Criminal Case vs Backyard Hunt
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Criminal Case
Engage in a captivating detective adventure by investigating crime scenes, gathering clues, and interrogating suspects. Analyze evidence to uncover the truth and bring murderers to justice in a grim city. Prove your detective prowess in this immersive hidden object game.
- Investigate crime scenes
- Examine and analyze clues
- Interrogate witnesses and suspects
- Solve murder cases
- Play with friends
- Analyze evidence
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A murder has been reported in Grimsborough, Detective. Grab your badge — the Chief is waiting. Criminal Case is the original hidden object detective game: the award-winning phenomenon that has turned more than 100 million players into detectives since 2012. Search crime scenes for clues, examine the evidence, interrogate the suspects — and when the proof is solid, arrest the killer yourself. INVESTIGATE CRIME SCENES Every case starts at the scene of the crime. Search gorgeous hand-drawn locations for hidden objects and vital clues, race the clock for the best score, and earn the stars that move your investigation forward. RUN THE LAB Take your findings to the forensics team. Analyze samples, decode messages, reconstruct torn documents and match fingerprints. In Grimsborough, every detail talks — if you know how to listen. INTERROGATE THE SUSPECTS Bring witnesses and suspects in for questioning. Compare their statements with the facts, catch them lying, and profile your killer trait by trait until only one name is left. ARREST THE KILLER Most mystery games end when you find the last object. Criminal Case is where it gets serious: match the evidence to your suspects and put the right one behind bars. Get it wrong, and a killer walks free. ONE CITY. 56 CASES. ONE CONSPIRACY. From the smokestacks of the Industrial Area to the runways of the Airport, the six districts of Grimsborough hide 56 murder cases — and the deeper you dig, the clearer it becomes that they are all connected. THE ORIGINAL, SINCE 2012 Facebook Game of the Year 2013. More than 100 million detectives worldwide. The classic that defined crime investigation games on mobile — still updated, still free, still one of a kind. Played back in the day? Welcome back, partner. Jones kept your desk exactly as you left it. BETTER WITH FRIENDS Connect with your friends to team up on investigations, compare your detective skills on the leaderboards, and send each other energy and gifts. THE FIRST OF 8 SEASONS Grimsborough is where the saga begins. Once you have cleaned up this city, seven more seasons of Criminal Case are waiting for you — from Pacific Bay all the way to Paris. Criminal Case is free to play, with optional in-app purchases (you can disable these in your device settings). The optional Pizza subscription raises your energy bar to 170 and removes ads: 2.99 USD/week (or local equivalent) after a 3-day free trial, auto-renewing unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Terms of Service: https://prettysimplegames.com/legal/terms-of-service Privacy Policy: https://www.prettysimplegames.com/legal/privacy-policy The killer thinks they got away with it, Detective. Prove them wrong.
Backyard Hunt
Create and play custom QR code scavenger hunts for interactive adventures. Design hunts with various clue types and themes, then share them for real-world exploration and learning. Suitable for all ages and events, it encourages problem-solving and outdoor activity.
- Custom QR code scavenger hunts
- Themed templates or start from scratch
- Add custom clues, riddles, and tasks
- Print or share QR codes
- Solve clues to unlock next location
- Adjust clue difficulty for all ages
- Play solo or invite others
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Turn your backyard, home or classroom into a real-world adventure. Create a QR-code scavenger hunt, hide the clues and let the discovery begin. MAKE IT YOUR ADVENTURE Start with a themed hunt or build your own. Add riddles, math challenges, multiple-choice questions, photo tasks and clues that lead players from one hiding place to the next. Print your QR codes, place them around your space and bring your story to life. A LITTLE HELP WITH THE IDEAS Plan with Hunt Helper: choose a theme, the players and their ages, then review and edit the suggested adventure before saving it. You can also write every clue yourself. PLAY TOGETHER Play solo or host a multiplayer hunt. Share a QR join code with friends, family, classmates or party guests, follow their progress and see results on the leaderboard. LEARN THROUGH PLAY Mix movement, creativity and problem solving into birthdays, classroom activities, family gatherings and rainy-day games. Adapt your clues to your players and use familiar places indoors or outdoors. ROOM FOR EVERY ADVENTURE Enjoy layouts that adapt to iPhone and iPad in portrait and landscape, with support for the changing displays of iPhone Duo. TRY IT FIRST Explore the Demo Hunt to see how it works. Optional subscriptions unlock additional creation features and content; available plans and features are shown in the app. SAVE YOUR HUNTS Sign in with Apple, Google, Facebook or email to keep your account and hunts across devices. SUBSCRIPTIONS Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel your subscription in your Apple Account settings. Need a hand? Visit https://backyard-hunt.com/help Privacy Policy: https://backyard-hunt.com/privacy-policy Terms of Use: https://backyard-hunt.com/terms-and-conditions
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Backyard Hunt at none against Criminal Case's shown. Backyard Hunt also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 3 months). Criminal Case's advantage is chart position (#136 vs unranked). On price, review sentiment, 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
Both are free to download. Criminal Case sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 7 days and Backyard Hunt sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $8.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Criminal Case ships an update every 3 months, Backyard Hunt every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 10, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Criminal Case | Backyard Hunt |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (36K ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 59.9% of reviews | 66.7% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 36K — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | #136 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 132 MB | 133 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 9+ |
| Developer | Pretty Simple | R-DEV LIMITED |
Customer experience
Criminal Case
Backyard Hunt
Bugs and requests
Criminal Case
Reported bugs
3 issues- Inability to connect to Facebook and sync progress
- Disappearing energy and in-game items
- Freezing and crashing during gameplay
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to save energy and progress across sessions
- More efficient energy system and reduced wait times
- Improved customer support and communication
- Reduced reliance on ads and in-app purchases
Backyard Hunt
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Criminal Case
- Pizza3 Days trial$2.997 Days
- Instant Analysis$0.99
- Ham$0.99
- Instant Access$0.99
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- Instant Analysis$1.99
- Instant Analysis$2.99
- Pizza$2.99
- 1 Complete Meal$3.99
- 1 Burger$4.99
- 2 Burgers + 1 Free Orange Juice$9.99
Backyard Hunt
- Pro Monthly$8.991 Month
- Pro Annualy$89.991 Year
- Backyard Hunt Pro Lifetime$119.99
Questions
Is Criminal Case free?
Is Backyard Hunt free?
Do Criminal Case or Backyard Hunt have ads?
Which is updated more often, Criminal Case or Backyard Hunt?
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