Comparison

Game Dev Tycoon vs 8

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

Head to head
About

Game Dev Tycoon

Build your own game development company from the 1980s to the present. Design and create your own games, research new technologies, and manage a team to become a market leader. Enjoy a full simulation experience without ads or in-app purchases.

Highlights
  • Start a game development company
  • Design and create your own games
  • Research new technologies
  • Hire and manage a development team
  • Replay gaming history
  • Built-in screen recording and streaming
Features
Read full description

"It’s the perfect sort of game for mobile devices and there’s so much to do here [...]" - 5/5 - Toucharcade Game Dev Tycoon is a casual business simulation game where your success depends on your creativity and willingness to experiment. The game does *not* contain any in-app purchases or ads. Slip into the role of a game developer: start your own company, design your own games and make your way to the top to become a Game Dev Tycoon. - Start your own game development company in the 80s - Replay gaming history - Design and create your own games - Hold your breath and wait for reviews to come in - Research new technologies - Hire and manage a world-leading development team - Become the leader of the market - Gain worldwide fans Game Dev Tycoon for iPhone and iPad introduces: - An updated story line - New topics to enable even more varied games - A challenging (but optional) ‘pirate mode’ - Built-in screen recording and streaming support Game Dev Tycoon does not require an internet connection so go ahead and build your gaming empire in Airplane Mode.

About

8

Manage a farm, raise livestock, and grow crops to attract visitors and win contests. Expand your fields, hire staff, and decorate your farm to increase its appeal. Participate in festivals and aim for top rankings.

Highlights
  • Livestock management
  • Crop cultivation
  • Farm expansion
  • Staff hiring
  • Agritourism
  • Contest participation
  • Facility placement combos
Features
Read full description

Farm management simulation game! Create the most awesome farm! This humble little farm desperately needs a new manager, such as you! Start out by getting some livestock, grow flowers, fruit and vegetables, gradually expanding your fields and increasing the number of staff until you're ready to open for agritourism. As your farm's Appeal grows, you will be able to enter a variety of contests. The key to winning is raising the levels of your produce and skillful placement of farm facilities so that they work together as combos. A prize-winning farm is certain to attract even more visitors! Receive photos as gifts from happy visitors or for completing achievements, and exchange them at the FarmMart to obtain a wide range of installations for your farm. Photos can also be traded at the Odds&Ends Shop for handy items such as gadgets which influence the weather. More fun awaits at festivals, where you can try your skill in minigames like Tug of War, Outdoor Sports or puzzles. Apart from getting monetary prizes for winning these, you can also get cool hats for your staff. The end of each year is a thrilling time, as that's when the National Farm Ranking is announced! Challenge yourself and see if you can top all rankings for sales, number of visitors, visitors satisfaction and number of staff! * All game progress is stored on your device. Save data cannot be transferred between devices, nor can it be restored after deleting or reinstalling the app. Try searching for "Kairosoft" to see all of our games, or visit us at https://kairopark.jp Be sure to check out both our free-to-play and our paid games! Kairosoft's pixel art game series continues! Follow kairokun2010 on Twitter for the latest Kairosoft news and information: https://twitter.com/kairokun2010

Screenshots

Game Dev Tycoon4 screens
84 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Game Dev Tycoon at 4.9 against 8's 4.3. Game Dev Tycoon also leads on review sentiment (91% vs 59%) and ratings volume (24K vs 30). 8's advantage is iOS requirement (11.0 vs 17.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

Game Dev Tycoon costs $4.99 and 8 $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Game Dev Tycoon holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Game Dev Tycoon has 24K ratings behind it against 30, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 91% of Game Dev Tycoon's written reviews are positive against 59% of 8's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Game Dev Tycoon ships an update every 3 months, 8 every 7 months. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Game Dev Tycoon versus 8: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGame Dev Tycoon8
Price$4.99$4.99
Rating4.9 (24K ratings) — better4.3 (30 ratings)
Positive reviews91.1% of reviews — better59.5% of reviews
Number of ratings24K — better30
Update frequencyEvery 3 months — betterEvery 7 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
Best chart rank#51 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.011.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size204 MB54 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGreenheart Games Pty. Ltd.Kairosoft Co.,Ltd

Customer experience

Game Dev Tycoon

All ratings24,004 ratings
Positive98.6%
Neutral0.6%
Negative0.8%
Written reviews1,110 reviews
Positive91.1%
Neutral3.9%
Negative5.0%

8

All ratings30 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral3.3%
Negative16.7%
Written reviews79 reviews
Positive59.5%
Neutral7.6%
Negative32.9%

Bugs and requests

Game Dev Tycoon

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Loan payback amount inconsistency
  • Game reports not carrying over knowledge

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add more console and game genre options
  • Implement employee personalities and interactions
  • Provide more detailed game performance history
  • Allow simultaneous game development
  • Add difficulty settings and sandbox mode
Show 1 more
  • Implement mod support and custom content

8

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Game Dev Tycoon

No in-app purchases

None

8

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Game Dev Tycoon free?
Game Dev Tycoon costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is 8 free?
8 costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Game Dev Tycoon or 8?
Game Dev Tycoon is rated higher. Game Dev Tycoon averages 4.9 out of 5 from 24K ratings, while 8 averages 4.3 from 30 ratings.
Do Game Dev Tycoon or 8 have ads?
Neither Game Dev Tycoon nor 8 shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Game Dev Tycoon or 8?
Game Dev Tycoon ships an update every 3 months, and 8 every 7 months. Most recently, Game Dev Tycoon was updated on October 21, 2026 and 8 on October 19, 2026.

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