Dragons can play very different roles in video games. Sometimes they’re companions that players raise from an egg and eventually ride into battle. Other times they’re enormous enemies that take an entire team to bring down. Then there are games that hand over control of the dragon itself, letting players discover just how much trouble a small creature with wings and fire breath can cause.
The best games for kids and teens who love dragons make the mythical creatures a major part of the experience. For instance, Spyro boasts a playable dragon, while Monster Hunter Stories lets players hatch and train a collection of scaly companions. Meanwhile, Century: Age of Ashes takes dragon riding into online aerial combat, and Golden Treasure: The Great Green explores what living and thinking like a dragon might actually mean.
The titles on this list include games for younger dragon fans alongside more demanding options for teens. Some require quick reactions or careful planning, while others are better suited to players who enjoy getting lost in a fantasy world. We’ve grouped related installments together where appropriate and included ratings, platforms, and other details under each entry to help parents find the best game for their young dragon enthusiasts.
Spyro Reignited Trilogy Gives Kids Three Adventures As A Fire-Breathing Dragon
Spyro is a natural fit for kids who would rather be the dragon than spend an entire game chasing one. The little purple troublemaker can breathe fire, charge into enemies, and glide between platforms, with each ability helping him explore worlds full of gems and other collectibles. The Spyro Reignited Trilogy brings together remakes of the first three games, so there’s plenty to work through once kids have learned how to judge a jump without sending their dragon into the nearest hole.
The original Spyro the Dragon focuses on freeing other dragons, while its sequels introduce more characters, activities, and reasons to revisit earlier areas. Year of the Dragon even lets players take control of several of Spyro’s friends, though the titular dragon remains the main attraction. Some optional challenges require precise movement, particularly the flying levels, but kids can spend a good deal of time exploring and collecting before worrying about completing everything.
Why Kids Will Love Spyro Reignited Trilogy
Spyro gives kids a dragon they can control from the beginning, complete with fire breath and a stubborn streak. Searching for hidden paths and rescuing dragons makes exploring just as rewarding as charging through enemies.
- ESRB Rating: E10+ (Everyone 10+)
- Content Descriptors: Cartoon Violence, Comic Mischief
- Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch
- Players: 1
Monster Hunter Stories Lets Players Hatch And Raise Their Own Dragon Companions
Monster Hunter Stories takes the creatures that usually spend their time trying to flatten hunters and turns many of them into traveling companions. Much of the gameplay revolves around searching dens for eggs, hatching creatures called Monsties, and building a team for turn-based battles. Learning which attacks beat others is a bit like a game of rock-paper-scissors, but the player’s relationship to the Monsties extends well beyond combat. Monsties also help their riders traverse the landscape, with abilities that can include swimming, climbing, or flying.
Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin adds opportunities to tackle cooperative quests with another player, while Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection puts more emphasis on restoring habitats and helping threatened species recover. The first two games in the series are rated E10+, but the third one is designed primarily with teens in mind. Twisted Reflection also requires newer hardware compared to the other two. As far as the story is concerned, all three games are connected to some extent, however, they do work just fine as standalone experiences.
Why Kids And Teens Will Love Monster Hunter Stories
Finding an egg brings the promise of a new companion, and taking that creature into battle makes raising it feel worthwhile. Dragon fans get to develop a whole team instead of spending the entire game simply riding a dragon mount.
- ESRB Rating: E10+ for Monster Hunter Stories and Stories 2; T (Teen) for Stories 3
- Content Descriptors: Crude Humor, Fantasy Violence, Mild Language (modern Stories release and Stories 2); Fantasy Violence, Mild Suggestive Themes (Stories 3)
- Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch (modern releases of Stories and Stories 2); PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2 (Stories 3)
- Players: 1 for the story; optional online battles in Stories and Stories 2, plus two-player online cooperative quests in Stories 2; Stories 3 is single-player
Monster Hunter Is The Ultimate Dragon-Fighting Experience
The main Monster Hunter games are perfect for teens who like their dragons enormous, dangerous, and capable of interrupting a carefully planned attack with a faceful of fire. Not every creature is a dragon, but wyverns and other dragon-like monsters account for some of the series’ most memorable hunts. Players need to study how these creatures move, learn when it’s safe to attack, and use materials from successful hunts to craft better equipment.
