Comparison

Pocket Oasis vs Holy Mackerel

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

Head to head
About

Pocket Oasis

Cultivate a serene virtual garden on your own balcony. Choose from a variety of plants and decorations to create a personalized oasis, influenced by real-world weather and climate data. Enjoy casual gameplay and unlock pets to join your tranquil space.

Highlights
  • Hand-painted 2.5D balcony simulation
  • Decorate 3 balconies in global cities
  • 36 unlockable plants with harvestable fruit
  • Name and repot plants with unlockable pots
  • 36 bespoke decorations
  • Day/night cycle impacting plant stats
  • Real-world weather and climate data
Features
Read full description

Gardening is one of life’s simplest pleasures, and there are few things more satisfying than watching a plant grow from a tiny seedling to a blooming plant. Pocket Oasis brings that joy to life in a beautiful, hand-painted world. Take a deep, relaxing breath and step out onto your very own balcony in a city of your choice. Choose from a wide variety of plants and decorations as you build your own little pocket oasis. Game Features - Relax in a hand crafted 2.5D balcony simulation with casual gameplay to unwind - Decorate 3 balconies in stunning cities around the world with hand-painted watercolors - 36 plants to unlock each with their own fruit to grow, harvest, and turn into jam - Name and repot your plants with up to 36 unlockable pots - 36 bespoke decorations to give each balcony a personal touch - A day and night cycle that impacts plant stats - Real-life geographical, weather, and climate data backend Plants Design a garden that’s entirely your own - With a wide selection of fruit bushes, vegetables and herbs, you have complete control over what you choose to grow in your garden. Decorate your balcony as you see fit - this is your little oasis. Harvest Fruit Transform your balcony into a true masterpiece with vibrant colours and deliciously drawn fruit. Pets Unlock up to 20 of your very own pets to roam around on your balcony. Cities Discover gardens around the globe - Grow sunflowers in Switzerland, roses in Rome, or figs in France - explore cities across Europe. Weather Influenced by real-life weather - Pocket Oasis takes data from the real world and brings it into the game, mirroring the weather and seasons of each city with its real-life counterpart. Hand Painted Beautiful, hand-painted water colours - Every flower, creature, object and backdrop has been carefully painted by hand. Audio Original scoring from composer Tom Jensen.

About

Holy Mackerel

Embark on a pixel art fishing adventure across diverse biomes. Master timing-based mechanics, upgrade gear, and discover unique fish, including the legendary Holy Mackerel. Engage with charming NPCs and enjoy a stylized, cartoonish world.

Highlights
  • Retro pixel art graphics
  • Explore diverse biomes
  • Unique fish in each biome
  • Timing-based fishing mechanics
  • Gear upgrades
  • Unlock new biomes
  • Interact with NPCs
Features
Read full description

Experience the world of Holy Mackerel, a unique mobile fishing game with retro-inspired pixel art. Explore a variety of biomes, each with its own set of unique fish. Master the timing and strategy of the constant-motion fishing mechanics as you unlock new biomes, upgrade your gear, and search for the infamous Holy Mackerel, the most famed fish in town! Meet interesting NPCs who own the shops, and enjoy the playful, cartoonish visuals that bring the world to life. Whether you're into strategic fishing or just want a fun, stylised game, Holy Mackerel is your next adventure!

Screenshots

Pocket Oasis4 screens
Holy Mackerel4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Holy Mackerel at 100% against Pocket Oasis's 58%. Holy Mackerel also leads on rating (4.5 vs 4.2). Pocket Oasis's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). On price, ratings volume, update cadence 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Pocket Oasis sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Holy Mackerel 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

Holy Mackerel holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 6 and 13 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 58% of Pocket Oasis's written reviews are positive against 100% of Holy Mackerel's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Pocket Oasis ships an update every 3 weeks, Holy Mackerel fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Pocket Oasis versus Holy Mackerel: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPocket OasisHoly Mackerel
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (6 ratings)4.5 (13 ratings) — better
Positive reviews58.3% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings613 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksFortnightly — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.0 — better13.0
Further details — not scored
Size731 MB174 MB
Age rating4+9+
Developerknit'n'purl game studio LLCKate Young

Customer experience

Pocket Oasis

All ratings5 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative20.0%
Written reviews12 reviews
Positive58.3%
Neutral25.0%
Negative16.7%

Holy Mackerel

All ratings13 ratings
Positive92.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative7.7%
Written reviews31 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Pocket Oasis

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Holy Mackerel

Reported bugs

1 issue
  • Couple of glitches

Requested features

7 requests
  • Add an aquarium for passive income (like fish ponds)
  • Add an inventory space to keep fish
  • Allow players to choose which fish to sell
  • A little fish zoo to keep fish in
  • Fish hat cosmetic item
Show 2 more
  • More games from the developer
  • More levels

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Pocket Oasis

One-time1
  • Unlock Full Game$0.99
10 purchases

Holy Mackerel

One-time10
  • Supporters pt1$0.49
  • Supporters pt2$0.49
  • Supporters pt3$0.49
Show 7 more
  • Supporters pt4$0.49
  • Its Alive$2.99
  • Sun, Surf & Style Pack$2.99
  • Speed Tackle Bundle$3.99
  • Xmas 2024 Hat + Boat Pack$3.99
  • Plunders Pack$5.99
  • Bucket Full Of Clams$5.99

Questions

Is Pocket Oasis free?
Pocket Oasis is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Holy Mackerel free?
Holy Mackerel is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Pocket Oasis or Holy Mackerel?
Holy Mackerel is rated higher. Pocket Oasis averages 4.2 out of 5 from 6 ratings, while Holy Mackerel averages 4.5 from 13 ratings.
Do Pocket Oasis or Holy Mackerel have ads?
Holy Mackerel shows ads; Pocket Oasis does not.
Which is updated more often, Pocket Oasis or Holy Mackerel?
Pocket Oasis ships an update every 3 weeks, and Holy Mackerel fortnightly. Most recently, Pocket Oasis was updated on November 4, 2026 and Holy Mackerel on November 5, 2026.

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