Mobile gaming has taken off in recent years, and it can be challenging to keep track of which titles are worth your time. It’s also important to know which ones are free. The cost of playing games with extras such as play-to-win microtransactions can rack up quickly, and it’s annoying to get bombarded with ads to unlock new levels.
Thankfully, there are several superb free games to play. We’ve compiled a list of the best truly free iOS games available on the market in 2021. Check out our suggestions for some seriously fun gaming sessions.
Asphalt 9: Legends
If you want to experience an adrenaline rush, what is better than playing a racing game. Asphalt 9: Legends is the latest game available in the Asphalt franchise and is one of the most popular mobile racing games by far. Players can pick various cars with different speeds and looks for solo or play multiplayer. The game offers clean and modern graphics along with a ton of challenges and a bunch of modes.
Brain Dots
If you are someone who wants to polish their brain by playing brain games, then Brain Dots is indeed one of the best games you can pick. The game includes different levels, and your goal is to connect two dots by drawing using different pens. While it might sound like an easy task to do, it can take hours for you to solve some levels.
Brain Dots was released in 2015 for Android and iOS devices, and it has a pretty solid player base even after six years. Not only can you solve the levels that are already there in the game, but you can also create your own stages and share them with other players. There are over 3 million stages that have already been created, and the world is waiting for yours.
Genshin Impact
Genshin Impact, a free-to-play open-world RPG game released back in 2020, has gathered praise from all around the world. Players take the role of a Traveler to start their journey to find their missing twin in the fantasy land of Teyvat. The game’s smooth mechanics and breathtaking graphics made players fall in love with it instantly.
Genshin Impact became the fastest mobile title to cross $1 billion in player spending after beating Pokémon GO in less than six months of its official launch. With the cross-play feature available, you can explore the mind-blowing world created by miHoYo with your friends.
League of Legends: Wild Rift
League of Legends: Wild Rift is getting closer to its global launch after a delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic and is currently in the open beta testing phase. The title is the mobile version of the popular PC game League of Legends, and if you love competitive games, the Wild Rift is definitely one of the best free iPhone games to go for.
The game features over 60 champions that players can choose before going into a 5v5 battle, and along with emphasizing the in-game meta and graphics — which by the way, are even better than the PC version — Riot is not taking its focus off its competitive side. In the hands of Riot Games, League of Legends: Wild Rift might also have the best esports scenario in the future.
Mekorama
If something more casual is what you’re after, Mekorama is a title that should pique your interest. You have to guide a little robot home through 50 different puzzles. You can move the puzzle around and change its angle to work out how to get your little buddy home safely, and the ambient music helps to relax you as you play.
The puzzles get more difficult as you progress, but there’s nothing overly tasking here. Once the game is complete, you can donate to the developer, but you’re under no obligation to do so. If you’re a fan of games like Monument Valley, Mekorama is worth a go.
Pokémon Go
Pokémon Go is another massively popular title, and its free updates are constantly adding new features, generations of Pokemon, and challenges for you to catch and try out. Unlike the other entries on our list, Pokémon Go does require you to go outside to get the most out of it.
It will help you explore regions of your city or even the world while you play. In that sense, it’s more than just a regular game, and you could find yourself becoming addicted to walking everywhere very quickly. If you’re after a nostalgic game that gets you up and about, Pokémon Go is the one for you.
Roblox
Roblox is a popular online game platform where players can design their own games and present them in front of others. It is filled with thousands of games, including Adopt Me!, Murder Mystery 2, Jailbreak, and many more. The game has a huge player base across PC, mobile, Xbox, macOS, and in addition to this, the game has also been nominated for BAFTA Games Award for EE Mobile Game of the Year, Kids’ Choice Award for Favorite Videogame.
Players can experience both solo and multiplayer games with their friends or strangers across different genres, including racing, horror, shooting, and more.
Stranger Things: The Game
Okay, yes, this game is two-and-a-half years old. Stranger Things 3: The Game, which tied into the latest season of the Netflix show, even came out in 2019, so playing its predecessor might seem a bit daft. Hear us out, though — it’s free of any microtransactions or ads.
You can compete with your friends by beating their scores on the game’s leaderboards. And, perhaps most importantly, you get to control all of your favorite characters from the hit Netflix show. There’s plenty to love about Stranger Things: The Game. From its pixelated art to its fun puzzles and everything in between, you’d do well to find a better-licensed Stranger Things game for some time.
Sudoku
We couldn’t write up a free iOS games feature without including the king of the puzzle genre. Sudoku is as popular today as it was many moons ago, and you’ll get plenty from this puzzle app. With various difficulties to select, you can chop and change between them to give yourself something light to complete or a puzzle that will have you tearing your hair out.
You can rank your scores against your friends too, which will add some spice to any online competitions you decide to hold. There are many brain teasers across the Apple App Store, but none come close to Sudoku. Pick it up for free as soon as you can.
The Walking Dead: Season One
The Walking Dead is a five-part video game series based on The Walking Dead comic book series and is set in the world of zombies. While players need to purchase episode 2 to 5, the first one is free to play for all the players, and if you are into story mode games, you will surely love this award-winning game.
Players take the role of Lee Everett, a convicted criminal, and the goal is to fight the undead to maintain their own safety, protecting an orphaned girl named Clementine. The story’s progress depends upon the choices you make while exploring events, meeting people, and visiting locations.
Zombie Football
Football meets The Walking Dead in this peculiar but fantastic iOS title. You control the last player alive on your team, and your job is to get from one side of the pitch to the other. The catch? There’s a hungry zombie horde between you and your goal. You can juke, spin, and bulldoze your way through the undead across 40 challenging levels, and you’ll have to avoid other pitfalls such as slippery mud patches to stay alive.
Free skins can be unlocked for completing challenges, and you can boast to your mates about your top leaderboard position if you excel at Zombie Football. The developers are releasing new levels regularly for free, so there’s more to come back to in the future. It’s satisfying to burst through the zombie lines and complete each challenge, so Zombie Football is worth your time.
