Following a vision of global harmony thanks to Pokémon Go, it's undeniable that the monster collecting series is about as ubiquitous video games around. Pikachu is every bit as famous as Disney's mascot, if not more so. The ongoing frenzy around card prices guarantees almost daily Pokemon news stories. You'd be difficult to find a pocket monster game that didn't sell at least a few million copies. Remarkably, unofficial Pokémon games achieve popularity annually.
However in spite of that ubiquity and popularity, some Pokémon games that remain underappreciated. These represent titles that didn't get their fair shake, or were overshadowed under the excitement of the core series. These are Pokémon games stuck on doomed consoles or services, or were pioneering attempts onto new mediums. They're often also Pokémon games that might have blossomed if they ever got sequels or modern remakes. With these criteria in mind, we won't be offering just one more reminder for Pokémon Conquest or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series. We're going beneath the surface.
Still, you may already know about these Pokémon games. Therefore, prior to rearranging your glasses and writing 'Actually,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for those possessing discerning palates, agreed?
Pokémon Ranch: The Relaxed Precursor
An excessive number of Pokémon games emphasize the battling aspect of the series, and not nearly enough of them focus on the everyday realities that would come with owning a companion. Sure, modern titles include small features like these in recent entries—you can play with your monsters in bases. However, I'm longing for a Pokémon game more in the style of Nintendogs or The Sims.
My Pokémon Ranch (2008) for the Wii is not that game. The digital-only title is most accurately viewed as the antecedent to Pokémon Home; that is, as a storage system to hold monsters from different games. Critical reception from its launch said Ranch was a poor if not outright hideous game. It's not my goal to argue against these claims, but it behooves me to say Ranch might be the nearest we've come to a everyday life Pokémon game.
True to its title, the game takes place on a ranch where your personal Miis—imagine this—just relax with your pals. The activities with Pokémon were simple, and a significant part of the appeal was watching what your monsters might do when not forced into cockfighting. Ideally, Pokémon Ranch would have been the beginning of a beautiful franchise built on the simple pleasures of living your life with a small creature. However, because 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 fullest potential. One might cry 'help us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but it's also known that the Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive is as much a puzzler as it is a life simulation.
Ranch came out well before Stardew Valley sparked the lasting craze of comfort gaming. It was before the proliferation of idle games, and the Let's Play normalization of watching games you aren't playing. Many never understood that Ranch's proposal to watch your creatures as much as you play with them wasn't to hide a shallow core. In actuality, Ranch's attention to detail was so remarkable, there's a Twitch stream focused on broadcasting the game 24/7. The individual who runs the channel states that, after nearly two decades of experiencing the game, he still has not encountered everything that is in it. Recognition for Pokémon Ranch: nobody knew what to do with you in 2008.
Pokemon Duel: The Strategic Board Game Gone
Did you know that Pokémon once had an official tabletop game with miniatures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 attempt to adapt the tabletop experience in a more accessible form. Duel was also, sadly, one of Pokémon's first forays into the world of freemium phone games. Duel had the hallmarks of a gacha title where players could spend for advantage—and there was motivation to do so, given the slow progression for new figures.
These questionable mechanics obfuscated a tragic reality: Pokémon Duel was an excellent strategy game with Duel anymore. "Words cannot describe how much I loved and miss this game," one YouTube comment reads, seven years after Duel's servers were pulled. "Truly I think this game was better than TCG Pocket in terms of depth, accessibility, design, and features in general," a user wrote. "I am convinced if it launched now people would be playing it more than GO and Pocket combined."
Unfortunately, Duel's early release was plagued with connectivity problems. Technical problems, alongside Duel's predatory monetization model, gave people few incentives to return. If, by some miracle, The Pokémon Company chose to resurrect this franchise, it's unclear things would play out differently. The unique board structure made for a fantastic tactical experience for the handful of players who played Duel, but that board is also a intimidating eyesore.
Pokémon: Magikarp Jump: The Whimsical Experiment
Wow, why don't more Pokémon games relax a little and have some fun? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a uncommon case of The Pokémon Company giving its blessing a game with a premise so silly, it was bordering on internet meme. Considering we're dealing with a franchise where trainers venture forth with a full belt of ineffective monsters who simply cannot do anything, I'm shocked we don't have more Pokémon games that laugh at themselves.
In Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with raising the ultimate version of the notorious fish. This isn't about a Magikarp that can kick your butt. These are 'Magikarp raised to enter contests to see who can jump the highest. I'm not a fan is how Magikarp Jump, like many phone games, requires the player to pause before they can train their Magikarp further. But it is clear throughout the experience that the developers appreciated and got the fan culture around Magikarp.
This was most apparent than in Jump's brutal random events, where your Magikarp was as likely to raise its stats as it was to get snatched by a Pidgeotto. Beyond the great writing, Magikarp Jump also experimented with other things I wish the core series would do, like offering a diverse range of the same type of monster. It's understood it's not feasible for any Pokémon game to have dozens of colorings and patterns for a compendium of over a thousand creatures, as Magikarp Jump does... but one can dream.
Magikarp Jump was not a particularly complex or deep game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Witty events with outrageous outcomes that forever alter how you can raise a pet also describe the excellent Mewgenics. And I'm just saying: Mewgenics will almost certainly be in the running when Game of the Year season arrives.
With dozens of mainline entries and spin-offs, chances are that I didn't mention that one Pokémon game you totally love but contend that not nearly enough people played. I know that some people look back on games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokémon Pinball fondly notwithstanding argu
