Cut the Rope: Time Travel is a physics-based puzzle game for casual players, featuring dual-character mechanics across historical eras on iOS and Android.
Product velocity
Maintenance
Daily rank 🇺🇸
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Games
Sentiment
4.6
1.1M reviews
Nemesis
Where's My Water?
The App DNA
What makes this app unique?
The app serves players seeking a familiar, tactile puzzle experience, but the current monetization friction disrupts the core loop and risks long-term retention.
For Casual puzzle gamers who enjoy physics-based challenges and the established character franchise.
What does it look like?
Key features
Interaction with ropes, blades, portals, and magnets to guide candy to characters.
Simultaneous puzzle solving for two hungry monsters across 175+ levels.
12 distinct time periods with unique visual styles and physics mechanics.
How much does it cost?
Freemium model relies on ad-supported gameplay and IAP for hints to bypass difficulty spikes, though ad-removal reliability is a major pain point.
Velocity
Maintenance developmentperformanceopaqueShow more...
The app operates on a maintenance cadence, with the latest release arriving 126 days ago. Development is limited to minor bug fixes and stability improvements, with no evidence of new content or seasonal events. The release history shows long periods of inactivity between updates, indicating a focus on basic upkeep rather than active feature development. The latest release continues this trend of generic maintenance.
Who built it?
ZeptoLab UK
13+ apps tracked · Games
Cut the Rope: Physics Puzzle
Bullet Echo: PVP Shooter
Downhill Smash
Om Nom: Run
Cut the Rope: Experiments
Cut the Rope 2: Om Nom's Quest
Cut the Rope: Experiments GOLD
Overcrowded: Tycoon
Cut the Rope 2
Cut the Rope 3
Cut the Rope: Magic
Cut the Rope: Time Travel GOLDUser Sentiment
What do users think recently?
Review voice lately leans mixed. Users appreciate nostalgic puzzle gameplay remains engaging for long-term fans who appreciate the classic mechanics and character design and animations provide a cute and adorable visual experience for players, but report aggressive ad frequency interrupts the core gameplay loop and creates a frustrating experience.
How are ratings & reviews evolving?
What users say, by theme
- Nostalgic puzzle gameplay remains engaging for long-term fans who appreciate the classic mechanics
- Character design and animations provide a cute and adorable visual experience for players
- Aggressive ad frequency interrupts the core gameplay loop and creates a frustrating experience
64 of 112 recent reviews analyzed · high confidence · Mixed overall
Read the full review analysisUnlock 2 more frustration themes and 1 user request, each backed by review evidence.
Access the full report for freeCompetition
Competitive landscape for Cut the Rope: Time Travel
How's the Games market?
The app maintains a 4.78 rating across 112 analyzed reviews. The lack of major updates in the last 126 days signals a maintenance-mode posture that leaves the app exposed to high-frequency live-ops rivals.
Read the market outlookThe rivals identified
By Disney
The primary direct rival featuring physics-based liquid mechanics and a charming character-driven puzzle progression.
- Liquid-based physics engine
- Character-led narrative progression
Unlock the head-to-head verdict: where this rival wins, and where it loses.
Access the full report for freeThe Analyst's Read
Key takeaways for Cut the Rope: Time Travel
Where is it heading?
The casual puzzle market is consolidating around titles with high-frequency live-ops, leaving maintenance-mode apps like this one increasingly exposed. Without a shift to address the monetization friction, the app will continue to lose its nostalgic base to more modern, reliable alternatives.
- Users report: Broken premium ad-removal leads to deceptive billing accusations, which erodes trust and compounds the churn already driven by high ad frequency.
- The 126-day update cadence confirms a maintenance-only posture, which limits the app's ability to compete for attention against live-ops-heavy puzzle rivals.
The SWOT
- Dual-character feeding mechanic
- Nostalgic physics-based puzzle loop
- New level content
Next best moves
Audit premium ad-removal logic because users report it fails to stop ads → restore subscription value
+ 1 more prioritized moveThe counter-intuitive read
The app's maintenance-mode status is its biggest risk…
Read the full takeFeature gaps
Live-ops events (available in Angry Birds 2 but absent here) +1
Since the last report: Users report: The app has entered a deeper state of maintenance, characterized by a 126-day update gap and the emergence of deceptive billing accusations regarding failed ad-removal subscriptions.
Bottom line
The core physics loop remains a strong retention anchor, but the broken monetization and ad-delivery model are actively cannibalizing the user base. Fixing the premium subscription logic would restore trust and prevent further churn of the nostalgic audience.
Unlock 3 critical frictions, 1 market threat, 1 more prioritized move and the analyst’s take.
Access the full report for freeFAQ
Is Cut the Rope: Time Travel still fun for adults?
How does this compare to Where's My Water?
Does the premium subscription actually remove ads?
What is a good alternative for physics puzzles?
Sources
- [1] Play Store listing, source
Report last updated