The Operator vs Crushed In Time
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
The Operator
Step into the role of an Operator for the FDI, solving complex cases like murders and cyber attacks. Utilize advanced software to analyze evidence, assist field agents, and uncover the truth behind mind-bending mysteries. Your ingenuity is key to bringing criminals to justice and making the world a safer place.
- Investigate diverse criminal cases
- Utilize cutting-edge FDI software
- Analyze evidence and find clues
- Assist field agents with fact-checking
- Uncover mind-bending stories
- Solve mysteries through deduction
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[ TRY BEFORE YOU BUY ] Welcome to the FDI, Mr Tanner. Time to clear your head, work through your hangover and start your first day as an Operator. There are plenty of cases to solve. Assist our field agents using your computer console and ingenuity to bring criminals to justice. Ready to make the world a better place? Investigate Crimes: Solve cases such as murders, missing people, and cyber attacks. Use FDI Software: Analyze evidence and find clues using cutting-edge tools. Dig Deeper: Follow the evidence as it twists and turns, no matter where it leads. Uncover the Truth: Each case is a mind-bending story to unravel, so take notes. Assist Our Field Agents When our field agents need support, they'll call you. Help them by fact-checking, searching databases, identifying killers, and more. Each case will have evidence to evaluate, and it's your job to dig into documents, connect the clues, and solve the mysteries. Cutting-Edge Software You have the finest FDI software to help with those challenging cases. Tap through the Video and Photo Analyzer, Citizen and Vehicle Database, ChemScan, Notepad and a fully functional Terminal at any point to find out what you need. In Truth, We Seek To find the truth, you must follow the evidence and see where it leads, no matter how unsettling. But don't poke into unauthorized areas without first notifying your superiors. FDI's Most Wanted WARNING: Any new information on the cyber criminal known as HAL should be reported to your supervisor immediately. For the safety of the general public and your fellow agents, please keep all evidence confidential. ///// TRUST NO ONE ///// [End Transmission]
Crushed In Time
Embark on a meta, time-traveling adventure with familiar detectives to solve a mystery within a game's development. This point-and-click game features humor, puzzles, and a unique story that breaks the fourth wall.
- Meta time-traveling story
- Point-and-click gameplay
- Humorous dialogue
- Character-driven puzzles
- Unique game development setting
- 2D/3D graphics
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Panic at the development studio! Just as the new Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson video game hit the market, one of its characters mysteriously went missing. After their memorable appearance in the non-game There Is No Game: Wrong Dimension, our extravagant investigators are back in their own adventure. Armed with their iconic ineptitude, they must solve a mystery that transcends the space-time boundaries of their world… But they won’t succeed without your help! Travel to the very heart of the game's creation and explore the various stages of its development to unravel the threads of this strange case. Welcome to a wildly elastic and infinitely meta experience! • Rediscover Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson, joined by a cast of new, endearing characters. • Dialogue recorded by real humans. All natural. Non-GMO and additive-free. • A completely meta story of time travel that will take you through the design stages of the game. • Chock-full of humor and surprises (and bugs, probably). • An offbeat point and click adventure offering fun and elastic gameplay. • Loads of puzzles that will require up to three neurons (we couldn’t keep up beyond that). • Beautiful 2D graphics. Sorry, I meant 3D… Hold on. Which one was it again?
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Crushed In Time at every 2 days against The Operator's every 10 days. The Operator's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and rating (4.9 vs 4.6). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases 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. The Operator sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Crushed In Time sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
The Operator holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: The Operator has 592 ratings behind it against 80, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 79% of The Operator's written reviews are positive against 81% of Crushed In Time's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
The Operator ships an update every 10 days, Crushed In Time every 2 days. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.
| Parameter | The Operator | Crushed In Time |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (592 ratings) — better | 4.6 (80 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 78.6% of reviews | 81.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 592 — better | 80 |
| Update frequency | Every 10 days | Every 2 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | #190 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 754 MB | 1.5 GB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Bureau 81 | Draw Me A Pixel |
Customer experience
The Operator
Crushed In Time
In-app purchases
The Operator
- Full Game$7.99
Crushed In Time
- Crushed In Time Full Game$6.99
Questions
Is The Operator free?
Is Crushed In Time free?
Which has better reviews, The Operator or Crushed In Time?
Do The Operator or Crushed In Time have ads?
Which is updated more often, The Operator or Crushed In Time?
Other comparisons
