Candlehead vs DREDGE
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Candlehead
Explore a surreal, candle-lit horror world in this first-person game. Investigate a deserted village, solve environmental puzzles, and evade a mysterious pursuer to find your way home.
- First-person gameplay
- Non-linear open world
- Stealth and survival
- Item-based puzzles
- Environmental storytelling
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Enter a surreal world of candle lit horror. Who is Candlehead? Where has everybody in the village gone? How will you return home? Are you in danger? Explore a dark and eerie first person horror game where your doom flickers in the form of a candle barely visible through the dusky gloom. Solve the puzzles of the your surroundings to aid your escape and attempt to investigate what has befallen the village as well as who, or what, is chasing you. Features: • First person gameplay • Huge non-linear open world to explore • Stealth and survival elements • Item-based puzzles • Discoverable lore via environmental storytelling
DREDGE
Explore remote islands and their depths as a fishing trawler captain. Sell your catch, complete quests to uncover local secrets, and upgrade your boat. Beware of the dangers lurking in the dark.
- Explore remote islands and depths
- Catch and sell diverse sea life
- Complete quests to uncover secrets
- Upgrade fishing boat and equipment
- Survive nighttime dangers
- Unravel a dark mystery
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*TRY BEFORE YOU BUY* Play the first area for free. One-time purchase unlocks the base game. DLC expansions available as additional in-app purchases. Captain your fishing trawler to explore a collection of remote isles, and their surrounding depths, to see what lies below. Sell your catch to the locals and complete quests to learn more about each area’s troubled past. Outfit your boat with better equipment to trawl deep-sea trenches and navigate to far-off lands, but keep an eye on the time. You might not like what finds you in the dark... Explore the Islands & Discover their Secrets Starting from your new home in the remote archipelago, ‘The Marrows’, take to the water and scour the depths for curious collectables and over 125 deep sea denizens. Explore each area while completing quests and visiting neighboring island regions – each with their own unique opportunities, inhabitants, and secrets. Dredge the Depths Someone wants you to dig up the past, but can you trust them and will it ever be enough? Beware the Fog Danger is everywhere, so watch for sharp rocks and shallow reefs, though the biggest threats of all lurk within the fog that cloaks the night-time seas... Game Features: - Unravel a Mystery: Captain your fishing trawler across a collection of remote islands, each with its own inhabitants to meet, wildlife to discover, and stories to unearth. - Dredge the Depths: Scour the sea for hidden treasures and complete quests to gain access to strange new abilities - Study Your Craft: Research special equipment and upgrade your boat’s capabilities to gain access to rare fish and valuable deep-sea curios. - Fish to Survive: Sell your discoveries to the locals to learn more about each area, and upgrade your boat to reach even more secluded locations. - Fight the Unfathomable: Strengthen your mind and use your abilities to survive trips out on the water after dark.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: DREDGE at none against Candlehead's shown. DREDGE also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 7 months) and ratings volume (1.1K vs 111). Candlehead's advantage is rating (4.5 vs 4.3) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 13.0). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model 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. Candlehead sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and DREDGE sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Candlehead holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: DREDGE has 1.1K ratings behind it against 111, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 50% of Candlehead's written reviews are positive against 60% of DREDGE's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Candlehead ships an update every 7 months, DREDGE every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 4, 2026 and October 17, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Candlehead | DREDGE |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (111 ratings) — better | 4.3 (1.1K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 50.0% of reviews | 59.9% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 111 | 1.1K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 7 months | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better |
| Requires iOS | 11.0 — better | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 1.1 GB | 785 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Ammonite Design Studios Ltd | Black Salt Games |
Customer experience
Candlehead
DREDGE
Bugs and requests
Candlehead
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
DREDGE
Reported bugs
3 issues- Crashes on startup
- Controller issues
- Inventory/menu navigation problems
Requested features
5 requests- Larger text and UI options
- Cross-save between devices
- More content and DLC
- Minimap or navigation aids
- Ability to walk around boat/town
In-app purchases
Candlehead
- No Ads$2.99
DREDGE
- Blackstone Key2 variants$0.99
- The Pale Reach2 variants$5.99
- The Iron Rig2 variants$11.99
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- Base Game Unlock2 variants$24.99
Questions
Is Candlehead free?
Is DREDGE free?
Which has better reviews, Candlehead or DREDGE?
Do Candlehead or DREDGE have ads?
Which is updated more often, Candlehead or DREDGE?
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