The Best Cross-Platform Games To Play On Mobile

Summary

  • Mobile gaming offers cross-platform play, allowing seamless progression between devices.
  • Farlight 84 features unique gameplay with heroes, companions, and crossplay between PC and mobile devices.
  • Shadowverse offers anime-inspired digital card game matches between two players, leaders, with various cards and strategies.

Mobile gameplay is fast solidifying its place in every genre in the gaming world. The concept of being able to play the most complex games on mobile devices the size of palms is genuinely intriguing. Most developers today offer mobile-friendly technology, which is another factor in the popularity of mobile gaming.

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Most game software companies now offer their games with the same display and gameplay quality across all devices. Mobile gaming gets even more interesting when cross-platform play is thrown into the mix. Imagine playing the same game on a smartphone, tablet, laptop, PlayStation 5, or Nintendo. That’s what these games are here to provide!

Updated February 2, 2025, by Mehrdad Khayyat: With the mobile platforms becoming more powerful hardware-wise, the game experience has also elevated significantly with more graphically advanced games coming to mobile phones, some of which bring the identical console or PC experience to mobile.

In between, these technological advancements have helped multiplayer games a lot, allowing a massive community of mobile players to also join the console and PC servers with no need to sacrifice any content or visual quality, delivering a seamless progression between multiple platforms.

19

Farlight 84

A Battle Royale Experience Inspired By Pokemon

farlight-84-how-to-get-weapon-xp-fast

Farlight 84 Tag Page Cover Art

Systems

phone transparent

Released

April 23, 2023

Developer(s)

Farlight

Farlight 84 is one of the many Battle Royale games out there, but it does have a unique approach. Aside from gunplay, which is the core mechanic to defeat rivals, the game also features heroes and companions known as Buddies.

Each hero comes with a unique set of active abilities that help the players dominate the battlefield differently. But, aside from battling it out to be the last one surviving, there is also a rivalry for catching buddies. Each buddy, like heroes, comes with a unique ability that helps the player. Some of the buddies can turn into vehicles, some can trap the opponents, and some others can detect the enemies and giveaway their positions. There are many different buddies and each comes with unique abilities.

Farlight 84 features crossplay between PC and mobile, but PC players cannot force themselves into mobile lobbies.

18

Old School RuneScape

Timeless MMORPG Now in Your Pocket

An image of the character elevating while it is surrounded by foes.

Old School RuneScape Tag Page Cover Art

Free-to-Play

RPG

Adventure

Systems

phone transparent

Old School RuneScape is one of the top Android MMORPGs for a good reason. Many players remember RuneScape fondly because it was one of the first freely available massively multiplayer online role-playing games. Jagex spared no expense in bringing the cherished classic to mobile devices.

The user interface has been refined for mobile use, yet it retains all of the functionality of the desktop version. It’s easy to pick up and play, and it works well for quick bursts of gameplay. Players can always resume where they left off because their progress will be saved between devices.

17

Shadowverse

Anime-Inspired Strategy

Shadowverse card collection

Shadowverse Tag Page Cover Art

Shadowverse

Systems

phone transparent

Released

June 17, 2016

Developer(s)

Cygames

For iOS and Android devices, Cygames released Shadowverse as a free-to-play digital collectible card game in the middle of 2016. The Windows and macOS versions were released later in the same year. The game features anime-style art reminiscent of a previous title from the developer, Rage of Bahamut.

In Shadowverse, card game matches are set between two players referred to as leaders in the game. Each leader starts with a defense level of 20 and three cards. Players take turns playing from their decks with the objective of reducing the opponent’s defense level to zero. Another way to get a win here is to use special cards, such as the Victory Card.

16

Brawlhalla

2D Fighting Action

Brawlhalla Cover 2024

Brawlhalla Tag Page Cover Art

Released

October 17, 2017

OpenCritic Rating

Fair

Brawlhalla is a free-to-play fighting game in the vein of Super Smash Brothers. And like Super Smash Bros, it features a large roster of characters that players can select to fight multiple rounds in a 2D arena with the goal of defeating the opposing character in a best of three.

