Basic Buddies vs Alchemist's Engine
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Basic Buddies
Experience a fast-paced arcade game focused on vertical descent and precision movement. Navigate a continuously generating world with unique challenges and unlockable content. Master timing and control to survive longer and achieve higher scores.
- Four unique game modes
- Endless vertically scrolling gameplay
- Responsive mobile controls
- Unlockable characters and customization
- Coin-based progression
- Designed for quick sessions
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Descend fast. Survive longer. Master the descent. This is a fast-paced arcade-style game built around vertical descent, precision movement, and split-second decision making. Each run drops you into a continuously generating world filled with platforms, hazards, and opportunities to push just a little farther. The game features four distinct game modes, each offering a different way to play — from endless, score-chasing runs to survival-style challenges that test how long you can last under pressure. Whether you’re aiming for a clean, focused descent or pushing yourself through increasingly intense encounters, every mode rewards timing, control, and momentum. Features: - Four unique game modes with different rules and challenges - Endless, vertically scrolling gameplay - Smooth, responsive controls built for mobile - Unlockable characters and visual customization - Coin-based progression and optional rewards - Designed for quick sessions and high replay value Easy to learn but difficult to master, this game is all about control, rhythm, and surviving the descent.
Alchemist's Engine
Tend to a dormant engine in a ruined world by gathering fuel, crafting resources, and researching upgrades. Forge golems to assist in your tasks as you explore a labyrinthine mine and uncover a forgotten story.
- Feed and stoke the engine
- Merge sparks on an alchemical table
- Forge and upgrade golems
- Research forgotten techniques
- Explore a seeded labyrinth
- Unravel the story
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A sleeping engine. A blasted world. Tend to the fire. Alchemist's Engine is an incremental, crafting & adventure game. ▸ FEED THE FIRE - gather fuel, stoke the engine, and keep its heart burning. ▸ MERGE THE SPARKS - pluck sparks from the embers and merge them on the alchemical table into ever-brighter tiers. ▸ RAISE YOUR WORKFORCE - forge golems of stone, quartz, and metal who gather, haul, and craft while you plan. Feed them back to the engine when you outgrow them. ▸ GROW YOUR POWER - smelt bronze and steel, research forgotten techniques, and upgrade the engine from a cold firebox into a towering machine. ▸ DESCEND - torch by torch, explore a seeded labyrinth of mines: crystal chambers, sunken temples, flooded galleries, and stranger rooms the deeper you go. ▸ UNRAVEL THE STORY - cold hearths, sibling machines, and a sealed gate that has waited a very long time for you.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Alchemist's Engine at none against Basic Buddies's 5. Alchemist's Engine also leads on ratings volume (8 vs 1) and iOS requirement (16.0 vs 26.0). On price, rating, review sentiment and update cadence 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
Both are free to download. Basic Buddies sells 5 one-off in-app purchases. Alchemist's Engine asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Basic Buddies against 5.0 for Alchemist's Engine. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Alchemist's Engine has 8 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.
Basic Buddies ships an update weekly, Alchemist's Engine every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Basic Buddies | Alchemist's Engine |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (1 ratings) | 5.0 (8 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 1 | 8 — better |
| Update frequency | Weekly | Every 4 days — better |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Ad-supported — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | 16.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 52 MB | 9 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 9+ |
| Developer | Andrew Hoffart | Just Software LLC |
Customer experience
Basic Buddies
Alchemist's Engine
In-app purchases
Basic Buddies
- Small Coin Pack (100 Coins)$0.99
- Medium Coin Pack (500 Coins)$2.99
- Premium Upgrade (No Ads)$3.99
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- Large Coin Pack (1,500 Coins)$4.99
- Epic Coin Pack (5,000 Coins)$9.99
Alchemist's Engine
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Basic Buddies free?
Is Alchemist's Engine free?
Which has better reviews, Basic Buddies or Alchemist's Engine?
Do Basic Buddies or Alchemist's Engine have ads?
Which is updated more often, Basic Buddies or Alchemist's Engine?
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