. Can you hit the target board coverage percentage before running out of circles or time? MULTIPLE GAME MODES • ENDLESS ARCADE MODE: Push your limits across escalating difficulty levels. Manage tight circle budgets and strict countdown timers. • STAGE CHALLENGE MODE: Master 30 handcrafted puzzle stages across 3 unique packs. Earn up to 3 stars per stage with target goals and strict placement constraints. • TIME ATTACK BLITZ: Race against a 60-second clock! Score max coverage before time runs out. POWER-UPS & COMBOS • Collect game-changing power-ups: Time Freeze, Protective Shields, 2x Multipliers, and Mini-Bombs. • Near-Miss System: Risk it all by releasing circles within millimeters of hazards for massive combo bonus points! • Dodge static barriers and moving hazard circles patrolling the board. IMMERSIVE CYBERPUNK AESTHETICS & AUDIO • Vibrant high-contrast neon palette. • Dynamic procedural Web Audio synthesized SFX and 3 BGM soundscapes: Synthwave, Ambient Lo-Fi, and Cyberpunk Darksynth. • Tactile haptic feedback for every growth phase and impact. Do you have the nerve to master the pack? Download Nerve - Circle Puzzle Arcade today!

Screenshots

Brain Dots4 screens
Nerve3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Nerve at none against Brain Dots's 10. Nerve also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 3 weeks). Brain Dots's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On price, ads and iOS requirement 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. Brain Dots sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Nerve asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Brain Dots ships an update every 3 weeks, Nerve every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Brain Dots versus Nerve: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBrain DotsNerve
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (8.2K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews49.9% of reviews—
Number of ratings8.2K — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 2 days — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.6 — better16.4
Further details — not scored
Size55 MB41 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperTranslimit, Inc.Dixit Rathod

Bugs and requests

Brain Dots

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes when trying to create own levels
  • Hint feature not working as expected
  • Inability to play on iOS 17 devices

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to save and transfer progress across devices
  • Option to disable hint prompts
  • More advanced level creation tools
  • Improved Apple Pencil support

Nerve

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Brain Dots

One-time10
  • Mechanical pencil$0.99
  • Pen$0.99
  • Colored pencil$0.99
Show 7 more
  • Crayon$1.99
  • Brush$1.99
  • Watercolor painting brush$1.99
  • Decorated pen$2.99
  • Rainbow pencil$2.99
  • Fountain pen$3.99
  • Remove Cut-In Ads$3.99
None

Nerve

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Brain Dots free?
Brain Dots is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Nerve free?
Nerve is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Brain Dots or Nerve have ads?
Both Brain Dots and Nerve show ads.
Which is updated more often, Brain Dots or Nerve?
Brain Dots ships an update every 3 weeks, and Nerve every 2 days. Most recently, Brain Dots was updated on November 6, 2026 and Nerve on October 31, 2026.

Other comparisons