Recursion vs SHIFT Word Puzzle
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Recursion
Embark on a mind-bending puzzle adventure where you're trapped in a repeating time loop. Use your wits and a special device to solve mysteries, find clues, and shut down a machine before the loop resets. This compact mystery game offers challenging puzzles and a unique narrative.
- Time-loop mechanic
- First-person point and click adventure
- Mystery and puzzle solving
- Clue finding
- Hint system
- Immersive soundtrack and sound effects
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Enter a mind-bending first-person puzzle adventure. Explore mysterious rooms, solve glitches, and navigate a time loop to uncover the truth. Something is wrong. All of this has happened before, and it will all happen again. Explore a strange, glitch-filled facility and uncover the secrets hidden within Recursion. Features: • Immersive first-person escape room gameplay • Mind-bending riddles, hidden clues, and layered mysteries • The Glitch Camera — capture details and reveal secrets others miss • Intuitive controls for a smooth, engaging experience • No ads, no interruptions — just pure puzzle adventure Can you escape the glitch? Download Recursion now and dive into a sci-fi puzzle adventure unlike any other! From Glitch Games, a small indie team crafting unique memory puzzles, point-and-click mysteries, and immersive story experiences. Follow us for updates, news, and behind-the-scenes content: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GlitchGames/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/glitch.games Newsletter: https://glitch.games/newsletter Twitter: https://x.com/GlitchGames Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theglitchgames/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@GlitchGames
SHIFT Word Puzzle
A daily word puzzle game where you transform one word into another by changing one letter at a time, with a limit of six moves per puzzle. Compete on leaderboards and share results discreetly. Unlock more puzzles and features with an optional subscription.
- Daily word puzzle
- One-letter changes
- Six moves limit
- Daily leaderboard
- Shareable results
- Puzzle Vault
- Private leagues
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SHIFT is a daily word puzzle where one word changes into another, one letter at a time. Each day, everyone gets the same challenge: one start word, one target word, and just six moves to make the shift. Every guess must be a valid word, and each move can only change one letter — so every step matters. Play the daily puzzle, compare your result on the leaderboards, earn Champion trophies for global wins, and share your score without revealing the solution. Create or join Private Leagues for free and compete with friends on your own daily, weekly, and monthly leaderboards. Want more puzzles? SHIFT+ unlocks extra ways to play, including Puzzle Packs and the Daily Archive, so you can keep solving beyond today’s challenge. Features include: • A new daily word puzzle for everyone • Simple one-letter-at-a-time gameplay • Six moves to solve each puzzle • Daily, weekly, and monthly leaderboards • Free Private Leagues with friends • League invite codes and shareable league invites • Champion trophies for global leaderboard wins • Shareable results that hide the solution • Puzzle Packs with hundreds of extra puzzles • Daily Archive to play past puzzles • Clean, focused design built for quick daily play • Clear tutorial and practice puzzle to help you learn SHIFT is easy to learn, satisfying to solve, and perfect for anyone who loves word games, daily challenges, leaderboards, trophies, and friendly competition.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: SHIFT Word Puzzle at Free against Recursion's $3.99. SHIFT Word Puzzle also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 65%) and update cadence (every 2 days vs every 2 weeks). Recursion's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and device support (4 vs 1). On 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
SHIFT Word Puzzle is free to download; Recursion costs $3.99 up front. SHIFT Word Puzzle sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Recursion asks for nothing beyond the download.
Recursion ships an update every 2 weeks, SHIFT Word Puzzle every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Recursion | SHIFT Word Puzzle |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $3.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.2 (67 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 64.7% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 67 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Every 2 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Freemium — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 11.0 — better | 17.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 550 MB | 9 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Glitch Games | ANDREW JAMES HARRIS |
Customer experience
Recursion
SHIFT Word Puzzle
Bugs and requests
Recursion
Reported bugs
4 issues- Lift doors in chapter 3 wouldn't open
- Wireless controller doesn't appear
- Game crashes on start-up
- Stuck in the elevator (potential bug)
Requested features
6 requests- Add a setting to remove the time loop
- Option to disable the timer
- Longer game duration
- Richer story content
- More variety in game environments (less industrial)
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- Sequels to previous games (Veritas, All That Remains)
SHIFT Word Puzzle
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Recursion
No in-app purchases
SHIFT Word Puzzle
- SHIFT+$2.99
Questions
Is Recursion free?
Is SHIFT Word Puzzle free?
Do Recursion or SHIFT Word Puzzle have ads?
Which is updated more often, Recursion or SHIFT Word Puzzle?
Other comparisons
