The Best RPGs on iPhone

The mobile games market is often derided by gamers, known more for its predatory games and cheap licensed titles. But there are actually a lot of great games on iOS, including long-time classics and new games that redefine what mobile gaming can be.

RPGs are aplenty on iOS, and the best ones use the platform to their advantage. The genre tends to be full of games with epic length, and that’s what makes them so great. You can jump in, complete a quest or two, and you’ll have plenty to go back to later.

Updated November 26, 2024 by Jacob Whaling: We’ve updated this list with even more great RPGs to play on iOS.

1 Torchlight: Infinite

First up, we have Torchlight: Infinite. This is part of the Torchlight franchise, bringing the thrill of dungeon crawling right to your phone. As a live-service mobile game, you can also find limited seasons delivering new content for you to play through.

Overall, Torchlight: Infinite is filled with fun, fast-paced combat that doesn’t require you to spend any money. Of course, you can invest in microtransactions, but this isn’t necessary to have a good time.

2 Oceanhorn

Since its launch in 2013, Oceanhorn: Monster of Uncharted Seas has been brought to many platforms, but you can still play it on its original platform; the iPhone. This classic RPG lets you explore, solve puzzles, and learn about the living fortress, called Oceanhorn.

This is a great game to play if you are a fan of The Legend of Zelda franchise, especially titles like Wind Waker. Many have drawn similarities between Oceanhorn and this powerhouse franchise, but it remains unique instead of feeling like a cheap imitation.

3 Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters

If you know anything about Final Fantasy, then you know that these games didn’t originally exist on the phone (or any modern console, for that matter). Rather than talking about one game though, we are talking about the first six games in the franchise, which have all been remastered.

All six of these games are now available right on your phone. While you will still need to pay for these games, this is a great option if you want a classic Final Fantasy experience, but lack the consoles necessary.

4 The Banner Saga

The Banner Saga is a modern take on a tactical RPG that features a heavy emphasis on player choice. In between battles, the game plays like a choose-your-own-adventure story, following your choices as you guide your Viking tribe through war, famine, and near death.

The name of the game here is story and immersion. The Banner Saga intentionally avoids typical RPG conventions like looting, buying, and selling, and the game even prevents you from loading a save if you’re beaten in battle. All of this is in an effort to immerse you in the story of your tribe as a whole, rather than a single individual.

5 Dragon Quest 5: Hand Of The Heavenly Bride

The late, great Akira Toriyama has left his mark on pop culture on so many levels. Even within the mobile RPG sphere, Dragon Quest 5: Hand of the Heavenly Bride is but the first of two entries on this list with Toriyama’s unmistakable art style front and center.

Dragon Quest’s Zenithian trilogy of fourth through sixth games stand tall as some of the best chapters in a remarkably solid franchise, and as far as we’re concerned, the fifth game is the pinnacle of prestige. You’ll watch your protagonist grow, first as a child, then a young man, and then as a somewhat older man with children (and a bride!) of his own.

All the trademark Dragon Quest charm is on full display in this mobile-port-of-the-DS-version of a classic – and it’s all right there in the palm of your hand. (It’s also better than the DS version; those higher-definition visuals afforded on mobile devices really pop here!)

6 Fate/Grand Order

One of the most profitable mobile games ever, Fate/Grand Order was produced by Sony based on the Fate/Stay Night visual novel series that originated in 2004. Like other mobile RPGs, the game is based on traditional turn-based combat and pulling gacha rolls to get new characters.

What makes Fate/Grand Order stand out from other games on this list is that, rather than playing a central protagonist or even controlling a party, you instead play the role of a “Master,” and must guide an entire group of adventurers – knights, magicians, mages, etc. – and who you take into battle and adventures is up to you.

7 Darkest Dungeon

Darkest Dungeon has a reputation for being a brutally difficult game, and rightfully so. A roguelike with permanent death for your characters, Darkest Dungeon is in many ways the perfect game for mobile. It allows you to quickly jump to set up a party and head straight into a dungeon to perform some turn-based combat.

This game is all about positioning. Taking place in 2D, battles happen in a line between your party and your enemies. Positioning will partially determine their stats, including their chances to hit or get hit with sickness or injury.

8 Neverwinter Nights

Based on the Forgotten Realms campaign of Dungeons & Dragons, Neverwinter Nights is another example of a classic RPG making its way to iOS, with surprisingly good results. This version of the game is the Enhanced Edition, which comes with improved graphics and a host of free DLC included.

Being set in the D&D universe, the plot of Neverwinter Nights is deep – perhaps a little too deep for first-time players. But with a 100-hour-long campaign and an emphasis on vast player choice that has serious repercussions, it’s worth giving the game a shot, even if you aren’t into the fantasy setting.

9 Chroma Squad

Chroma Squad is a criminally underrated tactical RPG where you manage a TV studio making a Power Rangers-esque show. Part of the gameplay is managing the studio – setting schedules, buying equipment – but the majority of the game is the humorous story and set-piece battles.

Despite its looks and silly premise, Chroma Squad has a deep but simple battle system that’s perfect for iOS. You take a team of four (later five) of your Power Rangers out into the field, customize their abilities and weapons, and have free rein to use them however you like, with a wide range of abilities and teamwork attacks. And yes, there are even giant robot versus monster fights.

10 Fantasian

Gorgeous dioramas like the one you see above aren’t the exception in Fantasian. They’re the rule. Every single place in this huge JRPG is just as beautiful or more so, and the game’s creative pedigree will tell most Final Fantasy fans it’s worth checking out; Hironobu Sakaguchi, creator of Final Fantasy, spearheaded the development.

