Comparison

Leon's Mahjong vs Shells

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

Head to head
About

Leon's Mahjong

Experience a classic Mahjong solitaire game with a unique retro pixel art style. Enjoy 63 handcrafted boards, offline play, and no intrusive ads or in-app purchases. This timeless game offers a peaceful, ad-free experience.

Highlights
  • Retro pixel art graphics
  • 63 handcrafted Mahjong boards
  • Offline play
  • No ads or popups
  • No in-app purchases
  • Family sharing
Features
Read full description

This is a calm, handcrafted Mahjong solitaire experience, designed to help you unwind. Your quiet moment at the end of the day. Beautifully designed boards, rendered in a warm retro pixel-art style, and the simple satisfaction of solving them. What you get • 99 handcrafted, always-solvable boards, from quick sessions to deeper challenges. • 5 tilesets to choose from, switchable in real time, with more on the way. • Unlimited hints and undos, so you never get stuck. • Over an hour of original music by composer Bjørn Lynne. • Play in 15 languages across iPhone, iPad, and Mac. • Now you can also play with an MFi game controller! • Buy once, all future updates included. No ads. No tracking. No in-app purchases. No internet required. Why this game exists This game is a tribute to my father, who introduced me to Mahjong in the ‘80s. My son Leon helped shape it as the game’s smallest (and loudest) stakeholder. Three generations. One love for games. Lucas and Leon

About

Shells

A geometry puzzle game where you slide blocks into larger shells to rearrange the board and solve challenges. It offers over 360 levels across 8 worlds with a focus on spatial reasoning and problem-solving. Enjoy a relaxing experience with a soothing soundtrack.

Highlights
  • Nested block sliding mechanics
  • Over 360 original levels
  • 8 distinct game worlds
  • Optional hint system
  • Soothing piano soundtrack
  • Compact 4x4 grid gameplay
Read full description

Shells is a geometry puzzle game about the elegance of nested pieces on a tiny board. Slide your block into larger shells to rearrange the board and find your way out! Features: - Simple core mechanics and deep emergent complexity packed into a compact 4x4 grid. Train your brain by challenging your problem solving and spatial reasoning skills! - Gradual difficulty curve featuring over 360 original levels spread across 8 distinct worlds. - Flexible progression structure with multiple levels to choose from at any given point. - Adjust the difficulty to your liking with the optional hint system! - Soothing piano soundtrack accompanied by relaxing sound effects and backgrounds.

Screenshots

Leon's Mahjong4 screens
Shells4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Shells at Free against Leon's Mahjong's $0.99. Shells also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.5) and update cadence (weekly vs every 4 weeks). Leon's Mahjong's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and ads (none vs shown). On 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

Shells is free to download; Leon's Mahjong costs $0.99 up front. Shells sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Leon's Mahjong asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Shells holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 68 and 22 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 83% of Leon's Mahjong's written reviews are positive against 100% of Shells's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Leon's Mahjong ships an update every 4 weeks, Shells weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 11, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard10 real differences · 1 level
Leon's Mahjong versus Shells: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLeon's MahjongShells
Price$0.99Free — better
Rating4.5 (68 ratings)5.0 (22 ratings) — better
Positive reviews83.3% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings68 — better22
Update frequencyEvery 4 weeksWeekly — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#41 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size296 MB102 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLucas Dimaarlybird games LLC

Customer experience

Leon's Mahjong

All ratings68 ratings
Positive89.7%
Neutral1.5%
Negative8.8%
Written reviews84 reviews
Positive83.3%
Neutral4.8%
Negative11.9%

Shells

All ratings22 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews11 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Leon's Mahjong

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

Shells

One-time4
  • Small Bundle$0.99
  • Medium Bundle$1.99
  • Large Bundle$3.99
Show 1 more
  • Unlimited Bundle$8.99

Questions

Is Leon's Mahjong free?
Leon's Mahjong costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Shells free?
Shells is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Leon's Mahjong or Shells?
Shells is rated higher. Leon's Mahjong averages 4.5 out of 5 from 68 ratings, while Shells averages 5.0 from 22 ratings.
Do Leon's Mahjong or Shells have ads?
Shells shows ads; Leon's Mahjong does not.
Which is updated more often, Leon's Mahjong or Shells?
Leon's Mahjong ships an update every 4 weeks, and Shells weekly. Most recently, Leon's Mahjong was updated on September 23, 2026 and Shells on September 11, 2026.

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