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Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

Garden Affairs vs Homescapes

Garden Affairs 4.8★ · Free + IAP 75
Winner Garden Affairs
Homescapes 4.6★ · Free + IAP 60

Garden Affairs offers a more varied and less monetized experience, while Homescapes is a more established game with a larger user base but is plagued by difficulty spikes and aggressive monetization.

Full reviews: Garden Affairs · Homescapes

Garden Affairs and Homescapes both offer match-3 gameplay with decorating elements, but Garden Affairs is praised for its creative puzzles and less pressure to spend money, despite some glitches. Homescapes, while popular, faces criticism for increasingly difficult levels that push players towards in-app purchases and issues with its chat function.

Head to head

Gameplay & Difficulty edge: Garden AffairsR2R3R4R32
Garden Affairs Garden Affairs offers creative match puzzles and a surprising level of addiction, with some users finding it initially easy but others getting stuck on later levels R2R3R4R32. Some players appreciate the absence of typical match-3 minigames R3. However, the game is criticized for becoming too hard at certain points, requiring many stars to progress, and some updates have made it 'wonky' R4R12.
Homescapes Homescapes is generally considered fun and addictive, with challenging puzzles . However, a significant number of users report that levels become 'ridiculously difficult' and 'super hard' after a certain point, often forcing players to spend money or get stuck for days . Some players note that the game's difficulty fluctuates, with easy levels interspersed with extremely hard ones .
Monetization & Value edge: Garden AffairsR7R11R12R15
Garden Affairs Garden Affairs is viewed by some as a 'money grabber' with levels becoming '100% impossible' after spending money R7. Players complain about being overcharged for in-game purchases and the game being 'too stingy on earning stars' R12R15. However, other users praise it for being playable without spending money, with one player on level 7608 having not spent a penny R11R47.
Homescapes Homescapes is frequently criticized for its aggressive monetization, with users feeling pressured to buy extensions or boosters to pass difficult levels . Players report that the game is designed to make you spend money, with coins being hard to come by . Some users feel that purchasing season passes doesn't provide enough value due to the difficulty of levels .
Technical Performance & Bugs tieR1R5R10R13
Garden Affairs Garden Affairs suffers from various technical issues, including pop-ups, glitchy 'extras' like the dice game and homes, and frequent freezing or crashing R1R5R10. Some users report issues with rewards not showing up and background sound disappearing after ads R13. There are also complaints about the game not loading past 99% .
Homescapes Homescapes also experiences significant technical problems, with users reporting the game crashing on startup or not loading after updates . Some players encounter glitches in specific game modes like 'Expedition' or 'Robbie’s Farm' . There are also complaints about too many updates .
Story & Design edge: Garden AffairsR8R11R18R21
Garden Affairs Garden Affairs is praised for its original and beautiful graphics, charming story, and entertaining history R8R11R32. However, some users find the story 'cute but corny' or feel it's not like the ads, lacking decision-making or interaction R18R21. Decor options are sometimes described as 'ugly' and not matching .
Homescapes Homescapes offers an enjoyable story with fun characters that keeps players engaged . However, many users are disappointed that the game's advertising is misleading, showing scenarios like 'Save the baby' or different gameplay that aren't present in the actual game R73R84R97. Players also express frustration with limited design choices, feeling stuck with 'ugly' options or that the game automatically makes choices for them .
Customer Support & Features tieR6R10R14R19
Garden Affairs Garden Affairs users report difficulties with customer support, including long wait times and unresponsiveness R10. Issues like not being able to reset game progress are common, with users requesting a button for this feature R6R14. Some features like the furniture store update have made the game unplayable for some, with support only available through Facebook .
Homescapes Homescapes' customer service is criticized for being unhelpful, with one user reporting that support told them how to play the game instead of resolving a glitch and refused reimbursement . A major point of contention is the removal of the chat function for UK players, which has negatively impacted team interaction and community building R93R96R99. Users also dislike intrusive notification prompts after every level .
Pick Garden Affairs if

You prefer a match-3 game with creative puzzles, beautiful graphics, and a charming story that you can potentially enjoy without spending money R2R8R11R32. You are willing to overlook occasional glitches in extra features and some difficulty spikes R5R10.