Sakaguchi’s influence is found all over the place, from the melancholy and wide-eyed cast of characters to the strategic battles and classical themes. Fantasian’s won plenty of awards, and for darn good reason.

11 Genshin Impact

Genshin Impact is one of the biggest games in the world. It’s a giant, epic RPG by Chinese developer HoYoverse, featuring a sweeping quest, multiple unlockable characters, and plenty of things to do. Genshin is always changing, getting new worlds to explore, characters to play as, and even new gameplay mechanics.

While it’s true this is a gacha game, you can play Genshin Impact without ever spending any money on it all. All quests are freely available to you, and you can earn in-game currency relatively quickly.

12 Another Eden

Another Eden was built from the ground up to run on mobile. It may not look like much, with its simplistic sprites and background art, but what it lacks in visuals, it makes up for with its story, characters, and combat. You play as Aldo on his quest to save his sister from the Beast King, who uses the dormant power in her to wipe out humanity and leave Earth for demons.

Doing so, Aldo is thrust 800 years into the future, where humanity barely survives. There are over a hundred main story chapters to play through, with dozens of side quests and collaboration stories to experience on the side, ensuring there’s always something new to do in Another Eden.

13 Final Fantasy Tactics: The War Of The Lions

Often praised as one of the finest Final Fantasy games in the series, and surely the best of the franchise’s myriad spinoffs, Final Fantasy Tactics tells the tale of two young men caught up in a kingdom-wide civil war amid the return of a nefarious foe.

It’s a deep, intensely sociopolitically-themed plot from the legendary creator Yasumi Matsuno, and it’s packed with all the tactical role-playing coolness you’d expect from its title. The iOS version combines the fantastic features of 2007’s PSP enhanced port with a lack of that version’s frustrating slowdown issues, and the touch controls work quite well.

14 Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley is available on several platforms, allowing you to make the farm of your dreams pretty much anywhere you want. This farming RPG is a household name by this point, but if you somehow haven’t heard of the game, you are in for a treat.

The goal is simple, make a farm and live in the valley. Along the way, you can make friends, get married, and build your empire. You have the freedom to focus on anything, from combat to a mono-crop monopoly. The iOS version of Stardew Valley is a bit behind in terms of updates, but Concerned Ape works diligently to offer updates to all platforms.

15 Lunar Silver Star Story Touch

An iOS remaster of Lunar: The Silver Star, one of the most criminally underrated RPGs from the 1990s, Lunar Silver Star Story Touch can be forgiven for its rather unwieldy name in light of its solid control scheme and terrific presentation.

That last part is important: Lunar Silver Star Story Touch is a pretty old mobile port, but back in January 2023, it received a surprisingly robust update with 60-frames-per-second smoothness, improved audio, and an option for a classic UI if you’ve got a controller hooked up.

16 Octopath Traveler: Champions Of The Continent

Octopath Traveler is a popular JPRG series that currently consists of two games. In the games, you essentially assemble a group of eight characters, completing various chapters of their story. Now, you can bring this cozy JRPG straight to your phone.

Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent isn’t a mobile port of the original game; instead, it’s a gacha game set before the events of the first game. As such, you will still be within Osterra, with many familiar sights. There are three story paths that you can choose, giving plenty of content to enjoy.

17 Baldur’s Gate II: Enhanced Edition

The first Baldur’s Gate game launched back in 1998. Since then, we’ve seen several additional games, spin-offs, and expansions. In addition to this content, we also have the enhanced edition of the first game. Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn brings the spectacular sequel game straight to your phone, and it can even be played on tablets.

Whether the smash-hit launch of Larian Studios’ Baldur’s Gate 3 has piqued your interest in the series’ past, you’re itching to replay a classic, or you’re simply looking for a good time, Shadows of Amn delivers.

The story of Baldur’s Gate II begins in the first game, so we suggest starting there for the complete experience. Just note that the original title is… a bit rougher around the edges. If you’re not clicking with it, don’t be afraid to start with the sequel.

18 Chrono Trigger

Chrono Trigger is another classic RPG that has been ported straight to your phone. Time definitely was not cruel to this title, as Chrono Trigger is still, without a doubt, worth it. Few video games can claim to be so charming, with a captivating atmosphere, a memorable cast, and some of the greatest pacing in role-playing game history.

While the controls may take a bit of getting used to, Chrono Trigger is well worth the slight hassle. Between Square at its peak, the collaborative efforts with Dragon Quest’s Yuji Horii (back when Enix was a separate company), and Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama’s character designs, this is simply incredible stuff.

19 Monster Hunter Stories

Monster Hunter Stories takes the tried-and-true Monster Hunter formula and flips it on its head. What if, instead of hunting the monsters, you befriended them instead. Of course, you’ll still be hunting monsters, but now you can do it with a Monstie companion in turn-based combat.

Monster Hunter games are typically light on story, but as its name suggests, Monster Hunter Stories is all about the story. You take on the role of a Monster Rider and embark on a journey with your friends.

20 Heaven Burns Red

Heaven Burns Red is a joint production between Wright Flyer Studios, the developers behind Another Eden, and Key, a visual novel studio best known for Clannad. The game is also written by Jun Maeda of Key, who created classics like Angel Beats and Little Busters.

As you can imagine, Heaven Burns Red’s story and characters are some of the best in the gacha space, and its combat is pretty good, too. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and you’ll have an overall great time with Heaven Burns Red.