Top 10 Video Games Where You Play as a Dragon

Humans get all the good games. Dragons? Not so much. There are surprisingly few games where you actually play as a dragon — most games have you fighting them. But the ones that exist are memorable. I’ve tracked down every dragon game I could find, and here are the ones worth your time. Some let you burn villages. Some let you build a lair. One lets you be a dragon lawyer. Yes, really.

Updated April 2026.

Divinity: Dragon Commander

This is the most unique dragon game ever made. You play as a dragon who is also an emperor. Half the game is real-time strategy — managing territories, building armies, negotiating with advisors. The other half is dragon combat — you transform into a dragon and fight on the battlefield with jetpacks and fire breath. I am not making this up. It’s absurd, it’s brilliant, and it’s the only game where you can be a dragon-emperor who marries a princess for political gain. The strategy layer is surprisingly deep. I spent hours negotiating with my advisors — a undead lich, a dwarf engineer, and an elf priestess — each with their own agenda. The game is flawed but unforgettable.

Drakengard

Drakengard is… a lot. You play as Caim, a warrior who forms a pact with a dragon named Angelus. You fight on the ground and in the air, switching between hack-and-slash combat and dragon flight combat. The story is dark, weird, and ends in ways you won’t expect. I played it in 2003 and I’m still thinking about it. The final boss is a rhythm game in modern-day Tokyo. I’m not spoiling anything — you need to experience it yourself. Drakengard is the game that led to NieR, and it shows.

Spyro Reignited Trilogy

The most beloved dragon game. Spyro is a small purple dragon who glides, charges, and breathes fire through three complete games. The Reignited Trilogy remade all three with gorgeous modern graphics. I played the original as a kid and the remaster made me feel 8 years old again. Spyro is pure platformer joy — collect gems, rescue dragons, explore colorful worlds. It’s not deep or complex, but it’s fun. Sometimes that’s enough.

Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story

Wait, wrong dragon. Moving on.

Hoards of Glory

In this indie game, you play as a dragon managing your hoard. You raid villages, fight knights, and accumulate treasure. It’s a management sim where you’re the dragon. I found it on itch.io and played for 20 hours straight. The loop is addictive: raid, collect, upgrade your lair, defend against increasingly powerful heroes. It scratches the “be the dragon” itch better than most AAA games.

Scale

Scale was an ambitious Kickstarter project where you play as a dragon who can grow or shrink at will. The concept was incredible — explore a world where you can be the size of an ant or a mountain. Unfortunately, development stalled and the game was never finished. I backed it and I’m still disappointed. The demo showed promise. Some ideas are too ambitious for their own good.

My Final Thoughts

Dragon games are rare, and most of them are flawed. But Divinity: Dragon Commander is a one-of-a-kind experience, Spyro Reignited is pure joy, and Drakengard is unforgettable weirdness. I want more dragon games. The industry needs more games where you are the dragon, not the dragon-slayer. Until then, these are the ones worth playing.

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