The closest games like Last War: Survival are Last Z: Survival Shooter, Dark War: Survival and Top War: Battle Game: free zombie or war strategy games where you build a base, recruit heroes and join an alliance. If base building is what you are tired of, Survivor.io, Mob Control and Dead Ahead: Zombie Warfare keep the zombie fights and drop the city. If you want the least pay-to-win option, This War of Mine (paid up front) and Fallout Shelter (single-player) come out best on what their store listings show.
Every price, in-app purchase, ad label and platform below was read from the US App Store and Google Play listings on November 4, 2026 (10:15-10:30 UTC). “Least pay-to-win” and “best for” notes are our own assessment, and we explain what they are based on further down.
Table of Contents
Quick answer: the best games like Last War
- Closest to Last War: Last Z: Survival Shooter and Dark War: Survival (both Omnilojo), then Whiteout Survival.
- Same “merge and war” style ads: Top War: Battle Game, with server-vs-server wars.
- Base building with a twist: Warpath (sniper missions), Last Fortress: Underground (an underground shelter) and Puzzles & Survival (match-3 battles).
- No base building: Survivor.io, Mob Control (the gate-shooter game from the ads) and Dead Ahead: Zombie Warfare.
- Least pay-to-win, in our view: This War of Mine and Fallout Shelter. Neither listing describes player-vs-player play.
- On PC: 10 of the 12 are on Google Play Games for Windows, like Last War itself.
Games like Last War at a glance
| Game | Base building | PvP in the listing | Top App Store purchase | Google Play range | Ads label | PC option |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Last War: Survival (for comparison) | Full base | Implied (“not every survivor you encounter is friendly”) | $99.99 | $0.99-$99.99 | No | Google Play Games, Mac |
| Last Z: Survival Shooter | Full shelter | Not described | $99.99 | $0.99-$99.99 | No | Google Play Games, Mac |
| Dark War: Survival | Full shelter | Not described | $99.99 | $0.99-$199.99 | No | Google Play Games, Mac |
| Whiteout Survival | Full town | Not described | $99.99 | $0.99-$99.99 | No | Google Play Games, Mac |
| Top War: Battle Game | Full island base | Yes (server-vs-server wars) | $99.99 | $0.99-$99.99 | Yes | Google Play Games |
| Warpath: Ace Shooter | Full military base | Yes (global battlefield) | $99.99 | $0.99-$199.99 | No | None found |
| Last Fortress: Underground | Full shelter | Not described | $99.99 | $0.99-$99.99 | No | Google Play Games, Mac |
| Puzzles & Survival | Full sanctuary | Implied (threats “zombies or humans”) | $99.99 | $0.99-$199.99 | No | Google Play Games, Mac |
| Survivor.io | None | Not described | $9.99 | $0.49-$199.99 | Yes | Google Play Games |
| Mob Control | Light (a base you defend) | Yes (raids on rival players) | $6.99 | $0.09-$399.99 | App Store only | Google Play Games, Mac |
| Dead Ahead: Zombie Warfare | None (you upgrade a bus) | No (“PVE strategy”) | $29.99 | $0.99-$104.99 | Yes | Google Play Games, Mac |
| Fallout Shelter | Full vault | Not described | $19.99 | $0.99-$99.99 | Yes | Google Play Games |
| This War of Mine | Shelter crafting only | Not described | $1.99 (one expansion) | Paid game | No | None found |
“Top App Store purchase” is the most expensive item in the App Store’s list of top in-app purchases. Apple shows up to 10 items, so pricier ones can exist. The Google Play range is the price span Google shows for each item. “Mac” means the App Store lists it for Macs with Apple silicon (M1 or later). All are free to download except This War of Mine.
Games like Last War with base building
1. Last Z: Survival Shooter
Last Z is the closest match. Its App Store listing pairs dodge-and-shoot runs through zombie waves with a growing doomsday shelter, which is Last War’s two-part loop. Omnilojo’s game is rated 16+ on the App Store (4.8 from 103K ratings) and sat at #5 in Google Play’s top grossing strategy chart when we checked. Apple’s label says it contains loot boxes. We keep track of its codes in our Last Z: Survival Shooter codes page.
2. Dark War: Survival
Also from Omnilojo, Dark War leans harder into survivor management: the Google Play listing has you assign survivors to jobs and watch their health and happiness while you fortify a shelter. It has the higher Play price ceiling of the two ($199.99 per item) and was #9 in top grossing strategy. For free rewards, see our Dark War Survival codes.
3. Whiteout Survival
Century Games’ frozen-world builder was #1 in Google Play’s top grossing strategy chart on November 4, two places above Last War, and its listing claims over 400 million players. It is calmer than Last War, with idle hero expeditions and ice fishing, and it has the youngest App Store age rating on this list (9+). We already have a full games like Whiteout Survival list with 12 more picks, plus a Whiteout Survival hero tier list.
4. Top War: Battle Game
If Last War’s ads drew you in, Top War is the classic in that style: you merge two buildings or units to upgrade them instantly instead of waiting on timers. RiverGame’s App Store listing openly lists server-vs-server wars and weekly Capital Throne showdowns, and notes that some purchasable items are random. It is the only 4X strategy game here with an ads label on both stores.
Warpath adds first-person sniper missions to the base-and-army formula of games like Last War. Image: Lilith Games
5. Warpath: Ace Shooter
Lilith’s Warpath swaps zombies for modern war. You get first-person sniper missions on top of real-time strategy battles and a military base you can lay out freely, according to the listing. It is rated 18+ on the App Store and is the only 4X strategy game here without a loot box label. Its top purchases include a $14.99 battle pass and a $4.99 energy recharge. We found no PC version on Google Play Games.
