The Journey Down vs Sanitarium
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
The Journey Down
Embark on a classic point-and-click adventure with an Afro-Caribbean twist. Solve puzzles and uncover secrets in a story of corruption and danger.
- Twisting tale of intriguing adventure
- Handpainted environments
- Jazzy reggae soundtrack
- Fully voiced cast
- HD art and animations
Read full descriptionHide full description
PocketGamer GOLD award In a shady corner of Kingsport Bay, at the outskirts of St Armando, Bwana and his trusted sidekick Kito struggle to make ends meet at their run-down gas station. Little do they know that they are about to be thrown into a spine-tingling adventure that will take them far from home and right into a twisting plot of corruption and danger. In the first chapter of The Journey Down, the search for a lost journal leads to forgotten secrets of the mysterious Underland. Follow Bwana and Kito as they puzzle their way forward and begin to uncover the true fate of their long lost father, Captain Kaonandodo. The Journey Down is a classic point-and-click saga with an Afro-Caribbean vibe. Get ready to embark on an epic journey of brain-teasing adventure! Also available for PC, Mac and Linux on Steam. Features: * A twisting tale of intriguing adventure * Tons of handpainted environments * An all original jazzy reggae soundtrack * A fully voiced cast * HD art and animations THE JOURNEY DOWN: CHAPTER TWO is available here: https://itunes.apple.com/app/the-journey-down-chapter-two/id906398185
Sanitarium
Embark on a dark adventure as an amnesiac in a creepy asylum. Solve puzzles, uncover a complex plot, and escape this morbid universe. This enhanced mobile version offers new features for an immersive point-and-click horror experience.
- Amnesiac protagonist
- Morbid and creepy universe
- Puzzle solving
- Complex plot
- Touch and pad controls
- New inventory system
- Achievements
Read full descriptionHide full description
In Sanitarium you play an amnesiac thrust into a morbid, really creepy universe. After a car accident you wake up to find that instead of lying in a hospital, you’re in an asylum with your head wrapped in bandages. Who the hell am I? What am I doing here? How do I escape? There endless questions eating away at you, and so too are the many puzzles you’ll need to resolve throughout this immersive, captivating adventure. Featuring a rich, complex plot set in an intense world where a very thin line separates reason from madness, Sanitarium is a masterwork suitable for point-and-click beginners, experts and everyone who enjoys captivating storylines and horror games. This version has not only been authentically recreated for mobile, but also enhanced with brand-new features: • Choose between touch mode and pad mode • A new easy-to-use interface specially adapted for touch devices • Automatic save system • Dynamic ON/OFF hint system • New inventory system • 20 Achievements to unlock • Choose between full screen mode & original mode • 3 languages available: English, French, German (voices and text) Originally released in 1998 for PC and Adventure Game of the Year Winner, this timeless point-and-click horror game is a must-have for adventure game fans. Discover or rediscover one of the scariest games of all time with this mobile version you can play anywhere! MORE ABOUT DOTEMU facebook.com/dotemu twitter.com/dotemu youtube.com/dotemu
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: The Journey Down at 4.9 against Sanitarium's 4.2. The Journey Down also leads on update cadence (every 15 months vs every 73 months) and review sentiment (91% vs 70%). Sanitarium's advantage is chart position (#128 vs unranked) 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
The Journey Down costs $4.99 and Sanitarium $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
The Journey Down holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 143 and 131 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 91% of The Journey Down's written reviews are positive against 70% of Sanitarium's.
The Journey Down ships an update every 15 months, Sanitarium every 73 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | The Journey Down | Sanitarium |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $4.99 | $3.99 — better |
| Rating | 4.9 (143 ratings) — better | 4.2 (131 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 91.1% of reviews — better | 70.5% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 143 — better | 131 |
| Update frequency | Every 15 months — better | Every 73 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | #128 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 9.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 470 MB | 887 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 9+ |
| Developer | SkyGoblin AB | DotEmu |
Customer experience
The Journey Down
Sanitarium
User reviews
The Journey Down
From 143 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🎨 Beautiful graphics
- 🎶 Excellent soundtrack
- 🤣 Funny and engaging story
- 👍 Intuitive controls
- 🧠 Challenging but fair puzzles
Room to improve
- ⏱️ Short gameplay length
- 💰 Expensive for the content
- 🗣️ Uneven voice acting
- 🤔 Stereotypical character portrayals
Sanitarium
From 131 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🎮 Nostalgic and entertaining visuals
- 🕹️ Unique and bizarre adventure
- 🎬 Excellent atmosphere
- ⏰ Long gameplay with cool cutscenes
- 🕵️♀️ Compelling story and creepy atmosphere
Room to improve
- 🤖 Clunky and unresponsive controls
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🤯 Confusing navigation and UI
- 🔇 Poor audio balancing and dialogue issues
- 🔍 Difficulty interacting with objects and environments
Bugs and requests
The Journey Down
Reported bugs
2 issues- Crashes after app updates
- Freezing/performance issues on older devices
Requested features
3 requests- More chapters/episodes
- Option to skip/mute dialogue
- Improved accessibility features
Sanitarium
Reported bugs
3 issues- Game freezes or crashes in certain levels
- Dialogue skipping and desynchronization issues
- Unresponsive interactions and missing prompts
Requested features
3 requests- Add Russian language support
- Improve touch controls and UI for mobile
- Provide more instructions and tutorials
In-app purchases
The Journey Down
No in-app purchases
Sanitarium
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is The Journey Down free?
Is Sanitarium free?
Which has better reviews, The Journey Down or Sanitarium?
Do The Journey Down or Sanitarium have ads?
Which is updated more often, The Journey Down or Sanitarium?
Other comparisons















