Mastermine vs PiKuBo
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Mastermine
Experience a 3D twist on a classic logic puzzle. Navigate complex boards across a 3D cube, utilizing unique power-ups and customizable skins. Compete globally on leaderboards and explore various game modes for endless challenges.
- 3D cube board navigation
- Power-ups for board manipulation
- Customizable skins
- Global solve-time leaderboards
- Multiple game modes (Time Crisis, Campaign, Sandbox)
- Ever-increasing cube sizes
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Mastermine is a 3D, Minesweeper inspired puzzle game - solve complex boards over a 3D cube. New features & twists keep the game interesting: - Power-ups rearrange parts of the board in 3D, shifting the game - Skins customise the look and feel of the cube - Challenges keep you coming back for more, and reward you with power-ups - A global solve-time leaderboard allows you to compete (cross-platform) with your friends for the world's fastest times - Ever-increasing cube sizes keep up the pace - Different original game-modes like Time Crisis, Campaign or Sandbox change it up even more On top of this, the game is 100% Ad-Free, and doesn't sell your data to anybody. The only purchase in the game is a Premium unlock to allow you to save your Campaign progress + a few other goodies.
PiKuBo
Engage in a unique 3D puzzle game where you reveal shapes by strategically removing blocks from a cube. Enjoy hundreds of logic-based puzzles with adaptive controls and soothing music. Unlock more challenges through in-app purchases.
- Hundreds of 3D nonogram puzzles
- Logic-based solving, no guesswork
- Adaptive one-handed controls
- Customizable markers with four colors
- Soothing bossa nova background music
- Portrait and landscape viewing modes
- Family sharing for level packs
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Dive into the delightful world of PiKuBo, a captivating puzzle game that brings the excitement of cubic nonograms to your iOS device. With a unique twist on a beloved classic, PiKuBo challenges you to carve out shapes from a larger cube by removing unnecessary blocks. You can think of it as a 3D Minesweeper. • Interactive Puzzle Fun: Engage with over 500 puzzles, each offering a cute shape to uncover. • Adaptive Controls: Whether you’re right-handed or left-handed, our controls are designed for easy, one-handed play. • Progress at Your Pace: Save your progress effortlessly and return to solve puzzles whenever it suits you. • No Guesswork Needed: All puzzles are solvable through logic alone—perfect for puzzle purists! • Customizable Markers: Use up to four paint colors to mark and manage your strategy without losing track of your solution. • Immersive Experience: Enjoy soothing bossa nova tunes that enhance your puzzle-solving ambiance, whether at home or on the go. • Flexible Viewing: Choose between portrait or landscape modes to suit your play style. • Shared Fun: Purchase level packs once and share them with your entire family group. • Visual Rewards: Relish the thumbnails of completed puzzles, a colorful testament to your puzzle prowess. Whether you have a few minutes or a few hours, PiKuBo is the perfect game to relax and test your brain. Start solving today! NOTE: The first pack, which consists of 31 puzzles and 5 tutorials, is provided for free. The rest of the packs are available as in-app purchases within the game.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: PiKuBo at 4.6 against Mastermine's 4.3. PiKuBo also leads on review sentiment (87% vs 73%). Mastermine's advantage is iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.0). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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. Mastermine sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and PiKuBo sells 13 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
PiKuBo holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 117 and 95 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 73% of Mastermine's written reviews are positive against 87% of PiKuBo's.
