Best games like League of Legends: LoL alternatives worth trying

The best games like League of Legends are Dota 2 for traditional MOBA depth, SMITE 2 and Predecessor for third-person action, and Heroes of the Storm for objective-driven teamwork. If you play on mobile, try Wild Rift, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, or Honor of Kings.

Not every League player wants another game with three lanes and a jungle. Some want shorter matches, others enjoy team compositions more than mechanical outplays, and some just want a break from ranked. This guide separates direct MOBA alternatives from related competitive games and Riot spin-offs, so you can find the experience you actually miss.

Compare League of Legends alternatives by genre, platform and price

Compare the best games like League of Legends by genre, platform, pricing, and gameplay style to find the right alternative for you. Click any game in the table below to jump to its detailed review, including key differences from LoL, official artwork, and a gameplay trailer.

For the closest possible alternative, start with Dota 2. For faster mobile matches, consider Wild Rift or Pokémon UNITE. If you're looking beyond genre alone, Gameaton's League of Legends alternatives offers recommendations based on what you enjoy about gaming, from competition and teamwork to strategy. The sections below explain the important differences instead of treating every game with characters and abilities as another League clone.

Best direct MOBA alternatives to League of Legends

These games retain most of the formula League players recognise: distinct heroes, shared objectives, lane pressure and team fights. The big differences are camera perspective, complexity, map rules and where you can play.

Dota 2

Dota 2 is the closest match for League players who want the same five-versus-five foundation with more layers to master.

Valve’s MOBA has lanes, towers, jungle rotations, powerful heroes and late-game team fights, so the basic rhythm will feel familiar immediately. The differences start with its systems. Denying allied creeps, managing buybacks, using the courier and learning flexible item combinations add decisions that League does not ask you to make in quite the same way. Every hero is available without a gameplay purchase, and the competitive ceiling is formidable. Expect a difficult adjustment period if you are used to League’s controls, map timings or champion terminology. If mastering complex matchups sounds more exciting than starting from zero in a different genre, Dota 2 is the first alternative to try.

Dota 2 official website.

SMITE 2

SMITE 2 keeps the lane-based team strategy but puts you directly behind your character instead of above the battlefield.

You still select a role, earn gold, buy items, fight over neutral objectives and coordinate around towers. The striking difference is the over-the-shoulder camera and aim-heavy combat. Landing an ability feels closer to an action game because positioning and line of sight happen at ground level. The roster draws on gods and mythology rather than League champions, and its battles reward mechanical execution alongside familiar MOBA decision-making. It makes a strong change of pace for players who enjoy League’s objective play but want skill shots, movement and clashes to feel more physical. Check platform and account availability before joining friends.

SMITE 2 official website.

Predecessor

Predecessor combines traditional MOBA lanes and objectives with a third-person view and more direct-feeling abilities.

Omeda Studios builds its matches around a recognisable MOBA loop: farm minions, control a lane, develop an item build, rotate to objectives and finish the enemy core. Its perspective changes how you read a fight, especially when enemies approach from behind structures or elevation. Where League encourages map reading from an overhead camera, Predecessor asks you to balance that strategic awareness with more immediate action and aiming. Its distinct heroes cover familiar tanks, carries, mages and junglers. Consider it if SMITE 2 looks appealing but you want a different visual style and hero roster. Cross-platform support also makes it attractive to mixed PC and console groups.

Predecessor official website.

Heroes of Newerth: Reborn

Heroes of Newerth: Reborn brings back a demanding, old-school MOBA built for players who miss the genre’s earlier days.

The original Heroes of Newerth had a reputation for fast reactions, punishing mistakes and sharp hero matchups. Reborn revives that style on an updated engine, retaining the familiar combination of lanes, last-hitting, team fights and item progression. It feels less like a beginner-friendly escape from League and more like an alternative for experienced MOBA players who appreciate technical details and a steeper learning curve. The project entered an open beta, so the experience and features may continue changing. Check the official site for the current client and service status before committing your time.

Heroes of Newerth: Reborn official website.

Heroes of the Storm

Heroes of the Storm is an easier transition for players who love coordinated fights more than individual gold leads.

Blizzard’s MOBA places unusual emphasis on working as a unit. Your team shares experience rather than building separate champion levels, and each battleground presents its own map objective. That changes the incentive structure: controlling a shrine or escorting a payload can matter as much as winning a lane. Matches tend to feel less preoccupied with last-hitting and personal item builds than League. Its roster mixes characters from Warcraft, Diablo, StarCraft and other Blizzard games, creating abilities that are easy to recognise for Blizzard fans. Choose Heroes of the Storm for varied battlegrounds, direct team coordination and a more approachable route into hero-based PvP.

