In the wake of a vision of world peace courtesy of Pokémon Go, there's no question that the creature-catching franchise stands as one of the most mainstream gaming titles around. The iconic Pikachu is every bit as identifiable as Disney's mascot, if not more so. The persistent pandemonium around trading card values guarantees near-daily Pokemon news stories. You'd be difficult to find a pocket monster game that failed to move at least a few million units. Remarkably, fan-made Pokémon games achieve popularity every year.
Yet despite that ubiquity and fame, some Pokémon games that remain underappreciated. These represent titles that failed to receive their fair shake, or were buried by the hype of the core series. They're Pokémon games released on doomed consoles or services, or were pioneering attempts onto new mediums. They're often also Pokémon games that might have flourished if they had received follow-ups or modern remakes. Considering these factors, we won't be offering just one more reminder for Pokémon Conquest or the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series. We're going beneath the surface.
Nevertheless, you may already know about these Pokémon games. Therefore, prior to adjusting your spectacles and typing 'Well,' let us just agree that these are Pokémon games for those possessing refined tastes, shall we?
Pokémon Ranch: The Cozy Precursor
An excessive number of Pokémon games emphasize the combat aspect of the series, and not nearly enough of them highlight the ordinary aspects that would come with owning a pet. Admittedly, modern titles include small features like these in recent entries—you can play with your monsters in camps. But I am longing for a Pokémon game more in the style of Nintendogs or The Sims.
My Pokémon Ranch (2008) for the Nintendo Wii is not that game. The digital-only title is best seen as the antecedent to Pokemon Home; that is, as a storage system to store monsters from various titles. Critical reception from its release noted Ranch was a bad if not outright hideous game. It's not my goal to argue against these notions, but it compels me to say Ranch might be the closest we've ever gotten to a everyday life Pokémon game.
True to its title, the game takes place on a farm where your Mii avatars—imagine this—just relax with your Pokémon pals. The activities with Pokémon were basic, and a lot of the draw was observing what your monsters might do when they're not being forced into cockfighting. In a just world, Pokémon Ranch would have been the start of a wonderful franchise built on the simple pleasures of coexisting with a small creature. But since The Pokémon Company can charge a subscription for Pokémon Home now, it's likely we will never see a Pokémon Ranch game developed to its complete potential. I'd say 'help us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but it's also known that the upcoming Switch exclusive is as much a puzzler as it is a life sim.
Ranch came out long before Stardew Valley sparked the enduring trend of comfort gaming. It was prior to the rise of passive games, and the Let's Play normalization of watching games you aren't actively controlling. Many never understood that Ranch's proposal to watch your critters as much as you interact with them didn't mask a lack of substance. In actuality, Ranch's meticulous design was so remarkable, a Twitch stream focused on broadcasting the game 24/7. The individual who operates the channel maintains that, after nearly two decades of experiencing the game, he even now has not seen everything that is in it. Recognition for Pokémon Ranch: nobody understood you in 2008.
Pokemon Duel: The Strategic Tabletop Game Lost
Are you aware that Pokemon once had an licensed board game with action figures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 effort to adapt the physical experience in a more approachable form. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's earliest forays into the world of freemium phone games. Duel had the hallmarks of a gacha title where players could pay to win—and there was motivation to do so, given the slow progression for new figures.
These questionable mechanics obfuscated a sad truth: Pokémon Duel was an excellent tactical game with Duel today. "I can’t express how much I loved and miss this game," one YouTube comment states, years after Duel's servers were pulled. "Honestly I think this game was superior to TCG Pocket in terms of complexity, accessibility, design, and features in general," another commenter declared. "I truly believe if it came out now people would be playing it more than GO and Pocket combined."
Regrettably, Duel's early release was plagued with server issues. Technical problems, alongside Duel's predatory monetization model, gave people little reason to come back. Should a revival occur, The Pokémon Company chose to resurrect this franchise, it's unclear things would end better. The unique board structure made for a great strategic challenge for the few folks who played Duel, but that board is also a intimidating visual mess.
Pokémon: Magikarp Jump: The Absurd Experiment
Man, why don't more Pokémon games relax a little and have some fun? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a rare instance of The Pokémon Company approving a game with a premise so absurd, it was bordering on internet meme. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers go out with a full belt of ineffective monsters who simply cannot do anything, I'm shocked we don't have more Pokémon games that poke fun at themselves.
Within Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with breeding the best possible version of the infamous fish. This isn't about a Magikarp that can win battles. These are 'Magikarp raised to enter competitions to see who can jump the highest. One drawback is how Magikarp Jump, like many mobile games, requires the player to pause before they can train their Magikarp further. But it is clear throughout the experience that the developers loved and understood the community love around Magikarp.
Nowhere was this more evident than in Jump's merciless random occurrences, where your Magikarp was as likely to raise its stats as it was to get eaten by a Pidgeotto. Beyond the great writing, Magikarp Jump also tried out other things one might wish the core series would do, like offering a wide variety of the same species of monster. It's understood it's not practical for any Pokémon game to have 30 different variations for a compendium of over a thousand creatures, as Magikarp Jump does... but one can dream.
Magikarp Jump was not a especially sophisticated or profound game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Sharply written events with unpredictable results that permanently influence how you can train a companion also describe the excellent Mewgenics. It's worth noting: Mewgenics will almost certainly be in the running when 2026 GOTY season rolls around.
With dozens of mainline entries and spin-offs, it's probable that I omitted that one Pokémon game you totally love but contend that too few people played. I know that some people remember games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball fondly notwithstanding argu