Pick Homescapes if

You enjoy a well-established match-3 game with a large player base, a continuous story, and fun characters . You are prepared for significant difficulty spikes that may require persistence or in-app purchases, and you don't mind the lack of a team chat function R93.

Evidence note: Homescapes has a significantly larger number of reviews, which contributes to a broader range of complaints, particularly regarding monetization and difficulty. Garden Affairs, with fewer reviews, still shows similar patterns of issues but with less overall volume.

Frequently asked

Is Garden Affairs a free game?
Yes, Garden Affairs is a free game with in-app purchases, and many users report being able to play and progress to high levels without spending any money R11R47.
Do Homescapes ads accurately represent the game?
No, many Homescapes users report that the ads are misleading and do not accurately represent the actual gameplay or story, often showing scenarios like 'Save the baby' that are not present in the game R73R84R97R112.
Can you reset your progress in Garden Affairs?
Users of Garden Affairs have reported difficulty finding a way to delete or reset their game progress and have requested a feature to easily start over R6R14.
Why was the chat function removed in Homescapes?
The chat function was removed for UK players in Homescapes, which has frustrated many users who enjoyed interacting with teammates and building communities R93R96R99. The reason for removal is not explicitly stated in the reviews, but some users speculate it might be related to protecting children playing the game R93.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R2] Garden Affairs 5/5 · US Good game: I picked up Garden Affairs thinking it’d just be another chill merge game, but it actually surprised me. At first it feels pretty simple, just merging items and fixing up the garden, but it gets more addictive the longer you play. There’s always something to do, and unlocking new areas keeps it interesting.
  2. [R3] Garden Affairs 3/5 · US Too easy: First off, I want to say that I’m really glad you didn’t include those terrible minigames that other match 3 game do. Aside from that, I’m finding that the game is objectively extremely easy. The levels only have 4 types of objects making it very easy to get power ups. However, I feel that the main factors are the events. There are always several of them going on at once so I end up cons
  3. [R4] Garden Affairs 1/5 · US Too hard once you reach a certain level: Once you reach a certain level they completely stall the progress needing 6 stars to move ahead. It makes the game so frustrating and slow so I’m quitting for good.
  4. [R32] Garden Affairs 5/5 · US Level 6140: This game is my favorite the graphics beutifull the history of the game entertaining almost perfect ,but i’m on Level 6140 this is the most hardest practically impossible i’ve been stuck at the same Level for a week if you guys put more moves in the levels this game would be perfect
  5. [R7] Garden Affairs 1/5 · US Money Grabber: Do not spend money on this game. The levels become 100% impossible afterwards. It upset me. They offer triple of something you want for a price, and you cannot go any further. The levels become impossible. I won’t spend money on this app ever again.
  6. [R11] Garden Affairs 5/5 · US Best Design & Match without major bucks: I've played an embarrassing number of the design/match games in the App Store. All the others have quickly become frustrating unless you spend money. This game has truly creative match puzzles (with cool arrangements and match effects) and I haven't spent a penny. I'm on level 7608. I keep expecting them to force me (tempt me) to use money and I do hope
  7. [R12] Garden Affairs 3/5 · US Cute but corny story, but too stingy on earning stars: I understand the app developers want to make $, but the game is so slow as you only earn 1-2 stars per game (and sometimes it takes multiple times to play the same level) who has that much time in a day to play an app?! And each time you use stars to progress the story line, it takes 2-4 stars!! So you spend about 1-1.5 hours a day to move th
  8. [R15] Garden Affairs 3/5 · US Overcharged: Game is fun but when you buy coins they charge you double or triple what you think you are paying. Example I thought I was $2.99 but my card charged $12.98. I will be disputing with my bank
  9. [R1] Garden Affairs 1/5 · US Annoying: Pop ups every second
