Top 8 Role Playing Games Android

Role playing games or RPGs, at least in my personal experience, are the kind of games that take up hours and hours of players’ lives, which probably means that they don’t particularly suit the mobile platform, with its small screen and limited battery life and primitive controls. That hasn’t stopped developers continuing to release RPGs for the Android however – indeed some of the very best games in general that are available from the Play Store as of today are those with RPG elements. Many of the titles you can read below are ports, developed initially for some other platform and then delivered to mobile users some years later after finding success and a fanbase. It’s impossible not to include titles like Square’s Final Fantasy ports, though I do prefer original titles developed specifically for the platform in question. We picked up a bunch of Android RPGs recently and took them for a test spin – this top 8 countdown is the result!

8. Icewind Dale Enhanced Edition ($9.99)

Icewind Dale is an old RPG game similar in many ways to Baldur’s Gate (the same developer), which is also available for Android and we will likely see before this list is out. I’d say there are over 40 hours of gameplay in this one alone, though the complicated controls that would really suit a mouse and keyboard don’t really translate very well to mobile. There is also a fairly steep learning curve involved with this kind of “professional” RPG, so those who are reading this that prefer a casual gaming experience might do well to bear it in mind. The original Icewind Dale game was first released by Black Isle Studios back in 2000, so is already 15 years old! This port does it justice in many ways, but lets it down in others. – Download on Google Play

7. Doom & Destiny ($2.99)

I’ve always loved the realistic, Games Workshop style art included in games like Icewind Dale and Baldur’s Gate but when it comes to nostalgic memories of RPG games, nothing beats the 8-bit topdown view. I guess this is really why so many of these RPG games have been ported to the mobile platform – because the games are easy for the hardware to handle! Doom & Destiny on the other hand and unlike so many of the titles on this list is actually not a port of an old game but a new game, inspired by the old games like Final Fantasy and Secret of Mana. In it, you explore dungeons and environments, with around 40 hours of gameplay given the main story and all the extras. It’s cheap compared to other RPGs and has no in-app purchases to speak of, so is well worth checking out! – Download on Google Play

6. Chrono Trigger ($9.99)

Chrono Trigger is another all-time favorite from Square, developed initially for the SNES in 1995 and ported to the Android here just in time for its 20th anniversary. As an RPG, this is really about as timeless as it gets, offering hours of gameplay and beautifully crafted worlds of pixels of the kind you don’t see anymore. For fans of the series, there are even two addition areas here when compared to the Nintendo DS port of the game, so even if you’ve played it through once it’s worth playing again. This is also a lot cheaper than other Square Enix games on Android, but still costs $9.99. – Download on Google Play

5. The Bard’s Tale ($1.99)

The Bard’s Tale is another polished port, but costs a lot less than those we’ve typically seen from Japanese developers and distributors. The scale of this one is also a lot larger than we’ve come to expect, which is what puts The Bard’s Tale ahead of its class when it comes to RPG gameplay. – Download on Google Play

4. Secret of Mana ($8.99)

The amount of hours I spent on Secret of Mana as a kid, I couldn’t even tell you. Suffice it to say, the number is probably obscenely high! Again, this is a classic Japanese RPG released initially during the reign of the SNES but was ported to Android in 2014 with revamped graphics and a (albeit rather clunky) control system that has been optimized for mobile play. Fans of the game have probably already played this one on Android just to see what all the fuss is about, and have found a port that does a fair amount of justice to the original. For those who haven’t, what are you waiting for? It costs half the price of the Final Fantasy games on the Play Store and is just as good! – Download on Google Play

3. Final Fantasy V ($15.99)

No list of role playing games on Android would be complete without a mention of Square’s fabled Final Fantasy franchise, which has captured so many players since its conception so many decades ago. There are currently around eight different FF titles available to users on the Google Play Store, each of which are just as expensive as this one! In fact, I think that if you were a huge Final Fantasy fan and decided to grab every app for your Android, it would set you back around $100. Perhaps Square could do some kind of package deal including all of the games, since I know there is the demand for it! Final Fantasy is by far the biggest selling RPG franchise of all time behind perhaps Pokemon, if you could consider that a true role playing game. For younger readers, it’s impossible to explain the joy behind a game like this without experiencing it, so just go out there and play! – Download on Google Play

2. Baldur’s Gate Enhanced Edition ($9.99)

Baldur’s Gate is another game that I poured hours into as a kid, when RPGs finally made their way to the personal computer and reached all new levels of complex detail and artwork. Fortunately, the developers here have taken on the idea I mentioned above and ported both Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2 in a single package, titled Baldur’s Gate Enhanced Edition and available from the Play Store for $9.99. This gives you the entire core game which is of course most important, as well as all the material included in expansion packs along the way. There are some in-app purchases but this is really just extra, peripheral stuff that is not required in order to enjoy the game. The port suffers from the same control system difficulties, but is easy enough to get the hang of once you realize that you don’t have a mouse and keyboard to fall back on! – Download on Google Play

1. Star Wars: KOTOR ($4.99)

With all the ports of role playing games available for Android users, it would be easy for a veteran gamer like myself to succumb to nostalgia and throw old NES or SNES titles at a list like this until finding a Top 8. There are however some original games, such as those mentioned above, and more recent ports that are worth considering. One of the latter is BioWare’s original KOTOR game which was developed for the Xbox and is to my mind the single most comprehensive RPG ever developed for consoles. It’s also infinitely accessible, unlike some other games on this list, and of course has lightsabers which is enough to attract anyone. The Star Wars brand is still very much relevant today, so why not grab this game and experience the very best Star Wars game ever made! – Download on Google Play