The 8 Best Role-Playing Games for Android

Best for Sci-Fi Fans: Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic

A long time ago in that galaxy far, far away, an epic story about Jedi, Sith, rogue pilots, and memorable droids played out. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is a port of the classic BioWare RPG. Will you be a heroic Jedi for the Light, or will you succumb to the Dark Side of the Force? It all depends on the choices you make.

Travel to different worlds, recruit a bunch of interesting characters for your team, and develop your skills the way you see fit. The original game is a role-playing classic, and the Android port is great.

Best for Character Development: Chaos Rings III

It's hard to get any bigger or better than Chaos Rings III. It has everything you expect from a full Square Enix RPG, including a deep character development system, a story with plenty of twists and turns, lush graphics, and an excellent soundtrack.

This game really piles on the extras, too, so there's still plenty to do even after you've beaten the main story. Some might find the shift in tone from the previous games a little jarring, but Chaos Rings III certainly didn't lose anything in terms of quality.

Best for Dungeons & Dragons Fans: Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition

An improved port of one of the best PC RPGs ever made, and one of the best Dungeons & Dragons RPGs, Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition is right at home on Android. Continuing the story of the first game, you start off imprisoned by a new enemy and have to fight your way out with your companions' help. From there, it's another non-linear grand adventure in the Forgotten Realms setting, with classic Dungeons & Dragons rules and motifs. The plot in this one isn't quite as good as the one in the first game, but the excellent gameplay more than makes up for it. 

Best for Japanese RPG Fans: Dragon Quest V

Dragon Quest V is quite traditional in its gameplay, but its story is a breath of fresh air. You follow the life of the main character from birth to adulthood. There are almost as many tragedies as there are triumphs, and the whole game plays around with the notions of heroism and what exactly that word means. Throw in a fun monster-catching mechanic that predates Pokemon, and you've got a journey no one should miss.

Plus, thanks to the game using a vertical alignment rather than a horizontal one, you can easily sneak in some game time on the sly. 

Best Strategy RPG: Final Fantasy Tactics

One of the finest strategy RPGs ever made, Square Enix's Final Fantasy Tactics is even better on touch screens than its original form. Whether you're into RPGs for their stories or gameplay systems, there's a lot to like in this game.

Between the deep, morally-complex plot, the challenging scenario design, and the flexible job system, Final Fantasy Tactics offers dozens of hours of strategic pleasure. That's not even mentioning the cool secrets, which include the ability to recruit a certain famous spiky-haired protagonist from another famous Final Fantasy game.

Best for Fans of Norse Mythology: The Banner Saga

While The Banner Saga uses a fantasy setting, it has a slightly darker tone than most other fantasy RPGs. This is another strategy RPG with a superb story and gameplay more than capable of backing it up.

The Banner Saga is the first part of a trilogy following the Norse legends of Ragnarok, but on its own, there's still plenty of enjoyment here. The tactical battles are challenging and fun to figure out, and you even get to make some choices about the direction the plot moves in. 

For Gamers Who Like Lots of Depth: Heroes of Steel

This sprawling RPG from the Trese Brothers might be a little rougher in terms of presentation, but it compensates for it in sheer quantity. Heroes of Steel is a tactical turn-based RPG where you lead four unique characters through post-apocalyptic medieval dungeons, combating fearsome enemies who threaten humanity's last settlements. You can decide how to develop each character's strategy, ultimately resulting in a powerful team of heroes.

With hundreds of dungeons, multiple characters each with their unique skills, tons of treasure, and hordes of bad guys to kill, Heroes of Steel will keep you busy for a long time. Better still, the Trese Brothers are still frequently adding more content to it.