Comparison

Nihilumbra vs DEEMO

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

Head to head
About

Nihilumbra

Embark on an adventure to discover a beautiful world and escape an inevitable curse. Learn to use colors to gain abilities and transform your surroundings while being pursued by an ancient force. This game offers over 10 hours of gameplay with a unique story and challenging mechanics.

Highlights
  • Over 10 hours of gameplay
  • Classic gameplay redesigned for touch devices
  • Change ground physics with five colors
  • Transform five unique worlds
  • Two control schemes: buttons or tilt
  • Original soundtrack
  • Unlockable surprise and replayability
Features
Read full description

*** Apple's Best of 2012 Hidden Gems *** Has to be be downloaded over a Wi-Fi connection. Discover the beautiful world of Nihilumbra and join Born on his adventure to find himself whilst trying to escape from his inevitable curse. Born was created from the absolute nothingness: The Void. But somehow he separates himself from the black emptiness and appears in the world. This is where his long odyssey begins, in which he will learn how to use the colors around him to gain powerful abilities and transform the world. However, his experiences come at a high price. The Void must be one. It seeks to reclaim him and will never stop chasing him, destroying everything in its path along the way. To survive, Born will have to condemn the earth he walks to its inevitable obliteration by The Void... FEATURES: - More than 10 hours of gameplay. - “Old school” playability inspired by classic games but redesigned for tactile devices. - The ability to change ground physics using five different colors. - Use five worlds as your canvas and transform them at your will. - Two different control schemes: Classic buttons or tilting sensor. - Original soundtrack composed by Álvaro Lafuente. Headphones recommended. - Unlockable surprise on completion of the game. Replayability assured.

About

DEEMO

Experience a captivating piano rhythm game with a heartwarming fairytale story. Play over 60 free songs, unlock more as you progress, and immerse yourself in a world of music and mystery. This standalone game offers intuitive gameplay and a touching narrative.

Highlights
  • 60+ free songs in story mode
  • Unlock more tracks and progress story
  • Original piano songs from famous composers
  • Simple and intuitive rhythm gameplay
  • Explore scenes and find hidden elements
  • Offline play supported
Read full description

"Never Left Without Saying Goodbye." The world acclaimed, mobile rhythm game that's touched over 10 million players. Created by the team that brought you Cytus, the original Rayark team has created a whole new texture to the piano rhythm game DEEMO. A girl who fell from the skies and lost her past; Deemo, who plays the piano all alone in the world of the treehouse; an accidental encounter between the two. The music flows as the fingers hit the piano keys. The start of a fairytale journey has begun... Game Features: -60+ free songs in story mode, including more than 220 songs -Unlock more tracks as the game progresses, experience a story that will move you -Accompany Deemo and engage with this stunning, modern fairytale -Plenty of original piano songs in various music genres, many composed by famous composers from around the world -Simple and intuitive gameplay, experience touching emotion through music -Through tapping and sliding, follow the rhythm to play along -Explore the scenes, piece together the clues, and obtain hidden in-game elements -Stand-alone game; no need to have internet connection to play -Twitter and Facebook score sharing function. Proceed to Youtube for official videos.

Screenshots

Nihilumbra4 screens
DEEMO4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Nihilumbra at none against DEEMO's 10. Nihilumbra also leads on iOS requirement (5.1.1 vs 11.0). DEEMO's advantage is ratings volume (5.1K vs 104) and rating (4.9 vs 4.7). On review sentiment, update cadence, ads 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Nihilumbra costs $2.99 and DEEMO $1.99 up front. DEEMO sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Nihilumbra asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

DEEMO holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: DEEMO has 5.1K ratings behind it against 104, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 88% of Nihilumbra's written reviews are positive against 91% of DEEMO's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Nihilumbra versus DEEMO: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNihilumbraDEEMO
Price$2.99$1.99 — better
Rating4.7 (104 ratings)4.9 (5.1K ratings) — better
Positive reviews87.7% of reviews90.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1045.1K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank—#13 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS5.1.1 — better11.0
Further details — not scored
Size665 MB2.8 GB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperBEAUTIFUN GAMES SLRayark International Limited

Customer experience

Nihilumbra

All ratings104 ratings
Positive91.3%
Neutral4.8%
Negative3.8%
Written reviews430 reviews
Positive87.7%
Neutral4.4%
Negative7.9%

DEEMO

All ratings5,075 ratings
Positive97.3%
Neutral0.7%
Negative2.1%
Written reviews464 reviews
Positive90.5%
Neutral2.6%
Negative6.9%

User reviews

Nihilumbra

From 104 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Beautiful game
  • 👍 Engaging story
  • 👍 Innovative gameplay
  • 👍 Challenging puzzles
  • 👍 Atmospheric music

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and glitches
  • 🐛 Controls issues
  • 🐛 Lack of iPhone 5/X support
  • 🔋 High battery consumption

DEEMO

From 5.1K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 💎 Beautiful music and art
  • 🎨 Unique and charming story
  • 🎹 Immersive piano-based gameplay
  • 🕰️ Nostalgic and memorable experience
  • 👍 Smooth and responsive controls

Room to improve

  • 💰 Expensive DLC and in-app purchases
  • 🐛 Occasional crashes and performance issues
  • 🤔 Difficulty calibration can be tricky
  • 🔒 Lost progress and purchases not restored

Bugs and requests

Nihilumbra

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes on certain levels
  • Unresponsive controls in intense moments
  • Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions

Requested features

3 requests
  • Update with more levels and content
  • Sequel or additional games from the developer
  • Improved controls and customization options

DEEMO

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Crashes on cutscenes and loading screens
  • Unresponsive controls and timing issues

Requested features

3 requests
  • More free songs and content
  • Improved cloud save and data restoration
  • Optimization for newer devices

In-app purchases

None

Nihilumbra

No in-app purchases

10 purchases

DEEMO

One-time10
  • Rayark Selection Vol.1$3.99
  • Rayark Selection Vol.2$3.99
  • MILI Collection$3.99
Show 7 more
  • V.K Collection$3.99
  • Rayark Selection Vol.3$3.99
  • Cytus Selection Vol.1$3.99
  • Cytus Selection Vol.2$3.99
  • Knight Iris$3.99
  • M2U X NICODE Collection$3.99
  • Forgotten Hourglass$9.99

Questions

Is Nihilumbra free?
Nihilumbra costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is DEEMO free?
DEEMO costs $1.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Nihilumbra or DEEMO?
DEEMO is rated higher. Nihilumbra averages 4.7 out of 5 from 104 ratings, while DEEMO averages 4.9 from 5.1K ratings.
Do Nihilumbra or DEEMO have ads?
Neither Nihilumbra nor DEEMO shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Nihilumbra or DEEMO?
Nihilumbra ships an update every 2 months, and DEEMO every 2 months. Most recently, Nihilumbra was updated on October 13, 2026 and DEEMO on October 12, 2026.

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