What are the Best Mobile RPGs in 2021? RPGs are without doubt the best video games genre of all time. They offer an unparalleled amount of content – with the longest stretching well past the 100 hour mark – alongside …
What are the Best Mobile RPGs in 2021? RPGs are without doubt the best video games genre of all time. They offer an unparalleled amount of content – with the longest stretching well past the 100 hour mark – alongside lots of player customisation options, addictive progression systems, and stories and characters that would make even Tolkien proud.
So popular is the genre that many of its tropes have been absorbed into other genres. Try and think of a shooter without a perk system, or an action adventure without a skill system. Even free to play games have levelling systems to keep you addicted – the mechanics are everywhere.
While mobile is best suited to dip in, dip out play, there are times that you want a game with a bit of meat on its bones. Perhaps you have a lengthy commute or are jetting off on holiday and want something to keep you occupied.
Well, there are plenty of solid options from mobile exclusives all the way to full on console ports. Here are our favourites in no particular order.
Oceanhorn 2 is one of the finest mobile games going, and those of you who own an iOS device are privileged to have it as an exclusive. It expands on the original in pretty much every area, with new weapons, vastly improved visuals, and a much bigger world to explore.
Get it on the App Store.
Various Daylife was one of the surprise hits of Apple Arcade. It’s a full-blown JRPG by the makers of Octopath Traveler and Bravely Default in which you play as a mercenary tasked with exploring the new world and making it safe.
There are numerous characters to get to know and recruit, a wide variety of biomes to explore, and tons of jobs to unlock and level up. There’s a lot going on in Various Daylife, and there’s easily hundreds of hours of gameplay here.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=L9pWRjmwwL4Get it on the App Store.
An absolutely stunning ARPG set in a massive world and packed full of characters. Its gacha mechanics might not be to everyone’s taste, but there’s a massive amount of content here that’s going to keep you entertained for hours.
And did we mention how good it looks? Seriously, this is the sort of game you’re going to whip out to show off your phone’s prowess. If you haven’t played Genshin Impact yet, we’d recommend doing it right this second.
Get it on the App Store or Play Store
If you like your RPGs deep and strategic, check out Star Traders: Frontier. This space-themed RPG basically lets you do anything you want from behind the wheel of your own spaceship. You can become a pirate, merchant, bounty hunter, explorer, and more.
There’s a huge universe to explore, even more characters to meet, and tons of customisation on offer, from the layout of your ship to the abilities of your character and crew. It’s incredibly deep stuff.
Get it on the App Store or Google Play.
Battle Chasers: Nightwar recently made the leap from console to mobile, and it’s a pretty solid port. It’s inspired by the classics, with you exploring an open world and venturing into various dungeons to battle monsters. You’ll level up, collect gear, and craft new equipment.
Get it on the App Store or Google Play.
Shieldwall Chronicles is a deep strategic adventure that takes place in the northlands of Tarren, a frozen landscape that’s full of undead, demons, lizardmen, and more to battle. You lead a band of mercenaries and battle your way through a lengthy campaign.
Get it on the App Store or Google Play.
An old-skool dungeon crawler that sees you trawling through the depths of a sprawling subterranean lair to find treasure, monsters and loads more. Even though it’s got a retro feel, there’s plenty of modern twists here to keep you entertained.
Get it on the App Store.
The Banner Saga is an indie strategy RPG franchise that takes place in a frozen Viking-inspired environment. The artwork is absolutely gorgeous, the story as brutal as Game of Thrones, and the gameplay challenging in all of the right ways.
Final Fantasy is the grand daddy of JRPGs and pretty much all of the classics are available on mobile. If you don’t know where to begin, we recommend either the best in VI, VII, or IX, or the mobile remake of XV.
Really, you can’t go very far wrong with Final Fantasy. Heck, there’s even a full on strategy RPG in Final Fantasy Tactics: War of the Lions.
Dragon Quest is Final Fantasy’s sequel over in Japan, where it sells by the bucketload. It hasn’t quite set the rest of the world on fire though, but they’re still well worth checking out.
If you don’t know where to begin, V or VIII are solid entries.
