Like I wrote in my intro to the companion piece about free games, I have quite a bit of experience going through the great and not-so-great games on Google Play. And yes, that means I have paid for more than a few games that did not hold my attention for very long. Anyways as a general rule, if you’re playing mobile games you’re gonna be better off paying a few bucks at the beginning rather than dealing with the constant monetization in free to play games.
These are the 10 best paid games on Google Play as of early April 2022. Like in the list of free games, I put the genre of each game to get a good variety, but I did not necessarily look to pick the best game of the 10 biggest genres or anything like that. I also put an alternative for each game, so really it’s like a list of the 20 best premium Google Play games.
As a note, I think a lot of these games are available on Google Play Pass, which you may or may not find to be worth it for your own needs.
In alphabetical order:
Dragon Quest V (RPG)
Yes, Dragon Quest V costs $14.99, which is steep for a mobile game. However, it’s a full-on console RPG, and it’s still one of the best and most influential games of all time. Considering that, combined with the fact that microtransactions for other games can easily exceed $15 in a week or a month, and it feels a bit less steep. Anyways, Dragon Quest V is a classic JRPG that arguably introduced the world to the fun of monster catching, while also having a classic love story built in. You really can’t beat Dragon Quest V for a mobile RPG, especially since the port is designed so you can play in portrait mode with one hand.
As an alternative, pretty much everything above applies to Chrono Trigger too!
The Escapists 2 (RPG)
As a different type of RPG (i.e., a non-JRPG), The Escapists 2 is hard to beat. Set in a bunch of different prisons, The Escapists 2 will have you wheeling and dealing with inmates and guards alike, and having to beat down people from each group every so often. Whether you want to escape in a guns-blazing, Hollywood style scene or would rather be long gone before anyone notices, like by escaping through vents, The Escapists 2 will let you live out a fantasy where prison isn’t as horrifying for inmates as it is in real life.
As an alternative, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (KotOR) is one of the best western RPGs of all time, and the mobile port doesn’t lose much of anything.
Download Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Rollercoaster Tycoon Classic (Simulation)
Rollercoaster Tycoon Classic is another great port of an all-time classic. Most of the modern offerings in this series are terrible and fail to understand what makes the original so great, so just go back to the original! Sure, it’s a bit more cramped than the original desktop monitor you used to play it on, but it’s so easy to run on your phone that it feels crisp nonetheless. There are a lot of great tycoon games out there, but this is still one of the kings.
Download Rollercoaster Tycoon Classic
As an alternative, you can try Pocket City, which is a more modern take on SimCity that doesn’t have any in-app purchases. There’s a free version too that lets you upgrade to the paid version and I believe keep your progress (but make sure before you take my word on that).
Silver Screen Story (Simulation)
For a more simulation-style tycoon game, it’s hard to beat Kairosoft games, and Silver Screen Story just might be my favorite. You run a movie studio and pick the genre and production team (including actors) for each movie. It’s like an extremely lite version of The Movies (2006), one of my favorite games of all time.
As an alternative, Dungeon Village 2 is a great Kairosoft game in a fantasy RPG-type setting (like I said, it’s hard to beat Kairosoft for simulation games).
Siralim Ultimate (Creature Catching)
Siralim Ultimate is a creature catching game that feels bigger than any other monster game I’ve ever played. While it doesn’t have the modern graphics of the newest Pokemon or Digimon games, it’s much deeper than those games can possibly be. With the amount of monster fusions available and gear you can craft, Siralim Ultimate truly delivers on its goal of being the last creature catcher anyone could ever need.
Honestly, I couldn’t find a great alternative for this among paid games that I’d recommend. In the free list, I recommended Pocket Mortys and Beastie Bay. Another free game that’s somewhat similar (but not similar enough to recommend as a straight-up alternative) to this is Tiny Bird Garden, which has a $9.99 upgrade IAP that removes ads, thus essentially making it a premium game as far as I know.
Slay the Spire (Cards)
Slay the Spire is the roguelike deckbuilder that convinced everyone else to try making their own roguelike deckbuilder. This is a premium game in every way, and once you buy it you can get hours and hours of fun, making this a perfect offline game for plane rides and other long sessions. This is one of the best games on Google Play, period. When I went to get a screenshot, the app got stuck on the “syncing data” screen shown above, but I promise it’s a good game.
As an alternative, Meteorfall: Krumit’s Tale is the second offering in the Meteorfall series, and it has the advantage of being made for mobile.
Download Meteorfall: Krumit’s Tale
The Sorcery! Series (Gamebook)
The Sorcery! series makes up one of the best mobile experiences out there. These are truly animated gamebooks where you can choose exactly how your adventure unfolds. If I remember correctly, the first one is somewhat short, but the second one opens up to a much bigger world, and every game has good replayability. Finally, your progress carries along from book to book.
As an alternative, the Reigns series is a much more streamlined version of a similar thing, with flavors for Kings, Queens, and Game of Thrones fans.
Download Reigns: Game of Thrones
Stardew Valley (Building In The Wilderness)
I wasn’t sure what to call this genre, so I went with “Building In The Wilderness”, since I think it sums up their clearing-building-upgrading gameplay loop. Anyways, Stardew Valley is pretty much agreed upon as the best game of this type, and the mobile port has everything you want from the desktop version (except for multiplayer). This might be the very best paid mobile game to lose yourself in for hours or even days.
As an alternative, Junk Jack brings a similar experience to a 2D, Terraria-like setup that is more combat-focused but still offers tons of farming and animal husbandry opportunities.
Tennis Superstars (Sports)
Tennis Superstars is almost a perfect mobile game. It distills Tennis into something that feels manageable to play with one hand without diluting the experience beyond recognition. They also avoid licensing issues by making up names that will also be recognizable to tennis fans. This game could easily be $5 or $10, so it’s a great deal.
As an alternative, NBA Jam is one of the best sports games ever made, and it’s almost as much fun with touchscreen controls.
Ticket to Earth (Puzzle RPG)
Finally, for puzzle games, Ticket to Earth looks beyond the match 3 genre to make something truly original. This is a full-fledged premium game that just happens to be on mobile, with solid writing, deep customization, and challenging tactical combat. Give it a try if you have the money.
As an alternative, You Must Build A Boat is the anti-Candy Crush. It doesn’t look beautiful, but gives you hours and hours of fun at a great price.
Download You Must Build A Boat
Just pick one of those games above based on the genres you like and what looks good to you. I can personally vouch for every single one of these games, and I can tell you that they are all premium experiences that do not beg for your money after the initial purchase, instead giving you a console-like experience. If you haven’t checked out my companion piece for free games, you can do so here, but I will say again that premium is really the way to go, if you can afford the modest up-front prices.
