Comparison

Blackbox vs Orbit

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

Head to head
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.) ■

About

Orbit

This app is a meditative physics puzzler where you launch planets to create stable orbits around black holes. Explore a variety of levels, create your own challenges in a sandbox mode, and enjoy a visually artistic and relaxing experience.

Highlights
  • Gravity simulation puzzles
  • Create stable orbits
  • Sandbox mode for level creation
  • Community-created levels
  • Visual orbital mechanics
  • Minimalist graphics and relaxing music
Features
Read full description

ORBIT is a gravity simulator at the heart of a puzzle game. Launch planets with a flick of your finger, and try to get them into stable orbits around black holes. Can you make enough orbits to progress to the next level? New: ORBIT now features a Sandbox (paid) where you can create your own levels! Control time, disable collisions, and paint with gravity. Publish your creations to the world for everyone to play. • 45 free levels, with new mechanics are introduced over time — like repulsive black holes and planets with their own gravity that attract each other • Play community-created levels — virtually limitless content made by other players, all completely free • Launch as many planets as you like, and watch the mesmerizing orbital mechanics unfold • Planets leave colored traces, so that at the end of a level you will have created a beautiful piece of art • See the future trajectory of a planet before you launch it • Play in an environment of smooth, minimalist graphics while listening to relaxing classical piano Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/highkeygames Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/highkeygames

Screenshots

Blackbox4 screens
Orbit4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Blackbox at every 9 days against Orbit's every 2 months. Blackbox also leads on ratings volume (109K vs 7.6K) and chart position (#30 vs unranked). On price, rating, review sentiment 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Blackbox sells 10 one-off in-app purchases and Orbit sells 7 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Blackbox against 4.8 for Orbit. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Blackbox has 109K ratings behind it against 7.6K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 93% of Blackbox's written reviews are positive against 94% of Orbit's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Blackbox ships an update every 9 days, Orbit every 2 months. Both last shipped on September 30, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
Blackbox versus Orbit: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBlackboxOrbit
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (109K ratings)4.8 (7.6K ratings)
Positive reviews92.6% of reviews94.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings109K — better7.6K
Update frequencyEvery 9 days — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#30 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size209 MB130 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperShapes and Stories LLCHIGHKEY Games

Customer experience

Blackbox

All ratings108,586 ratings
Positive95.8%
Neutral2.0%
Negative2.2%
Written reviews4,671 reviews
Positive92.6%
Neutral3.6%
Negative3.8%

Orbit

All ratings7,554 ratings
Positive97.1%
Neutral1.0%
Negative2.0%
Written reviews620 reviews
Positive94.4%
Neutral2.6%
Negative3.1%

User reviews

Blackbox

From 109K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Unique and creative gameplay
  • 🤔 Challenges users to think outside the box
  • 😄 Humorous and witty comments
  • 🔑 Utilizes phone features in innovative ways

Room to improve

  • 🤯 Extremely challenging puzzles
  • 💰 Expensive for additional content
  • 🤖 Concerns about app accessing device permissions
  • 🚗 Puzzles requiring travel/location are inaccessible for some

Orbit

From 7.6K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fire game
  • 👍 Relaxing and Enjoyable
  • 👍 Calming, fun, stimulating, humble
  • 👍 Simple and yet complicated
  • 👍 Elegant and easy

Room to improve

  • 🐛 In app purchased not reicevied
  • 🐛 Purchase didn't work for sandbox & ad removal but it's fun.
  • 🔒 Be ware of your data
  • 🐛 Love-hate

Bugs and 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

Orbit

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • In app purchase not received
  • Sandbox mode not working
  • Game crashing and unable to open

Requested features

6 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • Ability to zoom in and out
  • Ability to rotate the game to landscape on iPad
  • Ability to edit and move existing objects in sandbox mode
  • Ability to name planets and add moons
Show 1 more
  • More levels and game modes

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
7 purchases

Orbit

One-time7
  • $1 contribution$0.99
  • Remove ads$0.99
  • $2 contribution$1.99
Show 4 more
  • $3 contribution$2.99
  • Unlock Sandbox (and remove ads)$2.99
  • $5 contribution$4.99
  • $10 contribution$9.99

Questions

Is Blackbox free?
Blackbox is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Orbit free?
Orbit is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Blackbox or Orbit?
Blackbox and Orbit are both rated 4.8 out of 5 on the App Store, from 109K and 7.6K ratings respectively.
Do Blackbox or Orbit have ads?
Neither Blackbox nor Orbit shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Blackbox or Orbit?
Blackbox ships an update every 9 days, and Orbit every 2 months. Most recently, Blackbox was updated on September 30, 2026 and Orbit on September 30, 2026.

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