Ghost vs Group Ghost Chat
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Ghost
This augmented reality app works with a companion book to reveal hidden messages, puzzles, and ghosts. Users can join a secret society, recapture trapped spirits, and solve a mystery to rescue a missing operative. It offers an immersive, interactive storytelling experience for older kids and young adults.
- Augmented reality ghost detection
- Interactive digital puzzles
- Hidden message reveals
- Personalized achievements
- Story-driven narrative
- Ghost trapping gameplay
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Welcome to the Ghost-o-Matic app, created by the Society for the Pursuit of the Reputedly Undead, Namely Ghosts, also known as SPRUNG, for use with the Ghostkeeper’s Journal and Field Guide. If you have not yet acquired your Ghostkeeper’s Journal, kindly follow this link: https://www.carltonbooks.co.uk/the-ghostkeeper-s-journal-and-field-guide-hb.html to purchase the book. You will need the book to trigger the functions of the Ghost-o-Matic app. This app uses groundbreaking augmented reality to reveal hidden messages, missing pages, metaphysical phenomena, mysterious puzzles and even ghosts in and around the pages of the book. We need your help. A SPRUNG operative has gone missing. All that remains of him is his Ghostkeeper’s Journal – you’ll need the Ghost-o-Matic app to break the secrets hidden inside. Our operative’s name is Agamemnon White – child prodigy, ecto-genius, and tuna sandwich obsessive. He is also head of Ghostkeeping for the Western region, and was collecting the most powerful ecto-energy types known to man in his Journal. Download the Ghost-o-Matic app, synchronise it with your copy of the Ghostkeeper’s Journal, join SPRUNG, and use the book and app together to retrace Ag’s trail and help us rescue him. But beware… the moment you open the book, you will release the ghosts Ag trapped inside. It will be up to you to recapture them with the Ghost-o-Matic app and solve the mystery of his disappearance… without disappearing yourself! This immersive storyworld of the Ghostkeeper’s Journal, told through the book and the app, represents a brand new kind of interactive fiction for older kids and young adults, reinventing the book for the screen generation and using AR technology in a wholly new way. The app delivers more than fifty animation sequences, digital puzzles and personalised achievements as part of an over-arching story about this mysterious Ghostkeeping society and its dark secrets. Join SPRUNG through this app and experience the next generation of storytelling today. To begin, launch the app and point your device’s camera at your Journal to begin your hunt. In-app messages will guide you through the process of joining SPRUNG and catching your first ghost. NOTE: Once downloaded, the Ghost-O-Matic app does not require WiFi. No data is sent from the app – any information entered into the app is only saved on the user’s own device. This free app is available to anyone with a compatible smartphone or tablet (iPhone 5 or above, iPad 2 or above, iPod Touch 6th Gen. or above - all running iOS 8.0 or above).
Group Ghost Chat
Engage with spirits through text-based chat, receiving their responses via audio. View all public conversations in real-time. No login required, just choose a username to interact with the spectral entities.
- Text-based ghost messaging
- Audio ghost responses
- Public chat view
- No login required
- Real-time conversations
- Ephemeral messages
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For our Ghost Talk users who wanted more from the chat, we bring you Group Ghost Chat where you type your messages in to get a response from your ghosts. Plus you get to see everyone else's conversations as well. There is no login, just tell the app what you want to be called in the chat so your ghosts can identify you in their responses. Because ghosts have trouble with the on-screen keyboard we still use the microphone to pick up their responses. So you will need to allow microphone access if you want to have ghost responses to your comments. All messages expire quickly so you only see the most recent conversations. We had a lot of fun building this app and we hope you have a lot of fun using it!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Ghost at none against Group Ghost Chat's shown. Ghost also leads on rating (4.1 vs 3.6) and monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). Group Ghost Chat's advantage is update cadence (monthly vs every 2 months). On price, ratings volume, in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Ghost holds the better App Store score, 4.1 against 3.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 134 and 95 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 59% of Ghost's written reviews are positive against 42% of Group Ghost Chat's.
Ghost ships an update every 2 months, Group Ghost Chat monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Ghost | Group Ghost Chat |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.1 (134 ratings) — better | 3.6 (95 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 59.3% of reviews — better | 41.7% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 134 — better | 95 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Monthly — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 8.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 838 MB | 99 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Carlton Books Limited | OurBigAdventure, LLC |
Customer experience
Ghost
Group Ghost Chat
Bugs and requests
Ghost
Reported bugs
32 issues- Scanning screen is black
- Scanning does not work
- App not downloading
- Camera issues (black and white, thinner objects)
- Things on camera won't align with book pages
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- Scanning items are not where they should be
- Page shows book in black and white
- Access denied message after specific chapters
- Cannot get past the cover
- Cannot make teeth move on Groshhert
- App takes too long to synchronize
- Access denied messages at conclusion of painting muse mystery
- Button shines but doesn't let user go on page
- App not working after download attempt
- Ghost reveal issues
- Cannot scan printout of letter from Helani Hekili
- Runaway case scanning doesn't work
- Ghost-o-Matic says access denied
- Teeth won't come up
- App says 'You have already purchased this'
- Runaway case is confusing
- Cannot scan Ellie's page
- Not synchronized after scanning book
- Training not working
- Ghost tracker broken
- Cannot get past the cover
- Cannot scan the girl in the third chapter
- Glitching out and dying
- Takes up too much space
- Doesn't show on actual device
- App used is basic recognition
- Cannot unlock everything immediately
Requested features
19 requests- Fix scanning issues
- Improve puzzle clarity
- Address 'Access denied' errors
- Allow multiple player profiles
- Fix synchronization problems
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- Make teeth move on Groshhert
- Fix issues with Runaway pt. 1
- Allow scanning of printout after Resolution
- Fix issues with Artist and the Muse chapter
- Update app for current issues
- Fix ghost reveal issues
- Allow viewing ghosts after resolution
- Fix scanning of Ellie's picture
- Fix issues with Phantamist case file
- Fix issues with the third chapter
- Fix ghost tracker issues
- Make app work for younger users
- Fix issues with the cover scan
- Fix issues with the practical training
Group Ghost Chat
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Ghost
No in-app purchases
Group Ghost Chat
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Ghost free?
Is Group Ghost Chat free?
Which has better reviews, Ghost or Group Ghost Chat?
Do Ghost or Group Ghost Chat have ads?
Which is updated more often, Ghost or Group Ghost Chat?
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