Heroes of the Storm official website.

Mobile Legends: Bang Bang

Mobile Legends: Bang Bang translates many of League’s familiar roles and map decisions into shorter touchscreen matches.

You draft heroes into recognisable jobs, push turrets, contest powerful monsters and look for winning team fights. A simplified mobile interface lowers the barrier to entry, although ranked play can be every bit as competitive as players expect from a major MOBA. Learning a different hero roster is the main hurdle for experienced League players. Its pace is particularly useful if you cannot regularly sit down for longer PC matches. There are cosmetic purchases and other in-game offers, so review the current shop and unlock systems for your region. For mobile-first groups, this is one of the most straightforward alternatives to try.

Mobile Legends: Bang Bang official website.

Honor of Kings

Honor of Kings offers lane-focused five-versus-five matches and a competitive ladder on mobile devices.

The familiar formula is all here: selectable heroes, structured lanes, towers, jungle camps, gold and team-based objective fights. What changes is the pacing and a cast drawing heavily on Chinese legends and mythology. The controls are designed around phones rather than mouse-and-keyboard play, making shorter sessions easier to fit into the day. If you like League’s macro decisions but want to compete from a mobile device, Honor of Kings deserves consideration alongside Mobile Legends and Wild Rift. Character unlocks, events and purchases can vary by region, so the current official store is the best place to check specifics.

Honor of Kings official website.

Pokémon UNITE

Pokémon UNITE makes team fighting more approachable by swapping League’s structure for timed scoring battles.

Each player controls a Pokémon with a role, abilities and opportunities to evolve during a match. Positioning, team compositions and neutral objectives still matter, but the main objective is collecting and scoring points rather than destroying a Nexus. Its standard battles are shorter and easier to explain to newcomers, and cross-platform play helps groups on phones and Switch connect. That accessibility is its main advantage, although experienced players can still find depth in timings, coordinated engagements and the ranked ladder. It is a good first MOBA for a friend who finds League intimidating.

Pokémon UNITE official website.

Arena of Valor

Arena of Valor is a classic lane-based mobile MOBA with familiar hero classes and team objectives.

You can move from League to Arena of Valor without relearning the entire purpose of a match. Heroes occupy comparable roles, teams compete over lanes and neutral monsters, and coordinated late-game fights can decide everything. Its mobile controls and generally brisker tempo make it a practical option when a full PC session is inconvenient. However, Arena of Valor has experienced different regional distribution and levels of support over time. Confirm that the version available in your country has the modes and matchmaking you want before investing in progression.

Arena of Valor official website.

Onmyoji Arena

Onmyoji Arena gives familiar five-versus-five MOBA rules a distinctive Japanese-folklore setting.

NetEase’s game shares League’s reliance on lane pressure, tactical rotations and hero ability combinations, but its characters are shikigami inspired by the Onmyoji series. It favours striking art and a different aesthetic from most other mobile MOBAs. For League players, there is satisfaction in learning a fresh roster while keeping a recognisable competitive structure. Matchmaking availability, localisation and community size vary by territory, which matters more here than for a globally dominant game. Check the current regional app listing and server options first.

Onmyoji Arena official website.

Other competitive games League players may enjoy

These are less faithful to the MOBA formula, but they preserve the parts of League that some players love most: mastering abilities, learning builds and outplaying opponents. They are not substitutes for standard five-versus-five laning.

Battlerite

Battlerite strips away laning and farming to concentrate on the part of League many players enjoy most: the fights.

This top-down arena brawler focuses on small-team PvP, precise movement, dodging and landing abilities under pressure. There is no long laning phase, towering item economy or jungle rotation to manage. You get into combat quickly and learn through short, intense rounds. The movement scheme and emphasis on individual execution are different from League, but fans of skill-shot-heavy champions may feel at home almost immediately. It is an older title with a smaller community, so take matchmaking expectations into account. If you wish you could queue straight into an extended League team fight, it is worth trying.

Battlerite official website.

Eternal Return

Eternal Return blends MOBA-style character abilities with survival, crafting and battle royale decisions.

You select a distinct character, develop a build and fight other players from an angled viewpoint that feels familiar to League veterans. The crucial difference is that there are no lanes or Nexus to destroy. Instead, you collect materials, assemble equipment and fight to survive as the playing area becomes increasingly dangerous. It rewards quick adaptation and route planning, particularly for players who enjoy solving build problems rather than repeating fixed lane matchups. The game has a substantial learning curve of its own, but it offers a genuinely different kind of competitive progression.

Eternal Return official website.

