A Dark Room vs DYSMANTLE
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
A Dark Room
Experience a minimalist text-based adventure where you must survive and build a community. This award-winning game offers a deep narrative and engaging gameplay without any in-app purchases or ads.
- Text-based survival gameplay
- Community building mechanics
- Minimalist interface
- VoiceOver playable
- No ads or in-app purchases
- Retro gaming feel
Read full descriptionHide full description
awake. head throbbing. vision blurry. the voices say to survive. - One of Apple's most downloaded apps of 2014. - Ranked in the top 10 games in 70 countries, #1 app overall in 7 countries. - No ads, no loot boxes, no IAP, no tracking. - 100% playable via VoiceOver. - Relive the glory days of gaming from the era of Zork.
DYSMANTLE
Explore a post-apocalyptic world after emerging from a shelter. Gather resources by breaking objects, fight or evade creatures, and build outposts. Craft weapons, farm, hunt, and solve puzzles to uncover the island's mysteries and escape.
- Break objects for materials
- Fight or evade creatures
- Explore open world
- Build outposts
- Craft weapons and tools
- Hunt and farm
- Solve puzzles
Read full descriptionHide full description
As you ascend from your shelter after the long long years, a brave new old world awaits you. A world inhabited with nasty and vile creatures. A world with no other human soul to be seen. A world with nature in reigns now. A world that's about to get even worse. You need to find a way to escape the wretched island. But before that, enjoy the bittersweet apocalypse. Features: * Break over 99% of all objects for materials with the right tools. No barrier will stop you. * Fight with (or run away) nasty and vile creatures of the post-apocalyptic era. * Explore the handcrafted open world and uncover its mysteries. * Survive. Clear areas of monsters and claim it as yours. * Build outposts to establish your presence. * Craft permanent weapons, tools, outfits, and trinkets. * Hunt various game or tame them for your post-apocalyptic zoo ranch. * Farm nutritious plants and reap the rewards as the crop gets ripe. * Solve puzzles above ground and underground in the Tombs of the Old Ones * Fish cunning scaly things under the watery surface. * Cook delicious recipes for permanent stat and ability upgrades. * Unravel the mysteries of the strange island.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: A Dark Room at $1.99 against DYSMANTLE's $9.99. A Dark Room also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3) and review sentiment (93% vs 75%). DYSMANTLE's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). On ads, chart position 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
A Dark Room costs $1.99 and DYSMANTLE $9.99 up front. DYSMANTLE sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. A Dark Room asks for nothing beyond the download.
A Dark Room holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: A Dark Room has 2.7K ratings behind it against 482, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 93% of A Dark Room's written reviews are positive against 75% of DYSMANTLE's.
A Dark Room ships an update every 2 months, DYSMANTLE every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 12, 2026 and November 11, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | A Dark Room | DYSMANTLE |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1.99 — better | $9.99 |
| Rating | 4.8 (2.7K ratings) — better | 4.6 (482 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 92.7% of reviews — better | 75.2% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 2.7K — better | 482 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Best chart rank | #29 — better | #42 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 103 MB | 905 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Amirali Rajan | 10tons Ltd |
Customer experience
A Dark Room
DYSMANTLE
Bugs and requests
A Dark Room
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
DYSMANTLE
Reported bugs
4 issues- Crashes when entering certain areas
- Audio issues like sound cutting out
- Progression-blocking bugs in DLC content
- Inconsistent controls and targeting system
Requested features
5 requests- Cloud save functionality
- More enemy and environmental variety
- Improved fast travel system
- Multiplayer co-op mode
- Ability to customize the player character
In-app purchases
A Dark Room
No in-app purchases
DYSMANTLE
- Pets & Dungeons$3.99
- Underworld$4.99
- Doomsday$4.99
