Molecano vs Close Cities
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Molecano
Embark on a word-based adventure to help a mole navigate volcanic landscapes. String words together to create bridges and collect food across challenging lava-filled levels. This unique puzzle game offers a relaxing experience with a cool soundtrack and unlockable characters.
- Unique word puzzle gameplay
- 500+ levels
- Unlockable characters
- Chill soundtrack
- Word-based bridge creation
Read full descriptionHide full description
Molecano is an all-new word puzzle game from the creator of Dadish! Help Molene the mole explore volcanoes using words as a bridge. String words together so Molene can cross safely and collect all the delicious food strewn across the lava loaded levels. • A unique and challenging word puzzle game • 500 levels, with more to come • From the creator of Dadish and Super Fowlst • Cool characters to unlock • Playing this game will make you smart, probably • A good game for people who know some words • A chill soundtrack • Relax and unwind... in a volcano!
Close Cities
Build beautiful cities on diverse worlds by solving unique puzzles. This relaxing game guides you through 160 levels with a simple tap or drag interface, requiring no architectural knowledge. Conquer each world's challenges and travel through time with its calming soundtrack.
- Build cities on empty maps
- Solve 160 unique puzzle levels
- Intuitive tap and drag controls
- No architectural knowledge needed
- Travel through different worlds
- Relaxing music and pace
Read full descriptionHide full description
Close Cities is a relaxing puzzle game in which you will have to build cities in different worlds over time. Find a road and start there. Solve all 160 levels and become a Close Cities legend! UNIQUE PUZZLES You will start each level with an empty map that you will have to fill with beautiful cities. Choose the right road, choose the area and tap or drag with your fingers! DOES NOT REQUIRE KNOWLEDGE OF ARCHITECTURE Close Cities offers a fun experience even if you don't know the difference between a square and a bevel. The game's tutorial will show you everything you need to know at a relaxed pace. CONQUER ITS 160 LEVELS Each world has its king and 16 levels that you must solve to build his empire. TRAVEL THROUGH TIME During the course of the game you will discover different worlds over time with relaxed music to let you go.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Close Cities at 4.8 against Molecano's 4.3. Close Cities also leads on ratings volume (356 vs 109). Molecano's advantage is review sentiment (85% vs 69%) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.0). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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. Molecano sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Close Cities sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Close Cities holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 109 and 356 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 85% of Molecano's written reviews are positive against 69% of Close Cities's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 20, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Molecano | Close Cities |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (109 ratings) | 4.8 (356 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 85.4% of reviews — better | 69.4% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 109 | 356 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 3 weeks |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 11.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 33 MB | 158 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Thomas Young | Juan Manuel Altamirano Argudo |
Customer experience
Molecano
Close Cities
Bugs and requests
Molecano
Reported bugs
8 issues- Level 137 - character won't move after placing letters
- Level 311 - multiple reports of unsolvable/broken level
- Level 339 - reported as extremely difficult/possibly broken
- Level 480 - appears to have no solution
- Level 464 - reported as impossible to pass
Show 3 moreShow fewer
- Early levels (around level 5) - unresponsive words
- Word extension not working consistently
- Hint system not helpful for difficult levels
Requested features
15 requests- More levels beyond level 500
- Larger game map for mobile devices
- Ability to rotate words 360 degrees
- Replay previous completed levels
- Game Center/cloud save compatibility
Show 10 moreShow fewer
- Star rating system for level performance
- Coin rewards based on performance stars
- Cheaper character options (50-100 coins)
- Faster character movement speed
- In-game dictionary function
- Expanded word dictionary validation
- Ability to make intersecting words like Scrabble
- Hint system improvements
- Support for multiple languages
- Special interactive elements (fruits/vegetables)
Close Cities
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Molecano
- Remove Ads$5.99
Close Cities
- Hints - Small Pack$0.99
- Hints - Medium Pack$2.99
- Remove Ads + Hints$2.99
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- Hints - Big Pack$5.99
