Comparison

Playdead's LIMBO vs Dead Cells

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

Head to head
About

Playdead's LIMBO

Embark on a captivating puzzle adventure in a dark, misty world. This award-winning indie game is renowned for its immersive atmosphere, haunting narrative, and ingenious puzzle design that will challenge and enthrall you.

Highlights
  • Captivating puzzle design
  • Immersive sound and visuals
  • Dark, misty environments
  • Haunting narrative
  • Critically acclaimed
  • Award-winning indie adventure
Features
Read full description

Limbo is an award-winning indie adventure, critically acclaimed for its captivating puzzle design and immersive sound and visuals. Its dark, misty spaces and haunting narrative will stay with you forever. Apple Design Award Winner. What the press said: "Limbo is as close to perfect at what it does as a game can get." Destructoid – 10/10 "The game is a masterpiece." Giant Bomb – 5/5 "Limbo is genius. Freaky, weird genius. Disturbing, uncomfortable genius." The Escapist – 5/5 "Dark, disturbing, yet eerily beautiful, Limbo is a world that deserves to be explored." Joystiq – 5/5 Winner of more than 100 awards, including: - Best Downloadable (Gameinformer) - Best Puzzle Game (Gamespot) - The Best Indie Game (Kotaku) - Digital Game of the Year (GameReactor) - Best Horror Game (IGN) - Best Visual Arts (Game Developers Choice Awards) - Technical Excellence (Independent Games Festival) - Adventure Game of the Year (D.I.C.E. Awards) - Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design (D.I.C.E. Awards)

About

Dead Cells

Explore a sprawling, ever-changing castle as a failed alchemic experiment. Master frantic 2D combat with a variety of weapons and skills against dangerous foes. Death is not the end; learn from each attempt to progress through this roguevania action platformer.

Highlights
  • Roguevania exploration
  • Frantic 2D action combat
  • Nonlinear progression
  • Permadeath with learning
  • Unlockable weapons and skills
  • DLC content packs
Read full description

Death is not the end. Play as a failed alchemic experiment and explore the sprawling, ever-changing castle to find out what happened on this gloomy island…! That is, assuming you’re able to fight your way past its keepers. Dead Cells is a roguevania action platformer that will require you to master frantic 2D combat with a wide variety of weapons and skills against merciless minions and boss. Kill. Die. Learn. Repeat. First available on PC and consoles, the indie hit Dead Cells is now slaying foes on mobile! Main Features • Roguevania: The progressive exploration of an interconnected world, with the replayability of a rogue-lite and the adrenaline-pumping threat of permadeath • Frantic and Dynamic 2D Action: Learn your enemies’ patterns to stay alive, or prepare to be sent back to your cell before you can say “baguette” • Nonlinear Progression: Unlock new levels with every death, opt for the path that suits your current build, your playstyle or just your mood. Surely, the ramparts can’t be as bad as the sewers, right? • Play at your own pace: Will you explore every nook and cranny of the castle, or rush to the end? *Latest updates are available: Clean Cut & The End is Near* RETURN TO CASTLEVANIA DLC Time for some vampire slaying • New storyline - overcome the Ruler of Darkness alongside Alucard and Richter Belmont, • 2 new biomes - Explore Dracula's Castle and its outskirts • 9 new monsters - Werewolves, haunted armors, and medusas are waiting for you • 14 new weapons - wield the Vampire Killer or the Holy Water to defeat creatures of the night, • 3 new bosses - go fangs to fangs against Death and Dracula himself • 20 new outfits - dress as your favorite Castlevania characters such as Simon and Richter Belmont or Alucard • Alternative soundtracks - play along 51 Castlevania original tracks and 12 tunes reimagined in the style of Dead Cells THE BAD SEED DLC You reap what you sow • New levels to lose your head in the not-so-peaceful Dilapidated Arboretum and the noxious Morass of the Banished • New monsters to rip to pieces: get to know the locals, such as the Jerkshroom and the Yeeter • New weapons to play with: trim sticking-out heads with the Scythe Claw, or make them dance to the sound of the Rhythm n' Bouzouki • New boss to fight against: Mama Tick is dying to meet you FATAL FALLS DLC Ready for a leap of faith? • 3 new biomes - Get some fresh air at the Fractured Shrines, splash around at the Undying Shores and take a picture at the Mausoleum • 8 new monsters - The Cold Blooded Guardians and their friends would love to teach you about their culture. ... Wait, aren't those relatives of yours in the Undying Shores...? • 7 new weapons - Lil' Serenade is perfect for breaking the ice with the locals, although the Snake Fangs would make for a perfect souvenir... • 1 new boss - The Scarecrow is very proud of his gardening skills and won't hesitate to show off QUEEN AND THE SEA DLC Take it to the sea! • 2 new biomes - Battle your way through a rotten shipwreck, or scale a burning lighthouse and confront your deadliest foe yet. • 9 new weapons, including a throwable shark, a trident and a pirate hook hand (eyepatch not included). • 2 new bosses - Don't lose your head before you meet the Queen! This DLC also gives you the usual extras: - A not-so-cute pet. - Loads of new outfits. - New enemies to bash. WARNING: Devices with less than 2 Gb of RAM may not be able to run this content correctly. We recommend not to take this DLC if your device is under 2gb of RAM. Carefully redesigned for mobile with a revamped interface • Two game modes available: Original & Auto-Hit • Custom controls & More touch controls options available: Change the buttons’ position and size to your liking, swipe to dodge… • MFi external controller support • No ads, no F2P mechanics! If you run into a problem, please contact us at support@playdigious.mail.helpshift.com with as much information as possible on the issue.