6. Last Fortress: Underground
Last Fortress puts your base underground. You expand a shelter with facilities such as power generators, put the life skills of your heroes and survivors (chefs, doctors, miners) to work, then scavenge the wasteland from forward camps. It has the weakest Google Play rating on the list (3.8 from 431K reviews), against 4.5 on the App Store.
7. Puzzles & Survival
From 37GAMES, this one fights zombies with match-3 puzzles instead of troop marches, while you build a sanctuary and recruit heroes between battles. The listing warns that threats can be “zombies or humans”, so expect other players. Its Play range goes up to $199.99 per item. Both stores rate it about 4.4-4.5.
Games like Last War without base building
8. Survivor.io
Habby’s roguelite drops you into a city full of zombies with one-hand controls and random skill picks each run. There is no base at all, and the listing describes no player battles. Its App Store top purchases stop at $9.99 (a month card), though Google Play shows items up to $199.99. Both stores flag ads.
9. Mob Control
Voodoo’s App Store subtitle is literally “THE real game in THAT fake ad”: you shoot a crowd through multiplier gates, the mechanic made famous by mobile game ads. You do keep a simple base that rivals can raid, and there is a Champions League ladder. The App Store’s top items are small ($6.99 max, plus a $2.99 “No Ads”), but Google Play lists items from $0.09 to $399.99.
Dead Ahead: Zombie Warfare has no city to build: you upgrade a bus and a squad of survivors between zombie levels. Image: Mobirate
10. Dead Ahead: Zombie Warfare
Mobirate’s side-scrolling strategy game is the closest to Last War’s squad fights without the city: you defend a bus, send units against the horde and upgrade units and vehicles between levels. Its App Store subtitle calls it “PVE strategy”, and the only competition the listing mentions is a high-score race. Purchases top out at $29.99 on the App Store and $104.99 on Google Play, and both stores flag ads.
Survival games like Last War that are least pay-to-win
11. Fallout Shelter
Bethesda’s vault builder is a base builder, but a single-player one: the listing covers building rooms, managing Dwellers and sending them on Wasteland quests, with no PvP mentioned. The App Store’s top purchase is a $19.99 bundle of 40 Lunchboxes. It is an App Store Editors’ Choice with 4.8 from 567K ratings. Both stores flag ads.
This War of Mine's shelter: civilians craft and rest by day and scavenge by night, with no PvP and one $1.99 expansion. Image: 11 bit studios
12. This War of Mine
11 bit studios’ war-survival game costs $13.99 on the App Store and $12.99 on Google Play, where it was on sale for $1.95 when we checked (no end date shown). You keep a group of civilians alive in a besieged city: crafting and caring for survivors in your shelter by day, scavenging by night. The App Store lists one in-app purchase, The Little Ones expansion ($1.99). No ads, no loot box label. It is rated 18+ and is much darker than anything else here.
How we judged “least pay-to-win”
We have not played or spent money in these games, so this is a reading of the store listings, not a test. Three things count: whether the listing describes competing against other players (spending matters most when it buys an edge over people), how expensive the biggest listed purchases are, and whether the game is paid up front. By that measure, from least to most exposed:
- This War of Mine: paid, one $1.99 expansion, no multiplayer described.
- Fallout Shelter: free, but no PvP described and top App Store purchase $19.99.
- Dead Ahead: Zombie Warfare and Survivor.io: player-vs-environment by their listings, though Google Play ranges reach $104.99 and $199.99.
- Mob Control: small App Store purchases, but rival raids and a $399.99 top Play price.
- Last War and picks 1-7: $99.99 top purchases on the App Store, alliance or server wars, and most carry Apple’s loot box label.
For Last War itself, the App Store’s top purchases run from $0.99 to $99.99 plus a $24.99 Monthly Pass. Its developer rarely posts redeem codes; see our Last War: Survival codes page for what is active and how to redeem.
PC games like Last War
Last War’s Google Play listing shows Windows, so it runs on PC through Google Play Games. The same goes for Last Z, Dark War, Whiteout Survival, Top War, Last Fortress, Puzzles & Survival, Survivor.io, Mob Control, Dead Ahead and Fallout Shelter. Warpath and This War of Mine show no Windows option on Google Play. On a Mac with Apple silicon, the App Store lists Last War, Last Z, Dark War, Whiteout, Last Fortress, Puzzles & Survival, Mob Control and Dead Ahead.
More lists like this
If you want alliance wars with medieval armies instead of zombies, our games like Clash of Clans list covers Rise of Kingdoms, Lords Mobile and Call of Dragons. For raid-and-build games with a lighter touch, try the games like Coin Master list.
FAQ
What type of game is Last War?
Last War: Survival is a free 4X strategy game (Google Play files it under Strategy and 4X) from FUNFLY. You build and defend a base, recruit heroes from three military branches and join alliances, with short lane-based zombie challenges mixed in.
Is there a game like Last War without base building?
Yes. Survivor.io (a zombie roguelite), Mob Control (the gate-shooter from the ads, with only a simple base) and Dead Ahead: Zombie Warfare (squad battles from a bus) all skip city building.
Which game like Last War is not pay to win?
None of the free 4X games is spend-free, in our view. The least pay-to-win options here are This War of Mine (paid, single-player) and Fallout Shelter (free, no PvP described in its listing).
Sources: US App Store listings for Last War: Survival, Last Z, Dark War, Whiteout Survival, Top War, Warpath, Last Fortress, Puzzles & Survival, Survivor.io, Mob Control, Dead Ahead: Zombie Warfare, Fallout Shelter and This War of Mine, and their Google Play listings, all checked November 4, 2026, 10:15-10:30 UTC.
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