Comparison

Close Cities vs Untangle by Ocular Braid

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

Head to head
About

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.

Highlights
  • 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
Features
Read 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.

About

Untangle by Ocular Braid

A serene puzzle game where you untangle lines on a board by carefully choosing the order of their removal. Offers multiple difficulty levels and a calming aesthetic with original music. Play offline without accounts or ads.

Highlights
  • Line untangling gameplay
  • Multiple difficulty levels
  • Calming original music
  • Offline play
  • No ads or analytics
  • Themed worlds and line skins
Features
Read full description

Untangle is a quiet puzzle about clearing a board that starts as a tangled mess. Tap a line and its head leads the way off the edge, with the rest of the line following the path the head takes. Some ways out are clear. Others are blocked by a line you have not moved yet. The puzzle is choosing the order. ONE RULE Send each line off the board without crossing a line that is still there. That is the whole game. It reads in a second and it stays interesting for hundreds of boards, because the boards get denser and the order matters more. PLAY AT YOUR OWN PACE Three difficulties on a single slider: Easy, Relaxed, and Hard. Relaxed is the default and it is where most people stay. Easy opens the board up. Hard tightens it and keeps your best completion times on your device, so the only person you are measured against is you. Every board waits for you. The challenge is in the planning. MADE WITH CARE Yarn, paper, warm earth tones. The lines move like thread settling and pulling free. The boards are worth looking at while you solve them, and every part of the look was chosen to stay quiet. CALM AND PEACEFUL MUSIC Twenty-five original tracks play on a shuffling playlist, classical style to sit under the game rather than on top of it. Turn the music down, or off, whenever you like. MULTIPLE WORLDS, FOUR OF THEM FREE Classic, Cool Pop, Hearth, and Dusk are yours from the first launch, and each one is a complete world. More are in the store, and a theme retunes the board, the palette, and the tone together. Line skins are a separate, smaller change: swap the look of the lines and keep the world you are in. MADE FOR IPHONE AND IPAD Plays in one hand on iPhone, or across a larger board on iPad. Works offline, wherever you happen to be. A CALM PLACE TO PLAY No accounts. No sign-up. No ads. No analytics. Untangle collects nothing about you. Open the app and play. HEARTS AND UNLIMITED LIVES A missed exit costs a heart, and hearts come back on their own while you are away. If you would rather not wait, Unlimited Lives is available as a pass that does not renew, or as a subscription. What you buy is time. Every board is solvable without spending anything, and nothing you can buy makes a board easier. ACCESSIBILITY Adjustable cell size, separate music and effects volume, a reduce-audio setting, and haptics you can switch off. Untangle is made by Ocular Braid. SUBSCRIPTION TERMS Unlimited Lives subscriptions are US$3.99 for one month, US$9.99 for three months, or US$19.99 for one year. Unlimited Lives passes are one-time purchases that do not renew: US$0.99 for 24 hours, US$1.99 for one week, US$2.99 for two weeks. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. A subscription renews automatically for the same period at the same price unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the current period ends. Your Apple Account is charged for renewal within 24 hours before the period ends. Manage or cancel a subscription in your Apple Account settings. Privacy Policy: https://www.ocularbraid.com/privacy.html Terms of Use: https://www.ocularbraid.com/terms.html

Screenshots

Close Cities4 screens
Untangle by Ocular Braid4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Untangle by Ocular Braid at none against Close Cities's shown. Untangle by Ocular Braid also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 69%) and rating (5.0 vs 4.8). Close Cities's advantage is ratings volume (356 vs 3) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model 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

Both are free to download. Close Cities sells 4 one-off in-app purchases and Untangle by Ocular Braid sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Untangle by Ocular Braid holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Close Cities has 356 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 69% of Close Cities's written reviews are positive against 100% of Untangle by Ocular Braid's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Close Cities ships an update every 3 weeks, Untangle by Ocular Braid every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and September 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Close Cities versus Untangle by Ocular Braid: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterClose CitiesUntangle by Ocular Braid
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (356 ratings)5.0 (3 ratings) — better
Positive reviews69.4% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings356 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 9 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size158 MB284 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJuan Manuel Altamirano ArgudoOcular Braid

Customer experience

Close Cities

All ratings356 ratings
Positive94.9%
Neutral2.0%
Negative3.1%
Written reviews36 reviews
Positive69.4%
Neutral0.0%
Negative30.6%

Untangle by Ocular Braid

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Close Cities

One-time4
  • Hints - Small Pack$0.99
  • Hints - Medium Pack$2.99
  • Remove Ads + Hints$2.99
Show 1 more
  • Hints - Big Pack$5.99
10 purchases

Untangle by Ocular Braid

One-time10
  • Skin Pack — Sweet Treats$1.99
  • Skin Pack — Night Sky$1.99
  • Theme Pack — Christmas$2.99
Show 7 more
  • Theme Pack — Hanukkah$2.99
  • Theme Pack — Lunar New Year$2.99
  • Theme Pack — Candy$2.99
  • Theme Pack — Linen$2.99
  • Skin Packs (Sweet and Night packs)$2.99
  • 3 Theme Bundle 1$5.99
  • Mega Theme Bundle 1$17.99

Questions

Is Close Cities free?
Close Cities is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Untangle by Ocular Braid free?
Untangle by Ocular Braid is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Close Cities or Untangle by Ocular Braid?
Untangle by Ocular Braid is rated higher. Close Cities averages 4.8 out of 5 from 356 ratings, while Untangle by Ocular Braid averages 5.0 from 3 ratings.
Do Close Cities or Untangle by Ocular Braid have ads?
Close Cities shows ads; Untangle by Ocular Braid does not.
Which is updated more often, Close Cities or Untangle by Ocular Braid?
Close Cities ships an update every 3 weeks, and Untangle by Ocular Braid every 9 days. Most recently, Close Cities was updated on October 12, 2026 and Untangle by Ocular Braid on September 30, 2026.

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