In addition to the standard 1v1 format, Brawlhalla also has the option for 2v2s, where four players slug it out in a hectic frenzy of action that’s as chaotic as it is fun. There is an ELO system in place that ensures that players are only facing off against others of their level. And since the game has crossplay built into it from the ground up, this means that someone on a PC can match against someone on a console and have a fair match without any hiccups.

15

Teamfight Tactics

Auto Chess on the Go

An image of a battle in Teamfight Tactics' battleground

Teamfight Tactics Tag Page Cover Art

Systems

phone transparent

Released

June 26, 2019

Franchise

League of Legends

Although it was originally implemented as a mode in League of Legends, Teamfight Tactics has since branched off into its own game genre and acquired significant traction. Each of the four teams of eight players will face a new opponent at each level of the game. Users can engage in friendly competition across platforms to find the best synergies and resources.

The game is broken up into levels and rounds, and each round begins with an instant battle between the two players who were drawn at random to fight each other or against automated foes. They can play it for free on your Android or iOS smartphone, and it’s one of the best player-versus-player games out there.

14

Among Us

Crewmate or Impostor?

Among Us characters in the spaceship

Among Us Tag Page Cover Art

Released

June 5, 2018

Developer(s)

InnerSloth

OpenCritic Rating

Strong

Franchise

Among Us

The American company Innersloth created the multiplayer social deduction game Among Us. It was published in 2018 and released across eight platforms by the end of 2021. Among Us takes inspiration from the horror movies The Thing and The Party Game Mafia. Among Us features a mixture of cool and bright colors. The game is set in space with cartoon-like astronauts who do the major work here.

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Each player gets to play as an impostor or crewmate. The crewmates have to complete certain tasks in the form of minigames and puzzles and hopefully eject the impostors. The impostors just have to sabotage the ship and kill or eject all the crewmates in order to win. The impostors are usually up to three and unable to complete real tasks that do not involve sabotage.

13

Pokémon Unite

Fast-Paced MOBA Action

An image of Pokémon unite

Pokémon Unite Tag Page Cover Art

Systems

phone transparent super greyscale 8-bit logo

Released

July 21, 2021

OpenCritic Rating

Fair

The gameplay in Pokémon Unite, a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA), is more streamlined and takes place at a faster pace, making it ideal for unexpected team battles. Goals can be scored with wild Pokemon that have been captured, trained, and eventually used in battle.

Players can invite others to join them as they battle wild Pokémon, discover new areas, get experience, and level up. It has a vast roster of playable characters, all of whom have their own special moves and abilities. Matches in Pokémon Unite last 10 minutes, much as in the free-to-play MOBA League of Legends. Pokémon Unite is available for both iOS and Android devices.

12

Roblox

Play, Build, and Explore

A Roblox character

Roblox Tag Page Cover Art

Released

September 1, 2006

Developer(s)

Roblox Corporation

Roblox is actually more than just a game. It is a platform with a creation system that lets users create games and play games created by others. It was released for Windows in 2006 and soon came to other platforms in the years after. At launch, its reach was relatively small, but its use and popularity began to grow rapidly in the 2010s, a growth that surged during the pandemic.

Roblox gives users the creative freedom to make experiences (games) of their own using the Roblox Studio engine and the Luau language. These games are also buyable on the platform through one-time purchases and repeated microtransactions. The platform has grown to be a minor-friendly space in which players can buy, sell, and create games.

11

Mindustry

Tower Defense Meets RTS

A player's factory in Mindustry

Mindustry Tag Page Cover Art

Mindustry

Systems

phone transparent

Released

September 26, 2019

Mindustry is a mix of a lot of different gaming concepts that are hard to grasp at first but quickly start making sense with more playtime. It combines Factorio’s building mechanics with monster wave attacks of tower defense games and a light sprinkling of StarCraft-style RTS mechanics to set up mobile defenses before the waves start coming. It’s an addictive, fun romp that can get incredibly intense at times and fairly chill at others.

In addition to mobile, Mindustry is also available on PC, and for fairly cheap as well, and has full crossplay ability for two players, one on mobile and the other on PC, to play with each other in seamless crossplay.