Monster Hunter: World, Rise, and Wilds offer different starting points within the larger MH universe. These games are more demanding compared to Monster Hunter Stories, with real-time combat and more equipment decisions that need to be taken into consideration. They’re best suited to teens who enjoy practicing and preparing, particularly if they have friends to join them online. Hunting dragons together can make a difficult encounter much more manageable, provided everyone remembers that standing directly in front of the teeth is generally a poor idea.
Why Teens Will Love Monster Hunter
Taking down a dragon feels earned when players have learned its attacks and built equipment specifically for that hunt. Cooperative play lets friends share victories together, while different weapon types give each hunter room to develop their own approach.
- ESRB Rating: T (Teen) for World, Rise, and Wilds
- Content Descriptors: Blood, Mild Language, Use of Alcohol, Violence (World); Alcohol Reference, Blood, Violence (Rise); Blood, Crude Humor, Violence (Wilds)
- Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch; availability varies by installment
- Players: 1–4 during hunts; multiplayer is online, with local wireless play also available in the Switch version of Rise
DreamWorks Dragons Offers Multiple Ways To Explore The World Of How To Train Your Dragon
Kids who love How to Train Your Dragon have a bunch of video game adaptations to choose from, though they play quite differently. Dawn of New Riders follows Scribbler and his dragon, Patch, as they explore, fight enemies, and solve puzzles using a variety of abilities. The more recent Legends of the Nine Realms puts dragons directly under the player’s control, starting with Thunder and gradually adding others whose powers help with combat and exploration. The choice largely comes down to whether kids want a human-and-dragon partnership or a party of playable dragons.
For a slower alternative, Dragons: Rise of Berk focuses on collecting and raising dragons while developing a Viking settlement. It’s worth noting that Rise of Berk is a mobile game that brings waiting and optional purchases into the picture. Meanwhile, How to Train Your Dragon: Riders of the Skies takes the opposite approach on Nex Playground, using body movements to steer through flights and aim attacks. Riders of the Skies supports two players locally, making it the best option for siblings who want to game together. That said, the game does require specialized Nex hardware and a Play Pass subscription.
Why Kids Will Love DreamWorks Dragons
All these games let kids spend more time with a world and creatures they already know from the movies and shows. Whether they prefer collecting dragons or steering one through the sky, there’s a little something for everyone in this series.
- ESRB Rating: E10+ for Dawn of New Riders and Legends of the Nine Realms; Rise of Berk is rated 9+ on Apple’s App Store; no ESRB rating verified for Riders of the Skies
- Content Descriptors: Fantasy Violence (Dawn of New Riders and Legends of the Nine Realms)
- Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch (Dawn of New Riders and Legends of the Nine Realms), plus PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S for Legends; iOS and Android (Rise of Berk); Nex Playground (Riders of the Skies)
- Players: 1, except Riders of the Skies, which supports 1–2 locally
Dragon Spirits Gives Creature Collectors A Roster Full Of Dragons
Dragon Spirits takes the creature-collecting formula and makes it all about dragons. The first game follows a developer who finds himself inside the world of the game he’s been working on, where he becomes a student learning about Dragon Spirits. Building a team requires players to select skills and work out how to use them during real-time battles. Putting together a strong roster and managing it in combat are separate but equally important parts of the core gameplay loop.
Dragon Spirits 2 switches to a modern city where creatures from a virtual world begin appearing in reality. Making contracts with them expands the player’s options, and adjusting skills and team roles gives teens who enjoy tinkering with character builds plenty to consider. The amount of dialogue and the attention paid to abilities make both games an easier recommendation for teens who already enjoy role-playing games and want their next creature collection to lean heavily toward dragons. Younger kids may find the series a bit too slow-paced for their liking.
Why Teens Will Love Dragon Spirits
Collecting different dragons gives players new possibilities to test in battle. Teens who enjoy comparing abilities and making a favorite creature work within a team can spend as much time planning their lineup as expanding it.
- ESRB Rating: No ESRB rating verified for either game
- Content Descriptors: No official ESRB descriptors verified; both games include fantasy combat
- Platforms: PC (Windows)
- Players: 1
Panzer Dragoon Puts Teens On A Dragon In The Middle Of An Aerial Battle
Panzer Dragoon is a great series for aspiring dragon riders. These are rail shooters, meaning the route moves forward automatically while players concentrate on aiming, dodging, and shooting enemies around them. This genre is pretty much entirely focused on action-packed combat and has a much different pace compared to a lot of the other games on this list. The Panzer Dragoon series has been around for ages, but even the older entries still hold up to this day thanks to the straightforward gameplay.
