Comparison

Puzzle Strike vs Solitaire Detectives

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

Head to head
About

Puzzle Strike

A deckbuilding puzzle game where players manage a gem pile and improve their deck by purchasing new chips. Compete against others or AI, climb leaderboards, and master advanced tactics in various game modes.

Highlights
  • Deckbuilding mechanics
  • Gem pile management
  • Cross-platform play
  • Leaderboards and replays
  • Puzzle Challenge mode
  • Offline AI practice
  • Daily Quests
Features
Read full description

Puzzle Strike is a deckbuilding puzzle game played amongst Fantasy Strike characters. It's inspired by puzzle games such as Puzzle Fighter. Gems fall into each player's gem pile every turn, and whoever's gem pile fills up first loses. Improve your deck (of chips!) by purchasing new chips as the game unfolds. Will you go heavy on economy, offense, or build an intricate engine? In any case, make sure to adapt to your opponents because Puzzle Strike has a lot more interactivity than most other deckbuilders. And like the other games in the Fantasy Strike universe, Puzzle Strike is designed to hold up to thousands of games at the expert level, and we fully embrace the philosophy of even-playfield competition. The new iOS version of Puzzle Strike has these new features: - Cross-platform play with players on iOS, Steam or the web version on FantasyStrike.com - Chips have 4x the resolution as the web version - Climb the leaderboards in Quick Match and check out replays of top players to improve your game! - New Puzzle Challenge mode: learn advanced character tactics and think outside the bag! Beat these advanced challenges to become a real Puzzle Striker! - Complete your Daily Quests to earn Jewels, then spend them to play "Puzzle Smash", a high-powered version of Puzzle Strike - Contains all 48 Puzzle chips from both Puzzle Strike Third Edition and Puzzle Strike: Shadows, as well as the promo chips, Combinatorics, Dashing Strike and Custom Combo - Practice offline against AI Puzzlebots for the first time! - English, French and Japanese language support, with German localization on the way - The base game comes with the first four characters (Grave, Jaina, Midori, and Setsuki), with fourteen additional characters available in-app

About

Solitaire Detectives

Unravel a 1940s crime mystery by solving challenging Pyramid Solitaire puzzles. Advance the intriguing storyline, discover clues, and crack the case of a forgotten businessman's death. Enjoy classic solitaire gameplay with wondrous artwork and an engaging soundtrack.

Highlights
  • Intriguing crime storyline
  • Classic pyramid solitaire gameplay
  • Clue discovery
  • Wondrous artwork
  • Engaging soundtrack
Features
Read full description

Detective Spade has a puzzling case in his hands and an ace up his sleeve. Unravel the mystery that took over Ace Town by finding all clues hidden beneath challenging Pyramid Solitaire puzzles. Can you crack the case? It’s the 1940s and crimes are on the rise. The investigation of the death of Alfred Suit years ago, a rich and powerful businessman, has never been concluded by the police, but now Detective Spade is devoted to finding an answer for this forgotten crime. Join Spade in Solitaire Detectives and play solitaire puzzles to advance through the story and discover new clues that will help shed light on the mysterious case. HIGHLIGHTS • Thrilling and intriguing storyline • Classic pyramid solitaire gameplay • Wondrous artwork and engaging soundtrack Solitaire Detectives: a solitaire game like nothing you’ve ever seen! Download and play now for free! Disclaimer: While this App is completely free to play, some additional content can be purchased for real money in-game. If you do not want to use this feature, please turn off in-app purchases in your device's settings. Like our page on Facebook and be the first to know about our upcoming games and updates! http://fb.com/tappshq

Screenshots

Puzzle Strike4 screens
Solitaire Detectives4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Solitaire Detectives at Free against Puzzle Strike's $3.99. Solitaire Detectives also leads on rating (4.6 vs 3.3) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 52 months). Puzzle Strike's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). On ratings volume, in-app purchases 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

Solitaire Detectives is free to download; Puzzle Strike costs $3.99 up front. Puzzle Strike sells 11 one-off in-app purchases and Solitaire Detectives sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Solitaire Detectives holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 16 and 34 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 38% of Puzzle Strike's written reviews are positive against 56% of Solitaire Detectives's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Puzzle Strike ships an update every 52 months, Solitaire Detectives every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Puzzle Strike versus Solitaire Detectives: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPuzzle StrikeSolitaire Detectives
Price$3.99Free — better
Rating3.3 (16 ratings)4.6 (34 ratings) — better
Positive reviews37.5% of reviews55.6% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1634 — better
Update frequencyEvery 52 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size377 MB127 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSirlin GamesTPG TECNOLOGIA DA INFORMACAO LTDA

Customer experience

Puzzle Strike

All ratings16 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral12.5%
Negative37.5%
Written reviews24 reviews
Positive37.5%
Neutral29.2%
Negative33.3%

Solitaire Detectives

All ratings34 ratings
Positive94.1%
Neutral0.0%
Negative5.9%
Written reviews9 reviews
Positive55.6%
Neutral11.1%
Negative33.3%

In-app purchases

11 purchases

Puzzle Strike

One-time11
  • Unlock Rook$1.99
  • Unlock Menelker$1.99
  • Unlock Persephone$1.99
Show 8 more
  • Unlock Gloria$1.99
  • Unlock Gwen$1.99
  • Unlock Vendetta$1.99
  • Unlock Zane$1.99
  • Unlock Bal-Bas-Beta$1.99
  • Character Value Bundle$5.99
  • Shadows Character Bundle$9.99
  • Unlock ALL characters$11.99
10 purchases

Solitaire Detectives

One-time10
  • life refill$0.99
  • remove ads$0.99
  • tiny energy pack$1.99
Show 7 more
  • small coin pack$2.99
  • medium energy pack$2.99
  • big energy pack$3.99
  • endless lives$4.99
  • premium bundle$4.99
  • great coin pack$6.99
  • huge coin pack$10.99

Questions

Is Puzzle Strike free?
Puzzle Strike costs $3.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Solitaire Detectives free?
Solitaire Detectives is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Puzzle Strike or Solitaire Detectives?
Solitaire Detectives is rated higher. Puzzle Strike averages 3.3 out of 5 from 16 ratings, while Solitaire Detectives averages 4.6 from 34 ratings.
Do Puzzle Strike or Solitaire Detectives have ads?
Solitaire Detectives shows ads; Puzzle Strike does not.
Which is updated more often, Puzzle Strike or Solitaire Detectives?
Puzzle Strike ships an update every 52 months, and Solitaire Detectives every 2 months. Most recently, Puzzle Strike was updated on October 20, 2026 and Solitaire Detectives on October 10, 2026.

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