Zotz! vs Ishido
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Zotz!
This game offers a unique perceptual challenge, training your brain and eyes with a simple card-matching mechanic. Customize colors, fill types, and card layouts to your preference. Enjoy a pressure-free experience with no timer or score.
- Perceptual practice
- Brain and eye training
- Customizable attributes
- No timer or score
- Simple card challenge
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Zotz! is an enjoyable time-waster, a form of perceptual practice, good for training the brain and the eyes; there is no timer and no score, no pressure, just a simple challenge waiting for you whenever you like. The game supposes a deck of cards, where each card has four attributes, and each attribute on any given card has one of three possible values: Number (one, two, or three), Color (red, blue, or green), Fill (solid, hazy, or empty), and Shape (diamond, oval, or rectangle). All you have to do is to spot, amongst the visible cards, any three cards which, for each attribute, are either all identical or all different. Colors, middle fill type, and number of cards in the layout can all be customized. Full instructions, with examples, are included.
Ishido
A meditative puzzle game where players match stones based on color and symbol to clear a board. It offers both strategic point-scoring and a relaxing, mindful experience.
- Match stones by color and symbol
- Strategic point scoring
- Meditative gameplay mode
- 72 unique stones
- 8x12 game board
- Next stone preview
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WELCOME TO ISHIDO An ancient puzzle that will test your meditative and strategic powers. Balance the yin & yang of patience vs. the quick score. Your goal is to empty the pouch, but plan ahead to find the elusive 4-way. You must match 72 stones on a board of 96 squares. You can play for points or relax and meditate over each move. OVERVIEW Ishido is a board game where you attempt to match stones according to their colors and patterns. THE GAME BOARD * The Game Board is eight squares high by 12 squares wide. * Stones come in sets of 72 stones. Each stone has two attributes: A color and a symbol. There are six symbols and six colors in each stoneset, thus creating 36 unique stones. Each stone comes in a pair, hence 72 stones in each stoneset. * The Within consists of the interior squares. * The Beyond consists of the squares at the outer edges of the board. * The Touchstone displays the next stone to be played. * The Scoreboard shows both the number of points scored, and the number of combination matches achieved. * The Pouch shows the number of stones remaining to play.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Zotz! at 5.0 against Ishido's 2.9. Zotz! also leads on review sentiment (67% vs 43%). Ishido's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 11 months) and ratings volume (12 vs 4). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Zotz! holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 2.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 12 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 67% of Zotz!'s written reviews are positive against 43% of Ishido's.
Zotz! ships an update every 11 months, Ishido every 2 weeks. Both last shipped on June 1, 2026.
| Parameter | Zotz! | Ishido |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (4 ratings) — better | 2.9 (12 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 66.7% of reviews — better | 42.9% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 4 | 12 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 11 months | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | 18.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 4 MB | 37 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Matt Neuburg | Darin Koenig |
Customer experience
Zotz!
Ishido
In-app purchases
Zotz!
No in-app purchases
Ishido
No in-app purchases