Panzer Dragoon Orta is a good choice for Xbox owners who can play it through backward compatibility. Here, the rideable dragon can switch between three forms with different strengths, helping players deal with different attacks and targets as the situation demands. Teens who would rather start with the original can try the Panzer Dragoon: Remake on a variety of other systems. Both games lean toward concentrated arcade action, making them best suited to players who enjoy replaying stages and gradually improving their performance.
Why Teens Will Love Panzer Dragoon
The combat and dragon-riding mechanics hold up well to this day in spite of the fact that the series is decades-old at this point. Orta’s changing forms add a bit of strategy to the mix, giving players something to experiment with as they replay stages.
- ESRB Rating: T (Teen)
- Content Descriptors: Animated Blood, Violence (Orta); Animated Blood, Fantasy Violence (Remake)
- Platforms: Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S through backward compatibility (Orta); PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch (Remake)
- Players: 1
Breath Of Fire IV Lets Players Become The Dragon
Breath of Fire has a long history of heroes who can transform into dragons. Breath of Fire IV, in particular, gives players a way to explore that idea in a classic Japanese role-playing game. Ryu travels with a party whose members bring their abilities into turn-based battles, but his connection to dragons gives him powers that stand apart from the rest. Transforming and calling on dragon powers is an essential part of combat, so the creatures are important to both the story and the fighting.
The game follows the connected stories of Ryu and Fou-Lu, gradually developing their roles in a world shaped by conflict. The slow-paced storytelling makes Breath of Fire IV a good choice for teens who enjoy reading dialogue and following a long game over time. The updated PC release makes it easier to recommend these days without asking parents to track down an original PlayStation copy. The presentation still reflects its age, but the detailed sprite work gives the characters and creatures a personality that holds up well alongside more recent games.
Why Teens Will Love Breath Of Fire IV
Being able to turn the hero into a dragon gives major battles an extra attraction. Teens who enjoy older role-playing games can follow a story where those powers have consequences beyond making the next attack look impressive.
- ESRB Rating: T (Teen)
- Content Descriptors: Mild Violence, Suggestive Themes
- Platforms: PC; originally released on PlayStation
- Players: 1
Dragon Creek Is All About Raising And Caring For Dragons
Dragon Creek is designed for kids who would gladly spend more time caring for a dragon than saving a kingdom. In this time management game, players raise a procedurally generated creature whose personality affects its needs. Feeding, cleaning, and rest all contribute to its care, giving children a reason to pay attention to how their companion is doing.
Training eventually leads to battles and tournaments, with minigames used to improve six different stats. Players can expect all the time they spend raising a dragon to affect how it performs against opponents. Meanwhile, the calendar, weather, and changing seasons help shape life around the creature. Players interested in that sort of virtual pet-style gameplay can try the demo before deciding whether to buy the full game.
Why Kids Will Love Dragon Creek
Kids get a dragon that relies on their attention, then see that care carry over into training and battles. Discovering the dragon’s personality is a pretty involved process that makes players feel like they’re creating a real bond with the creature.
- ESRB Rating: No ESRB rating verified
- Content Descriptors: No official ESRB descriptors verified; includes dragon battles
- Platforms: PC (Windows)
- Players: 1
Drag’n’Boom Lets Kids Cause Trouble As A Tiny Dragon
Drag’n’Boom is a mobile game that follows a young dragon with a straightforward ambition: cause havoc and collect as much gold as possible. Players use one side of the touchscreen to move and the other to aim fireballs. The controls split movement and shooting between the hands, so kids have to learn how to coordinate both in order to progress efficiently through the levels. Once they get used to the controls, launching through a level and lining up a shot become much more satisfying.
Activating slow motion during intense sections gives players additional time to aim, making those tricky midair attacks easier to follow. Collecting gold unlocks new powers, while chasing better combinations of attacks gives kids a reason to return to earlier sections. The cartoon mischief makes the dragon feel more like a tiny menace than a fearsome monster, which works really well for a cutesy mobile game. Just to be on the safe side, parents should keep the ads and optional purchases in mind, especially if younger kids are playing on a shared phone or tablet.
