Open-world crime games for your phone: Android and iPhone picks

Phones have become a perfectly good place for a crime sandbox. You will not get a console-sized city on most handsets, but you can get car chases, gang battles, a story and a city to mess about in, often for free. Here are our picks for Android and iPhone, with what each one costs and how you get it.

One rule before you start: get mobile games only from the Google Play Store, the App Store or the developer’s own site. “Mod APK” sites that promise unlimited money are unofficial builds, and you have no idea what else is inside them.

1. Gangstar Vegas

Gameloft’s Gangstar Vegas has been on Android and iOS since 2013 and is now free to download, with in-app purchases. You play a fighter who breaks free of the mafia in a story set in Las Vegas, with dozens of missions covering theft, races and gang wars, plus stunts, casino games and a garage of vehicles from muscle cars to jets.

Good for: the closest thing on a phone to a full console crime sandbox, with a big map and a long campaign. Know before you go: it is a large download and leans on in-app purchases, so keep an eye on what you tap.

2. Payback 2: The Battle Sandbox

Payback 2, by Apex Designs, came to iOS in 2012 and Android in 2014, and is free with in-app purchases. Rather than one long story, it is a run of short events: gang battles, rocket car races, tank duels and general chaos, with single-player and online multiplayer.

Good for: short sessions on a bus. Know before you go: it is about mayhem, not plot. If you want characters, look elsewhere on this list.

3. Dude Theft Wars

Poxel Studios’ Dude Theft Wars is a physics-based open-world sandbox, free on Android and iPhone with in-app purchases. It has offline missions and an online mode for up to 16 players. It is deliberately silly rather than gritty: think ragdoll physics and pranks more than a serious crime drama.

Good for: goofing around rather than taking crime seriously. Know before you go: the humour is broad, and like the others it sells in-app purchases, so it is worth setting spending limits on your phone first.

4. Torn

Torn is a text-based crime RPG that has been running in browsers since 2004 and is free to play, with an official iPhone app since 2019. You build a criminal or business career, join a faction and trade with other players. There is no 3D street to walk; it is menus and decisions.

Good for: a crime game you check on for five minutes a day, for months.

5. AJ Cities, in your phone’s browser

Our own game, so take this as a description. AJ Cities is a free, 18+ open-world game on the edge of Ajegunle, Lagos, and it is built for phones first. It is not on an app store: you open ajcities.com in the browser on your Android phone or iPhone and play. There is nothing to install and nothing taking up storage.

The crime is street-level. In AJ’s story you are a man deported from London, broke on June 12 Street, and the gate police want ₦2,500,000 before they will let you out of the estate. You raise it by betting on street football in the bush, where the officers lend you a shotgun for bottle practice. Elsewhere it is fists, kicks, favours and talk. Or sign in and join other players live at the estate.

The touch controls are simple: your left thumb moves you, dragging on the right looks around, and an Action button talks, opens and uses. The full list is on the controls page.

Good for: a story with characters, on a phone that is short of storage. Know before you go: it is one estate, not a whole city, and you will not be stealing cars.

At a glance

Playing the big console games on a phone

If you want the full console experience on your phone, cloud gaming can stream it. Xbox Cloud Gaming runs in a phone browser for Game Pass members, and Fortnite streams there free with a Microsoft account. GeForce NOW streams PC games you already own. You need a strong, steady connection and a controller helps; mobile data runs out fast. Our guide to playing big console open worlds in a browser goes through it.

Low on data or storage?

Most of the app-store games above are big downloads and keep growing with updates. If your phone is short of space, a browser game is the easy answer: it loads what it needs when you open it. AJ Cities is built with slow, low-data connections in mind. For more options, see browser games for your phone and low-data mobile games.

A note on age

These are crime games. AJ Cities is 18+: the story deals with crime, police corruption and a dodgy club owner, and there is fighting. Check each app’s own age rating in your store before you download it.

What is the best free open-world crime game for Android?

It depends what you want. Gangstar Vegas has the biggest map and story of the free app-store options; Payback 2 suits short sessions; AJ Cities runs in the browser with nothing to install. These are our picks, not a ranking.

Are there crime sandboxes for iPhone that are free?

Yes. Gangstar Vegas, Payback 2 and Dude Theft Wars are free on the App Store with in-app purchases, Torn has a free iPhone app, and AJ Cities plays free in Safari.

Do I need to download AJ Cities on my phone?

No. Open ajcities.com in your phone’s browser and play. There is no app to install.

Are mod APKs safe?

They are unofficial, modified builds and you cannot tell what is inside them. Install games only from Google Play, the App Store or the developer’s own site.