Comparison

hocus 2 vs Notebook Artillery

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

Head to head
About

hocus 2

Experience a puzzle game with dynamic mechanics and creative solutions. Explore 85 handcrafted levels featuring new illusion combinations and unique challenges.

Highlights
  • 85 hand-crafted creative levels
  • 9 different mechanics
  • Dynamic gameplay
  • Illusion combinations
  • Creative solving possibilities
Features
Read full description

hocus. is continues. This time everything is dynamic. It has new mechanics and illusion combinations with so many creative solving possibilities. • 85 hand-crafted creative levels • 9 different mechanics • designed & developed by Yunus Ayyıldız • music by Benjamin Tissot

About

Notebook Artillery

Engage in strategic cannon combat with this arcade-simulation-action game. Adjust firing angle and powder to hit targets or opponents, accounting for wind and random stage layouts. Features hand-drawn art and multiple game modes.

Highlights
  • Adjust firing angle and powder
  • Account for wind and stage layouts
  • Solo target practice mode
  • CPU opponent
  • Local multiplayer vs mode
  • Hand-drawn game art
  • Unlockable stickers
Features
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Apple called it "sketchy — in a good way." Multiple-time Game of the Day in 80+ countries. Nintendo Force gave it 8.5/10. And it started as a doodle. Once upon a time in a middle school computer lab, a student ignored every assignment for an entire semester to fire cannons at a friend. That student grew up, spent 20 years making games professionally, and eventually decided the world needed a proper love letter to that wasted time. This is it. Notebook Artillery is a hand-drawn artillery game inspired by the classic Mac game that got confiscated off school computers everywhere. Set your angle. Load your powder. Fire. Account for the wind. Try not to hit your own tower. Play your way: Solo target practice — break floating targets across randomly generated stages VS CPU — take on a computer opponent Local multiplayer — challenge someone in the same room What makes it feel different: Every frame hand-drawn in Procreate — ruled lines, coil binding, pencil textures, the whole notebook aesthetic Trees splinter. Towers explode. Cannonballs collide mid-air. Wind changes everything. Read the flag. Use your shot trails. Unlock stickers by pulling off feats — first-shot eliminations, mid-air collisions, and yes, accidentally destroying your own tower Randomly generated stages mean no two games play the same Made by one person, with audio by Kevin Samuels and Switch/console ports by PolyCrunch Games. No AI tools were used in making this game. All art hand-drawn. Developed in GameMaker Studio.

Screenshots

hocus 24 screens
Notebook Artillery4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: hocus 2 at none against Notebook Artillery's shown. Notebook Artillery's advantage is chart position (#76 vs unranked) and ratings volume (148 vs 22). On rating, review sentiment, update cadence and in-app purchases 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

hocus 2 costs $2.99 and Notebook Artillery $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.4 for hocus 2 against 4.5 for Notebook Artillery. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notebook Artillery has 148 ratings behind it against 22, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 86% of hocus 2's written reviews are positive against 82% of Notebook Artillery's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 weeks. Both last shipped on October 17, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
hocus 2 versus Notebook Artillery: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parameterhocus 2Notebook Artillery
Price$2.99$0.99 — better
Rating4.4 (22 ratings)4.5 (148 ratings) — better
Positive reviews85.7% of reviews — better81.6% of reviews
Number of ratings22148 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 2 weeks
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank—#76 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS11.0 — better12.0
Further details — not scored
Size107 MB115 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGAMEBRAIN YAZILIM TEKNOLOJILERI ANONIM SIRKETIAustin Ivansmith

Customer experience

hocus 2

All ratings22 ratings
Positive90.9%
Neutral4.5%
Negative4.5%
Written reviews21 reviews
Positive85.7%
Neutral9.5%
Negative4.8%

Notebook Artillery

All ratings148 ratings
Positive87.2%
Neutral6.8%
Negative6.1%
Written reviews87 reviews
Positive81.6%
Neutral10.3%
Negative8.0%

Bugs and requests

hocus 2

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Notebook Artillery

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Crashes on iOS 12 and 13 on iPad Pro
  • Inconsistent animation speeds

Requested features

7 requests
  • Online multiplayer
  • Campaign mode with objectives
  • Weapon/tower upgrades
  • Customization options
  • Special game modes (speed run, boss battles, etc.)
Show 2 more
  • Ability to save and continue games
  • Detailed badge/achievement system

In-app purchases

None

hocus 2

No in-app purchases

None

Notebook Artillery

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is hocus 2 free?
hocus 2 costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Notebook Artillery free?
Notebook Artillery costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, hocus 2 or Notebook Artillery?
Notebook Artillery is rated higher. hocus 2 averages 4.4 out of 5 from 22 ratings, while Notebook Artillery averages 4.5 from 148 ratings.
Do hocus 2 or Notebook Artillery have ads?
Notebook Artillery shows ads; hocus 2 does not.
Which is updated more often, hocus 2 or Notebook Artillery?
hocus 2 ships an update every 2 weeks, and Notebook Artillery every 2 weeks. Most recently, hocus 2 was updated on October 17, 2026 and Notebook Artillery on October 17, 2026.

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