Deadlock

Deadlock is Valve’s shooter-MOBA hybrid, combining laning and objectives with guns, movement and vertical maps.

At a glance it resembles a hero shooter, but its underlying economy has strong MOBA roots: waves, lanes, defensive objectives, items, builds and coordinated late-game pushes. The third-person shooting changes how players position, aim and escape, and the environment rewards vertical movement more than a traditional top-down arena. Deadlock is still in early development and access remains limited to invitations from existing playtesters. That makes it an exciting game to watch rather than the most reliable instant download on this list. The accompanying footage comes from an independent creator, not an official Valve trailer.

Deadlock official website.

Riot and Runeterra games worth trying

If League’s champions and world are more important to you than the exact mechanics, these related games offer familiar faces with very different ways to play. Wild Rift is a mobile MOBA, while the others range from an auto battler to fighting games and card games.

League of Legends: Wild Rift

Wild Rift is the most familiar choice on this list because it adapts League of Legends itself for mobile play.

Many champions, abilities, roles and strategic principles carry over, but this is a separate game with touchscreen controls and its own balance, progression and match pacing. It is not simply the PC client running on a phone. Instead, it reworks systems around shorter sessions and two-thumb inputs. If you enjoy League’s champions and objective fights but cannot always use a PC, Wild Rift is a natural next stop. It is not an alternative to the League universe, however, so players seeking completely new characters or a different genre should look elsewhere. Read RiftDaily’s League of Legends: Wild Rift section for more news.

League of Legends: Wild Rift official website.

Teamfight Tactics

Teamfight Tactics is ideal if your favourite part of League is building compositions rather than landing skill shots.

TFT is an auto battler, so you shop for units, manage economy, position a team and adapt to random offers while the battles resolve automatically. Champions from League appear across rotating sets with different traits, synergies and rules. There is still ranked competition, patch-driven meta analysis and the thrill of beating another player through better decisions. What disappears is the need to last-hit, aim or react in real time during fights. The constant set changes reward experimentation, and it makes a particularly good change of pace for support players, strategy fans and anyone looking for a slower mechanical challenge. For more help with sets and updates, see Teamfight Tactics coverage.

Teamfight Tactics official website.

2XKO

2XKO brings League champions into a tag-team fighting game where spacing and combos matter more than objectives.

The familiar cast makes the transition appealing: recognisable champions become fighters with moves that echo their League abilities. Matches are built around real-time duels, assists and character-swapping rather than lanes, towers or item builds. You can compete solo or with a partner, which creates a different kind of teamwork from Summoner’s Rift. There is an important longevity caveat: Riot announced that active development will end at the close of 2026, while the game remains playable online. Ranked matchmaking was also removed in the transition. That makes it worthwhile for fighting-game fans interested in the combat itself, but less appropriate as a recommendation for a growing, long-term ranked ecosystem. RiftDaily also covers 2XKO updates.

2XKO official website.

Legends of Runeterra

Legends of Runeterra puts League’s champions and regions into a digital card game rather than an action arena.

Players build decks around champion abilities, resource management, combat tricks and regional combinations. That will appeal to anyone who enjoys reading matchups and thinking several turns ahead. The game has shifted much of its focus toward The Path of Champions, its PvE-focused adventure mode, so do not assume its competitive support is comparable to the current League ranked ladder. You can still appreciate the Runeterra art, stories and tactical decisions without needing the reflexes demanded by the MOBA. Choose it if planning, deck construction and solo progression sound more enjoyable than another tense team queue.

Legends of Runeterra official website.

Riftbound

Riftbound offers a way to keep exploring League’s champions and tactics without spending another evening at a screen.

Unlike the other entries here, Riftbound is a physical trading card game, not a PC or mobile videogame. Players construct decks and compete around champions, battlefields and card interactions drawn from the League universe. It can satisfy the same enjoyment of finding synergies and anticipating an opponent, but you will need physical cards and people to play with. Starter products and local availability can vary, and collecting cards involves a different cost model from a free-to-play game. Treat it as a bonus recommendation for Runeterra fans who are excited by tabletop competition, not as a replacement for Summoner’s Rift. Our Riftbound section tracks its releases and competitive scene.

Riftbound official website.

How to choose the right LoL alternative

Start with the reason you want a change, not simply with the biggest title on the list. A player who loves last-hitting and tracking jungle timers needs a different recommendation from someone who enjoys landing skill shots or talking strategy with friends.