Screenshots

Playdead's LIMBO4 screens
Dead Cells4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Playdead's LIMBO at none against Dead Cells's 4. Playdead's LIMBO also leads on price ($3.99 vs $8.99) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15). Dead Cells's advantage is review sentiment (88% vs 69%) and rating (4.8 vs 4.6). On update cadence, ads, chart position 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

Playdead's LIMBO costs $3.99 and Dead Cells $8.99 up front. Dead Cells sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Playdead's LIMBO asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Dead Cells holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2.7K and 12K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 69% of Playdead's LIMBO's written reviews are positive against 88% of Dead Cells's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Playdead's LIMBO ships an update every 3 months, Dead Cells every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Playdead's LIMBO versus Dead Cells: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPlaydead's LIMBODead Cells
Price$3.99 — better$8.99
Rating4.6 (2.7K ratings)4.8 (12K ratings) — better
Positive reviews69.3% of reviews88.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2.7K12K — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#27#14 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — better
Requires iOS13.0 — better15
Further details — not scored
Size135 MB1.8 GB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperPlaydeadPlaydigious

Customer experience

Playdead's LIMBO

All ratings2,656 ratings
Positive88.5%
Neutral4.0%
Negative7.5%
Written reviews433 reviews
Positive69.3%
Neutral9.7%
Negative21.0%

Dead Cells

All ratings12,331 ratings
Positive95.6%
Neutral1.5%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews1,789 reviews
Positive88.5%
Neutral3.6%
Negative7.9%

User reviews

Playdead's LIMBO

From 2.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🌟 Excellent game
  • 🎨 Beautiful graphics and atmosphere
  • 🧠 Challenging puzzles
  • 🤖 Unique and immersive gameplay
  • 💰 Worth the money

Room to improve

  • 🕹️ Frustrating controls
  • 🕷️ Disturbing/creepy content
  • 🕰️ Puzzles too difficult at times
  • 🔁 Repetitive gameplay
  • 🧭 Unsatisfying ending

Dead Cells

From 12K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Smooth gameplay
  • 👍 Excellent controls
  • 💎 High-quality graphics
  • 🎮 Great controller support
  • 🔥 Addictive and challenging

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Audio glitches and bugs
  • 🤔 Lack of custom mode
  • 📱 Finicky touch controls
  • 🔇 No background music support

Bugs and requests

Playdead's LIMBO

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes on certain devices
  • Sound issues or missing audio
  • Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions

Requested features

4 requests
  • More levels or a sequel
  • Improved controls and responsiveness
  • Difficulty options or hints
  • Cloud save support across devices

Dead Cells

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Saves not compatible across platforms
  • Texture and graphical issues on some devices
  • Persistent memory leaks causing performance drops

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add Chinese language support
  • Implement cross-save functionality
  • Introduce online multiplayer mode
  • Optimize for older devices

In-app purchases

None

Playdead's LIMBO

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

Dead Cells

One-time4
  • The Bad Seed$3.99
  • Fatal Falls$3.99
  • The Queen and the Sea$3.99
Show 1 more
  • Return to Castlevania$6.99

Questions

Is Playdead's LIMBO free?
Playdead's LIMBO costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Dead Cells free?
Dead Cells costs $8.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Playdead's LIMBO or Dead Cells?
Dead Cells is rated higher. Playdead's LIMBO averages 4.6 out of 5 from 2.7K ratings, while Dead Cells averages 4.8 from 12K ratings.
Do Playdead's LIMBO or Dead Cells have ads?
Neither Playdead's LIMBO nor Dead Cells shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Playdead's LIMBO or Dead Cells?
Playdead's LIMBO ships an update every 3 months, and Dead Cells every 2 months. Most recently, Playdead's LIMBO was updated on October 29, 2026 and Dead Cells on October 31, 2026.
Which is more popular, Playdead's LIMBO or Dead Cells?
Playdead's LIMBO currently peaks at #27 in the App Store charts, and Dead Cells at #14. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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