Mastermine ships an update every 3 weeks, PiKuBo every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Mastermine | PiKuBo |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (117 ratings) | 4.6 (95 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 72.7% of reviews | 86.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 117 — better | 95 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 5 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| 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 | 11.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 148 MB | 97 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Adam Soutar | Daniel Benito |
Customer experience
Mastermine
PiKuBo
User reviews
Mastermine
From 117 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🎮 Innovative 3D twist on classic Minesweeper
- 🎵 High-quality, well-designed music and audio
- 🆓 Free to play with no ads in free version
- 💎 Polished and well-developed game
- 💰 Reasonable pricing for Pro features ($1.99-$2)
Room to improve
- 🎮 Confusing control scheme (tap vs. hold)
- 🐛 Accidental reveals when trying to flag
- 🔄 Inconsistent touch detection and responsiveness
- 🎨 Limited iPad support (portrait mode only)
- 💳 Significant paywall for higher difficulties (8x8+)
PiKuBo
From 95 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 💡 Innovative 3D nonogram puzzle concept
- 🎮 Engaging and addictive gameplay
- 👍 Intuitive and well-designed user interface
- 🎨 Beautiful graphics and visual presentation
- 💰 Affordable pricing for puzzle packs ($0.99 each)
Room to improve
- ⏱️ Timer system feels rushed and stressful
- ❤️ Heart/lives system frustrating for some players
- 🐛 Occasional accidental block touches
- 🔧 Controls reset when rotating puzzle
- 💸 Pricing model requires multiple purchases for full content
Bugs and requests
Mastermine
Reported bugs
10 issues- Leaderboard fails to load
- Flag placement sometimes unresponsive
- Sync error in settings
- Refresh glitch causing progress loss after reinstall
- Time Crisis mode timer starts at random intervals
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- Inconsistent mine adjacency logic across cube faces
- Numbers counting bombs incorrectly on adjacent faces
- Touch controls registering unintended actions during rotation
- Halloween event effects cannot be disabled
- Thunder sound effects bypass volume settings
Requested features
12 requests- Customizable control scheme (tap to reveal, hold to flag)
- Dedicated flag/reveal toggle button on HUD
- Landscape mode support for iPad
- Better tutorial and how-to-play guide
- Number orientation lock (always facing up)
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- Music track selection option
- Improved camera controls and angles
- Auto-clear feature when flagging complete numbers
- Sync progress across devices
- Alternative game shapes (hexagons, pentagons, spheres)
- Ad-based alternative to paid features
- Adjustable hold-to-flag timing in settings
PiKuBo
Reported bugs
7 issues- In-app purchase error preventing pack purchases
- Purchase not received after payment
- Support email bouncing back
- Color contrast issue in Pack 12 (blue on blue)
- Inability to expose enough blocks at certain angles for decision-making
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- Mark/delete button deactivates when rotating puzzle
- Cooldown timer on mark/delete buttons causes frustration
Requested features
15 requests- More puzzle packs released more frequently
- Undo button for accidental moves
- Save progress mid-puzzle
- Ability to move puzzle around (pan feature)
- Full 360-degree rotation capability
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- Bundle purchase option for all puzzle packs at discount
- Larger puzzles optimized for iPad
- Difficulty-specific puzzle packs (all expert level)
- Remove or improve timer system
- Remove or improve heart/lives system
- Persistent mark/delete selection across rotations
- Three-state axis selector for slider control
- Double-tap to start puzzle instead of GO button
- Flatten rate option to purchase all future content
- Webpage explaining all settings and features
In-app purchases
Mastermine
- Mastermine PRO Upgrade$1.99
PiKuBo
- Puzzle Pack 02$0.99
- Puzzle Pack 03$0.99
- Puzzle Pack 14$0.99
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- Puzzle Pack 13$0.99
- Puzzle Pack 12$0.99
- Puzzle Pack 11$0.99
- Puzzle Pack 10$0.99
- Puzzle Pack 09$0.99
- Puzzle Pack 08$0.99
- Puzzle Pack 07$0.99
- Puzzle Pack 06$0.99
- Puzzle Pack 05$0.99
- Puzzle Pack 04$0.99
Questions
Is Mastermine free?
Is PiKuBo free?
Which has better reviews, Mastermine or PiKuBo?
Do Mastermine or PiKuBo have ads?
Which is updated more often, Mastermine or PiKuBo?
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