Comparison

NellCatch vs Tanabata Monogatari

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

Head to head
About

NellCatch

Features
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The casual game with easy action of the Nell series is now available. Catch the falling items with Nell. Let's try count 100 !

About

Tanabata Monogatari

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Perfect for Tanabata, the Japanese star festival on July 7! On this night, families write wishes on strips of paper and hang them on bamboo. The festival comes from an old legend: Orihime and Hikoboshi, two stars separated by the Milky Way, are allowed to meet only once a year, when magpies gather to form a bridge across the sky. In this game, parents and children live that legend together. Note: the game's text is in Japanese (simple hiragana for young children). Play is one tap and needs no reading, so families anywhere can enjoy it, and it is a lovely way to share a Japanese festival. โ–  Work, then run Tap anywhere to complete four little chores, one at a time. Each tap shows your progress: a new row of cloth, a new sprout, one more stitch, a little more water in the bucket. When the work is done, the magpies become a bridge and the run begins. โ–  Easy to play Tap to jump over gaps and obstacles. That's it! โ–  Catch shooting stars Every star you catch brings everyone's wishes closer. Reach the goal and the two stars meet again, with a picture of their reunion (and a special one if you never fell). Then it's on to next year's Tanabata. โ–  Five ways to run - Easiest and Easy: short bridges for the littlest children - Hard: a longer bridge with tricky gaps - Heavy Rain: the biggest challenge, on a rainy night - Fireworks Night: the easy bridge under a festival sky โ–  More to enjoy - Golden shooting stars: jump high to catch them for extra wishes - A magpie rescue if you fall, once per run - A "Perfect!" badge for reaching the goal without falling - A wish collection with 101 wishes, plus wishes you write yourself โ–  For parents - The game's text is Japanese. Menus are short, and the pictures show what to do. - A run takes about 10 to 30 seconds. If your child falls, a magpie lifts them back up once; after a second fall, a soft "almost!" screen lets them try again. - Ads appear only outside play: a small banner on the title screen and sometimes a full-screen ad after tapping "Run again." No ads appear during the run. Ads are set to family-friendly content and are not personalized. You can skip the chores once a day for free, with no ad. - No in-app purchases. Game records are saved only on this device. Will Orihime and Hikoboshi meet again this year? Run across the Milky Way and make everyone's wishes come true.

Screenshots

NellCatch2 screens
Tanabata Monogatari4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: NellCatch at every 2 weeks against Tanabata Monogatari's every 2 months. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

NellCatch ships an update every 2 weeks, Tanabata Monogatari every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference ยท 5 level
NellCatch versus Tanabata Monogatari: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNellCatchTanabata Monogatari
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks โ€” betterEvery 2 months
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPad โ€” betteriPhone
Requires iOS16.0 โ€” better17.0
Further details โ€” not scored
Size250 MB85 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNaoya SakaiKentaro Miura

In-app purchases

None

NellCatch

No in-app purchases

None

Tanabata Monogatari

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is NellCatch free?
NellCatch is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Tanabata Monogatari free?
Tanabata Monogatari is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do NellCatch or Tanabata Monogatari have ads?
Both NellCatch and Tanabata Monogatari show ads.
Which is updated more often, NellCatch or Tanabata Monogatari?
NellCatch ships an update every 2 weeks, and Tanabata Monogatari every 2 months. Most recently, NellCatch was updated on November 4, 2026 and Tanabata Monogatari on October 31, 2026.

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