The Evoland series is an intriguing one, as it blends a bunch of genres together to keep things interesting. At it’s core, it’s an RPG though, and it riffs off the genre throughout history, starting with 8-bit all the way up to the gorgeous visuals we’re used to today.
Valkyrie Profile is another classic Square Enix JRPG franchise well worth playing, and Lenneth is the place to start on mobile. It riffs on Norse mythology but keeps that distinct Japanese flavour we know and love.
Get it on the App Store or Google Play.
Warhammer Quest and its sequel are mobile exclusive RPGs that produce some of the best top-down dungeon crawling you’ll experience on the platform. You’ll build a party of hardened warriors and beat up terrifying foes on your way through the darkest dungeons.
Speaking of dark dungeons, Darkest Dungeon has the, errrr, darkest. This is a horror RPG that makes a bunch of innovations. You’ll send a team of RPG stalwarts into the dungeons of a castle to loot treasure.
The biggest threat isn’t the enemies lurking in the darkness though – it’s the darkness itself. The further your party travels underground, the more it will affect their mental health. If they start to lose it, it will affect them and your party negatively so keep an eye on the poor fools.
Get it on the App Store.
Cat Quest is another RPG built firmly with mobile in mind. It’s got some excellent touchscreen controls and marries the old school Final Fantasy overworld with Zelda-style gameplay to create something completely unique.
With Apple Arcade comes Cat Quest II, which is exclusive to iOS. It introduced two playable characters to the mix, including a dog this time around, and the full game can be played in co-op. There’s also a wealth of new content, including weapon types, spells, and passive abilities.
The Pen & Paper franchise turns D&D role playing into a mobile game. You play as a team of nerds playing a pen and paper RPG in which the events actually come to life.
You’ve got Knights for the fantasy fans and Galaxy for sci-fi nerds. Whichever you pick, you’ll have a blast with this laugh-a-minute RPG franchise.
Severed is just so suited to the touchscreen. It draws a ton of influence from Zelda: Skyward Sword’s combat system, with you targeting enemy weak spots with accurate swipes of your finger.
It also offers a lengthy adventure complete with a story about the protagonist trying to locate her family in a terrifying world.
Get it on the App Store.
The Infinity Engine games offer a taste of early Bioware in its prime, when the likes of Baldur’s Gate II and Planescape: Torment were spoken of with the same admiration of the likes of Witcher III.
This is where western RPGs first found their footing. While the games are showing their age a bit, they’re still well worth checking out.
Jade Empire is from around the same time as Knights of the Old Republic, and shows a Bioware experimenting with a more action-focused combat system than its previously turn-based offerings.
If you love eastern culture, you’ll have a blast with this one.
Get it on the App Store.
Titan Quest takes place in a world that blends human mythology together to create something entirely unique. If your tastes swing closer to Diablo than Skyrim, this is the one for you. And the Legendary Edition packs in all of the DLC in one perfect package.
Get it on the App Store or Google Play.
The Bard’s Tale is an action RPG that borrows liberally from the likes of Diablo, though with a greater focus on story than loot. It’s absolutely hilarious too, with the awesome Cary Elwes (The Princess Bride, Liar Liar) lending his pipes to regularly crack us up.
Get it on the App Store or Google Play.
Eternium is, without doubt, the best Diablo-alternative on mobile. Not only does it have an absolute ton of content and loot, it also features an innovative touch control scheme that lets you cast skills and spells by drawing shapes on the screen.
Get it on the App Store or Google Play.
Dungeon Rushers is a Final Fantasy-style RPG that takes place solely in dungeons. You’ll collect a party of heroes, and make your way through a dungeon methodically, using their unique skills to counteract traps and other obstacles.
Get it on the App Store or Google Play.
Chrono Trigger is often named as the finest JRPG of all time, and for good reason. Not only does it have an awesome time-hopping plot but it also provided much-needed innovation to the tired turn-based fighting system that was all the rage back then.
Get it on the App Store or Google Play.
It wouldn’t be right not to include Supergiant’s efforts, as they’re some of the best games on mobile. You’ve got the excellent Bastion, which is one of the early indie darlings, and Transistor, one of its latest efforts that added a bit more strategy to the action.
