Rickface vs Playpen
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Rickface
This app provides instant emotional feedback from a virtual character. Simply shake your device to receive an answer to your thoughts or feelings. It's designed to be a constant companion for emotional support.
- Instant emotional feedback
- Shake-to-answer mechanic
- Pocket companion
- Emotional support
- Simple interface
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When you just don't know how to feel... now you can ask Rick! Rick always knows how to feel. Just ask him and shake your phone. Rick is a constant pocket companion, no matter what life brings. Just think of something, give a shake... and see how Rick feels about it.
Playpen
This app helps parents keep children entertained with pre-approved activities, preventing access to the full device. It allows parents to select specific content like YouTube videos or photo albums, ensuring a safe and engaging experience for kids and peace of mind for adults.
- Curated child-friendly activities
- Restricted access to device features
- Pre-approved YouTube videos
- Access to specific photo albums
- Interactive animal sounds
- Apple Watch control
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An app to help parents keep their kids entertained without allowing them to rifle through their devices. Made by a parent for other parents. By giving kids access to pre-approved activities, Playpen gives parents a well-earned break safe in the knowledge that their little ones are entertained. — WHAT IS PLAYPEN Playpen is an app created by a father who found that simply giving their kid an iPhone locked to an app with Guided Access* wasn't enough. Kids soon get bored of playing the same game or looking at the same photos, and sometimes giving them unfettered access to YouTube isn't something parents want to do. Playpen is the answer. With Playpen, parents can configure which activities they want to allow their kids to access and then enter Guided Access mode. That way, they don't get bored and parents have peace of mind because they know exactly what their child is doing. Activities available to kids via Playpen include being able to take photos, look at photo libraries, watch YouTube videos, and more: - Access to the selfie camera, but not your entire Photo Library - Preconfigured YouTube videos but without access to the wider YouTube library of content - The ability to view specific photo albums without the ability to edit them - Listen to multiple interactive and cute animal sounds Playpen will automatically start an activity whenever Guided Access mode is enabled as well, making it super easy to get up and running when parents need it. Even better, Playpen supports parents' Apple Watches, so they can control the activities that kids are using without having to take the iPhone or iPad away. *Guided Access is an iPhone and iPad feature that locks devices to a single app with a special sequence of button presses and a passcode required to unlock. — WHO IS PLAYPEN FOR? Playpen is for parents of kids who need to be entertained on long car drives, while waiting for a meal in a restaurant, or anywhere else. As parents, we've all been in situations where our kids are bored and need a little extra stimulation and Playpen is an app that offers that in a way that ensures not only are our kids safe, but so are our devices as well. Giving kids access to iPhones and iPads, often that are used for work, can be problematic. That's no longer a concern when using Playpen. People who could benefit from using Playpen include: - Parents stuck in line with a child who is becoming restless - Anyone who's been on a long car journey with a child who keeps asking "are we there yet?" - Parents who would normally give their iPhone to a child to entertain them but worry that they'll go snooping through their work emails - Any parent, with any child, who just needs some peace! https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Rickface at none against Playpen's 3. Playpen's advantage is update cadence (every 6 days vs every 3 weeks) and device support (4 vs 2). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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. Playpen sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Rickface asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Rickface against 5.0 for Playpen. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 3 respectively.
Rickface ships an update every 3 weeks, Playpen every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on August 23, 2026 and September 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Rickface | Playpen |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (2 ratings) | 5.0 (3 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 2 | 3 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 6 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 123 MB | 18 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Charlie Williams | Josh Holtz |
Customer experience
Rickface
Playpen
In-app purchases
Rickface
No in-app purchases
Playpen
- Plus Monthly3 Days trial$1.991 Month
- Plus Annually3 Days trial$12.991 Year
- Plus Lifetime$39.99









