5 Premium iPhone Games Worth the Price Tag

Balatro

Balatro takes the basic idea of poker and turns it into one of the most addictive roguelikes that has ever existed. You play familiar hands such as pairs or straights, but the goal is to create increasingly ridiculous scores instead of simply beating another player’s cards.

Much of the strategy comes from Jokers. There are tons of them, and each one can change the way your deck scores or behaves. One run might reward you for playing face cards, while another encourages you to build everything around a particular poker hand.

You’ll also find vouchers and upgraded cards that can completely change your strategy. Of course, not everything is as easy as it sounds. You’ll need to build the right strategy to get the job done. Plus, there are things like Boss Blinds that introduce additional restrictions, forcing you to adapt a deck that may have seemed unstoppable a few rounds earlier.

Balatro is one of the most addictive games you’ll ever play, so maybe it’s not a good idea to download it onto your iPhone. Challenge modes and several unlockable decks give you plenty to chase after long after you understand the basic rules.

Stardew Valley

If you’re looking for a more relaxing game, this is where you should start. Stardew Valley begins with your character inheriting an old farm near the small town of Pelican Town. From there, you’re free to decide what kind of life you want to build.

You can grow crops and raise animals as your farm expands. The nearby mines provide resources and even monsters to fight, while fishing gives you another way to earn money. And if it ever gets a bit repetitive, you can always start crafting and gradually unlock more ways to automate parts of your farm.

There’s also an entire town filled with characters to meet. The residents are friendly and interesting; you can build relationships with them and eventually even marry one.

This is a very relaxing game, but it’s hardly ever boring. There are tons of things to do, and there are different seasonal festivals and small stories that make you go back for more.

All in all, the amount of content you get for one purchase is impressive. You can play casually for a few minutes or spend an evening trying to squeeze as much work as possible into each day in the game. You can craft your own items, story, and even love life. The more creative you get, the more fun you’ll have.

XCOM 2 Collection

XCOM 2 is one of the best and most complete strategy games you can install on your iPhone. Earth has fallen under the control of an alien regime, and your job is to guide the XCOM forces to stop them.

To defeat the aliens, you’ll need to go on a series of missions, where you’ll have to choose your soldiers and tactics. Missions use turn-based combat, which gives you time to create the right strategy for the job. 

Each soldier can move and use abilities while taking advantage of cover. Positioning is extremely important because one poor decision can leave an experienced squad member exposed.

Also, remember that your soldiers can also die permanently. Losing someone you’ve spent several missions improving can completely change your plans, so don’t just go with all your best guys into battle unless you’re completely sure you’re going to win.

XCOM 2 Collection includes the War of the Chosen expansion and four DLC packs in one purchase. Yes, it’s one of the most expensive games on the list, but you’ll have hours of content waiting for you as soon as you download it.

Hitman: Blood Money — Reprisal

Like all the other games in the franchise, Hitman: Blood Money puts you in the role of Agent 47, and your job is to take out your assigned targets. To do that, the game gives you large locations filled with different ways to reach a target. You have to think about the best way to kill the target, and you decide how much patience you’re willing to bring to each assassination.

The fun part is that there are many ways to approach a target. Sometimes, you might want to try a disguise and quietly enter a restricted area. Other times, an “accident” might need to be the reason why your target dies, so no one suspects what really happened. And of course, if you’re tired of waiting, you can just go crazy and shoot your way through a level (of course, you’ll need to be able to handle the consequences).

Whether you caught it in the title or you’re a longtime fan of the franchise, you likely realized that this is a remake. The original Blood Money game came out 20 years ago, but it’s still just as fun to play. 

The Reprisal version adds modernized controls and a minimap that makes the older game easier to navigate. Touchscreen controls are customizable, and you can even connect your controller if you want. 

Resident Evil 2 Remake

Resident Evil 2 is one of the strongest entries in Capcom’s series and another impressive console game that now runs on supported iPhone models. It follows rookie police officer Leon S. Kennedy and college student Claire Redfield after they arrive in Raccoon City during the outbreak.

Each character has their own playable campaign. You’ll explore many of the same areas from different perspectives while dealing with different story elements. That gives the game more replay value than any other game on the list. Plus, besides being able to choose your character, you can also choose an A or B side once you finish your first playthrough. The B side is a bit harder, and things like items and enemies will switch up a bit. However, you need to finish it if you want to experience the true ending.

Exploration is a larger focus in this game. The police station is filled with locked rooms and puzzles, and you’ll gradually discover shortcuts as you understand the complete layout. 

The remake combines deliberate survival-horror pacing with modern third-person controls. There’s a reason why this game is one of the best-selling Resident Evil games of all time. As long as you have an iPhone 15 Pro or newer model to play it on, you’re going to love every minute of it.