Comparison

Candleman vs Sketchbook Runner

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

Head to head
About

Candleman

Embark on an action-adventure journey as a small candle with a limited light source. Navigate challenging levels in darkness, utilizing light and shadow mechanics to overcome obstacles and uncover hidden treasures in an enchanting fairytale world.

Highlights
  • 10-second light mechanic
  • Light and shadow gameplay
  • Challenging levels
  • Enchanted environments
  • Fairytale story
Features
Read full description

Despite only being able to burn for 10 seconds, a little candle journeys into the darkness, with the purpose of seeking light. Candleman is a distinctive action adventure story entwined with low-light gameplay. Acting as a little candle who can burn for only 10 seconds, venture through an unsettling darkness with challenging levels and a smooth difficulty curve. Struggle to overcome obstacles based on the mechanics of light and shadow, explore a wide range of enchanted environments, and unveil hidden treasure as you seek the distant light. Features • Journey through dark, enchanting worlds with 10 seconds of light. • Face innovative challenges rooted in the mechanics of light and shadow. • Be immersed in a stunning fairytale that highlights everyday issues.

About

Sketchbook Runner

Draw bridges and ramps to guide a stickman across gaps in this hand-drawn platformer. Race against others in real-time multiplayer or tackle challenging boss levels. Customize your character with earned cosmetics.

Highlights
  • Draw bridges and ramps
  • Hand-drawn doodle art style
  • Real-time multiplayer races
  • 50 hand-built levels
  • Endless mode
  • Character customization
  • Offline campaign play
Features
Read full description

Your runner can't stop. The page is full of gaps. All you have is a pencil. Sketchbook Runner is a hand-drawn doodle platformer where you draw lines to bridge every gap. Your stickman runs on its own — you draw the path. Drag to draw a bridge, a ramp or a loop. Tap to jump. Beat 50 hand-built levels across 10 chapters, run forever in endless mode, or race up to 4 players live. DRAW THE LINE. DON'T FALL. Gaps are everywhere. Draw ink lines to cross them — flat to walk, sloped to launch, a quick loop to bounce sky-high. Run out of ink mid-bridge and you fall. Drawing IS the game, and every chapter teaches a new trick with your pencil. RACE LIVE — MULTIPLAYER Race up to four players in real time on the same level and watch their ink appear stroke for stroke. Climb the global leaderboards, or chase a ghost: the world's #1 run or your own personal best. TEN CHAPTERS, TEN BOSSES • Pencil Marks — learn to draw across gaps. • Take a Leap — tap to jump when drawing is too slow. • Sharp Edges — plan your bridges around spikes. • Saw Mill — arc over spinning blades. • Moving Targets — time your lines past swinging saws. • Upside Down — gravity flips. Run on the ceiling. • The Eraser — draw a loop to bounce sky-high. • Head in the Clouds — ride updrafts, fight headwinds, catch a glider. • The Ruler — draw across the bars to break through walls. • The Author — every mechanic at once, and the page fights back. Every chapter ends in a boss that rewrites the rules. The Critic snatches your pencil. The Spike Lord forces a bouncing rhythm. The Eraser scrubs your lines off the page. Vertigo flips the world. ALWAYS SOMETHING NEW • Endless mode that re-seeds every week — the same course for everyone. • Daily challenge: one level pays double pencils every 24 hours. • A 7-day daily reward streak. • Three-star ratings and hidden treasure chests on every level. DRESS UP YOUR STICKMAN 20+ hand-drawn cosmetics — top hats, capes, crowns, halos, devil horns — plus pet followers (a cat, a dog, a ghost and more) and ink colors from plain graphite to rainbow and glitter. Three-star a level to unlock fun mods like Moon Boots, Big Head and Tiny Runner. NO TIMERS, NO PAYWALLS No energy meters. No lives on a clock. Nothing you can buy gates your progress — every cosmetic is earned by playing. The campaign plays offline, as long as you like. DRAWN AT RUNTIME Every line on screen — platforms, spikes, saws, the stickman, the cosmetics — is drawn procedurally. No sprites. Sharp on every phone and tablet.

Screenshots

Candleman4 screens
Sketchbook Runner4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Sketchbook Runner at none against Candleman's 1. Sketchbook Runner also leads on update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 11 months) and rating (5.0 vs 4.6). Candleman's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (43 vs 1). On price 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Candleman sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Sketchbook Runner asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Sketchbook Runner holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Candleman has 43 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Candleman ships an update every 11 months, Sketchbook Runner every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Candleman versus Sketchbook Runner: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCandlemanSketchbook Runner
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (43 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews88.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings43 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 11 monthsEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree — betterAd-supported
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.0 — better14.0
Further details — not scored
Size1.3 GB95 MB
Age rating9+9+
DeveloperBeijing Jiao Dian Chuang Yi digital technology Co.,Ltd.Matt Panton

Customer experience

Candleman

All ratings43 ratings
Positive90.7%
Neutral2.3%
Negative7.0%
Written reviews26 reviews
Positive88.5%
Neutral3.8%
Negative7.7%

Sketchbook Runner

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Candleman

One-time1
  • Candleman full game$4.99
None

Sketchbook Runner

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Candleman free?
Candleman is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Sketchbook Runner free?
Sketchbook Runner is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Candleman or Sketchbook Runner?
Sketchbook Runner is rated higher. Candleman averages 4.6 out of 5 from 43 ratings, while Sketchbook Runner averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Candleman or Sketchbook Runner have ads?
Sketchbook Runner shows ads; Candleman does not.
Which is updated more often, Candleman or Sketchbook Runner?
Candleman ships an update every 11 months, and Sketchbook Runner every 2 weeks. Most recently, Candleman was updated on October 24, 2026 and Sketchbook Runner on October 19, 2026.

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