Comparison

Year Walk vs SIMULACRA 2

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

Head to head
About

Year Walk

Embark on a unique first-person adventure set in 19th-century Sweden, experiencing the ancient phenomenon of year walking. Explore dark woods, solve puzzles, and uncover mysteries to glimpse the future. This atmospheric game blurs reality and the supernatural.

Highlights
  • First-person adventure
  • Ancient Swedish phenomena
  • Cryptic puzzle solving
  • Supernatural elements
  • Vision quest narrative
  • Atmospheric exploration
Features
Read full description

In the old days man tried to catch a glimpse of the future in the strangest of ways. Experience the ancient Swedish phenomena of year walking through a different kind of first person adventure that blurs the line between two and three dimensions as well as reality and the supernatural. Venture out into the dark woods where strange creatures roam, on a vision quest set in 19th century Sweden. Solve cryptic puzzles, touch and listen in your search to foresee the future and finally discover if your loved one will love you back. Mysteries and clues await everywhere in Year Walk, but to fully understand the events that took place on that cold New Year's Eve, you will have to delve deeper than the adventure and lose yourself between fact and fiction. For the complete Year Walk experience, or if you're curious about the folk lore on which Year Walk is based, we recommend downloading Year Walk Companion, available for free on the App Store. "An iOS game like nothing else you’ve seen on the format to date. This is a brave and truly original work" Edge - 9/10 "Elegant and artful, Year Walk is an unmissable piece of work. You can close the app and put down the phone, but the forest may spread beyond its glassy confines, its spindly, silver-skinned trees taking root in your own home, your own dreams." Eurogamer - 9/10 "A game this distinctive, this different, this thrillingly new is the best possible demonstration of the format’s versatility; indeed, of the narrative power of the interactive medium. Simogo has made something very special here." The Telegraph - 5/5 "It's a gripping, somber, atmospheric, and elegantly-designed game, and everyone should play it. I've never played anything quite like it." Touch Arcade 5/5 "An incredible showcase for the potential of tablet games and will undoubtedly become influential over the next few years." CVG - 9/10 "Simogo has packed Year Walk with a hefty share of spine-tingling jump scares, but it’s these external trappings that cause the game’s lore to get under your skin and stick with you long after your phone or tablet has been turned off." Gamezebo - 4,5/5 "Year Walk is smart, thrilling, and absolutely stunningly crafted. It'll throw you for a loop, leaving you transfixed to the screen until you shake out all of its dark secrets." Mac|Life - 5/5 "As with any good page-turner, you won't want to put this game down until you get to the end. It's quite a journey, too. Year Walk is a beguiling adventure, and a truly memorable experience." Pocketgamer - 8/10

About

SIMULACRA 2

Investigate a mysterious death by exploring a simulated phone, uncovering deleted files, and piecing together clues. Unravel the truth behind an influencer's demise and solve the case before it's too late.

Highlights
  • Simulated phone investigation
  • Restore deleted files with AI
  • Non-linear narrative
  • Live-action cast
  • Original soundtrack
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Maya, an upcoming influencer has been found dead, and an obsessed detective suspects foul play. Her phone appears to be intentionally wiped, and her cause of death seems... unnatural. You are given her phone to conduct an unsanctioned police investigation, and piece together the mystery surrounding her death. Was this an unfortunate accident or a cold-blooded murder? Can the victim’s friends be trusted? Is there something sinister lurking in social media? Solve the case before whatever happened to Maya... happens again. Features - Solve a mystery through a simulated phone with familiar and new apps. - Assisting you will be WARDEN, a police AI software capable of restoring the phone's deleted files. - An expanded non-linear narrative with more than dozens of possible outcomes. - Featuring a live-action ensemble cast and an original soundtrack.

Screenshots

Year Walk4 screens
SIMULACRA 24 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: SIMULACRA 2 at 4.7 against Year Walk's 4.2. SIMULACRA 2 also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 7 months) and chart position (#94 vs unranked). Year Walk's advantage is review sentiment (77% vs 67%) and price ($3.99 vs $4.99). On ratings volume, 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

Year Walk costs $3.99 and SIMULACRA 2 $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

SIMULACRA 2 holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 368 and 1K respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 77% of Year Walk's written reviews are positive against 67% of SIMULACRA 2's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Year Walk ships an update every 7 months, SIMULACRA 2 every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Year Walk versus SIMULACRA 2: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterYear WalkSIMULACRA 2
Price$3.99 — better$4.99
Rating4.2 (368 ratings)4.7 (1K ratings) — better
Positive reviews77.1% of reviews — better67.0% of reviews
Number of ratings3681K — better
Update frequencyEvery 7 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
Best chart rank—#94 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS8.0 — better12.0
Further details — not scored
Size782 MB2.3 GB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperSimogo ABKAIGAN GAMES OUe

Customer experience

Year Walk

All ratings366 ratings
Positive77.3%
Neutral6.3%
Negative16.4%
Written reviews795 reviews
Positive77.1%
Neutral7.3%
Negative15.6%

SIMULACRA 2

All ratings1,041 ratings
Positive91.9%
Neutral1.9%
Negative6.1%
Written reviews200 reviews
Positive67.0%
Neutral10.0%
Negative23.0%

User reviews

Year Walk

From 368 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🌟 Gorgeous artwork and atmosphere
  • 🤯 Creepy and unsettling experience
  • 🧠 Intriguing story and folklore
  • 🔍 Compelling puzzles and exploration
  • 🎨 Unique and innovative gameplay

Room to improve

  • ⏱️ Game is too short
  • 🤔 Puzzles can be confusing and unintuitive
  • 🔇 Sound issues on some devices
  • 🗺️ Frustrating navigation and getting lost
  • 💰 Expensive for the length of gameplay

SIMULACRA 2

From 1K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Engaging story
  • 🎨 Impressive visuals
  • 🕵️‍♂️ Immersive gameplay
  • 🕹️ Multiple endings
  • 🔍 Detailed investigation

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent bugs and glitches
  • 🕰️ Timed choices too short
  • 🔇 Audio issues (freezing, background noise)
  • 🔍 Progression blockers
  • 🤖 Uneven acting quality

Bugs and requests

Year Walk

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Sound not working on certain devices
  • Crashes and freezes on older devices

Requested features

4 requests
  • Longer gameplay and additional content
  • More guidance and hints for puzzles
  • Improved navigation and map functionality
  • Support for more devices and screen sizes

SIMULACRA 2

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Game freezing after cutscenes
  • Inability to progress past certain points
  • Saved progress not loading correctly
  • Conversations and interactions getting stuck
  • Audio/video playback issues

Requested features

4 requests
  • Full screen and controller support
  • In-game note taking
  • Ability to skip cutscenes on replays
  • Checkpoint/level select feature

In-app purchases

None

Year Walk

No in-app purchases

None

SIMULACRA 2

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Year Walk free?
Year Walk costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is SIMULACRA 2 free?
SIMULACRA 2 costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Year Walk or SIMULACRA 2?
SIMULACRA 2 is rated higher. Year Walk averages 4.2 out of 5 from 368 ratings, while SIMULACRA 2 averages 4.7 from 1K ratings.
Do Year Walk or SIMULACRA 2 have ads?
Neither Year Walk nor SIMULACRA 2 shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Year Walk or SIMULACRA 2?
Year Walk ships an update every 7 months, and SIMULACRA 2 every 3 weeks. Most recently, Year Walk was updated on November 1, 2026 and SIMULACRA 2 on November 3, 2026.

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