Blocky XMAS vs Close Cities
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Blocky XMAS
A festive block puzzle game where players guide a magnetic star block to arrange Christmas tree blocks. Swipe to move the star, and watch other blocks magnetically follow. Conquer 40 challenging levels to complete the holiday puzzles.
- Christmas-themed block puzzles
- Magnetic block mechanics
- 40 challenging levels
- Swipe-to-move gameplay
- Intuitive puzzle solving
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A Christmas themed blocky puzzle game with 40 levels. Can you get all the Christmas tree blocks into place in this blocky puzzle game for you? How to play? When you swipe anywhere on the screen, you move the star block. But the star block is magnetic, so all other blocks will stick to the star block. Now try to get all the blocks into place! @BartBonte
Close Cities
Build beautiful cities on diverse worlds by solving unique puzzles. This relaxing game guides you through 160 levels with a simple tap or drag interface, requiring no architectural knowledge. Conquer each world's challenges and travel through time with its calming soundtrack.
- Build cities on empty maps
- Solve 160 unique puzzle levels
- Intuitive tap and drag controls
- No architectural knowledge needed
- Travel through different worlds
- Relaxing music and pace
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Close Cities is a relaxing logic puzzle: build cities along the roads and give every road exactly the cities it needs. Easy to learn, hard to put down. HOW TO PLAY • The number next to each road shows how many cities it needs. • Every city must touch a road, and it can't be on two roads at once. • Cities can't touch side by side; diagonally is fine. • Tap or drag to build. When a city is valid, it lights up in color. 480 LEVELS, TWO MODES • Kingdoms: travel through different eras of history and build each king's empire. • Empires: cities of different sizes and roads that ask for new combinations. AT YOUR OWN PACE • No timer, no rush: think every move through calmly. • Relaxing music and a clean, charming art style. • Play offline: on the subway, while traveling or before bed. • Stuck? Ask for a hint. FOR EVERYONE • A quick tutorial teaches you the rules in a minute. • If you like sudoku and logic puzzles, you'll love it. • Free, with a one-time purchase to remove ads. Close Cities is made by The Pangry, the creators of Broki.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Blocky XMAS at 100% against Close Cities's 69%. Blocky XMAS also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.8) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). Close Cities's advantage is update cadence (monthly vs every 7 months) and ratings volume (365 vs 34). 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
Both are free to download. Blocky XMAS sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Close Cities sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Blocky XMAS holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Close Cities has 365 ratings behind it against 34, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of Blocky XMAS's written reviews are positive against 69% of Close Cities's.
Blocky XMAS ships an update every 7 months, Close Cities monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 8, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Blocky XMAS | Close Cities |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (34 ratings) — better | 4.8 (365 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better | 69.4% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 34 | 365 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 7 months | Monthly — better |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 20 MB | 165 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Bart BONTE | Juan Manuel Altamirano Argudo |
Customer experience
Blocky XMAS
Close Cities
In-app purchases
Blocky XMAS
- premium unlock$2.49
Close Cities
- Hints - Small Pack$0.99
- Hints - Medium Pack$2.99
- Remove Ads + Hints$4.99
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- Hints - Big Pack$5.99









