The AppStore currently has a promoted section in Games on “Pay once & Play” – basically paid games with no IAP.
There are some good games on there, but disappointingly not as many RPGs as there could be. Which is surprising, as there are so many great IAP-free games on there. I’ve written before about IAP and ways it can be used to enhance a game without becoming a “500 crystals – $89.99” shortcut to bankruptcy. But the reality is that most traditional RPGs don’t include it.
One game that did make the selection is 10000000, a “Dungeon Crawling RPG Matching Game”. It is a brilliant game and I would highly recommend it.
Most of the RPGs that were listed are in the “Blockbusters” subsection, such as Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (which I admit I haven’t tried on iOS, having played the Xbox version years ago). Bastion also made it, and Final Fantasy VI.
I’m mainly disappointed that so many built-for-iOS games didn’t get highlighted, such as The Quest (or any of its expansions) or the Avernum series. Still, it’s always encouraging to see at least some IAP-free titles getting promoted.