With all the negative attention surrounding Elder Scrolls Blades on mobile, I figured it might be a good time to point out some alternatives. Personally, I don’t mind the first mobile iteration of Elder Scrolls. As long as you approach it as a bite-sized and shallow game you’ll be fine. It’s great for short bursts of play when you want to kill a little time.
But if you don’t agree and you totally hate Blades, these games might offer you a similar experience. More importantly, everything on this list has a great deal of content to keep you busy for a while.
I own an Android device so for most of these I’ll talk about Android and Google Play specifically. But if you have an iPhone, you will find iTunes links included too.
10. Earth and Legend

This one is old school, from a time where 3D open-world RPGs were not common on Android and mobile devices. It still holds up today with decent graphics and some fun quests and content. If you’re looking for a simple, pick-up-and-play action RPG this one will do fine.
There are some things you should know going in, however:
- The game serves an annoying pop-up every so often offering 500 gold for a Google Play review
- It hasn’t been updated in quite some time
- It’s buggy and there are no fixes scheduled for any of the problems you may encounter
With all that in mind, you may not deem it worthy of the price tag which is fine because there are plenty of other options on this list. If you’re willing to give it a try check out the Google Play link below.
Price: $6.99
Earth and Legend Google Play Page — No longer available
9. Kingdom Quest Crimson Warden

Hundreds of quests? Check. Leveling, upgrades and customization? Check. Hoards of enemies to slay? Check. Fantastical 3D open world to explore? Also check.
Kingdom Quest definitely ticks all the boxes and provides a relatively great experience for free. There are in-app purchases but there isn’t anything that hinders your experience if you don’t pay anything. There are ads if that’s a huge turn-off but they’re not intrusive.
Price: Free with IAP
Kingdom Quest Crimson Warden Google Play Page
Kingdom Quest Crimson Warden iTunes Page
8. World of Rest: Online RPG

World of Rest reminds me of Kingdom Come: Deliverance in many ways, particularly the art style and landscapes. It’s a multi-player online RPG set in a fantasy world that offers a variety of things to do. Quest, fight monsters, level up, collect trophies and make money. There are several crafting trades to study too like hunting, fishing and alchemy.
It’s free, which means there are IAPs. You can buy in-game coins for real money, for example, to speed up progress. The rest of the game is totally free to experience and the real-world money is not necessary to play.
One thing to note is that this game is in Early Access which means it’s still actively being developed and added to.
Price: Free (Early Access)
World of Rest: Online RPG Google Play Page
7. Aralon Series

The Aralon series includes two games: Aralon Sword and Shadow, and Aralon Forge and Flame. They are similar so it doesn’t matter which you choose — heck, get both if you want. If it matters, Forge and Flame is the newer game.
Both feature an open, expansive world with lots to do and plenty of places to explore. They are reminiscent of Blades because they allow character customization, gear enhancement and leveling and there’s tons of great loot.
The best part is you pay once and you’re done.
Price: $4.99
Aralon: Sword and Shadow Google Play Page
Aralon: Forge and Flame Google Play Page — No longer available
Aralon: Sword and Shadow iTunes Page
Aralon: Forge and Flame iTunes Page
6. Ravensword: Shadowlands

It’s not Morrowind, Oblivion or Skyrim on your phone but it’s pretty darn close. Ravensword features a huge world, first-person and third-person viewpoints and tons of shit to do.
There are also plenty of quests, loots, NPCs and the story is decent for a mobile game of this caliber.
Note: The game hasn’t been updated in a while and some reviewers are reporting sensitivity issues on their devices.
Price: $6.99
Ravensword: Shadowlands Google Play Page
Ravensword: Shadowlands iTunes Page
5. Nimian Legends: BrightRidge

Nimian Legends is a beautiful, open world fantasy adventure that’s reminiscent of an RPG. It’s a fresh and unique approach to this style of game with an emphasis placed on exploration and the story above fast-paced combat.
There’s a cool photo mode that lets you snap some great pics, as well as extensive customization options to change-up the world. You can add visual effects and filters, change the time of day, and even boost the graphical detail on high-end devices.
It’s also developed by a solo Indie dev, and is clearly a labor of love which is always great to see.
Price: $2.99
Nimian Legends: BrightRidge Google Play Page
Nimian Legends: BrightRidge iTunes Page ($4.99 for HD)
4. The Shadow Sun

The Shadow Sun is labeled as “the ultimate Western Action RPG” on mobile devices by the devs, and I tend to agree. It’s one of my favorite mobile RPGs ever.
The main story is a 10-hour adventure with plenty of intrigue and entertainment. There are more than 70 unique areas, and they’re all super fun to explore.
The usual RPG features are here too: Character customization, leveling, skill builds and traits, tons of quests, pet companions and much more.
There are IAPs which serve as starter packs for the game, but they’re merely optional DLC you don’t need them. The packs do provide extra content and quests if you want more after playing the full game, which is always a plus in my book. Don’t worry the main game is plenty expansive, nothing is cut out.
Price: $0.99
The Shadow Sun Google Play Page
3. Beamdog Games

Baldur’s Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Planescape: Torment, Icewind Dale, they’re all classics and they still hold up today. You really can’t go wrong with any of the Beamdog remasters as they offer dozens of hours of play, tons of content and plenty of customization.
They tend to go on sale every so often too, so even though they normally cost $9+ dollars you can get them cheaper if you’re patient.
Note: More recently some of their games were delisted, Beamdog is aware and working to get them back up. Icewind Dale and Baldur’s Gate II are some examples. I’ve bought both in the past and they no longer show up in my library, but they are still installed on my tablet. Once they return everyone that owns them will have access again, and newcomers will be able to buy them.
Price: Varies ($10 or so)
2. Titan Quest

While it’s not an Elder Scrolls-esque game, Titan Quest is excellent on mobile. The action RPG has been redesigned for mobile with touch controls and a whole new UI.
It offers everything the original did including character customization, tons of loot, a huge open world with night and day cycles, and a whopping 60 hour playtime.
Price: $6.99
1. Naroth

If I had to choose one game that is most like the Elder Scrolls titles — more specifically the older games — then Naroth would be the one. It’s totally free and there are no IAPs.
It’s an open-world fantasy action RPG in the first-person viewpoint. Need I say more? Okay, I will. It’s fucking awesome.
There are tons of quests, tons of NPCs and plenty of customization options.
Price: Free (No IAPs at all)
Honorable Mentions
If you don’t see anything in the list here are some alternatives you might find interesting: