Comparison

Rebuild vs Game Dev Tycoon

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

Head to head
About

Rebuild

Lead survivors of a zombie apocalypse to rebuild a city. Manage resources, defend your fort, and reclaim buildings one by one. Face rival gangs, illness, and riots in this turn-based strategy game.

Highlights
  • Turn-based strategy gameplay
  • Zombie apocalypse survival
  • City reclamation
  • Resource management
  • Randomly generated cities
  • Customizable characters
  • Multiple endings
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

"I don't wave around non-words like 'unputdownable' often, but Rebuild deserves it." - Touch Arcade (4.5/5) "Rebuild is a solid, fun, unique and just plain awesome game." - JayIsGames (4.6/5 Best strategy or simulation game of 2011) GAMEPLAY Gather survivors of the zombie apocalypse and defend your fort against undead attacks. Reclaim one building at a time and put your survivors to work scavenging for food, building houses, rediscovering technology and of course killing zombies. Beware of rival gangs, illness, thieves and even riots as you rebuild a city in this post apocalyptic turn based strategy game. FEATURES - Unique turn-based strategy gameplay - Randomly generated cities - Customizable characters - 5 levels of difficulty - 7 endings to discover - Game Center highscores and achievements

About

Game Dev Tycoon

Build your own game development company from the 1980s to the present. Design and create your own games, research new technologies, and manage a team to become a market leader. Enjoy a full simulation experience without ads or in-app purchases.

Highlights
  • Start a game development company
  • Design and create your own games
  • Research new technologies
  • Hire and manage a development team
  • Replay gaming history
  • Built-in screen recording and streaming
Features
Read full description

"It’s the perfect sort of game for mobile devices and there’s so much to do here [...]" - 5/5 - Toucharcade Game Dev Tycoon is a casual business simulation game where your success depends on your creativity and willingness to experiment. The game does *not* contain any in-app purchases or ads. Slip into the role of a game developer: start your own company, design your own games and make your way to the top to become a Game Dev Tycoon. - Start your own game development company in the 80s - Replay gaming history - Design and create your own games - Hold your breath and wait for reviews to come in - Research new technologies - Hire and manage a world-leading development team - Become the leader of the market - Gain worldwide fans Game Dev Tycoon for iPhone and iPad introduces: - An updated story line - New topics to enable even more varied games - A challenging (but optional) ‘pirate mode’ - Built-in screen recording and streaming support Game Dev Tycoon does not require an internet connection so go ahead and build your gaming empire in Airplane Mode.

Screenshots

Rebuild4 screens
Game Dev Tycoon4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ratings volume: Game Dev Tycoon at 24K against Rebuild's 259. Game Dev Tycoon also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.6) and review sentiment (91% vs 81%). Rebuild's advantage is price ($2.99 vs $4.99) and iOS requirement (9.0 vs 17.0). On update cadence, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Rebuild costs $2.99 and Game Dev Tycoon $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Game Dev Tycoon holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Game Dev Tycoon has 24K ratings behind it against 259, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 81% of Rebuild's written reviews are positive against 91% of Game Dev Tycoon's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Rebuild ships an update every 2 months, Game Dev Tycoon every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Rebuild versus Game Dev Tycoon: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRebuildGame Dev Tycoon
Price$2.99 — better$4.99
Rating4.6 (259 ratings)4.9 (24K ratings) — better
Positive reviews81.5% of reviews91.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings25924K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
Best chart rank#180#59 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS9.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size64 MB204 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperNorthway Games Corp.Greenheart Games Pty. Ltd.

Customer experience

Rebuild

All ratings259 ratings
Positive89.6%
Neutral2.7%
Negative7.7%
Written reviews313 reviews
Positive81.5%
Neutral6.4%
Negative12.1%

Game Dev Tycoon

All ratings24,004 ratings
Positive98.6%
Neutral0.6%
Negative0.8%
Written reviews1,109 reviews
Positive91.1%
Neutral3.9%
Negative5.0%

User reviews

Rebuild

From 259 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Engaging and challenging gameplay
  • 👍 Terrific simple strategy game
  • 👍 Nostalgic and fun
  • 👍 Great game and an OG player
  • 👍 Love this game since childhood

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Winter mode too difficult
  • 🐛 Crashes and stability issues
  • 🐛 Screen too small on newer devices
  • 💰 Paid version when free version exists

Game Dev Tycoon

From 24K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Cheap price
  • 👍 No in-app purchases or ads
  • 👍 Addictive and fun gameplay
  • 👍 Realistic game development simulation
  • 👍 Detailed and complex mechanics

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Game crashes on launch for some users
  • 🐛 Orientation issues on iPhone X
  • 🐛 Difficulty remembering research and specialist information
  • 🔋 Game can be very time-consuming
  • 🤔 Lack of difficulty options or sandbox mode

Bugs and requests

Rebuild

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes and freezes, especially on larger maps
  • Difficulty saving and deleting save files
  • Orientation issues on newer devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • More content updates and new features
  • Ability to disable winter mode
  • More building and gameplay variety
  • Multiplayer or co-op mode
  • Ability to control characters in battles

Game Dev Tycoon

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Loan payback amount inconsistency
  • Game reports not carrying over knowledge

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add more console and game genre options
  • Implement employee personalities and interactions
  • Provide more detailed game performance history
  • Allow simultaneous game development
  • Add difficulty settings and sandbox mode
Show 1 more
  • Implement mod support and custom content

In-app purchases

None

Rebuild

No in-app purchases

None

Game Dev Tycoon

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Rebuild free?
Rebuild costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Game Dev Tycoon free?
Game Dev Tycoon costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Rebuild or Game Dev Tycoon?
Game Dev Tycoon is rated higher. Rebuild averages 4.6 out of 5 from 259 ratings, while Game Dev Tycoon averages 4.9 from 24K ratings.
Do Rebuild or Game Dev Tycoon have ads?
Neither Rebuild nor Game Dev Tycoon shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Rebuild or Game Dev Tycoon?
Rebuild ships an update every 2 months, and Game Dev Tycoon every 3 months. Most recently, Rebuild was updated on September 29, 2026 and Game Dev Tycoon on October 1, 2026.
Which is more popular, Rebuild or Game Dev Tycoon?
Rebuild currently peaks at #180 in the App Store charts, and Game Dev Tycoon at #59. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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