Captains Idle vs Below The Layer
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Captains Idle
Become the deadliest pirate by gathering your crew, upgrading your ship, and setting sail. Explore islands, battle enemy ships, and find lost treasures. This idle game lets you unlock ship upgrades and new cannons.
- Gather and manage your pirate crew
- Upgrade your ship and cannons
- Battle enemy pirate ships
- Explore islands and find treasure
- Idle progression mechanics
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Are you ready to be the deadliest pirate of the seven seas, ever? Now is your time! Gather your crew, upgrade your ship and set sail! You can unlock idle ship contents or new cannons! Watch for enemy pirate ship that will try to sink you! Explore island, slay bandits, find your X mark and claim your lost treasure! Do not forget, a smooth sea never made a skilled sailor!
Below The Layer
Command a submarine in a tactical simulation. Interpret sonar, exploit thermal layers, and make critical decisions about evasion or engagement. Every choice has consequences in this challenging game of stealth and strategy.
- Sonar analysis
- Target motion solutions
- Periscope observation
- Torpedo room operation
- Weapon guidance
- Patrol mission execution
- Stealth tactics
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Take command of a submarine in a tactical simulation where every decision matters. Read the ocean, interpret uncertain contacts, exploit the thermal layer, and decide when to evade or strike. No ads. No in-app purchases. No subscriptions. The complete game is yours from the moment you dive. Listen through passive sonar, classify contacts, and maneuver to turn uncertain bearings into a firing solution. Close the range, prepare your tubes, and decide whether the shot is worth revealing your position. Every choice has a cost. Speed helps you intercept, but it raises self-noise. The thermal layer may hide you—or conceal the enemy. A periscope observation can tighten a solution, but an exposed mast can betray you. Every torpedo launch leaves a datum that escorts, helicopters, and hostile submarines may investigate. FEATURES - Read faint contacts on a scrolling broadband waterfall, then dissect their signatures in narrowband - Build honest target-motion solutions from bearing rate, geometry, and your own maneuvers—not omniscient map markers - Risk raising the periscope to sweep the horizon, estimate range, and judge angle on the bow - Operate a working torpedo room: power, program, flood, open, fire, secure, and reload four independent tubes - Keep launched weapons on the guidance wire until their active seekers take over - Carry out changing patrol orders involving interception, reconnaissance, navigation, identification, and weapons-tight restrictions - Outsmart escorts, ASW helicopters, and hostile submarines that search for where they think you are - Exploit depth, silence, thermal layers, bottom terrain, maneuver, and decoys to break the enemy’s picture - Cross long patrol distances under time compression that yields when danger arrives - Face reproducible seeded patrols where imperfect information makes every decision matter Your crew handles routine classification and procedure. You decide where to listen, which contact to track, when to expose the boat, when to fire, and when to break contact and return home. Below the Layer rewards patience, geometry, stealth, and judgment—not reflex shooting.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Below The Layer at 5.0 against Captains Idle's 3.6. Below The Layer also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ads (none vs shown). Captains Idle's advantage is ratings volume (31 vs 1) and device support (3 vs 1). On price and update cadence 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. Captains Idle sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Below The Layer asks for nothing beyond the download.
Below The Layer holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Captains Idle has 31 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Captains Idle ships an update every 2 weeks, Below The Layer every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Captains Idle | Below The Layer |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.6 (31 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 30.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 31 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Every 6 days — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 197 MB | 19 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 9+ |
| Developer | WORLDNMORE TEKNOLOJI ANONIM SIRKETI | James Seaward |
Customer experience
Captains Idle
Below The Layer
In-app purchases
Captains Idle
- Permanent No Ads$4.99
Below The Layer
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Captains Idle free?
Is Below The Layer free?
Which has better reviews, Captains Idle or Below The Layer?
Do Captains Idle or Below The Layer have ads?
Which is updated more often, Captains Idle or Below The Layer?
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