John Barista vs Last Light
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
John Barista
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John has come back to the old family café. The key still sticks in the lock, the espresso machine remembers every mistake, and the people outside have not forgotten why he left. John Barista is a café game about precision, pressure and second chances. Take each guest's order, choose the right beans and grind, pull the espresso, steam the milk and finish the drink yourself. A rushed or careless cup can disappoint a regular; a thoughtful one may earn their trust. BEHIND EVERY ORDER IS A PERSON Meet a growing cast of regulars, learn their habits and listen when they are ready to talk. The Living Café adds 28 optional moments with three responses each, later callbacks and a personal memories notebook. Earn a drawing, a signed record sleeve or a finished tune through the story. Keep them in the café or honour a private moment. These keepsakes are earned, not purchased. MAKE THE DRINK, NOT JUST THE DECISION Grind and dose the beans, distribute and tamp the puck, control the extraction, steam milk to the requested temperature and pour the final pattern. Matcha and alternative milks introduce their own rhythm. Every stage contributes to the result. Rehearse espresso, flat white and matcha in Practice Studio without spending stock or changing your saved café. FIND YOUR SHIFT RHYTHM Move between the opening, the rush and a moment to breathe. Serve quality drinks and improve your personal shift record. Failed or mixed-up orders do not count. Compare your best quality shift with other players through optional Game Center. Reading pauses the shift so you can take your time with the story. REBUILD THE ROOM Spend in-game café earnings on upgrades and staff. Optional paid signature interiors change the look of the room, never your scores or story outcomes. FOLLOW JOHN'S STORY Across four in-game weeks, old family tensions, the Fire Demons and a changing city pull John beyond the daily routine. Discover a fuller conclusion, personal evening reflections and the small things your regulars remember. Returning players can catch up on missed new moments without restarting. Safe Replay lets you explore other responses without changing saved choices or earning rewards. Features: • Play in English or Spanish, with an in-app language selector • Hands-on espresso, milk, latte art and matcha preparation • A 28-day story with optional personal moments and lasting observations • Story keepsakes and a memories notebook • Practice Studio with station feedback and focused advice • Persistent personal records and an optional Game Center leaderboard • Café upgrades and optional staff support • Separate music, ambience, sound-effect and cup-haptic controls • Portrait play with a rain-soaked café atmosphere The first four story days are free. A one-time Full Game Unlock opens Days 5–28. Three optional non-consumable interior collections require the full game and are cosmetic only. Purchases & Restore is available from the opening screen. No subscriptions, advertising or purchasable virtual currency. Existing progress and purchases are retained when updating.
Last Light
Guide ships home by sweeping a lighthouse beam across the sea. Manage your lighthouse and village, upgrade your equipment, and experience dynamic weather. A relaxing idle game that respects your time.
- Drag lighthouse beam to guide ships
- Upgrade lighthouse and village
- Dynamic weather system
- Collect ship lore
- Offline progress up to 8 hours
- Home screen widget
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A cozy idle lighthouse game. Drag the beam across a black sea, and every ship it catches finds its way home. Free to play. Rewarded ads are always optional, and one purchase removes all other ads. You keep the only light on a dark coast. Ships come in out of the night, some quick, some heavy, some shy of the light. Put your finger on the sea and sweep the beam over them; the ones you light turn toward harbor, unload their cargo, and the village above the cliffs sells it for Coin. A NIGHT ON THE COAST Check in for two minutes to collect the night and queue an upgrade, or stay for a full sweep when a storm rolls in. Every night ends on a quiet summary: what you lit, what the rocks took, and tomorrow's forecast. WHAT YOU BUILD • A lighthouse that grows with you: lens for range, beam for width, a foghorn for the thick nights, a harbor with more berths. • A village of twelve buildings that lights up window by window and opens new branches of the tower. • A journal of 36 ships and visitors, each with a sketch and a few lines of lore. Some only come out in storms. • Three coasts. When one is fully lit, sail on to the next and keep a permanent bonus. WEATHER THAT CHANGES THE NIGHT Fog narrows the beam. Storms push ships toward the rocks. Calm nights bring double traffic. When a ship drifts toward the reef, a flare calls it home. Flares drop from storms you weather, you can buy them with Coin at the Harbor, and you can also get one by watching a short ad if you choose. MONSTER NIGHTS Every few nights the beam goes dark and the sea answers. Swipe to fire flares at what surfaces, from drifting wisps to the Fog Mother, and keep every window in the village lit. Each one you turn back joins the Bestiary in your journal. A GAME THAT RESPECTS YOUR TIME • No game over. A ship lost to the rocks costs its cargo and nothing more. • The coast keeps working while you are away, up to 8 hours. • A daily storm with a Game Center leaderboard, plus eight achievements. Game Center is optional. • A home screen widget that shows your next build, or the ships waiting for your light. • No account and no login. WHAT IS FOR SALE Everything in the game can be earned by playing. The optional purchases are: • Keeper's Charter (one time): no ads, 2 flares and 15% more Coin every night, 2x and 4x speed, and all three keeper skins. • Remove ads (one time): turns off the ads shown between nights. Rewarded ads stay available, and only play if you tap to watch one. • Fair Winds (one time): play every night at 2x or 4x speed. • Keeper skins (one time): the Lantern, Storm Coat and Festival looks for your lighthouse. Try them on the coast before you buy. • Single skins (one time each): Torii, Nordic, Spanish and Ghost Ship. • Starter chest (once per account): 300 Coin and the Lantern keeper skin. • Coin sacks: 100, 500 or 1,500 Coin. The Keeper's Charter, Remove ads, Fair Winds and Keeper skins support Family Sharing. Restore purchases is in the Harbor and in Settings. Ads are personalized only if you allow tracking when asked, and the game plays the same either way. Hushed, warm and weathered: a small light against a big sea. Privacy Policy: https://lastlight.devera.app/privacy Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: John Barista at none against Last Light's shown. John Barista also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs fortnightly). On price, in-app purchases, 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
Both are free to download. John Barista sells 4 one-off in-app purchases and Last Light sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
John Barista ships an update every 4 days, Last Light fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and November 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | John Barista | Last Light |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | — | 3.8 (11 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | — | 50.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | — | 11 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 4 days — better | Fortnightly |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | — | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 94 MB | 87 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Joachim Huveneers | Farzin Tavakoli |
In-app purchases
John Barista
- Midnight Brass Collection$2.99
- John Barista — Full Game$3.99
- The Old Record Room$3.99
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- Founder's Café Collection$6.99
Last Light
- Torii skin$0.99
- Spanish skin$0.99
- Nordic skin$0.99
Show 7 moreShow fewer
- Ghost Ship skin$0.99
- Starter chest$2.99
- Game Speed$2.99
- Remove ads$3.99
- Coin sack$3.99
- Keeper's Charter$6.99
- Large coin sack$9.99
Questions
Is John Barista free?
Is Last Light free?
Do John Barista or Last Light have ads?
Which is updated more often, John Barista or Last Light?
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