Games like Hades that are free (and the paid ones worth it)

Hades isn’t free, and neither is Hades II. If you want that feeling of dashing through rooms, picking powers after each fight and coming back a little stronger after every death, you have two routes. A handful of free (or free-to-try) games get you part of the way there, and a few paid ones are worth every cent. Below, they’re kept apart, with how each one makes money.

Every platform and pricing model below was checked on official pages or store listings in October 2026. Prices change with sales and regions, so we only quote one when we could confirm it.

What makes a game “like Hades”?

Hades is an action roguelite. Concretely, that means:

• Fast real-time combat, seen from above, with a dodge or dash you lean on constantly.
• Runs: you fight through a sequence of rooms or floors, and when you die you start over from the beginning.
• Random power-ups during each run, so no two attempts play the same.
• Permanent progress between runs (in Hades, you spend resources at home to get stronger), which is why losing doesn’t feel like wasted time.
• Bosses that you learn by heart over dozens of attempts.

A game doesn’t need all five to scratch the itch, but the ones below hit most of them. If the vocabulary is new to you, our guide on what a roguelite is explains it from scratch.

Free to play or free to try

Soul Knight (iPhone, iPad, Android)

The closest free thing to The Binding of Isaac on a phone. You pick a hero, clear randomly generated dungeons room by room and hoard weapons (the App Store listing claims 400+). Runs are short, it plays offline, and there is local and online co-op. The App Store lists it as free with in-app purchases and controller support. Reviewers have long praised it for not squeezing players, though the shops can feel repetitive.

It nails the room-by-room combat and the pile of random loot. What it lacks is Hades’s story and hand-crafted bosses.

Vampire Survivors (iPhone, iPad, Android)

Not a Hades clone at all: you only move, and your weapons fire on their own. But it’s the purest form of “one more run,” and the mobile version is free. When it launched in December 2022, the developer, poncle, promised a “free-for-real” approach, with ads you choose to watch for a revive or extra gold. The current App Store listing shows paid DLC packs as in-app purchases and flags that it contains ads.

It’s here for the short runs and the build choices. If you have 15 minutes before bed, it’s hard to beat.

Brotato (iPhone, iPad, Android)

A top-down arena roguelite where you play a potato juggling up to six weapons. It launched on mobile in 2023 as a paid game; today there are both a free-to-play version and a premium one, and the App Store listing shows free with in-app purchases. Each wave is short, so it’s easy to play in small bites.

Archero 2 (iPhone, iPad, Android)

Habby’s sequel, released in January 2025, free with in-app purchases. You move with one thumb, your hero shoots when you stop, and you choose a new skill after each level. It’s easy to learn and plays well one-handed. Fair warning: this is a free-to-play game built around spending, so expect energy systems, events and shops.

The Binding of Isaac demo (desktop browser)

CrazyGames hosts a demo of the original 2011 Flash version of The Binding of Isaac, by Edmund McMillen and Florian Himsl, running through Ruffle, a Flash emulator. Keyboard and mouse only, no phone support. It’s a good way to see if Isaac’s dark humor and twin-stick shooting work for you before buying Rebirth.

Free demos on Steam

Many paid roguelites have a free demo on their Steam page, and that’s often the smartest “free” option, because you’re trying the actual game. 20 Minutes Till Dawn, for example, has a browser demo called 10 Minutes Till Dawn on CrazyGames (desktop only). We go deeper into browser options in our guide to free roguelite browser games.

Paid, but worth it

Hades (PC, Switch, PlayStation, Xbox)

Still the reference. Released in 1.0 in September 2020 on Steam, the Epic Games Store and Nintendo Switch, then on PlayStation and Xbox in August 2021. One thing to know if you search for “Hades on iPhone”: the iOS version was a Netflix exclusive starting in March 2024, and Netflix removed it from its catalog on July 1, 2025. There is no official mobile version today, and none on Android ever.

Hades II (PC, Switch, Switch 2, PS5, Xbox Series)

The sequel left early access on September 25, 2025 on PC, Switch and Switch 2, then arrived on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S on April 14, 2026, day one in Game Pass. If you already pay for Game Pass, that’s the cheapest way in. It’s bigger than the first game. If you’ve never played either, I’d still start with the original.

The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (PC, consoles, iPhone and iPad)

The remake of the 2011 original, and one of the most replayable games ever made. On iPhone and iPad it’s a paid app, with the Afterbirth, Afterbirth+ and Repentance expansions sold as in-app purchases since July 2023. There’s no official Android version. The tone is grim (it’s about a child hiding from his mother in the basement), so it’s not one to play with young kids watching.

