GameVettedHonest game reviews.

Best gacha games

Character-collecting games ranked by our review score, with what their gacha really costs.

Updated · Ranked by our review scores. Partner links never change the order. How we rate

Scores on this list come from our research reviews: official sources and player reviews, not our own play time. Each score follows a fixed formula. When we play a game, its score can change and the order with it.

At a glance

#GameOur scorePay to winSteam reviewsMin. RAMStorage
1Arknights: Endfield8.1Mild89% of 1,27616 GB50 GB
2Neverness To Everness8.1Mild82% of 3,42316 GB110 GB
3Wuthering Waves8.1Mild87% of 30,82716 GB150 GB
4Watcher of Realms7.8Strong——391.1 MB
5Honkai: Star Rail7.7Mild—6 GB—
6MARVEL Strike Force7.5Strong—8 GB—
7Zenless Zone Zero7.5Mild88% of 7,9808 GB75 GB
8AFK Journey7.4Strong77% of 8908 GB8 GB
9Genshin Impact7.3Mild—8 GB110 GB
10Summoners War: Sky Arena7.2Strong67% of 4,0934 GB10 GB
11RAID: Shadow Legends7.1Strong58% of 1,4598 GB5 GB

Our ranking

Ranked by our review scores
  1. Best for clear odds and an 80-pull guarantee

    Operators and weapons come from two gacha banners. GRYPHLINE publishes the odds, 0.8% for a 6-star operator with one guaranteed by pull 80, though only on a Korean-language page. Money buys Origeometry, a Monthly Pass and Protocol Pass tiers. Steam lists it as single-player, so pulls matter only against the game.

    Pay to win: MildLoot boxes: Yes
    Read the research review
  2. Best for dice-board character pulls

    Limited characters come from paid dice-roll boards, and keys open Arc research and Mystery Boxes. The website lists Mystery Box odds, but board odds appear only in the game. The publisher counted more than 120 free pulls from log-in rewards at launch.

    Pay to win: MildLoot boxes: Yes
  3. Best for an 80-pull guarantee on every platform

    Resonators and weapons come from Convenes with published rates: a 0.8% base chance for a 5-star, guaranteed within 80 pulls. Money buys Lunites, the Lunite Subscription and pass upgrades. It runs on PC, Mac, mobile, PS5 and Xbox with shared progress.

    Pay to win: MildLoot boxes: Yes
  4. Best for tower-defense hero collecting

    Moonton's fantasy RPG adds tower-defense battles to hero collection. Apple lists loot boxes and Google Play lists random items, but no official web page shows summon odds; Moonton's announcements mention only rate-up boosts. Heroes also fight in three PvP modes, so it rates as strongly pay to win.

    Pay to win: StrongLoot boxes: Yes
  5. Best for turn-based gacha without PvP

    Characters and Light Cones come from Warps with published rates: 0.6% base for a 5-star character, guaranteed within 90 pulls. Money buys Oneiric Shards, the Express Supply Pass and Nameless Honor upgrades. There is no PvP, so purchases do not decide matches against other players.

    Pay to win: MildLoot boxes: Yes
  6. Best for Marvel fans

    Orbs are paid random items that can give character shards, gear and other materials, and Scopely's orb odds page is synced with the game. Characters from Orbs and offers also fight in PvP, so it rates as strongly pay to win. Scopely says offers and prices can differ between players.

    Pay to win: StrongLoot boxes: Yes
  7. Best for action combat with published odds

    Agents and W-Engines come from Signal Search with published odds: 0.6% base for an S-Rank Agent, guaranteed within 90 pulls. Money buys Monochromes, the Inter-Knot Membership and New Eridu City Fund tiers. It is on Steam, PS5, Xbox and mobile.

    Pay to win: MildLoot boxes: Yes
  8. Best for a roster that levels up together

    Diamonds buy recruitment pulls; the official odds and pity rules cover every banner but are published only in Korean. Hero levels and equipment are shared across the roster, so heroes do not each need their own leveling. Heroes also fight in Arena PvP, so it rates as strongly pay to win.

    Pay to win: StrongLoot boxes: Yes
  9. Best for a big open world with a 90-pull guarantee

    Characters and weapons come from Wishes with published rates: 0.6% base for a 5-star character, guaranteed within 90 pulls. Money buys Genesis Crystals, Battle Pass upgrades and the Blessing of the Welkin Moon. On PC it needs 110 GB of storage.

    Pay to win: MildLoot boxes: Yes
  10. Best for turn-based monster collecting

    Monsters come from summons, and Summon Mileage guarantees a 5-star Monster, but the official website lists no summon odds. Paid summons and Rune packs feed PvP rosters, so it rates as strongly pay to win.

    Pay to win: StrongLoot boxes: Yes
  11. Best for a big turn-based Champion roster

    Champions come from Shards. Plarium publishes odds for four Shard types and a Mercy system, but not for Primal Shards or Artifact Chests. Raid Card subscriptions renew at up to $29.99 a month, and Champions from paid Shards also fight in Arena and Siege.

    Pay to win: StrongLoot boxes: Yes

How we ranked these gacha games

This list holds the character-collecting games with paid random pulls that we have reviewed. The order follows review scores only, and ties are listed alphabetically. Partner links never change the order.

Hero Wars is in our catalog but not reviewed yet, so it has no rank here.

What the gacha costs

Odds and guarantees vary a lot. HoYoverse publishes a 0.6% base 5-star rate with a guarantee within 90 pulls for Genshin Impact, Honkai: Star Rail and Zenless Zone Zero. Wuthering Waves and Arknights: Endfield publish 0.8% with a guarantee within 80 pulls. AFK Journey and Arknights: Endfield publish their odds only in Korean, Neverness To Everness shows board odds only in the game, and neither Summoners War nor Watcher of Realms lists summon odds on its website.

PvP matters too. In Watcher of Realms, Marvel Strike Force, AFK Journey, Summoners War and RAID: Shadow Legends, heroes from paid pulls also fight other players, so those five rate as strongly pay to win. The other six have no PvP or keep paid strength to fights against the game, and rate as mildly pay to win.

FAQ

What is the best gacha game?

On our ranking, Arknights: Endfield, Neverness To Everness and Wuthering Waves share the top score of 8.1; Arknights: Endfield is listed first alphabetically. The scores come from research reviews and can change once we play the games.

Which gacha games have the shortest pity?

Among the games here, Wuthering Waves and Arknights: Endfield guarantee a top-rarity pull within 80 pulls; Genshin Impact, Honkai: Star Rail and Zenless Zone Zero within 90.

Are gacha games pay to win?

Five of the eleven rate as strongly pay to win because heroes from paid pulls also fight in PvP: Watcher of Realms, Marvel Strike Force, AFK Journey, Summoners War and RAID: Shadow Legends. The other six rate as mildly pay to win.