Fighting games may not be the most popular genre anymore, but the people who still love the genre are among the most loyal of any gamers. Unfortunately, fighting games haven’t been as popular or successful on Android as many would’ve hoped and there aren’t many amazing options available. There were some pretty big releases in 2018 and some more since. However, you’ll still want an emulator if you want something competitively fun. In any case, if you want to give it a shot, here are the best fighting games for Android.
The best fighting games for Android
Astracraft
Price: Free to play
Astracraft is technically a battle arena-style game, but there are a lot of good fighting elements. Players build their mechs out of parts they unlock through gameplay. They take their machinations and battle it out with other players. It’s a mostly online multiplayer game with a few different game modes. The big draw here is the ability to build and customize your character, but the fighting elements are fun too as long as you don’t mind arena battle style.
Brawl Stars
Price: Free to play
Brawl Stars might be reaching just a little bit. The gameplay is a little more beat ’em up style than it is a true fighter, but it has a lot of the same tense elements. You and a couple of other people play online PvP against up to three total opponents. You have to beat them up, and finish the objective. However, the game does have a one versus one fighting mode that is basically just a fight to the death. The fighter genre isn’t super packed with great titles, but we think this one is good for killing five minutes.
Brawlhalla
Price: Free to play
Brawlhalla is a surprisingly fun fighting game. It plays a lot like Super Smash Bros. Players play on a small platform with edges where you can fall off. The various characters have various attacks and abilities and it really is very similar to Super Smash Bros. In addition, the on-screen controls are highly customizable and there are a few different game modes. This is a good arcade fighter that is a lot of fun in short bursts. There are also 50 characters with more coming all the time.
EA Sports UFC
Price: Free to play
EA Sports UFC is one of the most popular fighting games currently available. It features decent graphics, a roster of 70 MMA fighters (including both male and female stars), and tons of in-game content to play with. The controls are pretty bad. Most of it is just tapping or swiping. There is hardly any room for creativity. However, it’s not a bad way to spend five minutes at a time. It’s an EA Sports game that has in-app purchases. Many fans of EA games know what to expect with that.
Emulators
Price: Free / Varies
Interest in fighting games was a lot higher on older consoles so you can find a ton of old games with emulators. You can play classic Street Fighter games with a SNES emulator, Soul Calibur on a PlayStation emulator, or King of Fighters on SEGA emulators. There are a large number of options with a bunch of games for each platform. Most of them also have controller support, save and load states, support for cheat codes, and other features.
The controller support gives you an advantage of the swipe and tap nature of mobile fighters. Mobile fighters are super simplified and this is a way to recapture those more complex fighters from long ago. We have John NESS (SNES and NES) linked at the button or our full list of the best emulators here.
More game lists here:
Injustice: Gods Among Us 1 and 2 (and Mortal Kombat)
Price: Free to play
Injustice: Gods Among Us 1 and 2 are two fo the most popular fighting games on mobile. However, like most popular fighting games, the mechanics for both are a little bogus. It’s mostly just tapping a bunch of times until someone wins. Aside from that, they with a decent roster of DC Comics heroes, tons of stuff to do in the game, and online multiplayer. Mortal Kombat is another fighter by Warner Bros with roughly the same mechanics. Neither of these games are great, but they’re both decent time killers.
The King of Fighters ALLSTAR
Price: Free to play
The King of Fighters ALLSTAR is one of the newer fighting games on the list comparatively speaking. It takes place in the KoF universe and has a bunch of characters from the various games. It’s a little bit of a button masher, but it has more control options than something like Mortal Kombat X or Injustice 2. The game also features online PvP, co-op play, and a campaign option. People seem to really like this one aside from the lag issues when playing PvP matches. Aside from that, it’s a solid free-to-play fighter.
Punch Boxing 3D
Price: Free to play
Punch Boxing 3D is the first of a few boxing games on this list. As with most boxing games, the gameplay is a bit slower than combo fighters and you rely more on the block and strike moves rather than movement. The graphics are alright and the controls seem to function as intended. It’s a bit unfortunate that your controls are essentially confined to block and punch, but that’s how it goes sometimes. The audio is also pretty bad. You can also level up your character by fighting at the gym and there are a variety of accessories you can unlock.
Real Boxing 2
Price: Free to play
Real Boxing 2 (formerly Real Boxing 2 Rocky) is the sequel to one of the best fighting games out there. You’ll get to play as (and against) the popular fictional character as you fight. There is also a lot of stuff to do. You can challenge other fighters, engage in mini-games, battle bosses, and even create your own character. It has a selection of power ups and gear and that can turn the tide in battle for better or worse. The controls are pretty decent as are the graphics. There is also social mechanics in the form of leaderboards and gifts.
Real Steel series
Price: Free to play
Real Steel is a series of robot fighting games from Reliance Games. Unlike most, these titles feature arcade-style fighting controls. That means you’ll have to move and hit on your own. There are four games in the robot fighting series, each with its own set of mechanics, looks, and stuff to do. The most popular one, Real Steel World Robot Boxing, includes customization, multiplayer, and a couple of other play modes. The latest game in the series is World Robot Boxing 2 and it has reasonably decent reviews. These are on the higher end of the fighting game spectrum.
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Prizefighters
Price: Free to play
Prizefighters is another one of the newer fighting games. It’s a retro-style boxing game similar to those from the SNES era (the 1990’s). It features simple controls, player and ring customization, a progression system, social features, and more. The developers also promise online multiplayer at some point. That should elevate an already above average experience. This is a good one for fans of retro fighting games. The in-app purchases aren’t as bad as competitors, either.
Shadow Fight Arena
Price: Free to play
Shadow Fight Arena is the latest in a long-running series of popular fighting games. This one is a bit different from its predecessors but it’s still a good fighter. You play a character and duke it out against the AI and other players. The controls are a bit simple and hardcore fighting fans may find it lacking. However, there is more than enough here for casual players. The franchise’s previous games are also quite good if you want to play the older ones.
Skullgirls
Price: Free to play
Skullgirls is a bit of a diamond in the rough. It’s not mentioned in the same conversations as Street Fighter or KoF, but people seem to like this one. The game brands itself as a 2D fighting RPG with mechanics from both genres. You collect a variety of characters, level them up, and then use them to beat up other people. The game is a bit heavier on the RPG elements than it is fighter elements, but there are enough controls there to scratch that itch. The online PvP has some problems, including the occasional lopsided match-up, but otherwise it seems like an enjoyable little RPG fighter.
Stickman Heroes Fight
Price: Free to play
Joe Hindy / Android Authority
Stickman Heroes Fight is a decent arcade fighter. You get some basic controls, a d-pad to move around, and simple but effective graphics. The characters are modeled after pop fiction characters like MARVEL superheroes. There are also four game modes, including a story mode, an online PvP mode, a survival mode, and a tournament mode. It’s not the deepest game, but it’s a good time and the mechanics are solid.
Street Fighter IV Champion Edition
Price: Free / $4.99
Street Fighter IV Champion Edition is one of the big fighting game releases of 2018. It’s not without its problems, though. The full game features a decent selection of characters and actual fighting mechanics. It also includes several somewhat broken, but functional features like Bluetooth controller support and online PvP. We’ll be honest, this one still needs some work. However, Capcom seems up to the challenge with a swath of updates in the first few weeks of release. Most of the problems were fixed in its first year and the Google Play rating seems to be turning around from its insanely low score from back then.
