If you’re looking for a great monster catching game to play on the go, then check out our list of the best games like Pokemon for iPhone!
The following games are titles that you can play if you like the original Pokemon game series, the RPG adventures we’ve loved from Pokemon Red through to Pokemon Scarlet.
If you’re here looking for games where you get out and about instead of full on adventures, then check out our list of best games like Pokemon Go instead!
These are all games that you can download from the App Store too; there’s no jailbreaking, Alt Store downloading, or any messing around to be had. Just search for which title you like below, add it to your phone, and start your catching adventure!
Table of Contents
10. Neo Monsters
Neo Monsters kickstarts todays list, giving gamers the chance to take part in 4 versus 4 battles after catching hold of and evolving critters.
There are over 2000 monsters to grab in this game; talk about being spoilt for choice!
Turn-based battles, item collecting to evolve your team members, and tonnes of strategic play.
The whole game takes about 60 hours to complete, which is incredible for a mobile game.
With Six Leagues and online play too boot, it’s a fantastic title for any Pokemon fans, new or old, to try their hand at.
9. Monster Masters EX
Monster Masters EX takes the 9th spot in our list of the best games like Pokemon for iPhone, giving us all the battles, thrills, and addictive gameplay that we’ve become used to through the Pokemon franchise in the palm of our hands.
This game has some slick Pokemon Stadium feels about it while still providing gamers with the chance to evolve and train monsters. It’s free to download too, though of course there are options where you can pay for extra elements in game.
There’s no messing around with a link cable like back in the DMG days either – players can battle other gamers around the world instantly in real time or just stick to battling mates at home or on the go.
Work your way to the top, laying waste to other fighters in the leagues and becoming the very best (like no one ever was)!
8. Monster Hunter Stories
If you’ve ever played a Monster Hunter game, then you’ll know all about how awesome the series is as a whole.
The whole thing has a ‘How To Train Your Dragon’ feel to it with players living in a part of the world where, instead of hunting monsters, the characters end up bonding with them.
Monster Hunter Stories plays brilliantly on the iPhone and has more of a 3DS Pokemon game vibe about it, looking a little like Pokemon Ultra Sun & Moon. You’ll be catching critters called Monsties in this game, and you’ll be leaning on them so much throughout your adventure.
You’ll be invading the dens of monsters, grabbing eggs, and looking after the Monsties that hatch from them.
So we’re basically kidnapping baby monsters then, got it.
7. Haypi Monster: The Lost Tower
Haypi Monster: The Lost Tower feels like an over-the-top version of Pokemon, but with around 200 critters to collect, breed, and train, we’re not complaining.
This game has got me through many long train and plane journeys and is definitely one for the Pokemaniacs out there to have a bash at.
Can you reach the top of the lost tower using your greatest fighters? There are 100 levels in this game to conquer, and the competition around the globe is fierce. You’ll need to work hard to get ahead, evolving and studying your monsters in order to fully understand everything they’re about!
I like the battle system in this game too. Ok, it’s not the Pokemon way of doing things, but it doesn’t feel clunky or hard to understand. It’s intuitive and will definitely provide a lot of fun for fans of Pikachu and pals!
6. Dragon Trail: Hunter World
Dragon Trail: Hunter World takes the next spot in our list of the best games like Pokemon for iPhone, looking more like Pokemon Legends: Arceus than the older DMG games we first fell in love with.
Power across Star Island as you gather critters to make up a Dragoncide Squad, which could be the coolest name for a team of monsters I’ve ever heard!
You’re fighting against evil dragons, and characters like Little Flower Fairy and Saber-Toothed Tiger will help you to rid the world of their nasty ways.
Work towards being a better trainer by hunting for monsters with your sensei, and work alongside your team to evolve them through battling and nurturing.
It’s as much about your trainer as it is the pets you pick up along the way, so much so that you can pick from an assassin, a ranger, a warrior, or a priest for your character’s class!
5. EvoCreo: Hunter of Monsters
EvoCreo feels so familiar that it hurts. Just look at the still above; it could have come straight from Pokemon Sapphire, for crying out loud!
Explore the world of Zenith and capture over 170 different characters called Creo. And, while it looks similar, this game has some important differences to Pokemon that will keep add some extra interest for those looking for an alternative Pokeventure.
The battle system has been completely revamped, requiring players to think more about how and when they use certain moves and what that means for the remainder of the battle.
You can stack moves and stat-altering conditions too, with specific abilities and traits being applied to monsters with the opportunity to switch them around both in and out of battle.
So, it’s Pokemon but more complex; a monster catching game that requires you to think is fine in our book!
4. Dino Tamers: Jurassic MMORPG
If you’ve ever wished that Pokemon had much more brutal monsters, say like Dinosaurs for instance, then Dino Tamers: Jurassic MMORPG should make you feel like a thousand birthdays have come at once.
How would you feel if I said that you could also ride Dinosaurs around in this game too? Yep, it’s a bonafide beast-fest where you and your Dino can explore the jungle and battle other massive monsters.
How do you catch a Dinosaur, though?
Well, with great difficulty! You’ll need to sneak and be as quiet as possible, using the environment around you to remain hidden until the last moment.
Study DNA and evolve them in ways the history books never thought possible.
3. Evertale
Evertale is up next, a fantasy world where players jump into team battles, capturing monsters, and training them up to win skirmishes in the wild!
This feels like a cross between Fire Emblem and Pokemon, an RPG title where the battles are set a little further away in terms of camera angles and with some fantastic dungeons to explore along the way.
Evertake has 180 creatures to bag and train. Play online or offline through 6 regions, either challenging the computer or taking on players from all over the world.
There are even weekly online events to look forward to as well. Evertale is the gift that keeps on giving!
2. Nexomon: Extinction
Nexomon: Extinction takes the 2nd spot in our list of the best games like Pokemon for iPhone.
This critically acclaimed monster catcher feels and plays so much like Pokemon and has an immersive world to explore alongside all of the critter capturing.
Instead of a Pokemon Trainer, you play as a Nexomon Tamer who has grown up in an orphanage and is not trying to make their way in the world.
One thing I love about Nexomon is that there are some slick side-quests to dive into as well. Plus there are multiple regions to encounter just like the later Pokemon games.
And, like in BotW, weather and the environment have an effect on your characters, so bear that in mind as you progress!
Plus, there’s a dynamic difficulty mode that makes the game get more challenging the further you progress too.
Talk about keeping you on your toes!
1. Drakomon Masters
The results are in, and Drakomon Masters is officially the best game like Pokemon for iPhone.
I mean, look at it; I actually don’t know how this game exists, that’s how much like Pokemon it is!
Battling, capturing, and evolving Dragon-esque monsters is the aim of the game in this game. The battles even have the same camera angles and environment styles as the later Pokemon games too!
Like the Pokemon games, you’ll come across new inhabited areas and embark on quests, working your way up to becoming the champion.
And, it has some customisable features for your characters too. Make them look like you by changing hair, clothing, and lots of other features!
Yes, Drakomon is the winner of our best games like Pokemon for iPhone. Go catch em all before the developers catch a cease and desist from Doug Bowser!
Which of our Pokemon-esque games is your favourite? Let us know on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!
