Comparison

Gambonanza vs Midnight Alibi

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

Head to head
About

Gambonanza

Experience a unique turn-based chess roguelike with a twist. Master tactical combos, invest winnings, and discover rule-bending abilities on a dynamic board. Face challenging bosses and explore endless strategic possibilities.

Highlights
  • Snackable, high-impact runs
  • 150+ rule-bending Gambits
  • Dynamic reserve system
  • Strategic board upgrades
  • Epic boss battles
  • Retro aesthetic and quirky ambiance
  • Mini-games for power boosts
Features
Read full description

Gambonanza is a turn-based chess roguelike set on a tiny board with huge stakes. Master tactical twists, invest your winnings, and discover rule-bending Gambits plus wild tile and piece combinations. Face off against challenging bosses and get lost in all the ways you can break traditional chess! But be careful, if you waste too many moves the board will crumble around you… FEATURES • Snackable, high-impact runs Play fast, punchy chess battles on smaller starting boards where every decision counts. • 150+ rule-bending Gambits Combine your chess pieces with Gambits to unlock devastating combos and strategic surprises. • Dynamic reserve system Store extra pieces off-board and deploy them at the perfect moment to swing the game. • Strategic board upgrades Enhance your chessboard with golden squares, blessing tiles, protective surfaces, and more! • Fight epic boss battles Take on big encounters that reward smart builds and punish strategic mistakes. • Retro aesthetic and quirky ambiance Immerse yourself in vibrant pixel art and the playful excitement of a fairground. • Mini-games for power boosts Test your luck and skill in challenges inspired by pachinko, slot machines, and Gachapon. WHY PLAY GAMBONANZA? Gambonanza takes the tactical clarity of chess and turns it into a roguelike playground: stack Gambits, sculpt the board, manage your reserves, and discover ridiculous combos that “shouldn’t work”… until they do. If you love smart strategy, replayable runs, and the thrill of breaking the rules (legally), this one’s for you. JOIN THE CHESS REVOLUTION! Download Gambonanza and start rewriting chess. ABOUT THE TEAM Gambonanza is developed by Blukulélé and published by Sidekick Publishing and Stray Fawn Publishing. Mobile Port by Ateo

About

Midnight Alibi

A logic puzzle game where you reconstruct a suspect's timeline to solve a murder. Deduce who was in the room at the time of death using testimonies and forensic evidence. Features multiple difficulty levels and daily cases.

Highlights
  • Reconstruct suspect timelines
  • Deduce killer through logic
  • Multiple difficulty levels
  • Daily free cases
  • Offline play
  • Cloud save functionality
Read full description

Every alibi is a clue. Midnight Alibi is a logic puzzle for people who like Sudoku and murder mysteries. Someone was killed tonight. Rebuild every suspect's night, hour by hour, until only one of them could have been in the room when the victim died. HOW IT PLAYS • The board is a timeline: each row is a suspect, each column is an hour, and each square is the room that suspect was in. • Like Sudoku, every suspect visits every room exactly once, and no two suspects share a room in the same hour. • Each suspect gives one testimony, and forensics add a little evidence. • The body was found in one room at the time of death. Whoever was there then is the killer. • On Hard and Expert, the killer's testimony is a lie. Find the one statement that can't be true. Every case can be solved by logic alone: no guessing, and exactly one answer. FOUR LEVELS • Easy: 4 suspects, one step at a time, with extra clues to help. • Medium: 5 suspects. Spot pairs of rooms and squares. • Hard: 5 suspects, one of them lying. • Expert: 6 suspects, one lying, and the hardest methods. Every case has a permanent number you can share, and a star rating for how hard it is within its level. IN THE CASEBOOK • A new case every day, free for everyone, and the same case for every player. • Hints that teach: a nudge first that names the method, then the answer with every step explained. • Hunches: pencil in the rooms a suspect might have been in, or rule rooms out. • Eighteen detective ranks, from Clue Hunter to Baker Street Detective. Each promotion opens a level, a challenge or a new look for your desk. • Four challenges, such as Against the Clock and One Shot. Every solve is judged on each one you've opened, and meeting any earns a bonus rank point. • A roomier board on iPad, with the testimony and evidence beside it when you turn it sideways. • Plays offline, with no account needed. • Cloud Save with Game Center backs up your case history and shares it between your iPhone and iPad. You can turn it off in Settings. • No ads. FREE TO START The first 10 cases of every level (40 in all) and today's case are free. Case Files: Volume 1, a one-time in-app purchase, unlocks the first 100 cases of every level, 400 in all, yours to keep. The Detective's Pass, a monthly or yearly subscription, opens Volume 1, every past daily case and a collection of Hard and Expert cases, for as long as it lasts. Hard and Expert open as you rise through the detective ranks, with or without a purchase. The Detective's Pass renews automatically unless you cancel it at least 24 hours before the end of the current period, in your Apple Account's subscriptions. Payment is charged to your Apple Account. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Gambonanza4 screens
Midnight Alibi4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Midnight Alibi at Free against Gambonanza's $5.99. Midnight Alibi also leads on update cadence (every 6 days vs every 3 weeks). Gambonanza's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and ratings volume (2.9K vs 2). On rating, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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

Midnight Alibi is free to download; Gambonanza costs $5.99 up front. Midnight Alibi sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Gambonanza asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for Gambonanza against 5.0 for Midnight Alibi. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Gambonanza has 2.9K ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Gambonanza ships an update every 3 weeks, Midnight Alibi every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on November 8, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Gambonanza versus Midnight Alibi: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGambonanzaMidnight Alibi
Price$5.99Free — better
Rating4.9 (2.9K ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews77.2% of reviews—
Number of ratings2.9K — better2
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 6 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#6 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size155 MB23 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperStray Fawn StudioBrandon Zweifel

Customer experience

Gambonanza

All ratings2,865 ratings
Positive97.3%
Neutral1.3%
Negative1.4%
Written reviews206 reviews
Positive77.2%
Neutral10.7%
Negative12.1%

Midnight Alibi

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Gambonanza

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Midnight Alibi

Subscriptions2
  • Detective's Pass, monthly$2.991 Month
  • Detective's Pass, yearly3 Days trial$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Case Files: Volume 1$4.99

Questions

Is Gambonanza free?
Gambonanza costs $5.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Midnight Alibi free?
Midnight Alibi is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Gambonanza or Midnight Alibi?
Midnight Alibi is rated higher. Gambonanza averages 4.9 out of 5 from 2.9K ratings, while Midnight Alibi averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Gambonanza or Midnight Alibi have ads?
Neither Gambonanza nor Midnight Alibi shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Gambonanza or Midnight Alibi?
Gambonanza ships an update every 3 weeks, and Midnight Alibi every 6 days. Most recently, Gambonanza was updated on November 8, 2026 and Midnight Alibi on October 31, 2026.

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