  10. [R5] Garden Affairs 4/5 · US Extras are glitchy: I love the dice game and the homes, but they are both very glitchy. Right now I can’t buy new plots though I have enough flowers and cash. I constantly have to restart the game playing these extra modules. I’ve not had this problem with the match 3 portion, it seems very stable. Overall a fun game but I wish they’d fix the extras (and add new furniture, etc!).
  11. [R10] Garden Affairs 1/5 · US Stories not loading: The stories, or rather the game resources, are not loading. I can't progress further. The game constantly hangs at 0 MB, and it says it's loading at 0 MB, even though my connection is stable and fast. I tried to delete my account to start over, but there's no information on how long account deletion takes. Support always shows 3 people in queue, even after I waited for an hour. I don't know what to do. · translated
  12. [R13] Garden Affairs 1/5 · US Rewards: When making matches, the rewards are not showing up. Causing key plays/strategy unable to happen resulting in a loss. (ie: match 5 for a star)
  13. [R8] Garden Affairs 5/5 · US Love This Game!: Your design staff deserves five stars. I have been playing this game on two tablets for a few years. Your graphics are so original and beautiful, it’s a joy to play. Please keep up the good work. And by the way, this review was entirely my idea to give to you. No one asked me to give it.
  14. [R18] Garden Affairs 3/5 · US Not as advertised: This advertisement is completely wrong. I’m on like level 2100 or something. She’s not married and it’s not the kind of matching game as this says.
  15. [R21] Garden Affairs 3/5 · US Its ok: Its ok but i haven’t seen any stories or do or things besides the puzzle. I thought it had a storyline
  16. [R6] Garden Affairs 3/5 · US Reset garden affairs.: Most games have a way to delete or reset their progress from game to the beginning. I’m not able to find how to rest garden affairs games Apple. Version. Please respond.
  17. [R14] Garden Affairs 4/5 · US Starting the game over: Please make a button where you can start the game over for fun without having to wait weeks for customer support. Thank you!
  18. [R19] Garden Affairs 2/5 · US Bad Customer Service: After making a purchase my adde to add moves disappeared i reached out to cs multiple times and no one helped
  19. [R47] Garden Affairs 5/5 · US Great game with no need to purchase anything.: Very fun to play and no purchases needed to beat any level. I have only purchased the vip pass several times. That pass lasts the whole month at that. I am on level 2,740
  20. [R73] Homescapes 1/5 · US Game: I have home scape, and its false, don’t look like that.
  21. [R84] Homescapes 3/5 · US Issues…: First word of advice: If you’re looking to download this because if the whole “Save the baby” thing, IT’S NOT REAL. I downloaded this because of that exact thing just to be very disappointed by discovering there is no baby. It’s just another merging game, and I don’t play merging games. I thought there were sliding key puzzles and chances to save a baby (who doesn’t exist) but it was all
  22. [R97] Homescapes 2/5 · US I already had this game. It was OK.: I already had this game. It was OK, but I saw this ad where it said that there was only this one day of the game that happened rarely and I thought it was a different game and you look so good and I almost downloaded it but when I saw what it was, it wasn’t actually what it showed in the ad because it’s so fake. You should never download this game. It’s horribl
  23. [R112] Homescapes 1/5 · US Game Lies: I went back because it showed another game very different than what is a lot of game do the same thing show a farmer harvesting and selling but that’s not what it’s about. Waste of my time it’s wrong to lie just to make money and this will be to any other game that does this.
  24. [R93] Homescapes 3/5 · GB Game less fun as they have taken away being able to interact with team mates on chat now.: Been a favourite game for many years, but now with no longer being able to chat to teammates the team building that once was fun is now a boring game. I understand for children playing game but if an adult this shouldn’t have been taking away as I’m sure most adults would know how to protect and be aware of
  25. [R96] Homescapes 3/5 · GB No chat: Used to love this game. Having the chat removed is totally wrong. Surely you can age check the players. Played for years. May delete app
  26. [R99] Homescapes 3/5 · GB UK chat: Why did you take away the chat function for all UK players on this app and Gardenscapes? Now we can’t talk to other players within our community and groups. Please reinstate the chat for UK players ASAP!

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store