• Keep classic MOBA strategy: Dota 2 is the strongest first choice. Try Heroes of Newerth: Reborn if you also enjoy older, mechanically demanding MOBAs.
• Make the fighting feel more direct: Choose SMITE 2 or Predecessor for a third-person perspective.
• Play shorter matches on a phone: Compare Wild Rift, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, Honor of Kings and Pokémon UNITE.
• Focus on teamwork over solo farm: Heroes of the Storm puts shared experience and battleground objectives first.
• Skip laning but keep the outplays: Battlerite and Eternal Return offer different takes on competitive character combat.
• Stay in Runeterra but change genres: Teamfight Tactics, Legends of Runeterra, 2XKO and Riftbound each change the experience considerably.

For a reference point, the League of Legends official website explains the original game and its core modes. If you are new to League itself, RiftDaily’s League of Legend download guide and League of Legends guides can help you decide whether another game is necessary. You can also explore the League of Legends player count for more context on the original game’s audience.

For download and access information, use the official publisher websites linked for each game. Region availability, beta access and live-service plans can change, so confirm the latest details before installing.

Frequently asked questions about games like League of Legends

What game is most similar to League of Legends?

Dota 2 is the closest widely established PC alternative in terms of the five-versus-five MOBA structure, with lanes, towers, a jungle, hero roles and team objectives. It is generally more complex in several important systems, however.

What are the best free games like League of Legends?

Dota 2, SMITE 2, Predecessor, Heroes of the Storm, Wild Rift, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and Pokémon UNITE all offer free entry, although most have optional in-game purchases. Physical Riftbound products are paid.

Are there games like League of Legends on mobile?

Yes. Wild Rift is Riot’s mobile adaptation of League, while Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, Honor of Kings, Pokémon UNITE, Arena of Valor and Onmyoji Arena offer their own take on team-based mobile MOBAs. Check availability in your region.

Which League of Legends alternative is easiest to learn?

Pokémon UNITE is a friendly starting point thanks to its shorter, timed scoring format. Heroes of the Storm also removes much of the emphasis on last-hitting and personal gold income, though every competitive game requires practice.

Is Dota 2 harder than League of Legends?

Many players find Dota 2 harder to learn because of denying, item flexibility, courier management and buyback systems. Both games have a very high skill ceiling, so the best choice also depends on your experience and preferred style.

Is Wild Rift the same as League of Legends?

No. Wild Rift uses many of the same champions and ideas, but it is a separate mobile game with distinct controls, balance, progression and match pacing. It is not a shared queue with the PC version.

Can I play Deadlock without an invitation?

Deadlock is still in limited testing and currently relies on invitations from players with access. Confirm the latest access rules on Valve’s official game page before making plans with friends.

Are Teamfight Tactics and 2XKO MOBA games?

No. Teamfight Tactics is an auto battler and 2XKO is a tag-team fighting game. They share characters, competitive decision-making and parts of the League universe but not its lane-based MOBA gameplay.

Find your next game beyond Summoner's Rift

League of Legends has remained popular for good reason. Few games combine mechanical skill, strategic decision-making, teamwork, and competitive progression quite like Riot's MOBA. But that doesn't mean it's the only game capable of delivering those experiences. Whether you're looking for a tougher challenge, a change of pace, or something entirely different, there are plenty of worthwhile alternatives.

If you enjoy League's competitive depth but want more strategic complexity, Dota 2 is the obvious starting point. SMITE 2 and Predecessor offer familiar MOBA mechanics from a third-person perspective, making combat feel more direct and action-oriented. For players who prefer shorter sessions or gaming on the go, Wild Rift, Honor of Kings, and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang are strong options.

Of course, you don't have to replace League with another MOBA. If you enjoy experimenting with team compositions and adapting your strategy, Teamfight Tactics offers that experience without the mechanical demands of traditional laning. 2XKO takes familiar Runeterra champions into a completely different competitive environment, while games like Eternal Return blend character abilities, survival mechanics, and team-based combat.

Before settling on your next game, think about what you actually enjoy most about League of Legends. Is it climbing the ranked ladder, mastering difficult characters, coordinating with teammates, or discovering new strategies? Choosing a game around those preferences will usually lead to a better experience than simply picking the most popular alternative.

It's also worth considering the learning curve, available platforms, match length, and monetization model. Watch the gameplay trailers above, pick two or three games that interest you, and give each a few matches before making a decision. A new combat system or unfamiliar map can feel awkward initially, even when the underlying gameplay is exactly what you're looking for.

And if you discover that nothing quite replaces Summoner's Rift, that's perfectly fine too. Sometimes exploring other games is enough to make League feel fresh again. Whenever you're ready to return, RiftDaily's League of Legends guides can help you improve your gameplay, explore new strategies, and keep up with the game.