What is a MOBA?

MOBA stands for multiplayer online battle arena. Two teams, usually five players a side, each control one character and push down lanes to destroy the other team's base.

You start each match at level one and level up your hero as you go, so wins come from teamwork and map control rather than a loadout you bring in.

How a MOBA works

Each match resets your hero to the start. You earn gold and experience by taking down the AI-controlled minions that stream down each lane, plus enemy players and neutral monsters.

You spend that gold on items mid-match and level up your abilities as you go. Team fights over objectives decide most games, so coordination counts more than raw aim.

Destroying the towers along a lane clears the path to the enemy base. Take the base down and the match ends.

Most MOBAs cost nothing to install and earn through in-app purchases, usually cosmetic skins that don't change the match.

MOBA examples from our guides

• League of Legends: Wild Rift is Riot Games' five-on-five mobile version of League of Legends, and its listing lets you queue for ranked matches as a duo, a trio or a full team of five. It holds 3.2 out of 5 from 2.45 million Google Play ratings and ranks tenth in our best multiplayer mobile games guide.
• Pokemon UNITE is a five-on-five MOBA where objective control and lane pressure matter more than raw reflexes. It rates 4.4 out of 5 from 1.9 million ratings and sits eighth in that same multiplayer guide.

MOBA vs hero shooter

Hero shooters borrow the named heroes and fixed roles from MOBAs, then drop them into first- or third-person shooting. So the roster feels familiar even when the camera and controls don't.

A MOBA keeps the top-down view, the lanes, and the in-match leveling. The hero shooter genre swaps all three for aim and positioning.