10

Frozen Synapse

Tactical Combat, Turn-Based Mastery

Frozen Synapse official steam image 1

Frozen Synapse Tag Page Cover Art

Frozen Synapse is one of the most underrated mobile games out there, with an incredibly unique concept that’s executed with perfection. It’s a turn-based tactical battler where two sides face each other, in a top-down view inside a pre-rendered environment with a select number of combatants on each side. On a player’s turn, they simulate how the battle would play out by placing their units and watching what happens. Then, they lock in their choice and see what the other player did, who has exactly the same information as well as the ability to simulate battles from their sides. It’s a

Unlike most multiplayer games, Frozen Synapse uses a system similar to chess, where one player makes a move and then waits for the other one to make a move before it’s their turn. Best of all, this is all in asynchronous multiplayer, which plays out even when the other player is not in the game itself. One party can select their optimal course of action, set it for that match, and close the game. Whenever they re-open the game sometime in the future, whether it be an hour, a day, or a week later, they’ll find what their opponent decided to do and go from there. It’s a stress-free think-as-much-as-needed approach that’s very rare to see in online multiplayer games like this. And of course, Frozen Synapse supports seamless crossplay across all platforms, mobile included.

9

Hearthstone

Epic Card Battles in the Warcraft Universe

An image of characters and foes in Hearthstone

Hearthstone Tag Page Cover Art

Systems

phone transparent

Released

March 11, 2014

OpenCritic Rating

Mighty

Hearthstone, a strategy game developed and published by Blizzard, takes place in the Warcraft universe and receives frequent updates in the form of new content, tournaments, and contests. The game can be played in a variety of ways, from ranked battles to drafted arena duels to solo quests.

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This online card game is free to play and offers the exciting opportunity to compete against friends anywhere in the world. Players of digital TCGs can blow up booster packs and let loose devils in their games. Cards can be one of five distinct types: minions, spells, weapons, heroes, or locations. Hearthstone is available for Android and iOS devices.

8

Minecraft

Timeless Block-Building Fun

Minecraft characters, Steve and Alex and a dog

Minecraft Tag Page Cover Art

Platform(s)

3DS, Android, iOS, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Wii U, PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PS Vita, Xbox One, Xbox 360

Released

November 18, 2011

OpenCritic Rating

Mighty

Minecraft is a sandbox game that Mojang Studios created in the Java programming language. The gameplay revolves around “mining blocks,” which translates into finding useful 3D objects and creating something out of them. It was released fully in 2011 as a game set in a three-dimensional open world where players could source food and raw materials, craft items, and build necessary structures.

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Minecraft also came with a bunch of game modes—somewhere players could fight mobs, and others involved competitions with players from other worlds. Although there is an achievement system in place, there are no specific goals to accomplish, so players can play the game however they want.

7

Asphalt Legends Unite

High-Octane Racing

Asphalt 9: Legends red car

Asphalt Legends Unite Tag Page Cover Art


Top Critic Rating:
73/100

Released

July 25, 2018

Developer(s)

Gameloft Barcelona

OpenCritic Rating

Fair

Franchise

Asphalt

Gameloft released Asphalt Legends Unite in 2018. It is a multiplayer video game with a focus on car racing. It is the fifteenth game in the Asphalt series, and as expected, it comes with improved features, including an autopilot mode, better control options, and a new car lineup.

In Asphalt Legends Unite, there are five car classes: D, C, B, A, and S, each with a higher performance level. Players get to unlock the cars, customize them, and race in any of the five game modes: career, club, seasonal events, daily events, and multiplayer.

Epic RPG Action

The Elder Scrolls: Blades' Crypt Wight

The Elder Scrolls: Blades Tag Page Cover Art

Systems

phone transparent super greyscale 8-bit logo

Released

May 12, 2020

Developer(s)

Bethesda Game Studios

OpenCritic Rating

Weak

Released in 2020. The Elder Scrolls: Blades is an action roleplaying game that is free to play. As a spin-off of the Elder Scrolls series, Bethesda Game Studios created it. The game is played from a first-person perspective and is well-optimized for mobile gaming with features like swiping, tapping, and touchscreen stick controls.

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Often referred to as Blades, this game features three game modes: Abyss, Town, and Arena. Abyss is an endurance game in which the player must drive as fast as possible in an endless dungeon, while Arena is a PvP multiplayer mode, and Town is a story mode with non-player characters and quests.

