Comparison

Cardinal Chains vs The Castle Path

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

Head to head
About

Cardinal Chains

A minimalist puzzle game where players link numbers in non-decreasing sequences to fill a monochrome grid with color. It offers a relaxing experience with a handcrafted soundtrack and elegant design, free from timers or ads.

Highlights
  • 500 unique handcrafted puzzles
  • Non-decreasing sequence gameplay
  • Chill-out soundtrack
  • Minimalist design
  • Customizable color themes
  • Achievements and cloud saves
Features
Read full description

Cardinal Chains is a minimalist puzzle game centering on the concept of non-decreasing sequences. Each puzzle begins with a monochrome grid of numbers, plus a few colored cells marked with an X. Starting at these cells, you must link up numbers in non-decreasing order until the whole grid is filled with color. • 500 unique, carefully handcrafted puzzles of varying difficulty, each with a single solution • Beautiful, lengthy chill-out soundtrack created by accomplished professional artists • Minimalist, elegant design without timers, ads, purchases or other hassles - just pure gameplay • Several built-in color themes, including colorblind options. Or... • ...make your own color themes - right from within the game! • Features achievements and cloud saves

About

The Castle Path

Engage your mind with a puzzle game where strategic choices unlock paths through challenging levels. Navigate obstacles, manipulate the environment, and reach the treasure by selecting the correct route.

Highlights
  • Puzzle and anticipation gameplay
  • Environmental state modification
  • Obstacle-based level design
  • Switch-activated path clearing
  • Star collection for progression
  • 60 unique levels
Features
Read full description

« The Castle Path » is a puzzle and anticipation game, without chance or timing, based on mini puzzles to be solved by choosing the right ladder on each floor to reach the chest. Inspired by the concept of labyrinths, the originality of the game is to be able to modify the state of the active elements of the levels according to your choices. The levels are made up of numerous obstacles, such as spikes, doors, statues, moving guards, tunnels... They are also made up of switches allowing to invert the states of the obstacles in order to clear a path. Collect stars in order to unlock floors and play more levels. The game offers 60 levels to solve and 180 stars to collect.

Screenshots

Cardinal Chains4 screens
The Castle Path4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Cardinal Chains at 4.9 against The Castle Path's 4.7. Cardinal Chains also leads on ratings volume (24 vs 3) and price ($2.99 vs $4.99). On update cadence, 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

Cardinal Chains costs $2.99 and The Castle Path $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Cardinal Chains holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Cardinal Chains has 24 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Cardinal Chains ships an update every 5 months, The Castle Path every 7 months. The most recent releases landed on October 8, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Cardinal Chains versus The Castle Path: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCardinal ChainsThe Castle Path
Price$2.99 — better$4.99
Rating4.9 (24 ratings) — better4.7 (3 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings24 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 5 months — betterEvery 7 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size101 MB27 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDaniel NoraSylvain Seccia

Customer experience

Cardinal Chains

All ratings24 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews12 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

The Castle Path

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Cardinal Chains

No in-app purchases

None

The Castle Path

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Cardinal Chains free?
Cardinal Chains costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is The Castle Path free?
The Castle Path costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Cardinal Chains or The Castle Path?
Cardinal Chains is rated higher. Cardinal Chains averages 4.9 out of 5 from 24 ratings, while The Castle Path averages 4.7 from 3 ratings.
Do Cardinal Chains or The Castle Path have ads?
Neither Cardinal Chains nor The Castle Path shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Cardinal Chains or The Castle Path?
Cardinal Chains ships an update every 5 months, and The Castle Path every 7 months. Most recently, Cardinal Chains was updated on October 8, 2026 and The Castle Path on October 10, 2026.

Other comparisons