If you love a good challenge and aren't afraid to start over every time you lose, this list of the best roguelike games is for you.
Updated November 13, 2025 by Jupiter Hadley – Rechecked List
If you love playing challenging games where your actions and sometimes random encounters can have dire consequences, this list best roguelikes for iOS especially for you.
You've no doubt seen descriptions of “roguelike” and “roguelite” in recent years. But you may not know what exactly this means. Moreover, they are often used incorrectly.
No, this does not mean being a bit of a scoundrel – or even not being much of one. Rather, it's a reference to the classic 1980 video game Rogue, which added permadeath (one hit and you're out) and randomly generated levels to its turn-based dungeon crawling gameplay.
When a modern game follows all these elements, it is called a roguelike because it looks like a roguelike. Simple. When a game copies some of these elements (usually permadeath and randomized levels) but isn't quite as hardcore, it's sometimes called a roguelike because… well, you get the idea.
There have been plenty of games that fit this description over the past four decades, but the roguelike and roguelike genres have really seen a massive resurgence in recent years. These distinctive elements, which create both challenge and replayability, are everywhere you look, from big budget console games to tame the indie efforts.
Needless to say, there are plenty of roguelikes and roguelites available on iOS. In the following article, we've rounded up 25 of our favorites. Oh, and you should also check out our awesome list of the best Role-playing games for iOS while you're here!
Don't see your favorite iOS roguelike or bagel here? Let us know in the comments below.
