In the wake of a glimpse of global harmony courtesy of Pokemon Go, it's undeniable that the monster collecting franchise is about as mainstream gaming titles around. Pikachu is every bit as famous as Mickey Mouse, perhaps even more. The ongoing frenzy around trading card values guarantees near-daily Pokemon news stories. It would be hard-pressed to find a Pokémon game that failed to move at least a couple million units. Remarkably, fan-made Pokémon games achieve popularity annually.
Yet despite that pervasiveness and fame, some Pokémon games that are totally underappreciated. These represent titles that didn't get their proper due, or were buried by the hype of the mainline series. These are Pokémon games released on ill-fated platforms or services, or were early forays onto new mediums. Frequently, they are Pokémon games that probably would have blossomed if they had received follow-ups or contemporary re-releases. Considering these factors, we won't be offering yet another 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. So, before rearranging your glasses and writing 'Actually,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for those possessing discerning palates, agreed?
Pokemon Ranch: The Relaxed Precursor
Too many Pokémon games emphasize the combat element of the series, and far too few of them highlight the ordinary realities that would come with owning a companion. Admittedly, there are minor mechanics like these in modern games—you can play with your monsters in bases. However, I'm longing for a Pokémon game more in the vein of Nintendogs or The Sims.
My Pokemon Ranch (2008) for the Nintendo Wii is not that game. The digital-only title is most accurately viewed as the antecedent to Pokemon Home; that is, as a storage system to hold monsters from different games. Critical reception from its release noted Ranch was a poor if not outright hideous game. It's not my goal to dispute these claims, but it behooves me to say Ranch might be the closest we've come to a everyday life Pokémon game.
As the name suggests, the game takes place on a farm where your Mii avatars—imagine this—simply hang out with your pals. The activities with Pokémon were basic, and a lot of the appeal was observing what your monsters might do when they're not being forced into cockfighting. Ideally, Pokémon Ranch would have been the beginning of a wonderful franchise built on the simple pleasures of coexisting with a small creature. However, because The Pokémon Company can charge a subscription for Pokémon Home now, I'm guessing 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 upcoming Switch exclusive is as much a puzzler as it is a life sim.
Ranch was released long before Stardew Valley kicked off the enduring trend of comfort gaming. It was before the rise of idle games, and the Let's Play normalization of watching games you aren't actively controlling. Most people never realized that Ranch's proposal to observe your creatures as much as you interact with them wasn't to hide a shallow core. In truth, Ranch's attention to detail was so remarkable, there's a live stream focused on running the game 24/7. The individual who operates the channel maintains that, after almost twenty years of experiencing the game, he still has not encountered everything that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: no one understood you in 2008.
Pokemon Duel: The Strategic Board Game Gone
Did you know that Pokemon once had an official tabletop game with action figures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 attempt to digitize the tabletop experience in a more accessible form. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's earliest ventures into the world of free-to-play mobile gaming. Duel had the hallmarks of a gacha game where players could spend for advantage—and there was motivation to do so, given the slow progression for new figures.
All of these questionable mechanics masked a tragic reality: Pokémon Duel was an superb tactical game with Duel today. "I can’t express how much I loved and miss this game," one 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, design, and content in general," another commenter wrote. "I am convinced if it came out 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 come back. If, by some miracle, The Pokémon Company decided to revive this franchise, I'm still not certain things would end better. The unique board structure made for a great strategic challenge for the handful of players who played Duel, but that playing field is also a intimidating eyesore.
Pokemon: Magikarp Jump: The Whimsical Gem
Wow, why don't more Pokémon games loosen up a little and have some fun? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a uncommon case of The Pokémon Company approving a game with a concept so absurd, it was verging on shitpost. Considering we're dealing with a franchise where trainers go out with a full belt of ineffective monsters who literally can't do anything, it's surprising we don't have more Pokémon games that laugh at themselves.
Within Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with breeding the ultimate version of the notorious fish. I'm not talking about a Magikarp that can kick your butt. These are 'karp raised to enter competitions to see who can flop the highest. I'm not a fan is how Magikarp Jump, like many mobile games, requires the player to wait before they can train their Magikarp further. But it is clear throughout the experience that Select Button appreciated and got the fan culture around Magikarp.
Nowhere was this more evident than in Jump's merciless random occurrences, where your Magikarp was just as likely to raise its stats as it was to get eaten by a Pidgeotto. Apart from the clever dialogue, Magikarp Jump also experimented with other things one might wish the core series would do, like offering a diverse range of the same type of monster. It's understood it's not practical for any Pokémon game to have dozens of variations for a compendium of over a thousand creatures, as Magikarp Jump does... but we can hope.
Magikarp Jump was not a especially sophisticated or profound game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Witty events with outrageous outcomes that permanently influence how you can train a companion also describe the excellent Mewgenics. And I'm just saying: Mewgenics will almost certainly be in the running when 2026 GOTY season arrives.
Given dozens of core games and spin-offs, it's probable that I omitted that particular Pokémon game you totally love but contend that not nearly enough people played. It's acknowledged that some people remember games like Pokemon Ranger or Pokémon Pinball with affection despite argu
