Comparison

Photo Brain vs Blackbox

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

Head to head
About

Photo Brain

This game challenges and enhances your photographic memory with increasingly difficult levels and time constraints. Test your recall abilities with sequences, numbers, and patterns.

Highlights
  • Tests photographic memory
  • Improves memory skills
  • Increasingly difficult levels
  • Extreme mode
  • Fast timing challenges
  • Classic mode
Features
Read full description

If you think your memory is good, then you have not yet tried this game. Tease your brain and put your memory game to a whole new level! Photo Brain is a game which not only tests but also improves your photographic memory. The current highest level played by us is 83. Can you beat that record? ◆At level 54: You have 0.25 seconds to recollect the number of green M&Ms from a pile of random ones! ◆At level 72: You have 0.2 seconds to remember a jumbled sequence of numbers and order them in ascending order based on location! ◆At level 83: We had 0.2 seconds to memorize a 10 digit phone number! Impossible? Mastered classic mode? Try EXTREME mode after level 25. Clear levels from an extremely fast timing clock, just pure memory no cheats no screenshots!!! If you like this game, comment on what level you are stuck on!

About

Blackbox

This puzzle game challenges you to solve intricate problems without touching the screen. It utilizes minimalistic visual cues, sonic interfaces, and haptic feedback to guide you through unique challenges that require thinking outside the box. Discover a new way to interact with your device and prove your cleverness.

Highlights
  • Touchless gameplay
  • Minimalistic visual clues
  • Sonic interfaces
  • Haptic feedback
  • External puzzle solving
  • Easter eggs
Features
Read full description

So you think you understand this thing you’re holding? Think again. Stop tapping. Stop swiping. In fact, stop touching the screen at all. To crack Blackbox’s puzzles you’ll need to find solitude and stillness, climb mountains, call on friends, get in tune with the cosmos, and think outside the box. Minimalistic visual clues make for incredibly satisfying “Aha!” moments, while sonic interfaces provide an extra level of guidance and nuance that makes Blackbox accessible with or without vision. Thoughtful haptic feedback, Easter eggs on Easter eggs, and solutions that can’t be found beneath the glass of your screen redefine what a puzzle can be. You’ll never see your device the same way again. Think you’re clever? Prove it. (Blackbox is a living game under active development by Ryan McLeod. When not eating burritos or drinking coffee, he’s busy designing and developing new Blackbox challenges.) ■

Screenshots

Photo Brain4 screens
Blackbox4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Blackbox at 4.8 against Photo Brain's 4.1. Blackbox also leads on ratings volume (109K vs 9) and update cadence (every 9 days vs every 2 months). Photo Brain's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and iOS requirement (6.0 vs 16.6). On price, ads 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Blackbox sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Photo Brain asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Blackbox holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Blackbox has 109K ratings behind it against 9, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 69% of Photo Brain's written reviews are positive against 93% of Blackbox's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Photo Brain ships an update every 2 months, Blackbox every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
Photo Brain versus Blackbox: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPhoto BrainBlackbox
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.1 (9 ratings)4.8 (109K ratings) — better
Positive reviews69.2% of reviews92.6% of reviews — better
Number of ratings9109K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 9 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank—#34 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS6.0 — better16.6
Further details — not scored
Size64 MB209 MB
Age rating4++4
DeveloperSweatyChair Pty. Ltd.Shapes and Stories LLC

Customer experience

Photo Brain

All ratings9 ratings
Positive88.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative11.1%
Written reviews13 reviews
Positive69.2%
Neutral0.0%
Negative30.8%

Blackbox

All ratings109,239 ratings
Positive95.7%
Neutral2.0%
Negative2.2%
Written reviews4,745 reviews
Positive92.6%
Neutral3.6%
Negative3.9%

Bugs and requests

Photo Brain

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Blackbox

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Hints not working as expected
  • Progress reset after app update

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add ability to earn hint credits through watching ads
  • Include more free puzzles
  • Improve accessibility for users with limited mobility
  • Provide better guidance and instructions for puzzles

In-app purchases

None

Photo Brain

No in-app purchases

10 purchases

Blackbox

One-time10
  • Tiny Hint Pack$1.19
  • Small Hint Pack$2.39
  • Erudite Pack$2.99
Show 7 more
  • Push Pack$2.99
  • Coffee for Ryan$4.49
  • Basic Pack$4.99
  • Medium Hint Pack$5.00
  • All Knowing Pack$7.99
  • Large Hint Pack$10.00
  • Extra Large Hint Pack$20.00

Questions

Is Photo Brain free?
Photo Brain is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Blackbox free?
Blackbox is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Photo Brain or Blackbox?
Blackbox is rated higher. Photo Brain averages 4.1 out of 5 from 9 ratings, while Blackbox averages 4.8 from 109K ratings.
Do Photo Brain or Blackbox have ads?
Neither Photo Brain nor Blackbox shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Photo Brain or Blackbox?
Photo Brain ships an update every 2 months, and Blackbox every 9 days. Most recently, Photo Brain was updated on October 24, 2026 and Blackbox on October 25, 2026.

Other comparisons