Following a vision of world peace courtesy of Pokemon Go, there's no question that the monster collecting series is about as ubiquitous gaming titles in existence. Pikachu is just as identifiable as Mickey Mouse, perhaps even more. The ongoing excitement surrounding card prices guarantees near-daily Pokémon news stories. You'd be difficult to find a Pokémon game that failed to move at least a couple million copies. Remarkably, fan-made Pokémon games achieve popularity annually.
Yet in spite of that pervasiveness and popularity, there are still Pokémon games that remain underappreciated. These represent titles that failed to receive their fair shake, or were buried by the excitement of the core series. These are Pokémon games released on doomed platforms or services, or were early forays onto new mediums. Frequently, they are Pokémon games that probably would have flourished if they had received sequels or modern remakes. With these criteria in mind, this list will not be yet another reminder for Pokemon Conquest or the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series. We're pulling an Excadrill.
Still, these might be these Pokémon games. So, before rearranging your glasses and typing 'Actually,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for people with refined tastes, shall we?
Pokemon Ranch: The Cozy Precursor
An excessive number of Pokémon games focus on the battling aspect of the series, and far too few of them highlight the ordinary aspects that would come with living with a companion. Sure, modern titles include minor mechanics like these in modern games—players may pet, and feed your monsters in bases. 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 downloadable-only title is most accurately viewed as the precursor to Pokémon Home; that is, as a storage system to store monsters from various titles. Reviews from its release noted Ranch was a poor if not truly ugly game. It's not my goal to dispute these notions, but it compels me to say Ranch might be the nearest we've ever gotten to a everyday life Pokémon game.
As the name suggests, the game takes place on a ranch where your Mii avatars—get this—just relax with your Pokémon pals. The interactions with Pokémon were basic, and a significant part of the appeal was observing what your monsters might do when they're not being forced into battle. 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. But since The Pokémon Company can charge a subscription for Pokémon Home now, it's likely we will not get a Pokémon Ranch game realized to its complete potential. One might cry 'save us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but I also know that the Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive is as much a puzzler as it is a life sim.
Ranch was released long before Stardew Valley sparked the enduring trend of comfort gaming. It was prior to the rise of idle games, and the video playthrough normalization of viewing games you aren't playing. Most people never understood that Ranch's concept to observe your creatures as much as you play with them wasn't to hide a shallow core. In truth, Ranch's attention to detail was so extraordinary, a live stream dedicated to broadcasting the game continuously. The individual who runs the channel maintains that, after nearly two decades of experiencing the game, he even now has not seen all that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: no one knew what to do with you in 2008.
Pokémon Duel: The Strategic Tabletop Game Gone
Did you know that Pokemon once had an licensed tabletop game with miniatures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 attempt to digitize the physical experience in a more approachable format. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's earliest forays into the world of freemium mobile gaming. Duel had the trappings of a gacha title where players could spend for advantage—and there was motivation to do so, given the lengthy grind for new pieces.
These questionable mechanics obfuscated a tragic reality: Pokémon Duel was an excellent strategy game with Duel anymore. "I can’t express how much I loved and miss this game," a YouTube comment states, seven years after Duel's servers were pulled. "Honestly I think this game was better than TCG Pocket in terms of complexity, approachability, game design, and features in general," another commenter wrote. "I truly believe if it came out now people would be playing it more than GO and Pocket combined."
Regrettably, Duel's initial launch was plagued with connectivity problems. Bugs, alongside Duel's scummy business model, gave people few incentives to return. Should a revival occur, The Pokémon Company chose to resurrect this franchise, I'm still not certain things would play out differently. The unusual board structure made for a great tactical experience for the handful of players who played Duel, but that playing field is also a intimidating visual mess.
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 rare instance of The Pokémon Company approving a game with a concept so silly, it was bordering on shitpost. Considering we're dealing with a franchise where trainers venture forth with a team of ineffective monsters who simply cannot do anything, it's surprising we don't have more Pokémon games that laugh at themselves.
In Magikarp Jump, the player is charged with raising the best possible version of the infamous fish. This isn't about a Magikarp that can win battles. These are 'karp raised to enter contests 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 improve 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 merciless random events, where your Magikarp was just as likely to improve 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 wide variety of the same species of monster. It's understood it's not feasible 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 particularly complex or profound game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Witty events with outrageous outcomes that forever alter how you can train a companion also describe the excellent Mewgenics. It's worth noting: Mewgenics will almost certainly be in the running when Game of the Year season rolls around.
Given dozens of core games and spin-offs, it's probable that I omitted that one Pokémon game you absolutely adore but contend that too few people played. I know that some people look back on games like Pokemon Ranger or Pokémon Pinball fondly notwithstanding argu
