Comparison

Mare vs Boxes

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

Head to head
About

Mare

Embark on a cinematic adventure as an artificial bird, guiding a helpless AI companion through strange lands. Unravel a mysterious narrative, discover hidden secrets, and explore vast landscapes in this atmospheric puzzle game.

Highlights
  • Explore vast landscapes as an artificial bird
  • Guide and protect an AI companion
  • Unravel a mysterious narrative across 8 chapters
  • Immersive ambient atmosphere and music
  • Search for hidden artifacts
Features
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“A Breathless Beauty Of A VR Game” – UploadVR “Mare is a class act from start to finish. It’s a macabre and mysterious adventure that offers a haunting experience” – 6DofReviews “The barren environment coupled with the superb musical score ensures Mare has an ambience and soul few VR projects achieve.” - VR Focus “It’s a strikingly beautiful yet solemn adventure that pushes you ever forward toward the unknown.” – The VR Grid As you wake up, stirred from a dreamless sleep with an unknown purpose, you find yourself in the strange lands of Mare embodying a mysterious artificial bird. Crossing paths with a helpless companion you venture deep into unknown territory on a puzzling adventure while unraveling a mysterious narrative and the secrets hidden within. All in order to ensure the arrival of the companion at her impending destiny. Features: • Explore the vast and strange landscapes by the means of an artificial bird. • Guide and protect a vulnerable AI companion on her unexpected adventure. • Let the curiosity of the companion inspire you to explore and discover the underlying narrative spanning over 8 chapters. • Immerse yourself in the ambient atmosphere and otherworldly music for a soothing experience. • Search for lost artifacts hidden throughout the world in order to unlock the final secret of Mare.

About

Boxes

Step into the shoes of a legendary thief tasked with infiltrating a lavish mansion. Discover a series of intricate puzzle boxes that hold a deeper, more sinister secret. Escape the mansion and uncover the truth behind its mysterious purpose.

Highlights
  • Solve 20 original puzzle boxes
  • Explore a mysterious mansion
  • Intricate machinery and controls
  • Cryptic atmosphere
  • Test your resolve and skills
Features
Read full description

As a legendary thief, your next assignment lures you into a grand and lavish mansion. There you find a series of puzzle boxes, designed for an unknown purpose. Soon signs begin to emerge that you are no longer in control of what is unfolding, and perhaps never were. You start to doubt if this is an ordinary residence or a containment facility of some sort. What should have been a quick in-and-out, gradually turns into your own harrowing struggle for freedom and answers. Inspired by the cryptic atmosphere, intricate machinery and smooth controls of the best room escape games, we have created 20 original puzzle boxes that will test your resolve and skills in order to successfully navigate this mysterious and compelling journey. Each puzzle box is beautiful, unique, and a true delight to explore and figure out.

Screenshots

Mare4 screens
Boxes4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Boxes at Free against Mare's $4.99. Boxes also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.0) and ratings volume (13K vs 4). Mare's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and review sentiment (100% vs 85%). On update cadence, ads 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Boxes is free to download; Mare costs $4.99 up front. Boxes sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Mare asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Boxes holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Boxes has 13K ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 100% of Mare's written reviews are positive against 85% of Boxes's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Mare ships an update every 6 weeks, Boxes monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 8, 2026 and October 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Mare versus Boxes: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMareBoxes
Price$4.99Free — better
Rating4.0 (4 ratings)4.9 (13K ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better84.9% of reviews
Number of ratings413K — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS10.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size1.8 GB1.1 GB
Age rating9+12+
DeveloperLonekite Ltd.Snapbreak Games AB

Customer experience

Mare

All ratings4 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Boxes

All ratings12,518 ratings
Positive97.8%
Neutral1.4%
Negative0.8%
Written reviews1,014 reviews
Positive84.9%
Neutral8.0%
Negative7.1%

Bugs and requests

Mare

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Boxes

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes on certain puzzles
  • Save progress issues
  • Compatibility problems on older devices

Requested features

4 requests
  • More levels and chapters
  • Difficulty settings
  • Replayability options
  • Expanded story and lore

In-app purchases

None

Mare

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Boxes

One-time1
  • Full Game$4.99

Questions

Is Mare free?
Mare costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Boxes free?
Boxes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Mare or Boxes?
Boxes is rated higher. Mare averages 4.0 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Boxes averages 4.9 from 13K ratings.
Do Mare or Boxes have ads?
Neither Mare nor Boxes shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Mare or Boxes?
Mare ships an update every 6 weeks, and Boxes monthly. Most recently, Mare was updated on October 8, 2026 and Boxes on October 26, 2026.

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