The ARPG has to walk a delicate line between depth and frantic slaughter. These are more than just mindless button-bashers – there’s consideration behind the murder, and a story that drives everything along. Done right, the ARPG is one of the most engaging games you can play.
And there are loads of them on the Play Store. Like, loads. So we thought it was a good idea to pick what we think are the ten best. After all, you don’t want to spend hours trawling through listings to find a game, you want to play it right now – such is the rhythm of mobile gaming.
You can click on the names of the games in the list below to go straight to the Play Store to download them. Got your own suggestions for awesome ARPGs people should be playing? Then make sure you stick them in the comments section at the bottom of the article. Before that, here are the ten best ARPGs for Android in 2021.
Titan Quest: Legendary Edition
A mythology laced Diablo-like that sees you hacking and slashing your way through hordes of foes. It’s massive, and this complete edition includes all of the DLC ever released for the game as well. This one is a premium game and you’ll get everything with a single – pretty expensive – purchase.
Wayward Souls
Don’t let the retro-styling of this one lull you into a false sense of security. Wayward Souls is a super tough mixture of an RPG, a roguelike and a dungeon crawler. You’re going to die, loads, and you’re going to have a lovely time doing it. Another premium game with no IAPs.
Pascal’s Wager
There’s more than a shade of Dark Souls here. Lots of massive monsters, challenging combat and a dark story full of gloom and more gloom. The whole thing is presented with AAA polish and regular DLC will keep you coming back for more. It’s premium, with the added content as IAPs.
Grimvalor
Another dark and gloomy game with tight, engaging combat. This one’s a side-scroller with some metroidvania twists, though. It’s tricky in all the ways you want it to be, well polished and it’s got loads of tricks up its sleeve. You can get the first couple of hours or so for free, then unlock everything else with an IAP.
Genshin Impact
That’s enough doom and gloom, let’s have some primary colors instead. Genshin Impact is a bit of a global hit, available on a whole bunch of platforms and sees you exploring a huge open world. There are a load of characters to collect, plenty of quests and plenty more to see and do. It’s free with IAP.
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night
This is another side-scrolling hack-and-slasher that sees you battling your way through a castle that’s packed full of demons. It’s incredibly challenging, and could do with controller support, but there’s still a lot to love if you can get over the touchscreen frustrations. This one’s premium with IAP DLC.
Implosion: Never Lose Hope
A cyberpunk hack-a-thon that’s filled with aliens and robots and all sorts of other things to slice and shoot into fizzing chunks. It feels like it owes a lot to the works of Platinum, and we can’t think of much higher praise than that. You can play a chunk for free and unlock the rest with a one-time IAP.
Oceanhorn
A slightly more sedate ARPG that wears its Zelda-influence on its sleeve. Fight, explore, solve simple puzzles and have a lovely, sunny time while you’re doing it. There’s loads to love in Oceanhorn and you can check out the first chapter for free. If you like what you see you can unlock the rest with an IAP.
Anima
A dark and gory dungeon crawler with plenty of nooks and crannies to find and kill things in. There’s a lot of depth here, and you’re going to find yourself sinking into the experience if it tickles your fancy. It’s free to play, but there are a few IAP that you can pretty much ignore entirely if you want to.
Trials of Mana
An ARPG with a classic JRPG flavor. Travel around a big, bright world, kicking and cutting your way through a bunch of monsters as you explore and discover. There’s a great story and loads of things to see, do and kill. It’s a premium game with a pretty steep price tag, but it’s got the polish to make it worth it.
Click here to read more lists about the best games available for Android in 2021