5

Honkai: Star Rail

A Massive Open-World Universe With Tons Of Content

honkai star rail march 7th picking a record

Honkai: Star Rail Tag Page Cover Art

Systems

phone transparent PlayStation-1

Released

April 26, 2023

OpenCritic Rating

Strong

Known as the space version of Genshin Impact, Honkai: Star Rail comes from the same development team, but with a crucial difference in the combat system. Star Rail prefers turn-based combat to real-time battles, and that adds a new layer of tactical gameplay. Finding the best composition of heroes for each fight and equipping each hero with the right build is an enjoyable gameplay loop in Honkai: Star Rail.

While the game already launched with massive content, it still receives continuous support from the developers with more content updates down the line that introduce new heroes as well as new regions.

Honkai: Star Rail supports cross-platform progression between mobile, PC, and console.

4

Marvel SNAP

Superhero Card Battles

Marvel Snap lowers Deadpool's Diner Cereal entry cost

Marvel SNAP Tag Page Cover Art

Systems

phone transparent

Released

August 22, 2023

Developer(s)

Second Dinner

OpenCritic Rating

Mighty

Franchise

Marvel

Marvel SNAP is a strategy card game that allows players to build decks featuring all the well-known heroes and villains from the Marvel Universe, with a lot of the lesser-known ones thrown in as well. Visuals are downright incredible, and the animation is on point. Gameplay is punchy, quick, and doesn’t take up much of the player’s time, which translates excellently on mobile, where game sessions on the shorter side are preferable. Players can choose to raise the stakes of any game by doubling the amount of ranking points on the line or retreat gracefully if the situation looks untenable.

Card collection in Marvel SNAP is grindy, to say the least, which is the only major gripe players have with this otherwise excellent game. Getting anywhere close to a ‘good’ deck in pool 3 or later will take hundreds of hours of playtime, daily log-ins, and a bit of luck. Luckily, the matchmaking system tends to pit players against players with similar progression, which, thanks to the frankly staggeringly large player base, is quick and fast, no matter the skill level.

3

Fortnite

Epic’s Infamous Battle Royale

Fortnite battle scene

Fortnite Tag Page Cover Art

Released

July 25, 2017

OpenCritic Rating

Mighty

Released in 2017, Fortnite offers three versions with game modes that are variations of the same gameplay. Of the three games: Fortnite Battle Royale, Fortnite Creative, and Fortnite: Save the World, the first two are free to play, while the third is not. Fortnite Battle Royale is, as the name implies, a battle royale game in which 100 players attempt to end up as the last standing out of 100 players.

Fortnite Creative is a game aimed at unleashing the creativity of players, giving them total freedom to create arenas and new worlds. Fortnite: Save the World is a shooter/survival type of game in which a maximum of four players battle strange creatures and defend specified objects with the strategies and defense mechanisms they create.

2

Genshin Impact

Anime-Style Open-World RPG

Genshin Impact's Barbera

Genshin Impact Tag Page Cover Art

RPG

Action

Adventure

Gacha

Open-World

Released

September 28, 2020

OpenCritic Rating

Strong

MiHoYo is the creator of the action-themed role-playing game Genshin Impact. It features an open-world game environment with magic battles and impressive characters. The anime-style game is free-to-play and has a Gacha monetization system for purchasing weapons and characters.

Genshin Impact takes place in a fantasy world with parties of four, where a player gets to control one of the characters in the party. Switching characters is also allowed during combat, giving players the privilege of combining a variety of offensive and defensive attacks.

1

Clash Of Clans

Clash of Clans Mobile RTS game

Clash of Clans Tag Page Cover Art

Systems

phone transparent

Clash of Clans is a big enough name that barely needs explanation. The game has been dominating the RTS genre on mobile platforms since its release and now it can be officially played on PC as well, allowing players to manage their clan and village through a PC and enjoy the cross-progression.

The PC version of Clash of Clans is a feature that is only available on Windows 11. Getting the hang of controls on PC might be a little bit difficult in the beginning, and to be honest, fighting battles is still easier on a mobile than on a PC, but the PC version comes in handy quite a lot when it comes to managing the village, fortifying the base, and upgrading the buildings on a wider and bigger screen.

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