Why Kids Will Love Drag’n’Boom
Playing as a dragon means kids get to be the ones swooping in and causing chaos. Slow-motion aiming helps them pull off flashy attacks, and improving their control makes each successful run feel more deliberate.
- ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) on Google Play; rated 9+ on Apple’s App Store
- Content Descriptors: Mild Fantasy Violence (Google Play ESRB listing)
- Platforms: iOS, Android
- Players: 1
Fire Emblem Puts Dragons At The Center Of Its Tactical Battles And Stories
Fire Emblem frequently builds its stories around dragons, though some installments give players a more direct connection to them than others. Fire Emblem Fates is a particularly good example of this because its protagonist, Corrin, can use a Dragonstone to transform into a dragon during battle. That ability comes in handy frequently in this tactical game where good positioning and decision-making are essential. It also gives dragon enthusiasts a powerful character to develop while they learn how to command the rest of an army.
For Nintendo Switch owners, Fire Emblem Engage is an easier game to find and play. Its protagonist, Alear, is a Divine Dragon tasked with preventing the return of a Fell Dragon. Alear generally fights in human form, so players shouldn’t expect the same transformation mechanics as Fates. Fates remains a solid option for Nintendo 3DS owners who can find a physical copy of the game, but the closed eShop limits access to its downloadable content.
Why Teens Will Love Fire Emblem
Dragon powers feel especially significant when they’re part of a battle that rewards careful decision-making. Fates gives players a transforming protagonist, while Engage offers a dragon-centered conflict for teens who enjoy directing an army and following its characters.
- ESRB Rating: T (Teen)
- Content Descriptors: Animated Blood, Fantasy Violence, Suggestive Themes (Fates); Fantasy Violence, Mild Language, Mild Suggestive Themes (Engage)
- Platforms: Nintendo 3DS (Fates); Nintendo Switch (Engage)
- Players: 1 for the main campaigns
Golden Treasure: The Great Green Explores Life Through A Dragon’s Eyes
Golden Treasure: The Great Green approaches dragons with the kind of attention usually reserved for the human characters in a fantasy novel. Players experience a dragon’s life through exploration, survival, and choices presented in a heavily text-driven format. Hunting and confronting danger are part of that life, but so is learning how this creature understands the world around it. The game asks players to consider a perspective shaped by being a dragon, which makes even encounters with humans feel different from the usual fantasy adventure.
The Great Green is firmly a recommendation for teens who enjoy reading. Younger kids expecting a flying game will probably lose interest long before the story has a chance to develop. On the other hand, patient readers will likely appreciate its philosophical questions and the consequences of their decisions. Teens who write fantasy may find it especially interesting to see how language and perspective establish a creature’s identity.
Why Teens Will Love Golden Treasure: The Great Green
Players get to see things from a dragon’s perspective and make decisions within a world that takes that perspective seriously. For teens interested in writing, the way its language develops an inhuman point of view may be as compelling as the story itself.
- ESRB Rating: No ESRB rating verified
- Content Descriptors: No official ESRB descriptors verified; includes hunting, combat, death, and mating themes
- Platforms: PC (Windows), Mac
- Players: 1
Century: Age Of Ashes Turns Dragon Riding Into An Online Aerial Sport
Century: Age of Ashes takes a premise that hardly needs selling to a dragon-obsessed teenager and builds an online combat game around it. Players ride dragons into aerial battles, chasing opponents, breathing fire, and trying to escape when someone gets behind them. Steering is just as important as aiming, since a rider who flies predictably makes life much easier for the opposing team. Different classes bring abilities that change how players attack, protect teammates, or slip away from danger.
Age of Ashes is free to play, making it easy for friends with compatible systems to try, though optional purchases are part of the experience. The game’s competitive modes reward learning the maps and working toward objectives, while cooperative content offers a different way to fight alongside other riders. Parents should treat this as an online game from the outset. Matches involve other people, and this isn’t a local multiplayer option for two children sharing a console.
Why Teens Will Love Century: Age Of Ashes
Flying a dragon becomes a skill players can improve, from lining up attacks to shaking off someone on their tail. Sharing the sky with friends adds teamwork to a fantasy that already has plenty going for it.
- ESRB Rating: T (Teen) for the console editions
- Content Descriptors: Violence; in-game purchases include random items
- Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S for the PC/console edition; separate mobile versions are available
- Players: Online multiplayer, with up to 12 players depending on the mode; no local multiplayer
