Comparison

TinyMine Idle vs The Long Descent

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

Head to head
About

TinyMine Idle

An idle mining game where a tiny miner digs, hauls, and sells ore while you're away. Upgrade gear, unlock new zones, and complete mining goals. Everything can be earned through gameplay.

Highlights
  • Offline mining progression
  • Gear upgrades
  • Zone unlocking
  • Mining goals
  • No ads
  • No account required
Features
Read full description

I made this game for the quiet minutes. A tiny miner walks, digs, and hauls ore while you watch, and he keeps working after you close the app. You start on the Pebble Path with a stone pick and a small bag. Sell what he digs, buy him better gear, and open the way down. There are eighteen zones, and the last few take real patience to reach. Along the way you'll spot gems on the path, chase mining goals for every ore, and maybe, eventually, run out of mine. I'm digging more. Things I care about, so they're built in: • He mines while you're away, with a cap, so it stays a game and not a chore. • No ads. Ever. • No account, no sign-up, nothing collected. Your save lives on your phone. • Everything in the game can be earned by playing. The few purchases are shortcuts and tips, not walls. This is my first game. I built it alone: the pixel art, the cave sounds, the ore prices I argued with myself about for weeks. If something feels broken or unfair, tell me through the support page and I'll fix it. Thanks for giving the tiny miner a look.

About

The Long Descent

Embark on an idle deep-sea adventure, piloting an exploration probe to uncover the mystery of a silent ocean. Harvest energy, discover unique species, and upgrade your vessel as you descend through increasingly challenging zones. Enjoy offline progress and optional purchases to support development.

Highlights
  • Idle deep-sea exploration
  • Harvest energy and upgrade ship
  • Discover and catalogue species
  • Skippable reflex minigame
  • Offline progress
  • Fully painted world
Features
Read full description

The ocean went silent. You're being sent down to find out why. The Long Descent is an idle deep-sea odyssey: pilot the last exploration probe, harvest energy from the dark, and descend through 31 hand-written zones — from the sunlit shallows to places the sea itself doesn't talk about, and past them into a deep with no floor. DESCEND — Every zone multiplies your output and deepens the story. Your pressure hull must be re-certified at each boundary: reinforce the ship, watch it visibly armor up, and push past the wall. DISCOVER — Catalogue 93 painted deep-sea species, each with its own lore and passive bonus. Rare editions (Shiny → Abyssal) make every sighting a roll of the dice. DIVE — A skippable reflex minigame: steer by headlamp through painted mines and jellyfish for an energy burst. The deeper you go, the dimmer your light. REFIT — Surface, trade your depth for Cores, and descend again — permanently stronger. ◆ Fully painted world: ship, creatures, machines, story vistas ◆ Offline progress — your drones keep working while you're away ◆ Plays in minutes-a-day sips or long hauls; no energy timers on gameplay ◆ No forced ads, ever — every ad is a button you choose to press, and it pays you for pressing it ◆ No account, no server — your save lives on your device ◆ Analytics are opt-in, anonymous, and off until you say otherwise ◆ Optional Pearl bundles support development — the weekly featured bundle carries real bonus Pearls, and there are no fake sales here The road on the seabed is paved, straight, and older than the coastlines above. Who built a road down here? Descend and find out.

Screenshots

TinyMine Idle4 screens
The Long Descent4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: TinyMine Idle at 5.0 against The Long Descent's 4.5. TinyMine Idle also leads on ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (100% vs 69%). The Long Descent's advantage is ratings volume (29 vs 6). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. TinyMine Idle sells 3 one-off in-app purchases and The Long Descent sells 12 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

TinyMine Idle holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 6 and 29 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of TinyMine Idle's written reviews are positive against 69% of The Long Descent's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

TinyMine Idle ships an update every 5 days, The Long Descent every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
TinyMine Idle versus The Long Descent: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTinyMine IdleThe Long Descent
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (6 ratings) — better4.5 (29 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better69.2% of reviews
Number of ratings629 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 days — betterEvery 9 days
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size9 MB42 MB
Age rating4+9+
DeveloperChad McKerlieShai Ankori

Customer experience

TinyMine Idle

All ratings6 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

The Long Descent

All ratings29 ratings
Positive86.2%
Neutral3.4%
Negative10.3%
Written reviews13 reviews
Positive69.2%
Neutral7.7%
Negative23.1%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

TinyMine Idle

One-time3
  • Auto-sell Early Unlock$0.99
  • Supporter$2.99
  • Deluxe Supporter$4.99
12 purchases

The Long Descent

One-time12
  • 100 Pearls$0.99
  • Aurora Hull$1.99
  • Deep Start$2.99
Show 9 more
  • Remove Ads$3.99
  • Abyssal Engine$4.99
  • Pressure Vault Crack$4.99
  • Premium Season Track$4.99
  • 550 Pearls (+55 bonus)$4.99
  • Deep Permit$9.99
  • Pressure Vault Crack II$9.99
  • 1,200 Pearls (+240 bonus)$9.99
  • Pressure Vault Crack III$19.99

Questions

Is TinyMine Idle free?
TinyMine Idle is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is The Long Descent free?
The Long Descent is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, TinyMine Idle or The Long Descent?
TinyMine Idle is rated higher. TinyMine Idle averages 5.0 out of 5 from 6 ratings, while The Long Descent averages 4.5 from 29 ratings.
Do TinyMine Idle or The Long Descent have ads?
The Long Descent shows ads; TinyMine Idle does not.
Which is updated more often, TinyMine Idle or The Long Descent?
TinyMine Idle ships an update every 5 days, and The Long Descent every 9 days. Most recently, TinyMine Idle was updated on October 12, 2026 and The Long Descent on October 21, 2026.

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