Dead Cells (PC, consoles, iPhone, Android)

A side-scrolling “roguevania” rather than a top-down game, but the closest in feel to Hades: precise combat, permanent unlocks, great bosses. On mobile it’s a one-time purchase from Playdigious with controller support, and DLC sold separately. Since the 2022 “Breaking Barriers” update it also has an Assist Mode.

Children of Morta (PC, consoles, iPhone, Android)

A top-down action roguelite about a family of heroes, which gives it more story than most of the genre. The mobile version from Playdigious is a one-time purchase that bundles the DLC, and a later free update added online co-op for two.

Enter the Gungeon (PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch)

A top-down shooter with a dodge roll at its heart, hundreds of joke guns and tough bosses. Harder than Hades, with fewer safety nets. No mobile version.

Cult of the Lamb (PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch)

Half action roguelite, half base-building: you run dungeons, then come home to manage your followers. It has an Easy difficulty you can switch to at any time, which makes it a friendly first roguelite.

Summary table

Game	Price model	Platforms	Closest to Hades in…
Soul Knight	Free, in-app purchases	iOS, Android	Room-by-room dungeon runs
Vampire Survivors	Free on mobile, optional ads	iOS, Android (paid on PC/consoles)	Short runs, build choices
Brotato	Free version + premium version	iOS, Android (paid on PC/consoles)	Quick arena runs
Archero 2	Free, in-app purchases	iOS, Android	Pick a skill after every level
Isaac (Flash demo)	Free demo	Desktop browser	Rooms, items, permadeath
Hades	One-time purchase	PC, Switch, PlayStation, Xbox	It’s the original
Hades II	One-time purchase or Game Pass	PC, Switch, Switch 2, PS5, Xbox Series	Everything, but more
Isaac: Rebirth	One-time purchase + DLC	PC, consoles, iOS	Random rooms and items
Dead Cells	One-time purchase + DLC	PC, consoles, iOS, Android	Combat feel, meta-progression
Children of Morta	One-time purchase	PC, consoles, iOS, Android	Story told across runs
Enter the Gungeon	One-time purchase	PC, consoles	Dodge-heavy bosses
Cult of the Lamb	One-time purchase	PC, consoles	Runs plus a home base

Games like Hades on iPhone

Since Hades left Netflix, there’s no official way to play it on an iPhone. The best options on iOS today are Dead Cells and The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (paid, full games), Children of Morta (paid, story-driven), and Soul Knight or Vampire Survivors if you want free. All of them work with a Bluetooth controller, which helps a lot for action games on a small screen.

If you’re new to the genre

Start with something that lets you turn down the difficulty without shame. Hades’s God Mode gives you 20% damage resistance, plus 2% more every time you die. Dead Cells has an Assist Mode. Cult of the Lamb has an Easy setting. Vampire Survivors is gentle by nature. Avoid Enter the Gungeon and Isaac’s later content for your first week.

Our game: Rembobine

This site belongs to Rembobine, a game made by an independent developer. That’s why it isn’t in the list above: it would be odd to rank our own game against Hades.

Rembobine is a top-down action roguelite in the spirit of Hades and The Binding of Isaac, made for parents who were kids between 1990 and 2005. It’s 10 p.m., and 8-year-old Leo has been swallowed by his tablet, by the Scroll, the endless video feed. His mom Nath, a 38-year-old otter, climbs to the attic, opens her childhood trunk, grabs her old plush Pompom and goes through her own childhood to bring him back. A run is one evening across three generated floors: the schoolyard (1996), the bedroom (1999) and the TV living room (2003), with bosses like the Recess Queen, the Tamagoyle and the 33-10 Snake. When you fall, you’re back in the attic, you keep your marbles and spend them on upgrades in the Pencil Case.

What’s different from the games above:

• It runs in the browser, on a computer or a phone held sideways, with keyboard and mouse, a gamepad or touch. Nothing to install.
• The whole first evening is free (until your first win or six runs). After that, the schoolyard stays free forever, and the full game is €9.99, paid once. No ads, no subscription.
• Cuddle Mode takes 20% off the damage you take, then 2% more after each defeat, up to 60%.
• A winning run takes about 15 to 20 minutes. There’s no iPhone app yet; it’s coming, but not out.

If one evening of chasing your kid through the toys you had in 1996 sounds like your kind of run, you can try Rembobine free in your browser. Otherwise, Hades with God Mode on is still a great place to start.