Comparison

CipherStreet vs Asticus

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

Head to head
About

CipherStreet

Engage in a story-driven puzzle game where each level presents a real cryptographic cipher. Decode messages using in-game tools and unravel a cold-war spy thriller. Learn foundational cryptography concepts through interactive gameplay without formal instruction.

Highlights
  • Story-driven spy thriller narrative
  • Real cryptographic ciphers
  • Learn by doing gameplay
  • Offline play
  • Build and share custom puzzles
  • No punishing fail states
Features
Read full description

CipherStreet is a story-driven puzzle game where every level is a real cryptographic cipher - from Caesar shifts to RSA public keys - wrapped in a cold-war spy thriller. Intercept encoded messages. Decode them with on-screen tools you discover, not tutorials you sit through. Unlock fragments of a decades-spanning conspiracy with every cipher you crack. By the end of ten chapters you'll have genuinely internalised the foundations of modern cryptography - roughly the first four weeks of a university course — without a single lecture. THE STORY A defector known only as The Architect has built a private intelligence network hidden inside ever more sophisticated ciphers. Your handler, Agent Kovács, sends each intercept with minimal context and maximum urgency. A mole. A missing codebook. A name that keeps reappearing across fifty years. Crack the codes before dawn. TEN CHAPTERS, TEN REAL CIPHERS • Caesar cipher: frequency analysis • Vigenère: the pattern inside the pattern • Rail Fence: transposition • Enigma (simplified): the crib attack that broke a war • Playfair: grid geometry • One-Time Pad: the perfect, unbreakable lock • Diffie-Hellman: sharing a secret in public • RSA: math as a lock • Hash functions: integrity, not secrecy • Steganography: messages hidden in plain sight WHAT MAKES IT DIFFERENT • Learn by doing: tools are discovered through play, never explained at you • Real, historically accurate cryptography, all running offline on your device • A genuine spy narrative with characters, twists, and a finale that recasts everything • No punishing fail states: get a cipher wrong and the story simply waits • Build and share your own encrypted intercepts; challenge friends to crack them FREE TO START Chapters 1–2 are completely free, no account required. A single one-time purchase unlocks chapters 3–10 and every cipher type in the Builder. No ads. No subscriptions. No tracking. The cipher is never the weakest link. The human always is.

About

Asticus

Features
Read full description

A fresh murder mystery every time you play. Asticus drops you into a real city where a murder has just occurred. Interview suspects, visit crime scenes, examine evidence, and piece together what happened. Every case is generated by AI, so no two games are ever the same. Interrogate suspects in real-time conversations Ask anything you want. Suspects respond naturally, each with their own personality, secrets, and agenda. Some will help. Some will lie. It's up to you to tell the difference. Investigate real locations around the world. Each mystery is set in a real city — from Amsterdam to Buenos Aires, Chicago to Istanbul. Visit landmarks, examine physical evidence, and connect the dots between people and places. Build your case from the ground up. Track suspect timelines. Spot contradictions. Cross-reference alibis with physical evidence. When you're ready, make your arrest — but you'd better be sure. Key features - AI-generated mysteries set in real cities worldwide - Open-ended suspect interviews — ask whatever you want - Physical evidence and crime scene investigation - Multiple suspects with interconnected stories - No two cases are ever the same

Screenshots

CipherStreet4 screens
Asticus4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Asticus at none against CipherStreet's 1. Asticus also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 16.4). On price, ads 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

Both are free to download. CipherStreet sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Asticus asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
CipherStreet versus Asticus: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCipherStreetAsticus
PriceFreeFree
Rating1.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequency—Every 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.413.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size115 MB25 MB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperDenys PopovMensah Software Ltd

In-app purchases

1 purchases

CipherStreet

One-time1
  • Full Unlock — All Chapters$4.99
None

Asticus

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is CipherStreet free?
CipherStreet is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Asticus free?
Asticus is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do CipherStreet or Asticus have ads?
Neither CipherStreet nor Asticus shows ads.

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